Top 10 Harry Potter Things-to-Do with Preschoolers at Universal Orlando!

I love sharing awesome places to go and things to do with your preschoolers, so I am delighted to put together my guide of the Top 10 Things to do with Preschoolers at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Universal Orlando! I'm also including a possible 1-Day Itinerary, in case you only have one day to spend and you want a suggested to-do list with your kids! And, I have my own little set of Helpful Notes (awesome general tips that you should make sure you know)! Just keep scrolling down to make sure you see everything!

IMPORTANT NOTE: Harry Potter - themed attractions are in TWO parks at Universal Studios in Orlando. Universal Studios Florida includes The Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Diagon Alley and Islands of Adventure includes The Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Hogsmeade. If you're a Harry Potter fan, you really want to visit both parks. You can do it on separate days, but I'd highly recommend doing the Hogwarts Express Ride, which requires visiting both parks. More on that below!

Top 10 Things to do with Preschoolers at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Universal Orlando

I'm starting this list out with the ten things I think preschoolers will love the most in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal in Orlando!

#1- Hogwarts Express Ride!

Number one is absolutely the Hogwarts Express! Every preschooler I've ever known thinks trains are awesome, and most love them so much that riding a real train is a dream come true! 

I highly recommend entering the train at Kings Crossing in Diagon Alley (from the Universal Studios park) and riding it into Hogsmeade (in the Islands of Adventure park). This requires access to both parks. We used a Park to Park pass, and it worked great.

The details in the train station, lines, and entrance are fantastic too. Here are a few of my favorites:

If you're short on time, this is absolutely a must-do. Every child on the train loved it! While you travel between stations, there is even a "window" that is actually a screen that shows scenery as if you were traveling from London to Hogwarts!

If you have a little bit more time, make sure you check out some of the other activities (#'s 2-10) below! And at the end of the list, I have a possible itinerary that shows a great order to get all ten items in!

#2- Buy a wand & do some magic! 

There is an Ollivander's Wand Shop in both Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade. You can also get wands at Wands by Gregorovitch (in Diagon Alley) or Universal's main gift shops, but the incredible shop experience at Ollivander's is worth the wait! Plus, it's very close to the entrance in Diagon Alley. 

There are SO many walls lined with a huge variety of wands to choose from:

Inside the box is a map showing where the wands will work their "magic:"

Throughout both Diagon Alley and Hogsmead, your interactive wand can cast different spells!

For example, here the wand is opening a case with a chocolate frog in it that will croak:

Other locations played music boxes, made statues move, and much more!

You can "cast spells" at any of these locations in Diagon Alley:

* Brown E. Wrights Blacksmith Shop

* Pillwinkle's Playthings

* Scribbulus

* Slug and Jiggers Apothecary

* The Magical Menagerie

* The Mermaid Fountain (by Carkitt Market)

* Wesley's Wizard Wheezes

* Wiseacres

And you can "cast spells" at any of these locations in Hogsmeade:

* Dervish and Banges

* Honeydukes

* Madam Puddifoot's

* McHavelock's

* Sprintwiches

* Tomes and Scrolls Specialist Bookshop

*Zonko's Joke Shop

Inside Ollivander's is a panel where you can learn more about your own personal wand...

And a collection of some of the most famous wands in wizarding history! Can you see the wand from Nicolas Flamel?!

#3- Drink a butterbeer!

This Harry Potter classic is easy to get in several stands and restaurants. 

My favorite place to eat was The Leaky Cauldron (Diagon Alley side), and it included the awesome "souvenir cup" in the picture above.

The Leaky Cauldron is pretty popular (because it is amazing!), but you can actually pull up the menu on the app and order while you're in line! Our food was delivered just a couple minutes after we sat down!

#4- Knight Bus and Phone Booth!

Number four is the Knight Bus and phone booth! These are really close to each, and are just so novel for kids! Everyone loves a bus, especially one with a talking head-driver and beds in the back! The phone booth is basically across the street, and something that most of our kids will never actually use in real life!

#5- Ice-cream and Treats! 

Kids love ice-cream and treats! You can visit the famous Honeydukes in Hogsmeade, get ice-cream at Florean Fortescue's Ice-Cream Parlour in Diagon Alley, and get other treats at Sugar Plum's Sweet Shop in Diagon Alley! 

Getting Every-Flavor Jelly Beans was high on our list of things our kids wanted, so this bulk jelly bean display was pretty exciting. The cute little gift boxes were a great treat for friends at home too:

Honeydukes also had a no-sugar added gummy worm treat--it was actually the only "sugar free" treat we were able to find easily, so we grabbed a bag full of them for my sugar-free child as well!

#6- Nighttime Lights at Hogwarts Castle at sunset!

As the sun sets, the Hogwarts Castle in Hogsmeade lights up. When the sky darkens, a whole show featuring dementors, fires, spiders, and much more projects across the castle! It is epic! The grand finale includes fireworks! It's the perfect way to end the day!

#7- Check out the shops... and fake shops! 

There are SO many cool shops and window-only shops in both Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade! Weasley's Wizarding Weazes, Quality Quidditch Supplies, and Ollivander's Wands are amazing in Diagon Alley. Owl Post, in Hogsmeade, actually has real post cards and stamps! You can send mail or collect a new set of postage! 

Make sure you hang out in Diagon Alley long enough to see the dragon on Gringott's blow fire! It's literally thousands of degrees hot--we felt it from all the way down by The Leaky Cauldron! Rumor has it that it will happen about every ten minutes!

Also, I made a fun Harry Potter Scavenger Hunt for you! Most of these different shops or things you can see in the shop windows as you walk through both Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade! Just CLICK HERE to download it!

#8- Hippogriff Ride

If your kids like rollercoasters, Flight of the Hippogriff is perfect for young children! It's in Hogsmeade (Islands of Adventure), and only requires children to be 36 inches tall (though if they're under 48 inches they need an adult supervisor to ride with them). 

#9-  Escape from Gringotts Ride 

If your kids are tall enough and enjoy rollercoasters and 3D and 4D effects, and don't mind dark flashes or rooms, they will love Escape from Gringotts Ride. I realize this is a very narrow group of preschoolers, but mine both fit in it, so I wanted to share the details in case yours do too!

Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts is the only ride in Diagon Alley, and it is pretty epic. Before the ride even begins, the line winds through Gringotts bank, past goblins and chandeliers, underground in the vaults, and more! During the ride you see Harry, Ron, and Hermione, but also scarier villains like Voldemort and Bellatrix. 

Kids need to be 42 inches tall and riders under 48 inches need to have a supervising adult ride with them. Here are a few fun shots from the line:

After you take an "elevator" down into the vault, you get 3D glasses, climb up a set of stairs toward some epic cave-y stalactites, and finally board the ride.

Each of my kids would have been tall enough to go on this ride by the time they were four years old, but the dark rooms and scarier sequences would have been too much for one of them. The others would have loved it! I saw lots of young kids enjoying the cool visual effects, and I think most preschoolers would love it! If you're not sure about your own child handling the darker rooms, I'd suggest giving it a try--there are several exit locations throughout the line that you could take if your child gets overwhelmed.

Also, see my Helpful Notes below about the Child Swap.

#10- Hagrid's Motorbike & Forbidden Forest

Number ten is for two more rollercoasters that your preschoolers need to be a little taller for:

Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure (48 inch minimum) and Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey (48 inch minimum height). I'm grouping them together since they're both fast rollercoasters in Hogsmeade. 

My preschoolers didn't reach this height requirement until they were five, but if you have tall kids who like fast rollercoasters, these are fantastic! If your kids are too short for them, but they don't mind scenic lines, you might want to take them through the lines anyway and use the Child Swap for the adults in your group.

The line for Hagrid's ride weaves through his garden, hut, and even castle. You see dragon eggs, pumpkins, and more! This is the only ride that does not have an option for an Express Pass, but the scenery for the line is so fun, we didn't mind walking through it! Here are a few pictures:

The Forbidden Journey is actually inside the Hogwarts Castle. It uses stunning visual, 3D, and 4D effects as you travel around the castle and Forbidden Forest! Here is a preview of the entire ride:

This line weaves through Dumbledore's office, past the sorting hat, and a huge variety of other secrets in the castle. It also has a Child Swap option (see my Helpful Notes at the end)!

You've reached the part where I share my suggestions for a possible 1-Day Itinerary! This is just a short and simple outline of the order I would suggest doing things to make sure you hit all the most important things I listed above!

Before I share it, I want to point out that if you have young preschoolers who need daily naps, I strongly recommend spending at least two days on The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Orlando. On one day, start at Universal Studios, do the Diagon Alley activities, and take the train to Hogsmeade. Then go to your hotel and take naps. On the second day, go do the Hogsmeade activities in the morning and then return to your room for naps.

If your preschoolers can handle a day without naps, or even napping in a stroller, you can probably do this one-day itinerary. The advantage of spending one full day in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is that it leaves your other days for the rest of the fun at Universal... and there is plenty to do outside of Harry Potter!

For this itinerary, you need access to both Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. We used a two-park ticket.

Here is my possible 1-day itinerary for you! 

It includes all of the things I think are absolutely must-sees in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter for preschoolers... and their parents!

#1- Knight Bus & Phone Booth. If you're interested in Number 12 Grimmauld Place, this is the time to pop over there too--it's very close! And you might see Kreacher peeking out the window! Knight Bus & Phone Booth are discussed above. Here's Grimmauld Place:

#2- Go through the magical wall to enter Diagon Alley!

Seriously, this is the coolest thing ever! 

#3-  Buy a wand at Ollivander's! Use the map to work your magic.

#4- Check out the shops in Diagon Alley! Do the Scavenger Hunt I made.

#5- Eat at The Leaky Cauldron. Get a butterbeer!

#6- Ride Escape from Gringotts!

#7- Get ice-cream at Florean Fortescue's Ice-Cream Parlour.

#8- Ride Hogwart's Express train to Hogsmeade!

#9- Check out the shops, use your magic wand, and work on the scavenger hunt at Hogsmeade.

#10- Ride Flight of the Hippogriff.

#11- Ride Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure! (if your kids are over 48")

 

#12- Ride Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey! (if your kids are over 48")

#13- Get dinner at The 3 Broomsticks!

#14- Get candy at Honeydukes!

#15- Watch the Nighttime Lights at Hogwarts Castle!

Here are five helpful notes and general tips! These are super important to know about--if you take young children to theme parks regularly, you probably already know about them. But if this is your first big trip, definitely take a minute and make sure you're familiar with these!

#1: Child Swap. Every rollercoaster in this article has a child swap option. This means that if your family waits through the line with one child who is too short for a ride, once you reach the end of the line, adults can swap out sitting with the short child. For example, say Mom, Dad, Older Sister, and Younger Sister go through Hagrid's Motorbike ride line. They reach the end and Mom and Older Sister get on the rollercoaster. Dad and Younger Sister wait off to the side. When Mom and Older Sister return, they go sit with Younger Sister and Dad takes a turn on the ride. Then they all exit together. 

There are a a variety of Child Swap options on different rides, so it is important to tell the employee at the beginning of the ride that you intend to use the Child Swap option. They might let the parent sitting with the younger child(ren) wait in the Child Swap room while the other parent waits through the line. Some rides have an actual room while other rides just have a partitioned area near the ride entrance. Ask an employee at each ride so you know what to expect!

#2: Lockers. All of the "thrill rides" have lockers nearby for your bags, phones, glasses, etc. There are small free lockers and larger "backpack-sized" lockers for a small fee. If you're doing a Child Swap option, the parent staying with the child can keep a small bag. 

#3: Snacks & Express Passes.  Number three is all about making the lines more pleasant for your children. Always bring snacks and water bottles in lines! There are trash bins you can use as you get closer to the rides so your hands are empty on the actual ride. Nothing is worse than a hungry or thirsty child in line! On that note, if your children don't do well in lines, consider purchasing an Express Pass. There are express lines for every ride except Hagrid's Motorbike. The express lines usually cut the wait time down from about an hour to about fifteen minutes. 

#4: Strollers. If your kids are not used to being on their feet all day, consider bringing or renting a stroller. You cannot bring strollers into the ride lines, but there is stroller parking near every ride. Strollers can be a little bit big, but they are super useful for carrying kids around... and all their stuff!

#5: Get the app! The Universal Orlando app has TONS of information! It includes wait times for lines, height requirements for different rides, and even options to order food online! It is SUPER helpful, and you definitely want it! It might take a bit of data to download, though, so make sure you have it and have looked at how it works before you get to the park!

That's my HUGE guide to bringing preschoolers to The Wonderful Wizarding World of Harry Potter! I hope you have a wonderful time, and that you found this guide super helpful!

Happy Educating,

Carla

This post was written in cooperation with Universal Orlando. All content and opinions expressed are mine personally and do not reflect any official statements from Universal. As always, I share my honest thoughts, and only recommend places and products I love!  💖 Carla

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