Sep 205 min read

After all this time? Always...

Warner Bros Harry Potter Studio Tour - London

I still remember when the first movie, the Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone was shown in theaters in 2001. I was 8 years old. My parents bought us tickets and our family went to see it together. I already started to read the book by then, but I was only halfway through. When we got home from the cinema, my Dad said that he hoped I would finish it, regardless of knowing the end of it. I progressed with it a bit slowly, I had a hard time getting along with the strange names and the half-moon spectacles. Then I quickly fell in love with the story, and the rest is history. I couldn't wait to read the books when they were released. It also became a family custom that we always went to the cinema together when a new movie came out. Embarassing or not, but ever since then I get goosebumps when I hear the soundtrack and I also like to watch the whole series again on long, gloomy, winter evenings.

This is why it was beyond doubt that we would go to the Warner Bros studio with Ádi during our visit to London. We were a bit late with the ticket purchase, so if I can give you an advice, buy the ticket about 1.5 months in advance, if not sooner. We went in October and almost missed it. We only spent one long weekend in London, we already had a theater ticket, so we had very limited options when we could schedule the studio tour. When we finally decided to buy the ticket, 2 options remained: Saturday 6 pm or 6:30 pm. We quickly booked the earlier appointment hoping we would have enough time for everything.

Their site is very informative and easy to use. It's worth browsing through everything. Before you book your ticket (£53.50 for the regular adult ticket), check the calendar at the opening hours menu, because there you can see if there is a special theme for the given day. When we visited it was dark magic and death eaters because of Halloween and it was a lot of fun.

The decoration and all the extra attractions were also adjusted to this. Opening hours on weekends and weekdays differ. It is worth booking an early appointment, because I don't think 3.5 - 4 hours is enough at all, that we had when we visited it. The studio closes at 10 pm and the last shuttle bus leaves at that time. On their website we can get information about a wide variety of access routes, which makes it easier to get there. We took the train from London Euston station to Watford Junction, and from there we took the studio's free shuttle bus to the destination. Even there, they entertained us with introductory films, and the bus itself had a Harry Potter theme. This set the tone an by the time we got there I solemnly swore that I was up to no good!

"If all the previous teasers wouldn't have been already enough, then at this point all the fans were surely very excited."

The check-in went smoothly with the pre-purchased tickets. We received our audio guide and then entered the hall where we were greeted by a huge dragon hanging from the ceiling. This was the one that escaped from the depths of Gringotts in episode 7. We tried not to spend too much time with staring at it. From there, we were directed to a room similar to a standing-room cinema, where we were watched a few short films of the actors on 3 screens on the walls. If all the previous teasers wouldn't have been already enough, then at this point all the fans were surely very excited.

Continuing from there, we soon ended up at the entrance to the great hall. I had goosebumps. I tried not to compete so obviously with the 8-10 year-old children so that I could enter among the first ones. Since it was October, the decoration highlighted the theme of Halloween and Death Eaters. There, at that moment, everything came alive - the feasts, the troll, Dumbledore's opening speeches. Moving on, the next part was so vivid and detailed that it was hard to process everything with our eyes and ears due to the many sights and impulses. Of course, many things were no touchy-touchy. In a huge hall-like area, the locations, scenes, and decorations taken from the movies were arranged next to each other. We could also see the costumes of the actors up close, only a glass panel separated us from the Triwizard Cup, the Golden Snitch or the treasures of the Lestrange safe.

"The biggest show was the random appearance of Death Eaters in several places. "

At this point, the question may fairly come up: who can really enjoy this program? Is it only for hardcore fans, perhaps for children, or for those also who know the world of Harry Potter to some extent, but came here as a companion? I think it really is for everyone. Truly! Of course, it wouldn't be enjoyable the same way, but anyone can have a good time here. We can not only go through an exhibition hall where we can admire the movie sets, but also be part of an interactive experience. We were able to collect stamps in our little passports, walk through the Forbidden Forest, visit Privet Drive and Gringotts, and join Professor Sprout for a herbology class. The biggest show was the random appearance of Death Eaters in several places. Sometimes they appeared on platfrom 93/4, or during flying lesson. We were also able to try out how to fly on a broom, which was also filmed. We can also take the recording home with us, if we'd like to. There were other small elements, thanks to which we felt that we were an active part of it all: we could look into the pensieve or take photos on the platform pushing a trolley with a suitcase partly disappearing in the wall. Seeing Umbridge's room reminded us that we must not tell lies, and at Hagrid's hut we could only hope that we wouldn't get any of his famous cookies. We couldn't help but be amazed by all the details while we were trying to move on quickly, because we didn't have much time left until closing. There were a lot of people, but outside the food court it wasn't that noticeable. We could spend roughly 3.5 hours here, but honestly we rushed through it.

We were sure that we wouldn't go home without drinking some butterbeer, and luckily we still had time for it. It was very practically designed in the food court in such a way that there was a separate section for those who choose to eat and another for those who only wanted to taste butterbeer. We could even bring home the plastic cup as a souvenir. Wandering along Diagon Alley, we couldn't wait to take some of the movie memorabilia home with us. Though we couldn't visit the Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes or Olivander's Wand Shop, the gift shop had everything. I won't share every detail, but to sum it up, this is a great program for everyone, regardless of age. If you're in London, don't miss it! The entrance fee may seem high, especially if there are 2-4 people, but it's worth it. However, based on my own experience, I cannot emphasize enough to buy a ticket for an earlier timing than we did to have enough time for everything. It was still a great experience, but the constant rush overshadowed it a little for me. Here are a few more pictures as a teaser: