Harry Potter

Universal Studios Japan: 5 Years of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter

3:19 PM

This actress in the middle was probably still in middle school when Potterland opened... Oh god.
USJ is back to remind us of the passage of time, this time in the form of a celebration for The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, still the only Potter Park outside of the United States.

Not much has changed in the area since it opened; there are certainly less people and the Forbidden Journey has been revamped a few times (it had a problem with making riders sick at one point), but now it's time to give the area a crowd boost with a limited-time evening castle show, Hogwarts Magical Celebration.


Hogwarts Magical Celebration

Time Period: March 20th - November 4th
Starts daily after sunset (times may vary by day or from weather conditions)

According to the official website:
"Gryffindor! Hufflepuff! Ravenclaw! Slytherin!" The names ring out loudly from the Sorting Hat! The excitement of that moment has been brought to you as part the festivities to celebrate the 5th anniversary! The majestic lion, snake, and other animals of the four school houses will cover Hogwarts Castle in a mirage of color! Return to the excitement of that moment in a flurry of brilliant colors during the all new castle show!

This event has a particularly long duration, probably owing to the fact that Potter Park doesn't have any special events during the Spring/Summer/Fall season. But, with this new limited-time event, there will definitely be an influx of local park goers, which also means, unfortunately, there may be a limit on the number of people that can get in Potter Park per day.

In this case, you should keep in mind that you will not be able to enter the Harry Potter section of the park until the time indicated on your Harry Potter timed-entry ticket. Also, if you don't have a timed-entry ticket for Potterland, you'll have to pick one up inside the park. However, once these are gone, you won't be able to enter Potterland that day. If you're a guest visiting from overseas, I would definitely recommend acquiring the Potterland entry ticket when you buy your passes. I've had more than one friend show up to USJ just to go to Potterland, and not be able to get a timed-entry ticket in time. It's a sad. :(

As far as I can tell, the only way to definitely get a ticket for Potter Park when purchasing tickets online is to buy the Royal Studio Pass. Now, you might be thinking to yourself, 'That's not so bad,' but you haven't converted the price to your local currency yet.

If you can't read Japanese, or numbers, consider yourself lucky.
A 1-day pass with the Potterland entry ticket will cost you 26,700 for an adult ticket, that's roughly 240 USD. This ticket includes fast-passes for every ride in the park though, so there is that. But, if your wallet can't handle that level of commit, you're welcome to join us plebs down at the ticketing booths in the park, just remember to bring your park ticket as it is needed to issue a Potterland ticket and maybe try to get in line as soon as the park opens, especially on a weekend.


Triwizard Spirit Rally

From the official site:
More sensational than ever! The students of Beauxbatons and Durmstrang are here to make the year extra special! Special performances from these two schools as they arrive at Hogwarts for the Triwizard Tournament. Enjoy an acrobat show together with incredible action and a fabulous ribbon dancing!

If this seems like an afterthought to my post about the 5th anniversary celebration, that's only because it looks like an afterthought on the website. The description was also really repetitive, so I cut of most of it.

Anyway, the website just says to refer to the show schedule on their site for times, and from what I can see, there are 3 performances a day. This is certainly subject to change, so always check the website before planning your trip or before you arrive. The show schedule is available 1 week up to 10 days in advance.

I spy a bestie in the background.

This event is probably going to be worth checking out if you were heading to USJ anyway. Would I recommend buying a day pass just to check it out?? If you're a HP fan, then you'll probably have a great time. Everyone else, well, now you know what it's about and can make an informed decision.

I will try to upload a video of the event when I go. In the meantime, check out these other videos on USJ events. :)


★Peaces★

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