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The popular Harry Potter theme park, known as the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, is located in Universal Orlando’s Island of Adventure theme park. It’s a great place for your family to experience fun and adventure while staying at an Orlando, Florida vacation rental.

The Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey: You begin by walking through the gates into Hogwarts, then you’re led by the cast through the castle’s wonderful underground caverns and out into a greenhouse filled with a wide variety of interesting wildlife. Later you enter the wonderful castle proper.

Yes, the castle includes talking portraits, which set up the story. Have a great time touring Hogwarts, including Dumbledore’s office and the classroom where Harry, Hermione and Ron hijack your tour and escort you to an exciting Quidditch match. Have fun flying, however be prepared for very quick maneuvers. The flying segments are some of the best highlights of the tour. This magical castle is within easy reach of Orlando, Florida vacation home rentals.

Dragon Challenge: The thrilling ride includes two interlocking coasters, named Hungarian Horntail and Chinese Fireball. The excitement increases as you come very close to the other car. The dark queue, includes excellent themes, especially Triwizard Cup and the flying car.

Flight of the Hippogriff: Young kids are delighted by the Vekoma junior coaster’s magical creatures. Hagrid’s hut is a nice touch. It’s a wonderful coaster for children; cute and short. The queue places riders in Hagrid’s Garden.

The Three Broomsticks: This wonderful looking restaurant, with its fantastic themes, is located in the Hogsmead section. The restaurant provides a variety of tasty British and Scottish type meals. Try the tasty fish and chips or perhaps the shepherd’s pie or maybe the Cornish pasties.

Have a wonderful time while staying at your Orlando, Florida vacation rental.

Universal Studios Florida puts you in the middle of your favorite movies and TV shows. Its two theme parks – Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure – are connected by City Walk, an attractive dinning/shopping area. Universal offers thrills and adventure for all ages and both theme parks provide thrill rides, roller coasters, live shows and kids’ play areas. Universal Studios offers more thrill rides, live shows and kiddie activities while Islands of Adventure adds water rides and, this year’s must-see attraction, the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

While the two parks are relatively compact, you’ll want to purchase a 2-day pass if you plan to thoroughly cover both parks. (Money-saving tip: When you book your Orlando, Florida vacation rentals on iTrip.net, click the link for Universal Studios admission discounts.) If you have an unlimited budget or limited time, consider purchasing a Universal Express Plus Pass which allows you to jump ahead of the regular lines at premium rides. The cost of the pass is in addition to admission prices and is only good once on each ride but can be worth the cost if you want to maximize your fun and minimize your time at Universal.

Before leaving your Kissimmee condos and heading for the park, it’s helpful to make an action plan. Start by choosing three rides in each park that you don’t want to miss. If you’re traveling with children, check ride height restrictions on Universal’s website. If your family includes young children and teens, you may want to split up. Stay in touch with cell phones and arrange to meet for lunch at a City Walk restaurant. When arriving at the park, most people head immediately for the most popular big rides. Lines will be shorter and you’ll get to ride more rides if you start at the back of the park and save the big rides for after lunch.

Find Kissimmee condos and Orlando Florida vacation rentals at iTrip.net today!

As expected, the grand opening of  Universal Orlando’s “Wizarding World of Harry Potter” was a smash hit with its impassioned “muggle” fans.

Thousands of frantic Potter fanatics stood in line for hours last Friday waiting to get into the much-anticipated theme park, and according to an article by USA Today,  Universal Orlando spokesman Tom Schroder counted at least 5,000 heads- all of whom were camped out in front of the park the night before the grand opening. The line was so long in fact, that it coiled all the way into Universal Orlando’s Islands of Adventure Park, where the “Wizarding World” is located. Various media outlets reported that on Twitter and other forums spectators joked about the line by calling it “Harry Potter and the Endless Line.”

Fans were more than willing to wait however, they had already waited six long years for this magical moment, so what’s a few more hours, right? And besides, they had Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter) and a few other Potter superstars eager to greet them at the mini-park.

By opening day, the number of “muggles” seemed to have tripled. Aerial photos of Universal Orlando revealed thousands of people in the area, leading Robert Niles, editor of ThemeParkInsider.com, to guesstimate figures in the tens of thousands.

Opening day was indeed a smash, but don’t fret if you missed it, the “Wizarding World of Harry Potter” is still ripe for the picking. We all know there’s more than 10,000 Potter fans, so for the rest of you out there- come on down to Orlando and experience what its like to be a part of the “Hogwarts” family.

iTrip.net has several dreamy, convenient Orlando vacation rentals for you to choose from, all you have to do is book your favorite location and you’ll be ready to become a part of “Wizarding World” history.