Harry Potter announcement next week

Looks they will announce the opening date as well as what the ride actually is all about. Looks like it will be a virtual experience of sorts to do with the robo coaster.

The video is on Facebook, not sure if they uploaded it anywhere else.

Also on YouTube.

I love that they hype the announcement of the announcement of the announcement of when it will open.

lol, Jeff...

Not really the *best* kept secret, but they've done a nice job keeping the details away from the public.

I really have high hopes for the new "Strong Arm" attraction. If it's a tracked Robocoaster, I believe that it just may live up to my expatations, but if it's just a bunch of Robocoasters with a 3D screen around each of them or something, I don't know how I'll feel about it.

And although Potterland looks fantastic so far, what happened to the Hogwarts Express train ride that was to be built behind Dueling Dragons? It seemed that the plans for it just evaporated into thin air.

And Potterland looks to only have one new ride. I thought that there was going to be more than that.

I'm still very excited to pay a visit though. I really enjoy the Potter movies a lot.

^As for the "only one new ride?" thing, we stopped complaining about that last season...that's been known for over a year. Kinda disappointing, because there are at least five new shops, and Lost Continent (which arguably was the strongest themed "land" in any park anywhere) has been absolutely destroyed.

The new attraction excites me, and the new theming is going to be really cool - but considering the duration of the downtime, two new rides would have been considerably more palatable. This will make a total of three rides added since IoA opened almost a dozen years ago, and since that time USF has almost certainly surpassed IoA in terms of coasters...but the water rides at IoA are simply unmatched outside of New Braunfels, TX... :)

Only one ride? Fiddly Dee!! Oh well. The scenery will be pretty....so much that Micky and his entourage are green with envy.

I thought USF only had two coasters - (HRRR and Mums) compared to IOA's four. Am I missing something?

IoA has only had DD and Hulk since construction began. USF also has Woody Woodpecker, which is the same ride as Flying Unicorn...except it's operating. So right now, counting DD as two, the "score" is 3-all. One park has ONLY inverting coasters, the other has only non-inverting coasters....hmmmm.

Ice bangs around too much, and Hulk is overrated. Mummy has strong airtime (which makes it about equal to Fire in my book), and HRRR is a better ride than Hulk - all IMO, obviously.

Universal built two new coasters in the same time that IOA has built one, Delan (hot stuff).

I still wonder why we don't get a train. I'm not complaining, because a new multimillion dollar dark ride is always welcome...Just wondering. Was it announced that they scrapped the train ride? Did I miss it at some point? Will we possibly see the train ride open in ten years?

It was announced with the rest of the new land. It was supposed to go into the employee area behind DD. This was going to make Potterland larger. As of now, it's all in the same area of that section of LC.

I would argue that IOA didn't need as many new attractions to keep people coming back. I selfishly wish that wasn't the case, because some of the stuff in that park are mind blowing, and it would be nice to see what they could do with the the rides that were always rumored.

A JP Jeep ride, that put guests in the T-Rex scene of the first movie...HelicopTOURS, a chopper ride over JP...A Pterodactyl themed flying coaster that has scenery from the third movie...A Grinch themed bobsled ride...

I just hope it opens in time for my trip in early June. Hitting Universal at the tail end of a cruise.

LostKause said:
...Delan (hot stuff).

Two-timer! ;)

Oh to have the time to link to all your many people on CB Moosh ;)

LostKause said:
Universal built two new coasters in the same time that IOA has built one, Delan (hot stuff).

LOL...you are too kind. Flattery will get you everywhere

It may be disappointing to have just the stationary train -- destined to be a hot picture spot, no doubt -- but I don't think it was EVER officially announced that a train ride was supposed to go in there.

I'm guessing that all of these things will happen in time. The only real shock is that HP will have three rides and all with height requirements. Given the merchandising opportunities, I'd expect at least a few kiddie themed flats.

And there is no way that this is NOT a tracked Robocoaster. This needs to be a high-capacity ride and anything short of a continuously loading Robocoaster is just asking for guests fuming for hours within Hogwarts.

One new attraction is not only a little disappointing but probably will bottleneck the arm attraction. Sure guests will flood all of WWHP however without another attraction most guests will end up in the same line. Does anyone know how the path will flow through the area connecting to the rest of the park?

"Master" plans and blueprints for additions in parks change all the time. Universal will deliver what it promised to the public, a highly themed immersive Harry Potter region. I'm sure the number of attractions, specific rides and layout have been altered and cut down from more fantastic concept art than we've ever seen.

Some of you are acting as if Dueling Dragons no longer exists. That ride alone could eat 3,000 guests an hour at capacity.

I assume they just basically overlayed the queue to Dueling Dragons to give it a Potter storyline?

I think that's right. I was under the impression that the overlay would be non-trivial, but it's not going to be down for very long last I checked.

^ Dragons has already been closed and reopened again last week. Is it supposed to close again?

Sounds like the Forbidden Journey is, in fact, a stationary ride?

The technology includes something that has been referred to as a 360-degree film experience. There were also several mentions of a robotic arm and the "biggest special effects we have ever put on," according to President of Universal Creative Mark Woodbury. "It's a level of execution that makes everything else pale in comparison."

http://www.the-leaky-cauldron.org/2010/3/25/wizarding-world-of-harr...rts-emerge

Epic vacation planning fail! My wife and I will be there two weeks earlier.