When I was 10, I asked my grandma to buy me the first four books of the Harry Potter series because I thought “they looked cool”. They sat on my bookshelf for three years at least, until my mom finally made me read them. I was hooked after the first chapter of the first book, and I have been hooked ever since. One of the very last days of my UK travel study will be spent at the Warner Brothers Studio- the Making of Harry Potter in London. Everything I’ve read online about has said it may be “pricey, but it’s perfect for any Harry Potter fan”.
Part of me wants to explore every inch of the website in order to prep, but the other part wants me to save some surprises for when I get there. Some of the attraction’s highlights include studio tours where fans can go behind the scenes of the “Boy Who Lived”. Replicas of sets seen in the books and on screens such as Hogwarts’s Great Hall, Diagon Alley (pictured above), Dursley Home, and the most recent added attraction: the Forbidden Forest can make a visitor feel the stepped right back into one of the movies. After the tours, many fans enjoy getting their picture taken on Platform 9 3/4 before purchasing the famous Chocolate Frogs or Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans in the gift shop.
The entire itinerary for the travel study is seemingly set up to “save the best for last”. Our last four days of our trip will be set in London, including this tour. The upside? I have something to focus on throughout the trip when I get homesick. The downside? I have to be sure to budget my money so I can get everything I want in the gift shop! Luckily the Warner Brother Studio has a Gift Shop website with all of their merchandise and pricing listed. Since I am not familiar with the different currencies in the UK, this has been a great tool to have for budgets.
The trip count down has turned into months and now weeks. I’m afraid to say “I can’t wait to be in the UK already!” so many times because one day I’ll wake up and I’ll be back home. Until next time….
“Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times…if one only remembers to turn on the light”-Albus Dumbledore