- Spain
- Travel Guides
The best things to do in Mallorca, Spain
Your vacations are fast approaching and you’d like to visit Mallorca in the Balearic Islands? Discover our complete guide on our travel blog!
- England
- Travel Guides
From start to finish, visitors are immersed in the fantastic universe of the saga, with sets, costumes, music… everything is done to make the experience as immersive as possible. We discovered this magical place and all these XXL sets during our stay in London at Christmas, and although we’re not “real fans”, we loved it. Find out in our article all about the Harry Potter Studios in London, where and when to buy tickets, where to sleep near the studios, how to get from London to the Studios… And then finally, our thoughts on our visit to the Warner Bros Harry Potter Studios.
It’s true that the Harry Potter Studios are a bit far from London! You can choose the option of sleeping in London and taking public transport or the shuttle bus linking the studios, or sleeping as close to the park as possible. You’ll find all the information you need to get to the Studios and visit them below. For our part, we stayed in a Hogwarts-like Manor House very close to the Studios.
A nice option for a good night’s sleep and a quick trip to the studios the next morning! It’s the no-commute option that saves us a round trip to London during the day, perfect for us little Muggles. What we particularly liked about this hotel was the 65-hectare park that surrounds the Manor and offers a lovely view of the forest. The Harry Potter Studios can be reached in just 15 minutes by car or cab.
You also have the option of staying directly in central London and taking public transport or the shuttles included in the Harry Potter Studios Tour ticket. In this case, you could stay at this hotel in the heart of London and close to public transport links to the Studios :
It’s really advisable to buy your tickets online before your stay. That way, you’ll be assigned an arrival time and can plan your stay with complete peace of mind. If you don’t get your tickets before the big day, you may not have a seat. For those wishing to visit Harry Potter Studios in London as a family, there is a family ticket: for 2 adults and 2 children or 1 adult and 3 children.
Harry Potter Studios: Prices for a day with transport included:
What’s fantastic about London’s Harry Potter Studios is that you can discover both the life-size sets used in the films, as well as the props and costumes. To all fans of JK Rowling’s magical mworld and its film adaptation, who dream of entering the Chamber of Secrets, of seeing the Forbidden Forest, you’ll love it. Discovering the film sets is like going behind the scenes. You’ll also find cafés, restaurants and souvenir stores offering hundreds of gift ideas for Harry Potter fans! Come on, get on your broomstick, we’ll take you there.
The tour begins for the impressive Grand Hall, an iconic location in the saga. This common room, well known from the films, is just as beautiful in person, and personalized according to the seasons (Halloween, Christmas…). It reminded us of Universal Studios in Los Angeles, so fantastic are the movie sets. You’ll feel as if you’ve bumped into Hagrid or Dumbledore every time you enter a different set!
We particularly liked the forbidden forest! In the films, it was a mix of sets and special effects. The atmosphere is very well reproduced, and with the 19 trees and a few giant spiders, it really feels like home. Watch out for Voldemort! For those of you who were frightened by the Prisoner of Azkaban, we’d advise you not to go there, as it’s so realistic.
Discover also the famous way 9 3/4! Although most of the scenes were shot in London’s King’s Cross station, the producers created a real locomotive, and you can visit the one used in the filming. Direction the Hogwarts Express, we love it!
We also loved le chemin de traverse,where we thought we were little wizards. It’s not just facades, the guides can go into a small part of the stores and show you some incredible accessories. Are you wizard enough to visit the Ministry of Magic?
We were also able to discover the attraction inaugurated in 2019: Gringotts, the wizards’ bank. Once again, the room is huge and the sets truly realistic. It’s easy to see the impressive level of detail that went into every single element of the sets and models.
The number of props on display at the London studios is incalculable! Between the potions room, and its 950 jars, the souvenir cupboard and its 900 vials and the many books, paintings… you’ve got plenty to take your eyes off! You’ll also find incredible models of cars, doors and creatures. To all those who’ve dreamed of seeing real magic wands and wizards’ broomsticks, you’re in for a treat!
We also really enjoyed the costumes in the films. You can check out those for the Quidditch team, the Christmas Ball, “19 Years Later”, the last scene of the films (well, even if we agree, those costumes sucked). But also the masks and accessories used to dress up the actors in the films! Go Gryffindor!
For the more curious (and especially the more impatient) we’ve put a link to a video below. It’s a little dated, so expect to be surprised when you visit the Harry Potter Studios 😉
You can, of course, have lunch, dinner or a coffee on site during your visit to Harry Potter Studios London. There are several establishments to choose from, from Starbucks (located directly at the entrance), to Backlot Café and Butterbeer. For those unfamiliar with butterbeer, alcohol-free of course, you absolutely must try it just for the experience!
You have the option of paying a little more for your Park Pass and taking the bus provided for the visit. It’s the easy way out, so you don’t have to think about anything! The meeting point is at Victoria station or King’s Cros, and it takes about 1h30 to get to the Studios. Places go fast, so it’s essential to book in advance! Also remember to arrive 30 minutes before the bus departs.
After taking the Eurostar to central London… A less expensive and time-equivalent option. Travel from Euston London station to Watford Junction station. Once you arrive at Watson Junction station, take a Harry Potter bus to the studios for only £3 per person (payable in cash). However, you can only reach this route by bus every 30 minutes!
Parking is free outside, just in front of the studios, and there are plenty of spaces. Beware, however, of London’s fairly dense traffic!
Even for us who like the Harry Potter universe without being big fans, the London Studios are worth the detour! So we’ve told ourselves several times that “real fans” must be completely nuts when they visit. We were lucky enough to have a guided tour with Darcy, a passionate and exciting person who really brought soul to every little detail of the set. As well as loving London and returning to it very regularly, we think it’s worth extending your stay by a day to discover the Studios, at least once. Immersing yourself in the world is magical, and allows you to really understand the immense amount of work that went into producing the Harry Potter films. At the end of your visit, stop by the souvenir store to pick out your wizard’s wand!
When we visited, it was “Hogwarts in the Snow” for Christmas, with a real winter breeze blowing through the sets! We went on a weekday and found that the Studio was very busy, without being completely overcrowded. The tour lasts around 4-5 hours, we really recommend taking a morning slot as well as an audio guide to get all the juicy info on the films!
We hope our travel blog’s tips and tricks will help you plan your next trip to the Harry Potter Studio!
You can also follow our daily adventures on Instagram 🙂
Clem & Alex
Your vacations are fast approaching and you’d like to visit Mallorca in the Balearic Islands? Discover our complete guide on our travel blog!
You want to visit Copenhagen in 3 days and are looking for a list of must-sees and must-dos? Check out our travel blog.
Would you like to discover Andalusia in Spain and are looking for information to help you plan your trip? You’ve come to the right travel blog.