Photo: Universal Orlando Resort /YouTube

The New Hagrid Ride Opens Tomorrow at Wizarding World, and This Is What Potterheads Are Saying

Orlando Theme Parks News Movies Entertainment
by Aryana Azari Jun 12, 2019

The infamous motorcycle and sidecar from the Harry Potter series, used by Hagrid and Harry when escaping death eaters during the Battle of the Seven Potters, makes its return this week, albeit in a slightly less chaotic way. The new Hagrid-themed ride at Universal Studios’ Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando, Florida, had its soft opening yesterday, and opens to the general public tomorrow.

Hagrid’s Magical Creature Motorbike Adventure replaces the Dragon Challenge roller coasters (itself a reworking of the old, non-Potter Dueling Dragons coasters), and will take riders out of Hogwarts and through the Forbidden Forest. The ride is voiced by Robbie Coltrane, who portrayed Hagrid in the film series, and unlike many other rides in the park, it does not feature any CGI or videos, and instead relies on old-school, albeit hyper-realistic, animatronics for both Hagrid and the creatures.

As multiple Twitter users pointed out, going on the ride at night will give it a more authentic and immersive feel, as the pitch-black sky and surroundings will make you feel like you’re truly soaring through the forest. Like the other rides at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, the queue is also an experience in itself, one you can expect to experience for quite a long time before reaching the ride.

 

As a family friendly ride, there are no crazy drops or loops, but there are multiple launches and one elevator-style drop. The engineers got creative when designing the ride, with parts of the ride going vertical and backward as a real vehicle would. You can either put yourself in Hagrid’s shoes and sit on the motorcycle, or you can be The Boy Who Lived in the sidecar. Pretty much everyone is in agreement that the motorcycle seat offers a better experience.

 

In anticipation of the public opening, here’s what fans are saying.

Some are counting down the days until they can visit:

 

 

 

Others are holding off on learning more to experience the magic completely blind:

 

Those who were lucky to ride it early feel nothing else can compare:

 

 

 

 

Though, some are sad that the ride has replaced the Dragon Challenge:

 

 

Discover Matador

Save Bookmark

We use cookies for analytics tracking and advertising from our partners.

For more information read our privacy policy.