The holiday season is in full swing at Universal Studios Hollywood, and The Wizarding World of Harry Potter has plenty of holiday cheer for park guests of all ages. From nighttime entertainment to delicious eats and treats, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter offers amazing opportunities to get every guest in the holiday spirit. And for the first time ever, guests can experience nightly snowfall every evening throughout Hogsmeade. While there are countless things to explore and experience throughout The Wizarding World, the decorations blew us away. Take a look at how The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is decked out for the holiday season now through January 6.
When you arrive at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios Hollywood in time for the holiday season, you are met with beautiful decorations at Hogsmeade. Every building throughout the immersive village is decorated with brightly colored garland that illuminates the atmosphere every evening. While the tops of the buildings in Hogsmeade are always covered with snow, the atmosphere gives off even more cozy holiday feelings with the addition of seasonal décor. You can’t help but smile as you take in all of the sights of the village.
Everywhere you look, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is filled with beautiful holiday décor and the festive sights and sounds of the Christmas season. Festive décor, lights, garlands, and wreaths cover every nook and cranny of The Wizarding World. Three Broomsticks — the restaurant themed after the place where Harry, Ron, and Hermione would often grab some butterbeer and hang out — is covered with holiday garland inside and out. Three Broomsticks has also introduced themed holiday fare to get guests in the festive spirit. And even the butterbeer carts are in the holiday spirit!
One of our favorite things to do when visiting The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is strolling through Hogsmeade to take in every bit of hidden magic throughout the village. During the holidays, there is even more to see. When you visit this season, take your time when walking through the area. Listen to the performances by the Frog Choir in the background, grab a cup of hot butterbeer (available only during this time of year!), and embrace the magic of Hogsmeade during the holidays.
To make sure you can see all of the holiday magic during daylight hours at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, we suggest arriving at Hogsmeade before noon and taking a slow stroll throughout the village. Take your time observing all of the décor, sipping your butterbeer of choice, and riding Flight of the Hippogriff and Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. The Wizarding World is amazing during the day and completely transforms at night, so we think you should definitely make an effort to visit at different times of day to fully experience the festivities.
The shops throughout Hogsmeade are decorated inside, as well. Even Honeydukes gets a seasonal makeover this time of year.
We love experiencing everything The Wizarding World of Harry Potter has to offer throughout various times of day at Universal Studios Hollywood. Check with a team member or use the Universal Studios Hollywood official app to find out all of the times when you can see various live performances (like the Frog Choir, reunited for the holiday season for a cappella performances), the new nightly snowfall, and the spectacle of dazzling holiday lights, The Magic of Christmas at Hogwarts Castle.
Every evening, Hogsmeade transforms into a nighttime winter wonderland when the entire Wizarding World is illuminated with amazing dazzling lights, snowfall, music, and projections. We absolutely love the magical nighttime atmosphere at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, and we want to make sure you can see everything the land has in store this holiday season, too.
After you visit Hogsmeade in the morning and spend some time throughout Universal Studios Hollywood during the day, we recommend coming back to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter by 4:30 p.m. to take another stroll through Hogsmeade and buy a cup of hot butterbeer before catching the first showing of The Magic of Christmas at Hogwarts Castle. Projection mapping technology illuminates Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry with colorful imagery and dimensional animations that dance across the castle along with a festive musical arrangement from the “Harry Potter” films.
The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is a fan-favorite, immersive part of Universal Studios Hollywood, and it can get pretty crowded with park guests wanting to see the amazing projection show on Hogwarts Castle, which shows several times throughout the evening. Confirm the first Magic of Christmas at Hogwarts Castle showtime with a team member (typically, it is at 5:20 p.m.) so you can see the show and relax for the rest of the evening. Then, embrace the snowfall at Hogsmeade!
There is so much holiday magic and cheer in store for you at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter this holiday season. Check out all of the holiday festivities Universal Studios Hollywood has to offer this year.
When are you planning to visit The Wizarding World of Harry Potter this holiday season?
