Universal Guests Stuck Upside Down on Attraction For Over 20 Minutes

in Universal Orlando

harry potter and the forbidden journey

All images credit Angela Foreman House

When Guests board a Universal Orlando Resort attraction, they typically do not expect it to last for 45 minutes, with half of that time being spent upside down, but that is exactly what happened to some Guests who recently visited Universal!

Harry Potter
Credit: Universal

At the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Islands of Adventure, Guests can ride Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey, which is an attraction that takes place inside Hogwarts Castle. Guests are able to enjoy the screen/dark ride attraction where they play Quidditch, see dementors, giant spiders, the whomping willow, snakes, dragons, and more!

Related: Universal Attraction Evacuated After Fire Alarm Was Triggered

The attraction is truly incredible when it works correctly, but recently, the attraction had to be evacuated after breaking down and stranding Guests for 45 minutes. Inside the Magic spoke with a Guest, a Universal Orlando Resort Annual Passholder, who told the story of how she and her children ended up stuck on the attraction.

harry potter and the forbidden journey
Credit: Guest

Related: Disney Evacuates Guests Suspended Mid-Air While Trapped on Attraction

On a post, a Guest wrote:

Anyone else stuck on Forbidden Journey for 45 minutes today? We were practically upside down for a little over 20 minutes with a dementor in our face before they started manually moving each car back into place. By the time we were able to be safely unlocked and back on the ground was 45 minutes. I was super proud of my 8 and 12 year old. I thought they would be crying and scared with the dementor in our face and hanging upside down. But we kept up the jokes and decided this was a good story to tell our friends. Even playing Marco Polo with some neighbors. 

I was impressed with the professionalism of the employees who asked everyone if they needed a medic as they got off and offered express passes to everyone. It was definitely an experience and I’m very glad we were all safe.

harry potter and the forbidden journey
Credit: Guest

As we can see, the Guest was able to take the experience and turn it into a positive one while remaining calm. She mentioned that there were some Guests cursing and being loud, but she and her boys decided to deal with the situation in a calm manner. All Guests received Express Passes for their inconvenience, and as the Guest mentioned, the Team Members did a great job ensuring that all Guests are safe.

harry potter and the forbidden journey
Credit: Guest

Breaks like this on Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey are quite common, but typically do not last 45 minutes. Personally, I have been in the same upside-down spot on the attraction when it broke before but was only stuck for a few minutes before the attraction began running once again. In my case, Team Members allowed me to ride once again without getting off the ride!

What do you think of this Guest’s experience at the attraction? What would you do if this happened to you? 

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