A mysterious new ride is coming to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter
And it’s replacing an old favorite
And it’s replacing an old favorite
And it’s replacing an old favorite
One of the biggest rides in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter is going away—but Universal Orlando promises something huge will go in its place. , the theme park announced it’s building a “new generation of thrill ride” in the park, but won’t reveal what it is yet. The new ride will replace the existing Dragon Challenge ride at the Hogsmeade section of the Wizarding World, located in the Islands of Adventure theme park.
Before the Wizarding World of Harry Potter was built, Dragon Challenge used to be Dueling Dragons, with the same design, just not the Harry Potter theming. So the ride may have been showing its age, or the park may have wanted to scrap it all and build something from the ground up. According to the , the coaster used to truly be “dueling” until reports of injuries in 2011, and ever since then the two coasters start at separate times, taking away the fun of close encounters with other riders. The last day you can ride Dragon Challenge is Monday, September 5; the park will close the ride the next day.
So what’s the new ride going to be? Universal is claiming it will be “one of the most highly-themed coaster experiences we’ve created,” and it will be “fun for the entire family.” Perhaps that means the coaster will be less intense than Dragon Challenge. Universal is working with Warner Bros. and the Harry Potter production team for the ride, which will apparently “take you deeper” into the story than ever before.
Since the park is staying tight-lipped about the theme of the ride, that leaves fans plenty of room to speculate. poses a few options: perhaps the Shrieking Shack, with time travel as a key part of the experience, or perhaps a Forbidden Forest adventure featuring Newt Scamander of Fantastic Beasts. And the notes fans are hoping for a Floo Powder Network or even the maze from the Triwizard Tournament, because the park received patents for a “vehicle transportation room system and method” and a “system and method for a moving puzzle theatre.”
Whatever it is, get ready for crazy-long lines when it opens. Why can’t we come up with a spell to cut to the front?