WWoHP: Hogsmeade

Hogsmeade, the original part of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, was magical. Snowy rooftops, icicles, a snowman, magical shops, owls, a castle, the Triwizard Tournament, dragons, butterbeer flowing.  Just like stepping into the books.

Obviously I loved this place, but these kids were happy too.   Having read the books, watched the movies, then listened to the audiobooks as we literally drove around the country, we're familiar with the magical world. So spending weeks here I think was a pretty good Christmas present!

I was kind of obsessed with the crooked chimneys and crazy fun architecture.  

Panorama: 

At the Owl Post, there was a funny Howler.  I wouldn't want to get one!

Book shops, quills, quidditch, candy, cauldrons, instruments, wands, hats, anything you'd need. 

I loved seeing the quidditch balls. 

Yum. So much candy! 

We loved the treacle fudge! 

At night you could see into the upstairs windows even better. 

The choir was great, especially the frogs! 

Video:

This cauldron usually hung innocently, but sometimes a wizard would come by and it would tip and spit water at you! 

In the center, there's a common area with benches to rest or eat. If you look up, there are owls moving around in the rafters.

You can hear Moaning Myrtle in the bathrooms.  As I was taking this, a lady said "Is she seriously taking a picture of the bathrooms?" Um, duh.

On the way to the Dragon Challenge (so fun), you can see the flying car, what's left of it anyway. It's still running. :) 

On the way to the Flight of the Hippogriff, you can see Hagrid's hut. 

If you peek in the window, you can see some dog noses. :) 

I peeked in a lot of (okay, all) windows, but only found what you'd expect.  

Of course the butterbeer was very popular all over Hogsmeade. With good reason, it's yummy!  (Psst: we found a great butterbeer recipe!) 

Hogwarts Castle was simply amazing.  Inside and out, it was perfect, glorious, gigantic, stunning, [insert your own gushing words here].  But be sure to click on the Hogwarts Castle post for a lot more pictures. 

It was fun to stay past closing and have the streets mostly to ourselves. We were encouraged along, but they were patient as we left slowly, dragging our feet.

In Hogsmeade there are great places needing their own posts: Three Broomsticks and Hog's Head and Hogwarts Castle.  There was so much more, but again, pictures simply can't do it justice. If you are a Harry Potter fan (or if you aren't), we highly recommend you plan to visit!
See the rest of the photos:


See all our posts about the Wizarding World of Harry Potter or individual ones here:
Diagon Alley (Universal Studios) 
Gringotts Bank 
Leaky Cauldron 
Knockturn Alley 
Hogwarts Express  
Hogsmeade  (Islands of Adventure) 
Three Broomsticks and Hog's Head
Hogwarts Castle 
Small Details
Staff Costumes
And don't miss the Sugar Bean Bakers tips, prices, & walkthrough guides for Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley.