The U.K. for Harry Potter fans

March 08, 2018

The U.K. for Harry Potter fans

Living in the U.K. is like heaven for a Harry Potter fan like myself. And I have been trying to take every opportunity to advantage of it. Apart from booking the expensive Warner Brothers Studio Tour (maybe I'll get to it some day when I'm not on a student budget) I feel like I've accomplished a lot on my Harry Potter wish list. I have visited Harry's birth place, seen where scenes from the movie have taken place, wandered the streets that inspired J.K. Rowling, and even gone to Kings Cross Station to try my hand at getting to Hogwarts!

Some of the more discreet locations are Surrey, England where Harry was raised and my city of Bristol! Although there is no place called 4 Private Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey you can still imagine you're in the backyard of his childhood. And even Bristol, England is mentioned within the first few pages of the book so I take that as a little claim to fame in terms of Harry Potter things here in Bristol.

Edinburgh is said to be there place J.K. Rowling got a lot of her inspiration from. There is a street that claims to be what she modelled Diagon Alley after, the cafe where it all began, and the hotel where she is said to have spent numerous nights working on her brain child.

Oxford University is where the film crew went to get inspiration for set design! There are even parts of the university where you can picture the exact seen in the movies... because it was literally filmed there. Imagine going to an already world famous university and on top of that scenes from Harry Potter casually being filmed around you (I'm jealous).

And finally, of course, I got my touristy pic at platform 9 3/4 at Kings Cross Station in London! I'd been to London twice before finally getting a picture on my third trip so I was not bothered by waiting on line for an hour just to look at the wrong camera while my picture was being taken. I even convinced a certain non-Harry Potter friend fo mine to get in on the picture with me but unfortunately I was not willing to pay the 15 pounds for it so there will never be proof of it.

Bonus: Harry Potter World at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida is also SO worth it if you're a huge fan. I might've spent a pretty penny on butter beer and a wand that picked ME but it is a great experience and so interactive!