Diagon Alley vs Hogsmeade

[RandomPrincess]

Which would you do first? I think Diagon Alley is bigger and has more stuff to explore. My kids are 4 and 6 and 42 inches so we won't be riding the 2 big thrill rides in Hogsmeade. I'm just worried if we do Diagon Alley first it will be awesome and then Hogsmeade might pale in comparison. But she has only been allowed to read/see the first 2 book/movies so he is not as familiar with Hogsmeade, since the kids don't really explore it until #3.

Also do they do the wand show in both parks? That is a huge deal for my daughter she loves Harry Potter!

 

[Disneyhead'71]

Do Diagon Alley first. They do the wand show in both DA and Hogsmeade. But the one in DA has a much shorter line.

And while your kid won't be able to ride Forbidden Journey. You can get a walking tour of Hogwarts to see all the cool stuff in the queue and preshows.

 

[EngineJoe]

I think diagonal alley is the more impressive of the two. I agree that it would be underwhelming to go from that to hogwarts especially since they can't ride anything.

 

[belledream]

Agree with Diagon Alley first, as it is newer and definitely more impressive, especially when not flooded with people. This order would also follow the book, so your kids would be able to get their wands and 'shop' for supplies, then board Hogwarts Express and go to Hogwarts!

 

[amsonia]

Diagon Alley would be more impressive. Lots more places to wander including the dark Knockturn Alley with the talking shrunken heads. They have the puppet show in the "market". The kids can go through Gringots Money Exchange and talk to the Goblin. I think you can walk through the bank part of the Gringots ride as well and then there is that dragon. The Leaky Caldron sign is supposed to leak but I forgot to look. Lots of places to use the interactive wands. There is the Night Bus outside in "London" and you can also watch the window at #12 to see the House Elf. Introduce them to a rotary phone and dial 62442 ("magic") in the red phone box.

At Hogsmeade, the Frogs Choir and Spirit Rally are in front of Hogsmeade Castle. There is not really a good place to sit and wait for the shows, though people sit on the stage until told to move. I believe you can walk through the Dragon Challenge queue with the kids without riding (haven't tried it) as well. On the patio at the 3 Broomsticks if you look over the railing into the water, a lot of fish usually gather there as people probably feed them. The hogs head over the bar there is animated. There is a photo opportunity with the train engine. If you get there early, the wand experience may not be too crowded but the line does go more quickly at Diagon Alley.

I found all the shops in both areas to be crowded and not a particularly enjoyable shopping experience. I can see how it might be a challenge with little ones in tow. But can do lots of window shopping as the windows have interesting things in them.

 

[andysol]

When I went with my 6 yr old we tried to do it as closely to Harry as possible. This was our plan:

-Met bus driver
-Got money exchanged from Gringotts
-Ate breakfast at the Leaky Cauldron
-Got our "school supplies"- I bought her robe on Etsy beforehand for like ~$25 or so and it came with a scarf. Much better deal than their $130+ if you care about costs. I also bought her a hedwig look-alike off amazon for $8 or so. We did the wand show and she was picked (your 6 yr old almost assuredly will- particularly if you do it that early- we were with only one other group of 2 adults). The wand is $45 and was her favorite thing the whole trip (casting spells)
-Explored Diagon Alley & Knockturn Alley
-Boarded the Hogswarts express to Hogsmeade
-Rode Forbidden Journey (you wont be able to- but you can walk through) then flight of the Hyprogriff
-Explored Hogsmeade
-Ate Lunch at Three Broomsticks
-Went back on Hogswarts Express to Diagon Alley now that we were "schooled up"
-Fought Voldemort at Escape from Gringotts (42")
-Grabbed some Ice cream Like Harry and the gang did so often (can do before or after gringotts depending on time)
-Watched the shows- Tales from Bartlebeed and Celestia Warbucks.


Going this route, you aren't hitting the "attractions" at the right times- like rushing for gringotts. But it was way more about the experience than the "attractions" (remember when Disney was like that? Thanks fastpass+). When I took my wife, we went the "attraction first" route and went to Hogsmeade first due to extra morning hour. I think her experience suffered because of it. In hindsight we should have done it like we did the first time for her first time.

With the small attention spans of most kids, you likely wont spend all day there, but by "nap time" you could have experienced it all (although not all the spells and every detail- that would take a couple days).

 

[RandomPrincess]

Thanks for all the tips! We do have robes that my kids got for Christmas and daughter had a Harry Potter party last year so we have a bunch of other things as well. I like @andysol 's idea of going in order of the book. The wand that casts spells is on our list of must haves. We have 3 days with park to park passes so I'm sure we can get everything done. We check in on Sunday so we are very excited, it's almost here!

 

[danpam1024]

They CAN ride Flight of the Hippogriff in Hogsmead