Walking into the Harry Potter London Studios Tour at Christmas as a non-fan, I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect. I hadn’t read the books and I’d only seen a few of the films. But I headed out to Watford with my Potterhead niece, so I was in good hands.
This Harry Potter London Studios Tour review is my take on what it’s like to do the tour as a curious visitor, rather than as a super fan.
If you’re planning a trip with a mixed group, maybe one person knows every spell by heart and someone else can’t tell a Horcrux from a hippogriff, this guide is for you. I’ll share what I genuinely enjoyed and who I think will get the most out of the Harry Potter London Studios Tour.
Because I went during the festive Hogwarts in the Snow season, I’ll also cover how Christmassy it is. You’ll find plenty of practical tips on tickets, how long to allow and how to get to the Harry Potter Studio Tour without a car, so you can decide if it deserves a spot in your UK itinerary.
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Hogwarts letters at Privet Drive
In a hurry and want to get tickets for the Harry Potter Studio Tour? I thoroughly recommend this place, even as a non-fan.
Tickets sell out months in advance via the Warner Studios website but check official ticket seller Get Your Guide and you might still find some available.
As soon as you know when you want to go, book your tickets, to avoid being disappointed.
Is the Harry Potter Studio Tour worth it?
Hogwarts in the snow
I’ve never been a fan of Harry Potter. I’d not read any of the books and I hadn’t watched any of the films before I was invited to go.
You might be wondering how a non-Harry Potter fan ended up visiting the Harry Potter Warner Bros. Studio Tour in the first place. I got drawn into the wonderful world of wizarding at Christmas thanks to an invitation from my niece. The rest, as they say, is Hufflepuff.
The entrance to the Harry Potter London Studio Tour
My niece is quite a fan. She’s read the books, seen the films, got the scarf, the bag, the wands, her favourite house is Slytherin and yes, she’d actually already been to the studios before we went together. But crucially not at Christmas time.
I thought it would be interesting to go with a super fan, compare our experiences and find out if it’s worth visiting the Harry Potter studio tour if you’re not actually a mega fan.
The Hogwarts model in the snow
Plus, I heard that at Christmas the studios are given an extra special dusting of Christmas magic and, whilst I might not know much about Harry and co., I do love a good amount of Christmas sparkle.
Of course, if you’re a Harry Potter fan you’re going to love visiting the Warner Bros. Studio Tour. It’s the closest thing you’ll get to doing an actual Hogwarts tour in London.
Professor Snape’s costume and potions
The buzz and excitement that comes from being on actual film sets that were used in the Harry Potter films, not copies as in other Harry Potter experiences, is something special.
Hagrid at Christmas
Throughout the tour you get an appreciation for just how much work goes into making these stories come to life on screen. There’s a great demonstration about how Hagrid was filmed and a huge Hagrid head.
The only original pair of Harry Potter’s glasses on the tour
The guides located around the tour are excellent at telling you interesting information and they were great at answering our questions.
I found all the details about how the films were made fascinating. In particular, the prosthetics department. Who knew how much detail goes into making fake teeth.
Some of the incredible prosthetics used to make the films
Although I don’t count myself as a fan, in preparation for my visit I watched some of the films, which I enjoyed. I haven’t read any of the books though and that wasn’t an issue. I still found the tour a huge amount of fun.
Dumbledore’s office
However, if you’ve never read the books and don’t watch at least one of the films before you go, you won’t get much out of the Harry Potter Studios Tour.
What’s Harry Potter World like at Christmas?
The Great Hall dressed for Christmas
In order to prepare for Christmas, the Harry Potter Studios close for five days and another five days in January to clean up. Tonnes of film set snow is used to give the whole place a dusting of extra special Christmas magic.
There is so much to see on the Harry Potter London Studio Tour
This typically starts in November and lasts until mid-January. Check Christmas dates on the website.
Part of Diagon Alley in the snow
Diagon Alley and The Great Hall are the most Christmassy parts of the tour. The hall is beautifully dressed with Christmas trees and set up for the Yule Ball, with a large ice sculpture.
The Great Hall ready for the Yule Ball at Christmas
Whilst the Great Hall is impressive, that’s the bit of course that everyone wants to take their pictures of. It’s the first bit you see, and you are ushered through in about 15 minutes. I would ideally have liked to have had more time to take photos. It’s a popular attraction, so be prepared and be patient.
The Harry Potter Studio tour is worth it at anytime, but especially at Christmas
The model of Hogwarts is covered in snow and has a small demonstration of the different ways snow is made for the movies.
There’s also fake snow falling outside in the backlot area (but it wasn’t much on the day I visited).
If you want another magical winter day trip from London, check out my Cambridge at Christmas guide. It’s my hometown and it gives plenty of Harry Potter vibes with historic colleges around every corner.
How to get tickets for Harry Potter Warner Bros. Studio Tour
The Ministry of Magic
You can only go if you buy tickets online in advance there are no tickets available on the door.
Do not turn up without tickets this is a very popular attraction so you will need to book months in advance.
If you want to visit the Harry Potter Studio tour in December during Christmas season you will need to book even more in advance as it’s even more popular at this time of year, which is when I went.
Prices for the London Studio Tour
Hogwarts Bridge
Standard tickets for the Harry Potter studio tour in London cost from £59.
Tickets with transport included cost from £84.
To make it an even more special occasion, you can book twilight tickets, which include a glass of champagne and the chance to see places like the Great Hall with less people around. Prices for these tickets are from £99.
Children 5 to 15 years old get a discounted ticket which starts from £45.
Children 4 and under can go for free.
What you get to see on the Harry Potter London Studios Tour
Gringotts Bank was one of my favourite parts of the tour
I was impressed with just how much I got to see on my tour of the Harry Potter Warner Bros. Studios. There is so much to keep you entertained, even if you’re not a fan you’ll find plenty to look at and enjoy, including:
- The Great Hall
- Dumbledore’s Office
- Privet Drive
- The Knight Bus
- Diagon Alley
- Gringotts Wizarding Bank
- Hogwarts Bridge
- Platform 9 ¾ and the Hogwarts Express (which I also saw in real life on a trip to Loch Lomond)
- Professor Sprout’s Greenhouse
- The Forbidden Forest
- Green screen train ride
- Green screen broomstick ride
- A special effects demonstration
- A spell casting demonstration
Hang around at the back of the tour to get an empty shot of the Great Hall
Even non-fans will enjoy the storytelling of how all this amazing world was created. There are models, concept art, costumes, animatronics and behind-the-scenes details.
Hogwarts Express train, complete with real steam
Decide in advance which bits you want to see most so you don’t rush them.
What not to miss at Harry Potter Studios
Diagon Alley
I really liked seeing the detail of the sets up close and the craft that’s clearly gone into making them. I think this will appeal to anybody who likes movies, even if you’re not a huge Harry Potter fan.
Privet Drive, part of the backlot on the Harry Potter Warner Bros. Studio Tour
My favourite parts of the tour were Gringotts Wizarding Bank, Diagon Alley and Privet Drive.
There are lots of wigs and costumes on the tour
Don’t miss the special effects demonstration in the backlot. I won’t say too much, except, sit at the front.
The shop is of course another thing not to miss if you’re a fan. It’s perfect if you’re visiting at Christmas as there is so much to choose from, including wands, books, clothes and cloaks. You can even get a personalised t-shirt with a name printed on it, from £35.
One of the smaller shops on the tour
As well as the main shop, there are two more shops as you go through the tour. One is a little gift shop about halfway around and the other is a shop next to the Hogwarts train, which has some items that aren’t available in the main shop.
Me on the Harry Potter Studio Tour
Opening times of Harry Potter London Studios Tour
A Christmas feast in the Great Hall
When I visited the tour was open from 9.30am until 9pm. However, opening times can change.
Check the Warner Bros. Studio Tour website for the opening times on the day of your visit.
Me and my niece on the Knight bus
Harry Potter Warner Bros. Studio Tour London is not actually located in central London. It’s in a place called Leavesden, in Watford. The postcode is WD25 7LR and there are brown tourist attraction signs pointing the way, as you get near to the studios.
Parking at Harry Potter World
Free parking is included in the entrance fee for the Harry Potter Studios.
You can buy priority parking, for £10, which we had. We got given a golden snitch sticker to put inside the car and were directed to parking bays nearest to the entrance. However, you don’t need it, as there was plenty of free parking available.
There are also Blue Badge holder parking spaces.
How to get to Harry Potter Studios without a car?
One of the tour buses that takes you to the Harry Potter Studio Tour
The Harry Potter Studios are near Watford, not in central London. This is not a quick hop from London’s West End, it’s 20 miles from central London (approximately 1 to 1.5 hours in a car). You’ll need to take a bit of time getting there.
The easiest and least stressful way to get to the Harry Potter Studios without a car is to book a combined transport and entrance ticket.
Pick up is from Victoria in Central London and the bus will take you directly to the studios and back.
This is ideal if you’ve got limited time or are a first-time visitor to London and the UK. It saves you the hassle of working out transport connections (as there is no direct public transport from London to the studios).
If you do want to make your way to the tour independently, you’ll need to take a train from London Euston to Watford Junction (20 minutes journey time), then get on one of the official shuttle buses which take you from there to the studio entrance (15 minutes journey).
Shuttle buses leave every half an hour, and the cost is included in your ticket.
How much time do you need for Harry Potter Studio Tour London?
The official Warner Brothers Harry Potter Studio Tour website suggests you need at least 3.5 hours for the tour. However, our mixed age group spent 8 hours, which makes it a really good value day out.
We spent a couple of hours having lunch, looking around the shop and taking photos before we even started the tour.
The giant wands on the way to the start of the Harry Potter Studio Tour
This included photographing the giant wands, chess pieces and murals of the Harry Potter paper, The Daily Prophet, outside, along with the dragon suspended from the ceiling inside the entrance.
The total time we spent on the tour itself was 5 hours, which included a short break for refreshments at the Backlot café.
How long you need really depends on whether you want to read every bit of information or speed by, take some photos and get out.
Harry’s dorm and Neville Longbottom’s costume
There is a lot to cover on the Harry Potter Studio Tour, so give yourself at least 3.5 hours as a minimum and you’ll probably end up spending more time than you expect.
Whilst you have to start the tour at your allocated ticket time, you can stay as long as you like until the studios close (or until your transport leaves if you’ve bought a combined entrance and transport ticket).
Where can you eat?
Pizza at the Harry Potter restaurant
There is a restaurant and two cafés before you enter the tour. Inside the restaurant area there’s also a small recreation of the Great Hall where you can take afternoon tea, which would be fun for a special celebration.
There’s a good selection of food at the restaurant, pizzas, pasta and heartier meals. Be prepared to queue though, as there weren’t many people working when I went, so service was slow.
The Golden Snitch cake I ordered
The Frog Café has impressive milkshakes and cakes. As I was there at Christmas they had special themed refreshments, like the very blue Yule Ball Shake. These were amazing but the golden snitch cake I had was disappointing. It looked good but didn’t taste great.
Milkshakes from the Frog Café
The entrance hall where the café is located is one of the original sound stages used for making the films.
Once you’re on the tour, you’ll need refreshments at some point, as there is so much to see. Handily, there’s the Backlot café with a Butterbeer bar. The food here is standard fast food (hot dogs, burgers, drinks).
Butterbeer
The Butterbeer itself is…an acquired taste. It’s super sweet (and not alcoholic) and I wouldn’t be desperate to have it again.
FAQs
The dragon in the entrance hall
Is the Harry Potter Studio Tour worth it if you’re not a big fan?
In my opinion yes, the Warner Bros. Harry Potter Studio Tour is worth it, even not as a big fan. I went along as a non-fan with a healthy amount of scepticism and I really enjoyed it. The sheer detail of the sets, props and costumes is fascinating if you like films and behind-the-scenes stories. If you’ve watched at least one or two of the films before you go, you’ll get a lot more out of it. The only time I’d say it’s not worth it is if you dislike crowds and have no interest in films.
How long do you need at the Harry Potter Studio Tour?
The official advice is to allow at least 3.5 hours inside the studios, and I’d agree that’s the minimum. Our group ended up spending 8 hours, and that was with some of the group on their second visit. To make the most of a first visit, I’d plan for a full day out.
Which is the easiest way to the Harry Potter Studio Tour from London without a car?
There are two main car-free options to get to the Harry Potter Studio Tour from London:
- Get a combined transport and entrance ticket. Pick-up is from central London and everything is organised for you.
- Go independently via train and shuttle bus. Take a train from London Euston to Watford Junction, then take the official shuttle bus to the studio entrance.
If you’re a first-time visitor to London or don’t fancy juggling train times, the combined coach and ticket option is the least stressful.
Is the Harry Potter Studio Tour in central London?
No and this could catch you out. The Warner Bros. Studio Tour is in Leavesden, near Watford, about 20 miles from central London. You’ll need to allow time to travel out and back, especially if you’re fitting it into a London weekend break itinerary.
Final thoughts about the Harry Potter Studio Tour
I went to the Harry Potter London Studios Tour as a non-superfan and came out smiling. Even if you have only a passing interest in the books or films, the tour is a brilliant chance to experience how films are made, see incredible set design and all the details that bring Harry Potter to life.
If you do go, lean into the magic whilst being realistic about how long you’ll need. Give yourself more time than you think and build in breaks along the way, so you don’t run out of energy.
The Harry Potter Studio Tour is one of the top UK days out, so once you know you’re going, you’ll want to book your tickets for the Harry Potter Studio Tour well ahead of time, as the dates sell out fast.
If you’re deciding what to do next around London, my 2 day London itinerary will help you plan the main sights, while my Margate from London day trip guide is perfect if you fancy pairing the studios with a classic UK seaside trip.
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