Flight of the Hippogriff is a junior roller coaster at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter section of the many Universal theme parks. It is present at Universal Islands of Adventure in Universal Orlando Resort,Universal Studios Japan,Universal Studios Hollywood and Universal Studios Beijing. Designed by Universal Creative,the first installation opened at Islands of Adventure on June 18,2010. The new ride was a redesign of an existing roller coaster known as Flying Unicorn,which the park closed in 2008 to begin its transformation. The design change was implemented to fit the new Harry Potter-themed area that was being constructed at the park. Flight of the Hippogriff is a mild alternative to the area's more extreme rides such as Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. Following a successful launch,identical versions of the roller coaster were installed at Universal Studios Japan and Universal Studios Hollywood over the next several years,with the Beijing version opening with the park in 2021.
Flying Unicorn was one of the first rides to be added to Islands of Adventure after its grand opening,debuting on June 29,2000,in the park's Lost Continent area. [1] [2] [3] The ride took place in an enchanted forest,like something from a fairy tale. Various signs along the queue tell the story of a wizard who found a baby unicorn's horn,which it shed (once every thousand years). He then used the horn to create this ride. The magic from the unicorn's horn is used so that it can fly. Guests rode in carts designed to look like mechanical unicorns and travel over a track to the top of the lift before dropping through various dips and turns and being deposited at the start of the track. [4]
Following the announcement of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter section in May 2007,both Flying Unicorn and fellow previous incarnation Dueling Dragons were shown to be in the new area,but it had not been confirmed whether they were to be closed and rethemed as of that time. [5]
After eight years of operation,Flying Unicorn closed on July 7,2008,to allow construction to proceed on the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. [6]
On September 15,2009,Universal officially revealed the attractions that would open in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter section,confirming that Flying Unicorn would be refurbished and rethemed into Flight of the Hippogriff. [7]
The attraction soft opened on June 1,2010,[ citation needed ] under the new name of Flight of the Hippogriff. It officially opened with the Wizarding World of Harry Potter on June 18,2010. [8]
A duplicate of the Orlando attraction was installed at Universal Studios Japan as part of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter themed area. It opened on July 15,2014. [9] [10]
Flight of the Hippogriff was also installed at Universal Studios Hollywood and opened on April 7,2016. This is the first outdoor roller coaster at the Hollywood location. [11] It is also the first Mack Rides Youngstar Coaster in the United States. [12]
Harry Potter is a lots of Flight of the Hippogriff outdoor roller coaster at Universal Studios Beijing and opened on September 20,2021. [13] [14]
The roller coaster's new backstory is that Hagrid is teaching young wizards how to fly a Hippogriff by using fake replicas of the creature. The queue line weaves through Hogwarts Grounds,past Hagrid's Hut and the Forest,and leads into an open canopy where Care of Magical Creatures Class is taught,and riders board the vehicle. [15] [16]
The roller coaster takes passengers on a test flight of the Hippogriff over the Forbidden Forest and Hagrid's Hut. Riders are instructed to bow to the Hippogriff before the ride progresses up the lift hill. [15] The cars then travel over a track,to the top of the lift,where riders have a full aerial view of The Wizarding World, [17] and then dropped through various dips and turns around Hogwarts Grounds before being deposited at the start of the track,where Hagrid thanks riders,who then disembark. [15]
Expedition Everest –Legend of the Forbidden Mountain,also known as Expedition Everest,is a steel roller coaster built by Vekoma at Disney's Animal Kingdom at the Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista,Florida. The ride is themed around the Yeti protecting the Forbidden Mountain next to Mount Everest. It is the only roller coaster at Disney's Animal Kingdom,and the tallest roller coaster at any Disney theme park.
The Incredible Hulk Coaster is a launched roller coaster located at Universal Islands of Adventure theme park within the Universal Orlando Resort. Designed by Werner Stengel and manufactured by Bolliger &Mabillard (B&M),the roller coaster is themed after the Hulk comic book superhero and opened to the public on May 28,1999. It is the first B&M coaster themed to a Marvel Comics superhero character and the first to feature a launch design,which was primarily implemented by Universal Creative and MTS Systems Corporation.
Universal Creative is the division of Universal Destinations &Experiences responsible for designing,developing,engineering,and producing themed attractions,rides,and,resorts. Headquartered in Orlando,Florida,the company operates at Universal Parks &Resorts locations around the world in the United States,Singapore,Japan,and China.
Transformers:The Ride –3D,also known as Transformers:The Ride and Transformers:Battle for the AllSpark,is a 3D dark ride located at Universal Studios Singapore,Universal Studios Hollywood,Universal Studios Florida,and Universal Studios Beijing. The ride,based on the Transformers film franchise,was designed by Universal Creative,Oceaneering International,and Industrial Light &Magic. Each installation is reported to have cost US$100 million. Universal Studios Singapore was the first to open the ride.
Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey is a motion-based dark ride located in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter-themed areas of four Universal parks around the world –Universal Islands of Adventure in Florida,Universal Studios Hollywood in California,Universal Studios Japan,and Universal Studios Beijing. The first installation opened at Islands of Adventure in Universal Orlando on June 18,2010. Subsequent installations opened in 2014 (Japan),2016 (Hollywood),and 2021 (Beijing).
The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is a themed area spanning three theme parks—Universal Islands of Adventure,Universal Studios Florida and the upcoming Universal Epic Universe—at the Universal Orlando Resort in Orlando,Florida. The area is themed to the Harry Potter media franchise,adapting elements from the film series and novels by J. K. Rowling,in partnership with Warner Bros. Entertainment under an exclusive license agreement. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter was well received and significantly boosted attendance at the resort.
This article details the appearance of Harry Potter theming in amusement parks. In the late 1990s,Universal Destinations &Experiences began discussing the possibility of purchasing the license for Harry Potter to create and theme amusement park rides. As Time Warner owns the license,a small walkthrough attraction was constructed at Warner Bros. Movie World called the Harry Potter Movie Magic Experience in 2001. This attraction was removed two years later. In 2010,Universal Islands of Adventure park opened The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Similar attractions have also opened in Universal Studios Hollywood,Universal Studios Japan and Universal Studios Beijing.
The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is a themed area at Universal Studios Hollywood theme park near Los Angeles. The area is themed to the Harry Potter media franchise,adapting elements from the film series and novels by J.K. Rowling. The attraction—the second Harry Potter-themed area to exist at a Universal resort—was designed by Universal Creative from an exclusive license with Warner Bros. Entertainment.
The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is a chain of themed areas at Universal Destinations &Experiences based on the Harry Potter media franchise,adapting elements from the Warner Bros.' film series and original novels by J. K. Rowling. The areas were designed by Universal Creative from an exclusive license with Warner Bros. Entertainment.
Universal Express Pass is a priority status boarding system used at various Universal Destinations &Experiences:Universal Orlando,Universal Studios Japan,Universal Studios Singapore,and Universal Studios Hollywood.
Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts is an indoor steel roller coaster designed by Universal Creative and built by Intamin at Universal Studios Florida,a theme park located within the Universal Orlando Resort. Similar to dark rides,the roller coaster utilizes special effects in a controlled-lighting environment and also employs motion-based 3-D projection of both animation and live-action sequences to enhance the experience. The ride is themed to Gringotts Wizarding Bank,as depicted in the Harry Potter films,and became the flagship attraction for the expanded Wizarding World of Harry Potter –Diagon Alley when it opened on July 8,2014.
Thierry Jean-Andre Coup is the Chief Experiential Futurist at JOCOUP Creative. Coup began his career working in the film industry,performing set design and visual effects. He moved into theme park design in the early 1990s when Walt Disney Parks and Resorts offered him a position with Walt Disney Imagineering. In 1995,he transferred over to Universal Creative and led projects such as The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man,Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey,Transformers:The Ride,The Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Diagon Alley and Super Nintendo World.
RoboCoaster Ltd is an amusement ride design firm based in Warwickshire,England. Through partnerships with KUKA and Dynamic Attractions,RoboCoaster has installed its namesake products at locations around the world.
The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is a themed area based on the Harry Potter series built at Universal Destinations &Experiences' Universal Studios Japan theme park in Osaka,Japan. Not to be confused with Warner Bros. Studio Tour London - The Making of Harry Potter at Leavesden Studios,it is a collaboration of Universal Destinations &Experiences and Warner Bros. Entertainment. It opened to the public on July 15,2014.
The Hogwarts Express is an 1,800 mm broad gauge cable railway,people mover,and attraction within the Universal Orlando Resort in Orlando,Florida,United States. The route runs 676 meters (2,218 ft) between Hogsmeade station in the Islands of Adventure theme park and King's Cross station in the London area of the Universal Studios Florida theme park. It provides a connection between the Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade areas which,together,form The Wizarding World of Harry Potter,based on the Harry Potter film series.
Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure is a multiple-launch steel roller coaster located in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter –Hogsmeade section of Universal Islands of Adventure at Universal Orlando. Manufactured by Intamin,the attraction opened to the public on June 13,2019. The partially-enclosed motorbike coaster operates both indoor and outdoor,and it is the sixth Harry Potter-themed attraction created for the resort. Universal marketed the ride as "a highly-themed roller coaster" that focuses on "a different corner of the wizarding world".
Dragon Challenge,formerly named Dueling Dragons (1999–2010),was a pair of intertwined inverted roller coasters in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter area of Islands of Adventure in Orlando,Florida,United States. Designed by Bolliger &Mabillard of Switzerland,the ride was a dueling roller coaster featuring two tracks –one side was called Chinese Fireball and the other Hungarian Horntail –that were themed as two chasing dragons. Its layout involved two trains sharing adjacent lift hills,with each traversing unique courses. Trains on the Chinese Fireball track reached a maximum speed of 60 mph (97 km/h),while trains on the Hungarian Horntail reached 55 mph (89 km/h). Both tracks featured five inversions and an identical ride duration of 2 minutes and 25 seconds.
Jurassic World VelociCoaster is a launched roller coaster at Universal Islands of Adventure in Orlando,Florida. Manufactured by Intamin,the ride opened to the public on June 10,2021. It is themed to the Velociraptor dinosaurs depicted in the Jurassic World film franchise and is located in the Islands of Adventure's Jurassic Park area,occupying the site of the former Triceratops Encounter attraction. VelociCoaster features two high-speed launches powered by linear synchronous motors,a signature 155-foot-tall (47 m) top hat,four inversions,and a maximum speed of 70 mph (110 km/h).