Just steps away from New York City’s iconic Madison Square Park, city-goers can step inside the doors of 935 Broadway. Here Warner Bros has erected the new 21,000-plus square foot Harry Potter flagship store. Complete with a wand shop, a Butterbeer bar, a publishing area adorned with floating books and a handful of immersive experiences splayed across 15 decked-out rooms, the store is a candyland for Potterheads.

There are photo ops for the Instagram generation, including a Hagrid height chart where fans can measure up against the giant, as well as a classic red phone booth. In the Dark Arts section of the sprawling space, Nagini the snake slithers down from the ceiling to speak parseltongue to passersby. And of course, there is the Wand Shop.

In the Wand Shop, consumers can peruse and shop more than 50 wands and engage with an interactive wand table where they can learn about the histories of unique wands by holding them and activating a magical display. Visitors are even invited to ‘duel’ with one another using the wands of their choosing.

At the Butterbeer Bar, fans can order the butterscotch-infused soft drink by the bottle or on draft – or opt for a scoop of Butterbeer ice cream. The bar itself seeks to transport visitors to the magical world of Harry Potter with ‘floating’ bottles that rise from the floorboards to the ceiling. With a network of copper pipes overhead, fans are meant to feel as if they’re in the belly of a Butterbeer brewery.

All of these elements create a retail experience that speak to consumers’ growing demands for experience-infused shopping, says Warner Bros’s vice president and general manager of retail experiences Karl Durrant. “There is no doubt that consumer behavior has changed. Digital retail was becoming popular even before the pandemic hit. It’s more important than ever to give consumers a reason to visit a store and to make it an event.”

And to bring the immersive feeling to another level, Warner Bros, in partnership with Dreamscape Immersive, developed two unique VR experiences that bring visitors into the action. In ‘Chaos at Hogwarts’, users join Dobby in an adventure around Hogwarts to immobilize and collect pixies that the house elf accidentally released. The second VR experience, ‘Wizards Take Flight’, invites users to zoom around the skies above London via broomstick, warding off evil Death Eaters alongside Hagrid.

The mechanics behind the magic: creating the ultimate retail experience

Bringing the dynamic Harry Potter New York attraction to life was no simple feat. The development phase alone took close to a year and a half, and involved a number of creative partners.

London-based experience and design agency Household was charged with creative concepting and execution. The team designed the store’s graphics, which Durrant says required “combining iconic film images and utilizing the font to capture the look and feel from the Harry Potter fan club app” to connect the New York store with various Harry Potter digital experiences. Household also spearheaded the store layout planning efforts and helped bring the interior to life – down to the minute details, such as the wand-inspired stairway railings.

Meanwhile, Dreamscape Immersive developed the VR experiences, while UK-based prop company Codsteaks sourced and built hundreds of props and decor items to be placed within the store. Among the most notable is the larger-than-life griffin sculpture – molded from the film’s original prop – that rotates upon the staircase. Durrant says that the griffin is one of his favorite elements of Harry Potter New York.

To help build the Butterbeer Bar, Warner Bros enlisted MinaLima, a duo of graphic designers who worked on both the Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts film series. The team developed an exclusive label for the souvenir bottles sold in the bar.

Juggling the many tasks and teams required to bring the entire experience to life was challenging enough for the Warner Bros team – and then came a global pandemic. “Construction on the store was delayed, the delivery of goods became an issue as supply chains were interrupted and I wasn’t able to travel to New York until much later than I would have liked,” says Durrant. “We worked on a tighter schedule to recruit and train staff… and the list goes on.”

With operations stalling, the team decided to push back the original launch date. However, many initiatives were able to remain relatively on-schedule. Codsteaks, for example, transformed home garages and sheds into workshops and the production process for the store’s many props remained on-schedule.

Supernatural settings

Although the team faced a slew of unexpected hurdles brought on by the pandemic, the hard work ultimately paid off, according to Durrant. “The reaction from fans has been incredible – we couldn’t be more pleased.”

In particular, Warner Bros felt that New York – and the city’s Flatiron District in particular – served as the perfect backdrop for the experience. “There is no doubt that New York is a fantastic home for a store of this kind,” Durrant says. “The city has a huge Harry Potter fan base and a wonderful enthusiasm to embrace new ideas. We were also lucky to secure such a great building in the Flatiron District; it suits the brand perfectly. It’s hard to think of another store that delivers this level of theming and attention to detail. The combination of the design, interaction and collection of [products] makes it stand out on the high street.”

Since opening its doors in June, the store has welcomed some 425,000 visitors.

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From festivals to retail installations to unmissable activations, we examine the avenues open to marketers to reach consumers enjoying their newfound freedom in The Drum’s Experiential Deep Dive.

Editor’s Note: BuzzFeed does not support discriminatory or hateful speech in any form. We stand by the LGBTQ+ community and all fans who found a home in the Harry Potter series and will work to provide a safe space for fans. If you, like us, feel impassioned about trans rights, learn more or donate here.

Harry Potter has been at school for a long, long time. Even in LEGO minifigure form, he started at Hogwarts way back in 2001. That means that 2021 marks the 20th Anniversary of Harry’s LEGO journey, and this year LEGO is celebrating by branding the Harry Potter sets with a special logo and including exclusive gold versions of key characters in the sets. Today we’re looking at the biggest set from the new wave, 76389 Hogwarts Chamber of Secrets. Set in Harry Potter’s second year at Hogwarts, the set includes 11 minifigures, including several characters who have never appeared in minifigure form before: Professor Aurora Sinistra, Colin Creevy, and Justin Finch-Fletchley. On sale now, the set contains 1,176 pieces including 11 minifigures and will retail for US $129.99 | CAN $169.99 | UK £129.99.

The LEGO Group provided The Brothers Brick with an early copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.

For LEGO, the “Hogwarts” in the set’s title doesn’t just mean the Chamber of Secrets is in Hogwarts (as any fan of Harry Potter already very well knows). Instead, it denotes the set as part of LEGO’s ongoing minifigure-scale modular Hogwarts castle. The series began in 2018 with 75954 Hogwarts Great Hall, and this new Chamber of Secrets set is focused around Harry’s second-year adventures from The Chamber of Secrets. But befitting the “modular castle” idea, the set is best thought of as a series of vignettes that can be rearranged or appreciated individually, rather than an accurate representation of the layout of Hogwarts. For instance, the set includes both the Great Hall and the Astronomy Tower, positioning them right next to each other, even though they’re in separate buildings in Hogwarts. And some of the locations have already appeared in previous sets with a great deal more detail. One of the largest portions of this set is a small rendition of the Great Hall, which was obviously the focus the 2018 Great Hall set. Similarly, a tiny version of the Astronomy Tower is included here, even though LEGO released an Astronomy Tower set last year.

Today we’ll be looking at the Chamber of Secrets set as a standalone model rather than in conjunction with other sets as a part of the modular Hogwarts system.

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The box and contents

As befits the biggest set of the wave, Chamber of Secrets comes in a large box and has an appropriate good weight to it. The box features the 20th Anniversary logo in the bottom left corner, and the new Wizarding World design elements around the edges. Inside the box you’ll find 10 bags spread across nine numbered steps, plus two large dark tan plates, and the instruction manual and sticker sheet bagged together.

The sticker sheet mostly consists of Harry Potter flavoring for wall art, rather than key details that couldn’t be brick-built.

The set is a treasure-trove of recolored elements, with quite a few handy pieces showing up in new colors. Some, like the 3x3x2 curved window frame in brown also appear in other sets (that one’s in the new Creator 31120 Medieval Castle), while others like the olive green animal tails are exclusive to this set for now. Interestingly, the light nougat 1×2 brick with studs on the side is completely hidden in the final model and could have been any color.

The set also includes a few brand-new elements. The pixies and the basilisk head were obvious from the box art that we revealed back in April, but the candelabra was quite a surprise to me. After I knew what I was looking for, I spied just the corner of it on the box art. The candelabra is also included in this summer’s 43196 Belle and the Beast’s Castle. The basilisk head uses the existing raptor jaw from last year’s Jurassic World set for the hinged lower jaw.

The pixies have an anti-stud on the bottom, as well as short arms that can be gripped by a minifigure’s hand. The candelabra is a very nicely designed new element with open studs on each of the three prongs, and an anti-stud on the bottom. The horizontal segments of both arms and the main stalk are standard rods.

There are only a few non-minifigure printed elements in the set, such as a new color for the owl, a printed 1×2 potion page that goes inside the Lockhart’s textbook, and a printed head that appears to be a jar of candy–the exact reference escapes me at the moment but I’m sure our readers can identify in the comments.

The majority of the printed parts in the set are tiles. Each of the new Harry Potter sets this wave comes with a few “Wizard Cards”, which are printed 2×2 tiles featuring 16 famous witches and wizards. The cards are randomly distributed in the sets, so there’s a collecting aspect to them. This set has the most of any current wave set with six, so you’ll need to buy quite a few sets to get all 16, especially when you consider that you’re not guaranteed to get all unique ones even within the same set. My copy’s six tiles only had five unique prints.

Ironically, even LEGO’s own guide in the back of the manual shows a duplicate, with the image for Garrick Olivander having been accidentally used again for Rowena Ravenclaw.

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The build

Bag one gets you started with lots of action, so you’re not waiting on the build to come together before having something to play with. It includes the top sections of the astronomy tower, along with the all-important basilisk, and Professor Aurora Sinestra, Harry, and Ron.

The last time we saw the Basilisk was in the Great Hall set, which I excoriated in my review, saying that LEGO should have not included it at all rather than include something so bad. No such problems here, as this Basilisk is LEGO’s best yet. I have a certain fondness for the classic Basilisk from 2002, but the new design is more accurate even if it can’t hold a minifigure in its mouth. The new 2×2 tubes work wonderfully for the body, though I do wish LEGO had made the 2×2 round tile that connects the neck pieces in olive green instead of leaving it dark tan.

One thing I particularly love about this set is that with the addition of the new 2x2x3 “drill” cone in sand green, the tower can come to a beautifully pointy tip. This was also possible with the 2x2x2 cone (which appeared in quite a few Harry Potter sets years ago, but has been oddly absent for the last decade) but the drill cone adds an interesting texture.

Next the instructions have us skip down a layer, right past Professor Gilderoy Lockhart’s office on the third floor (or second story, if you’re using British numbering, as I suppose Hogwarts would), to the second floor, which contains Lockhart’s Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom. Here we get to see the candelabra in use, along with the odd use of the light nougat 1×2 brick with 2 studs on the side, whose only function is to hold an exterior detail in place and is completely hidden in the final model once Lockhart’s huge self-portrait is placed on the wall in front of it. It’s very odd that that color was chosen here instead of tan or even light grey.

Next up the instructions have us build Lockhart’s office, but let’s skip over to the miniature great hall, which includes quite a few more brown windows and black lattice insets. The construction is quite a bit simpler than the 2018 Great Hall design, and while it’s perfectly adequate, it’s not as nice as that one.

The roof of the Great Hall is also modular, allowing plenty of access to the interior spaces. The stud-and-tile combo on the top of the walls means you can also stack other Hogwarts modules on top, if you want to get a more compact layout.

The underground sections of the Chamber of Secrets round out the build, and like the others they’re built on modular segments 10-studs deep. One section features a small slide for the fall into the chamber from Moaning Myrtle’s Bathroom (not included), while the other features the statue of Salazar Slytherin.

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The completed set

Much like the Great Hall set before it, this set gives a great atmosphere of Hogwarts. The smaller design of the Great Hall included here isn’t as detailed as the previous one, but that’s OK. This set is meant to explore the second-year adventures of Harry co, and as a playset, it’s marvelous.

Of course, being a playset it’s pretty much a thin facade. This doesn’t allow as much detail on the interiors as a fully scaled building would, but it also makes it much easier to access all of the interior, and keeps the price at least somewhat reasonable.

Broken down into its constituent modules, you can see there’s actually quite a lot to it, helping make it clearer where the almost 1,200 pieces have gone.

The castle naturally divides into a few large sections, either horizontally or vertically.

Let’s take a closer look at some of the interior spaces now, starting with the astronomy tower. On the top there’s the observatory, which features a glow-in-the-dark crystal ball along with a telescope made with an old-school video camera element. It also contains one of my favorite easter eggs, a star chart featuring a constellation of a Bionicle mask. Below that is Professor Lockhart’s office filled with portraits of him in dashing poses, while his desk has a stack of magazines and a spare wig.

Moving down another layer and we get to Lockhart’s Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, which of course has a giant portrait of Lockhart front and center.

Sitting on the same level as the classroom is the Great Hall. As I’ve already noted, it’s a smaller rendition than the Great Hall standalone set, but it’s still pretty solid. Filled with benches and a new design for the winged podium, it’s good enough details to make it feel complete. The rafters house a variety of small details such as a tiny chess board, the Sorting Hat, some potions, and a crystal ball.

The glow-in-the-dark crystal ball is awesome and exactly the sort of cool thing that a Harry Potter set should include.

There’s also plenty of food to stock the tables of the Great Hall, from chocolate frogs to a few types of wizardy cereal.

Finally, let’s delve into the dungeon–er, chamber, that sits below everything else. The Chamber of Secrets has a few hideaways on the front for secret entrances. A large section of stone can slide out, taking with it the lower portion of Salazar Slytherin’s statue, which provides a tunnel in which the Basilisk can hide waiting to ambush Harry and his friends. The other rock chunk gives access to the slide from Myrtle’s Bathroom.

Like most of the rest of the modular Hogwarts series, the actual geography is a bit jumbled, but all the key pieces are here. The slide from Myrtle’s Bathroom is (by default, at least) connected to the chamber, while the fancy vault door to the chamber is on its own module on the other end.

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The minifigures

With 11 minifigures, this set doesn’t skimp on great characters, including several that are first-timers: Professor Aurora Sinistra, Colin Creevy, and Justin Finch-Fletchley.

First up, there are the 2nd-year students in their Hogwarts robes, which follow the more recent designs and have beautiful details for each of the houses. This set includes second-year students from three of the four houses. From left we’ve got Colin Creevey, Luna Lovegood, Harry Potter, Ginny Weasley, and Justin Finch-Fletchley.

Each student gets a wand, detailed front-and-back printing, and double-sided heads with an alternate expression.

There are a few extra accessories sprinkled through the set, such as Tom Riddle’s diary, Colin’s camera, and Lockhart’s Year with the Yeti textbook.

 

Next up there are the Hogwarts professors: Aurora Sinistra, Albus Dumbledore, and Gilderoy Lockhart. Like the students, each of them has detailed printing and double-sided heads.

Of course we’ve gotten a lot of versions of Dumbledore by now. This version is clearly modeled after Richard Harris’ portrayal from the second movie, and it most closely resembles the version that came in the previous Great Hall set, though it uses a robe brick for the bottom instead of minifigure legs, and goes with white hair instead of grey.

Next up we have a few important characters to round out the setting: Nearly Headless Nick and Tom Riddle. Neither is new to minifigure form, though Tom Riddle has been missing from the LEGO Harry Potter lineup since way back in 2003.

Nearly Headless Nick, on the other hand, is nearly identical to the version included in the Great Hall, except with one key distinction: this one actually glows in the dark.

And just like the effect on the crystal balls, Nick’s glow-in-the-dark effect is excellent, making the perfect spooky spectre to float over Hogwarts (thanks to the included clear stand). The one disappointment is that Nick’s hands are regular white instead of glow in the dark, which spoils the effect a little.

And there’s one last minifigure to count: the collectible, golden Lord Voldemort. Much like the Star Wars theme did for its 20th Anniversary in 2019, many of this year’s Harry Potter sets are including an exclusive collectible minifigure. As the largest set in this wave, this one gets the gilded dark lord himself. He wields a gold wand, and the back is printed with the 20 Years of LEGO Harry Potter logo. He also comes with a pearl gold minifigure stand, which is so far unique to just the sets with gold minifigures.

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Conclusion and recommendation

When scaling down as huge a place as Hogwarts, some choices must be made on what to include, what to size down, and what to leave out. The real question becomes whether or not the result captures the essence of Hogwarts and includes the key scenes and locations. And on that measure, Hogwarts Chamber of Secrets is a resounding success. It manages to pack a remarkable amount of detail into its walls, and look good doing it. The locations are recognizable, and the ability to rearrange the modules or take them apart for access works perfectly. Like most of the previous Hogwarts modular sets, this is an excellent way to get a big chunk of Hogwarts at once. And the new Basilisk, arguably one of the most important aspects of any Chamber of Secrets set, is the best yet and feels like a proper LEGO rendition of the fearsome snake, completely putting to rest the bad memories of the last version. The assortment of minifigures feels right for a set this size, with a good mixture of important figures like Harry and Dumbledore along with new exclusives like Colin, Justin, and Prof. Sinistra.

And if you’re looking at the set for parts, there’s a lot to love here, too. There’s a great assortment of new elements and colors, and most of the rest of the set’s 1,176 bits are highly useful pieces. Once you include the 11 minifigures, the price point feels correct, though $130 is still a lot to drop on a playset.

76389 Hogwarts Chamber of Secrets is available now and contains 1,176 pieces and 11 minifigures and retails for US $129.99 | CAN $169.99 | UK £129.99. It may also be available on Amazon and eBay.

The LEGO Group provided The Brothers Brick with an early copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.

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What do you get when you combine Build-A-Bear and Harry Potter? Pure magic! Now the collaboration has expanded with new Hogwarts house hoodies, on-point accessories, plus a Hedwig and Buckbeak!

Your bear will have some serious swag with themed hoodies featuring the colors and crests of Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff. To up the cuteness factor, grab a matching house beanie! And to complete the look, you can buy the sword of Godric Gryffindor, a Slytherin locket or the famous Hufflepuff Cup.

We’re in love with the new plush Hedwig owl. She even carries a personalized Hogwarts acceptance letter in her beak! Or if you’re looking for something a bit more exotic, you can buy the Buckbeak, a magical beast that’s half eagle and half horse. Despite its fierce looks, it has soft plush claws and a fuzzy tail.

Prices vary and you can buy the new items online or in stores, some with limited quantities. Head to buildabear.com to get started! And in honor of today’s National Teddy Bear Day, you can enter online to win furry friends for a year. Grab a cup of Butterbeer and happy browsing!

— Sarah Shebek

Featured image courtesy of Build a Bear

 

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Nearly 20 years after the first Harry Potter movie was released, self-proclaimed Potterheads will be able to hear a voice familiar to the wizarding community.

NEW YORK (AFP) – Wearing Hogwarts robes and witches’ hats, hundreds of Potterheads sipped Butterbeer and posed for photos in Hagrid’s giant shoes as New York’s long-awaited Harry Potter store, the biggest in the world, opened on Thursday (June 3).

Fans of the boy wizard queued for hours in heavy rain to be among the first inside the three-storey shop in Lower Manhattan that hosts the largest collection of Potter products anywhere.

“It’s really magical,” said Ms Margaret Suarez, whose boyfriend arrived at 6am (7pm Singapore time) to hold a spot in line four hours ahead of opening.

Ms Suarez, 30, quickly eyed a wand belonging to witch Bellatrix Lestrange to go with the patronus charm memorabilia and funko pop figures that were already in her shopping bag.

“In my heart, I’m a wizard,” Ms Suarez said. “I really want to get a wand and personalise it so I can live my best fantasy,” the New Yorker added.

Mr Ruben Juarez, 27, and his wife travelled from Dallas, Texas, for the grand opening of the 21,000 sq ft store that is near the Flatiron building.

“We’re excited to be here. I love everything Harry Potter,” said Mr Juarez, wearing the scarlet and gold scarf of the house of Gryffindor.

Large crowds gathered outside the store throughout the morning, with even a few police officers called to ensure order was maintained, as Potterheads waited for their timed ticket entry.

Inside, fans of J. K. Rowling’s magical world snapped selfies in front of a red telephone box like the one that transports witches and wizards to the Ministry of Magic, and bought fizzing whizbees candy.

They tried on knitted quidditch jumpers, flicked through copies of the best-selling book series in history and sampled the wizards’ favourite drink at the Butterbeer bar.

“Butterbeer is like cream soda but with a kick to it. It’s unlike anything, honestly,” said 21-year-old Emilee Rodriguez.

The flagship store was due to open last summer but was delayed because of the coronavirus pandemic.

For 19-year-old Alexandra Ewing, the wait for her first visit to a Potter store was worth it.

“I’m having the time of my life. I’m fighting back tears this whole time. I’m loving it,” she said.

A magical Christmas. There’s a Harry Potter advent calendar, and it includes 25 days of book-themed surprises—including ornaments based on each Hogwarts house.

Created Insight Editions, the brand behind collectible books and advent calendars for Friends, Marvel, Star Wars and more franchises, this Harry Potter advent calendar—which is titled Harry Potter: Holiday Magic: The Official Advent Calendar—has 25 door that fans can open as they count down the 25 days to Christmas. Inside the doors are more than 25 exclusive Harry Potter collectibles such as ornaments and recipe cards based on iconic dishes from the books and movies. Among the keepsakes are a Hedwig keychain, a replica Platform 3/4 ticket, a collectible Patronus card and ornaments based on each Hogwarts house: Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff.

Along with festive Harry Potter-themed keepsakes, the calendar is also decorated with intricate holiday-inspired illustrations of items and locations from the books, as well as stills and behind-the-scenes photos from the movies, which starred Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson an Rupert Grint as the magic-wielding trio Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley.

Harry Potter: Holiday Magic: The Official Advent Calendar is available for pre-order on Amazon and will be released on September 21, 2021. But don’t wait to order it. If the Harry Potter advent calendar is anything like other Insight Edition advent calendars (which sell out well before they’re officially released), we recommend that you pre-order this Harry Potter fan item now.

Harry Potter Advent Calendar

Image: Courtesy of Insight Editions.

Along with Harry Potter: Holiday Magic: The Official Advent Calendar, Insight Editions also has other collectible and items books for Harry Potter fans such as Harry Potter: Christmas at Hogwarts (an illustrated, interactive book about Harry Potter holiday staples like Mrs. Weasley’s holiday sweaters and the Yule Ball) and Harry Potter: Christmas Sweater Blank Boxed Note Cards (a box of 20 uniquely designed cards and lined envelopes inspired by Mrs. Weasley’s famous knit sweaters.)

The Harry Potter series, written by J.K. Rowling, released its first book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, in June 1997. The series follows a young wizard named Harry Potter and his friends, Hermoine Granger and Ron Weasley, as they attend the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The books also followed Harry on his mission to stop Lord Voldemort, a dark wizard who killed his parents and wants to rule both the wizard and Muggle (non-magical) world.

After the release of Philosopher’s Stone (which was retitled in Sorcerer’s Stone in the United States), Rowling went on to release six more Harry Potter books: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. (Here’s how to read the books online for free.) The franchise also released eight movies and made household names out of stars like Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint.

Harry Potter: Holiday Magic: The Official Advent Calendar is available on Amazon. For more Harry Potter-themed merch, click here for our gift guide.

Our mission at STYLECASTER is to bring style to the people, and we only feature products we think you’ll love as much as we do. Please note that if you purchase something by clicking on a link within this story, we may receive a small commission of the sale.

SAN ANTONIO – If you’re a Harry Potter fan then you already know what Quidditch is but what you might not know is that there’s actually a Major League Quidditch (MLQ) team in San Antonio called the San Antonio Soldados.

Turns out they’re actually pretty good too because they’re gearing up to compete in the 2021 MLQ Championship in Howard County, Maryland this weekend.

In case you’re not up to speed on Quidditch – it’s a mixed-gender, full-contact sport played by around 600 teams in almost 40 countries and it’s based on the game featured in the uber-popular book series Harry Potter.

The game incorporates elements from basketball, rugby and dodgeball and while it doesn’t feature broomsticks, like in the books, players do have sticks they “ride.”

An MLQ spokesperson said the sport is guided by a 35-page book of health and safety protocols which now include a COVID Code of Conduct. Teams are not allowed to compete unless all Quidditch players have been vaccinated.

“MLQ is the highest level of quidditch in North America,” the spokesperson said. “The league is home to 15 franchises and one trial expansion team across the U.S. and Canada and runs from June to August. The teams recruit star players from local college and club quidditch programs.”

The MLQ tournament will start Saturday morning and games will be livestreamed online.

The Soldados are scheduled for a highly anticipated rematch against Indianapolis in the quarterfinals, the spokesperson told KSAT. They have a 9-3 record for the current Quidditch season.

Whether you’re a Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw or Slytherin – you can still cheer on the San Antonio Soldados.

Harry Potter is one of the top intellectual properties in the world. J.K Rowling’s acclaimed book series about a young wizard has sold over 500 million copies, with 8 movies generating $1.2 billion. In early June 2021, Harry Potter landed in the Big Apple, at 935 Broadway right across the street from the Flatiron Building. The new store boasts the largest assembly of Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts merchandise under one roof and now offers two incredible virtual reality experiences opening this week! I admit that I am a huge Potter geek, so this was extra special for me. Check out my report below, along with the video I shot in the Harry Potter New York store.

I was invited to try out both VR experiences in the Harry Potter store and to put it simply, I was blown away… literally. Both experiences, “Wizards Take Flight” and “Chaos at Hogwarts,” were created by WarnerMedia in partnership with creative teams at Wevr, Keylight, and Dreamscape Immersive. And immersive is definitely the right word to describe these experiences. “Wizards Take Flight” was up first, located in the lower level of the store.

Wearing hand trackers and a VR headset you take a seat on your broom and prepare to fly around the Hogwarts grounds, around castle towers and buttresses and through the Quidditch pitch before being whisked off to see Hagrid. You then have to follow Harry on a flight through rainy London while being pursued by Death Eaters. Wielding a physical wand in one hand and holding tight to the broom handle with the other, I was yelling “STUPEFY” at the villains. The thrilling experience was exhilarating and left me wanting more and exhausted at the same time. The visuals from the headset are stunning and I can only imagine how much fun this would be with friends, as it seats up to 6 and you have virtual avatars. While guests must be over 48 inches tall and over 10 years old to “ride,” I can imagine this being a bit too extreme for younger Potter fans. But those who enjoy thrill rides will leap at the chance to do this again and again.

Next up was a trip upstairs to Kings Cross Station for “Chaos at Hogwarts.” This time dressed to the nines with a VR headset, backpack, and hand and foot trackers as well as a physical wand, up to 6 people get to follow Dobby the House Elf into Hogwarts for another magical adventure. Once inside you’ll want to stand back and view the incredible virtual world as you move along the rotating staircases past the talking portraits. HP fans will be in awe of this and that’s before you begin to descend down through secret passageways having to use your wand to stun grindylows that Dobby lets out before a final encounter that will leave you breathless.

Both fully immersive experiences cost $34.00 each, but allow you to bypass the virtual queue needed to enter the store due to large crowds. That means reserving a VR experience also allows you access to the amazing Harry Potter NYC store that offers all the bells and whistles you’d expect, including a huge wand shop, personalized dress robes, Quidditch gear from all four Hogwarts Houses, and of course, a Butterbeer bar.

Go to www.harrypotterstore.com/tickets to purchase tickets and reserve your time slot. Reservations are now available from July 15th to August 15th, 2021 and are going fast. I highly recommend both VR experiences and the Harry Potter store to all, from tourists looking for a unique New York attraction and shopping destination, but mainly to Harry Potter fans who will absolutely go wild. All additional info can be found at www.harrypotterstore.com/faq.

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