A Closer Look at The Hogwarts Express at Universal Orlando

Today, during a short live webcast, James and Oliver Phelps took us a little preview tour of what to expect when riding The Hogwarts Express. While yesterday we posted up a few shots of things here, there's a lot more to see!

Their journey from Hogsmeade to Kings Cross station is filled with surprises and we've got some pictures to show you just what to expect. On top of that, they went into detail about just how much work went into perfecting the ride.

The builders actually rode on trains to get the movement down right to simulate it perfectly, to make it seem as if you were really speeding along the tracks. They also went the extra mile by contacting the original manufacturer of the seats and upholstery from England to make it look 100% authentic and give it that additional touch.

They also pointed out that the trip isn't just over in a flash, you'll be traveling through the countryside and seeing some familiar faces along the way as you make the trip to either station.

So, without further ado, let's get on the with the pictures. Be warned, if you don't want any spoilers don't look beyond the first couple of them.

Diagon Alley at Universal Orlando opens to the public on July 8th, but stick around there's much more to come as the preview week continues tomorrow! 

First Look - Inside Gringotts and Some of What You'll See on the Hogwarts Express!

Tonight Universal Orlando hosted a live stream of the Red Carpet event that officially kicked off the Diagon Alley Preview Week. During the show they talked with several stars of the show about what they thought of it.

However, the bigger thing is that they gave us all a sneak peek into just what to expect from some of the attractions within Diagon Alley. Most notably that of Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts and the Hogwarts Express!

So, while we will be getting video of the event up onto our YouTube channel shortly, here's a few stills from tonights live webcast showing off a few things that we haven't seen before.

First up, is the Hogwart's Express. Now we know that each trip will have something a bit different and in the past we've seen a few things that will be going out "outside" the windows as you head to Hogsmeade. We didn't see much of what to expect on the trip from Hogsmeade to Diagon Alley though, that is something we can fix! 

Seaworld San Diego- First Look at Explorers Reef

Seaworld San Diego- A Frist Look at Explorers Reef.

 As part of Seaworld's 50th Anniversary, "A Sea of Surprises" the park in San Diego made some massive changes to their entrance plaza. While the Grand Opening of Explorers Reef isn't until March 21st, Seaworld San Diego has been opening the area slowly to guests. We where lucky enough to be invited to visit Seaworld San Diego but even more to our surprise the new area of Explorers Reef has just soft opened, much to our delight.