Universal Studios Osaka: Harry Potter Opening

I was really looking forward to Universal Osaka, more than Disneyland in fact. Why? Well for starters....

THEY HAVE HARRY POTTER LAND!

I was there when this new area was just opened, and to no surprise, the crowd was CRAZY. How crazy? Let's just say we went into the park at 10am, but the Harry Potter section was so crowded that they had to restrict access into the section by allocating time coupons from a machine. And we got.... the 6pm coupon. So we now had 8 hours to spare.

Fill up your time with all that mandatory selfies. I've been to Universal Singapore before this, and I find that Osaka tops it a lot more. Firstly, its the space. Universal Osaka is really well spread out, but of course, it's because they have the land. Second of all, the rides! If you're not a fan of roller coasters, try the Spider man one, because it's probably the entry-level roller coaster experience. 

About food, expect to pay theme park prices. But hey, you're already there. So why not splurge and indulge in their many flavoured pop corn, cony dogs and churros YUM. You can also bring your own food, just store them in the lockers provided so you don't have to lug them around the park. 

Okay now back to HARRY POTTER!

Super crowded Harry Potter Land

Line to HoneyDukes

As you can see, the park was still crowded even after 6pm. I waited about 40 minutes just to get into HoneyDukes, but sadly the popular items like Bertie Botts every flavoured beans and chocolate frogs were sold out. Boohoo. Butterbeer however, is awesome! It kinda taste like Root Beer with melted vanilla ice cream.

For rides, the Hogwarts Forbidden journey is the best ride in the whole of Universal Osaka, for me. It's not really a roller coaster, but your upper body is clipped on and your legs are suspended. It was the most exciting and exhilarating ride throughout the whole of Universal Osaka. 

How to get to Universal Osaka?

Universal Osaka is a 5 minute walk from Universal City station on the JR Yumesaki Line. 

Opening Hours?

Low season  : 10:00 to 18:00

High season : 09:00 to 21:00

Admission?

6,980 yen (12-64 years old) 

4,880 yen (4-11 years old) 

6,270 yen (65 years or older) 

Getting around Osaka

What's the difference between Osaka and Japan?

Plenty of things! But the greatest of all is their no fuss, super practical subway!

Every where I go, I like to look for tourist passes that are value for money. In Osaka, they call it the Enjoy Eco card that looks like this: 

This card can be used on all of Osaka's Municipal Subway, new tram and buses. There are also discounts available at certain sight seeing locations when you flash this card. 

Price: 800 yen adult (600 yen for weekends and public holidays), 300 yen for children

You can buy these Tourist passes at any subway station, I bought mine at Shin-Osaka station which was my stop off the Shinkansen train. You can even buy them days in advance, just let them know the date you're going to use it on.

There are a lot of other passes out here. You can find more about it here. But for me, I went for the cheapest option having only spent 3 days in Osaka. 

You can get more info on Osaka's Public transport passes here.