'Wizarding World of Harry Potter' casts a spell

On Monday night, the Tampa Tribune was one of a small group of media outlets invited to tour the "Wizarding World of Harry Potter" attraction at Universal Studios in Orlando.

The only rules: no photos, and no interviewing guests at the park, which was being visited by people from the International Pow Wow Convention, a travel industry trade show.

Even a muggle knows not to turn down that deal.

What follows are some of the highlights from the tour. The park opens to the public on June 18.

The first thing to know is that author J.K. Rowling, who invented the "Harry Potter" series, has signed off on the park. She even wrote a new poem for the Sorting Hat and personally drank some butterbeer before giving it the thumbs up.

The second thing to know is that I also give butterbeer a thumbs up – it's like cream ale with a frothy top –- but I advise you to try the frozen version. The pumpkin juice is nice too, with a spicy kick.

The third thing is that the place is not that big, just one corner of Universal's Islands of Adventure. But they have done an excellent job creating some immersive experiences and putting in a large number of attractions.

The main elements are a street through a group of shops meant to replicate Hogsmeade village, which in the books is near Hogwarts. The castle itself is at the end of the street, and two roller coasters — the Flight of the Hippogriff and the Dragon Challenge — are just off the street.

Let's get to it:

The entrance: The main entrance is situated so that you look through the arched gate — with the sign "Please respect the spell limits" — up the village road with the castle towering over all. Take a picture there. Other photos ops are in the park, but none are better.

Hogwarts Express: Speaking of photo opportunities, just inside the entrance is engine 5972 of the Hogwarts Express. You can't go in it or on it, but it makes for a cool picture. In a good sign of things to come. There's great attention to detail, including a train time schedule on the wall.

Hogsmeade village: The buildings all have a quaint village look, with snow on the roofs. There's a snowman on one corner with an owl perched on his shoulder. None of this will make you feel any cooler in the Florida heat, however. One of the coolest things was standing in the middle of the street once night fell, looking at the details of the buildings (crooked chimneys, a broom that would float past a window) with the lit castle in the distance. It's amazing the ambiance they've created in so small a space.

Hogwarts: None of the pictures released so far by Universal do justice to the scale of the thing. It's huge, and it has some nice touches, including the Gryffindor dormitory towers and the astrology tower.

Inside Hogwarts: The mega-ride, "Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey," was not open on Monday night. However, there is a long queue leading to the ride that is an event in and of itself. Things to watch for include the one-eyed witch statue, the Mirror of Erised and a room of paintings that, yes, move and talk. Four of the talking paintings are the heads of the four Hogwarts Houses — Slytherin, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff and Gryffindor. Also, listen to the music, it's newly composed by John Williams.

Dumbledore's office: Part of the queue in the castle goes through Dumbledore's office, where Michael Gambon — who has played him in the movies since "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" — comes out and speaks in a filmed bit that looks almost 3D. And yes, there's a pensieve, but you can't stick your face in it.

The Defense Against the Darks Arts classroom: Another stop in the castle, this is where the three stars of the film series — Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter), Emma Watson (Hermione Granger) and Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley) — appear to invite those in line to join them in a bit of broom flying. Ron then casts a spell that causes the people in line to get … well, let's not give everything away. Again, the sequence looks almost 3D, making it seem as if the three are in the room.

The sorting hat: It's there, and it recites a new Rowling-written poem, a sort of last bit of advice before patrons enter the ride.

Three Broomsticks: Based on the tavern in the book, the restaurant features huge fireplaces, tons of tables and a menu with fish and chips and shepherd's pie (don't worry, kids, there's also chicken fingers and mac and cheese). There's an outdoor deck that overlooks the castle and a lake, but also, unfortunately, the Hulk rollercoaster. On one end of the tavern is the Hogs Head pub, where you can order Hogs Head Brew, a Scottish ale brewed specifically for the theme park.

The Flight of the Hippogriff Rollercoaster: A "repurposed" roller coaster that used to be the Flying Unicorn, it's a ride for kids that lasts only about as long as it took you to read this sentence. But it does feature a bowing hippogriff next to the track.

Dragon Challenge: This used to the Dueling Dragons roller coaster. This one is for older kids and adults, with lots of corkscrew turns and loops (it's a lot of fun). In the queue, you'll see, among other things, the Goblet of Fire and the Tri-Wizard Tournament Cup.

Naturally, there are also a number of shops in the park, including:

Zonkos: When you walk in (or, at least, when I did), the women in witch's garb who run the place hit a bell and yell, "Welcome to Zonkos!" You can get a sneakoscope here, as well as rubber eyeballs, nose-biting tea cups and pink pygmy puff stuffed animals. Oh, and make sure to look up, you might find some extendable ears hanging from the ceiling.

There's also this sign: "Please do not walk on the walls."

Honeydukes: They offer Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, but unfortunately (or maybe fortunately) not the booger or vomit flavors. They do have mashed potato and sausage to go with more normal flavors, such as watermelon. There's also cauldron cakes (chocolate cakes topped with chocolate mousse), rock cakes (unlike Hagrid's, you can actually eat them) and treacle fudge. And you can buy a chocolate frog and it contains a card — one of the four founders of Hogwarts.

Filch's Emporium of Confiscated Goods: This is the mother load of merchandise, the shop at the end of the "Forbidden Journey" ride. The place is jammed with goods – T-shirts, jerseys, scarfs, mugs, journals, house ties, mugs, tumblers, Gryffindor's sword, etc. Make sure to check out the evil section, which features Lord Voldemort dolls and a "I Served Time In Azkaban" T-shirts.

Ollivanders: In groups of about 30, people are led into the shop, where a performer, acting as the shop owner, picks one person to try several wands until one "picks him" as its owner. The group is then moved into the shop next door, where you can buy 12 different kinds of wands (all named after characters from the book).

Universal offers myriad ticket packages including multiday and Florida resident discounts but the base price for a one-day adult ticket is $79 adults, $69 children.