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Travel Diary: Universal Studios Japan and The Wizarding World of Harry Potter

They say Disneyland cater mostly for kids while Universal Studios cater mostly for adults. When I went to Japan for the first time last week, I asked myself: Minions or Mickey? I chose to visit USJ in Osaka instead of Disneyland in Tokyo.

Universal Studios Japan! 🇯🇵🎢🎡🎠 #SmartRoaming #WanderMore #StarmoInJapan

A photo posted by Edsel Roy (@starmometer) on

Disneyland and Universal Studios are the world’s most-visited theme parks and it’s accurate to say that these two are rivals in the multi-billion dollar industry. We all know that Disneyland is the leading theme park in the world but after Universal Studios introduced “The Wizarding World of Harry Potter” attraction, their ticket sales rose to 75 percent every year since 2010!

With Lucy of The Peanuts Gang #StarmoInOsaka #UniversalStudios

A photo posted by Edsel Roy (@starmometer) on

But of course, Disneyland boasts of the iconic character Mickey Mouse and his partner Minnie. These two mascots are the most in-demand for photo ops. Universal Studios, on the other hand, are banking on the Minions for their mascots. They also have The Peanuts Gang, Shrek and Fiona, Woody Woodpecker, and other characters from blockbuster films.

Mascots aside, the main reason why I chose Universal Studios Japan in Osaka is because of the attraction “The Wizarding World of Harry Potter.”

Here are my Instagram posts about this attraction:

The sortinh hat! #HarryPotter #UniversalStudios #StarmoInJapan

A photo posted by Edsel Roy (@starmometer) on

The interiors of Hogwarts Castle are creepy and enchanting #HarryPotter #UniversalStudios #StarmoInJapan

A photo posted by Edsel Roy (@starmometer) on

If you’ve read the caption, yes it’s true! It took us around 2 hours before we enter the Hogwarts Castle. And prior to that, you need to book a schedule first! We booked the ticket at 1:00pm and the time that we got was 7:00pm. So it’s already 9:00pm when we entered Hogwarts and finally tried the world famous “Harry Potter Dark Ride.”

The one day pass in Universal Studios Japan, by the way, costs 7,200 yen. That’s around P2,687.00. And if you really want to try all the rides and attraction, I suggest you purchase the Universal Express Pass for additional 5,900 yen (P2,200.00+) so you get VIP status and you won’t have to fall in line in every rides. And one more thing. Be there at 9:00am when the park opens so you can cover all the rides in the morning and spend the afternoon at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter section. Then at night, catch the Magical Starlight Parade.

Other attractions in USJ include “Shrek’s 4-D Adventure,” “Back to the Future – The Ride,” “JAWS,” “Jurassic Park – The Ride,” “The Amazing Adventure of Spider-Man: The Ride,” “Terminator 2-3D” and more!

Universal Studios Japan opens at 9:00am and closes at 9:00pm on weekdays and 10:00pm on weekends.

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