Ollivander's Wand Shop — Local services in Orlando

This was definitely a great shop! It looks very similar to the movie version. The decor is amazing and it looks super authentic! The shop is pretty small, which in my opinion makes it quite charming, but it does get super crowded very quickly. It's not exactly like in the movies because the entrance with the desk (where Harry gets his wand) is not actually where you shop, it is where the wand show is, which I will talk about in this review. But there are wands EVERYWHERE, just like in the movies. There are character wands (From Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts) and "custom" wands. I say "custom" because there are about only 10 different wand choices. So if you want to buy "your" wand, it will have to be one of those. I do think that it sucks, but at the same time, it is understandable that making actual custom wands for everyone would be impossible because there are so many visitors. All the wands have different designs to please as many people as possible though. They also have a description with the wood type and what kind of people the wand fits. The custom wands are interactive and the character wands come in interactive and display versions. The wands are pretty expensive but worth is though, around 55$ US for the interactive ones (they come with a beautiful map of Hogsmeade & Diagon Alley's wand spots) and around 45$ US for the decorative ones. I do think that getting an interactive wand is very worth though: at first I wasn't sure that it would be worth it because I was only there for 5 days, but we ended up doing all of the spells in both Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley - including its 2 secret spots, and although I wasn't a fan of the idea because it is obviously fake and you have to point your wand to a sensor, which isn't very magical (plus, there are often people waiting in line to do a spell...), it was a lot more fun than I thought. Casting spells was actually hard, but you can also get better with practice, which felt way more authentic than I expected. These wands also come with a beautiful map of Hogsmeade & Diagon Alley's wand spots so you can find them easily. My wand is now in display at home: It is beautiful and I do not regret buying it, it makes for a great memory. Other than that, in both Ollivander's shops (because there is a very similar one in Hogsmeade), there is a wand show. Most of the time there is a line to see it, but it is usually not that long and, when we went, we actually got lucky because there was no line (I think it was early in the morning). So they pick a certain amount of people and then you get in the shop, in another room than the main one where people get their wands. There is an actor playing Ollivander (with a BEAUTIFUL costume) that comes and picks someone "random", mostly children apparently (So I was sure not to get picked, I was really just there to watch). But... I actually got chosen in the Hogsmeade Ollivander's! I was so surprised! I was wearing my Hufflepuff robe with my Hufflepuff headband and that is why he noticed me, so wearing merch definitely helps to be chosen, not only being a kid (I am 23). I also heard that looking excited helps. Anyways, I had already seen the experience on YouTube and thought it looked fake (Ollivander makes you try some wands, which are the custom ones, and try out some "spells", and then a wand chooses you and Ollivander describes the wand to you), but being into it actually felt sooooo much more authentic and it was so exciting! I was so not ready and I loved it!! I must also say that the actor did SUCH A GOOD JOB, that guy was honestly so in character, I was definitely impressed. It really felt like he was Ollivander (Give this man a raise!). When the show is over, everyone gets out. If you get chosen, you actually get out first with an employee which explains how the interactive wand works. If you want the wand, you have to pay for it, but you can choose not to purchase it if you don't want it and you don't have to decide in front of the people that watched the show. Overall, I really...

(Sorry if the review was too harsh. Im still infuriated with the pain this place put me through after FORCING me to stand up. Now, to the story.) There was some wand experience show thing here and we had to stand up for it I had a leg injury prior to this so my leg was very weak and it was hard to walk/stand up. My leg was hurting and "giving up" so I sat on the floor. I thought I could sit on the floor, no problem. But then that changed quickly! I "showed" the lady I was struggling by putting my hands on my knees and bending over. Then, I sat down and thats when it started.Then, a few seconds later, the lady doing the wand show thing SCREAMED very rudely at me to get up and my leg was starting to really hurt. She continued the show like nothing happened. I ended up limping out of there and the rude lady didn't even apologize. My summer camp leader and my friends thought that was very rude, since they knew about my leg injury for the whole summer. Do not come to this store if you have trouble standing up and you need to sit down. Would not recommend. (This is a real review I rarely post horrible reviews like this and this place made me. Several weeks have passed and I'm still shocked) Wish could give this place 0 stars for how pathetic the wand show was and how RUDE that lady was. This was even worse than United Airlines, the people in my area, or even the bullies at school. I had a broken leg for 8 weeks with a cast on so my leg was weak, stiff, and in pain. I could go without a wheelchair but I ended up getting one at the end of my trip. I have never been treated this rudely at any place I've been too. Please post 1 star reviews to show support how rude this place is to somebody who had pain the whole summer with a cast on and I couldn't do anything fun except browse the internet and play games and watch TV. I struggled to walk for that whole day and for several more days. I am currently able to walk almost fine and I can stand up for a while. I have been recovering from the cast for about 4 weeks now and still some difficulty. If you need to sit down during the wand experience thing, DONT! (Now the review is done. Sorry if I angered anybody who likes...

Knowing nothing about Olivanders, the show, or wands we wandered in and I was proud of my reserved 9 year old son when he was "lucky" enough to be chosen to participate in this show and did a great job in front of many people where he'd normally have shied away. With great fanfare the actors made a big effort to box up the wand (that supposedly chose him) and give it to him as the conclusion of the show. They specifically said it was a gift for him. What neither he nor I knew was that they were just using my son for the show and that it wasn't really a gift... we were followed from the show area into the shop and some poor soul worker had to break the news to my son (and me) that he had been lied to and had to give this gift back. He was clearly disappointed and cried quietly. I think he cried because he had been lied to in front of all those people... and I know it's all for the sake of Universal Studios making money by applying pressure to me as a parent. Yes, this pressure is endemic to the theme park, but never so brazenly and immorally.

I thought this place was supposed to be fun for kids... not take advantage of them for the sake of a show. This greedy tactic moved the experience from making his day (taking a big step and overcoming some shyness and being rewarded) to nearly ruining it (a 9 year olds innocence being taken advantage of via a cunning money seeking lie).

I confronted the worker and demanded a public apology to my son to match the public lie, but received none. I also confronted the actor who also refused.

When I asked my son what he wanted to do next he said "Go Home..." He's a good, innocent child who could blame him!

We really aren't familiar with Harry Potter and had no clue what this show was about... but we wish we had not had this experience and don't believe this approach to our children is appropriate and will not be back to Universal Studios in the future.

It was a valuable reminder to me to NEVER forget that these companies ONLY care about money and to be very careful with their access to...