Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry is the ride that everyone is talking about at Epic Universe. I didn’t get to ride on our preview visit. When my daughter and I returned to Epic Universe after it officially opened, we did ride. Instead of giving away the details of Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry, I thought I’d just share a few thoughts.
There are a couple of negative reasons why people are talking about Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry. I thought I’d get those out of the way first. The ride breaks down a lot. This isn’t really surprising, it happens with most high tech rides when they’re new. Remember how often Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance would shut down for hours? If you go to Epic Universe, be prepared for Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry to be down at some point.
The second negative problem is the Wait Time. I’ve seen it on the Universal App for as long as five hours! I don’t know how long it ended up being that day. When we rode our Wait Time wasn’t accurate, and I’ve had others tell me the same thing.
The queue for Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry is mostly indoors. That was why my daughter and I decided to ride first thing in the morning, even though the posted time was already 120 minutes. It was raining, but was supposed to clear in a couple of hours. We decided that waiting indoors was our best option. A lot of Epic Universe is outdoors.
If you’re a Harry Potter fan, you’ll love the queue. The attention to detail is incredible! Delores Umbridge is on trial, and you are in line to attend. You’ll arrive at the Ministry of Magic using floo powder. At first, you’ll be in a large room and the line feels like it will never end. Then you’ll wander through some smaller rooms, and eventually get into your lift, which is the ride vehicle.
Here’s the only spoiler I’m going to give. Things at the trial don’t go according to plan, and it’s up to you and a few familiar faces to set things right. The ride is fast paced with many thrilling moments, but it’s not a roller coaster. I’m a coaster wimp and I loved this ride.
Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry is not for people who are prone to motion sickness! It uses screens to create more of a feeling of movement, and feel it you will. I don’t have issues with motion sickness but I felt it more on this than probably any ride I’ve been on before. Be careful. If you want to see the queue but don’t plan to ride, talk to a Team Member. I’ve heard that they’ll let people walk through.
One more warning. Don’t plan on getting into line for Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry ten minutes before Epic Universe closes. Universal will shut down the line when they determine that the ride has reached capacity for the day. You can keep an eye on it in the Universal App.
I enjoyed Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry. It’s an incredible ride, with effects that truly put you into the wizarding world. My plan for the next time we’re at Epic Universe (whenever that may be) is to hit everything else first, and then see what the Wait Time is. It’s a great ride, but unless it’s raining, I probably wouldn’t wait over two and a half hours again.