How to Ride Universal's New Insanely Popular Harry Potter Ride

Universal Orlando's new park Epic Universe has a great lineup of attractions with the most popular being Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry.

This ride reaches an average wait time of three hours daily and is not included in Universal Express Pass. But it is complicated even beyond that with a capacity shutdown that happens before park closing and a history of using a virtual queue. Let's get into how to ride the Ministry of Magic so you don't miss it on your trip.

READ MORE – It's Never Good to Hear These Disney Cast Member Codes They Use to Communicate Right in Front of You

Is Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry Worth the Hype?

Epic Universe ministry

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter- Ministry of Magic transports guests to 1920s Paris from the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them films. The biggest draw in the land is the Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry attraction.This e-ticket ride combines massive environments, storytelling, and first-of-its-kind ride technology.

Ministry of Magic floo powder

The ride begins when guests travel by “Métro-Floo” which is a form of wizarding travel inspired by the Floo Network seen in the films. Guests travel from wizarding Paris to the British Ministry of Magic to battle the infamous Dolores Umbridge. This is one of the most iconic villains in the franchise. This was the perfect idea to incorporate a different villain, as Voldemort is already predominantly featured in the Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts attraction.

Ministry of Magic

One of the main features of the attraction is the entrance into the ride itself, as guests get to enter the Ministry of Magic atrium and venture through Ministry departments before boarding the new attraction. You do not need to get in line for the ride to see the queue either! Universal has a separate entrance that allows guests to enter the queue and just see the impressive Ministry of Magic atrium.

AdvertisementAdvertisement#«R2bekkr8lb2m7nfblbH1» iframe AdvertisementAdvertisement#«R4bekkr8lb2m7nfblbH1» iframe

We rank this ride as one of the best in Epic Universe and that seems to be the common consensus amongst everyone that rides it. The ride technology is impressive along with the combination of animatronics, screens, and larger than life sets. It is absolutely worth your time to try and ride it, although I wouldn't argue that you should spend your entire day in the Ministry of Magic line. Which brings us to our best strategy on how to ride it!

Use Early Park Admission to Get in Line for Ministry of Magic

Universal Orlando

If you have Early Park Admissionat Universal Orlando, your time is best spent lining up to ride Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry. While this attraction is not included in Early Park Admission, Universal team members open the line up for those who want to start waiting, but the ride will not start operating until the park officially opens.

We found this to be our best option with the lowest wait time. Once the ride started running at park open, we had already waited an hour, but since we had a head start in the queue from there, we waited another 30 minutes or so. Technically, we waited an hour and 30 minutes altogether, but an hour of that time we just sat on the floor in the queue and snacked on some breakfast items we brought from our hotel.

Only guests staying at a Universal Orlando hotel and select annual passholders get access to Early Park Admission. Early Park Admission takes place at Epic Universe and Islands of Adventure one hour before official park opening.

Do Not Rope Drop Ministry of Magic Without Early Park Admission

Epic Universe

If you do not have Early Park Admission, you should not go rope drop Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry. You will be at a large disadvantage since everyone with Early Park Admission is allowed to line up in the queue during this time.

AdvertisementAdvertisement#«R2lekkr8lb2m7nfblbH1» iframe AdvertisementAdvertisement#«R4lekkr8lb2m7nfblbH1» iframe

Your best bet is to instead rope drop attractions that are not included in Early Park Admission, which has typically been everything in How to Train Your Dragon- Isle of Berk.

Lowest Times for Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry

Ministry of Magic

So, when should you ride Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry if you don't have Early Park Admission? The best bet is to come back in the evening as wait times start to drop throughout the day. This is especially helpful if there have been afternoon storms, which tend to clear some folks out of the parks and lower crowd levels.

But don't expect very low wait times in the afternoon or evening, you are likely just seeing a three-hour wait drop to a two-hour wait. Or if you're lucky, just under two hours. This will likely change over time, but since Epic Universe just opened in May, the demand for the park will remain for some time. This makes Epic Universe a bit of a wild card, but you can read through our Universal Orlando crowd calendar for an idea of what crowds will be like.

To best take advantage of this strategy, keep an eye on the wait times on the Universal Orlando app, but aim for getting in line around 5 PM.

Don't Wait Too Long to Ride or It May Be at Capacity

Don't wait too long to ride Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry! The newest trend we've seen is that Universal has been closing access to the ride around 6 PM each night when the park has a closing time of 9 PM. This is when we see the ride listed as “At capacity” on the Universal Orlando app.

AdvertisementAdvertisement#«R30ekkr8lb2m7nfblbH1» iframe AdvertisementAdvertisement#«R50ekkr8lb2m7nfblbH1» iframe

The reasoning for this is likely due to the typical two and three-hour wait times. Universal doesn't want the queue continuing to fill up before park closing, so this way the last of the guests that ride will be done by the time the park closes.

It's hard to say how consistently Universal will continue that practice, but it's good to be prepared, as you do not want to be turned away from getting in line.

Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry No Longer Using Virtual Queue

Ministry of Magic queue

Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry only used a virtual queue during the preview period before the park officially opened. Many guests were frustrated with the virtual queue process and this is likely why it was discontinued. The preview period was a time for Universal to test out different strategies and they likely decided that a traditional standby line approach worked best for the attraction.

It is a lot of waiting right now to get on the Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry attraction, but I do feel it is worth it as long as you can fit it into your day while still experiencing everything else Epic Universe has to offer!

READ MORE – Disney World Dates to Avoid If You Hate Crowds! – 2025 WORST Times to Visit

Don't Miss the Latest Disney News

Don't miss the latest Disneyland and Disney World news from Mickey Visit. Join the FREE Mickey Visit newsletter that over 100k readers receive every single week. Mickey Visit is here to help you save money and experience more during your Disney and Universal vacation. See the Mickey Visit guide to Disneyland and the Mickey Visit guide to Disney World for tips.

The post How to Ride Universal's New Insanely Popular Harry Potter Ride appeared first on Mickey Visit - Disney News & Planning Tips.