If you’re a Harry Potter fan, this post is for you! I visited the newly-opened Harry Potter New York store and snapped a few photos of the inside to share with you all.
After waiting a few weeks for the crowds to die down, I was excited to finally see the store. Fair warning – it’s definitely a process to get inside. This isn’t a store you can just walk into and visit on a whim with no prior planning.
In order to limit crowds, the store has instituted a virtual queue system. You have to go to the store hours before you plan to actually visit and scan a QR code at the entrance. You’ll enter your party size and be given a number, and you have to wait to be notified that it’s your turn to enter the store. Depending on how many people scanned the code before you, the wait time can take anywhere between 30 minutes-6 hours. The earlier in the day you go, the shorter your wait time will be!
My friend went to scan the code around 1pm and we were notified that it was our turn at about 5:15pm.
As soon as you enter the store, you see Fawkes, Dumbledore’s phoenix, on the ceiling above you. This area has a bunch of New York exclusive Harry Potter merchandise such as pens, notebooks, and various apparel.
In the room to your right, you have t-shirts, spirit jerseys, Quidditch sweaters, hats, pens, pencils, mugs, glasses, and thermoses from all four houses.
There’s also a photo opportunity nearby with the famous red phone booth outside King’s Cross station and a wall with all of the ‘wanted’ posters.
Next, there are several walls filled from floor to ceiling with wands from different characters seen in all of the Harry Potter and Fantastic Beast films. One wall is dedicated to character wands such as those of Leta Lestrange and Remus Lupin, while another is for house wands – Ravenclaw, Slytherin, Hufflepuff, Gryffindor, and Hogwarts (which isn’t technically a house, but they’ve included it in this section anyway).
There’s a small section dedicated to the Golden Snitch wand, which is exclusive to the Harry Potter New York store. I ended up purchasing this, and you can see that it comes with an information card and wand bag that says Harry Potter New York.
Near the wands, there’s a wall of clutches, crossbody bags, and Loungefly backpacks that would make great gift items for any Harry Potter fan who loves to travel.
Directly to the right of the aforementioned section is a small version of Honeydukes. You can find essentially any sweet treat you can think of from the series – butterbeer, chocolate frogs, Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans, fudge flies, exploding bon bons, and more. If you’re looking for a New York store exclusive, look for the Macusa New York butterbeer in this section.
There’s a wall dedicated to home decor which would be great for finding a gift for any Harry Potter fan. They have lamps, snowglobes, bed sheets, blankets, and towels available, among other things.
Downstairs in the ‘Things That Must Be Named’ section is where you can get personalized merchandise – robes, wands, Hogwarts acceptance letters, stationery, jewelry, and other trinkets. Previously, the only place to get robes like these was at Harry Potter World in Universal Studios. If you’re unable to visit the theme parks, you can now buy these during your next visit to the New York store 🙂
Towards the back, you can find a Minalima section with various notecards and stationery available for purchase.
Finally, after checking out upstairs, you pass through the market section of the store where you can get fresh butterbeer in a souvenir mug, butterbeer ice cream, desserts, and snacks. A large gathering of empty butterbeer bottles covers the wall and ceiling for decoration.
Overall, I thought it was really neat to be able to have a mini Harry Potter world right in New York City. I would definitely recommend that you visit if you’re a fan of the books or movies!
This looks so neat! I’ve never been to NYC but it’s one of the places I’m most interested in visiting.
I feel like everyone should visit NYC at least once in their life! I hope you get to visit 🙂
OH my gosh I would LOVE to go here!! I am a HUGE HP fan – this is my dream!!
Yay! I hope you get a chance to go soon 🙂 It was so well done!
Wow, this looks amazing! I think I’ve been on a virtual tour there but would love to visit in person x
Fingers crossed that you get to visit in person!
Omg this looks incredible! Thank you for sharing your experience! I loved the photos and the place looks huge. The Butterbeer wall looks amazing. I really hope I get to visit sometime in the near future! Hope you didn’t spend too much money haha!
Agreed! I’m so glad I got to go and hope you visit too! And yes, it was definitely tempting to buy a lot, but luckily I only left with a few things and didn’t break the bank 😉
Wow, that looks really cool. I’m not a Harry Potter fan, but those are nice displays!
~Michelle
https://michellescrazybusylife.net
Agreed! The decor is so well done that I think even non-Harry Potter fans would enjoy this as well.
This looks incredible – thanks so much for the photos too!
You’re welcome! Thanks for reading 🙂
Love the photo op with the red booth! Great little detail they thought of and I’m glad they included it.
I agree! It’s such a neat touch that I think many will appreciate and enjoy 🙂
Even though I’m not that big of a fan of Harry Potter I do love the Universal specialized stores. It’s always such a great experience in them and judging by your photos this one doesn’t disappoint. Would love to have a wander in it myself!
x DCPR.
It’s great to hear you still love the Universal specialized stores! I think that really speaks to their wide appeal. I hope you get a chance to visit as well!
I’m a huge Harry Potter fan and this store looks like so much fun to visit!
Yay! I think you’d definitely love it if you went to visit.
Love this post! Thanks for sharing this! This store looks so cool! I visited the Harry Potter store in London a few years ago and it was so good!
You’re welcome! I’m so glad you enjoyed reading this. The Harry Potter store in London looks amazing and it would be so cool to visit one day!
I cannot believe the sounds of the long lines, but am fascinated by the virtual queue system! Love that it means you do not have to actually wait outside the store for hours. The inside looks amazing; the sections are well-planned and there is a versatile collection of items. I would be walking out with the Golden Snitch wand too. 🙂
Agreed! I think the virtual queue system is much better than physically standing in line for hours, although it’s still a bit of pain to have to go all the way there to reserve your spot :p I’m so glad I picked up the Golden Snitch wand as well! Thanks for reading 🙂
Thank you for sharing this.
We have a similar very small shop in a town near us, but this one is amazing.
You’re welcome! I hope you enjoyed the photos.
It looks like a very lovely store. My sister likes Harry Potter so this would be a great place for my family and I to take her to visit. Thank you for sharing your experience.
Lauren
You’re welcome! I hope you get to visit with your family.