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Harry Potter film star Daniel Radcliffe rides the Flight of the Hippogriff attraction at Universal Orlando Resort in Florida June 18, 2010 with some ofthe first guests to the new spectacularly themed area. Photo taken June 18, 2010. (Agencies)
"Harry Potter" star Daniel Radcliffe led groups of excited kids dressed in Hogwarts uniforms as the Wizarding World of Harry Potter theme park officially opened on Friday to long lines and snarled traffic.
Radcliffe, Rupert Grint who plays the boy wizard's best friend Ron Weasley, and other actors from the blockbuster movie and book series, were on handat Universal Orlando as fans lined up more than eight hours to be among the first visitors.
Before dawn, the backupof Potter fans began to block the main highway through Orlando near the entrances to Universal, prompting the theme park to open its parking garage at 5 am -- 30 minutes earlier than planned, according to local media.
Visitors said that by 8:30 am the line to get inside wrapped around the exterior of Universal's Islands of Adventure park, of which the Wizarding World is one of six unique sections. And the wait for the signature ride, the Forbidden Journey, reached at least 90 minutes, at one point.
"It was worth it, just because I'm a Harry Potter fanatic," said Kelsey Rigg, 18, a British transplantto Florida who at 3 am joined a crowd of several hundred people.
Universal executives did not immediately have information about crowd size.
The 20-acre Harry Potter park reportedly cost $250 million to build and recreates the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardryand other places dreamed up by author J.K. Rowling in her fantasy novels about the boy wizard and his friends.
Attractions include the Dragon Challenge, a high-speed ride based on the Triwizard Tournament, a fictional 13th century contest between students of the three most prestigious magical schools of Europe.
哈利 波特魔法世界主题公园于上周五正式开放,开放日当天公园门口排起长队,被堵得水泄不通。《哈利 波特》系列电影的主演丹尼尔 雷德克里夫则带领着一群兴高采烈、身穿霍格沃茨魔法学校校服的孩子们畅游乐园。
当天,雷德克里夫和《哈利 波特》系列电影和小说中哈利 波特的好友罗恩 韦斯莱的扮演者鲁伯特 格林特及其它主创都现身奥兰多环球影城,而“哈迷”们则为了成为公园的第一批游客不惜排队等待八个多小时。
据当地媒体报道,当天天亮之前,环球影城入口附近的市内主要通道已开始被“哈迷”们堵塞,使得主题公园不得不提前30分钟,于凌晨5点就开放了停车场。
据游客介绍,在当天早上8点半之前,排队等待入园的长龙已经将位于环球影城的冒险岛乐园外围得水泄不通。魔法世界是冒险岛乐园六大特色板块之一。而园内“哈利 波特禁忌之旅”特色游乐项目的等待时间则一度达到了90分钟。
现居住在佛罗里达的英国人、18岁的凯尔西 瑞格说:“我觉得很值得,因为我是哈利 波特迷。”瑞格在当天凌晨三点就加入了数百人的排队大军。
环球影城的工作人员当天未公布具体的排队人数。
据报道,占地20英亩的哈利 波特公园建造耗资达2.5亿美元,园内再现了霍格沃茨魔法学校和作者J K 罗琳在这部魔幻小说中构想的其他场景。
园内的其它游乐设施还包括基于“三强争霸赛”设计的“龙的挑战”高速过山车。“三强争霸赛”是小说中虚构的13世纪在欧洲三所最具盛名的魔法学校的学生之间举行的一项比赛。
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