Are you heading to Universal Orlando soon? Now is a great time to visit the resort. Not only do you get to experience the updated Wicked: The Experience, but you can also visit Epic Universe (which is…dare we say…EPIC) and see all the holiday decorations and meet the Grinch.

However, if you plan on visiting Universal Orlando next week and had plans to ride one popular ride, you may just be out of luck: Hogwarts Express will be temporarily closing soon.

The Hogwarts Express ride is located in Hogsmeade in Universal Islands of Adventure and Diagon Alley in Universal Studios Florida…it’s basically a way to park hop if you have Universal’s 2-Park per day ticket. The ride simulates what the ride between the actual Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley would be like, and it’s always VERY popular. However, as of December 3rd, the ride will be closing.

This is a temporary closure, which is probably just to do some maintenance on the ride, and it probably won’t be closed for very long, but it will change how you travel between the parks if you’re visiting The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. While the ride is closed, you’ll just have to hop between parks the old-fashioned way…via their front gates. That’s certainly not as much fun or impressive, but these things happen.

We’ll keep an eye out for the ride’s reopening and let you know when it is available again. In the meantime, you can also keep an eye on Universal Orlando’s website or app to see when the ride might reopen.

We also wanted to warn you about another Hogwarts Express closure scheduled for February 9th through 23rd, 2026. You’ll want to make sure that doesn’t interfere with your early 2026 Universal Orlando trip.

Stay tuned to DFB for more.

NEW Hogwarts Express Ride Announced, 2026 Opening Confirmed

Will this ride closure affect your Universal Orlando plans? Let us know in the comments!