For the total Harry Potter experience at Universal you must stop in to Ollivanders shop. Here you can purchase your own wand. They have both interactive and non-interactive wands as well as replicas of the popular characters wands. This is the Ollivanders in Diagon Alley, there is also one in Hogsmeade, but this is the bigger of the 2.

The shop has 2 parts to it. The main shopping area has shelves that run from floor to ceiling with all the different wands for purchase. The stores in Diagon Alley are not too big so you will need to leave your strollers outside. The other part of the store is an interactive show, this is geared towards the kids but adults will enjoy too.

If you are planning to see the show, the line can get long as the room only fits about 20 people at a time. We went first thing in the morning so we could get our wand to play with all day, you can also purchase the interactive wands online and have them shipped to you before your trip.

Once your group enters the room they will have all the kids stand towards the front and adults in the back. The shopkeeper will choose 1 kid from the audience to try and find the perfect wand. The experience is much like Harrys in the 1st movie. We were lucky because our oldest was chosen during our visit. She was the only one in our group that had on a Hogwarts robe and that why she said she was picked. At the end of the show you are asked if you want to purchase the wand, which we did, but just be aware they don’t come cheap. The interactive wands were $52 during our visit but they can be used on future vacations so that’s a plus.

You can always skip the show and just go straight to wand shop where a storekeeper will help you find your perfect wand. The interactive wands work in both Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade. Each comes in a box with map of the locations of the interactive elements.

Our girls really enjoyed having the interactive wands and it really made our Harry Potter experience that much better. We purchased the wand that choose my oldest when she participated in the show. We also purchased a 2nd wand at the Hogsmeade store when my youngest was chosen to participate.