Harry Potter Fans: You Can Ride On The Hogwarts Express In Real Life
Harry Potter fans have, at one point or another, most certainly thought about what it would be like to ride the Hogwarts Express. While there aren't any magical food carts or dementors on board (phew), there is an actual train ride you can take on the train, and it includes a few stops important to Potter fans.
The Jacobite (the train's "official" name, whatever), travels across 84 miles of railway in the United Kingdom, bringing fans on the ultimate Harry Potter experience. National Rail detailed the trip you can take for just ₤30 from April to October, onboard the train shown in the films.
The train boards in Fort William, near the highest mountain in Britain, and ends in Malaig. You'll want to check out nearby Glencoe before hopping on board – it's where Hagrid's hut was filmed, and is home to the bridge leading to Hogwarts.
Once you're onboard the Jacobite, you'll cross that bridge – the Glenfinnan viaduct – so you can pretend you're on your way to school before getting off to stretch your legs at Glenfinnan. The train then goes to Mallaig, a fishing port that's got plenty of restaurants and shops to explore (just pretend you're in Gringott's Alley).
If you find yourself in Scotland, you might as well also head to Goathland Train Station, which is used as Hogsmeade Station in the movies, and Edinburgh, where J.K. Rowling wrote many of the books. She's known to have frequented restaurants like The Elephant House and Spoon, and stayed at the Balmoral Hotel.
Need some more magical adventures? You could head to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, of course, or this Bed and Breakfast. Last year, Barnes & Noble hosted Yule Balls, so here's hoping round two is coming this winter. For less of a trek, try out these exploding bon bons. They're *almost* as good as getting a letter from Hogwarts in the mail.
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