Until now, Harry Potter fans could only imagine the sensation of quaffing a butterbeer, finding a magic wand at Ollivander's or escaping the steam from a snarling dragon's snout.
But finally, 13 years after the first of seven books began chronicling the boy wizard's adventures, imagination has become reality at Universal Orlando in Florida.
The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, a mini-park inside Universal's Islands of Adventure theme park, opens for general admission June 18, one of the most highly-anticipated theme-park attraction in years.
Past a stone archway and the steam-belching Hogwarts Express, the fictitious city of Hogsmeade unfolds amid snow-capped, dingy rooftops and storefronts packed like row houses with shops straight from the books and films.
Zonko's joke shop offers Sneakoscopes and extendable ears. The confectionery Honeydukes has chocolate frogs and Bertie Bott's Every-Flavour Beans (literally ranging from pear to fish). At the Owl Post, guests can stamp mail with a genuine Hogsmeade postmark.
Towering over it all is Hogwarts, a reproduction of the imposing, many-spired castle where Harry and his friends are students.
"Once we locked in and knew what we were doing - what we thought would be the most iconographic moments of the fiction to bring to life - it became a matter of executing at a level of authenticity and detail that was going to be unquestionable," said Mark Woodbury, head of Universal Creative.
Park construction was overseen by the production manager from the Potter movies, and as Warner Bros. filmed the series' sixth movie, "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," scenes were shot for the park's crown jewel, a ride called Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey.
The ride combines the sensation of flight with tactile experiences like smoke and drops of water as it takes guests through a hodgepodge of encounters in Potter's chaotic life, from the Quidditch field to the mouths of giant spiders and dragons. The ride queue stars lifelike projections of film characters like Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore.
Author J.K. Rowling is a stickler for details, and Universal worked hard to get her approval. So many recipes were offered to find the perfect look, texture and taste for the previously fictitious butterbeer that Woodbury lost count.
"We had to package up all the ingredients and rent a hotel kitchen in Scotland so that we could put it all together," he said.
The result? A tasty, thick-headed (and non-alcoholic) brew reminiscent of cream soda, which has proven popular with the fans who bought special tickets to preview the Potter park ahead of the public opening.
Like Wizarding World employees, many of these avid Potterphiles dressed in robes and wizard hats.
Besides the Forbidden Journey, The Wizarding World has just two other rides: Flight of the Hippogriff and Dragon Challenge, both of which are older roller coasters redone with Potter themes.
There's no additional admission for Wizarding World once you pay to enter Islands of Adventure. But guests who travel long distances just to see it may be disappointed that there is also not much to do beyond the three rides other than soaking up the scenery and going shopping - although long queues for the attractions could easily keep them in the mini-park for hours.
The Wizarding World is an ambitious bet for Universal. Contract details buried in Securities and Exchange Commission filings reveal how badly Universal wanted a piece of the franchise, which it describes as the most financially successful in film history.
The contract gives Universal the rights to operate the park for nine years, with two additional five-year options. But the rights can be pulled if Universal fails to maintain minimum quality standards, does not invest enough capital or sells controlling interests.
Universal has poured cash into the park the past few years, sinking up to 380 million dollars in the Potter park and two other attractions - a ride themed on The Simpsons and a roller coaster on which guests choose their own soundtrack.