The Nighttime Lights at Hogwarts Castle - Hollywood

[ItsAtrap]

Kinda disappointing. There are several moments in the music where some fireworks would really punch it up. Glad to see something, just needs a little something extra to make it special.

 

[Stryker]

Kinda disappointing. There are several moments in the music where some fireworks would really punch it up. Glad to see something, just needs a little something extra to make it special.

Saw tonight's first showing at 8:50 pm and agree that the pyro was pretty disappointing. Not sure if some of it failed, but it was the quietest pyro I've ever seen. There was literally no sound. Only two instances and no finale pyro. They were like giant sparklers even though handheld sparklers have a "sparkling" sound. Waterworld's pyro is more impressive. Of all nights (July 4th) where they could've jazzed it up a bit and gotten away with it, they chose not to. Sorry for the rant.

On a side note and for future reference for those visiting the park on July 4th, there appears to be a nearby fireworks show somewhere to the north where if you're on roof of the Curious George or ET parking garages, you should get a good view of it.​

 

[Chris]

What else did you expect? This park cannot do large fireworks unless its a special contract negotiations.

 

[Ron101]

Saw tonight's first showing at 8:50 pm and agree that the pyro was pretty disappointing. Not sure if some of it failed, but it was the quietest pyro I've ever seen. There was literally no sound. Only two instances and no finale pyro. They were like giant sparklers even though handheld sparklers have a "sparkling" sound. Waterworld's pyro is more impressive. Of all nights (July 4th) where they could've jazzed it up a bit and gotten away with it, they chose not to. Sorry for the rant.

On a side note and for future reference for those visiting the park on July 4th, there appears to be a nearby fireworks show somewhere to the north where if you're on roof of the Curious George or ET parking garages, you should get a good view of it.​

I thought the fireworks looked better now than it did for Christmas. Christmas had the small amount of fireworks in the middle and this one now has 3 sections like in Orlando, but smaller. I think the 3 section one now looks better, but that photo I provided isn’t as good as the Christmas one.

 

[Stryker]

I thought the fireworks looked better now than it did for Christmas. Christmas had the small amount of fireworks in the middle and this one now has 3 sections like in Orlando, but smaller. I think the 3 section one now looks better, but that photo I provided isn’t as good as the Christmas one.

Looks like you may have seen a later show than I did. I saw the 8:50 show which was the first one of that night I believe and it didn't have those types of pyro. Like I said, perhaps some of it failed during my show time and there were only two instances. The recommended viewing times that night was 9:30, 9:45 and 10:00 according to the digital display boards so perhaps they saved the full pyros for the recommended show times. So maybe the recommended show times will feature the full pyro while shows prior to that will have a muted pyro show. Can anyone confirm this?

 

[Ron101]

Looks like you may have seen a later show than I did. I saw the 8:50 show which was the first one of that night I believe and it didn't have those types of pyro. Like I said, perhaps some of it failed during my show time and there were only two instances. The recommended viewing times that night was 9:30, 9:45 and 10:00 according to the digital display boards so perhaps they saved the full pyros for the recommended show times. So maybe the recommended show times will feature the full pyro while shows prior to that will have a muted pyro show. Can anyone confirm this?

I can confirm that they use all pyros (2 burst) at all showtimes. I’ve seen 2 this summer at 8:50 and everything was working. SOMETIMES, there will be only 1 burst at the end or none at all for any showing, it could be an error or they didn’t replace them in time.

 

[Stryker]

I can confirm that they use all pyros (2 burst) at all showtimes. I’ve seen 2 this summer at 8:50 and everything was working. SOMETIMES, there will be only 1 burst at the end or none at all for any showing, it could be an error or they didn’t replace them in time.

Looks like my show time may have experienced some duds. Good to know that the intended show is better than what I experienced.

 

[Stryker]

What else did you expect? This park cannot do large fireworks unless its a special contract negotiations.

I wasn't expecting large fireworks, but at least better low altitude effects similar to EVE, the holiday nighttime show or Waterworld (given that it's 4th of July). As @Ron101 mentioned, I've concluded the show I saw may have experienced technical difficulties. I can understand that USH may have limitations due to their proximity to nearby neighborhoods, but on the 4th of July when fireworks show were rampant, I'm don't understand why USH couldn't have had a full-blown fireworks show. Perhaps there's some sort of ordinance I'm not aware of.

 

[Chris]

I wasn't expecting large fireworks, but at least better low altitude effects similar to EVE, the holiday nighttime show or Waterworld (given that it's 4th of July). As @Ron101 mentioned, I've concluded the show I saw may have experienced technical difficulties. I can understand that USH may have limitations due to their proximity to nearby neighborhoods, but on the 4th of July when fireworks show were rampant, I'm don't understand why USH couldn't have had a full-blown fireworks show. Perhaps there's some sort of ordinance I'm not aware of.

This is a much larger issue. USH has never supported fireworks for the 4th of July for many decades. The Hogwarts show fireworks are very minimal at best and are not to do anything more than surprise for a simple finale. The major difference between Orlando and Hollywood Hogwarts fireworks are that the Hollywood fireworks have to direct themselves vertically and not horizontally due to the close proximity of buildings and safety around the FJ ride building.

The Country Club near USH has a fireworks show which USH does not compete with. Plus, The Hollywood Bowl has a fireworks display for the 4th which is also very nearby. Remember that USH is a theme park in a location where nobody would ever place a theme park!!! LOL

 

[Stryker]

This is a much larger issue. USH has never supported fireworks for the 4th of July for many decades. The Hogwarts show fireworks are very minimal at best and are not to do anything more than surprise for a simple finale. The major difference between Orlando and Hollywood Hogwarts fireworks are that the Hollywood fireworks have to direct themselves vertically and not horizontally due to the close proximity of buildings and safety around the FJ ride building.

The Country Club near USH has a fireworks show which USH does not compete with. Plus, The Hollywood Bowl has a fireworks display for the 4th which is also very nearby. Remember that USH is a theme park in a location where nobody would ever place a theme park!!! LOL

Thanks for clarifying. It makes more sense to me now. Forgive me as prior to this year, I haven't been to USH in about 10 years so I wasn't aware that they never really had a dedicated 4th of July fireworks show.

 

[AlexanderMBush]

As we all say goodbye to Jurassic Park: The Ride, we will also be saying goodbye for now to Nighttime Lights at Hogwarts Castle for Universal Hollywood today; until the Holiday's at Universal Studios Hollywood come in like a truck.

 

[Chris]

As we all say goodbye to Jurassic Park: The Ride, we will also be saying goodbye for now to Nighttime Lights at Hogwarts Castle for Universal Hollywood today; until the Holiday's at Universal Studios Hollywood come in like a truck.

I wish we would get the HHN overlay and shows from Japan. Not having WWoHP open for HHN is a crime!

Think about it...this would be a benefit over Orlando since Hogsmeade is not in USF!!!

 

[SnideRemarksDept]

I wonder if we'll get a new show for next summer. I hope we do. I'd be okay if they did it for the spring season again; that would be two summers and two springs. But three years is a long time to do the same, arguably pretty lackluster show.

 

[Ron101]

I wonder if we'll get a new show for next summer. I hope we do. I'd be okay if they did it for the spring season again; that would be two summers and two springs. But three years is a long time to do the same, arguably pretty lackluster show.

I agree that we need a new show. One that is at least 9 minutes long and has more silent (USH) pyrotechnics that are colored. In the current spring/summer show,"The Nighttime Lights at Hogwarts Castle," I always thought it'd be neat to see color coded fireworks launch when the house banners are displayed. For example, when the Ravenclaw symbol appears, blue fireworks would launch. The ending would be the same with the two white colored firework bursts.

 

[SnideRemarksDept]

One that is at least 9 minutes long

I don't think they would do a summer-time light show longer than ten minutes.

A) the land has a relatively small capacity and they'll want to get as many people as possible to see it, which means running at as many times as possible. The longer the show, the fewer they can do in the same amount of time. Maybe they'll extend hours to 11, but I doubt it.

B) Not a very big reason, but FotH has to stop running for the duration of the show. 10+ minutes of downtime every time they run the show adds up fast.

always thought it'd be neat to see color coded fireworks

I would even settle for the colored flares like they use in WaterWorld. Six of whatever color going up when the respective house crests appear would be a nice touch.

 

[Teebin]

Do they suspend the fireworks portion of this show in lieu of the dry and dangerous conditions?

 

[k_peek_2000]

Do they suspend the fireworks portion of this show in lieu of the dry and dangerous conditions?

When there's wind yes.

 

[Chris]

Do they suspend the fireworks portion of this show in lieu of the dry and dangerous conditions?

This is also another reason why our fireworks in Hollywood fire vertically unlike Orlando. There are many structures and potential hazards in the area. We have all heard of the nightmares that Disneyland goes through. To be legal, a team of trained firefighters must be active during the time the fireworks are displayed to help minimize response time. Just another day in the ol' CA!

 

[ItsAtrap]

Chris is correct. Just to clarify: They use mines rather than shells. A mine is shot from the mortar and burns as it's propelled into the sky. All the composition is burned. A shell is propelled into the sky and then ignites. Pieces of the shell (usually cardboard) and even the pyro comp itself fall to the ground. I was told they can load up to 12 shows at a time

You can see the firing location here: Google Maps

 

[smoaT]

For years I have heard that we don't get fireworks at Universal because of the neighbors. Are you saying it's possible to have better fireworks shows? The Fire Dept involvement hazle seems a little too whiny. I mean, Universal has it's own fire station in site, so why would that be such a huge problem? Apparently Disneyland does it all the time.