There’s a lot of options for gifts and souvenirs at Universal Studios, especially from movies and TV shows like The Simpsons, Fast & Furious and Spongebob. Of course that you will find a lot – and I mean, a lot – of Harry Potter stuff at the Diagon Alley, from Slytherin t-shirts to magic wands, drinkware, talking hats, Christmas ornaments and chess sets.
Almost every main ride has a shop at the exit that sells products related to that attraction/franchise. Men in Black: Alien Attack sells MIB t-shirts and alien plushies, for example. Revenge of the Mummy sells a lot of souvenirs related to ancient Egypt and also some very weird candies, like a scorpion inside a lollipop and… fried… crickets? I honestly still don’t know if they are real or not. I’ve tried the crickets in the past and they didn’t taste bad, so don’t be afraid to have some insects before lunch.
Main shopping spots at Universal Studios Florida
Diagon Alley
It's no surprise that the Harry Potter area is the biggest star of the show when it comes to merchandising. The Diagon Alley sells pretty much the same thing you will find at Hogsmeade in Islands of Adventure. There are a lot of things here designed especially for the fans. Talking hats? Check. Magic books? Check. Harry Potter chess sets? Check.
Of course, you will also find t-shirts that prove your allegiance to one of the four houses in Hogwarts – Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Some wizards might not like muggles that much, but be certain that they will be very happy to take your muggle-dollars out of your hand. T-shirts cost anywhere from $25 to $40, while the mentioned chess set is $60 (the collectable version is $400, however). It’s also a good time to remind you that those prices vary a lot, especially with each passing year.
Now, what really, really sells bazillions of units at the Wizarding World are the magic wands and robes. The magic wands come in an almost infinite number of colors and shapes, and are divided into interactive and non-interactive. The main difference is that the interactive ones have a small sensor at the tip, which can be used to interact with many objects all over the Wizarding World in Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios. For example, you can point it at a fountain, wave your hand in a specific way and make a statue spill out water. The interactive wands cost $65, while the regular ones are $55. It’s not cheap being a wizard!
The robes are the same ones that students use in the movies, and they look super awesome. Not-so-awesome is the price tag of $139, but at least you can walk around the park wearing your brand-new robe, go on some rides with it and I bet it will make a very good Halloween costume. Again, you can choose which house is your favorite (pick Slytherin) and select one of the two available sizes – a small one for kids and one designed for an adult.
Springfield
Springfield is another fun area to visit if you want to buy colorful and extravagant products based on The Simpsons. This is an amazing choice for gifts. T-shirts, mugs, plushies, backpacks, keychains and even dry diapers are some of the things you can find here. There are also items based solely on donuts and the popular Duff Beer, which are great souvenirs for fans of the tv show.
SpongeBob Storepants
is another awesome place to browse and see what’s new. Very, very popular with the kids, you can find t-shirts, toys and a bunch of gifts based on the popular Nickelodeon cartoon. This store is almost a ride in itself, with a bunch of easter eggs and even a replica of SpongeBobs’s pineapple house that guests can enter to take pictures. You can also find SongeBob and his friends walking around the store from time to time, so keep your phone ready.
There is also a nice gift shop next to The Bourne Stuntacular that sells a bunch of action figures of DC characters and also movie posters signed by famous actors. I’ve seen, in the past, a Back to the Future poster signed by Michael J. Fox going for over a thousand dollars. Not something that you are going to simply take home, but it’s still entertaining to browse. You can also find action figures of Batman, Catwoman, Superman, the Joker and more characters, with prices ranging from $60 all the way to $500.
Most popular shopping items
I know that sometimes it’s hard to know what to buy and bring home. So many options, so little time (and money). With that in mind, I decided to select a few of the most popular gifts you can find at Universal Studios Florida.
Wands
Wands. Regular wands. Interactive wands. Curly wands, straight wands, blue wands, black wands, Harry Potter wands, Hermione Granger wands, paper mache wands AAAhhhhh! ...as you can see, there are a lot, and I mean, a lot of options for wands at Universal Studios. They are very, very popular amongst guests, by the way. You will see people standing in front of stores and windows waving their newly bought wands around, trying to get one of the interactive props to work.
As I already stated above, wands cost from $55 to $65. The more expensive ones come with a special map, showing interactive spots in Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure where you can use the optic sensor to conjure “magic”. It’s both something to have fun while enjoying the park and a nice memorabilia to bring home and display in your bedroom.
What amazes me is the huge number of different wand styles you can buy. It reminds me a bit of Lightsabers, which come in different colors and have different hilts. Here at Universal, you can buy the same style of wand used by the characters in the book, or choose something different and call it your own. There are black wands with skulls, straight wands in pink, wands inspired by an oak tree and more.
Definitely the number one gift at all Universal parks. Just don’t go Ava Kedavraing people while exploring the Diagon Alley.
Hogwarts robes
Wait, more Harry Potter stuff? You got that right! If wands are the number one gift in the whole park, I’d say that robes get the silver medal. Robes come only in two sizes, one aimed at kids and one at adults, and the price is the same for both: $139. The cool thing is that you can choose your robe based on your favorite house in Hogwarts: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Slytherin and Ravenclaw. Each robe comes with an emblem of your chosen house so you can proudly display your allegiance.
You will see a lot of people waving magical wands, but you bet you will also spot tons of guests wearing robes and riding a bunch of attractions cosplaying as wizards. Speaking of that, by buying a robe you already have your outfit for the next Halloween, so keep that in mind.
Chocolate Frogs
Wait, we aren’t done with Harry Potter just yet! You can certainly find a lot of candies and food items based on the books and movies inside the Diagon Alley, but the Chocolate Frogs are definitely a fan favorite.
When it comes to pure taste, there isn’t much to say about the Chocolate Frogs: it’s basically a milk chocolate that is still good (it’s chocolate, after all), don’t get me wrong, but there’s just nothing special about it. There’s two things that make this a very nice gift, however. The first one is that the package is beautiful, and makes an excellent first impression as a gift. The second cool thing is that each Chocolate Frog comes with a special, collectible card inside, which is a nod to the books. Get ready to collect cards of Dumbledore, Salazar Slytherin, Rowena Ravenclaw, Helga Hufflepuff and Godric Gryffindor, who are the founding members of Hogwarts.
Chocolate Frogs cost around $13, but you can also buy a pack of four of them with four different collectible cards for $55. Prices can vary.
Mugs
A classic gift. Everyone loves mugs, right? Theme parks in general are a great place to buy mugs inspired by your favorite characters, just make sure to pack them well inside your luggage.
Prices vary from $20 to $30, depending on the design you choose. You can find colorful mugs that are basically SpongeBob’s huge yellow face or a traditional option with just the Jurassic Park logo. One of my favorite designs is a medieval inspired mug that only reads “Butterbeer”, and can even be used as a refill.
Plush Toys
You can’t go wrong with toys, especially for younglings. There are a lot of them in basically every shop at Universal Studios. Want an E.T plush toy? You got it. What about a fluffy Men in Black alien? Sure. Jurassic Park dinos? There are a lot of them. Of course that the Diagon Alley also has toys based not only on Harry Potter, Ron and Hermione, but also gryphs, dragons and all sorts of creatures from the Wizarding World.
