Harry Potter fans never suffer a shortage of fresh ways to celebrate and immerse themselves in the Wizarding World, from products like wizard’s chess sets to programs like HBO Max’s reunion special.
Now, as Travel + Leisure reports, Philadelphia’s Franklin Institute is kicking it up a notch with a new, highly interactive Harry Potter exhibition created by Imagine Exhibitions, Warner Bros. Themed Entertainment, and EMC Presents. With 21 galleries over 18,000 square feet of museum space, "Harry Potter: The Exhibition" is “the most comprehensive touring exhibition ever presented about the Wizarding World,” according to a press release.
Throughout those 21 galleries, you’ll find plenty of artifacts to look at—like a first edition copy of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, plus costumes and props from the films. But this exhibition offers far more than objects to see and placards to read: You’ll also get to live out your fantasies as a Hogwarts student, concocting your own potions in the Potions classroom, foreseeing the future during Divination class, and finding out how your Herbology skills compare to Neville Longbottom’s while potting a Mandrake.
Unlike in Professor Umbridge’s classroom, wand work isn’t prohibited in the exhibition. With your digital wand, you’ll battle a Boggart in Defense Against the Dark Arts and cast a Patronus by Hagrid’s hut. No special permission is needed to call upon the centaurs in the Forbidden Forest, but watch out for Aragog’s spawn.
You get to choose your own Hogwarts House when you register for your visit; and when you first enter the exhibition, you’ll even be outfitted with an RFID wristband that tracks your progress so it can better personalize your experience.
The Franklin Institute is hosting "Harry Potter: The Exhibition" now through September 18 (tickets available here). After that, it’ll move on to an as-yet-unannounced next stop on a worldwide tour that will cover Latin America, the Asia-Pacific Region, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.