In a place like Tokyo, there’s never a shortage of things to do, and new attractions keep popping up all the time. If you’ve got kids — heck, even if you don’t have kids — then the recently opened Harry Potter Studio Tour is one you definitely don’t want to miss.

Built in what was once an old amusement park, this unbelievably massive attraction contains the actual sets, and many replicas, from the creation of the Harry Potter movies and it’s pretty unbelievable. You actually walk down Diagon Alley. You can pose in front of the train used in the movies. The moving stairs actually MOVE. Every minute detail, every costume, every character is contained within these walls and every time you turn a corner or enter a room, your jaw drops open.

It is, quite literally, being INSIDE the movie.

And it all starts on the train you take to Toshimaen Station, which has been retrofitted to a full Harry Potter theme. It’s actually pretty funny seeing the Harry Potter characters’ faces all over Tokyo as the train makes its rounds.

From the station it’s about a ten minute walk to the theme park itself, and the tickets are timed so if your tickets say your tour starts at 2pm, don’t bother showing up early because they will not let you in. If you’ve got time to kill, enjoy some yummy snacks from the convenience store outside the station!

Upon entering, you immediately get sucked into the most dangerous place in the park – the souvenier shop. To be more specific, it’s 99% wands which, of course, every child wants. They don’t come cheap so be prepared to spend. But amazingly they have every single wand from every single character in the show so you could buy yourself Dumbledore’s wand or Malfoy’s wand, or whoever you fancy.

To begin the tour, they usher you into a room that gives you a brief background of the film, the creator, the writers and designers and thousands of people who worked on the sets and brought the books to life. After this you roam from section to section, discovering the animatronics, the costumes, the making of the sets, and a number of green screen areas where you can put yourself into the movie!

Honestly there are too many photos to even begin to share them here. But this attraction is so incredibly well done, with so many details, you need many, MANY hours to spend here. We spent about five hours and I don’t think we saw everything. Also I was pleased to see lots of adult fans, many of them in cosplay, enjoying the tour because why should kids have all the fun?

Just be prepared with comfortable walking shoes, something to drink, lots of money (because these fun things don’t come cheap!), and a strong neck to keep looking around constantly!