By Charly SHELTON

With Halloween behind us, one may think that the time for witches, ghosts and dark, foreboding castles is also behind us. But in the Wizarding World, they are present every day. And as Christmas draws near, the witches are donning scarves and the house ghosts are dancing at the Yule ball in the lavishly decorated Hogwarts Castle. Christmas in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter is on now at Universal Studios Hollywood and is the perfect way to bring out the magic of the season.

The main attraction for Christmas in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter is the spectacular nighttime light show. Using the same incredible projection technology that debuted in the simply titled summer show, “Nighttime Lights at Hogwarts Castle,” the new Christmas light show brings the castle to life as present-laden owls, dancing lanterns and magnificent Christmas trees appear like magic on the walls of the castle.

With a haunting refrain of “Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas, ring the Hogwarts bell, Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas, cast a ghostly spell,” the show begins as ghostly carolers pass through the castle walls to greet guests with a song. Throughout the show, fan favorites such as Fred and George Weasley and the flying car mix with seasonal classics like snowmen, Christmas trees and mistletoe in a marvelous feat of projection technology that rivals the nighttime entertainment at other theme parks, and would be a contender for a real draw to the park if only it were longer. The whole show lasts seven minutes, which goes by faster than one would think. The show is great and it’s easy to get lost in the splendor; but then it’s over very quickly. I guess that’s nice if you want to stop for a few moments as you’re walking from one ride to the next, but it won’t have the same draw as a sit-down-and-wait-for-it show. The format is great and maybe in future iterations there could be a solid 25 minutes, but for now it’s just a nice little cherry on the sundae of the event.

My favorite part of Christmas in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, perhaps of the entire Wizarding World Land, is The Three Broomsticks. This eatery offers traditional pub fare and, as though that’s not enough, for Christmas it has added a holiday feast. Roast turkey and celery-sage stuffing with gravy and cranberry sauce, pigs in blankets, steamed vegetables, braised red cabbage, roast potatoes and for dessert – Christmas pudding with brandy butter. That’s all for one person! That’s your dinner. And just like everything else at The Three Broomsticks, it’s so good. USH has established itself as a culinary destination in recent years with the addition of great in-park restaurants like Three Broomsticks, Krusty Burger in Springfield (Simpsons Land) and the now-iconic 10-inch wide donut, the favorite snack of Homer Simpson, at Lard Lad Donuts.

It stands to reason that its holiday feast is no slouch. The celery-sage stuffing is the leading favorite – the croissant soft bread and flavor-forward-but-not-overpowering taste of sage complements the potatoes and the turkey simultaneously – and everything from beginning to end is just fantastic. Pair this with a warm butterbeer and that’s a holiday dinner that won’t soon be forgotten.

Also at USH on select dates is the returning Grinchmas celebration where The Grinch who stole Christmas, now that his heart has grown three times its size, has set up a Holiday Who-bilation for all the Whos in Whoville. Based on the Jim Carrey/Ron Howard version of the 2000 film, this event may be changing in years to come as Illumination Entertainment is set to release next November its new animated version of the classic Dr. Seuss story. Universal hasn’t mentioned any plans, but it makes sense to revamp the theming to fit the new film. Since time may be short, see this great event while it’s still available.

Between witches and Grinches, there is lots of holiday fun to be found at Universal Studios Hollywood. The Wizarding World celebration runs daily through Jan. 7, and Grinchmas runs Dec. 2, 3, 9 and 10 and then daily Dec 15 – 31.

  Charly Shelton