Behind him is a replica of the red Hogwarts Express steam engine, just arrived, it seems, from Kings Cross. Above us hangs a black sign which reads: Please Respect the Spell Limits.

Welcome to Hogsmeade, the little village below Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry which creator J.K. Rowling described thus: "Hogsmeade looked like a Christmas card; the little thatched cottages and shops were all covered in a layer of crisp snow; there were holly wreaths on the doors and strings of enchanted candles hanging in the trees."

It's pretty much that, and more – this is Hollywood, after all. Though it's doubtful the word "awesome" – uttered every few minutes by one or other of the gowned Hogwarts 'students' around the place – was bandied about with such abandon in the seven novels  and eight movies that make up the epic Potter oeuvre.

The 2.4 hectare Wizarding World, which officially opened on April 7 this year, is Universal's latest broadside in the ongoing war for the Los Angeles tourist dollar – a US$500 million gamble that the Harry Potter story still has legs.

Five years in the making, the new world (part of a general US$1.6 billion refurb of the park) has quite literally re-orientated the park. With the cobblestoned streets, snow-covered roofs and dinky shops of Hogsmeade clustered below it, Hogwarts, its entrance guarded by two winged stone boars, towers above everything else in the park. Its looming presence gives it the feel of the Psycho house (itself still part of the famous Universal Studios bus tour) perched above the Bates Motel. But in a good way.

The Jurassic Park, Mummy, Transformers and Simpsons rides all now seem to exist in the shadow of Hogwarts – a shadow that also extends across town to the fairytale castle in Disneyland.

The gothic pile of Hogwarts, perched on a 61 metre-tall rocky grey crag in the metaphorical centre of Universal, stands like some sort of twisted doppelganger to the sweeter, more romantic Sleeping Beauty Castle. For pretty much the first time in its 60-year theme park history Disney has some serious competition in its Hollywood heartland.

On the morning after the official firework- and executive-laden launch the doors of the park were thrown open at 6am to let in the hundreds of muggles who had camped out overnight to be among the first to sup a butterbeer or join Harry, Hermione and Ron on the Forbidden Journey ride.

The ride – and the Wizarding World of Harry Potter as a whole – isn't new. There's one in Orlando which opened in 2010 and another in Osaka, Japan. But this is the first time that Harry has reared his famously scarred bonce in Hollywood.

And as you might expect, nothing has been left to chance. From the first step between the main gates it's as if you've passed through Platform 9 3/4 into the whimsical world of wizards and muggles and spells and He Who Must Not Be Named. Or at least the film set.

There are red butterbeer carts shaped like barrels where you can indulge that sweet tooth for US$6.50 a pop or, failing that, you can give it something else to chew on at Honeydukes sweetshop, though the fare is a little more muggle than Rowling's famous and fabulously magical lollies. No cockroach clusters or Droobles best blowing gum here, sadly.

Those familiar with the Harry Potter books will recognise the Three Broomsticks restaurant, the Hog's Head pub (butterbeer and real beer), Dervish and Bangles, Gringotts Bank, Gladrags Wizard Wear and the Owl Post Office.

In the eaves of one outdoor eating area you will find animatronic owls nesting there, complete with disturbingly realistic guano. There are more owls, naturally, in the Post Office, and a caged book which tries to bite you.

Small groups of muggles and budding wizards are also encouraged to pass through a secret door into the inner sanctum of Ollivander's wand shop (established 382BC) where a senior member of staff will indulge in a little son-et-lumiere show to find the one wand for one lucky child. Try not buying it for your little tacker after that.

The wand show exits, you guessed it, through Ollivander's itself, where the walls are festooned with thousands of boxed wands. They might not have your name on them but you can pick up a replica of Harry's, Hermione's, Professor Slughorn's or, gulp, Voldemort's for a mere US$40 each.

Like all attractions in all theme parks the Wizarding World is essentially an exercise in parting parents from their money. For every shop window stacked with Potter movie artefacts such as copies of Gilderoy Lockhart's books, the interior is stacked with more memorabilia than you can wave a wand at.

Here you can buy Dobby T-shirts, fridge magnets, Cornish pixie dolls, Hogwarts gowns, scarves, china mugs, Slytherin house badges, Gryffindor swords, Hufflepuff banners, Ravenclaw quills, wizard hats, sorting hats, watches, stuffed owls, golden snitches, coaster sets, caps, wax seals and chocolate wands. This is Harry Potter brought to wallet-wincing life.

This, of course, is the case with any theme park – something only a cynic would point out and by which only a fool would be surprised. Children, on the other hand, who are yet to grasp the frightening connection between their enjoyment and their parents' income, positively throb with excitement.

Some of the most popular attractions in the village itself are the 11 small metal plaques inlaid into the pavement in front of various shop windows. These show the exact flourish of a wand and the magic charm to utter to make items in the windows move. It is, in the necessarily italicised words of one young muggle, "awesome".

The main attraction is the Forbidden Journey ride – a freewheeling blend of 3D, animatronics and real sets. After slipping in to a four-person bench beneath a hall of floating candles and putting on your 3D quidditch glasses you are whisked away into a slightly spurious 'adventure' in which you are chased by a fire-breathing dragon, take part in a quidditch match – you really will think you can touch the golden snitch – and menaced by giant spiders, Dementers and a massive whomping willow.

The combination of traditional rollercoaster ride, 3D effects and animatronic set pieces are what make the ride so successful. Swooping under and around the arms of a "real" whomping willow, through the steamy breath of a "real" dragon or feeling the spit of a giant venomous spider on your face is pretty cool.

In the first few days there were waits of up to three hours for the ride but Universal anticipated this by making queuing part of the attraction. While waiting your turn you can marvel at Dumbledore's office, check out artefacts from the movies and be urged to move along by the living portraits on the walls.

The ride exits, naturally, through the gift shop. Or rather, Filch's Emporium, where you can purchase … well, you get the drift. Parents might want to remember this spell: "Bankruptiamus!"

Sydneysider Scarlett Duthie, 12, in Los Angeles with her family, was among the first to sample the ride and was impressed to say the least: "It was good. We really liked it, especially the Dementers and the dragon and the quidditch match with the golden snitch and everything. We went on the ride twice but I closed my eyes at the bit with the spiders. That was scary."

The attraction's secondary ride, the outdoor Flight of the Hippogriff, is essentially a family-friendly rollercoaster for rollercoaster virgins. It is short and sweet and feels very much like an afterthought, given the detail and the immersive nature of the rest of the world. As one of our group said: "Well this is …"

And then it ended.

In Orlando, when the Wizarding World opened there in 2010, visitor numbers at Universal climbed 30 per cent that year while Disney's Magic Kingdom dropped 1.5 per cent (though Disney's numbers are far, far larger to begin with). Universal Hollywood's annual attendance is less than half of Disneyland's but is growing at a faster rate.

Whether this trend repeats in LA after the opening of the latest Harry Potter world is yet to be seen but Disney is already fighting back with plans to spend more than US$1 billion creating a massive Star Wars world. No opening date has been announced yet but it looks like the future will be wands and light sabres at 20 paces.

TRIP NOTES

MORE INFORMATION

universalstudioshollywood.com

GETTING THERE

Virgin Australia flies to Los Angeles daily from Sydney and Brisbane. See virginaustralia.com.

STAYING THERE

The Sheraton Universal (333 Universal Hollywood Drive, Universal City) is one of the closest hotels to Universal Studios Hollywood. It's just a five-minute stroll away but there's also a regular shuttle bus should the heat defeat you. The Sheraton has rooms from US$265 per room per night, including all charges and taxes. See sheratonuniversal.com

Keith Austin was a guest of Universal Studios Hollywood.