Get ready to break out your wands, Harry Potter fans.

The annual blockbuster Harry Potter Festival returns to Chestnut Hill Friday, October 18, and Saturday, October 19, for two days of spellbinding events that magically morph the neighborhood into the fictional world created by author J.K. Rowling.

Coinciding with two Chestnut Hill College happenings, the weekend welcomes both the second annual Harry Potter academic conference on Friday, October 18, and the fourth annual Philadelphia Brotherly Love Quidditch Cup Tournament on Saturday, October 19.

Enjoy an enchanting weekend of wizards, potions, spells, scavenger hunts, falconry, wizard chess, parades and more.

To create an immersive atmosphere, Chestnut Hill neighborhood businesses, shops and restaurants on and around Germantown Avenue transform into familiar locales from Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade like the Leaky Cauldron, Madam Puddifoot’s Tea Shop and Weasley’s Wizarding Wheeezes.

On Friday, the weekend begins with conference presentations from 3 to 5 p.m. After the literary events, though, fly to the Top of the Hill Fountain Plaza on Germantown Avenue to kick off the festival with an Opening Ceremony and Quidditch Team Pep Rally at 5:30 p.m.

Then, starting at 7 p.m., pop in and out of pubs on a Chestnut Hill Pub Crawl. Stay tuned for information about purchasing tickets.

Come Saturday, the Harry Potter Festival begins at 11 a.m. with the annual Quidditch Tournament, plus activities like the Hunt for the Horcrux scavenger hunt, Dumbledore’s Powers Maze at Woodmere Art Museum, Defense Against the Dark Arts classes, sorting hat demonstrations, fortune tellers, specialty food and drink, and so much more.

And don’t worry about bringing a broom — the festival includes complimentary Knight Bus Trolley transportation all over town.



UPDATE: Harry Potter Festival 2013 – Full Guide

(October 16, 2013)

We just published our complete guide to Harry Potter Festival Weekend 2013, coming to Chestnut Hill on October 18 & 19. CLICK HERE to check out our full guide.



Harry Potter’s Philadelphia



Be sure to check out Harry Potter’s Guide To Philadelphia, our special Hogwartsian Itinerary in honor of Chestnut Hill’s Harry Potter Festival.

In it, we compiled the bars, restaurants, museums and other attractions the young wizard would visit if he came to Philadelphia. We even matched photos from Harry’s world with places in Philadelphia like the Hall of Prophecy at the Ministry of Magic with the Mutter Museum.



[beforeafter] [/beforeafter]



Is it just us, or does the Hall of Prophecy at the Ministry of Magic remind you of the Mutter Museum? Use the slider at the center of the photo to slide the photo to the left or the right to see more of either location. (Left photo courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures / right photo by B. Krist for GPTMC)

Click here to check out the full Harry Potter’s Guide To Philadelphia.

Harry Potter Festival 2013

When: October 18-19

Where: Throughout Chestnut Hill

Cost: Free; some activities carry nominal fees

More info: www.chestnuthillpa.com