The recent release of the fifth Harry Potter film, The Order of the Phoenix, and the upcoming seventh and final book The Deathly Hallows is a reminder of how many people adore the Harry Potter series. But why? What makes it so special to people?

1. It vividly creates a magical world.
It’s not just a story about a wizard. There’s magic in the detail: revolving staircases, pumpkin juice, talking portraits, every-flavored beans, wizard sports and Nimbus 2000 broomsticks.

Reading the books is a completely escapist experience, where you’re absorbed quickly and easily into a new world which is just a train ride from the Muggle world, via platform 9 and 3/4.

2. It’s a place many of us yearn to be.
You may not want to be permanently absorbed into the magical world, but who has not wished for similarly exciting schooldays? Murderous dark lords aside, I sure could’ve done with more magic classes and fewer tedious hours of copying from the blackboard.

3. It’s a classic narrative that we recognize.
Joseph Campbell’s book The Hero With The Thousand Faces outlines the classic myth structure and stock characters. There is also a Cinderella element: Harry is rescued from nasty, caricature relatives and whisked away to a wonderful school with friends, mentors and exhilarating challenges to overcome.

He is the sometimes-reluctant Jedi hero, Dumbledore is his wise Obi Wan Kenobi mentor, his lightsaber is his wand, Voldermort is Darth Vader, the Death Eaters are his Storm Troopers… it’s familiar enough that we are not too challenged, with enough plot twists and color added into the brew to keep us entertained.

I am not normally an avid reader of fantasy, but I can’t get enough of Harry Potter. Each book gets deeper and darker. It takes me into a world that I could not reach by plane or even spaceship. It’s not expensive ($15 or so for a book), I don’t need vaccinations, there is no paperwork, no jetlag and not even any culture shock, because I can relate to the characters.

Do you enjoy fantasy travel? How do you get there?

I come from New Zealand, and I think most people who’ve been there would agree it’s one of the most beautiful places in the world.

(Image courtesy of TravelWizard.com)

But for me, one of the unexpected beautiful places was the town of Bled, in Slovenia. I was there in 2004, and took the photo below.

It doesn’t really do the place justice. You can see the church on an island in the middle of a huge lake, which is surrounded by the Julian Alps and has an old castle perched overlooking the scene. The colors changed every day, depending on the weather, and it was so peaceful and romantic.

Where’s the most beautiful place you’ve seen?