Another year has come and gone, and your Hogwarts letter still hasn't arrived.
This is a problem, because you know it's your destiny to feast in the Great Hall.
Until your owl does arrive, you'll have to visit one of these university dining halls this side of Platform 9¾.
1. Christ Church College Great Hall – University of Oxford (Oxford, U.K.)
This is the hall that served as the inspiration and model for the Great Hall in Harry Potter, so it has become a top attraction for fans. Built in the mid-1500s, the hall itself was not used during filming (notice there are only three rows of tables instead of four), but fans who visit will get to see other familiar locations throughout the Christ Church grounds, including the stone staircase on which Professor McGonagall welcomes the first-year students in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. Christ Church College also inspired Lewis Carroll to write Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, which makes this location a magical one indeed.
2. Hutchinson Commons – University of Chicago (Chicago, IL)
When it was built in 1903, this dining hall at the University of Chicago was purposefully modeled after the much-older Great Hall at Christ Church. So from the shape of the ceiling to the windows adorning the hall, these two look about as similar as Fred and George Weasley.
3. Risley Dining Room – Cornell University (Ithaca, NY)
Risley Dining Room at Cornell embraces its enchanting Harry Potter atmosphere: The school hosts a special "Night at Hogwarts" dinner for students every year!
4. Annenberg Hall – Harvard University (Cambridge, MA)
Completed in 1874, the high ceilings, wood panelling, and stained glass of Harvard's Annenberg Hall make it impressive enough to be fit for Hogwarts' finest witches and wizards. The hall is currently reserved for first-year students, finally giving the freshmen of Harvard something to brag about.
5. Yale Commons – Yale University (New Haven, Connecticut)
Like University of Chicago's dining hall, this room was designed around the turn of the 20th century. It seats about 1,200 and serves as the freshman dining hall and cafeteria for Yale faculty and staff.
6. Riggs Library – Georgetown University (Washington, DC)
If you can snag an invite to Georgetown's Riggs Library, you'll find yourself dining among rows and rows of the university's most beautiful books. The intimate space is reserved for special events and offers an unrivaled atmosphere, located at the top of the campus's castle-like Healy Hall. With high walls and ceilings lined by books, staircases, and cast-iron landings, this dining room would undoubtedly be a favorite of Hermione Granger's.
7. St. John's College Great Hall – University of Sydney (Sydney, Australia)
St. John's College in Australia hired an English architect to design its campus in the mid-19th century, so it's no surprise that its Gothic revival style looks like a place Harry, Ron, and Hermione would be well at home.
8. Corpus Christi College Dining Hall – University of Cambridge (Cambridge, U.K.)
Students and faculty at Corpus Christi College still dine together in this hall every day. (You can almost see the portraits moving back and forth among their frames.)
9. Keble College Dining Hall – University of Oxford (Oxford, U.K.)
Hosting students of the college since 1878, Keble College is one of the few to maintain strict formality in the dining hall. Students are expected to wear formal gowns, and staff and fellows are permitted to take a seat at the High Table, representing their status above the undergraduate students. Gowns and special seating? Sounds like witchcraft and wizardry to me.
10. New College Dining Hall – University of Oxford (Oxford, U.K.)
Tea cakes and chocolate frogs would well adorn the dark wood tables of New College Dining Hall, where the tradition of formal collegiate dining is also still alive. As a prefect — er, graduate student — you can even request to be served by waitstaff.
11. The Hall at King's – King's College, Cambridge (Cambridge, U.K.)
Decorated here with a twinkling Christmas tree and dazzling white tablecloths, The Hall at King's is set for a British feast of roast turkey, pudding, and mince pies. You can imagine Harry and Ron opening Mrs. Weasley's Christmas jumpers at a place like this.
12. North Quad Dining Hall – University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, Michigan)
Students at U of M can celebrate a win by the Michigan Quidditch team at North Quad Dining Hall. While these players stay grounded, catching the Golden Snitch is still cause for celebration.
13. Thomas Great Hall – Bryn Mawr College (Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania)
Just look at those flags... 10 points to Gryffindor!
*Mischief managed*
