csjordan10268
New Member
Here today as well. Can confirm the area was open around 7 this morning for anyone, no EMH scheduled. Thought NRJ was beautiful and FOP was incredible! Ate breakfast and currently having lunch at Satu'li.
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Pandora - The World of Avatar opening day reports
- Thread starter wdwmagic
- Start date
Daveeeeed
Well-Known Member
Be aware that this will sort of contain spoilers for Pandora: The World of Avatar, but it does not say any story points, but instead describes aspects like an AA, or sensory things.
We arrived at 6:50am, but they already opened the park to start walking to Pandora. As we approached Pandora the gates just opened for the day and we just moved along with he crowd. In all, it took just under an hour to get on Flight of Passage. It was more that everyone was just in awe with the queue, then people actually waiting. Essentially we were almost always walking slowly, but there was never a time where you were bored... the queue is that good!!!
The land overall was out of this world. While I prefer both Diagon Alley & Hogsmeade together, Pandora beats both of them 1 on 1 for me.
It was truly unbelievable. Flight of Passage was hands down the best simulator I've ever been on. Easily the top 5 rides in Orlando, and really it has to be one of the best rides on Earth. Its biggest drawback was that it does not physically move locations like a ride does, as it is really neat combining sets and screens like Spiderman, Forbidden Journey, and Shanghai's POTC, but it still holds up magnificently well to them.
Stunning technology, and you can feel the Banshee breath. It's a cross between Simpsons, Soarin', Forbidden Journey, combined with epic ness.
My mom and dad almost decided not to ride it, but we convinced them to ride it and they thanked us. They usually get motion sickness, but they were mostly fine. If you think Soarin' has wind think again... as with smells, and immersion.
As we had 25 minutes to kill we ate breakfast @ Satu'li Canteen. It was above average for theme park food and everything looked very unique. We got to try 4 of the 6 breakfast entrées. Best were the French Toast, and Pork Shoulder, and the fruits were actually pretty good too. Really nice to see some Dragon Fruit on the menu for once!
Windtraders was actually better themed than I expected, but Harry Potter does a significantly better job in this area.
After we used the restroom and went over to NA'VI river Journey.
NA'VI River Journey on the otherhand while I know is a C/D is rather disappointing. I got tremendous luck and was able to snag a Fastpass yesterday for it today @ 8:25am, and we literally walked on while he posted wait time was 180 minutes. It had really cool things like the floating discs, and the Shaman AA, but it felt a bit blah to me overall. Would not do again unless it's 15 minutes or less. Disappointing, but still good as for what little there was it was tremendously detailed, so I did enjoy it still.
Also got to ride Kilimanjaro Safaris, Kali River Rapids, and Dinosaur with my cousin, his friend, and my brother. Got to soak up the epic theming of Animal Kingdom while we were at it!!!!
All in all it has been an epic day, and it's not even 12:30!!! Animal Kingdom I'll proudly say is now a well rounded park.
We arrived at 6:50am, but they already opened the park to start walking to Pandora. As we approached Pandora the gates just opened for the day and we just moved along with he crowd. In all, it took just under an hour to get on Flight of Passage. It was more that everyone was just in awe with the queue, then people actually waiting. Essentially we were almost always walking slowly, but there was never a time where you were bored... the queue is that good!!!
The land overall was out of this world. While I prefer both Diagon Alley & Hogsmeade together, Pandora beats both of them 1 on 1 for me.
It was truly unbelievable. Flight of Passage was hands down the best simulator I've ever been on. Easily the top 5 rides in Orlando, and really it has to be one of the best rides on Earth. Its biggest drawback was that it does not physically move locations like a ride does, as it is really neat combining sets and screens like Spiderman, Forbidden Journey, and Shanghai's POTC, but it still holds up magnificently well to them.
Stunning technology, and you can feel the Banshee breath. It's a cross between Simpsons, Soarin', Forbidden Journey, combined with epic ness.
My mom and dad almost decided not to ride it, but we convinced them to ride it and they thanked us. They usually get motion sickness, but they were mostly fine. If you think Soarin' has wind think again... as with smells, and immersion.
As we had 25 minutes to kill we ate breakfast @ Satu'li Canteen. It was above average for theme park food and everything looked very unique. We got to try 4 of the 6 breakfast entrées. Best were the French Toast, and Pork Shoulder, and the fruits were actually pretty good too. Really nice to see some Dragon Fruit on the menu for once!
Windtraders was actually better themed than I expected, but Harry Potter does a significantly better job in this area.
After we used the restroom and went over to NA'VI river Journey.
NA'VI River Journey on the otherhand while I know is a C/D is rather disappointing. I got tremendous luck and was able to snag a Fastpass yesterday for it today @ 8:25am, and we literally walked on while he posted wait time was 180 minutes. It had really cool things like the floating discs, and the Shaman AA, but it felt a bit blah to me overall. Would not do again unless it's 15 minutes or less. Disappointing, but still good as for what little there was it was tremendously detailed, so I did enjoy it still.
Also got to ride Kilimanjaro Safaris, Kali River Rapids, and Dinosaur with my cousin, his friend, and my brother. Got to soak up the epic theming of Animal Kingdom while we were at it!!!!
All in all it has been an epic day, and it's not even 12:30!!! Animal Kingdom I'll proudly say is now a well rounded park.
Last edited:
Daveeeeed
Well-Known Member
The queue for Flight of Passage opened with the land too, which took about 40 minutes at like 7:05. Everyone went to the ride.
incorrigible
Member
Thanks to everyone for the updates! It's been fun to follow along while I'm trapped at work this weekend. The thing I've really been wondering about is how are the crowds at the other parks during this opening? I realize it's a crowded weekend regardless of the opening, but does it seem like most people are headed to AK (i.e. other parks less crowded) or are the other parks at about the expected levels?
mergatroid
Well-Known Member
The Grand Canyon - "Lol a hole in the ground, wow amazing"
The Pyramids in Egypt - "Lol a pile of stones in a triangle, wow amazing"
The Great Wall of China - "Lol like my garden wall but longer, wow amazing"
Volcano Bay - "Lol some slides next to a main road, wow amazing"
Twilight Zone Tower of Terror - "Lol like a lift I use at work but a bit faster, wow amazing"
some comments on here remind me of a segment on the espn radio show with Ryan Rusillo. He specifically makes fun of internet people who always finds fault in everything thats done, its pretty funny
djkidkaz
Well-Known Member
Just got home from DAK and exhausted because it's 95 degrees outside and awful!
So as stated earlier we arrived to DAK at around 10:45am and walked right into Pandora and used our fastpass to walk right on NRJ. We got in the 250 minute line for FOP at 11:21am and exited the ride at 2:15pm. So the wait time was about an hour overblown, but after we got off it said FOP was a 120 minute wait but the line was much further back than when we got in line earlier so who knows.
The land had a lot of people but it was much better than I expected. It was not gridlock and you could walk freely and take it all in. The land itself is beautifully done and completely fits with the rest of DAK. I love the details of how the mountains in the distance are painted a lighter shade to give them the look of distance. And two other things I noticed that I have not seen anyone mention:
1. High up in the mountains that are attached to the FOP building they have fake waterfalls that move slowly which I believe is to simulate distance as well. I don't know how to describe it and I didn't get a video but maybe @wdwmagic will be able to capture it some day.
2. There is constantly a "fog" to the area which comes from the Canteen restaurant and its grill. There's the smell of BBQ throughout and I don't know if it's done purposefully to add almost a light haze / cloud to the area that makes it look like the mountains are in the clouds or what. I've also noticed this in people's pictures as well.
The Navi River Journey we thought was much better than people have been making it out to be. After I got off I wanted to get right back on and ride again. There's some cool effects in there like the blue sprites that float and a video screen mixed with water effects to simulate a waterfall. This was my first time seeing the bioluminescence so I don't know if it will still be as wow factor once I see the land all lit up. But overall I loved it and look forward to riding it again.
Flight of Passage has a fantastic queue as all of you already know. It's just a work of art. The way you change scenery and the details inside are just so fantastic. There is constantly something interesting to see. Another cool feature I have yet to see mentioned is when you are waiting to queue for your boarding room and the airlock doors open automatically with a loud sealed tight air sound you would expect. Great little detail! One negative I have for the queue is that first cave area you enter has no fans or air conditioning and was just brutal especially with weather like we're having today. I think they will have to add something in there or you'll have people passing out once we get to summer and the humidity hits.
Now as for the ride, it is really unique and an amazing addition to DAK. I know people want to keep comparing it to Soarin but in my opinion they are very different attractions. Soarin is this slow, beautiful look at the world that anyone can ride and enjoy. Pandora I think is thrilling enough that my older parents would not be comfortable on it, they would think it's too intense. The fact that your in a bike seat position and you add in 3-D and water effects it really feels like it's own ride. After riding this doesn't make me want to ride Soarin any less. I will say and I'm apparently in the minority here but I did get motion sickness while on FOP. I don't know if it was the heat and a 3 hour wait but I definitely was not feeling 100% while on it. I will say I'm someone who can't read in a moving car and the only other thing to sometimes make me feel a little nauseas at WDW is Star Tours. I'm really hoping it was just a combination of not knowing what to expect, the heat and the wait time cause I LOVED the attraction and want to be able to ride it without trying not to vomit.
Lastly we didn't go into Windtraders or Pongu because they had long lines and I wasn't feeling great after FOP so we stopped at Satuli Canteen. We are both picky eaters so there wasn't much on the menu for us. We ordered the hot dog in a wrap and the burgers in a pod, both of which we liked. We also tried the chocolate cake and the blue cream cheese thing, also which we liked.
Overall I really loved the new area and am excited to have this addition at DAK. I'm going to try and go back Tuesday night to see the area in the dark. If you have any questions, just ask!
So as stated earlier we arrived to DAK at around 10:45am and walked right into Pandora and used our fastpass to walk right on NRJ. We got in the 250 minute line for FOP at 11:21am and exited the ride at 2:15pm. So the wait time was about an hour overblown, but after we got off it said FOP was a 120 minute wait but the line was much further back than when we got in line earlier so who knows.
The land had a lot of people but it was much better than I expected. It was not gridlock and you could walk freely and take it all in. The land itself is beautifully done and completely fits with the rest of DAK. I love the details of how the mountains in the distance are painted a lighter shade to give them the look of distance. And two other things I noticed that I have not seen anyone mention:
1. High up in the mountains that are attached to the FOP building they have fake waterfalls that move slowly which I believe is to simulate distance as well. I don't know how to describe it and I didn't get a video but maybe @wdwmagic will be able to capture it some day.
2. There is constantly a "fog" to the area which comes from the Canteen restaurant and its grill. There's the smell of BBQ throughout and I don't know if it's done purposefully to add almost a light haze / cloud to the area that makes it look like the mountains are in the clouds or what. I've also noticed this in people's pictures as well.
The Navi River Journey we thought was much better than people have been making it out to be. After I got off I wanted to get right back on and ride again. There's some cool effects in there like the blue sprites that float and a video screen mixed with water effects to simulate a waterfall. This was my first time seeing the bioluminescence so I don't know if it will still be as wow factor once I see the land all lit up. But overall I loved it and look forward to riding it again.
Flight of Passage has a fantastic queue as all of you already know. It's just a work of art. The way you change scenery and the details inside are just so fantastic. There is constantly something interesting to see. Another cool feature I have yet to see mentioned is when you are waiting to queue for your boarding room and the airlock doors open automatically with a loud sealed tight air sound you would expect. Great little detail! One negative I have for the queue is that first cave area you enter has no fans or air conditioning and was just brutal especially with weather like we're having today. I think they will have to add something in there or you'll have people passing out once we get to summer and the humidity hits.
Now as for the ride, it is really unique and an amazing addition to DAK. I know people want to keep comparing it to Soarin but in my opinion they are very different attractions. Soarin is this slow, beautiful look at the world that anyone can ride and enjoy. Pandora I think is thrilling enough that my older parents would not be comfortable on it, they would think it's too intense. The fact that your in a bike seat position and you add in 3-D and water effects it really feels like it's own ride. After riding this doesn't make me want to ride Soarin any less. I will say and I'm apparently in the minority here but I did get motion sickness while on FOP. I don't know if it was the heat and a 3 hour wait but I definitely was not feeling 100% while on it. I will say I'm someone who can't read in a moving car and the only other thing to sometimes make me feel a little nauseas at WDW is Star Tours. I'm really hoping it was just a combination of not knowing what to expect, the heat and the wait time cause I LOVED the attraction and want to be able to ride it without trying not to vomit.
Lastly we didn't go into Windtraders or Pongu because they had long lines and I wasn't feeling great after FOP so we stopped at Satuli Canteen. We are both picky eaters so there wasn't much on the menu for us. We ordered the hot dog in a wrap and the burgers in a pod, both of which we liked. We also tried the chocolate cake and the blue cream cheese thing, also which we liked.
Overall I really loved the new area and am excited to have this addition at DAK. I'm going to try and go back Tuesday night to see the area in the dark. If you have any questions, just ask!
djkidkaz
Well-Known Member
They have security there and I saw them turning people away all the way at the point where you are almost on the ride. The Cast Member was referencing just that issue to the families that were "cutting".
roj2323
Well-Known Member
People in line with me are very happy to hear this news. Thank you!
Tick Tock
Well-Known Member
Glad CM's and security are trying to put a stop to this. You'd think by now a little common sense would prevent people from making the decision that this sorta thing is ok. But as the saying goes...you can't fix stupid.
DisneyDebRob
Well-Known Member
How about food delivery requests to Pennsylvania?
mergatroid
Well-Known Member
Don't apologise. You're just attempting to trivialise or simplify something you don't much like in order to make those who enjoy it look foolish, you can be honest about that. Everything is subjective and the whole Avatar thing does nothing for you, fair enough and I wouldn't try to change your opinion on it because ................................. well there's no reason to.
But the reality is that everything you love can be trivialised also, but why would anyone feel the need to do that? Ultimately a plant that lights up is a plant that lights up but what were you actually expecting, naked ladies cavorting provocatively whilst juggling chainsaws singing opera? To some it's the way the lit plant makes them feel that they enjoy, not what is physically creating it. Some see beauty in the colours and tones, the fact the image makes them feel happy and takes them to another place rather than just thinking "oh plants that light up".
Yes that's what they are but then again Michelangelo's 'The Crucifixion of St Peter' is basically 'a doodle of some guy being mugged, wow amazing' by your logic. In fact you could save a ton of money and instead of paying to see fireworks (some bits of fire in the sky, wow amazing) you could just light some matches and flick them in the air "Hey look kids, who needs Disney and their Wishes firework show this is just the same thing'.
Don't apologise. You're just attempting to trivialise or simplify something you don't much like in order to make those who enjoy it look foolish, you can be honest about that. Everything is subjective and the whole Avatar thing does nothing for you, fair enough and I wouldn't try to change your opinion on it because ................................. well there's no reason to.
But the reality is that everything you love can be trivialised also, but why would anyone feel the need to do that? Ultimately a plant that lights up is a plant that lights up but what were you actually expecting, naked ladies cavorting provocatively whilst juggling chainsaws singing opera? To some it's the way the lit plant makes them feel that they enjoy, not what is physically creating it. Some see beauty in the colours and tones, the fact the image makes them feel happy and takes them to another place rather than just thinking "oh plants that light up".
Yes that's what they are but then again Michelangelo's 'The Crucifixion of St Peter' is basically 'a doodle of some guy being mugged, wow amazing' by your logic. In fact you could save a ton of money and instead of paying to see fireworks (some bits of fire in the sky, wow amazing) you could just light some matches and flick them in the air "Hey look kids, who needs Disney and their Wishes firework show this is just the same thing'.
Like, like, like, like, like....
A sober CM!
A well-dressed male guest!
A free-range bird that isn't trying to steal human food!
A bridge that isn't a choke point!
Someone getting squirted by the pond scum surfers!
mergatroid
Well-Known Member
Well I'd personally like Disney to have naked ladies cavorting provocatively whilst juggling chainsaws singing opera. However I'm pretty certain I'm going to remain disappointed on that front