Will Avatar give AK the boost it needs?

[MikeTaylorSound]

Let me show you our game plan for AK:

0800-0900 - try to show up early for extra magic hours
0900-0930 - walk to Africa
0930-0940 - queue line for Kilimanjaro Safaris
0940-1015 - experience Kilimanjaro Safaris
1015-1030 - walk to It's Tough to be a Bug
1030-1050 - queue line for It's Tough to be a Bug
1050-1115 - experience It's Tough to be a Bug
1115-1120 - walk to Asia
1120-1145 - dine at Yak & Yeti
1145-1200 - walk to Finding Nemo - The Musical
1200-1225 - experience Finding Nemo - The Musical
1225-1230 - walk to Asia
1230-1235 - use Fast Pass for Expidition Everest
1235-1240 - experience Expidition Everest
1240-1245 - walk to Flights of Wonder
1245-0100 - wait for show, check supplies
0100-0120 - experience Flights of Wonder
0120-0125 - walk to Africa
0125-0155 - experience Rafiki's Planet Watch or Pagani Forest Trail
0155-0200 - walk to Discovery Island
0200-0220 - experience Discovery Island trails
0220-0225 - walk to Flametree BBQ
0230-0245 - dine at Flametree BBQ
0245-0250 - walk to Kali River Rapids
0250-0255 - use Fast Pass for Kali River Rapids
0255-0310 - experience Kali River Rapids
0310-0315 - walk to DLUSA
0315-0320 - change clothes in bathroom
0320-0325 - use Fast Pass for Dinosaur
0325-0340 - experience Dinosaur
0340-0350 - walk to park exit, try and miss the Jungle Jammin' Parade route.

DAK usually closes at 6PM, so according to our agenda it could be a "half-day" park, but we're usually tired from walking around and we end up going back to the hotel or DtD depending on the weather. I can see why others go to Hollywood Studios down the street to experience attractions from 4:30PM-park close (usually 11PM) if they had something similar to our agenda. You could experience a lot of attractions using standby queues at HS in 6 hours with Phantasmic at 10:30PM to close out their day. TSMM is a whole other beast to tackle (not going to go into strategics about FP allotment or 90+ min standby times in this post).

If they had a complete Avatarland, I could see us experiencing that until normal park close. Depending on scale and what is open or still being constructed, we may just decide to forego Kali River Rapids and/or Finding Nemo to save time and use a FP for the Avatar Dark Ride. Probably still gets us out of the park near parade time and replaces our Flametree BBQ meal with what's available around/in Avatarland.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

Here is what I think will happen. DAK will see a modest increase in attendance. But at the expense of attendance at both Epcot and DHS, with DHS being most severely impacted.
I suspect that there will also be a shift in DAK's touring patterns. Now people arrive at rope drop and race to KS to see the the animals before they lay down because of the heat. I think the upcoming additions will shift people into arriving after lunch and staying until the night time spectacular.
I don't believe that this IP is going to greatly increase the total number of people who go to WDW. Most just change the way the people that do go tour the resort as a whole.

 

[Csmith041177]

I am a big fan of AK now. And I seem to be in the minority of people who actually enjoyed Avatar. However, even if you didn't like the movie, I don't see how this can be viewed as anything other than a great thing. Great theming, additional rides, more places to eat. I am definately looking forward to this.

 

[twebber55]

I am a big fan of AK now. And I seem to be in the minority of people who actually enjoyed Avatar. However, even if you didn't like the movie, I don't see how this can be viewed as anything other than a great thing. Great theming, additional rides, more places to eat. I am definately looking forward to this.

lots of people liked the movie....no need to provide the evidence its already been posted... general rule of thumb opposition to something is always the loudest..think the nutty tea partiers and the crazy tree huggers...i would be shocked if this isnt bigger than Cars Land

 

[WDWDad13]

Based on how you tour it, I don't think anything but adding another 25 rides will make this a full day park for you.

and that is the problem with many on here in my opinion... they only want rides because that's what they go for

 

[BiffyClyro]

I think it will be amazing, but honestly, the movie sucked. When it came out, people were talking about the movie effects, not the actual film.

Just think they rushed in to making an attraction that was just a hype.

 

[thomas998]

I am a big fan of AK now. And I seem to be in the minority of people who actually enjoyed Avatar. However, even if you didn't like the movie, I don't see how this can be viewed as anything other than a great thing. Great theming, additional rides, more places to eat. I am definately looking forward to this.

I would say Universals Harry Potter was great theming... this just seems like a desperate attempt to save AK. If you wanted Avatar land it would have made more sense in DHS than AK. AK is supposed to be reality with a sprinkling of DIsney, Avatar is just a liberal's Utopian dream.

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

Who knows, It depends how it is executed. Perhaps it will receive the Imagineering of old rather than costcutters delight.

 

[Fox&Hound]

I think it depends on the direction of the sequel too. I wouldn't be surprised to see some cute, cuddly sidekick get introduced to the film that they can market the heck out of as well as a visually impressive restaurant/meal the characters partake in during this movie. Now that they know they are building it in a theme park they would be foolish to not let this influence the movie. Maybe it will be like the "Pirates" films where the first movie was an intro and then the other movies exploded with a complicated plot that gave us Davy Jones, the krakan, Tia Dalma, and an epic quest. No one saw that coming when they viewed the first movie. I like to believe Cameron has something up his sleeve....

 

[Magenta Panther]

lots of people liked the movie....no need to provide the evidence its already been posted... general rule of thumb opposition to something is always the loudest..think the nutty tea partiers and the crazy tree huggers...i would be shocked if this isnt bigger than Cars Land

Prepare to be shocked, then. This isn't going to be anywhere near as ambitious and fully-realized. PLUS it already doesn't have anywhere near the appeal. "Cars" is a merchandising juggernaut. "Avatar", not so much.

 

[Magenta Panther]

I would say Universals Harry Potter was great theming... this just seems like a desperate attempt to save AK. If you wanted Avatar land it would have made more sense in DHS than AK. AK is supposed to be reality with a sprinkling of DIsney, Avatar is just a liberal's Utopian dream.

With kitties!

 

[twebber55]

Prepare to be shocked, then. This isn't going to be anywhere near as ambitious and fully-realized. PLUS it already doesn't have anywhere near the appeal. "Cars" is a merchandising juggernaut. "Avatar", not so much.

you wanna wager something on that? this will be huge outpacing cars by a long shot....much bigger in terms of world view really not even debatable
i bet you l l be one of those people when this thing explodes will give all the credit to the nighttime show

 

[Diablo]

I think part of the problem is Animal Kingdom itself. Or more specifically, the tourists going there.
Animal Kingdom was never designed to be "conqured". It wasn't meant to have a plan-of-attack and game plan drawn up to maximize it's hilights in the shortest time.
It was designed as the opposite of all those things. Time can't go by slow enough in Animal Kingdom. The slower you go, the more time spent, the better the experience becomes.
The avgerage family on vacation wasn't ready for that in 1998, and I don't think they're ready for it now. Or maybe the mark was missed with the concept.
As for Pandora, in my opinion, it seems like the American Idol Experience on an epic scale. I have no doubt that TDO will blow the concepts out of the park (argue money at this point) and it will have incredible visual and conceptual appeal. But for a story that, at it's roots, is Dances With Wolves, it will fall flat in time.
I wish TDO would get back to roots. Men, Imagineers designed Pirates, Haunted Mansion, It's a Small World... We could do it again.

 

[Disneyhead'71]

you wanna wager something on that? this will be huge outpacing cars by a long shot....much bigger in terms of world view really not even debatable
i bet you l l be one of those people when this thing explodes will give all the credit to the nighttime show

Hey, don't be bogarting that thing, pass it this way!

 

[twebber55]

Hey, don't be bogarting that thing, pass it this way!

haha
my last couple of comments on this were to get under the skins of people who hate the idea of Pandora... i do think it will do well but have no idea how well because we dont know if what they design will be part of the final product..if they spend the money on a DCA make over level i think it will be great and big boost for the parks

 

[danlb_2000]

I would say Universals Harry Potter was great theming... this just seems like a desperate attempt to save AK. If you wanted Avatar land it would have made more sense in DHS than AK. AK is supposed to be reality with a sprinkling of DIsney, Avatar is just a liberal's Utopian dream.

Dedication

Welcome to a kingdom of animals... real, ancient and imagined: a kingdom ruled by lions, dinosaurs and dragons; a kingdom of balance, harmony and survival; a kingdom we enter to share in the wonder, gaze at the beauty, thrill at the drama, and learn.
—Michael D. Eisner, April 22, 1998

 

[Prince-1]

James Cameron. The number one name in movie making plagiarism.
http://io9.com/a-history-of-plagiarism-claims-against-james-cameron-690974718

Kinda missed the point. Whether you like him or not he still made the number one movie of ALL time. And the sequels should do huge numbers. I didn't hate it or love it just thought it was above average.

 

[Prince-1]

Don't under estimate the power of a bad sequel.

Sequels haven't been made yet. Hard to tell if it's bad or good?? Even if its not great it will still do amazing at the box office...see Star Wars Episode 1.

 

[thomas998]

Dedication

Welcome to a kingdom of animals... real, ancient and imagined: a kingdom ruled by lions, dinosaurs and dragons; a kingdom of balance, harmony and survival; a kingdom we enter to share in the wonder, gaze at the beauty, thrill at the drama, and learn.
—Michael D. Eisner, April 22, 1998

I kind of think the imagined was simply to allow the mythical... Avatar to me goes one step beyond and just seems more appropriate for a place that has Star Wars where it might fit right in.

 

[Lucky]

Dedication

Welcome to a kingdom of animals... real, ancient and imagined: a kingdom ruled by lions, dinosaurs and dragons; a kingdom of balance, harmony and survival; a kingdom we enter to share in the wonder, gaze at the beauty, thrill at the drama, and learn.
—Michael D. Eisner, April 22, 1998

I don't mind a land of imaginary animals to go along with the ancient and real. But personally I hope any more additions to AK after Avatar are about real animals.