Welcome to the World of Avatar

What kind of world is Disney’s Avatar? It’s the newest addition to Disney’s Animal Kingdom. There’s been quite a buzz about it’s opening so I guess I’m getting an early look at the park. Its only been open since May 27.  Its based on the movie Avatar which I’ve never seen . I know the movie featured a lot of blue people called Na’vi.  My interest was piqued when I saw a Disney presentation about it’s newest attraction. It looks quite beautiful in Disney’s presentation.

Is this Land Worthy of Disney?

Does Pandora live up to the hype? Well, it’s the largest addition in over a decade. Most of what I heard seemed to indicate that land was geared to nighttime visits. The flowers and trees were lit by “bio-luminescence”. That’s the kind of thing you see on the ocean at night when little tiny creatures called plankton become excited and emit light. I’ve see it and it’s quite beautiful but would Disney really be able to pull that off? They certainly gave it their best shot combining colored lighting, fiber optics and that old standby, black lights.

My first Glimpse

JR had plans for the evening so my first exposure to Pandora was in daylight. I expected it to be dull without the artificial lighting but I found the “world” to be charming with multiple water features and waterfalls. The artfully sculpted alien plants had vibrant colors even in the bright sunlight which tends to wash out color. The floating mountains made me think of a Doctor Seuss land with all the towering twists and turns.

The Rides of Pandora

We weren’t able to get on either of the rides. The wait times were well over an hour for each ride. The Flight of Passage had wait times up to 95 minutes! The Na’vi River Journey was almost as long. There are other things to do rather than spend time in line. We decided to return on Sunday evening for the night experience and bid farewell to Pandora for this first visit.