Before you join us for Part 2 of our Level Up! journey through Walt Disney World and Disney video games, sure you have read part 1. It explains why Disney welcomed us to the parks and started our trip to the Magic Kingdom to experience Disney Dreamlight Valley..
Animal Kingdom and Avatar: Pandora's Borders
Avatar: Pandora's Borders is a first-person open-world action-adventure game (with a co-op mode) that has you playing as a Na'vi warrior kidnapped and trained by RDA rediscovering your heritage on Pandora. It also includes taking fans to an all-new area, the Western Frontier. What if, in the game you can ride a bansheethe same thing you can do on an amazing trip to Animal Kingdom.
Level up! The second day started at Animal Kingdom, home to one of Walt Disney World's best themed areas, Pandora – The world of Avatar. If, like so many, you walked out of James Cameron's blockbuster hit angry at having to say goodbye to this beautiful bioluminescent planet for our normal old world, this is where you'll want to go. It's like traveling to Pandora without a spaceship. From the moment you enter this part of the park, you are surrounded by floating mountains, brilliant flora and Na'vi culture.
Then things get really good. The World of Avatar it's also home to Flight of Passage, one of Walt Disney World's best attractions. After immersive pre-ride storytelling and silly fun, you're strapped into your own seat for a wild 3D ride as a Na'vi hunter atop a banshee. During the ride, your mount will take you through Pandora high above the ground (with plenty of huge and exciting rides nearby). While the ride itself is a total blast, what makes it special is how much it makes you feel like you're actually exploring Pandora. The giant screen is so big and vivid that you can't catch every detail that goes by. It's a fully realized site and it made me appreciate it Avatar in a way I've never done before.
It's not the only attraction that did it. The Na'vi River Slow Ride is a leisurely journey through a Pandoran bioluminescent jungle. It also features a full-sized Na'vi Shaman of Songs, my single favorite Walt Disney World animatronic. The area also has some of the best restaurants and dining options in any of the four parks. This includes the Satu'li Canteen, where we had one Avatar themed breakfast It was so good that I felt a little upset while eating because I didn't know when I could go back.
And if all that wasn't enough, our hosts also took us to Pandora's own store, Windtraders. It has all kinds of Avatar merchandise you'd want, but we've gone for something unique.
Windtraders can turn you into a physical (mini) Na'vi. The store is home to the ACE Avatar Maker. There, a technology scans your face and makes you choose some style options so you can transform into a Na'vi avatar. In less than an hour you walk away with a custom action figure of you blue. Mine doesn't look like my twin or anything—just like Zoe Saldana's Neytiri didn't look like her—but I love my unique collectible. Especially since it perfectly captures my toned swimmer's body. (Note to editor: No need to check that we're okay.)
I'm not exactly Cameron's biggest fan Avatar movies But my immersion in a real Pandora recreation still won me over. So much so that I want to see how this experience can change my opinion about movies. And I want to play Avatar: Pandora's Borders. To paraphrase Ariel, I loved being a part of this world rather than being a passive spectator. Until I go back to Animal Kingdom, the only place that can send me back to Pandora is a video game.
Not every thrill ride or action-packed game requires a giant blue body or banshee. For the rest, there's a different high-octane game that will send you back to Disney.
Stay with us on our level up! journey through Walt Disney World and Disney video games with Part 3: EPCOT and Disney Speedstorm video game.
Mikey Walsh is a Nerdist writer who really hopes you don't look at his Na'vi swimmer body claim. You can follow it Twitter i Bluesky at @burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.
