Strategy for AK touring with Pandora

[halssister]

Heading to WDW in the beginning of July. We have AK planned for a morning EMH day. I know, some people advise against this, but we are early morning rope droppers and leave the park by 1 or 2 for a break anyway.

I'm 2 weeks out from my FP day so I need to firm up my Touring plans. Normally, we would head straight to the Safari first and ride that before the crowds, saving shows for later in the morning, and maybe using our fast passes on those, or for a second Safari trip. But I want to check out Pandora (obviously!!), and probably ride the Navii river journey (or whatever it's called, the tamer ride). We have no interest in any thrill rides (EE, KRR, Dinosaur etc).

So do we do Pandora right at RD and then do the Safari after, maybe with a FP? Or safari at RD and FP the river ride later? Should we anticipate EVERYBODY running straight to Pandora, or assume it will only get more crowded as the morning wears on? I know it's all speculation, but anyone have any thoughts?
I'm not too terribly fussed about potentially "wasting" a FP, as we don't do many headliner rides there anyway plus DS will have a DAS that we can use if needed. Just like to have a concrete plan in place when we arrive because it makes things easier for DS to handle if he knows our schedule!

 

[VacationCindy]

I would definitely recommend using a Fastpass for either Pandora attraction. Since you can book 3 Fastpasses and only the two Pandora rides are tiered, you may also book two additional Fastpasses for whatever you like such as the Safari and maybe a show. I can only imagine that everyone will be heading to Pandora and only people with the 60 day Fastpass booking window will be able to get a Fastpass for an attraction in Pandora leaving everyone else who is visiting from an off site hotel to have to head there first thing in the hopes of beating the crowds. If you are going to be there for EMH and secured a Fastpass for Navi River then I would head to the Safari for probably a very pleasant and crowd free ride. Enjoy.

 

[PatMcDuck]

We want to see it at night, so we are going to book our one FP+ in the late afternoon. I am so curious about Pandora, I want to spend most of my time there.

 

[Accident]

This one gets interesting as they are touting how different it'll be at night.. With it's location, it's almost like start and end with pandora. the rides are both indoor so there is no different day or night so it's really when in the day you want to be outside waiting in line for the rides...

I applaud how they are trying to get passholders and locals through it early before opening but nobody has a it's dark out slot so I think it's going to be interesting late nights the first couple weeks, especially on the weekends..

 

[holden]

Definitely get a FP for one of the Pandora rides. I'd get to AK super early to be in the front of the crowd. Then head to Pandora to ride whatever you don't have a FP for. After that do safari and then use your other Pandora FP.

 

[keishashadow]

I'm thrilled to have snagged 2 previews week of May 14th . One am APH ,one afternoon DVC, not on same day though which would've made things easier.

In July plan on attempting AK EMH rope drop. Nahtazu - ha, not! Figure it'll be slammed. Ride one attraction and then set up my FP bit later for that day in another park (likely Epcot).

Do have RoL DP booked one day to not burn a FP there one evening. Will do another park EMH, probably MGM with 2nd set of MB. Retreat to pool, then head to AK for DP and stay for the special PM hours.

Re pandora @ night, Onsite guests will get extra hours in the park to allow that, nice perk IMO!

It will be a effort to keep my 6 yo GD up that late though lol not the best at getting her down for a nap @ WDW unless she crashes in stroller.

From the website:

Taking place twice each week from 7:00 AM to 8:00 AM, our regular Extra Magic Hours benefit will include Pandora – The World of Avatar, as well as other experiences throughout Disney’s Animal Kingdom park.

We will also be offering a limited-time Extra Magic Hours Evening for Pandora – The World of Avatar from 11:00 PM to 1:00 AM, May 27 to July 4, 2017. In addition to the attractions, food and beverage, and merchandise in this new land, Guests will also have a chance to experience Tree of Life Awakenings throughout the evening.

 

[halssister]

I would definitely recommend using a Fastpass for either Pandora attraction. Since you can book 3 Fastpasses and only the two Pandora rides are tiered, you may also book two additional Fastpasses for whatever you like such as the Safari and maybe a show. I can only imagine that everyone will be heading to Pandora and only people with the 60 day Fastpass booking window will be able to get a Fastpass for an attraction in Pandora leaving everyone else who is visiting from an off site hotel to have to head there first thing in the hopes of beating the crowds. If you are going to be there for EMH and secured a Fastpass for Navi River then I would head to the Safari for probably a very pleasant and crowd free ride. Enjoy.

This may be my plan. I'm not sure how crowded the whole area will be once it starts to fill up, that's a concern as well since DS doesn't do well with super crowded areas. Maybe we will stroll through the area right off the bat but still schedule a FP for the ride for later, and just not try to wait in line for the ride right away. I do like the early morning safari, though......hmm decisions!!

 

[halssister]

We want to see it at night, so we are going to book our one FP+ in the late afternoon. I am so curious about Pandora, I want to spend most of my time there.

I'm hoping a lot of people want to see it at night, and it won't be as crowded during the day! We rarely last past dark in the parks so while I may try for a RoL FP just in case, I'm not confident we will see any nighttime stuff there.

 

[halssister]

Definitely get a FP for one of the Pandora rides. I'd get to AK super early to be in the front of the crowd. Then head to Pandora to ride whatever you don't have a FP for. After that do safari and then use your other Pandora FP.

In our case, we only are interested in the one ride. The other sounds like too much for my boys (DH gets motion sick on Peter Pan lol!)

 

[rg35]

I have to do my FP+ reservations tomorrow. I'm planning on getting one for Pandora (probably Navi), and the other we will standby at rope drop. My expectation is that Pandora will be the main draw and those lines will build early and grow throughout the day.

Our AK date also has extra evening hours, but that's from 11-1 PM and we have another park day the following day, so I seriously doubt we will take advantage of that. But if my kids were a little older and we had a non-park day following, that seems like it could be an advantageous time to explore Pandora without the huge crowds that come along with new attractions.