I went to Disney World last week for vacation. It’s not often now I get to go on vacation, as the last two trips were definitely work related. It was my daughter and I , as it often is, and I vowed to do no work while I was there, and for the most part I succeeded.There were two must sees on this trip for us.
The first was “Happily Ever After”, the new fireworks show that replaced the iconic “Wishes” nighttime spectacular in Magic Kingdom My daughter grew up with Wishes, as it premiered the first year we went together.We have seen it maybe 25 times, have memorized the soundtrack, each firework.We were saddened by its departure, and with great apprehension, we found a spot on Main Street for the new show. Well, we were not disappointed by it at all! Actually, I was blown away! A lot of the show is Castle projection, which is nothing new, but the level of the projection certainly is. This makes any other projection show they have done at MK look sad, really. I won’t go into what is shown, as its been online already everywhere, and I don’t believe in spoilers either. One thing a lot of us Wishes diehards were concerned about was that so much emphasis would be placed on the projection, that the fireworks would become secondary. Not to fear, the fireworks portion of the show is spectacular as well! We did find however, that there is so much to look at between the projection and the lasers and the lighting, you may find yourself not looking at the fireworks that much. I suggest repeat viewings over several evenings! I had the good fortune the next night to watch the show from across the way from the deck at the Contemporary resort. With the projection playing such a huge part in this show, I will say that the grandeur of it was lost from that view.I also think that traditional alternate viewing spots like Fantasyland, and the bridge to Tomorrowland, just won’t cut it for this show. You have to be on Main Street or in the hub to fully appreciate it. While it didn’t carry the emotional punch for me that Wishes had (I’m sure that being partly due to the sentimental value of seeing it that many times with my daughter), it does dramatically entertain, and I think with a few more viewings, I will grow to love it as much as Wishes.
Moving on to the other other big opening of the week, Pandora: The World of Avatar. When you take six years to build something, it better live up to the hype. All I can say is WOW. The place is unlike anything you’ve ever seen, and pictures don’t so it justice. You have to see it for yourself. The signature ride however is what everyone is talking about. Avatar Flight of Passage is the most incredible ride experience I’ve ever had, and that includes any roller-coaster, theme park attraction, Harry Potter, ANYTHING. If you’ve been on Soarin’ think of it as Soarin’ at triple speed, on a flying motorcycle. The animation is stunning, the experience is breathtaking, and this ride is a winner! I’ve been lately prone to motion sickness, and my daughter can’t ride Star Tours because of the nausea factor, but there is no motion sickness on this ride. It is in 3-D which usually brings on the green gills, but not even a hint of it . The waits were too long and the weather was too hot for us to wait for the other attraction in Pandora, but everyone we talked to said it was a beautifully done ride on a boat through the river.
We also never made it back in to Animal Kingdom at night to experience Pandora after dark, but everyone says that is spectacular as well.
So we think the new experiences are winners, and you should definitely make time for both.
