Flight of Passage Queue Photos
I can’t tell you how many hours I’ve spent in the queue for Flight of Passage in Pandora at the Animal Kingdom. It’s a well-done queue that is segmented and offers plenty to discover. Granted, it’s not my favorite queue, which os the original queue for the Indiana Jones Adventure at Disneyland. Like Florida’s Pirates of the Caribbean and Universal’s Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure, the queues are immersive and offer a themed experience that is often parallel to the attraction. What they all have in common is the ability to transform your environment and put you into the themed space for the attraction before you enter the ride vehicle.
During a recent visit to Pandora, I took advantage of night mode in my iPhone 11 Pro to get some photos of the queue for Flight of Passage.
I love the view over the bridge of the waterfalls. It’s a stunning vista that is a definite crowd-pleaser and shows off the skills of Disney Imagineers.
Once you’ve made it into the queue building and you’ve gone through the ceremonial cave, you enter the RDA area. This section looks like a military base. The next section is referred to as the bioluminescent jungle and shows that the flora and fauna of Pandora have started to take over the RDA mining operations.
The atmosphere darkens and the Imagineers take full advantage of dark lights, special paints and lighting to show off the Pandora wildlife that is reclaiming the area.
A few of the images showcase how Imagineering was able to integrate lights and other needed elements into the design.
Lights and other fixtures were part of the RDA structure that have been overtaken.
Pennies, nickels and dimes…oh, my! I wonder how often Operations removes the coins that are thrown into the fake pool area. Notice the ladder in the top of the photo? It looks usable, but I wonder if the janitorial or maintenance staff actually use it.
There are still remnants of RDA throughout the jungle scene, especially with signage.
As I mentioned, I’ve spent hours in the queue for Flight of Passage at Pandora at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. To me, the ride is spectacular, regardless of the IP that was chosen, but the queue stands out for its immersion and storytelling. The gradations of the queue (outside, ceremonial cave, RDA base, bioluminescent jungle, research lab and weird parking garage-like structure before the pre-shows) offer a sense of progress and help the guest feel like they are proceeding more quickly. They also allow for discovery and conversations.
Arguably, with Flight of Passage (or the banshee Ride) still commanding an average wait time of two hours, nothing in the queue is effectively going make the time pass quickly. Make sure to bring an extra battery charger and visit the restrooms before entering the queue.
Sivako!