4. The World of Pandora

Other than Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, The World of Pandora at Disney’s Animal Kingdom remains one of the biggest draws at Walt Disney World. It’s pretty difficult to catch this land with no crowds, but this is a great time to explore it with lower crowds.

Pandora was a world designed to be taken in at an unrushed pace. The juxtaposition of its looming floating isles, bioluminescent flora, and converted military bunkers is a gorgeous love letter to modern science fiction. You don’t even have to like the movie Avatar to enjoy the place, and though the land houses a fantastic ride, there’s a real joy in just exploring how much creativity and care Disney Imagineers put into its design.

5. The Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse

Most guests walk right by this Adventureland staple, but it really is a gem in the midst of the bustle of the Magic Kingdom. I recall several fond memories enjoying a Dole Whip float on its porches.

Capacity limits and social distancing are a real boon for visiting the Swiss Family Treehouse. Nothing ruins a trip through this place like the press of people. The treehouse offers unparalleled views of the park, particularly of Adventureland and the Jungle Cruise. Similar to Tom Sawyer Island, it’s a strangely peaceful hub in the midst of the craziness of Magic Kingdom. It’s also a great example of how this is a good time to try attractions you may not have before.

6. Star Wars Launch Bay

Star Wars Launch Bay has been one of our favorite havens in Disney’s Hollywood Studios for some time, particularly for Star Wars fans. Normally, the complex is comprised of several parts including character greets, a museum, a theater, and a gift shop. It’s also the first place fans saw Disney start hinting at Oga’s Cantina to come with a basic replica of a Star Wars cantina.

Star Wars Launch Bay has currently been designated as a relaxation zone for guests who want to take off their masks and rest in some air conditioning. During our visit, we were surprised to see that most guests did not head inside the complex, stopping instead at an outdoor resting area with fans. We are pretty familiar with Launch Bay, so we headed inside. While there were a few guests resting on socially-distanced dots throughout the museum, we continued all the way back to the cantina where we perched by the bar with only one other family present in the room. That family left fairly quickly, after which, we had the place basically to ourselves for around half an hour.

It was introvert heaven.

While you are limited how much you should be moving around without a mask inside Star Wars Launch Bay, this is kind of a great time to take in its details and what prop replicas are accessible (just put your mask back on if you’re planning to wander). We got some great pictures during our visit, and it made for a truly unique memory of Walt Disney World.

7. Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge

Speaking of Star Wars, we almost didn’t include this one, but Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge actually still deserves a spot on this list despite being the biggest draw in Walt Disney World at the moment (largely thanks to Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance).

Disney did an outstanding job designing the Black Spire Outpost on Batuu. It holds a different kind of immersive beauty compared to Pandora. It’s a place of untold stories, where you can feel hidden history in the towering spires, strange buildings, and ancient statues perched outside of Dok Ondar’s Den of Antiquities. You don’t necessarily have to read the ever-growing library of books and tales attached to Batuu to enjoy a visit here (though some are quite good!). Galaxy’s Edge is a land that invites exploration, right down to the way the whole place integrates with the Star Wars Datapad feature of the Play Disney Parks app. Features throughout the land including computer consoles, landspeeders, antennas, droids, and starfighters--even that nasty-looking drinking fountain—all come to life with unexpected movements, lights, and sounds when guests use the app. You can even run missions that require you to chat with “locals” to achieve specific tasks.

There are times during this season that Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge definitely feels more crowded than the rest of the Walt Disney World—particularly on weekends and holidays, though even weekdays have seen a recent increase in crowds. However, the land is very well designed for crowd control, and lower capacity means that there are only so many people who can even be there at one time. It’s still a better-than-average time to explore the Black Spire Outpost while capacity restrictions remain in place. Towards the end of our day, we got some pretty amazing pictures of The Millennium Falcon without a single guest in sight. That’s a photo opportunity that may prove difficult to get once restrictions are lifted and the park fills to the brim once more.

Enjoy this article? Keep reading to learn more about what it’s been like lately inside Disney’s Hollywood Studios, or dive with us into 6 Ridiculous (but kind of adorable) Things You Totally Believed as a Disney Kid.