Convince me to love Animal Kingdom

[OB1]

If you want to explore the park, rather than look at it for it's attractions you may see what we see. The trails are awesome, the shows really nice, and Flights of Wonder amazing. Every where you look there are the details that make this park unique. The thing is, you cannot enter and go from attraction to attraction, ticking one off after the next. If you do, you leave wondering why you bothered to come in the first place.

I think that of all the Disney parks, DAK is the one that required a change of theme park mindset in order to appreciate it. Every park is unique with all of the details that bring the attractions to life, but the attractions are not always the driving force behind why people return time and again. That is why "worth it" questions are so difficult to answer and are so subjective.

TOTALLY AGREE. We like this as a chill park. Take your time, watch things happen, explore. We have sat and watched birds play for 20 minutes, and see some pretty funny stuff happen. My wife could stay at the tigers for hours, even though they sleep most of the time. If you are just running from 1 spot to another, then you miss out. BUT - no guarantees that something will happen. Also agree with most everyone that the Lion King show is just amazing. I HAVE TO watch it every visit.

 

[familyfirsttimer]

If your family likes street entertainment at all, you have to spend some time in Africa. Between the singers who get everyone dancing in the street with them to the gymnast/acrobat guys, it seems there is always entertainment. Personally we feel immersed and transported there! Also we stumbled on Harambe Market for lunch this time and the food was AMAZING! stuff i would have never tried before have converted me.

I will say, we have always enjoyed grabbing a drink @Dawa bar and relazing but now that FOTLK is in that area, we experienced LONG lines and it was not as enjoyable as previous trips.

We have been to AK 4 times previously, we happened to walk by Flights of Wonder this time as they were calling last call to come in, so we did. We LOVED it!!!! Humor and amazing and beautiful birds. We are not big animal lovers in our house but the monkeys in the trail between Africa and Everest also kept us entertained for quite some time.

Good luck! Like many have said, not every park is for everyone. We try to explore all of the variety each park has to offer and see what we like.

 

[mco65]

AK used to be a half day park for us but no more.. We get there at rope drop but end up leaving around 5 or 6 so its a nice break for me not to go full throttle late into the evening.. yea!
Plus Everest is near the top of coasters at WDW.
Nemo is probably my fav. show..
Fof Lion king is fantastic
I love the Dinosaur ride.. probably my favorite (non coaster) ride.
The Safari ride is always enjoyable.
Kali River rapids is fun as well, just be prepared.. light shorts and shoes that can dry quickly... you are likely to get very wet!
plus Tusker House is a must do for us.. so says my wife!

 

[Mr. Drauer]

If you would have gone yesterday, you could have seen on the safari: brand new baby elephant born in late December, 4 cheetas out, 3 lions out including a female walking out to the edge of the Kopi rock to lay down, the introduction of a new baby Masai giraffe out onto the savanah, a black rhino foraging, 3 white rhinos foraging, zebras in the road stopping our truck, and many other animals. If you took the trip down the gorilla falls trail, you could have seen 7 gorillas at the viewing glass, including 2 babies playing and feeding with their mothers. My DD (9) loves doing the Wilderness Explorer activities which can take you all over the park to find interesting things to collect the badges. We only went from 10:15 to 3:15 and i feel like we had a tremendous day!

 

[TnTWalter]

it's the little details...Divine, the amazing tree of life and overall amazing attention to detail throughout the park, animals, shows, food is great. It's more relaxing than other parks. This is the park to stop and breathe and soak up.

 

[mindeola]

This is a good review from a convert. http://www.disneytouristblog.com/disneys-animal-kingdom-praise/

 

[Anesthesia Fine]

We never give the park a full day and every time I feel like I've missed things. My kids could spend all day at Rafiki's Planet Watch, though, and the street entertainment is so much fun! I met my family there after a meeting and was late catching up with them because it was the first time I'd managed to catch DiVine and was mesmerized.

I've also had really nice CM encounters there. I have a Tusker House dinner planned for my upcoming trip, which will make this the first time I've ever been at AK past 3:30 or so. So we're probably just going to wander at will and see where the day takes us. That's how DHS actually grew on me; I could easily spend all day over there now.

 

[yulilin3]

If your family likes street entertainment at all, you have to spend some time in Africa. Between the singers who get everyone dancing in the street with them to the gymnast/acrobat guys, it seems there is always entertainment. Personally we feel immersed and transported there! Also we stumbled on Harambe Market for lunch this time and the food was AMAZING! stuff i would have never tried before have converted me.

I will say, we have always enjoyed grabbing a drink @Dawa bar and relazing but now that FOTLK is in that area, we experienced LONG lines and it was not as enjoyable as previous trips.

We have been to AK 4 times previously, we happened to walk by Flights of Wonder this time as they were calling last call to come in, so we did. We LOVED it!!!! Humor and amazing and beautiful birds. We are not big animal lovers in our house but the monkeys in the trail between Africa and Everest also kept us entertained for quite some time.

Good luck! Like many have said, not every park is for everyone. We try to explore all of the variety each park has to offer and see what we like.

you should check out the Nomad's Lounge if you haven't. It is currently the most relaxing place and it's always empty, great atmosphere. I'm sure it'll get busy once Pandora opens

 

[Sakigt]

Dole whip with rum
Edamame
Giant playground to let the kids burn off steam and the sand pit to cool off.

My kids aged 4.5 and 18 months played for a solid hour in dinoland. Missed the lion king show fastpass but I think they were happier.

It would be nice if they had a time waster ride like people mover or nemo

 

[L&Lfan]

We enjoy the rides, but will never getting excited about seeing animals. There are zoos for that.

 

[dreiwhit]

We went to AK for the first, and so far only time, back in March. For us, its our least favorite park.

To be honest, for us, the cost of using one of our park days (we don't buy hoppers) wasn't justified by what was available in AK that we would do/see/ride again.

 

[AMusicLifeForMe]

Animal Kingdom is by far my favorite park at Walt Disney World. My families traditions is to always go to Animal Kingdom first. There is just something about the theming of that park that makes us want to go there. Festival of the Lion King is by far my favorite show, and it is the most popular show at Walt Disney World (the CM's even say that while you are waiting for the show). If you don't have a fastpass for that show, make sure you are there 30-45 minutes before. On peak season, make that 45 minutes before. I showed up 30 minutes before the week of Christmas/New Years this past year, and I wasn't allowed in the line. Expedition Everest is by far my favorite attraction at WDW (especially at night). I enjoy all of the rides, and the safari. Nomad Lounge is a great place to relax. I'm really looking forward to Pandora and Rivers of Light.

 

[Satchmo128]

There are THREE great shows at DAK (Lion King, Nemo, and the very underrated Flights of Wonder bird show). I love Expedition Everest and could ride it many times in a row. My DH doesn't do thrill rides, so I meet a lot of nice people by going on it from the Single Rider line. Kilimanjaro Safaris is relaxing and never the same ride twice. We ate at Yak & Yeti on our recent trip and I was blown away with the quality of the food - yum!! And Flame Tree BBQ is the best counter service dining in almost all of WDW as well.

We are very excited for Avatar-land and all of the additions that they are making to DAK.

 

[nightshaderose]

There's nothing wrong with preferring the other parks to AK. It would be a boring world if we were all alike.
That being said, Animal Kingdom is by far my favorite park. I just love the environment and could happily spend a whole day just walking around, looking at details, watching street performers, and eating things. The wonderful rides and shows are honestly just an incredible bonus on top of that. And the thing is, if you're not a family of walk-slowly-and-notice-things-type-people, AK is not going to be more than a half-day park for y'all, in the same way that MK has never been more than a half-day park for me (talk about unpopular opinions ).
Mind, if you really want to understand why people love it, ask one of your friends to show you, next time your trips coincide. It's really hard to get the feeling across in just words/text.

 

[miTnosnhoJ]

Every trip to Disney, we try to splurge on one thing we have never done before. Last December, our splurge was the Wild Africa Trek at AK. It is one of the best things we have ever done! It is one of those things where before you go, you are thinking "why is this so expensive?" Then after you finish, you think "What a bargain!"
Highly recommended.

 

[Duffywannabe]

I think AK is great. But at least you have a lot of company in your opinion.

Whenever I mention how Epcot is my least favorite park I get looked at or spoken to like I'm peeing on Walts grave or something. I don't get anyone trying to convince me usually, just told I am wrong or worse. So be grateful AK is your least favorite.

 

[yulilin3]

I think AK is great. But at least you have a lot of company in your opinion.

Whenever I mention how Epcot is my least favorite park I get looked at or spoken to like I'm peeing on Walts grave or something. I don't get anyone trying to convince me usually, just told I am wrong or worse. So be grateful AK is your least favorite.

epcot is my least favorite as well, Hollywood Studios is my number one so I get the strange looks on both ends

 

[elaine amj]

I like all 4 parks more or less equally. I just like WDW

I will say - when I was a newbie and had to only choose 2 parks for a very short trip (once and done trip) with kids who were about 8/9, I reviewed attractions lists for all the parks and despite AK's shorter hours, chose both MK and AK. When the once and done trip turned into annual visits and I returned to experience all the other parks, I still felt those were the absolute best choices for our family. Since then, I have taken (or planned trips for) other newbies and AK tends to beat out HS and Epcot.

In fact, in the past 4 years of short annual trips, my DD has been grumbling because we KEEP skipping some AK rides. Can't wait until August when we WILL fit in Kali, Its Tough to be a Bug, and Flights of Wonder. AND some time around the Tree of Life!

1. If you like shows and musicals, AK has the BEST ones. FOTLK blows me away every time and Nemo is REALLY good. Those two alone usually take up a lot of my AK time since it takes about 2 hours to cover both.
2. The Safari is magnificent. I'll be honest - while I like animals and enjoy the Safari, I'm not gaga about it the way many people are. But my son LOVES it so the Safari is a must do on every trip.
3. The animal trails are fun. We've been to many zoos so for me personally, they are not a high priority. But somehow...every trip, we end up on at least one trail. They're short enough that they make a great filler. I love that one is placed next to the Safari and one next to EE. Very convenient.
4. The BEST playground. I know its just a playground. I do sometimes struggle with the feeling that I spent all this money for the kids to go to a playground? But then I look around and it is truly a super amazing playground and well worth the crazy money Disney charges. Sadly, my kids are now teens and have aged out. On the good side, we return in August with my 3.5 yr old niece and they'll be able to play with her in there, which my son in particular will love (since he does still really like playgrounds, despite his advanced age).
5. And of course, EE is an amazing roller coaster - definitely Disney's most thrilling ride. DD and I go on this multiple times.

 

[bryanb]

1. Some of the most immersive theming in all of Walt Disney World. You really feel like you've been transported off to a distant land. Even Orlando's infamous heat/humidity adds to the feeling of being in a far off adventure. This is a beautiful park to stop and admire the details. Imagineers really outdid themselves. Don't miss the interesting signage in the various shops and even the "graffiti."

2. The food is some of the most delicious theme park fare anywhere. Even the QSR stalls like Harambe Market serve some great fare which feels adventurous yet familiar.

3. The street entertainers are talented. Whether you're dancing in the streets of Asia to an Indian DJ, or listening to the beautiful drums and singers in Africa, the atmosphere feels like a party.

4. Expedition Everest is one of Disney's BEST roller coasters in any park. Thrilling and creative!

5. If you or your kids don't love animal viewing, I'd say give it another shot. Take some time to stroll the trails and talk to the various guide CMs. They really know their stuff and have a love for what they do. The displays are designed ingeniously.

 

[JoTheBookish]

Every trip to Disney, we try to splurge on one thing we have never done before. Last December, our splurge was the Wild Africa Trek at AK. It is one of the best things we have ever done! It is one of those things where before you go, you are thinking "why is this so expensive?" Then after you finish, you think "What a bargain!"
Highly recommended.

Do you think it is appropriate for a 10yo? Are you in direct sun the whole time?
I'd love to hear more about the tour in general...