AK Animal Trails

[newestkg06]

I'm trying to make a more relaxed schedule for AK, since it's more of a walk around and explore things park than just a lot of rides.

This is exactly why I wanted to start with this park. With fewer rides and more exploration, I'm hoping it will be easier to transition them to waiting in line and general park etiquette. By the end of the week, they'll totally be ready for the 70 minute wait for Toy Story Mania, right?

 

[disney144]

Unlike most people on these boards, I love AK. I would plan to spend the whole day there. Why rush your animal lovers through such a great experience. Conservation station has fun activities and a petting zoo. Definitely check it out!

 

[newestkg06]

Thanks so much for all the great advice on here! I'm getting really excited for AK!

 

[Crystal824]

We always spend two days at AK if we can. I definitely don't consider AK a half-day park, but many do. It is all in your preferences. We generally spend about 1/2 hour on each trail...sometimes longer. It just depends what the animals are up to that day.

 

[LoveFamx3Boys]

Loving all the tips and input. I will be taking 3 boys and can totally see not having enough time to see/do everything at AK! April's weather looks like it's been rainy... I hope May is better

 

[Planogirl]

Just make sure to get to the park early particularly if the day is expected to be hot. You can get a lot done early and then enjoy the shows in the afternoon. Plus many of the animals pretty much collapse when it's really hot.

 

[tink9702]

Yes on the Boneyard!! I showed my kids a youtube video of that and they both screamed with excitement. I'm budgeting at least an hour there.
You guys are right. I can't figure out how people can say this is a half-day park. I guess if you aren't animal lovers and just want to ride rides? If that were me, I would probably just skip the park altogether. But, this may be the park I'm most excited for (if only because I can't wait to meet Baloo!)

Baloo is fun to meet!! He meets with King Louie who doesn't sign autographs because "he's the king of the jungle".

This is exactly why I wanted to start with this park. With fewer rides and more exploration, I'm hoping it will be easier to transition them to waiting in line and general park etiquette. By the end of the week, they'll totally be ready for the 70 minute wait for Toy Story Mania, right?

Your strategy actually worked fairly well for us regarding general park etiquette. We had a snafu with RD for HS and had to wait in the Toy Story line for over an hour and my kids actually managed it after doing AK & MK first. Just plan on lots of "games" like name disney characters, guess which disney character I'm thinking of etc. We loved starting at AK and plan to do so every trip.

 

[bumbershoot]

We also plan to go to AKL for dinner and animal viewing this same night. So, if there are animals better viewed there, that's good info too.

If it will be dark, don't expect to see anything whatsoever. IF you do see something, it's a bonus. But you likely won't.


My son at that age wouldn't have understood the Nemo show at all. Giant puppets and you can see the puppeteers? Wouldn't have worked for us.

Assign a parent to each kid at the boneyard just to be sure no one gets away from you.

 

[ZoZo]

As much as I like Conservation Station, if you have to pick, I'd skip it and go to the Nemo show. It's kind of hit or miss whether you will "catch" some of the cool things at Conservation Station, like the veterinary procedures or getting to pet an animal like a reptile. I've been out there when there's lots going on, and also when there's a lull between activities. It's all about the timing. They do put on some short, very interesting "animal encounter" shows at Conservation Station; I've seen owls, parrots, hdgehot, and a porcupine. Very cool! But they only have those shows intermittently throuh the day, too.

I'd definitely recommend the Flights of Wonder bird show! Be sure to arrive a few minutes early; they often have a zookeeper out front with a Eurasian Eagle Owl. You can view it fairly close up and ask the CM questions about it.

Any chance you could spend more than one day at AK? Maybe go back and squeeze in a few hours on another day? I usually spend two full days at AK - it's my favorite park!