AKL in the morning or evening?

[Twitterpaited]

My family would like to have a meal at AKL, and we are trying decide between breakfast or dinner. Are there more animals out on the savanna in the morning or in the evening?
Edited: We are going in March 2022, so I am hoping all the restaurants will be reopened by then.

 

[Evita_W]

Well, right now Jambo House is closed, so you only have Sanaa. For that one, I think day time is definitely better.

 

[Deb & Bill]

The Mara might be open for grab and go breakfast, same with Sanaa at Kidani Village. Evening, you won't be able to see much.

 

[HiStitch626]

There are animals out at all hours, but they have quite a bit of freedom to move about the savanna areas, so you never know what you might see.

You don't say when you are going, but currently neither Jambo or Kidani has table service breakfast. Mara at Jambo has QS breakfast with a very limited menu, but you could wander out to the animal overlooks on the first and second floors with your breakfast. Mara has just reopened for dinner hours with a decent QS menu and again you could eat and then enjoy the animal viewing areas. Sanaa is QS breakfast where you seat yourself, but you can choose a table by the window that overlooks the savanna. There are also animals overlooks on the first and second floor. Sanaa is table service for lunch and dinner. You can request a table by the window, but lots of people do. Again, though, Kidani has some nice overlook areas. Sunset is currently about 7:30 and getting later so you would want to consider that if booking dinner.

 

[Timandalicia]

My family would like to have a meal at AKL, and we are trying decide between breakfast or dinner. Are there more animals out on the savanna in the morning or in the evening?

Lol. How times have changed. I remember when the food was the second thought. All the answers are about eating . I believe the question was more when is the best time to see the animals. The colder the more active (that will depend what time of year you are going). But really it’s hit or miss throughout the day.

 

[Best Aunt]

If you are thinking of going to AKL in the morning:
Unless it's very cold, the animals stay outside all day and night. But they are called into the barn once a day to be checked, and then sent back outside. My notes from 2014:
- Pembe Savanna: called in at 5:30 am
- Uzima Savanna: called in at 6:30 am
- Sunset Savanna: called in at 8:30 am
- Urusha Savanna: called in at 9:30 am. The animals have a long walk to get to the barn, so there is a parade of animals when this savanna is called in.

If you are thinking of going to AKL in the evening:
Check to see what time sunset will be that day. You'll see more during daylight.

If you are thinking of eating at Sanaa so that you can see animals while you eat:
As others have said, not all tables have a good view out the window, and most people want those tables. You won't necessarily get one. Even if you do get one, that doesn't mean that interesting animals will wander in front of your window while you are eating. When we were there, the only animal near the window was a bird.

PPs have mentioned the current restaurant situation. At Kidani Village, Sanaa is open. At Jambo House, hours at The Mara have been changing, and the menu is more limited than in the past. Boma and Jiko at Jambo House have not reopened during the pandemic.

 

[Twitterpaited]

If you are thinking of going to AKL in the morning:
Unless it's very cold, the animals stay outside all day and night. But they are called into the barn once a day to be checked, and then sent back outside. My notes from 2014:
- Pembe Savanna: called in at 5:30 am
- Uzima Savanna: called in at 6:30 am
- Sunset Savanna: called in at 8:30 am
- Urusha Savanna: called in at 9:30 am. The animals have a long walk to get to the barn, so there is a parade of animals when this savanna is called in.

If you are thinking of going to AKL in the evening:
Check to see what time sunset will be that day. You'll see more during daylight.

If you are thinking of eating at Sanaa so that you can see animals while you eat:
As others have said, not all tables have a good view out the window, and most people want those tables. You won't necessarily get one. Even if you do get one, that doesn't mean that interesting animals will wander in front of your window while you are eating. When we were there, the only animal near the window was a bird.

PPs have mentioned the current restaurant situation. At Kidani Village, Sanaa is open. At Jambo House, hours at The Mara have been changing, and the menu is more limited than in the past. Boma and Jiko at Jambo House have not reopened during the pandemic.

Thank you for the times. That is helpful.

 

[disneydreamer1980]

I know this has been said, but at Sanaa you can only see animals during the day. Go for lunch! We’ve done lunch and dinner there on separate occasions and were really disappointed we couldn’t watch the animals while we ate at dinner.

 

[bakerworld]

We had a Saana 7p dinner reservation. For most of the dinner it was light enough to see out plus there was a lot of animal activity (maybe they were being called in for the night?). About 8 it became dark and by that time our main entrée was delivered. I thought it worked out well.