Animal Kingdom a major Flop!

[Missytara]

When I took my mom a few years ago; it was her favorite park. It focused less on rides, parades, etc. and more on walking - which she loves to do!

We liked the fact that it wasn't so focused on rides and more on walking leisurely looking at all the animals, shows, etc. She loved the animals. I think we spent the most time at Rafiki's - she loved the train ride and the petting zoo and the birds that were out with their trainers. She didn't feel as rushed as we did in say, MK or DHS.

In addition, my friend took her 1-1/2 year old recently and it was his favorite park. It was the only park that didn't "scare" him - he felt extremely overwhelmed at MK - but loved the animals at AK. We have a running gag that we think he is going to be a veternarian.

I had wished that your post had not been so harsh, when stating that the park just wasn't for you.....it could have been worded a bit better.

 

[jmpurdy]

is what can bring more discovery to this park and what makes it a gem. We brought our children here since it opened and now bring our grandchildren once a year. We love the trails and the monkeys on the moat. Could watch them for hours. And the silver back gorillas are just majestic and we could watch them all day. The little ones are hysterical as they tease the adults, etc. Devine never fails to mesmerize our grandsons and the Lion King always brings me to happy tears somehow.
We start our day with the character breakfast which is amazing and then walk to the Safari ride. Our youngest grandson absolutely loves the triceratops ride. The look on his face = priceless!

 

[jade1]

EPCOT is our favorite (along with MK) , but for just "attractions"-AK is way better than EPCOT IMO. That said we still do AK once per trip in about a half day.

But if its all about attractions for someone, I would recommend AK over EPCOT.

Soarin (never understood the appeal)
MS-not good.
TT-love it.
SE-always cool.
Not even sure after those...Norway? Shrunk the audience?

EE crushes everything at EPCOT.
Safari-cant even compare.
FOTLK-awesome.
Nemo-incredible.
Bugs-very cool (about like shrunk)
Dino-a lot better than Norway
Kali-beats looking at the fountain at EPCOT in August.

 

[LeahA]

ANIMAL KINGDOM-the name says it all.

ANIMAL KINGDOM is suppose to be about ANIMALS.

They have some fabulous shows, they have some rides for children, family, and thrill seekers.

I love going to ANIMAL KINGDOM, I find it a nice low key day. Does every park have to be the same?

I love the Festival of the Lion King, everytime I see it, I leave with goosebumps.

My kids love Kilamanjaro Safari, Dinosaur, Expedition Everest, Kali River Rapids.
We also spend time enjoying the nature in the park and all the animals.

I'm sorry that the OP didn't have a good time, but we enjoy the quietness of this park!

 

[Missus Toad]

I think AK is the best themed park in The World-- not my fave, but the best themed. I do enjoy taking my time and absorbing all of the cool details in the park and of course all of the animals therein. That being said, I wish they'd lose Dinoland. It just bums me out with all the off the shelf looking rides/games hauled up onto concrete, and doesn't fit with the grandeur of the rest of the park. It feels like Toontown to me without the thought or character investment-- a non-essential appendage. Something more befitting the AK regional themes or even sea life would be better IMO, and if they can work in some more attractions that are of interest to the younguns, more power to 'em. Otherwise, AK is okay by me.

 

[WDSearcher]

So if I would have said that AK was just OK, though needed a little work, do you think I would have gotten the responses I got with this one? There's no doubt that Disney watches these boards and with the responses that I completely expected, Disney also sees the passion that its loyal fans have for the park. I hope that Disney also sees and knows that its work is not nearly done and much more needs to be done to make the park the quality that we all know and expect from Disney.

I think Disney is well aware that its work isn't done, otherwise they'd stop doing new stuff.

I think the thing with your post was that you put up a whole batch of totally objective opinions, and then offered no other information or allowed for the possibility that maybe Disney doesn't have to build everything only for YOUR tastes. And when other people talked about what they liked about the park, you just came back with more stuff you don't like. It's opinion vs. opinion. You've given no real concrete info.

For example, you talked about how the park is not "the quality that we all know and expect from Disney", but didn't say what about the park is "low quality." And then when people offer their opinions about what IS high quality about the park (theming, detail, artistry, animal habitats, shows and other things), you shoot that down with comments about being wet all day on Kali or how Dinoland stinks. Those are personal preferences, not overall failings of the Imagineering department. Because, again ... just because you personally don't like something doesn't mean Disney screwed up.

You say, "much more needs to be done to make the park the quality that we all know and expect from Disney", but won't answer anyone's questions when they ask you what, exactly, you mean. What would make it match the quality meter in your head? Would more thrill rides make it a higher quality park? Fewer animals? More animals? Audio-animatronic animals? Do you think the park needs better theming? Less theming? Better food? More types of food? More atmosphere entertainment? Less? Better parade? No parade? Whatcha lookin' for there?

 

[goofy4tink]

AK is the park I head to if I want to 'relax and smell the roses' so to speak. It has the best shows at WDW, it has great attractions (not a ton of them but the ones there are great).
Is it hotter in there? Yep, it is. Why? Because there are no really open areas so breezes don't flow through the area. It used to be a LOT worse. But Disney put huge fans into the landscaping...you may not even notice them as you walk around, but they're there, whipping up a bit of a breeze...at least the air gets moved about.
We love the paths that offer great views of the animals...nice and cool in the shade with lots of sitting options along the way. With FOTLK and Nemo, you can get in out of the heat and enjoy great entertainment as well.
And the 'rides'?? Not sure how anyone can take issue with them. Dinosaur is fun, EE is terrific, Kilimanjaro Safari is a ton of fun. Yes, you're going to get wet at Kali...but that's the point. If we don't want to get wet, we don't ride it...simple. Primeval Whirl?? Fun.
I guess that AK isn't for everyone. But we like it there. We get to enjoy the animals in great settings. We get to do some terrific attractions. It's so much more than just a 'zoo' or 'amusement park'. Not for everyone I guess. But to say it's a flop??? Nah.

 

[OhThePain]

After my first visit to AK right after it first opened and long before EE opened, I felt the same way the OP feels. But then I went back again, and again, and again. Now every time I visit the park (usually a day and a half per visit) I leave with more and more appreciation for it as a park. If you don't understand what AK is about and all the little things it has to offer, either re-visit it and explore what it has or don't go back so those of us with the appreciation AK diserves and enjoy it without having to deal with those people who just don't get it.

For those of you who love and enjoy AK, I advise taking the Backstage Safari tour if you haven't yet.

 

[MidgeD79]

AK is our least favorite park followed by DHS. We do half day EMH at each of those parks when we have park hoppers.

 

[TheWog]

huh, I have never seen Festival of the Lion King or Finding Nemo the Musical and still like Animal Kingdom.

 

[inkkognito]

I love the gorillas, tigers and meerkats and like to play "spot the cheetahs" on the safari. Everest is cool, especially with the single riders line, but for me the park is more about the animals. I am an animal lover but am not big on most zoos because they have such miserable accomodations for the poor creatures and you often see them engaging in repetitive stress behaviors. That's rare at Disney except at going-in time when they pace in anticipation of day's end and food. AK has actually spoiled me for most other zoos now. I went back to Brookfield Zoo in Chicago, which is supposed to be a good one and which I thought was fine in all the years I had seen it as a kid. After seeing AK, I was rather disgusted at the awful little cages and habitats and the sad, miserable looking animals. I'll take AK any day...it has truly spoiled me for animal parks.

 

[OldsDr]

My biggest problem with AK is there used to be a stand in Africa(the stand is still there but has chaged) across the street from where those guys do the music with the whistles, that used to sell Root Beer floats and they changed it to a regular fast food area and we couldn't find our root beer floats.

It is also my least favorite park but by no means a flop.

 

[ADP]

I think a lot of us look at the Animal Kingdom and think "this park must be about animals." In fact, the Animal Kingdom is about "The Intrinsic Value of Nature". It just so happens animals are a part of nature.

If you look at the Animal Kingdom's theme as "The Intrinsic Value of Nature" you would not say it needs more work. You'd really appreciate for what it is...A park about nature.

 

[cbg1027]

I love Animal Kingdom and could spend a lot of time telling the OP why they should love it too.
But why bother?
The families who don't like AK won't be there when you go, so hopefully, the crowds will be lower and make your visit more enjoyable since you'll be among fellow AK lovers!

 

[Good Morning Dewdrop]

I'm always surprised to read that people don't like AK. We love it - it's our 2nd favorite park (after MK).

For us the highlights are the Safari (naturally), Lion King, the walking trails and meeting the characters - but those are all the tip of the iceberg! There is so much to see and the details are amazing. It's a wonderful park - I just wish people would slow down and see it rather than rushing to get to "the" next thing "to do".

 

[PiperPizzaz]

It is just not our thing right now. Tastes do change however. At one point when DH and I were dating/newlyweds MGM was our favorite after MK, we wouldn't step foot in EPCOT and hadn't gone to AK at all.
Now EPCOT is tied for fav with MK and we like DHS ok and AK fine. We honestly can take or leave AK but, we have been there at least once every trip. The Nemo and Lion King show are awesome and I like some of the other attractions. We just aren't all that into animals right now. I am sure once DS's interests get to animals we will be there more. Right now he is way into geography and is in LOVE with EPCOT.

I will also say that we liked AK much more this last time we went in Nov. instead of Aug. or Sept. It is so hard to try and do the trails and stuff when you are sweltering! It just seems so much warmer there it is hard to slow down and enjoy it.

 

[rivercottage]

My order is EPCOT, AK, WDW, DHS

I just adore the attention to detail in AK, they have really done the research.

 

[SafetyPinndSally]

When we went to AK, we were there for a few hours, but we were done very early and ended up going back to the resort around noon. The rides that we went on were certainly fun and we enjoyed them, but I think this park could do with adding maybe a few more rides.

Perhaps it's because we live so close to the Nation Zoo in DC, but we weren't that in to the animals and so we found it hard to stay occupied in this park. I can of course understand why some people love this park and it is a gorgeous place to walk around, but it just isn't the one park where I would spend all of my time.

Oh and I hated Dinosaur...too jumpy, loud and I didn't like feeling like I was going to fall out of the side every time the car moved.

 

[Disney4nonah]

My DH and I love Animal Kingdom, in truth we have a hard time getting to everything and definetly have to spread it out to two days - everytime I go i think we'll spend 1/2 day here and by the time you do the safari, ride Everest a couple of times, get in the major shows and stop for lunch you look down and it's almost time for the park to close. I love it there, it's so detailed....

to each his own...

 

[littlbugmom]

We skipped AK during our first trip due to time. Even though we had plenty of time during our second trip, I still didn't think we'd care too much for AK, so I planned it as a morning visit only.

We always need a mid-day break for my DS5 and since AK closed at 5pm, we decided to go just for the morning and not worry about not seeing much of it.

We loved it. Such a nice park. My DH was the only one doing Everest, so he did that while the kids and I explored. We spent SO MUCH time at the Tree of Life! My kids didn't seem to get tired of looking for different animals. We enjoyed the trails, had a snack while listening to musicians, and took some pics with great backgrounds. We met a lot of characters and were able to do the Safari before it was time for us to head back for a break.

We'll probably schedule 2 mornings at AK during our next trip.