Animal Kingdom a major Flop!

[TillyMarigold]

To the earlier poster who mentioned a backstory to Dinoland - I'd love to hear it!

Once upon a time, there was a rural, wooded area with nothing in it but a few fishing cabins, a small restaurant, and a gas station where you could also buy bread and milk and that sort of thing. A paleontologist happened, one year, to be there fishing, and stumbled across dinosaur bones. Immediately, he called all his paleontologist buddies and arranged grants, and they started buying up all the land in the area to set up a Very Serious Research Facility. The facility they built is called the Dino Institute, and they've also set up a sort of inside/outside museum (Dino Institute Queue and Cretaceous Trail), because museums are the only proper way to study dinosaurs. They're responsible for the many museum-quality skeletons around Dinoland (and yes, they are--that T-Rex? That's Sue, the most complete T-Rex ever found; the original is in the Field Museum in Chicago and the only other copy tours the country and you'd pay $30+ just to see that one skeleton).

As anyone who's worked in academia knows, scientists need underlings, so they've brought in a bevy of grad students to do all the grunt work (Grant Seeker, the one who sends you back in time on the Dinosaur ride, is one of them). Being students, they live in a dorm above the former fishing cabin (Restaurantosaurus), using the cabin as their cafeteria and lounge. (The lounge area is particularly a work of art, as is the student loft area, which is in the room where the fixings bar is.) Being students, they're also into practical jokes--they're the ones who spray-painted "osaurus" after "RESTAURANT" and shot the suction-cup arrows onto the water tower and put lawn chairs on the roof.

However. Remember I said there was a gas station? And that the scientists were trying to buy up all the land? Well, the owners of that gas station (that would be Chester and Hester) (1) don't think much of stuffy scientists and (2) in the great tradition of folks who find themselves next to the site of a great discovery, want to cash in. So they refused to sell their land to the scientists, and they converted their gas station into a gift shop and their parking lot into a carnival with rides and games, to make some money off the tourists who come to see the museum. They also think dinosaurs should be fun rather than dry and boring the way they're presented on the Cretaceous Trail, which explains all the wackiness--the Cementosaurus, the recyclables-covered T-Rex right by the gas station (which is a send-up of Sue, of course), the silliness of the rides and games, etc.

By the way, unlike at a real carnival, the games at Disney aren't rigged.

 

[TillyMarigold]

I actually never noticed any of this and am happy you pointed it out. We ususally zip through AK in about 3/4 of a day....we love it...but after we have done EE, Dino, Kali, Safari, Bugs life, and Lion King we pretty much get out.....I may just add some more time on my itinerary this time around.....Thanks for posting this!

Every building in Discovery Island has a theme (like "animals with stripes" or whatever), and each room in Restaurantosaurus has its own.

The theme of Asia is Nature Fights Back--the yeti on EE, the raging rapids caused by clearcutting on Kali, etc. This story is told particularly clearly inside Maharajah Jungle Trek, on the wall after the tigers and before the aviary--and of course symbolized by the MJT as a whole, since it's a former palace turned into a nature preserve, and by the temples overrun with monkeys ...

The theme of Africa is Man Learning to Live in Harmony with Nature.

It's really--there's so many things you'd never, ever notice, but they're perfect anyway. Even the pavement is different in each different part of the park. The electrical wires strung across Africa? Fake. The real ones are underground, but a town of the type they're replicating in Africa would have them. If you read the bulletin board (to the left of Kusafiri), there's an ad to take a class to learn to use the Internet.

We did 2½ days there last time--2 would have been enough, but I was determined to find the lemurs.

 

[Dopey's twin Dippy]

We love AK and MK the best. I love gointthere , and DH likes all the little walkways,etc, that are there. We love Safari. Its funny because we MUST eat at Pizzafari!!! Its my fav. cute place. we cant wait to take the GrandKids .

 

[JennyMP03]

Tilly, the stories and details you're posting are fantastic! They give me the chills, really. I can't wait to go back one day and look for some of the things you mentioned. Thanks so much for sharing.

 

[Erik_in_TN]

I'll have to agree with the O.P.

While AK is by no means the WORST theme-park we have visited, it certainly did not seem like Disney to us. More like a well-themed zoo to be quite honest. Maybe we've gotten spoiled over the years with Mk & Epcot, but we are definitely waiting until more gets added before we pay to go to AK. Not that we had a horrible time...we did have a good day on park. But is not worth the Disney costs of a park ticket. Six Flags costs, definitely, but not for Disney's high standards.

 

[goreesha]

I would love for you to go back and check for my grammar errors. I doubt you would find any more than the ones that you made, which I kindly pointed out. You obviously have a love for the "," and a hate for the ";". If you want to get grammatically correct on me you would know that for the use of word like "however". It's actually used like so, "I like Disney World a lot; however, I must say that Disneyland is better." This comes from a correct English major who memorized the Little Brown Handbook (relatively speaking). I just try not correct people's grammar unless it's truly unbearable for an online forum.

Actually, if you go and look at the layout of the park you will see that the upper half is build as the "zoo" and the lower part is the "theme park", at least in the original design plan. The non-watered down Dinoland with 5 rides, Everest, Tough to be a Bug, 3 rides from the Beastly kingdom, and the nighttime parade would allow the park to be open to, at least ,7-8 most nights of the year. That's how the park was designed. Budget cuts got in the way and that how we got what we now have.

For the record, I agreed with you that the park needs something more, but the point remains that if someone doesn't like strolling around looking at animals, they will probably never love AK. Even with Beastly Kingdom, you're still talking about half a park for the non-animal lovers.

lol Okay, since you got all worked up about the semi-colon, here you go:

DAK is lacking something, because it was built to have another land with another 3 attractions, one A ticket, one C ticket, and an E ticket. TO say it's perfect as it is not only a slap in that face to Walt Disney himself, and the Imagineering team who made the never realized Beastly Kingdom, but also a pat on the back to one of most infamous leaders in Disney history, Michael Eisner. While there is no doubt that what we have of the part is high quality and defiantly up to Disney's par, it still lacks something, which Disney knows because if it didn't it wouldn't close at 5 most of the year.

There have been countless attempts to "fix" the park with very little avail. The first the Everest, which was an amazing addition, but the night time parade "Rivers of Light" failed to come to life due to flaws made in the construction of the park's walk ways not allowing proper sized floats to pass with the audience watching. Also, as mentioned the never brought to life Beastly Kingdom. And then the lack of basic rides in the park. What most parks have is alot of little atracions to soak up the people, all DAK have is E ticket rides and shows. There really aren't any little rides to soak up the people.

While the quality of the park is high, in terms of quantity it is defiantly lacking, and only a sheep or a dodo bird would say otherwise.

Hopefully we will get a new version of the Beastly Kingdom, as its has been rumored to be in development. That, an Australia land, and a night time show would bring it up to Disney par

The semi-colon misuse pales in comparison.

 

[xoprincessmomxo]

Every building in Discovery Island has a theme (like "animals with stripes" or whatever), and each room in Restaurantosaurus has its own.

The theme of Asia is Nature Fights Back--the yeti on EE, the raging rapids caused by clearcutting on Kali, etc. This story is told particularly clearly inside Maharajah Jungle Trek, on the wall after the tigers and before the aviary--and of course symbolized by the MJT as a whole, since it's a former palace turned into a nature preserve, and by the temples overrun with monkeys ...

The theme of Africa is Man Learning to Live in Harmony with Nature.

It's really--there's so many things you'd never, ever notice, but they're perfect anyway. Even the pavement is different in each different part of the park. The electrical wires strung across Africa? Fake. The real ones are underground, but a town of the type they're replicating in Africa would have them. If you read the bulletin board (to the left of Kusafiri), there's an ad to take a class to learn to use the Internet.

We did 2½ days there last time--2 would have been enough, but I was determined to find the lemurs.

Love your posts! Can't wait to go back and really "see" the park!

 

[WDSearcher]

My post was to those saying that the park is perfect as is and shouldn't have any rides added, and yes there are those posters on here. I was not saying that it's a bad park, but unfinished.

I think the people who are saying that "the park is perfect as it is" are saying that it is perfect FOR THEM. That they don't require anything more to be added to DAK to make it "better." It is a subjective statement ... an opinion. If someone believes that it IS perfect as it is, they are not wrong. They simply do not agree with you.

Do not test my knowledge on the subject of Walt, as I most likely know more than you just off the top of my head. Do not throw random facts at me as I will only use them to prove myself right, as I just did.

Wow. Ego, much?

You only "proved yourself right" TO yourself. Because, as someone with your English composition / reading comprehension background should understand, there is no "right" or "wrong" when it comes to opinion. And really ... if you have to tell someone you're smarter than them, it's far more likely that you're not.

 

[bicker]

I'm not sure where the issue of "perfection" got raised. "Perfection" in this regard is a failure to imagine how things could be better. It's a rather pointless point of contention, really. The viable discussion-points are along the lines of whether the park is enjoyable (yes/no; i.e., above a certain threshold); whether the park is worth the cost (again, yes/no...); etc. Remember the context of this thread: The OP asserted that the park was "a major Flop". Not that the the OP didn't like the park, or didn't find it worthwhile, but that the park, itself, was a major flop. That implies that no one likes the park, or that so few people like the park that their numbers are literally insignificant. The replies in objection to the OP have generally been refuting that assertion (and very effectively so AFAIC).

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

Every building in Discovery Island has a theme (like "animals with stripes" or whatever), and each room in Restaurantosaurus has its own.

The theme of Asia is Nature Fights Back--the yeti on EE, the raging rapids caused by clearcutting on Kali, etc. This story is told particularly clearly inside Maharajah Jungle Trek, on the wall after the tigers and before the aviary--and of course symbolized by the MJT as a whole, since it's a former palace turned into a nature preserve, and by the temples overrun with monkeys ...

The theme of Africa is Man Learning to Live in Harmony with Nature.

It's really--there's so many things you'd never, ever notice, but they're perfect anyway. Even the pavement is different in each different part of the park. The electrical wires strung across Africa? Fake. The real ones are underground, but a town of the type they're replicating in Africa would have them. If you read the bulletin board (to the left of Kusafiri), there's an ad to take a class to learn to use the Internet.

We did 2½ days there last time--2 would have been enough, but I was determined to find the lemurs.

Thanks so much for all the background you are providing!

I'll add some more for fun

Flame Tree BBQ has a theme as well: Predator vs. Prey.

Starting from the main sign there is an Alligator catching a fish.

On the directional signs, pointing to the seating areas there are snakes catching mice.

Then each of the dining pavilions as well as the light fixtures are themed with predator and prey pairings such as Owls & Rabbits, Anteaters and Ants etc.

It's a little joke from Imagineering as guests dig into Chicken and Ribs....meats eaten right off the bone

Animal Kingdom was also the place where WDI really started playing with patterned concrete. If you look at the paths throughout Animal Kingdom, you will notice imprints from bicycles, plants, animals etc. In areas of Asia there are even gemstones embedded in the ground.

If you really want to appreciate the time and effort that went into the design of Animal Kingdom then pick up the Imagineering Guide to Animal Kingdom. It will blow your mind! Animal Kingdom is all about the details.

And to the poster, ~Kik-Kik~, who is going on a rampage about knowledge of Walt Disney, WDI etc....Perfect does not necessarily mean complete. You don't have to possess a wealth of knowledge about Walt Disney to know that he felt Disneyland would never be completed.

First off, Walt was talking about Disneyland and he wasn't necessarily talking about new attractions. The full quote speaks to imagination still existing in the world, that even the trees will get bigger and more beautiful etc. Walt was likely talking about Disneyland evolving both naturally and from a development perspective.

Secondly, no one here implied that Animal Kingdom was complete, simply that it was perfect to them in theme, in design etc.

Thirdly, you really shouldn't come into a Disney community and tout your Disney knowledge. I assure you, most posters here hold some specialized knowledge of some aspect of Disney and.... some might even be more knowledgeable than you!

 

[Sneezie]

While the quality of the park is high, in terms of quantity it is defiantly lacking, and only a sheep or a dodo bird would say otherwise.

Well, just call this sheep a do do bird, because I really love AK and can easily spend two days there and not have enough.

 

[mickeysgirl17]

If you want to see the shows, and parade, and ride the major attractions AND view the animals, it's more than a full day park.

I'm trying to figure out how to fit it all in!

I completely agree with you. I can't possibly fit everything into 1 day at AK.

Who said the park IS finished. There'll be more. Think of all the naysayers who winged and moaned about EPCOT in the beginning.

Just wait.

Although I love AK how it is, it couldn't hurt to add in more attractions. Let's hope more will be coming soon.

I also wanted to add that I also think dinoland could use some retheming. This is the only part of the park that could use a change. The carnival games don't belong. But, with that being said, my DD loved triceratop spin....so hoping they would keep this ride or retheme it to something similar.

 

[AliceinHalloweentown]

DAK is lacking something, because it was built to have another land with another 3 attractions, one A ticket, one C ticket, and an E ticket. TO say it's perfect as it is not only a slap in that face to Walt Disney himself, and the Imagineering team who made the never realized Beastly Kingdom, but also a pat on the back to one of most infamous leaders in Disney history, Michael Eisner. While there is no doubt that what we have of the part is high quality and defiantly up to Disney's par, it still lacks something, which Disney knows because if it didn't it wouldn't close at 5 most of the year.

There have been countless attempts to "fix" the park with very little avail. The first the Everest, which was an amazing addition, but the night time parade "Rivers of Light" failed to come to life due to flaws made in the construction of the park's walk ways not allowing proper sized floats to pass with the audience watching. Also, as mentioned the never brought to life Beastly Kingdom. And then the lack of basic rides in the park. What most parks have is alot of little atracions to soak up the people, all DAK have is E ticket rides and shows. There really aren't any little rides to soak up the people.

While the quality of the park is high, in terms of quantity it is defiantly lacking, and only a sheep or a dodo bird would say otherwise.

Hopefully we will get a new version of the Beastly Kingdom, as its has been rumored to be in development. That, an Australia land, and a night time show would bring it up to Disney par.

I'm a sheep, now, because I think its OK the way it is? Of course I want them to expand, as I would any Disney theme park, heck I've drawn up sketches of what I'd love to see in the parks some day.

I hardly worship Disney, I'm quick to point out flaws (especially in the WDW resort), like the fact I am angered the Yeti is allowed to run at such horrible show conditions.

I'd much rather EE be shut down than allow it to run like that.

I find flaws in DHS, the way they built the park allows little to no room for expansion, there's no great "flow" to it, I think the "studios" style parks are cop-outs. (which includes WDS in Paris and the Hollywood Studios section of DCA)

I find flaws in the MK, explain to me how Monsters telling jokes fit into a "bright, hopeful world-on-the-move" future? Why does every new ride have to have a franchise to slap on to, when the some of the best rides originally did not? (POTC, HM) (And of course, there's the whole thing of POTC missing about 6 minutes of the ride from its predecessor in Disneyland)
I'd say something about how weak Fantasyland in comparison to the '84 Disneyland FL makeover, too, but Disney has recognized that, and I'm so glad they have.

I find flaws in EPCOT, which its theme of the "ultimate world's fair" slowly gets dumbed down for thrill rides because they are more appealing than educating rides. (that's not to say I don't love Soarin' or enjoy Test Track, I'm just saying).

Of course I find flaws in the AK, too, but they are the LEAST of WDW's issues in my eyes. I'd love to see the Beastly Kingdomme finally materialize, I think Chester and Hester is weak, even with a backstory, and I can't wait to see how they eventually choose to expand the park.

Don't call me a sheep. I won't be someone to follow into the slaughter of WDW's themes and standards.

(Don't get me started on two parks built during the same time: the quality of DCA v. the quality of Tokyo DisneySEA [which thankfully isn't owned by Disney, or it would look nothing like it does today])

 

[Pooh Bear Hugs]

AK is a wonderful park for taking time as a family, unlike MK you are free to use your own imagination to enjoy the surroundings. You can spend hours just walking around rather than standing in ques or shopping.

 

[alex1963]

I have to agree with the Op. I am not one of DAK's biggest fans, yet I do enjoy it. (I had to go more than once to "get it" as others have said.) I love the shows, I'm good with the rides and the beautiful surroundings. What I don't like, (tongue in cheek) is that it's laid out very creatively, making it sometimes difficult to navigate with the throngs of visitors and so much to take in. In the summer (or any hot day) it can be miserable because there is only a few attractions that you can go into and cool off. If you're going to that park expecting a MK experience, you will feel let down. If you're going to that park to see the beauty and all the wonders it provides, you're breath will be taken away!
Next time, (cause it does deserve a second chance) go with a different mind set, and you may be suprised at what it offers and not what it lacks.

 

[Glencora]

One of my favorite parts of AK is the Dawa Bar. I'm not sure where the Imagineers got that name from, but in Swahili, dawa means medicine. So I think it's kind of fun to stop and have a drink at the Medicine Bar - always makes me feel better!

 

[ols386]

AK is my least favorite WDW park. There are 2-3 things there that I like, and that's about it. I guess it's just a personal preference.

 

[rotlex]

Wow, not in such a good mood while posting? AK is our favorite park, our 7 year old daughter included.

We love the rides, the animals, and frankly, the atmosphere more than anything. Personally, I think it is the best themed park of them all. Really makes you feel like you are no longer in Florida, and really in the region\country you are walking around in.

While having an opinion on a park is great, and that's what these discussion boards are for, don't bash something just because you feel it needs to be changed. I think it's more than fine as is. Sure, some additions over time would be nice, same as any of the other parks, but overall, the imagineers did a fantastic job here. Probably, IMHO, the best of any of the parks.

I'm never quite sure what anyone is expecting when they say they don't enjoy the Animal Kingdom. What exactly is someone expecting? Another princess, Disney character themed, or Epcot type park? I could spend days just walking around the park. Everytime we visit, I find something new, tucked away in a nook or cranny somewhere. I think AK is meant to be enjoyed, slowly...kind of like a visual feast for the senses or as a true adventure type outing.

 

[aurorae]

I'm never quite sure what anyone is expecting when they say they don't enjoy the Animal Kingdom. What exactly is someone expecting? Another princess, Disney character themed, or Epcot type park? I could spend days just walking around the park. Everytime we visit, I find something new, tucked away in a nook or cranny somewhere. I think AK is meant to be enjoyed, slowly...kind of like a visual feast for the senses or as a true adventure type outing.

That's the thing, AK is not like the other Parks. People who approach it just like they would the MK or DHS end up disappointed, because it isn't the same kind of Park.

 

[TillyMarigold]

Thanks so much for all the background you are providing!

I'll add some more for fun

Flame Tree BBQ has a theme as well: Predator vs. Prey.

Starting from the main sign there is an Alligator catching a fish.

On the directional signs, pointing to the seating areas there are snakes catching mice.

Then each of the dining pavilions as well as the light fixtures are themed with predator and prey pairings such as Owls & Rabbits, Anteaters and Ants etc.

It's a little joke from Imagineering as guests dig into Chicken and Ribs....meats eaten right off the bone

And the joke specifically at Flame Tree is that the chairs are predators and the tables are prey ... so when you sit in a chair and put your lunch on the table ...

I don't eat meat, but I like to walk through the Flame Tree seating area anyway.