Animal Kingdom ain't so good.

[ols386]

AK is definitely not my favorite, but I wouldn't say that I dislike it.

I've always thought it didn't have a very good flow either.

 

[Monorail Bob's dd]

It is no more than a half-day park for us. After about 5 hours, we typically feel done. We like EE, Kali River Rapids, and the safari - that's about it. We are doing a short 5 day trip this summer and have already decided to nix AK altogether. We are going for 8 days next year and my dh has already said we don't need to go to AK at all - he was less than impressed. We will still probably take the girls for a half day on our longer trip but that's it.

 

[hookedonears]

what about everest, dinosaur and kali river rapids? I'd say those are three good rides right there in my opinion.

Everest: Very slow roller coaster. The part going backwards in the dark is pretty cool and good, but before and after that, there's not much to it.

Dinosaur: Pretty good the first time through, after that boring.

Kali River: Who wants to be thouroughly soaked. Besides getting soaked, it really isn't a very good ride. Horrible ride.

To no ones surprise here, I agree completely with the Op. However, in addition to his list, I do like It's tough to be a bug.

 

[tangled23]

I love AK!! But a lot of people don't, so that's okay, more space for me

 

[shinynewbicycles]

The animals are the main attraction of Animal Kingdom. If you cannot appreciate them, then you cannot appreciate the park.

I love doing the various animal trails, and going on safari at different times of the day and in different weather conditions to see different animals exhibiting different behaviour. I also really appreciate the amazing detail that went into the theme of each and every last area of the park (well, apart from "the carnival").

Also, for me, Dinosaur is the most immersive and convincing dark ride on the entire property. I still find it kind of eerie even though I'm in my 20s now.

I think the problem is that Animal Kingdom is the least "touristy" of the theme parks, and there aren't any animatronic characters boppin' about and singin'.

 

[stamot]

I love AK!! But a lot of people don't, so that's okay, more space for me

We LOVE AK. We may get why some people dont like it, but we love it. We always take two days for the park. My daughter love animals. If we go in summer we always try to visit on a rainy day when because the park is almost empty and the animals are out. We had done the Wild Safary Trek and it was great.

 

[GreenDog]

Well AK kinda doesn't suck. In fact its our favorite park. If you don't like it don't go there. You see I really really don't like ballet so I don't go.

 

[ABtwinmommy]

I've only been to AK once but I liked it, especially EE, Dinosaur, and KS. And watching the animals. I enjoy all four parks and appreciate each for their uniqueness. We will be doing AK on next trip.

 

[John Tag]

Our family loves AK, We visit twice during each visit. Just like any park,If you take time to look around there are many things to like. Safari ride at rope drop,EE shows ect. I love too when people who ride water rides complain about getting soaked..

But like many said, We all have our own opinion's...

 

[vettegirl]

We love AK! The theming is amazing, the rides are fun, and I love Tusker House for breakfast. Different strokes for different folks

 

[Dizneydaz]

Love AK! It, and EPCOT, are our 2 favs.

When we go in the fall it's only open from 9-5, typically, so we usually stay all day.

Love to ride Safari first thing in the a.m. and then last ride of the day.

For us DHS is a 1/2 day park, at most. Now that we have ToT in DCA we can skip it there (I know it's different, but I like DCA's better) and last time we rode RnR it was so painful (ear-wise) that we didn't even use of FP for another turn)

MK-if we didn't have DLR in our backyard MK would probably be our favorite park, but that's another park that we can do a 1/2 day in.

There's really only 2 things I don't like about AK..

1. It can be really hot there
2. Jungle Jammin' Parade-due to the parade route you get blocked from riding Safari until after 5. When the park closes at 5 you can't reach it from the entrance (believe me, we've tried-only to see the entrance less than 20 feet away with no way to get there)

Last trip my DD11 and I decided after starting the day at DHS and then going to EPCOT (where my DM71 left us and went back to POP) we would rush back over to AK (Evening EMH to 8) to so how many times we could ride EE. We got to our car in the DHS parking lot at about 7, drove over to AK, parked as close as possible, quick walked through the park (stopping for a PP pix on the bridge) and rode EE 3 times in less than 8 minutes! IT WAS AWESOME! She still talks about it.

 

[rtravels]

My theory: The more you like Magic Kingdom, the less you'll like Animal Kingdom.
I am in love with Animal Kingdom and consider the Magic Kingdom a half day park (I skipped it the last time I went).

Snap!

 

[Frannie115]

Animal Kingdom is our favorite park! We'll probably spend a day and a half there at least. Expedition Everest is my son's favorite roller coaster. I love Kali Rapids and Safari. The giraffes were just a few feet from our jeep. See Lion King show every time.

We do love animals, so that may be why, too.

 

[d1gitman]

We like Safari, Bugs Life, Kali River, Expedition Everest.

We don't like the looooong walks from A to B, the seemingly extra hot temps, lack of flow to the park.

AK is always our meltdown park, and that applies to mommy and daddy. we pretty much skip it or give it a short half day.

 

[JLS]

AK is my favorite park. We always visit AK on our first full day at WDW. I think it is gorgeous the way it is designed, with so many little details that you have to go slowly and appreciate. Safari is amazing, and all three of the shows are must sees (including the often-overlooked "Flights of Wonder", which is great). We like to eat the Donald breakfast at the Tusker house. The parade there is great. And Expedition Everest just looks incredible, and is also really fun.

I have had some incredibly experiences watching the gorillas in the Pangani forest walk-through. I could do that several times in one day because it is never the same.

WDW is such a "to each his own" experience, and that is for the best.

 

[ols386]

My theory: The more you like Magic Kingdom, the less you'll like Animal Kingdom.
I am in love with Animal Kingdom and consider the Magic Kingdom a half day park (I skipped it the last time I went).

Snap!

Hmm. That's an interesting thought.

I do love MK, and usually like to spend at least one day, maybe two days, when we go, and half day or so in AK.

Your theory may very well be accurate.

 

[GraceLuvsWDW]

We love AK. A 2 day park minimum. It has one of the best in park TS restaurants and one of the best in park CS restaurants. Yes, it's hot!!!! But we LOVE AK. It's Disney in a subtle, (somewhat) natural form, and the theming and imagineering is impeccable. The ride queues alone are phenomenal. It's definitely a park you need to slow down and absorb the theming to get the most out of it. The artistry in this park is unparallelled in my opinion.

 

[daisyh5]

We love Animal Kingdom. EE is tied with RRC as the best coasters in WDW. SM and BTM are so jerky. The parade is always fun and upbeat. KRR, Dino, KS, Lion King, and Nemo are always don't miss attractions. Love the gorilla trail too. We normally visit 2X.

 

[JohnNYC]

FYI-- Whether or not you can make it to a FoW show (we still haven't timed it just right!!), there are a couple other great bird areas. Both the Pangani Forest Trail and the Maharajah Jungle Trek have walk-thru areas to id dozens of different birds, in addition to all their other cool critters!

I guess it's not for everyone, but we always enjoy AK, and hope you do too!

I'm glad someone mentioned the trails - they are wonderful! My kids love getting the cards in each "room" to identify the birds they see. Animal Kingdom needs to be done slowly to appreciate it. We usually spend two half days (mornings).

 

[jegsnakkernorsk]

Another nice thing to do at AK park is to talk to the CMs. They are always full of information and stories about the animals.