Animal Kingdom- What time of day is best to visit?

[everylastbreath]

I read somewhere that early morning is worst time to go and that by 3pm that most of the rides are walk right on. I am going 1st week of August, any insight is appreciated, going with toddler & Senior so any cut down in wait time is a good thing, especially since that park seems to be the hottest of them all!!

 

[parrothead928]

Morning, IMHO, is the best time to go! If you go on a morning when resort guests get an extra morning hour, it seems to be even better!!! For some reason, this park fills up very quickly around 11-12 o'clock. That is usually the time we are leaving or having lunch. Also, if you head towards the Safari Ride instead of Expedition Everest, you will be able avoid the bulk of the morning stampede!!! We have also found that it is easiest to take in the shows in the afternoon. The two exceptions are Nemo and Lion King...they are still headliners and usually pull in crowds all day long. However, if you wait until the last minute for seating on these two shows, you should be able to get seats. We have never had problems...the last three times we went that was crowded was Spring Break 07 and 08 and Christmas (Dec 16-22 2007), just to give you an idea on the size of the crowds. We also go during the value times, but I figured the peak times would give you a better idea of how to schedule your time.

Have a great trip!!!!

 

[JPage]

I am also curious about this one. We are going early September and I am wondering hwen the best time to do the safari ride is. Thanks.

 

[MrSplashMountain #1!]

If you want to see animals, particuarly on Safari, then you need to get in ASAP. Animals get hot and sleepy in the Florida sun and dont make for good viewing as the day goes on!

 

[BellaDomani]

When we were there last year, we got there at park opening and went straight to the Safari ride. We had no waiting. We stayed there most of the day, but by the time the parade came along, it was much, much more crowded toward the mid afternoon. So from my experience, I would say morning is better. Also, as PP mentioned, the animals on the Safari ride are hungry (or just fed), awake and active during the morning, so that's generally the best time to see them.
Hope that helps!

 

[mickeyfan0805]

I agree with those who have posted above. Our experience has been that first thing in the morning, with the safari being our first destination, is the best bet. We get on very quickly, there are lots of animals out because they are not overheated yet. We always arrive at open and have a great time. Often by noon we've managed to do most of the rides we wanted to do.

 

[allaboutmm]

I vote for first thing in the am. We have always seen the animals then, and also AK is a hot park, go early, before the hot hot afternoon sun.

 

[Delta Jane]

How will it be at the end of Oct ? We are having 8:00 breakfast at Boma, will go right to the Safari. The only other thing we want to do is the see Festival of the Lion King,then we have lunch at 1:00 at Tusker House. Will we have time between those things to go back to CSR and check out, then come back for lunch do you think ? Because of my husband's kidney transplant, he does not do well when it is too warm. I will ask for a late check out (1;00 just to be sure we have adequate time.)

 

[brer rabbit 28]

AK is a much nicer place early in the morning.We got there for opening on our last trip and it was lovely to see all the animals roaming around,by lunchtime it was far too busy and hot.I definately recommend a morning visit.

 

[ChesireMeg]

We like to do AK in the late afternoon...We haven't gone in the morning since the park opened 10 years ago. We find that if we go after 4 (after the parade) the park has emptied out. We do the safari around this time too and the animals are very active (except the lions, but do they ever move anyways? ) Dinosaur, Kali River Rapids, Kilamanjaro Safari's and Primeval Whirl are walk-ons at this time! This is our favorite time to go to Animal Kingdom

 

[Mr. Stitch]

We have only ever gone in the am, and were pooped by mid afternoon at Ak and ready to leave well before closing. The last time in sept we had just as good an animal showing in the pm as we did in the am on the safari.

 

[Tiggr924]

We always go during the EMH. We make sure to be out of there by noon because by then it is way too crowded and a lot harder to navigate.

 

[hapandpam]

We are there at opening, especially in the summer when it is a little cooler in the am. However, I have read that the EMH AK evenings are the least popular, so that may be something to consider.

Just as a side note, we usually do the safari both in the am and right before we leave, and we have seen as many animals late in the day as first thing in the morning.

 

[DisneyGirlie]

First thing in the morning is great. If I walk straight to Expedition Everest I can usually ride it at least twice in a row before the line starts getting long.

 

[Natalie_89]

early as possible...everest isnt so busy and the animals are more likely to be awake.i love AK is one of my favs along with MK,HS and EPCOT lol xxx