Animal Kingdom

[Pigletlover]

I don't understand why you say there are not enough animals at Animal Kingdom. There are over 1700 animals representing 250 different species!


When we arrived first thing in the morning there were cast members at the entrance holding different types of spiders and tiny creatures for you to see up-close.


The Oasis trails (when you first walk in) have an anteater, babarusa, boars, capybara, deer-like animals, iguana, wallabies, many different colourful parrots and birds. That's just what I can remember at the moment.


The Discovery trails around the Tree of Life have tamarins, lemurs, deer, kangaroos, otters, tortoises, wonderful birds and more.


The Asia area near Kali River Rapids has gibbons and siamangs climbing about their respective temples.


The Maharajah and Pangani walking trails have tigers, tapir, bats, hippos, gorillas and other primates, meerkats, naked mole rats, small rodents, frogs and reptiles, komodo dragon, 2 aviaries with many different bird species, deer and other hooved animals. Again, I can't remember all the animals we saw on these fascinating trails.


When you get off the train to Rafiki's Planet Watch, there are animals along the path on the way to the building, eg tamarins. Inside and outside the building we saw butterflies and lots of other insects, frogs, reptiles, and many fascinating small creatures, primates, an owl and other birds, and a petting zoo with adorable pygmy goats, cow, llamas and donkeys. Cast members also bring out small animals for you to see up close, eg possums and reptiles.


What about the wonderful Flights of Wonder bird show with the singing parrot called Groucho? Many different beautiful birds are shown there.


The Pocahontas show includes a possum, skunk, raccoon, porcupine, snake, rabbit, rodents, birds, and other animals. They also have an animal training session you can watch.


Dinoland also has some animals including turtles. I think there were sloths in one of the lands too.


On the Kilimanjaro Safari we saw hippos, rhino, giraffes, lions, alligators, wildebeests, deer and various other hooved animals, elephants and baby, zebra, cheetahs, baboons, warthogs, ostriches and various birds. Lots of different animals!


Then of course there is Devine (the human vine) and Wes Palm (the talking palm tree). There are 2 talking bushes in Camp Minnie Mickey but I forgot to look for them unfortunately.


I also love the fact they have so many cast members and interns all around the park to answer your questions and tell you interesting facts about the various animals.


I think Animal Kingdom is my favourite of all 4 Disney parks. The theming and little details are absolutely fabulous. So much thought went into designing and building that park. You need more than one day to really appreciate all the extra things to see and do. On our last trip I only just noticed the unusual sausage tree in Africa. It is indeed a real tree!!


I also really love Busch Gardens in Tampa. Many different animals in wonderfully designed exhibits and habitats. Again, you need more than one day to see it properly.

 

[lovmy2girls]

My mom is the same way, she does not really like the AK. My husband and I both like it a lot. We think it is very under rated IMHO. The detail everywhere is just amazing. We really like animals, so maybe that has something to do with it. The bird show every time is too funny,and very enjoyable.

The dinoland "fair" type stuff they have next to the Dino twirl breaks my heart everytime I see it. Walt would cry if he saw it. Very cheezy for Disney, what were they thinking ? Just my 2 cents

 

[TiggerandBelleFanMom]

For those of you who have been to both, how would you compare AK to San Diego's Wild Animal Park?

TiggerandBelleFanMom (never been to AK, and thus opinionless)

 

[goofy's friends]

We really enjoyed AK, but were very disappointed that there wasn't more to appeal to young riders. They wanted to do the Dinosaur ride and we wished we hadn't let them---scared them to death. There weren't hardly any rides that were for the in-between ages. We did enjoy all of the animal stuff and the parade ended up being our favorite. Tle Lion King Show is alone worth the trip over there and the price of admission. LOVE it!
If our family had to choose one park to skip after our recent trip--it would be hands-down MGM. Very outdated and Hard to schedule to see everything. Talk about rushing an experience--you can't help it here. We did enjoy Rockin-Roller Coaster, but everything else we could do without. The movies are all too old for our kids to know what they are talking about and again, there is very little for the in-between ages to enjoy. (elementary).
At least at AK, you can take it slow and enjoy the animals and scenery (I love the themes) and the shows are ageless, really.

 

[goofy's friends]

Oops--I've been to SD Zoo, but not the Wild Animal Park--realized they were two different things after I pressed the reply button

 

[Kat913]

Pigletlover-where do you find Wes Palm (the talking palm tree)? My kids love Devine and they would probably get a big kick out of this. I also love the treasures to be found at AK. Seems you can always find something new.

 

[Allison]

My kids love AK. We spent a full day there and could have spent more. In fact, the kids have specifically requested we spend more time there this year as has my husband. It's our favorite.

 

[bytheblood]

I thought that my first time, too - but then I spent some real time there after looking over the map. There is a lot of great stuff. Safari, Dinosaur, Kali, soon-to-be Everest, Maharajah, Pangani, the Oasis, Tough to be a Bug, just looking at that amazing tree...and so much more.

 

[ciera321]

We love Ak, too. The theming (especially Africa) is wonderful, great counter service restaurants, animals, shows, and on and on and on....

 

[Pigletlover]

Pigletlover-where do you find Wes Palm (the talking palm tree)? My kids love Devine and they would probably get a big kick out of this. I also love the treasures to be found at AK. Seems you can always find something new.

The palm tree moves around outside the entrance (and just inside too) at opening time (and before). Sometimes it just sits in one place and talks to people, and it also moves around to where people are standing. He tells you he likes your outfit, asks you to buy him a ticket etc.

At Rafiki's Planet Watch there is a talking green recycling trashcan that moves around inside the building and talks to people. He kept asking my husband if he had finished his soda bottle and to make sure he put it inside.

 

[UrsulasShadow]

AK is my favorite park, and my DS15's as well. My DMom didn't get it, and my DH doesn't like the way it gets crowded so early. I kind of wish that those who don't like it so much would avoid it altogether, thus reducing the crowds. That way I can be more leisurely in the way I view it. I fear how busy it's going to get, once EE opens. The paths aren't wide enough to handle really big crowds.

 

[kabbie]

AK is the park that I go to in the morning for a half day. We usually park hop to MGM in the afternoon. Hardly ever stay there past 2 pm. I agree with everyone so far posting. It's a beautiful themed park and definitely worth seeing. We all have our favorite parks---to each their own. Give AK a few years and it will develop. I like the original idea that the Imagineers had to have a mythical kingdom with unicorns, etc. I would have liked to see how that would have turned out.

 

[Soprano]

The dinoland "fair" type stuff they have next to the Dino twirl breaks my heart everytime I see it. Walt would cry if he saw it. Very cheezy for Disney, what were they thinking ? Just my 2 cents

Yeah, thats the worst section. Overall I find the park quite dull. I would spend half a day there, then head off another park. I would not avoid it, as there is just about enough there to keeps the kids interested.

Hoping I can somehow get on EE when I go in March....

 

[tomerin]

i think that AK suffers from an identity crisis. what i mean is that you tend to group AK into a Zoo type of park, which it is not... Natazu, or am amusement park, which it is not. it suffers i believe greatly when compared to MK but then so does every amustment park in the world

when i started going to WDW again after a long absence i couldnt wait to see the new park Animal Kingdom. my sons were both not yet teens so i didnt know how long they would last in a Zoo. (My thinking at the time). well we had an enjoyable time, the theming was fantastic so they were immersed in a world that was not something they or myself have never experienced. after trying the rides like Dinosaur and ITTBAB it was time for the safari. well i was a bit dissapointed truthfully, like the OP i found the poaching bit somewhat cheesy and the lack of active animals a bit disturbing. there were some but not what i was hoping for. kind of put a damper on our visit to AK.

well on our next trip with great hestiation we decided to start our trip with a visit to AK just incase we didnt like it again we could just leave and only use a half a day of our vacation. well to my suprise i can now say that AK is an incredble place to be. we spent the entire day and 2 other half days there.
we went on everything, no shows though my teen boys just werent interested in them, and we had a blast. we did the trails while waiting for Kali RR, i kept having to remind myself i was in Florida, had a good lunch and then it was time for the safari. well if you read the guidebooks they tell you not to go in the heat of the afternoon but when we got there i saw the short line and we went in. well i never saw so many animals. so many to see i didnt even notice the old poacher routine. in fact our bus had to stop an wait for a couple of rhinos to get out of the way. i was born and raised in NYC an i never thought i would be so close to such an amazing animal. that was a perfect end to an amazing day. AK now is a must do park for us.

to rdsoxrule: 2 things

1) on your next trip try and give AK another chance. give it a morning and and hopefully you will have a better time and more luck with the safari . i do agree with you that at first i thought AK was overated but after many trips after i now rate AK a close second to MK.


2) where does the sarcasm comment come from? i read previous posts to your comment and i really didnt see anything written that was sarcastic. except what you said here:

Sarcastic and rude - let me guess you are from NYC!

i was wondering where this came from until i e-read your screen name. you want to talk sarcastic and rude i was on a previous trip to WDW and for no apparent reason i was insutled and berated in front of my wife and kids because i had the nerve to wear my Yankees shirt. we couldnt believe our ears. i stopped and confronted them and asked them what their problem was and they told me,2 of them one of me, that they were going to rip my shirt off and wipe their jocks with it. well besides being insulted in front of my family i was not going to take that from 2 punks. i could tell from their accent where they were from. well needless to say clearer heads prevailed, my wife and their girlfriends, so the incident passed. i was really mad that this stupid boston redsox Ny yankee rivalry, the greatest rivalry in pro sports today, would follow me to wdw and i would be accosted because of it. so do i hate everyone or generalize all redsox fans because of this. i do not. i have family living in boston and other parts of Massachusetts so i dont hate boston redsox fans.


anyone who has read any of my previous postings knows i do not participate in any threads that has a potential for ingniting a flame war. so that is not my intention here and i probably wont reply to any efforts to start one.

BTW if my Giants get knocked out of the playoffs before the Patriots do then i hope the Pat's win again.

 

[kidd_freeper]

We were at this park on 12/30 and our group consensus was that this park is overrated. In our collective opinion the best exhibit was the apes - most lively and most entertaining. The much ballyhooed safari is too short, there are too few animals and the ones you see are VERY lethargic.
Sadly Disney has to make the safari too hokey for our tastes with the silly poacher thing.
The next park we visited, Magic Kingdom remains our favorite. Upon entering the Cinderella show was in progress and that show is excellent. Worst thing we saw was the Stitch Escape - Disney can do MUCH better and should.
If we return we will NOT stay off property. We had lovely accommodations at Sheraton Vistanna Villages but there is nothing like the conveniences of being on site.

I agree. Busch Gardens in Tampa is a better park to see animals. The safari is better, the train ride is better and the raft ride is better. And even with Everest coming, the Busch Gardens rollercoasters are better. The animals are easier to see.

Animal Kingdom has better shows and better theming though.

Busch Gardens feels like a zoo with rides. Animal Kingdom does not feel like a zoo.

 

[Mac and Us]

The first time I went to AK I really didn't like it (didn't dislike it either). I went for the 2nd time this past spring with my DH, DD(4) and we all love it.

I agree that the pouching thing should go and the arcade/fair stuff in dino land is tacky but we love the rest of the park. We like Tarzan but it is wayyyyy too loud. My ears rang for hours after.

In fact I think their parade beats the other parks hands down.

BTW: Our least favorite park is MGM as well.

MK is our fav, then Epcot (so much to do and it's always changing) and then AK.

 

[Pigletlover]

My mom is the same way, she does not really like the AK. My husband and I both like it a lot. We think it is very under rated IMHO. The detail everywhere is just amazing. We really like animals, so maybe that has something to do with it. The bird show every time is too funny,and very enjoyable.

The dinoland "fair" type stuff they have next to the Dino twirl breaks my heart everytime I see it. Walt would cry if he saw it. Very cheezy for Disney, what were they thinking ? Just my 2 cents

Chester and Hesters in Dinoland is supposed to be garish and tacky looking. It was modeled after those cheesy travelling carnivals that set up in parking lots. They made it with a dinosaur theme to fit into Dinoland. If you look down at the ground you will see they actually made it look like an old parking lot with worn-looking white lines etc. The ol' attention to detail!

 

[virginiamama]

I'm sorry you didn't like it. AK is DH's favorite park. I'm not crazy about the dinosaur area - I don't like the carnival type amusement park theme of that area. The petting zoo area needs lots of help. Our SPCA has a better petting zoo, heck, my friends little farm has more to see than the petting zoo at AK. But.... We still love AK! We love the safari, the water ride, dinosaur ride, food at Tusker Haus, etc. Our favorite was the Festival of the Lion King. OMG! We missed it on our previous trip but would have seen it a second time if we'd had time to go back. Everyone from the 1.5 year old to the 35 year old in our group of 8 thought it was the best show in all 4 parks. I think a lot has to do with attitude as well - lots of time the parks are what you make of them. When I'm in Disney I expect things to be hokey - that's part of the charm for me.

 

[TMJR]

We like AK. It isn't a favorite of anyone in our family, but we also wouldn't miss it. The Safari, It's Tough to Be a Bug, and Legend of the Lion King alone make it well worth the visit to me. We usually hit it for extra magic hour, and stay until 2ish.

 

[Simba's Mom]

Chester and Hesters in Dinoland is supposed to be garish and tacky looking. It was modeled after those cheesy travelling carnivals that set up in parking lots. They made it with a dinosaur theme to fit into Dinoland. If you look down at the ground you will see they actually made it look like an old parking lot with worn-looking white lines etc. The ol' attention to detail!

Does anyone else think Dinoland would be a great place for Sparky Griswold to take his family while on his road trip to Wally World? I think it would be a perfect addition to his trip. I always giggle when I'm in Dinoland, just thinking of how "Sparky would love this!"