Best Time to do Kilimanjaro Safari

[Cirlonde]

What is the best time to do the Kilimanjaro Safari in order to see the most animals/most activity? We will be visiting WDW for the first time in November, so hopefully the heat won't be making the animals lazy. But I'm not sure if we're better off going early in the morning or later in the evening or sometime in between. What was your best experience with the Safari?

We've actually considered doing the Safari first thing in the morning and then using FastPass to go again later...hopefully double our chances! But I don't want to waste a FastPass either.

Thanks!

 

[Mommytwotwins]

I have gone at all different times of day and always see lots of animals. November will not be too hot. It should be great!

 

[Good Morning Dewdrop]

if you want to see them moving around - early in the morning (first thing) when they're moving around to get into their favorite places or late in the day when they're moving around - knowing they're going in soon.

you'll see lots of animals any time of day but those times they'll tend to be moving around more.

 

[FlipHipster]

if you want to see them moving around - early in the morning (first thing) when they're moving around to get into their favorite places or late in the day when they're moving around - knowing they're going in soon.

you'll see lots of animals any time of day but those times they'll tend to be moving around more.

We go a lot in November and KS is always our first stop in the morning at AK. The animals are usually pretty active early in the day. We do zoo trips closer to home and our strategy is to typically hit it either early or late and avoid the hottest parts of the day. Usually works out well.

 

[ZoZo]

We've actually considered doing the Safari first thing in the morning and then using FastPass to go again later...hopefully double our chances! But I don't want to waste a FastPass either.

I did this (one early in the morning, one later in the afternoon) for my trip in February. It worked great! Saw different animals each time.

One good thing about the safari ride is that the animals are pretty much all from Africa. They do tend to seek out shade during the hottest part of the day, but they're built for the heat. The ones that I've noticed that might be hard to see sometimes are the lions. Did you know that right after AK was built, they were having trouble keeping the lions "viewable" to the safari trucks? They had an ingenious idea - drill holes into "Pride Rock", and pump cold, air-conditioned air up through the rock. Helps to keep the animals cool and in great viewing position! (I learned that on the Backstage Safari tour!)

 

[NortheastNate]

rope drop, then walk over and walk straight on then go back on later in the afternoon

 

[Tagstime]

Same here, We always do rope drop for this. Then before we leave later in the afternoon. Animals always seem to be most active at rope drop.

 

[heybravo626]

Same here on rope drop. The animal are the most active. We have the best luck with seeing the lions up and moving around first thing in the morning.

 

[jrjankowski8]

I'm going with the morning FP for my trip. But know that disney arranged the safari so the animals always have cool spots and misters to keep the animals in view. Check out the disney world modern marvels episode if you have a chance. It's pretty neat

 

[LetsDoDisney!]

We go twice. We go there first thing in the morning, standby, then we ride it later in the afternoon before closing either with a FP or standby, depends on the time of year, crowd level, etc.

If you go right at rope drop you shouldn't have to use a FP for it if you want to use them on something else.

 

[hakepb]

When, or right after it rains.

(That's a tip for any zoo, also, animals love the rain!)

Following the parade can be a great way to have a short standby line, as most paths to the safari ate blocked for the end of the parade...but too close to safari closing and many animals will be waiting to "go home"

 

[Nebraska_Disney]

Even at busy times, you should be able to walk right on early in the morning (I would not burn a FP on this). We have had a lot of luck seeing many animals out moving around doing this.

 

[disneybirds]

When, or right after it rains.

(That's a tip for any zoo, also, animals love the rain!)

Following the parade can be a great way to have a short standby line, as most paths to the safari ate blocked for the end of the parade...but too close to safari closing and many animals will be waiting to "go home"

We have always gone at RD. Last week, we went after we arrived in Orlando. We had the last FP+ of the day at 5:00. It had just rained and it was still alittle misty. It was the best safari ever!!! Several of the animals were right in the road and we had to wait on them to move. The lions were up and moving about.

Unfortunately, I didn't take my camera since we were only going to be in the park for a couple of hours. We were sitting in the front row and the driver realized how bummed my daughter was that we didn't have the camera. He kept talking about how many great pictures you could get on the safari with all the animals so close!

 

[FirstTimeDisneyVisit]

rope drop, then walk over and walk straight on then go back on later in the afternoon

This is exactly what we do !! My fiance sits on one side on the first ride then sits on the opposite side on the second go around . we get all the pix needed !
Also absolutely love this ride !

 

[shannonstar]

We always do it twice. We eat at Tusker pre-RD and then go straight to the Safari. Then, we scope out the spots just outside the Safari for the parade and go on as soon as the parade ends. The line isn't bad at RD that way (you are in front of all the non-diners) and then the parade end keeps a lot of people from bombarding you at 3:55 or so.

 

[Cirlonde]

Thanks so much for all the replies!! Very helpful!

And sorry, I should have specified...we were thinking about using a FP for the second Safari, later in the afternoon. We will definitely be there at rope drop and go straight for the Safari!

That is really interesting about the piped in AC!! What a smart idea! I did read somewhere that with the gorillas (not on the Safari, but one of the trails I think), they were having trouble getting them out and about so they started hiding buckets of treats in new random places every day. After a while, one of the male gorillas started hiding his empty bucket from the keepers!!!

I also read something about to get the lions to "do something" to entertain guests, they taught them that if they would go and scratch a particular tree with both paws, they'd get a treat. Animal intelligence is so interesting!! I will definitely check out the Modern Marvels episode!

 

[Simba's Mom]

I have gone at all different times of day and always see lots of animals. November will not be too hot. It should be great!

I also have gone on KS all different times of day, all different weather. I've spent entire days riding KS, getting another FP, and riding it again over and over (can you tell I love it!) I've also found no "trick" to a specific time of day to see more animals, just good luck.

 

[alexpgoldman]

The Family and I are not morning people, do you think that in May a 10:15am-11
:15am FP is too late?

 

[GeorgiaHoo]

The Family and I are not morning people, do you think that in May a 10:15am-11
:15am FP is too late?

Probably not "too late" but animals may be a bit less active. We went to AK last week for a morning EMH rope drop (8AM) and were on the first safari vehicle. Best safari experience we've had as far as animals go with lots of activity.

Re: the FP question, a FP isn't necessary for safari if you arrive at rope drop and head over first thing. If you can make a morning EMH rope drop even better. As I mentioned, we were on the first safari vehicle and then rode Everest 3 times in a row and walked on each time. Park started getting noticeably busier after the first 45 minutes or so of EMH. We had finished the morning at AK by 10AM or thereabouts.

 

[disnut8]

What is the best time to do the Kilimanjaro Safari in order to see the most animals/most activity? We will be visiting WDW for the first time in November, so hopefully the heat won't be making the animals lazy. But I'm not sure if we're better off going early in the morning or later in the evening or sometime in between. What was your best experience with the Safari?

We've actually considered doing the Safari first thing in the morning and then using FastPass to go again later...hopefully double our chances! But I don't want to waste a FastPass either.

Thanks!

I have said many times that any time you can do the Safari is the best time. Animals don't know clocks or months or schedules. They are just out there living their lives just like the vacationers viewing them.