Caring for Giants tour at AK

[Best Aunt]

This has to be one of the best bang for your buck tours at Disney.

When I signed up in person in March, I was told that there was no guarantee that you would see any elephants, since they can roam at will, and no refund if you didn't see any. That would have made it the worst bang for your buck tour. Fortunately, I haven't seen anyone report on that being the case.

 

[REEREEG]

do you think the time of day makes a difference for Caring for Giants?

 

[Action City]

We did it yesterday and loved it! We got to see 6 or 7 elephants at once, including Stella.

 

[cassie58]

We loved it ! All of the proceeds went to wildlife conservation, which made it even better

I surprised my DD with this tour in November as she loves elephants. She was so excited she cried. At that point I had no idea what we were in for and all I hoped was that she wouldn’t be disappointed.

She was not. She loved every second of it.

We checked in about 15 minutes prior. It was a Saturday on a long weekend for the 11am tour and there was only the two of us and three others in our group. We were taken backstage and then driven out to the viewing area which was very close to the elephants but of course not within touching distance as pp noted.

The tour was very informative and baby Stella was a huge hit. We were told most or all of the tour cost was donated (I honestly can’t remember the amount or to what organization) but that fact alone made the tour worth the price.

Just a heads up- they let you keep the"ID tag" ( made of dung) but they take the lanyard back -- so if you wish to wear them, (my kids did) bring another lanyard to use ! It's great ! Enjoy !

do you think the time of day makes a difference for Caring for Giants?

Great tour! I also surprised DD14 in Nov. as she wants to be a vet, and this was so reasonably priced as compared to some of the others($30pp) - did not know until end that it all went to conservation, which was even better! I booked day before because of not being able to get through on hold during the week before, and there were a few times available, but not the time that was ideal based around our FP/ADRs, but took it anyway for 9:30am. But when we arrived that morning, I went to the check-in and asked if they had any spots open in the early afternoon. Luckily 1:30 had 2 spots, and guide mentioned this was normally a great time for seeing many elephants, and she was not wrong! It was amazing! We saw the matriarch, the baby, one named Luna, which is our dog's name, and several more - could not stop taking pics. We asked the keeper info. about her job and background for DD's interests, and she was very helpful. The conservation expert was really interesting, talking about what is happening now in her native country, and we learned a lot. Definitely recommend it!

 

[Nikki G]

This post was perfect as I had started looking at this as an add on for our trip in the fall! I'm glad to hear that so many people absolutely loved it. Does anyone know what the DVC or AP discount is for it?

 

[Crystal824]

There is both an AP and a DVC discount. I haven't done the tour yet, but I booked it for our April trip for myself and my 7 year old daughter. When booking they asked if we have an AP, we didn't at the time (have vouchers now for that trip) and I said we are DVC and they transferred me to DVC to finish the reservation process. I think it was a 20% discount. It was approx. $50 with tax for both of us.

 

[holden]

We did this tour in June and loved it! Baby Stella was out and about playing and hanging with her siblings and mom. I'd highly recommend this tour.

 

[GillianP1301]

Another positive review from me for this tour, it was a fantastic experience. We did it last September over Labour Day weekend, there were only 4 of us on the tour and the CM did say that it wasn't a well known tour yet and they are rarely fully booked. Not sure if that is changing or not, but it sounds like day of reservations were very doable then. It's a great value and just a very relaxed experience. We had a CM elephant keeper as well as another CM from Africa who spoke to us about conservation of the breed, etc... Another great perk is the proceeds from your admission go to the Disney Wildlife Fund.

 

[maryj11]

I was wondering what time of day would be best to do the tour. Is afternoon in the summer to hot for the elephants to be out in the open? I mean do they like go back in a shaded area where you can't see them as well when gets hotter out?