Great zoo at home, skip some of AK?

[Mikie]

I haven't done all of AK every time I go, and I have these vague recollections of a part of the park I thought would be awesome, but ended up disappointing me. I live in St Louis with an awesome (free!) zoo and Grants Farm (another free cool animal park) so I'm wondering if anyone else thought there were attractions or parts they'd skip at AK when they have other animal experiences available to them.

Am I thinking of Rafiki? Seems like it was a fairly long walk + a train/tram of some sort and then you reached a not-very-extensive petting zoo and that was about it?

 

[Pkltm]

We skip Rafiki, we did it once but that was more than enough. We enjoy zoos but often skip the trails choosing other activities instead.

 

[MHSweb79]

It's sort of like not attending a new Monet exhibit because you've already attended a great Picasso exhibit. AK presents thing in its own way, as do your zoos at home.

That said, I would definitely skip Rafiki's if you're pressed for time. There's not a whole lot of bang for your buck there, unless you luck out and get to watch the vets doing surgery (if that's your thing... ick).

I wouldn't skip the two trails, though - Pangani and Maharaja Jungle Trek. Pangani has an awesome exhibit of gorillas- it really looks like they're in their natural habitat. Maharaja, of course, has tigers and not too many zoos have those. Not to mention the spectacular bird exhibit! The theming of both trails is superb and really, if you enjoy your zoos at home you will enjoy these areas of AK.

 

[rock_doctor]

I would go. AK is unique plus a great place to go during a hot day. Lots of shade. We actually like AK more then MK now, plus it is big enough to absorb a lot of people. Doesn't seem as crowed as the other parks.

 

[shyjade]

We used to skip AK for that reason too (love the zoo in Milwaukee) but once we gave it a try, we have returned on every one of our Disney trips. It's a different (and much cooler) experience than just going to a zoo. I love the theming at AK and really enjoy going. We usually make it a half-day park twice during our trip, since we skip quite a few of the rides.

 

[ttintagel]

There's really only one attraction featuring actual animals I consider a must-do at AK (Kilimanjaro Safari).

 

[elaine amj]

We don't do Rafiki every trip. Actually, we've only done it once. My DS loved looking at the vet (I found it boring very quickly but he stood there forever). The one thing I enjoyed about the petting zoo is that the animals don't come swarming at you. Most other places, my DD gets scared quickly because they are often aggressive at getting at the food in your hands. At AK, you can brush them (which is fun and rare anywhere else) and just wander among them without getting butted. The show was also cute but I wouldn't go out of my way for it. Like many said, you can get those types of shows elsewhere. The train ride to Rafiki was fun, especially for littler ones. My kids enjoyed the uniqueness of how the seats faced sideways.

So depends on what your family likes and what your timing is like.

As for the trails, my DH gets quickly bored because "you've seen one zoo, you've seen them all". The kids and I enjoy them though. He just sits and waits for us. The theming is fantastic. That said, I would probably consider skipping the trails if your time is tight.

 

[ktate82]

We used to live close to St. Louis and had a membership at the zoo, but we still did Kilimanjaro Safari and the tiger walk through every time we went. The walk through has the bats (strange but the kids love to see them) and we have seen the tigers playing (once was in the water...hilarious) almost every time. It's just a different presentation of the animals.

 

[Tarheel girl 1975]

It's sort of like not attending a new Monet exhibit because you've already attended a great Picasso exhibit. AK presents thing in its own way, as do your zoos at home.

That said, I would definitely skip Rafiki's if you're pressed for time. There's not a whole lot of bang for your buck there, unless you luck out and get to watch the vets doing surgery (if that's your thing... ick).

I wouldn't skip the two trails, though - Pangani and Maharaja Jungle Trek. Pangani has an awesome exhibit of gorillas- it really looks like they're in their natural habitat. Maharaja, of course, has tigers and not too many zoos have those. Not to mention the spectacular bird exhibit! The theming of both trails is superb and really, if you enjoy your zoos at home you will enjoy these areas of AK.

This is how we feel too. We have membership the NC Zoo, but we get to see animals at AK that we can't see at home. The gorilla habitat at AK is so much better than the one at our zoo as is the bat exhibit (which my kids love.) Plus the details in the theming in AK is top notch.

 

[DizDaD7]

Regardless of if you have awesome zoos in your hometown state or not, AK is more than any zoo. Just the mere fact that it has that Disney touch changes things dramatically. Besides the animals, it has some amazing rides, very good places to eat, and some of the best shows out of all the park. (E.g.)Nemo show, festival of the lion king, birds flights of wonder, tough to be a bug..... Ive been to WDW about 11 times and never do I exclude any park....We're constantly finding new things to see or do.....

 

[DisneyFive]

Personally, I don't consider AK like a zoo at all. (despite the park being named ANIMAL Kingdom) ...and we enjoy going to a lot of zoos.

It's really another great theme park. Worth a full day on your first visit for sure.

The Rifiki area is most like a zoo IMO, and our least favorite part of the park. well, besides the carni area. You could probably skip Rifiki if you're short on time. We still enjoyed it, but there are so many other (more enjoyable IMO) things to do at AK instead.

Dan

 

[shocker]

We think there's plenty to do here without the animal trails. There's a lot of opportunity to see some animals along the walkways too. So we rarely do an animal trail specifically and have the bulk of our animal watching on the safari ride while sitting down

 

[mare1203]

DAK has slowly become one of my favorite parks to spend time in. I am excited about the changes that are coming and think it's really growing into its own. I'm not a big animal person anyway and spending time at a zoo is generally low on my list of things to do. However, DAK doesn't give me the same 'eh' factor, mostly because of the rides, shows, and entertainment they offer around the message of animals.

With that being said, there are definitely things I skip often at DAK. We went on the Maharajah Jungle Trek last trip for the first time in probably 10 visits. I don't have a need to see tigers or bats every time. Same thing with Pangani and Rafiki's Planet watch. Every once in a while we will go see them, but its certainly not a must-do 90% of the time.

 

[Anthony1971]

AK is not a ZOO (unless you count the crowds)
With kids AK can seem like a zoo as you just fly by everything and need to go to??
If you have the time walk very slow and stop and look for a full day you may start to understand why it is not called a ZOO.... The whole park is an attraction with a lot of detail and yes animals.
With that I am now a half day at best AK person as what young child will sit and look around while they could be on a ride

 

[Mikie]

Thanks for the replies! I would never skip AK entirely, I love it! I've been bummed in the past when I told others not to skip it & they thought it wasn't worth their time . I just thought there may be parts not worth it. I do have older kids who may want to the the explorer club thing (Up! Themed, and I think it's in the Rafiki area?) and littler niece/nephew who love the zoo - after hearing your descriptions it does seem like a duh! move - if they love the zoo, of course don't SKIP that part!

 

[rainwatter]

I grew up in St. Louis, and still go there several times a year (we always spend time at the zoo) so I get what you are saying. Animal Kingdom has amazing rides, shows, food, etc. And I love watching animals, even ones I see all the time. You can say hi to the meerkats, tigers, okapi, etc. if that is something your family enjoys.

 

[JoshuaShaw]

Even with a nationally ranked zoo in my backyard, I still love Animal Kingdom and can easily spend an entire day there. I'm a fan of Rafiki's Planet Watch, mostly for Conservation Station, though the other parts are nice as well. I would definitely recommend against skipping it, but mileage may vary.

 

[eeyoreland]

I feel like there are a lot of AK haters out there. Sadly, my DD is one of them. In fact, she just told me last night that she could do without going to AK and I told her, "us Disers don't like you AK haters!" We had been to AK several times and always skipped the two "trails" because we just didn't feel from the description that they would interest us. WRONG. We finally did them a few years ago and they are awesome. It's still not an all day park for us, but quite honestly, most of them aren't only because we've been blessed to go to WDW yearly for quite a while, so we know what we want to see and then enjoy resort hopping or hanging out at the pool, etc. I'm a very wishy washy person and I can't pick a favorite park. I love them all in different ways.

 

[elaine amj]

Personally, I don't consider AK like a zoo at all. (despite the park being named ANIMAL Kingdom) ...and we enjoy going to a lot of zoos.

It's really another great theme park. Worth a full day on your first visit for sure.

The Rifiki area is most like a zoo IMO, and our least favorite part of the park. well, besides the carni area. You could probably skip Rifiki if you're short on time. We still enjoyed it, but there are so many other (more enjoyable IMO) things to do at AK instead.

Dan

While I agree the carni area is not my favorite part, if you have a 7-12 yr old boy who adores carnivals and is obsessed with spending a fortune to "win" prizes, no better place to do it than at AK in my opinion. Rarely a lot of kids there so really easy to win things. Last time we were there my DS spent $6 on the basketball game and easily won giant snakes for himself and his sister. He was thrilled! It would have cost him at least $20 to win the same toys at any local fair or whatever.

I think it's crazy to spend money on carnival games after we have already spent lots of money on entrance tickets to the park. But for my son, it's entirely worth it to him to spend his money that way. Ever since he got to that age, we now spend time in the carnivals in lots of places, including Disney, Cedar Point, local fairs, etc etc. His sister won't spend her money on that stuff so she just stands and watches. Oh well - he loves it and it's his money he is choosing to spend.

 

[nighttowll]

The petting zoo is very small, and I'm sure compared to Grants Farm, it was a big let down for you. That is probably what you were thinking about.

Going to the petting zoo also eats up a huge chunk of time because you have to take the train to get to that section of the park, and then you still need to take another long walk to get over to where the animals are located after getting off the train. By the time you get done and repeat the process to return to the main AK area, you have lost a good couple of hours and experienced relatively very little. Especially if you get stuck in a long waiting for the train to come.

As far as the rest of the park, I wouldn't consider it a zoo. There are only 3 animal trails, plus areas to see animals at the entrance and around the tree. You could go to AK, spend all day there riding rides and watching shows and never even look at any of the zoo parts of the park. Also, as someone who just got back from the St. Louis Zoo, I would say the few animal enclosures along the trails at Disney are much nicer and more interesting than anything I saw in St. Louis. Especially, now that they have incorporated the wilderness explorer badges into the trails. It makes the animal viewing more hands on and interactive. The kids really enjoyed learning and participating in activities that went along with the animals they were viewing. We also all thought the bats and monkeys were very entertaining. I've never seen bats like those before. They were very cool to look at.