Help with Animal Kingdom Strategy?

[Lewandowski]

Hey All,
So I will be making a solo trip to Animal Kingdom for a full day during the third week of January. Will not be there on an EMH day.

In Summer 2016, my family and I took a whole vacation at WDW for a week. Of course I wish to take a whole vacation, but unfortunately one day is all I can afford as a college student, so this time it will just be a day trip. I chose Animal Kingdom because of the new Avatarland/Pandora, Rivers of Light, and because DINOSAUR was closed for renovations when I was last there. The rest of the parks haven't changed at all since I was last there.

Anyway I think I have got a strategy down, but I'd like you all to confirm that it is a good one. I just made FP+ reservations today, and I consider myself to be very lucky after snatching the last FP+ availible for Flights of Passage.

I just found out today that this is the last day for Flights of Wonder show, so that will not be happening while I am there. I am bummed as I really liked that bird show. Also bummed about Kali River Rapids being closed for renovations. So anyway my plan is to do pretty much all the main attractions except Finding Nemo show. I really did not enjoy Finding Nemo-The Musical that much last time, so I decided to skip it this trip and not waste my time with it.

First of all how will the crowds be during that time? I have checked the touring plans browser app for lines, and the waits were ridiculous, however this is arguably the most crowded time of year. On a scale of 1-10 how would you rate the crowds in mid-late January? 1 being empty and 10 being crowded.

Anyway here is my plan for now:

1. Arrive 30-60 min before Rope Drop (9:00am)
2. Go streight to Avatarland and Ride Flight of Passage (Will likely want 2 rides, so I thought hit at rope drop, and ride again with FP+)
3. Ride Navi River Journey
4. Use FP+ (10:20am-11:20am) to Ride Flight of Passage again.
5. Depending on the line maybe ride the Navi River Journey again if I like it. If wait is 30 min or under and I really liked the ride.
6. Have lunch somewhere (Maybe Flame Tree BBQ).
7. Head to Rafiki's Planet Watch and see the Conservation Station
8. Now depending on how long this takes, I plan to see the next Lion King show (either 2pm or 3pm). I am just not sure what time it will be by then.
9. Stroll Maharajah Jungle Trek
10. Use FP+ (3:25pm-4:25pm) to ride Everest.
11. Ride Everest a few more times via single rider line. At least twice more.
12. At some point grab some ice cream at the Anandapur Ice Cream Truck.
13. Ride DINOSAUR and Primeval Whirl (What are the lines like? Are they long waits?)
14. See Its Tough to Be a Bug
15. See 6:30pm Rivers of Light (I am just doing regular, No FP+ or Dining Package. How long prior should I plan to be there? 30 min maybe?)
15. See anything I meant to do that I didn't have time for, or reride something.
16. Stroll through Gorilla Trails
17. Use FP+ (6:55pm-7:55pm) to ride Kilimanjaro Safaris (How is the nighttime Safari? I have only ridden it first thing in the morning before. Is it good at night?)
18. 7:40pm ADR at Tusker House

So what do you think of this strategy? Would you recommend anything different? Maybe change FP+ to something else?

 

[pitpat]

to ride FOP at RD, forget 30 minutes before, arrive at least 60-90 minutes before opening.

that 2nd Navi ride (#5) probably won't be realistic.

Conservation Station is pretty boring and takes a lot of time to be honest.

The safari at night was just OK. Couldn't see as much, but the lion roared.

 

[Ciandella915]

All in all I don't think that's an unreasonable plan. Be at the park an hour before opening, if you're serious about trying to get to the front of the line. Crowds aren't terrible mid-January; that's a good time to go. You probably won't want to ride River Journey twice... we found it very underwhelming. It's your typical dark river boat ride and at the end it has the Shaman. It's pretty, and cool to do once, but it just didn't do it for us. I wouldn't ever wait longer than 30 minutes for it. FOP is where it's at (IMO). I suggest trying lunch at Satuli Canteen at the exit of FOP - it's really good! Dinosaur didn't seem to have a crazy long wait when we were there a couple of weeks ago - I didn't notice more than 60 minutes max - and we managed to randomly find it at 25 minutes. But YMMV with that. Nighttime safaris are fun! We like them. It's a different vibe. I don't think it's better/worse than a daytime one, but it's interesting to do!

Is your heart set on Tusker House? My husband and I prefer Boma at AKL to Tusker House because it has more buffet options; of course if you're interested in a character meal then that makes your decision for you.

Have fun!

 

[Lewandowski]

All in all I don't think that's an unreasonable plan. Be at the park an hour before opening, if you're serious about trying to get to the front of the line.

I'll try to do that but I wouldn't actually mind waiting 50-60 min for FOP at rope drop. My only worry is how long of a line will the River Journey have after that.

Is your heart set on Tusker House? My husband and I prefer Boma at AKL to Tusker House because it has more buffet options; of course if you're interested in a character meal then that makes your decision for you.

Well I originally wanted to do Yak & Yeti but it is fully booked and I thought I'd try something new at AK. I have been to Y&Y before and loved it, but I tend to get really hungry so I thought I'd try TH due to the African food. Character meal isn't too important to me but it is a plus.

However I will be staying about 35 miles away and really do not want to be going all around WDW to eat. Don't have a car by the way. I really just want to stay in Animal Kingdom just due to how far I am staying from WDW and so it will be easy for my friend to pick me up and drive me back home.

 

[Ciandella915]

I'll try to do that but I wouldn't actually mind waiting 50-60 min for FOP at rope drop. My only worry is how long of a line will the River Journey have after that.

It seems like most people head to FOP because it's the ride with the hype. If you can make an effort to be at the front of the line for that, you can have a relatively short wait on NRJ. Since that's a boat ride anyway, it's constant loading/unloading on that ride and cycling people through vs. the start/stop of two pre-show rooms and safety-checks on FOP, which eat up time.

 

[softball chick]

17. Use FP+ (6:55pm-7:55pm) to ride Kilimanjaro Safaris (How is the nighttime Safari? I have only ridden it first thing in the morning before.

The important thing about the nighttime safari is to go in with a different set of expectations. It's a LOT harder to see animals because of the darkness and the fact that many are sleeping. That being said, I've had some of my most incredible experiences with the Lions after dark and the final section of the safari is breathtakingly gorgeous after dark. So as long as you aren't going in expecting to see all of the animals, you should enjoy it.