How much time should I spend in Animal Kingdom?

[PrincessJazmyne]

Some people say half a day is plenty, but others say at least 1-2 days. What are your thoughts?

 

[mesaboy2]

I daresay for most, one day during a typical trip (7 days or less) is enough. Obviously varies by person, I would review what AK has to offer and judge based on its appeal to your group.

 

[monkyby87]

Animal Kingdom is actually one of my favorite parks, but one day is enough for me to really see most of it. AK also is harder in the summer when it's hot, as relief isn't as available as with the other parks, due to the outdoor nature of it. After having been to it before, a half-day now serves me best for seeing everything I want. But I would say one day to really see everything worth seeing.

 

[Candleshoe]

I like two 3/4 days. And a 3/4 day at AK would be 2-3pm. Ride Kali and leave

Since mornings are the most productive that works for us. It also allows me to split shows across more than one day. If I were a park hopping kind of person I would combine it with an afternoon/evening in World Showcase.

 

[L&Lfan]

Mind you my boyfriend and I have been to AK many times since 1998 and have seen just about everything. So for us we allot only one day for AK (btw, it's our least favorite park as we're not animal guys). We get there at rope drop. We do the safari, then head to Dinosaur and Primeval Whirl, then do Everest several times as single riders. We either have a TS lunch at Yak & Yeti or do CS at the Anandapur Local Food Cafes. After that we walk off our lunch by doing the Pangani Forest Trail, the Maharajah Jungle Trek and the Discovery Island Trails. If the timing is right we may opt to catch Flights of Wonder. We usually end up leaving the park between 2:30 and 3:30 after a cocktail or three at the Dawa Bar.

Don't get us wrong- we love It's Tough to Be a Bug, Festival of the Lion King and Kali River Rapids but we've seen the first two ad nauseam and for the latter, we don't like getting that wet and having a LOOOONG, dripping bus ride to our Epcot resort, so we don't do them every trip.

Totally skippable to us (as in once was enough) are Rafiki's Planet Watch, Triceratop Spin and Finding Nemo-The Musical.

Of course, once the park is open again after dark our plans will definitely change. We were there once when they still had evening extra magic hours (maybe around 2005, but I could be mistaken) and we LOVED this park at night.

And that's our current typical AK touring plan. Thanks for asking.

 

[LaurenT]

It depends on your length of stay and personal preference.
AK is my favorite park. I like to get there first thing and soak up the atmosphere. I spend an hour in Pangani while the other RD people are rushing to KS and EE.
It's the one park where I especially enjoy taking my time - I just enjoy the environment and can spend the whole day there.

 

[ghtx]

Obviously it depends on what you want to do. You could easily spend a whole day there (maybe more) and not be bored or run out of things to do. It can be tricky to finish everything in a half day because of the shows (FotLK is really good).

 

[ChattaAlley]

I like AK, I don't love it. For me its a half day. I like to get there at Rope Drop do the Safari, Everest (2-3x), Dinosaur, and maybe a show. But that's it for me.

 

[lroger01]

If you've never been, you'll likely enjoy at least 1 full day there. Those that go less don't see a need to repeat somethings on every trip.

I like to leave at least 1 day toward the end of the trip that isn't planned. Even with FP+ it still works. If you do this - and find out you really like AK - going a second day is easy.

 

[Bullseye]

It the only park we do 1 day only at, but it's always a full day!

 

[L&Lfan]

If you've never been, you'll likely enjoy at least 1 full day there. Those that go less don't see a need to repeat somethings on every trip.

I like to leave at least 1 day toward the end of the trip that isn't planned. Even with FP+ it still works. If you do this - and find out you really like AK - going a second day is easy.

I think you mean those who go more often don't see a need to repeat.....if I understand you correctly.

 

[Nancyg56]

We always spend the day. I think at least one day to get the most out of it

 

[belle0216]

Totally depends on the person/family. My family only spends a half day there. However, like others have mentioned, if you go every year or more frequently (like my family) you likely won't feel the need to repeat each attraction each time. We typically hit Tusker House for an 8am reservation prior to park opening (one of my favorite meals of the trip!) and then head straight for the Safari. After that we usually ride Everest 2-3x, Dinosaur, Tough to be a Bug, Kali River, and maybe a show. We are always ready to head out no later than 2pm, and often leave even earlier. We are then able to go back to the hotel and rest for a while (and shower/change clothes because who wants to sit in sopping wet clothes from Kali?) and then park hop. Because we got to the park so early and hit the big rides early, we are able to save our FP+ selections for our second park of the day.---this is my experience in July with crowds of 9 or higher so I am sure you could do it this way almost anytime of the year (with a few exceptions of course).

 

[starsweeper]

I think it depends on your group and their interests. I visited AK with my 4 kids for the first time a couple weeks ago. The big kids (8) can ride everything so they had plenty to do, but my little kids (4 & 3) got bored once we left the Africa section. My 4yo was really into rides this time and kept complaining he wanted to ride something after the Safari and Triceratops spin, but there was nothing for him. We were there from 9am-3:30pm (3/4 day) but I'm only scheduling a 1/2 day at AK with a hop to MK for October. Once all the kids can ride everything, I would consider a 3/4 day again.

 

[ilovebassets]

I think one full day is definitely warranted if you've never been before. Because the park hours are short, it's easy to be there from rope drop to close IMO. Two full days would be too much, but if you really want to do it all, 1.5 days would not be unreasonable, especially with small children.

 

[davidwalden05]

I am going this fall and Im planning my schedule right now... I've allotted 1 full day here to check it out... however when I say full day I mean from rope drop till about 2-3PM where we can head back to the hotel and go to the pool before dinner... I'm hoping this will be enough and since my party aren't really into seeing the animals and we have an incredible zoo where we live it will mostly be about the rides and the shows.

 

[ZoZo]

Each individual and family is different. When someone says "XXX is a half-day park," they have usually been to that park before, and aren't interested in repeating some of the rides and attractions. [That's the case for me at DHS - I go at rope drop and am usually done by around 1:00.] For those who are going to a park for the first time, though, I usually recommend a full day at each park.

I have been to AK many times, and spend two full days there during a one-week trip. But I have a very high interest in animals (have worked as a volunteer at my local zoo for 16 years) so everything is fascinating to me.

As others have said, for your first trip to AK, I'd schedule a full day. There is lots to do. Besides the "rides" like the safari and EE, there are three great shows (be sure to see the Lion King show and Flights of Wonder, an excellent bird show). Then there are the animal exhibits - two great animal "trails" to wander through and watch the animals. There are often zookeepers posted at the exhibits to provide you with info about the animals and answer questions.

Most people would advise you to skip Rafiki's Planet Watch and Conservation Station (you have to take a five-minute train ride to get there), but I really enjoy them. They often have live veterinary procedures you can observe through a window, and they have "touchable" animals like the petting farm animals and often something like a snake or other reptile to touch. There's also a small stage next to the petting farm where they do informal "animal encounter" type shows. Those are great - the zookeepers bring out animals and talk about them. I've seen Eurasian Eagle Owls, a porcupine, a hedgehog, some parrots - and they'll stick around afterward and answer questions about them.

So, see, I'm an "animal geek" and can find lots to do at AK. It's tied for my favorite park (tied with MK). For those who are only interested in rides, and/or are not very interested in animals, less than one full day would probably be enough.

 

[Zippa D Doodah]

We have skipped AK for the last several years, but will go back this year. There is nothing new there (yet), but it will take the better part of a day to do ride EE a few times, have breakfast at Tusker House, ride the safari, walk the trails, and see FOTLK (gotta see that for old time's sake). Not much there at AK for us beyond that. I am not a fan of getting soaked on Kali, Chester and Hester's Dinoland is not for us, the Nemo musical doesn't bear repeat viewing, and ITTBAB is not a must-do for us.

 

[Ratpack]

We were there last week during Spring Break. We got to the park at opening (8am) and rode every ride, even multiple times on Everest, and saw all but one of the shows and we were out of there at 4:30pm

 

[Ciandella915]

When we went last week, we were done by about 3pm, and we had ridden Safari, Everest twice, Dinosaur (kept breaking down, which actually kept us longer), Kali, some of the Dino park, and moseyed around and had lunch. We had plenty of time for a show if we worked it out. That was an EMH night at MK, so we took a nap and hit MK around 6:30pm. We felt like we got the most out of our day with that combo.