Is it hot on Kilimanjaro Safari ride?

[SFMommy]

Is it hot out on the Safari? Is it best to do in early morning or late afternoon due to the heat? Or does it not really matter? We are talking about late-May.

Thanks!

 

[dmband]

It's as hot as any open air vehicle woud be based on air temp

 

[Kohara]

It doesn't even remotely start to cool down until 5 so I would do it first thing

 

[WendyLou]

we always plan this one early as possible, the animals seem to be more active.

 

[yooperfan]

The animals move around more in the morning.

 

[AllieBoo]

We always go in late May/Early June and we make sure to head to the Safari first thing in the morning. It is hot if you do it later in the afternoon!

 

[DisneyFive]

Hot? Yes! (during the hot months of Florida)

We typically do it first thing at park open, or as soon as we can with FP+ based on LK or Nemo show schedules.

Dan

 

[Firefly09]

yes, it is hot. We went in early May. Especially if there is an issue on the ride and you get stuck on it for 30 minutes baking in the sun like we did. Even the giraffe got bored and moved on!

 

[katethegreat24]

From a former safari guide - definitely go at park opening or the last safari of the day to see the most animals. Most are super lazy when it's warm.

 

[greentea]

You can go any time of day -- the animals do what they want and it's not always what you'd expect based on temperature or time of day. We heard to go early in the morning, and we did and it was fun, but our best ride was around 2pm as far as animals being active. Here's how close the rhinos got to our vehicle (you can see the edge of it in the bottom corner), and the giraffes were more active and crossing the road in front of us. And we were there in September when it was quite hot in the middle of the day! So I'd say if you can ride more than once, do that and pick different times so you get different experiences.

 

[soniam]

I find the line to be warmer than the vehicles. Even though there are fans, there doesn't seem to be much of a breeze in line, even in the morning. The ride vehicles get a bit of breeze and are covered. I agree with greentea; morning isn't necessarily better for seeing animals.

 

[SueM in MN]

I find the line to be warmer than the vehicles. Even though there are fans, there doesn't seem to be much of a breeze in line, even in the morning. The ride vehicles get a bit of breeze and are covered. I agree with greentea; morning isn't necessarily better for seeing animals.

I agree that morning is not necessarily the best for seeing animals.
We've gone first thing in the morning and had lots of fog in the 'forested' areas, so all we saw in them was white mist, with the driver telling us which animals are usually in the area.
The couple of times when we have had very good views of the lions were during the afternoon when you would expect thrm to be sleeping. (We saw both male and female on the same safari).

So, going at different times may give you a different view.

 

[SyracuseWolvrine]

As another former Safari guide, another thing to keep in mind is the way the trucks are designed. There is a small "vent" between the Driver and the first row of guests, where some of the engine heat gets vented to. So, further back may be a LITTLE cooler. (although, it always seemed that most of that heat from the vent came into the cab)

Most are super lazy when it's warm.

Sounds like some people I know

I find the line to be warmer than the vehicles. Even though there are fans, there doesn't seem to be much of a breeze in line, even in the morning. The ride vehicles get a bit of breeze and are covered.

The queue area is shaded, and you won't be in direct sunlight, even in the queue.

 

[minniemous]

I agree. Early or late in the day. But if the ride does keep moving you can get a nice breeze from the open vehicle.

 

[DisneyFive]

I find the line to be warmer than the vehicles. Even though there are fans, there doesn't seem to be much of a breeze in line, even in the morning. The ride vehicles get a bit of breeze and are covered. I agree with greentea; morning isn't necessarily better for seeing animals.

Agree that the line is worse than on the trucks. We have some good video from 2010 of a friend fanning my MIL in the queue, and it was only 10 am!

Dan

 

[ghtx]

You can go any time of day -- the animals do what they want and it's not always what you'd expect based on temperature or time of day. We heard to go early in the morning, and we did and it was fun, but our best ride was around 2pm as far as animals being active. Here's how close the rhinos got to our vehicle (you can see the edge of it in the bottom corner), and the giraffes were more active and crossing the road in front of us. And we were there in September when it was quite hot in the middle of the day! So I'd say if you can ride more than once, do that and pick different times so you get different experiences.

I have heard that it is merely an urban legend that the animals are most active first thing in the morning. But of course it will be cooler and more comfortable for the (human) riders first thing in the morning.

 

[FLchick415]

I've done the safari both first in the morning, and late in the day (second to last, IIRC), and IMO the animals seemed more active later in the day.

 

[DisneyMim]

We've done it at all times of the day and year. The most animals I have seen is on the last ride of the day. Hot? Well, that's all relative. We don't mind the heat so even in August we've done it during the day. The absolute best time we ever had was during opening week. The animals were all out and the trees, etc. hadn't started growing that much yet. I can remember being on the ride with only a few other people. Whenever you can go will be fine.

Enjoy The Magic!!

 

[CAS239]

For best weather go early in the morning. For most active animal activity go close to when the safari closes down, around 5 or 6pm

 

[klo1335]

I rode the ride only once in 1998. We stood in line and could tell that a storm was approaching. We got on the ride and about 1/4 of the way through it started to pour down rain. We saw more animals at that time as they all moved for cover. I have a great video of it all and it was awesome. We ended up having to stand under and the exit because it was thunder and lightening and they would let us leave until it stopped. That really sucked.