Kilimanjaro Safaris -- best time to see animals?

[Pacolovestacos]

No matter when I go, I never get to see the lions! anyone have any secrets to that?

Short of tossing a steak into the air, I'm not sure there is a secret.

 

[Davey Jones II]

Short of tossing a steak into the air, I'm not sure there is a secret.

Feed 'em a tourist. Works every time.

Thanks for the advice, we'll try morning and evening.

 

[pooch]

DD and I rode about 5:30 one evening & the lions were up and roaring. One of the coolest experiences I've ever had.

 

[kydisneyfans]

We did the safari just before dusk last trip and the lions are up, 2 were actually kissing (licking) each other. We have also heard the roar.
Can't say that I've ever seen movement of the lions during a morning safari.
The morning safari's seem to have more elephants, the evening has more giraffes. May just be a fluke, but that is our trend.

 

[automaticsoap]

Lions are mainly nocturnal, so they tend to be more active later in the day. I've also been on Safari countless times, and the lions were more likely awake and roaring when I've ridden later in the day (post 5:30pm) than earlier in the morning.

 

[allsaintsatx]

I'd just like to know what times of day you saw the most animals on the safari. We have fast passes for 10:45 a.m. one day and 5:20 p.m. on another. We especially want to see the big cats. We will be there at the end of October. Thanks!

We went on the Nighttime Safari about 2 weeks ago just to mix it up a little, and because our DS13 wanted to try it at night. I just really wanted to see the "moonlight" lighting effect on the savanna and was expecting to see zero animals.

We didn't have a FP but there was literally no line, they sent standby through the FP entrance and we dang near walked directly on a safari truck. Can you say "bioluminescence"?

As far as the lions, we saw 3! The male lion was literally posed on top of the rock mountain, looking like a scene out of The Lion King! And we also saw elephants and cheetahs creeping around in the darkness which was also incredible to witness.

 

[NYMommy80]

We were really lucky in April and saw many animals up close. We rode around dusk and the animals were just fed because they were mostly right beside the road.

 

[TowMater92]

While luck does play a role, I wouldn't exactly say its "pure luck." There is logic here behind recommending first thing in the morning or in the very late afternoon/early evening. The temperatures climb in the middle of the day so the cats are typically not going to be very active during those times. Does that mean you can't see them during those times, of course not.

Actually the rocks they lay on have cool air vented out up through grates that the lions lay on to entice the cats so they are viewable. The heat will actually make them more likely to be seen because they are trying to stay cool. But I have seen them through out the day so its really just luck there is no rhyme or reason to when you'll see them. The morning will have sorter lines since you'll be there first thing.

 

[Farro]

We made our FP reservations for 6:20 in late October - we will get in line about 6:45, should be twilight out. Will be pretty if nothing else!

 

[southernbelle20]

This doesn't help with fastpass time, but if it is ever raining, GO! The animals are all up and playing.