Reluctantly joining the "I hate Animal Kingdom" club...

[lynlam]

...if there is such a club?
We just returned from our 3rd trip to WDW yesterday. We had a great trip, however I think we all decided that we have no desire to EVER go back to Animal Kingdom. I just don't get that park!

On our 1st trip in '06, I was clueless. We went on an Early EMH day (1st mistake) just a week or two after Everest opened (2nd mistake) and it was so jam-packed that I was terrified of losing my kids all day long. I mean real fear.
By lunch time that day I was near tears, I was so frazzled. We left a short time later, and I swore that I would never go back.

Last year I had done enough research here and at TGM that I felt like I had a better handle on how do do AK, so I decided we'd give it another try. It was a better day, but still frustrating and exhausting for all of us.

This year, I debated and debated about just skipping it all together. I mean we do LOVE Everest and the Safari. So, we decided to go this past Wednesday. Within an hour, I was regretting that decision.

I swear to you, people enter that park and then lose their minds and all common sense. Tempers flare easily. its insane how far you have to walk to get anywhere. Its SOOOO hot, no matter what the actual temp is - I don't know how that works, but it does!

I saw one family send their little boy into the bushes near everest to pee! Seriously, we have BATHROOMS in the country....USE THEM! I'm not joking, this really happened!

I was pushed and shoved and nearly lost my kids trying to get into see FotLK and the Cast members were doing a piss-poor job of directing people to the seats. Getting into that area before the show was horrible as the entire pathway into Camp minnie-mickie was turned into a one way sea of people trying to get out after the last show. Really, where are the cast members directing traffic?

This park is WAY worse than any others for people just stopping dead in their tracks in the middle of the path to check their maps. I ran into so many people it wasn't even funny. I know its because it is so damn confusing to get around...but still, why can't people at least try to get over to the side of the road before coming to a complete standstill?

AK is a beautiful park, no doubt. I would love to be able to just wander the park and see the sights, but it is SO full of people all the time, you feel swept along by the waves of people and unable to smell the roses, if you will. The few animals we did manage to see on the Jungle trek - well, too many adults were trying to push their way into better viewing spots with absolutely no thought about the small kids that they might be blocking or stepping on.
Really folks, have you never been to a zoo before?

So, I think that I reluctantly have to say that we will not be going back to Animal Kingdom ever again. The magic is seriously lacking at that park for us...

 

[melly]

Same here.

Some of the attractions are amongst the best I experienced in Orlando however it was very very hot and very crowded. I just got the impression that the park doesnt handle crowds well.

 

[disneymyway]

I agree. We go and we love the park, but you really have to get in right when it opens and get out of there by 11:00 am. It's a nightmare after that. They really should limit the crowd size or something.

 

[kapoof]

we always loved the ak till last trip (3 weeks ago) i could NOT believe the sea of humanity! ita that this park doesn't handle crowds well at all. the streets are far too narrow, and people do leave their brains at the gate. it was so bad we could not get out of there fast enough. plus disney was trying out the new bus system (or so they say) so we had to wait forever for the bus plus it stopped at bb, and we 5 resorts on this bus...s/d yc/bc and bw. so an overcrowded park and a very late bus packing in 5 resorts and 2 park stops made for a very frustrating time.

 

[pkondz]

I agree. We go and we love the park, but you really have to get in right when it opens and get out of there by 11:00 am. It's a nightmare after that. They really should limit the crowd size or something.

That's exactly what we did. We enjoyed the park and had a nice relaxing visit. Mind you by the time we had lunch (just before we left) it was starting to get pretty crowded. We skipped a few attractions (EE wasn't built yet) that didn't interest us but didn't feel short changed. We'll go back. I would love to see Devine again, she was wonderful

 

[ChrisFL]

we always loved the ak till last trip (3 weeks ago) i could NOT believe the sea of humanity! ita that this park doesn't handle crowds well at all. the streets are far too narrow, and people do leave their brains at the gate. it was so bad we could not get out of there fast enough. plus disney was trying out the new bus system (or so they say) so we had to wait forever for the bus plus it stopped at bb, and we 5 resorts on this bus...s/d yc/bc and bw. so an overcrowded park and a very late bus packing in 5 resorts and 2 park stops made for a very frustrating time.

Agreed. The park is great except for the fact that seems as if it wasn't designed for that many people or STROLLERS!

It's also very difficult to get from one side of the park to the other, there's practically no shortcuts or alternate transportation to use.

IMO the park could have been designed much better but keeping the "exploration" theme

 

[NJ2Boardwalk]

First of all it's NATAZU!!! AK can be great and relaxing if you plan right and treat it like you would the other parks. Don't try to get it all in in one day! You would never think of doing MK in one day, why cram AK in one day. No, there are not the same number of "attractions" here than in the others, but they are nice and different. The problem with FOTLK is that it lets a mass number of people out through a small walkway. So...either hang and wait until the crowd thins or get out early.
I actually like AK, and find its difference refreshing. That's whats great about Disney - alot to do for different likes/dislikes.
Don't give up just yet, maybe if you go and just do your fav's until lunch - have a nice lunch at Rainforest Cafe - then head back to your hotel you'll not find it so frustrating.

 

[cindyfan]

I totally agree..... they do NOT handle crowds very well at AK.
This past January when at FotLK.... it was just HORRIBLE!!! Trying to get in and getting out.
No CM directing people..... they were just standing around talking to each other. I am with you on being just totally frustrated with the lack of crowd control at AK.
Not just at the rides, but for the parade too!!!
And it wasn't for the lack of CM.... it was that the CM just didn't seem to care and were just "hanging out"!!
I like AK and will go back.... but I will be very picky about when I go!!!
And I won't we hanging around for the parade.

 

[BellaOfTheWorld]

I love animal kingdom, and I can honestly say that the crowds (or crowd behavior) are no worse there than it is at any other park. I'm a FL Resident AP holder and we go at least 3 times a month. People stop in their tracks to look at maps just as often in MK, EPCOT and DHS as they do in AK. Just my observation. The same people are visiting the same parks and show the same confusion and frustration when they don't know what they're doing.

This just goes to show that personal perspective plays a big role in all this, because I see it all much differently in my experience.

 

[disneymyway]

I love animal kingdom, and I can honestly say that the crowds (or crowd behavior) are no worse there than it is at any other park.

I agree that it's the same people = same behavior but it is absolutely more crowded. The paths are too narrow and winding and they let too many people in so the bad behavior stands out more.

 

[kapoof]

First of all it's NATAZU!!! AK can be great and relaxing if you plan right and treat it like you would the other parks. Don't try to get it all in in one day! You would never think of doing MK in one day, why cram AK in one day. No, there are not the same number of "attractions" here than in the others, but they are nice and different. The problem with FOTLK is that it lets a mass number of people out through a small walkway. So...either hang and wait until the crowd thins or get out early.
I actually like AK, and find its difference refreshing. That's whats great about Disney - alot to do for different likes/dislikes.
Don't give up just yet, maybe if you go and just do your fav's until lunch - have a nice lunch at Rainforest Cafe - then head back to your hotel you'll not find it so frustrating.

i think you misunderstand...i LOVE the park itself but the experince was horrible. we always get there at rope drop and head out by 11:00. we try to do it in 2 days. but there really isn't a good place for lunch. i don't mean to be rude about rainforest but we have them here in chicago and the food is not that great. we ate one time at the flame tree barbeque and it was awful! so we usually head over to epcot for lunch... but this past trip was just beyound belief crowd wise. i can't even think how it would be at capacity...

 

[bamajill]

I've been twice and it is by far our least favorite park.

LOVE Expedition Everest and my two youngest really enjoy the Boneyard play area but other than that.....we can take it or leave it.

And I agree 100% that it FEELS hotter and more crowded than any other park. Not sure why that is but I could probably skip it next time (if it weren't for EE, that is).

 

[DaisyLynn]

I've only ever done AK during evening EMH and it was perfect. I got to experience all I wanted to experience while there, and though I've never seen the park by day, there are areas that are very pretty at night! This trip, we plan on having dinner at Rainforest Cafe and then entering the park for a fun evening.

I'd love to go during the day, but I've heard that this park gets very hot during the day. I don't like the thought of being hot hot hot during the day. We go this time of year because the weather, for us, is perfect. Any hotter in those parks and blech.

 

[suzybeezy]

I am not a AK fan either. We were gonna skip the park entirely on this visit, but decided to go for half day and just see the few things we like and leave. The biggest issue I have with this park, is its soooooo much walkin' for so few rides. We do enjoy EE and Dinosaur and Nemo, so we'll go to those, stop by FOTLK on the way out and head to another park for the remainder of the day.

 

[hogwartsdropout]

The only parts I like are the Kali River Rapids, the Flame Tree BBQ, and the area loops, other than that, I don't feel like I'm missing out on anything if I skip it.

 

[dizneyfan23]

I must say that AK is my least-favorite of the 4 parks, and I hardly ever go there. Having said that, my daughter loves Everest so if she's with me we almost always go there. There are 2 other reasons that AK is ok:

1: The tigers, I LOVE tigers and most always see them if I'm at AK.
2: Unlike MK, AK actually sells beer, which is a plus.

Other than that, AK is way too hot and humid. I'll stick with Epcot

 

[HunnyPots]

Yay! More room at AK for me!

 

[Stitchfans]

As I have said on other threads my two complaints which of course was already said is the layout of the park (too much back tracking to get anywhere) plus for some reason it really seems a lot harder to walk since there seems to be a lot more up hill walking there.

 

[NC State]

I'll join this club too. I don't care to go but my husband enjoys going so I go just for him. I think he has a thing for Devine. I don't care if I ever go back. There's nothing there that draws me into the park.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Yay! More room at AK for me!

Yeah! What she said!