Animal Kingdom Park...is it worth it?

[beck00]

We LOVED AK on our last trip and quickly realized our mistake of assuming it was another 1/2-day park. This November, we are going 2 of our 8 days!

 

[Oathkeeper13]

Animal Kingdom is my favorite park. People who call it a half day park are doing it wrong. You can't treat it like a normal theme park. If you just run from ride to ride you will get through it fairly quickly. You need to walk the trails, if you see a weird little path leading of from the main walkway TAKE IT! They built this park to make it feel as if you are really exploring the wild. Sometimes you follow a path and you find animals or breathtaking views of the Tree of Life that are not marked or advertised anyway. The two nature trails are excellent. As if the lovely train ride that takes you to Rafiki's Plant Watch which has a petting zoo and some really great education activities. The park usually does close earlier then the other parks, this is true. But that just makes it a good time to schedule some shopping in Down Town Disney/Disney Springs, or rest your feet and go for a night time swim at the hotel pool.

 

[aVASTGrl]

I would never skip AK, it's my 2nd favourite Park! This trip I'm doing the Wild Africa Trek so I can get an interesting behind the scenes view of the animals; I'm very excited!!

 

[jamnmom]

We also love AK. We DO go for only half days, but we hop and do it multiple days during each trip to WDW. Our favorites are Kali River Rapids, Safari, Dinosaur, Bug's Life, Lion King Show, Nemo Show. We are not EE riders. We also enjoy Rafiki Planet Watch. We've observed surgery on a rabbit and learned a lot about a small rare toad that is near endangered. For eating, we enjoy Flame Tree BBQ. I know there is a lot going on now with construction of Avatar Land, but we were able to manage it when there in May last year; and will have to manage it again in November this year. I most definitely would never pass up any of the parks -- whether hopping or not. Hope you have a Great trip!!

 

[PhoenixStrength]

Another for definitely not skipping AK! It is the favorite park of both myself and my fiance. There is a wide variety of things to see and do there. From thrill type rides (Dinosaur, Expedition Everest) to shows (Festival of the Lion King is the best show on property IMO) to strolling around the animal trails. I don't know your daughters, but I think they would love it.

 

[epcotty]

AK was our least favorite park but now we'd rather go there than HS with all the recent closures. AK's a good park though, especially worth going to if you have 5 days

 

[andyman8]

DAK is definitely worth a visit. Honestly, I think all four of the parks (yes, even DHS) are worth a visit if you have the time (i.e. 4 days or more). You just need to approach each different in my opinion.

At MK, my approach is the typical Disney/theme park one where I want to see as many attractions as I can and just go go go from ride to ride. Make some time for the parade and fireworks (preferably viewed from one of the MK Resort Restaurants) and you've got a nice day, albeit a busy one. This is the mentality most people go into the Disney Parks with, but I think it only works best at MK.

Over at Epcot, that strategy is the same during morning hours in FW (going from TT to Soarin to MS to SE, etc...), but it changes drastically in the afternoon when it's more about jaunting around WS. It's not about rides; it's about taking in the entertainment, seeing films, and shopping topped off with a nice dinner at fireworks.

With DHS, to me, it's sorta like a hybrid of MK and Epcot. The rides are spread out throughout the day but I think it's more about the shows and taking in the streetmosphere. I also love walking around Hollywood and Sunset Boulevards at night with the neon and all the shops after Fantasmic! Even the dining, to me, at DHS is part of the show with fun and unique restaurants like Sci-Fi and 50's.

DAK is all about going slowly and treating it as an experience not as an itinerary. Make your FP+s but then spend time meandering through the trails, seeing the shows, and observing the small natural details. I think the fun in that park is not in the rides in the same way it is at MK but rather in the nature that it showcases. The animals interacting. The trees and plants. The water effects. It's a very peaceful and serene experience. For me, it's probably the easiest of the WDW parks to do, because FP+ availability is plenty, usually the lines fade by 4 or 5pm (outside of the busiest seasons of course) to more reasonable waits, and there are so many small details to capture your attention and entertain you that you don't need to do much planning.

 

[julie1072]

Wow! I love the responses! I think I will change it to a full day park then. TBH, I think Epcot might be a better choice for a half day. I have always found that we go through it pretty quickly.

I'm actually kind of excited about Animal Kingdom now!

 

[MinnieSweetheart]

Animal Kingdom has my husband's two favorite rides: Expedition Everest and the safaris. The safari is so stinking cool and your girls will love it. He also loves to meet Baloo and King Louie.

I LOVE FOTLK, but we have a sensitive toddler so we don't want to take her because of the scar portion. We also LOVE Russell and Dug from UP.

We didn't personally love the walking trails with the tigers, but we did love watching the monkeys in Asia.

There is so much to do and see. Also, we always eat at Tusker House. If you think your girls will enjoy it, that can be fun and the food is African inspired so it's nice to break up the Chicken Fingers and pizza.

 

[sunflare]

TBH, I think Epcot might be a better choice for a half day. I have always found that we go through it pretty quickly.I'm actually kind of excited about Animal Kingdom now!

As much as I LOVE LOVE LOVE AK (and I do love it), I would re-think that cutting Epcot short thing in April. Isn't Flower and Garden going on at that time?

 

[BudgieMama]

DAK is our second-favorite WDW park.
Right behind MK.

We feel the same. Adored AK. We are planning at least 2 days there on our next trip. Couldn't get round everything in one!

 

[jon18uk]

Yes! There are elephants on the Safari.

You don't need hoppers as you can easily fill a day at Animal Kingdom. You have the Safari ride, the walking trail (the gorillas are excellant) and the Lion King show in Africa, as well as the train to Planet Watch. The in Asia you have Flights of Wonder bird show, Kali rapids, Everest and a walking trail to see tigers and more. There is also Bugs Life, Dinosaur, a Nemo show and lots of little details. Just watching the three main shows will fill 2-3 hours of the day.

Then when the park closes at 6pm get a bus over to Animal Kingdom Lodge for a dinner buffet at Boma.

 

[disnut8]

Ok, we plan on going as a famiily of four in April. Our daughters are 10 and 14. We did not go to AK in 2011 when we were there, I'm not sure why. DH and I went in 1998 on our homeymoon, and that was it.

We will not have park hopper passes, so I am wondering if we should bother, or go to another park that we know we love. I thought we could perhaps go there on our arrival day, as we won't feel like doing a long day on the first day. We have 5 days, so plan on doing MK twice, then HS and Epcot just once each.

I would love to see the tree again, I thought it was pretty amazing the last time I saw it, but I'm wondering if the girls will be bored. Our youngest does love animals, especially elephants. I'm not sure if there are any elephants there?

Thanks in advance for your opinions!

We love animals, are a couple in our early 50s so Animal Kingdom is our second favorite after Epcot. BUT - here's a big reason why. We get FastPasses for the Safari, Expedition Everest and Kali River Rapids. Everything else is basically just a walk through for us and that's a big reason we enjoy the park - except for those three FastPasses, we are able to just roam around (no pun intended) as we please on our schedule. The only other scheduled thing we always do is Flights of Wonder and I think your family will enjoy that - just sit up in the bleaches to the right about four rows from the top for a great experience. That show has set times. Other people love the Lion King and Nemo shows but we're not fans of those and can still easily spend a full day at Animal Kingdom.

 

[ELSA711]

We spend 2-3 full days there so we would never skip.
My kids do Wilderness Explorer some days and then we focus on rides and shows the other days.
They spend the most time at Rafiki's Planet Watch. We take the train over and next thing we know, 2 hrs are gone at least.
We also all love the food and drinks at AK. My kids love Tusker House and Yak & Yeti, their 2 must have meals.

 

[Happyinwonerland]

I'm going to go against the grain and say I would gladly skip AK. I have gone 2 times in the past 9 months and I am just not feeling it. We do love the Nemo show, Festival of the Lion King was just OK for us. It just feels like a lot of walking, not a lot of doing. The safari is fun, but we go to a great zoo all the time at home and see the animals. I have no plans to return to AK until rivers of light is open.

 

[GeorgiaHoo]

I think AK has perhaps the best ride at Disney in Expedition Everest, my wife loves the Safari and the Flights of Wonder show is criminally underrated. We also really enjoy the two trails. We spend much less time at DHS because the only thing we really do there is hit Toy Story Mania and Tower of Terror (and Rock n Roller Coaster if the line isn't too bad) and then we are out.

 

[themommy]

Safari..yes EE..yes Lion King..yes FoW..yes Dinosaur..yes Animals..yes Flame Tree BBQ..yes Beautiful..yes Animal Kingdom.....YES PLEASE!! You will have a great time!

 

[lustergirl]

nice to see the loving opinions of AK. I love this park. The safari is best to ride early in the morning if possible. On my last trip in April I rode it around 9:30am and seen way more animals than before. I would skip HS and go to AK instead in a heartbeat.

 

[Happy_2_B]

AK is a great park- it is on par with many of the best zoos. If you are all about attractions, I can understand the question- but even then- there are several in the park that are outstanding. We stay at AKL CL, do both the late night and afternoon safaris reserved for AKL guests, plus do the safari attraction in AK. Like many other posters, we spend a lot of time away from the main attractions enjoying the animals. Once the Avatar themed area is finished, and they add night time entertainment- it will climb easily into second place as a themed park- and may even rival the MK. Is it my favorite park? No. As a THEMED park- MK wins easily. EP and AK are pretty much tied for second, though- as a lot of EP attractions are getting long-in-the-tooth and need an overhaul. DHS currently comes in last as a waste of an entire day until refurbishment is finished. DHS is a good park for a half day, though, if you have a hopper.

 

[Nancyg56]

WE love AK! There is so much to do there, and so much to see. It is stunning. We were just there in August and my family ended up leaving earlier than we normally do because the heat was just too much for the little ones, but we felt badly about that. TO me, this is one park that you do not need to run from one attraction to the next to the next. It is a park that invites you to stroll from place to place, enjoying all of the beauty that surrounds you. The trails are lovely, and have given me my fondest memories of time with my granddaughter.