Walt Disney World: Day Five -- Animal Kingdom

Kilimanjaro Safaris. Every book I’d read, and every person we met, said that you’ve got to do the Safari ride first thing in the morning because the animals tend to go into hiding later in the day. (They’re apparently smart enough to avoid the midday heat in Florida.) And the Safari ride was the entire point of Animal Kingdom (at least for us). So, the Safari was our primary goal for Wednesday morning.

Our early evening Tuesday made it easy to get going on Wednesday, and we were at the Animal Kingdom parking lot by 8:30. They opened the gates right around then (about a half-hour early), but we couldn't get right in because I was having ticket problems. The electronic ticket reader wasn’t reading my plastic ticket. Sue and Jake got in no problem, but the machine kept rejecting my ticket. After two or three tries, the Cast Member on the gate sent me over to Guest Relations to sort out what was wrong.

Now, we’d had a pretty smooth trip up to that point, but I found myself getting agitated anyway. The one morning where we actually wanted to be in the park right at 9:00, and that’s the morning I have ticket problems. But, to their credit, the folks in Guest Relations were very helpful, very friendly and, most importantly, very efficient, all of which served to quell my agitation. The gentleman behind the counter scanned my ticket and the computer had no problem with it. He said the main computer was reading it, and it showed that I had two more days on it. He did advise that if I had any other problems with it, I should get a replacement from Guest Relations. He cleared me in less than five minutes, so we were off towards Africa and the Safari.

We got through the Oasis area, just inside the gates, and crossed the first major bridge. Right in front of us, we saw the Tree of Life, the iconic center of the Animal Kingdom park. It is quite impressive (more on that later).




As usual, Disney had the early entry under complete (but gentle) control. Just before Discovery Island, where the Tree is located, they had everyone blocked off by Cast Members and ropes (because the park had not yet “officially” opened). So, we milled about for a bit. At precisely 8:55, a Jeep rolled out, with Minnie, Goofy and Pluto, all dressed in jungle khakis, aboard. They greeted us, wished us a “wild” day in the park, and then finally let us in.

We strode briskly along the path toward Africa and, although we were moving quickly, I couldn’t help but notice the detail with which the Disney folks had recreated what an African town looks like (or at least what is what we would expect it should look like). There were representatives from various African tribes, performing traditional African dances and music, along the streets and in the building. The buildings themselves couldn’t look more authentic, and the detail is amazing. As spot-on as the pavilions are in the World Showcase at Epcot, Disney’s rendition of Africa is Epcot's equal.

We found our way to the Safari and had no more than a five minute wait to get into a land rover and venture across Disney’s African savannah. It is an amazing ride, actually. It’s not like any safari park you’ve ever been to. You’re as close to on-top-of the animals as you can be this side of the Atlantic.




Oh, sure, you’ve got to deal with a kind of hokey “chase-the-poachers” back-story while on the ride, which you really don’t need. With such amazing animals to view, the thrill in seeing them is very real. You don’t need to manufacture thrills by chasing imaginary poachers. But that’s just me.

The ride itself is about 15 minutes, and you really do see everything: elephants, lions, impalas, giraffes, hippos; you name it, you’ll probably see it. It was a great ride and, if you’re interested in wildlife like this at all, you don’t want to miss this one.

Equally wonderful is the Pangani Forest Trail, which is a walking trail that you can catch right after the Safari ride. This walking tour is along protected paths (that don’t appear protected at all) that wind through the “jungle. You don’t actually run the risk of being mauled as you stroll along, but the feeling of the trail is open and close to the animals. And you do see some amazing animals, the coolest of which are the troops of gorillas. If you take your time and linger by the windows, you’ll see the gorillas wandering around, congregating, playing, and traveling over the hills.




In addition, there are also some amazing birds, some meercats, and an area where you are supposed to be able to see hippos (although I didn’t see any here). The key here is spending the time to look around for the animals you want to see. Sure you can zip through this area, but you’ll miss a lot if you do. The Pangani is worth a nice, leisurely visit.

Not so Rafiki’s Planet Watch, at least in my opinion. There’s nothing really wrong with it, but it’s not terribly exciting. In addition, it’s difficult to get to because the only way to Planet Watch is the Wildlife Express train that runs from the end of the Pangani Trail and connects to the Planet Watch area. You can’t get to it or leave it any other way, so if you want to leave, you’ve stuck until the next train. In addition, depending on how many people are there, you could be in for a very long wait. Don’t get me wrong; there’s a cute little petting zoo, but there’s nothing in the petting zoo that you wouldn’t find in any city zoo in the country. There’s some information about conservation, and animals, and their habitats. There is also a presentation by some of the Cast Members stationed here expressly to work with the animals. However, unless you (or your kids) are really into the animals, I wouldn’t recommend Planet Watch, or its train ride. It’s just too much of a hassle to get into and out of the Planet Watch area to take the time to do it.

When we finally got “back” to Africa, we headed down to Camp Minnie-Mickey. This area is one of two sections of the Animal Kingdom that I don’t really get. (The other is DinoLand USA, which I’ll get to in a minute.) I don’t get them because they seem as if they’ve been shoe-horned into the Animal Kingdom as filler, rather than as part of the overall theme. For instance, Camp Minnie-Mickey is described in the Disney Guide as an “Adirondack Mountain Retreat” (as in "summer camp"). But there’s really nothing here, except a show pavilion, and several small character areas where you can meet and greet whichever characters show up. But animal stuff? In the Adirondacks? They could have called it the Animal Kingdom show area, because that’s really what they use it for. But I guess someone thought that an Adirondack Retreat fit the theme.

Anyway, we headed over towards Camp Minnie-Mickey to see the Festival of the Lion King. Before we got there, though, we crossed the bridge between Africa and Discovery Island, where we caught a spectacular view of Expedition Everest. When we visited, Everest was still a week away from its “soft open.” But at least we saw the mountain. I’ve heard that the ride is wonderful. If the ride is half as amazing as the view of the mountain, it’s gotta be great!

As for the Festival of the Lion King, it’s a fun show, and especially so for the younger kids in your group. It is, of course, based on the music from the Lion King, and the actors, and dancers, and characters are all energetic and engaging. It was a lot of fun to watch, and the kids won’t be bored. (The other show in Camp Minnie-Mickey is Pocahontas and Her Forest Friends, which we didn’t see. This seemed themed for much younger kids, which is why we skipped it.) Overall, the Festival is a good experience, and worth your time.

After the Festival, it was time for lunch, so we headed towards the Rainforest Café, where we had 1:00 p.m. reservations. Now, as I’m sure you know, the Rainforest is a national chain that is not associated with Disney. Before I got to the Rainforest, I thought that it was a natural match with the Animal Kingdom. But going to the Rainforest right out of Disney is like going from the sublime to the ridiculous. Now, we all know we’re not really visiting Africa, or Asia, when we visit the Animal Kingdom, but the Disney folks are such masters of their craft that they make it seem so real, you can actually find yourself believing (if only a little bit) that you’re actually in Africa. The Rainforest Café – not so much. It’s cheesy, artificial, and a vivid exercise in trying too hard. Disney is subtle and earnest. The Rainforest is like an out-of-tune brass band. Disney Cast Members are friendly and dedicated. Rainforest workers are simply employees.

In addition, while the food at the Rainforest is good, it's way too plentiful. By that, I mean that the portions are humongous – Cheesecake Factory humongous. This is actually a detriment, and left me with bad feelings about the place, for a number of reasons. We had no idea how big their portions were, so we ordered appetizers and meals. The waitress could have said that you won’t need both (which happens in many places), but she didn’t do that. Instead, she advised us to order a sampler platter so we could try all of the appetizers in addition to our meals. That was completely unnecessary and, as a result, we had a lot of leftovers that simply went to waste because we had no place to put them. Even worse, we were over-stuffed for our afternoon, which meant for an uncomfortable couple of hours of trying to walk off the effects of our meal.

Anyway, the meal was okay, but we left feeling bloated and sleepy. As a result, we wandered over to the Tree of Life primarily so we could find a place to sit and digest. We wound up heading into the Tree, where they show “It’s Tough to be a Bug,” the 3D movie at the Animal Kingdom. This is a pretty good movie, too, and I place it as the second best movie at Disney World. But it doesn’t come close to Mickey’s Philharmagic, which is head-and-shoulder better than the other three 3D movies combined. But Bug is good, fun, entertaining, and with a few cool surprises, so make sure you sit up and pay attention!

Also, the Tree itself is an amazing structure. On your way in, and on your way out, make sure you study the Tree carefully. You’ll see a wide variety of animals carved into the trunk of the tree, all the way up the tree to the top. It’s really amazing to see. This Tree is a prime example of the workmanship and craftsmanship of the Disney Imagineers, and I recommend savoring it.




From the Tree, we wandered along the road bordering the Discovery River, towards Asia. Mount Everest was a nice little landmark, and we were able to get a relatively close up view of the Mountain as we walked.

The walk along the Discovery River was nice, too, because we had the chance to see the different style between Disney’s Asia and Disney’s Africa. As always, Disney’s attention to detail is remarkable. It truly felt as if we were walking through somewhere in Southeast Asia, with every detail, right down to the bicycles parked in front of the faux-train station, being absolutely perfect.

We were not, however, as impressed with Asia as we’d been with Africa. It may have been a combination of still being over-stuffed from lunch. Maybe it was the heat, because the temperature did begin to climb into the low seventies that day. Maybe we were just tired of animals. But we didn’t like Asia all that much.

Oh, there were some nice attractions, don’t get me wrong. We did the Maharaja Jungle Trek, which is another protected walking tour, and was pretty impressive. We saw tigers up close and personal, and more fruit bats than I ever knew existed in the world. There were more exotic birds, and some of those Kimono dragons, too. But about half-way through, we were kind of animal-ed out.

We didn’t do the Kali River Rapids. Although it was getting warmer, it was still only about 72 degrees, and with night coming early in January, we didn’t want to be walking around in damp clothes for the next few hours, and from all indications, you do get wet on the River Rapids. Oh, it looks like fun, but, just like Splash Mountain, we just didn’t feel like getting wet. As a result, after the Jungle Trek, and without the Rapids, there’s not a heckuva lot more to do in Asia. (Of course, now with Everest open, there’s a very BIG reason to visit Asia, but even considering that, there’s not a lot.)

The only thing we had left on our map was DinoLand, USA. This is the other part of the park that I just don’t get. The guide map trumpets it as a celebration of our “fascination with dinosaurs.” But the truth is, it reminds me of every kitschy road-side attraction and stretch of the boardwalk in Point Pleasant, New Jersey, that I’ve ever been to. There are game booths (that are not free) and food stands (also not free) and the classic carnival games (from basketball shooting to water gun races, also not free). Unlike most of Disney World, this section of the park has a definite been-there-done-that feel to it.

Like everywhere else, though, there were some things that were fun, despite the well-worn feeling of the whole area. The Tarzan Rocks Show sounded good, but we learned after we arrived that it had completed its last performance the Saturday before we got there. Bad timing on our part, because the show sounded pretty good. (Still haven’t figured out why it would be in DinoLand, but that’s another question for another day.)

The Primeval Whirl is a neat little roller coaster, very much like the Mouse you find on many Boardwalks and in many State Fairs around the country (that mini roller coaster, with four-person cars on a two-story tall track). The twist is that the cars actually rotate on an axis as they travel around the track. Unfortunately for us, in our overstuffed states, we didn’t want to take a chance on a whirling, spinning, uppy-down type of ride. So, we had to pass. But if you like coasters, it looks like a fun one.

We did ride the DINOSAUR ride, which is one of the traditional Disney-esque conveyance-on-a-track-through-a-dark-space rides. The twist on this one is that you’re in a pretty realistic seeming Land Rover, you move along at a pretty good clip, and the dinosaurs are kinda scary-ish. It’s a nice little ride, which must get busy at times because it’s set up for the fast pass. (We didn’t need it, though. Our wait was five minutes.)

There are a couple other carnival rides, which you’ve seen before, and a play area called the boneyard, which is, essentially, a dinosaur graveyard – for the kids. (This is another weird idea that I don’t quite get). The bottom line here is that DinoLand is a well-worn concept, that, surprisingly, falls well below Disney’s standards. If you feel pressed for time, in my opinion, this is the one section of all of the parks that you can skip without feeling as if you missed anything.

After completing our visit to DinoLand, we wanted to head back to Africa, because we’d seen some souvenirs we wanted to buy. However, we had to hustle, because it was 4:00 pm, and the Animal Kingdom closes at 5:00.

We would have made it in plenty of time, if not for Mickey’s Jammin’ Jungle Parade, which started promptly at – you guessed it – 4:00 p.m. We were able to get to Africa. However, we couldn’t cross the street to get into the shop we wanted to visit. (I know – I asked if we could sneak through a gap in the parade. Apparently, cutting through the parade practice frowned upon by the powers that be. Who knew?)

Anyway, we did discover that if you want to see the Parade, you don’t have to grab seats on Discovery Island, or anywhere else, because the parade loops around and ends where it started. So if you wait until after the parade starts, and clears out of Africa, you’ll have your choice of seats, either by the Tusker House, or the Dawa Bar, or the Kusafiri Coffee shop, at about 4:20 to 4:30. At about that time, the Parade comes right back through Africa before it breaks up. We got some great close up photos (all taken by Jake!), and it was actually a nice way to finish our stay at Animal Kingdom. Well, that, and shopping.



The shopping was kinda neat, if you like the African motif. (We do.) They have some nice things in the shops in Africa and (here’s another tip) they are less expensive than those at the little Outpost in Epcot that’s between Germany and China.

From here, with the park beginning to close down, we wandered towards the exit. On the way out, we found Baloo, from Jungle Book, signing autographs and posing for pictures. Jake was more than happy to add Baloo to his book.

All in all, it was an enjoyable day at Animal Kingdom. However, much as we liked the park, I can honestly tell you that, if you are at Disney World and can only see three parks, this is the one to skip. It’s nice and all, and there are some special moments here as well as some amazing things to see. BUT: in my opinion, you can skip it if you’re pressed for time. Now, keep in mind – I’m writing this without having experienced either the River Rapids ride, or the new Everest ride. If you’re a ride-a-holic, and have to hit all the big rides, you obviously have to come to Animal Kingdom now, especially in light of Everest. But, if the rides aren’t the be-all-and-end-all for you, and you’re heart’s not set on seeing the animals, the Animal Kingdom is skipable.

After finishing the Kingdom, it was only 5:30. We decided to head back to the hotel for a little break before returning to Epcot to catch the Illuminations show. Because we didn’t have dinner reservations, we also decided to grab a quick dinner at Sunshine Seasons, in The Land. Our thought was to combine dinner with another ride on Soarin’ before settling in for Illuminations, which is exactly what we did.

We arrived at Epcot at about 7:15 and headed for the Land. The wait for Soarin’ was over 90 minutes, so we got Fast Passes, which gave us a window between 8:15 and 9:00. (Well, we tried to get Fast Passes. Sue and Jake got theirs, but my ticket started acting up again. I’d gotten into Epcot with no problem, but the Fast Pass machine wouldn’t read it. Fortunately, the Cast Member on duty gave me a Fast Pass before shutting down the machine for the night.) We thus had an hour before we could ride. We used that hour to enjoy a leisurely meal at Sunshine Seasons.

The food at Seasons was adequate, although a bit pricey for the type and quality. It’s cafeteria fare, which was generally simple but largely satisfying. We lingered over our food for a while as we waited for our Fast Pass time and just enjoyed the fact that we were hanging out in Disney World. It was a very pleasant meal.

At 8:15, we hit the Fast Pass line (with the wait in the regular line still being 90 minutes). After a five minute wait, we were on the ride once again. It was just as great the third time!

We then sauntered out to the World Showcase Lagoon and squeezed in along the fence just before Canada. We staked out a position between a couple of families stationed along the fence just before you get to Canada and waited for the show.

Illuminations itself is an amazing show, and the choreography of lights, lasers, and explosions is very impressive. Words cannot adequately describe the show; "amazing" barely scratches the surface. A lot of folks were saying that this was their third time at Illuminations on this trip because they loved the show so much. I enjoyed it too, and it is exceptionally well done. However, I wouldn’t rank it above Fantasmic at MGM, or the fireworks at the Magic Kingdom. Illuminations comes in third in my rankings – a strong third, but third nonetheless.

This day also showed us the true benefit of the Hopper option on our admission tickets. We were able to have a full day at Animal Kingdom, take a break, and then dine and enjoy a couple of hours at Epcot. It was a nice day overall.

Speaking of the admission tickets, after the Illuminations show, on the way out of Epcot, I saw that there was no line at Guest Services. I figured that, because we were going to be doing a lot of hopping on our last day, I’d best get my hinky admission ticket squared away.

The folks in guest services were extremely helpful. They replaced my little plastic card with a cardboard ticket like those you get at the ticket booths on the day of admission. The only unfortunate part (for me) was that I was unable to keep my little plastic ticket as a memento. Disney’s accounting folks needed it to justify the swap. So, with a sigh, I gave up my plastic card for an easy-to-use ticket for the next day.

We left the park that night, happily tired, and grateful that we still had one more day left at Disney World. We were looking forward to the next day, when we planned on hopping all over to do things we wanted to do again, and try a few things we missed.