Animal Kindom Question?

[Computer Magic]

HI ALL,

My family and I will be arriving at WDW on Feb 26th, and will be staying at AKL......this trip was my Christmas gift to my family, and the reason that I picked AK was that I spent 3 weeks in South Africa last fall, and it was just spectacular!!!

I did a lot of research before choosing AKL.....and they are right on the money in representing the flavor of Africa....couldn't take all to Africa so I think that this will be the next best thing....with the bonus of Mickey!!!!

Regards BABA MICKEY

WOW that is awesome going to South Africa. Something I wouldn't mind doing, but probably never will. I'll stick to AK and AKL

 

[bcampione]

Good point, but doesn't Flight of Wonder perform?

It is a show, but it is one that shows how these Birds prey, and what types of intelligence they have. It is not just a dolphin show. It is more of like what you would see at a zoo, but with a Disney flair.


I feel that Animal Kingdom is for animals, not marine life. If they wanted to do that, they would have large competition from Sea World, and Im not sure it would flow with the park.

If they were to build new areas, I totally vote still for Beastly Kingdom, as well as a possible Australia or Rainforest area. And yes, many animal habitats and rides could come from both those concepts as well as what they had planned for BK.

 

[imagineersrock]

I think it the nature of people to want more.

However before EE, I could spend from opening to close at AK. A few times on the Safari, Tarzan, FOLK, Bugs Life, Lunch at Flame Tree, Flight of Wonder, the Tigers and other wild life.

However I never spend time at the Conversation Station.

I completely agree. Conservation Station should be removed if you ask me. The rest of the park is just so gorgeous and authentic.... while CS (Aside from the extremely well done station and train) looks more like an exhibit at a cheap childrens museum. Perhaps a few years ago before Everest or Asia it was neccesary as a way to keep guests occupied, but at this point I just find it to be unnecesary, ---not to mention it is using up some prime real-estate.

I'd rather see them bring back the discovery river boats than see CS stay open another day ....can you tell I'm a huge fan? :lol:

 

[Epcot82Guy]

Just a minor pet peeve of mine... marine animals ARE ANIMALS. Just because they live in water doesn't meant they aren't.

I voted yes, but not in the format suggested. I don't think an Aqualand would be appropriate. While I think a mini-mermaid lagoon could be a great addition, that would belong in a section of the park designated to mythical animals. However, I do think that there should be more exhibits featuring aquatic animals. An arctic section would be a huge addition (and a great potential ride theme), and I think both Asia and Africa could have extensions or new treks that feature underwater or overwater viewing areas for aquatic life in their natural habitats.

 

[lunalovegoddess]

If they were to build new areas, I totally vote still for Beastly Kingdom, as well as a possible Australia or Rainforest area. And yes, many animal habitats and rides could come from both those concepts as well as what they had planned for BK.

At one point, I thought I had heard that AK was considering an Australian exhibit. I would rather see an area devoted to Australian and Pacific animals. There are kangaroos and wallabies in the Oasis area already, but there is potential for so much more. Kiwi birds, Tasmanian devils, koalas, reptiles... It all depends on the difficulty involved in finding certain animals and the care and breeding involved. How endangered are they? Would you need to build an indoor enclosure?
For example, when I lived in Massachusetts, the local zoo was able to get koalas on loan from San Diego for the summer. Once the weather got chilly, they were returned to the West Coast. Now, Florida is relatively warm year-round, but I haven't seen any zoos yet that have koalas on display.

My other thoughts on the matter have to deal with what is missing from the park. You have most of the continents represented between Animal Kingdom and Epcot... what is left?

 

[Pongo]

even killer or blue whales.<O</O

A blue whale exhibit would be a very boring, VERY expensive one. It would never work. The exhibit would have to be the size ok AK itself.

Anyway, I can't picture a marine exhibit in AK. As it's been said, the theme doesn't seem to fit. A big, glaring stadium would be very, very obstructive.

 

[ClemsonTigger]

I voted no, as my understanding is as others have said that while animals are present, they are supposed to be in a "naturalistic" setting.

Flights of Wonder is a show, but does have a natural behavioral information/ecology/protection theme that I guess brings it toward the larger park theme. There is also Rafiki's (which I don't like) that is not much more than a fancy petting zoo...and an average one at that with goats and sheep

Anyway, I would prefer shows to be of the human variety.

 

[speck76]

SeaWorld already has the market cornered for aquatic entertainment.......and this does not hurt Disney

What would Disney gain by adding aquatic entertainment.......nothing, really. It is not as if any significant amount of people are vacationing in Orlando and going to SeaWorld, yet skipping the Disney parks.....so there is little, if any revenue upside.

Also....recent trends at SeaWorld are that the shows are becoming more entertainment focused, and less educational focused.....so it looks like the market may be barely strong enough for 1 aquatic park.

 

[TTATraveler]

SeaWorld already has the market cornered for aquatic entertainment.......and this does not hurt Disney

What would Disney gain by adding aquatic entertainment.......nothing, really. It is not as if any significant amount of people are vacationing in Orlando and going to SeaWorld, yet skipping the Disney parks.....so there is little, if any revenue upside.

Also....recent trends at SeaWorld are that the shows are becoming more entertainment focused, and less educational focused.....so it looks like the market may be barely strong enough for 1 aquatic park.

I agree 100%. I like though to some extent how SeaWorld is trying to reivent itself just as Epcot's Future World is reiventing itself.

SeaWorld is a nice laid back break from the Disney and Universal mania.

 

[shmmrname]

I only know this is how I feel, so don't jump on me if you don't feel the same way...

But, AK and MGM don't feel the same way EPCOT and MK do. I guess it might be more of an emotional feeling rather than layout, etc. However, I think Fantasmic! has really pushed MGM closer to that feeling, and E:E is definitely a step in the right direction.

 

[barnum42]

Good point, but doesn't Flight of Wonder perform?

I'd call it more "demonstrate" than perform ;-)

Guano Joe/Jane performs, the birds just do their natural thing (or not if they don't feel like it at any particular show) :lol:

 

[barnum42]

I would like to see a better path system. It seems you have to walk quite a bit in that park. The traffic flows has people that are coming and going running into each other.

I'm not saying a complete redesign, but improvements that reduce the back tracking. The new path by EE helps.

The paths at AK are one of the things I really like about the park. Interesting winding corridors, ripe for exploring. Though I can see that for those who just want to get to the next ride, they'd rather go in a straight line to it. But that's not what AK is about.

As for not objecting to walking so far; part of this may be my being English and so more used to walking than my American cousins who are, generally speaking, more reliant on cars.