Animal Kingdom Needs Attention

[Model3 McQueen]

I know, I know.. this post is surely going to ruffle some feathers, pardon my pun.

Animal Kingdom NEEDS attention and is currently the weakest of the 4 parks.
Wait! Before you curse my name and type away every reason as to why i'm wrong, hear me out..

EPCOT is currently slated to get all this cool new stuff, plus a renovated Spaceship Earth, plus Ratatouille, GotG RollerCoaster, a new fireworks show, then TT 2.0, Frozen, etc.. those are fairly new. You may not agree with some / all of the changes, but at least it's getting some TLC.

Disney's Hollywood Studios future is looking very promising, with the addition(s) of Toy Story Land and SW:GE, now ToT is finally getting a refurb, MMRR is coming.. RnR needs nothing. I would recommend another thing or two be done but this park is undoubtedly getting some TLC.

Disney's Magic Kingdom has Tron coming up, and uh.. well, this park could probably use some love too in the form of some desperately needed refurbishments and a proper replacement for Stitch's Great Escape.

Then we have Disney's Animal Kingdom. Dinosaur is a sad, pathetic experience with a barely functional Carnotaurus "chasing" you around a barely lit attraction in a fairly poorly themed land. But at least it functions, compared to the yeti that isn't half as good looking as Harold over at Disneyland. A beautifully made attraction which is falling flat on it's face with a hairband shrine and some vibration-heavy trains / broken effects. So now what? Let's go to the best thing ever made, Avatar Land, where FoP graces you with it's 300+ minute daily wait.. I blame this on the lack of rides at the park in general. Rafiki's Planet Watch Train is, what, seasonal now? Really? At least we can enjoy some cringe worthy character acting at UP! A great Bird Adventure (DISCLAIMER: Aneeka has a beautiful heart and was wonderful to watch, but what the Flick is with the additions of Doug and Russell?

Hey, AK has some amazing things to it. The themeing really is great on an overall level, and it has some offerings i'm particularly fond of such as ITTBAB, NRJ, um.. animals and Kilimanjaro Safari.

Maybe i'm missing the whole point here. This park is all about nature, which is certainly unique. But let's be real.. the attractions aren't well maintained and IMO, the three other parks are getting more attention then DAK. So what's going on?

Please Note: I'm not much of a show watcher, so I did miss out on Lion King, Nemo.

 

[eliza61nyc]

Oh sweet Mary, mother of a teenage Jesus.........

I'm taking cover now.

What's going on is that they are working on the other parks for now

 

[Model3 McQueen]

Oh sweet Mary, mother of a teenage Jesus.........

I'm taking cover now.

Current mood before the storm:

 

[Model3 McQueen]

It is the best park at WDW. Far superior in many ways to its sisters

Share your counterpoints to my OP.

 

[Model3 McQueen]

Oh sweet Mary, mother of a teenage Jesus.........

I'm taking cover now.

What's going on is that they are working on the other parks for now

Sorry I missed that last part. Is that you low-key agreeing with me but making an excuse for it? I tease of course.

 

[eliza61nyc]

Sorry I missed that last part. Is that you low-key agreeing with me but making an excuse for it? I tease of course.

lol, actually I was giving you a chance to run.... it's going to get heated.

but in all seriousness. Disney is in the process of playing "catch-up". they've let 2 of their parks get to the point of serious dereliction. Epcot and HS HAD to have some work done and major work. I think AK is going to have to wait for a while.

 

[Model3 McQueen]

lol, actually I was giving you a chance to run.... it's going to get heated.

but in all seriousness. Disney is in the process of playing "catch-up". they've let 2 of their parks get to the point of serious dereliction. Epcot and HS HAD to have some work done and major work. I think AK is going to have to wait for a while.

Agreed also

 

[erasure fan1]

It is the best park at WDW. Far superior in many ways to its sisters

Best thematically? Big fat yes. But it can't compare to magic kingdom with the giant gap in attractions. I personally love the AK but it needs an attraction boost. I know there's a few who don't agree and think it's fine as is, but if they had givin the park the consistent additions they should have. It might just be the best of the 4 right now.

 

[Roy G. Dis]

AK has the best Disney coaster (Everest), the best Disney show of all six US parks (can't speak for anything outside of the US), the best theme park ride in the US (FOP)... and a Safari. Also, I love Dinosaur (shrug).

It's also themed perfectly. Even silly Pandora seems to fit.

I feel like Disney can ride out AK for another couple of years.

 

[TwilightZone]

Even I, pro ride replacement, think AK can sit out right now. The only thing it needs is a dinoland replacement, and I can wait for that while HS and Epcot get upgrades.

 

[Fox&Hound]

AK is always fourth for me as I rank the parks- it just doesn't hold my attention like the other parks. It has BEAUTIFUL theming and I enjoy walking around the park but I do feel it could use additional rides and a few large people eaters. I think it will get there though. Avatarland was a homerun on all acounts (well, okay, maybe not the boat ride) but I think Disney only has so much money and they need to pick and choose.....I actually really enjoyed the addition of Ducktales in Dinoland (some will hate me for that) but I am such a hardcore Ducktales and Scrooge fan =)

 

[FettFan]

I'm still miffed that we got Pandora and FoP instead of Australia.


Who cares about the silly alien parrot-dragons when Australia has mutated duck-beavers that can inject venom from spurs on their hind legs?

"I can lay eggs and SHANK you! LIMITED TIME MAGIC!"

 

[Shouldigo12]

The only area that in AK that I think desperately needs some love is that midway area. I think it could potentially be a lot more interesting and fun if they put some effort into it. Right now it just looks sad and abandoned.

 

[Tom Morrow]

Dinosaur and Everest need refurbs and upgrades, yes, but I still think they are good rides. DAK is my favorite theme park in Florida, it's on a higher level than everything else in terms of immersion and detail.

 

[FutureCEO]

It is the best park at WDW. Far superior in many ways to its sisters

lack of IP rides for the most part which makes it the best.

 

[Dead2009]

Didnt they just get a brand new land?

 

[Magenta Panther]

AK has lots of shade. Nice on a hot day. And, ummm….yeah, that's pretty much it.

And if AK is a joke (notazoo!), Everest is a farce. Why some people rave about it is beyond me. Huge broken animatronic, remember? True, it's a fitting and horrendously expensive memorial to Robert Iger's oblivious greed and contempt for park guests, but it's an affront to the quality standards of Walt Disney. When I pay so much to visit a theme park, I can understand rides being down for needed refurbs and upgrades, but one remaining broken, yet running, for years because of corporate incompetence and indifference is, well, abominable. Damned if I'll ever ride Everest again. I bet Universal wouldn't neglect an attraction like this. Pitiful. Frankly, AK could shut down altogether and I wouldn't miss it. There are great zoos out there that eclipse it in terms of guest experience and are much cheaper (sometimes free). Pandora? PUH-LEEZE. Standing in line in a queue that features a giant blue kitty cat in a jar of formaldehyde (well, that's what it looks like) isn't worth the time or sore feet. Ick.

 

[LUVofDIS]

I feel AK is an amazing park the way it is and with a few changes, it would be an unbeatable park. The trails, coasters, shows, it has it all. Though the change of Flights of Wonder was extremely disappointing, I still love this park. It has the third best coaster (EE), I can spend hours on the trails, even to the dismay of my wife. I even love Primeval Whirl, only because of the 360 spin. Even the two restaurants in the park are amongst the best of all four parks. I never feel crushed by crowds here and I love the Nemo show.

The park needs some maintenance that should have been done years ago and Disney should admit defeat with the whole UP disaster and bring back the original FoW, I use to go to this show every park visit and a few times even twice in one day.

I could go on and on for this park and my wife would disagree with me on much of it. Everyone obviously has a different opinion of what is complete and what isn't.

 

[Sonconato]

I like AK because it is not a clone of the other three. Especially, the entertainment is outstanding. They are adding Bollywood Beats and already have Viva Gaia, and we can't forget Festival of the Lion King and Nemo. And of course, the best of all... Burudika. My point is, all the other entertainment in the other parks is little or nonexistent. The interactive and personal experience is what the others are missing.

 

[Dead2009]

And if AK is a joke (notazoo!), Everest is a farce. Why some people rave about it is beyond me. Huge broken animatronic, remember? True, it's a fitting and horrendously expensive memorial to Robert Iger's oblivious greed and contempt for park guests, but it's an affront to the quality standards of Walt Disney. When I pay so much to visit a theme park, I can understand rides being down for needed refurbs and upgrades, but one remaining broken, yet running, for years because of corporate incompetence and indifference is, well, abominable. Damned if I'll ever ride Everest again.

So you're judging an entire attraction based on ONE AA not moving? That's like saying Splash Mountain is a terrible ride because the AAs after the big drop stopped moving their mouths.