Kilimanjaro Safaris After Dark - night safari

[Bolt]

I think the biggest difference people will have have with daytime versus nighttime is that nighttime is purely to enjoy. It's not one for social media - you won't get great photos. You don't get the perfect color of a giraffe. For me, seeing the silhouettes of animals in the distance was fun to see. Not sure what everyone saw but the rhinos and giraffes were super active for me.

I also imagine the animals needs to get comfortable. The vehicles have been testing for months, but now there's 1000s of people yelling and talking.

Take it for what it is - all the animals are out there. It's their choice if they want to come hang out with you, just like at daytime.

 

[Magic Feather]

Also rode last night, and I have to say that, while most other things were fine, they need improved lighting on the Kopi (Lions) as our guide managed to mistake two of the three lions for rocks. Overall a unique experience, and that sunset and moonlighting was great. Also side note, this was the first time that I did not see crocodiles in the safari. :-/

 

[Bolt]

Also rode last night, and I have to say that, while most other things were fine, they need improved lighting on the Kopi (Lions) as our guide managed to mistake two of the three lions for rocks. Overall a unique experience, and that sunset and moonlighting was great. Also side note, this was the first time that I did not see crocodiles in the safari. :-/

The nighttime version has a different path that skips the tight turn and the bridge. Brings you directly to the elephants.

 

[YodaMan]

The nighttime version has a different path that skips the tight turn and the bridge. Brings you directly to the elephants.

This has nothing to do with the comment about lions or crocodiles. All that is cut out is the mandrill exhibit, the male elephant yard, and the tilting bridge.

 

[Bolt]

This has nothing to do with the comment about lions or crocodiles. All that is cut out is the mandrill exhibit, the male elephant yard, and the tilting bridge.

You're right. Bad memory of the path - I'll admit when I'm wrong!

 

[Siren]

Unfortunately based on some of the reviews thus far it may not need to stay open that late

Awww. I really hate to agree with you. However, it is very beneficial to keep AK open at night in order to prepare for the grand opening of Avatarland and Rivers of Light.

Disney can continue to work on fine tuning things and the CM's will receive the necessary practice and training needed for night operations.

Okay, so I think Disney is attempting to model their night time AK experience after the -->Chiang Mai Night Safari<--

The Chiang Mai Night Safari also features an amazing water fountain, laser and light show that features the animals. They also have night performers, in addition to the safari. It appears to be a really popular and a huge success there. And, they can't offer half of what Animal Kingdom can.

So, I am baffled as to why Disney's night time offering seem sort of underwhelming.

Can you post some links to the night safari reviews, I have not been able to find any.

Really, Dan? Um, no -- I don't feel like it.

But, here are a couple a pics for you from twitter.

-->Gorgeous AK Artificial Sunset video<--
The comment said the video didn't give it any justice.

I haven't seen reviews just a bunch of the Twitter bloggers posting live opinions.

Seriously, thank you. This is exactly what I was talking about. Technically, they are reviews.

I think the biggest difference people will have have with daytime versus nighttime is that nighttime is purely to enjoy. It's not one for social media - you won't get great photos. You don't get the perfect color of a giraffe. For me, seeing the silhouettes of animals in the distance was fun to see. Not sure what everyone saw but the rhinos and giraffes were super active for me.

I also imagine the animals needs to get comfortable. The vehicles have been testing for months, but now there's 1000s of people yelling and talking.

Take it for what it is - all the animals are out there. It's their choice if they want to come hang out with you, just like at daytime.

I totally agree. You made an excellent point regarding the silhouettes of the animals.

Also rode last night, and I have to say that, while most other things were fine, they need improved lighting on the Kopi (Lions) as our guide managed to mistake two of the three lions for rocks. Overall a unique experience, and that sunset and moonlighting was great. Also side note, this was the first time that I did not see crocodiles in the safari. :-/

LOL. I would love to see something like that on the night safari. Thanks for your review! @danlb_2000 - ^^^ here you go. LOL.

 

[Rider]

Just did the night safari and in line for it again. Saw pretty much all the animals except black rhinos and cheetahs.(edit: Saw cheetah on the second ride)

A few places could be lit better but in general it was good enough to be light enough to see but not too light as to defeat the purpose.

Also the sunset effect is really cool. I don't think any pictures or video will be able to capture it but it looks like a real sky with various layers of color. Very convincing.

 

[Cletus]

Bright light! Bright light!!!!!

 

[Jones14]

1) The atmosphere of the safari is totally different. The focus is on quiet observation, and it is very, very effective. It's even less theme park-y than the daytime one, and the experience is solid and unique enough for me to consider riding once each per visit to the park.

2) Some areas are very dark, but I liked the lighting throughout. It seems like the levels are adjusted to the comfort of the animals, and I agree that when you round the corner and see the "sunset", it's beautiful.

3) The safari is shorter in length, but the trucks move much more slowly, so time-wise, it feels to be about the same length.

Overall, it's a much more gentle, intimate experience, and is certainly a highlight of the nighttime offerings.

 

[Siren]

1) The atmosphere of the safari is totally different. The focus is on quiet observation, and it is very, very effective. It's even less theme park-y than the daytime one, and the experience is solid and unique enough for me to consider riding once each per visit to the park.

2) Some areas are very dark, but I liked the lighting throughout. It seems like the levels are adjusted to the comfort of the animals, and I agree that when you round the corner and see the "sunset", it's beautiful.

3) The safari is shorter in length, but the trucks move much more slowly, so time-wise, it feels to be about the same length.

Overall, it's a much more gentle, intimate experience, and is certainly a highlight of the nighttime offerings.

Thanks so much for this detailed review. This is the one of the best reviews I've read and most of them have been positive. I am so excited and cannot wait to experience the Night Safari -- just seeing the lions at night has to be a little scary but that's what makes it fun, too.

 

[danlb_2000]

Really, Dan? Um, no -- I don't feel like it.
.

Ah, ok, so these reviews don't really exist, got it.

 

[marni1971]

It does look like floodlit nighttime, but I am looking forward to trying it later this year.

 

[djkidkaz]

What is the nighttime spiel like?

 

[Rider]

It's not much different from the daytime version. Obviously the cast member mentions that its harder to see the animals in the dark but otherwise it's mostly the same facts about the animals.

One big difference is that they added recorded animal sounds in some of the transition areas. It's obviously fake but the driver talks about the sounds the animals make at night.

 

[Clyde Birdbrain]

We did the night safari last night and loved it. There were plenty of lights and we could see quite well. The driver was excellent (although he did almost drive us into the flamingo exhibit) and was able to point out many animals. We saw quite a few animals. The only thing I didn't like was the fake recorded animal sounds at the beginning. The fake sun was cool though.

We also did the safari at around 3:30pm and at that time the wait was only 15 minutes. We had a FastPass for 9:20pm and at that time the wait was 75 minutes. So it was interesting so see that many guests were waiting for the night time version.

 

[fillerup]

A question for those of you who've ridden the night safari. Did you experience any problems with guests doing flash photography or did the CMs request that flash not be used?

 

[oceanbreeze77]

A question for those of you who've ridden the night safari. Did you experience any problems with guests doing flash photography or did the CMs request that flash not be used?

No flash allowed.

 

[Clyde Birdbrain]

A question for those of you who've ridden the night safari. Did you experience any problems with guests doing flash photography or did the CMs request that flash not be used?

Our driver mentioned it right at the beginning. He said to not use flash because the animals don't like it and he doesn't like it. People were taking pictures, but I didn't see any flashes.

 

[Matt_Black]

And many smart phone cameras now have a feature where you can adjust the exposure, so often you don't need the flash to get a decent night picture.

 

[fillerup]

Thanks for the replies. Good to know they have a no-flash policy but I'm sure it's going to happen from time to time. The rules simply don't apply to everyone.