Overlooked Animal Kingdom!

[littleroo]

Love AK! Great with the kids! Always something to see!

 

[Kev1417]

Amazingly themed park.......however, in the end it's still just a zoo. Which any major city has. People come to Orlando for the rides/attractions that they can't get at home. Heck the local zoos have MORE species of animals to see than AK. They need more rides and to stay open later. That is what most people come to Disney for.

 

[PolynesianPrincess]

My family loves AK. We always dedicate a full day there and STILL don't get to see everything we want to. This past trip we had to skip Flights of Wonder, Kali River Rapids (which we never do anyway) and taking the train to Rafiki's Planet Watch. We did however ride the safari twice, EE 5 times, saw Nemo, FOTLK and Bugs Life. Rode Dinosaur once.. Did the Pooh and friends M&G as well as the character trails with Chip N Dale, Baloo and Louie, Donald and met Daisy who was doing a random meet and greet there. Oh and did some fun Bollywood dancing! We were there at about 9:30am and rode the last safari of the day, so we closed the park at 7pm. For some it's a half day park because they don't enjoy everything about the park. For others, like us, it's a full day and then some.

 

[SPMTCP2003]

Amazingly themed park.......however, in the end it's still just a zoo. Which any major city has. People come to Orlando for the rides/attractions that they can't get at home. Heck the local zoos have MORE species of animals to see than AK. They need more rides and to stay open later. That is what most people come to Disney for.

I see what you're saying, but I guess I view it just a bit differently. To me, the park itself is the biggest attraction. It's the perspective, the escape, the feeling like you are a part of the wildlife, and the adventure. I'm a sap for all the little details, not just the big rides. I think that's what helps AK to stand out among the other parks that do cater to the ride junkies a bit more (not to say the other parks aren't just as wonderfully detailed themselves). To each their own, I suppose!

 

[Kev1417]

If you are a regular visitor you can admire the details. If you only go once every few years you want to experience more than details. Why can't you have the amazing details and the things that drive people to the park, i.e. rides? People don't want to spend $100 person to go to a zoo. Just my opinion. I really like the park, but i can totally see why people say it's not a full day park.

 

[SPMTCP2003]

If you are a regular visitor you can admire the details. If you only go once every few years you want to experience more than details. Why can't you have the amazing details and the things that drive people to the park, i.e. rides? People don't want to spend $100 person to go to a zoo. Just my opinion. I really like the park, but i can totally see why people say it's not a full day park.

Now that's a good point. I often forget to look at it from the perspective of non-regular guests!

 

[The Sorcerers Aprentice]

I love the Animal Kingdoms theming. Now if only there were more rides to go with all of the theming.

 

[JiminyandTink]

I love DAK, it's definitely the most relaxing park for me (it almost forces you to slow down a bit). That being said, I still probably rank it last on my list of WDW parks, but it's really like choosing between your kids for a pixie-duster like myself.

 

[Kitchandro]

Animal Kingdom is amazing.

I think some people who go to Disney a lot are spoiled tbh. They should try going to Alton Towers which is probably our best theme park in England. It just doesn't even compare. Sure, a few of the rides are very good but the theming and feel of the place is, in the main, non-existant. And the queues are not only so much more boring but they're often much slower, so you're in a massive rush to get everything done. And it's not at all cheap.

I don't think some people realise how lucky they are to be able to go to Disney World so often. I can't believe some of the stick Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios get on here.

 

[Florida_is_hot]

I went for four days a few weeks ago.

1. Magic Kingdom
2. Epcot

Most of my time.

One afternoon took the boat from Epcot to Hollywood Studios.
My last day I realized, missed many shows, Tower of Terror and Rock n Roll roller coaster, so I went back to Hollywood Studios.

Did miss Disney's Animal Kingdom altogether and have no regrets.

Now a friend asked me about Disney's Animal Kingdom and said yes you need to go...... he never been to the park. I been to the park and I decided until they add something or I have lots of spare time Disney's Animal Kingdom is the park I miss.

 

[Kitchandro]

We love DAK. Always baffles me when someone says it is a half day park.

Everytime I go I always go back for an extra half day after I've already spent a whole one there. Of course I ride Dinosaur 25 times and sit in the Rainforest Cafe for 2 hours just soaking up the atmosphere and trying to finish a volcano, but still.

But really, some people really need to learn to appreciate the theming and the way you feel when you're in these parks. I could just sit around soaking it all up for the whole day. It's not about rushing to the next ride ASAP and only riding them all once.

In fact my regrets about Florida all revolve around not appreciating it all enough. I wish I'd spent more time in the Africa section, or walked slower through Main Street, or looked around every country at Epcot more closely. Sometimes I even wish the queue wouldn't move so quickly because there's so much to see. The Tree of Life is a good example of that.

In any case, there are some great attractions at Animal Kingdom, some of the best.

 

[BryceM]

I can make a full day out of Animal Kingdom. I usually do all the main trails, ride Kilamanjaro Safaris, ride DINOSAUR about 2-4 times, Expedition Everest 2-4 times, do Kali River Rapids and then see a show. Next time I'm going to focus less on riding DINOSAUR and Everest multiple times and take time to explore areas of the park I haven't seen before.

I think Africa and Asia are two of the best themed lands out there. Though I feel like they could've done a little better with the Oasis.

 

[Kitchandro]

If you are a regular visitor you can admire the details. If you only go once every few years you want to experience more than details. Why can't you have the amazing details and the things that drive people to the park, i.e. rides? People don't want to spend $100 person to go to a zoo. Just my opinion. I really like the park, but i can totally see why people say it's not a full day park.

As I've written above, I see it the other way around. I'm not a regular visitor and that might be why I appreciate it's theming so much.

To me the Disney parks (and the Universal ones, tbf) should be treated differently to other theme parks. Like the example I mentioned - when I go to Alton Towers we rush to the rides and that's what it's about. And that's because the park doesn't have a theme. It's literally just an old park that they've added rides to.

But if I was bringing my friends to Disney I'd explain to them what it means to me and what to expect. If you're just going for the rides you'll enjoy it but you won't fully appreciate it.

I dunno, maybe it's just a childhood memory kind of thing, or maybe I'm just a bit too in touch with my feminine side. But I think it's a bit sad that some people only appreciate the Disney parks on such a basic level.

 

[Tom Morrow]

I think Africa and Asia are two of the best themed lands out there. Though I feel like they could've done a little better with the Oasis.

I disagree on the Oasis. The whole point of it is to give the illusion of leaving civilization behind and traveling through dense wilderness until you emerge to the dramatic reveal of the Tree of Life, which I think it accomplishes perfectly.

 

[RedBaron]

I love DAK, but I still rate it 3rd on my list. Here is my reasoning. If I only had 1 day to spend at the parks, I would have a tough time choosing between Epcot and MK since I love both equal. If I had 2 days I would go to both of those parks. If I had 3 days, Animal Kingdom would be day 3. If I had 4 days I still would not go to the Hollywood Studios, but have to decide if I wanted to go to Epcot or MK again. I cant wait to take the kids for their fist time to DAK in August since I think they will really like it. I am lucky to have a really great zoo nearby and we can easily spend 6 hours there and we have a yearly membership so we go quite a bit. This is why I am so surprised that people say that they can be in and out of DAK in a few hours. What do you do at your local zoo for the day? Spend an hour and leave? DAK has so much to offer above your average zoo.

 

[pluto77]

I also love Animal Kingdom. I really think it's the best themed park, out side of maybe Chester & Heater's. This park is definitely a park to take slow and enjoy the finer details, which I regret not doing on this last trip.

If you are a regular visitor you can admire the details. If you only go once every few years you want to experience more than details. Why can't you have the amazing details and the things that drive people to the park, i.e. rides? People don't want to spend $100 person to go to a zoo. Just my opinion. I really like the park, but i can totally see why people say it's not a full day park.

To me, I go to Disney because of the amazing details. If I just wanted rides I could simply drive to Cedar Point Ohio. In fact, the thing I most regret about my last trip is not taking the time to slow down and enjoy the simpler things. And I did miss some attractions that I wanted to go on. But I understand everyone is different.

I definitely do agree that it could use a few more attractions though.

 

[lunchbox1175]

I am not an animal lover, nor do I really have any interest in seeing them or any shows for that matter, so AK for me is a short trip, but I am glad that it provides so many other people with great memories and excitement. But this is a good thing for others as it means one less person in the park.

 

[bethymouse]

I do like AK, but if I only had a few days in the parks, I'd spend my time @ EPCOT and MK. That's just me. Otherwise, I like to visit all 4 parks when I'm there.

 

[Dragonrider1227]

Fair enough. I know when we have a limited time in the world, we usually just do Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. 'Cause Animal Kingdom is cool and all but it doesn't have a 3D Star Wars or Toy Story ride

 

[BryceM]

I do like AK, but if I only had a few days in the parks, I'd spend my time @ EPCOT and MK. That's just me. Otherwise, I like to visit all 4 parks when I'm there.

I agree. EPCOT and Magic Kingdom are definitely the major draws for me. If I go down to Disney for just the day, or for two, it'd be either EPCOT or Magic Kingdom, or both EPCOT and Magic Kingdom.