We don't talk about Animal Kingdom enough...

alissafalco

alissafalco

Well-Known Member
killzab said:
We should talk more about animal kingdom ...

People seem to complain all the time about Hollywood studios and Epcot but I think Animal Kingdom is the worst offender in WDW.

Seriously I don't know what's going on but the park is an empty shell right now .

If it wasn't for the animal expositions I couldn't stay in the park for more than a morning right now . Once you've done Kali and Everest , your day is basically over. First timers can push it to the late afternoon but not much more.

Animal is the biggest disappointment of my trip. No rivers of light , no Dinosaur , half working shows...

I did It's tough to be a bug today ... And half the effects were not working where my family and I were sitting. No water effect , no sting in the back , no cockroaches under our ***** , and the villain was cross eyed ( don't remember his name).

Pandora is not going to be enough to make it a full park. It will definitely help. But as long as Dinoland remains this shameful area ...

I don't get how you can mess up dinosaurs so much . So many possibilities ... In such a beautifully themed park and that is the best they could do ?

The Fun fair zone needs to be destroyed ASAP.


So many people seem focused on Epcot right now ... When it still has a bunch of good rides. And as long as it has the world showcase , it will remain amazing.
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Wow, Ak is beautiful and the shows are outstanding (Lion King & Nemo). Maybe next time stop running from E ticket to E ticket, and walk, and observe your beautiful surroundings.
 
M

Minnie Mum

Well-Known Member
Just popped over to the DISboards, and I see the OP ( a brand new poster over there) has posted an identical thread. And is getting the same kind of (mostly polite) smack down as he is here.

I'll repeat the advise of a poster on that other thread : There is no law that states that every park has to appeal to every guest. This park obviously isn't for you. In the future, double down on a park that you DO like.
 
Hakunamatata

Hakunamatata

Le Meh
Premium Member
Minnie Mum said:
Just popped over to the DISboards, and I see the OP ( a brand new poster over there) has posted an identical thread. And is getting the same kind of (mostly polite) smack down as he is here.

I'll repeat the advise of a poster on that other thread : There is no law that states that every park has to appeal to every guest. This park obviously isn't for you. In the future, double down on a park that you DO like.
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So the OP is a troll. Figures.
 
S

Siren

Well-Known Member
killzab said:
But I don't hate the park. The potential is there but maintenance is bad and the park lacks rides. Pandora will help but they need to keep building .
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Hi @killzab! I'm glad that you don't hate AK. But, your original post is totally unfair, IMO. The issues you mentioned can and do happen at literally every theme park.

One year at DHS, we did the F! dining package at Mama Melrose and then sat there in the F! theater doing the wave like all night until it was cancelled due to technical difficulties and TSM was down for a refurb.

And, one time we went to Epcot -- Test Track was closed for refurb and Soarin' was down, but at least we got to ride Living w/the Land.

At MK, both Splash Mountain and BTM was down and the Goofy coaster was closed for a refurb. MSEP was cancelled and we were kicked off the train in the rain all the way back in Frontierland because it was lightning.

Also, all of this happened on different trips not all at once. LOL. But, notice how I do not fault or criticize the whole park for that.

I just don't think you are being fair to AK -- it is more than just rides. You made no mention of the animals and trails, which make up a significant part of the experience there and is totally worth it for me. If you just want to ride EE and Dinosaur and bounce then you will be disappointed.

You just have to be patient and wait until Disney is finished ROL and Avatarland. Then they will address the other maintenance issues, some of which sounds like a fluke anyway. It happens.

And, I totally agree that Pandora is not enough but it is great start. DHS is next. And, then Epcot Future World is getting a much needed $3 Billion dollar overhaul.
 
K

killzab

New Member
Original Poster
Siren said:
Hi @killzab! I'm glad that you don't hate AK. But, your original post is totally unfair, IMO. The issues you mentioned can and do happen at literally every theme park.

One year at DHS, we did the F! dining package at Mama Melrose and then sat there in the F! theater doing the wave like all night until it was cancelled due to technical difficulties and TSM was down for a refurb.

And, one time we went to Epcot -- Test Track was closed for refurb and Soarin' was down, but at least we got to ride Living w/the Land.

At MK, both Splash Mountain and BTM was down and the Goofy coaster was closed for a refurb. MSEP was cancelled and we were kicked off the train in the rain all the way back in Frontierland because it was lightning.

Also, all of this happened on different trips not all at once. LOL. But, notice how I do not fault or criticize the whole park for that.

I just don't think you are being fair to AK -- it is more than just rides. You made no mention of the animals and trails, which make up a significant part of the experience there and is totally worth it for me. If you just want to ride EE and Dinosaur and bounce then you will be disappointed.

You just have to be patient and wait until Disney is finished ROL and Avatarland. Then they will address the other maintenance issues, some of which sounds like a fluke anyway. It happens.

And, I totally agree that Pandora is not enough but it is great start. DHS is next. And, then Epcot Future World is getting a much needed $3 Billion dollar overhaul.
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Thank you for your well argued post.

My ultimate point was that Animal Kingdom should be much more of a priority from enhancement than Epcot which I think is just fine. Not amazing but fine.

But once you've gone to animal kingdom a couple times and know it well . There isn't much to do.
 
Fox&Hound

Fox&Hound

Well-Known Member
I think when the Avatar boat ride, Avatar flight of passage, and ROL come in board and guests are enjoying the park in the late evening it will change the park experience dramatically. When Avatar is open you will have Everest, Dinosaur, Safaari, both Avatar rides, and for water enthusiasts, the rapids ride as the "must do" rides. Then you have awesome shows like Lion King and Nemo and the 4D show Tough to be a Bug. That makes no mention of the animal trails, tree of life awakenings, and ROL. And, ya gotta eat :)

For me, I would love to see Chester and Hester get replaced with something of higher quality and a few more characters to meet or a parade.

I cannot wait to experience this new park!!!!!
 
W

wdwfan4ver

Well-Known Member
I already know AK needs a couple more rides after Avatar, but its not as bad shape as DHS and Epcot.

I have to give Disney credit for adding food places to AK because that park needed more options unlike Epcot right now. The nature of AK is different than MK. AK to me is part zoo and part theme park. The fact is live Animals are part of the attraction department for AK.

The fact is DHS was a major problem spot that just doing Star Wars Land and Toy Story Land isn't enough to fix. The truth is Disney waited way too long for adding more Pixar to the park after Toy Story Midway Mania. The Animation Courtyard has issues that need to be addressed, The Indiana Jones area needs to be addressed, Voyage of the little Mermad and Beauty and the Beast Live on stage needs to addressed in terms of updating or replacing.

While I have no problems doing over a day at Epcot, it has more problems than AK does if you really look at Future World and is why Disney is going to do some changes there soon.

Imagination Pavilion is a problem and that doesn't even count the floor tile problem in image works. Universal of Energy, Innoventions and the Wonders of Life building are problems for Epcot. I do understand the complain of World Showcase not having enough rides despite it not being a concern or a complain of mine.
 
AEfx

AEfx

Well-Known Member
Derrit said:
The animal exhibits in Animal Kingdom is the main draw to the park.
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Which is why it's so lackluster and failed in it's purpose to draw more visitors to WDW (it did not, it simply spread guests out more).

There are many regional zoos all around the nation (and internationally) that have far superior animal viewing experiences. They may not be as themed for the human benefit, but when you look at actual animal experiences for the most part the ones at DAK are actually quite pathetic in comparison.
 
W

wdwfan4ver

Well-Known Member
killzab said:
Except I knew dinosaur would be down the first week I was there and planned accordingly . But then they extended the refurb and it ruined the second day I planned there.They expect us to plan 6 months in advance but can't commit to their own plans .
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Here is the thing. Maintenance is something that could take longer than expected due to stuff running into a problem that they didn't expect. That hold true with any type of maintenance.

I understand the frustration, but that is the chance you take for doing ADRS 6 months back. Fastpass plus goes, that is on you if you book them. In October on a week day, AK shouldn't be busy a first place.

I went to AK 2 times during my latest trip and that was in the late August to labor day time frame and not doing Fastpass plus wasn't a mistake over there since Kids already were back in school.
 
K

killzab

New Member
Original Poster
wdwfan4ver said:
Here is the thing. Maintenance is something that could take longer than expected due to stuff running into a problem that they didn't expect. That hold true with any type of maintenance.

I understand the frustration, but that is the chance you take for doing ADRS 6 months back. Fastpass plus goes, that is on you if you book them. In October on a week day, AK shouldn't be busy a first place.

I went to AK 2 times during my latest trip and that was in the late August to labor day time frame and not doing Fastpass plus wasn't a mistake over there since Kids already were back in school.
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It's on me that Disney forces me to book in advance if I want to have the slightest chance of dining or doing the ride I want ?!

And the parks are PACKED at the moment .
 
Dead2009

Dead2009

Horror Movie Guru
killzab said:
Except I knew dinosaur would be down the first week I was there and planned accordingly . But then they extended the refurb and it ruined the second day I planned there.They expect us to plan 6 months in advance but can't commit to their own plans .
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Because you're planning a vacation and they're fixing up the attraction. It's not the same thing.
 
S

Siren

Well-Known Member
killzab said:
Thank you for your well argued post.

My ultimate point was that Animal Kingdom should be much more of a priority from enhancement than Epcot which I think is just fine. Not amazing but fine.

But once you've gone to animal kingdom a couple times and know it well . There isn't much to do.
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Thank you for the kind words. You have also argued your points very well, so there is a lot that I agree with.

With that said, AK opened in 1998 and Epcot opened in 1982. So, your argument is akin to comparing an 18 year old to a 34 year old. It's totally unfair. You have to give this park a chance to grow and I'm sure Disney will add more later.

DHS is just one mess of a park. And, so is Epcot Future World. I like that Disney is spreading all of the improvements around instead of just at one park, all at once.

I'm confident Disney will come back to AK -- it is the largest of the parks and has the most land -- so, there are lots of possibilities for growth and expansion.

And, I don't know if I agree that there isn't much to do at AK. I might have to compare parks later to see if this is even true.
 
K

killzab

New Member
Original Poster
Dead2009 said:
So Disney has to open an attraction halfway through it's refurb because of when you booked your week?
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They announced dates for their refurb. It was supposed to be running again this week and I planned a day at AK with a fastpass for the ride. They failed to finish their refurb on time . Their fault .
 
ajkraz

ajkraz

Member
killzab said:
They announced dates for their refurb. It was supposed to be running again this week and I planned a day at AK with a fastpass for the ride. They failed to finish their refurb on time . Their fault .
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That ride breaks down all the time, would you like to be put in their shoes to try and fix the unfixable
 

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