Preface
Animal Kingdom has a lot to offer. I feel that it is underrated and spending one day in that park just isn’t enough time to get the full Animal Kingdom experience. One area of the park I’d like to give a special shout out to is Rafiki’s Planet Watch, which I consider a hidden gem. Rafiki’s Planet Watch is an area dedicated to the preservation and conservation of animals; features Disney World’s only petting zoo. There is a Conservation Station there where you can see and learn about how the park animals are taken care of. Brian and I discovered it during a previous visit while participating in a scavenger hunt. To get there, board the Wildlife Express Train in Harambe, Africa. It’s a peaceful 7-minute train ride. It almost feels like you’re leaving the park. If we hadn’t stopped by the Wilderness Explorers station near the entrance of Animal Kingdom, we never would’ve discovered this area. With the Wilderness Explorers, you, “Follow in the footsteps of Russell from the Disney·Pixar film Up as you earn adventure badges around the park. Self-guided activities range from animal observation to learning important wilderness skills. Collect over 25 badges and earn the right to echo the Wilderness Explorer call: Caw! Caw! Roar!” Brian and I completed it a few years back. Parker wasn’t even a year old yet and we were literally running, with the stroller, through Animal Kingdom trying to collect the badges before that park closed and we did it!
Day One: Animal kingdom
The last time my sister visited Animal Kingdom was when we were in high school which was approximately 22 years ago. A lot has changed, and we only had one day to spend in that park. Time was of the essence. I put on my custom mouse ears, courtesy of my mother-in-law (Gma), while Brian and the boys had on Hakuna Matata shirts. *While packing I hadn’t realized I was the only one without a Lion King theme shirt on but my outfit was Animal Kingdom appropriate regardless.* Finally, we loaded the van. It was a quick ride from the resort to the park and a quick walk from the parking lot to the entrance.
Before we could get to any rides or attractions, Lincoln noticed bubbles floating in the air. There was a stand outside of a shop with racks and racks of bubble makers. We were strapped for time and had no intentions of spending much of that time on meltdowns so sure, we can get a bubble maker for them to share. No big deal. Those bad boys were a whole $30 a pop! Yeah, they were going to be sharing…or so we thought. The minute we got Lincoln’s bubble maker set up Parker started up about wanting one. I figured he’d be alright once we made our way further into the park but my sister, who does NOT have patience for whining just yet, went to purchase Parker his own bubble maker. I told her she didn’t need to and offered to pay her back but she insisted. In hindsight, I’m glad she did because we took them to every park we went to and I can honestly say we got our money’s worth.
The first attraction of the day was Kilimanjaro Safaris in Africa. I feel like this is one of the major draws to Animal Kingdom. It was early and the wait wasn’t too long, maybe 45 minutes, and the boys enjoyed seeing the animals up close in real life. Parker had Brian’s Canon camera and captured some surprisingly good photos while Lincoln called out all of the animals he recognized. (Click here for gallery of Parker’s Safari photos) It ended up being Parker’s favorite attraction at that park. Afterward, we placed a mobile order for lunch at Flame Tree Barbecue located in Discovery Island. The outdoor seating area looked small from the thoroughfare but as we sat down to eat we noticed there was a lot more seating tucked away, some with waterside views. Depending on what time you decide to dine, you may be able to catch Disney’s new attraction KiteTails from Flame Tree’s covered pavilion on the water’s edge.
Continuing our adventure through Discovery Island, we caught It’s Tough to be a Bug which I’ve always enjoyed. It’s described as having “dazzling 3D movie effects, Audio-Animatronics figures and in-theater 4D surprise.” I thought the boys would find the 3D effect cool since they’ve never experienced anything like that before. I was wrong. I ended up leaving partway through with Lincoln, shortly after Brian left with Parker; I somehow managed to lose Brian and Parker along with everyone else.
Lincoln and I spent about half an hour or so circling the area trying to get a hold of either my sister or Brian. Neither was answering their phone so I eventually texted them both, stating that Lincoln and I would be posted up on the bridge leading to Asia. That would’ve been a good idea had it not been Lincoln’s nap time and he was getting agitated, so I kept moving; pacing back and forth on the bridge until someone called or texted me back. I eventually got a hold of Brian and his folks and then my sister called me shortly after that. I told her we were on our way to the Discovery River Amphitheater to catch a Kite Tails show, but she was over all of the commotions and decided to spend some time by herself in DinoLand U.S.A (DinoLand). I wasn’t even mad at her. She had a limited amount of time to sightsee, and she could move faster on her own.
KiteTails is described as, “larger-than-life kites and colorful props” that dance through the air over Discovery River so it’s kind of like a water show as well. Each show is themed to one of the Disney classics such as The Lion King or The Jungle Book. The show we caught was themed The Lion King. It was a nice break for the boys to safely get out of the stroller and stretch. It was also a nice break for mommy (me) to have a break and cool down with a cold beverage.
After KiteTails, and failing to make it to A Celebration of Festival of the Lion King on time, we met up with my sister on our way to DinoLand. Side note, if you’ve never experienced A Celebration of Festival of the Lion King, I highly recommend it. It’s, “a Broadway-style show filled with songs, pageantry and puppetry celebrating the classic movie, The Lion King.” It’s a 40-minute show and it’s worth catching so plan accordingly. I’ve seen it the last few times I’ve been to Disney and was hoping to experience it with the boys. Lincoln happened to fall asleep on the way there so it’s probably best we didn’t make it.
Anyhow, on our way to DinoLand, we stopped at the pin trading station next to an African drums set up. Of course, my sister and I took the time to hop on and drop our own beats. Not too much of a surprise, we attracted a crowd and I’m sure there is video and pictures of us floating around the internet somewhere. I was dressed as if I worked there so there is a good chance that other guests thought this was another show put on by “African Entertainers” in the park. I totally played the part by inviting other people up to play with us. After our set was over and I bowed and waved to the crowd I asked Brian did he get video. And wouldn’t you know? He said no! He at least captured a couple photos of our jam session. Nevertheless, we continued on to DinoLand, stopping once to take a picture with one of Brian’s many Doppelgängers he saw around that park wearing his exact same Hakuna Matata shirt.
DinoLand looked like a carnival. It seemed to be more the boys’ speed. My sister and I got on the Triceratops ride with Lincoln while Brian took Parker to the Boneyard. The Boneyard is a huge ropes and slides type playground. While it was great, that’s something we could do outside of Disney. I had wanted him to experience things that can only be done in Disney World which brings us to Pandora!
I’d been hyping up this section of the park all day because my sister had never been. It’s cool to see during the day because it actually looks like Pandora, from the movie Avatar, and it’s super cool to see at night because of all the faux bioluminescence lighting along the paths. We headed over there at dusk, so she got to see the floating mountains during the daylight. We headed straight to Avatar Flight of Passage.
If there was anything to experience in Pandora, it was this ride. It’s the ultimate 4D ride where you, the rider, are in the position of a Na’Vi riding on the back of a banshee. Talk about an experience! From the sprays of the ocean on your face to the rising and falling of the banshee’s body as it deeply breaths in the Pandoran air over a magical landscape. We were in line for more than an hour I believe, and it was the only ride we rode but it was so worth it. I rode it a second time with Brian using the Parent Swap option but in retrospect, I wish I would’ve let my sister take my second ride. It’s that cool of an experience. I was hoping we would’ve had time for the Na’vi River Journey which Brian rode with the boys but that will have to wait for our next visit.
As we made our way out of the park, we relished in the beauty of Pandora and walked through as many paths as we could. My in-laws were ahead of us and had the boys, fast asleep, in the stroller. Our evening actually ended at Disney Springs. Earlier in the evening Brian has promised Parker a trip to the Lego store so we all made our way over there for some late night shopping, dinner and special Disney Legos that look exactly like the Legos we have here at home.
Read about our second day in the parks at EPCOT
Read about our third day in the parks at Hollywood Studios
L. Bradley 