Get Wild: Celebrating Animal Kingdom’s Roarin’ Twenty

Disney’s Animal Kingdom roared into its twentieth birthday on Earth Day this week. That makes it the youngest of the Disney theme parks in Orlando, but it’s definitely not the smallest. At 580 acres, Animal Kingdom covers roughly more land area than its three sibling parks combined. More than ten million people explore this sprawling, natural playground each year. The park’s proximity to a certain nearby castle may impact attendence, but there’s a lot to like about Animal Kingdom on its own. Today’s post celebrates Animal Kingdom’s 2018 milestone with eight things to LOVE about Disney’s wildest park.

(1) Tree of Life

Similar to Cinderella’s castle at Magic Kingdom, the incredible Tree of Life serves as the icon for Animal Kingdom. This beautiful, man-made tree welcomes guests into the park and serves as the anchor for Animal Kingdom’s layout and overall theme. It really is a work of art and it’s lovely to view from every angle.

From a distance, it looks like a massive tree with twisted branches and thousands of leaves. A closer look reveals dozens of animals carved into its trunk and lower branches. Some days it reminds me of those old picture-finding games in Highlights.

Speaking of lights, Disney added thousands of them to the tree last year, making The Tree of Life spectacular at night too.

(2) Tusker House

Not quite on the same scale as the Tree of Life, but perhaps more fun (and filling!) is Animal Kingdom’s Tusker House restaurant. This buffet-styled restaurant tucked into the Africa section of the park features breakfast, lunch and dinner. Guests are greeted by Mickey, Donald, Daisy and Goofy in fantastic safari attire. The buffet features standard fare for each meal, along with some unique, African-inspired offerings for those slightly more adventurous.

It can get a little loud (and wild?) depending on where you’re seated, but it’s an entertaining restaurant and a great place to meet the classic Disney characters at Animal Kingdom.

(3) The Boneyard

Speaking of wild and loud, the Boneyard play area is a massive park for kids in the quirky Dinoland portion of Animal Kingdom. Yes, it’s kind of like a playground at home, but like most things Disney it’s bigger and better themed. Kids can climb through fossilized caves, slide down three-story tubes and dig for dinosaur fossils in a giant gravel pit. The area is large, but fenced in with Disney staff, so you don’t have to worry about your little ones wandering too far. It’s an awesome break from standing in line for the kids, and a welcome reprieve for parents. The silly soundtrack in the space adds to the fun with themed-appropriate songs like Everybody Do the Dinosaur! and It’s the End of the World as We Know It.

(4) Unique character meetings

Another thing to love about Animal Kingdom is the unique character meetings. You can still find Mickey and friends at the park as I mentioned above, but there are also wildlife-related characters you can’t find at the other three parks. Examples include Pocahontas, Flik, Rafiki, Baloo and King Louie. Sometimes you can meet Russell and Doug from Up! too. These character meetings tend to change rather frequently, so if you’ve got your heart set on one of them, make sure to check the schedule first!

 

(5) Live Shows

So this may be cheating a bit because I’m including two live shows as one feature on my list. Finding Nemo: The Musical and The Festival of the Lion King are both incredible productions. Finding Nemo features new music and elaborate puppets that swim, fly and glide across the stage. I’m not even sure it’s fair to call the props “puppets” because they are way more elaborate than the mental images that particular word tends to evoke. It’s really more like a moving piece of art with dramatic lighting, bright colors and thousands of well-coordinated pieces.

The Festival of the Lion King is a treat in a different way. This retelling of the classic Lion King story offers massive animatronics, audience participation and the well-loved soundtrack. If that’s not enough, Disney threw in some crazy gymnastics and broadway-caliber voices too.

See why I included both? It’s too hard to choose a favorite.

Both shows perform in massive auditoriums that accommodate hundreds of guests, so seating isn’t typically a problem. They are also both great ways to beat the heat or the rain during your adventurous day at Animal Kingdom.

(6) Kilaminjaro Safari

Speaking of adventure, the Kilimanjaro Safari ride is yet another reason to love Animal Kingdom. Guests climb aboard open-air jeep-like vehicles and search for wildlife among the grassy plains and muddy river banks. It’s educational and fun and captures the mood of Animal Kingdom better than any other ride in the park.

Featured animals include lions, hippopotamus and giraffes, to name a few. I love how you can see different animals on each trip, particularly with the new night version added last year. The simulated sunset during the evening rides is impressive.

(7) Expedition Everest

Another thing to LOVE about Animal Kingdom is Expedition Everest. This fantastically-themed roller coaster is truly a treat from beginning to end. Guests wait in thoughtfully designed areas that resemble a mountain climbers’ outpost and Yeti museum. The roller coaster itself climbs, dips and twists through a simulated Mt. Everest, sometimes traveling backward. The top of the coaster offers a quick view of the other Disney parks nearby and the end of the ride features an even quicker encounter with the Yeti itself.

Everest also offers a single-rider line. So if you’re traveling with a bunch of chickens adventure-adverse companions, you can start your quest with minimum wait. It’s also a great option for parents traveling with small kids, since one parent can ride while the other maintains stroller duty. Screaming on roller coasters is fun, even when surrounded by strangers.

 

(8) Pandora: World of Avatar

You knew this would be on the list, right? Disney World opened Pandora: World of Avatar last year and fans have been flocking to it (pun intended!) ever since. I’m curious to see just how big a bump the park experienced in attendance when the numbers are available later this year.

Until then, does it deserve the hype? In my opinion, yes. This new space complements the park’s overall theme and takes Animal Kingdom to a whole new level. The Na’vi River Journey is a relaxing coast through a bioluminescent forrest. The Flight of Passage is a crazy cool adventure ride that easily tops my list of Disney favorites. You can read my expanded thoughts on the new land in my previous post, but overall, Pandora is definitely something to LOVE about Animal Kingdom.

And that’s it. Eight things to love about Disney’s Animal Kingdom as we celebrate the park’s 20 year journey from 1998. I enjoyed revisiting the best of Animal Kingdom in this post. I hope that you did too.

Think something else should have made the list? Let me know in the comments below. Do you think James Cameron can get all those planned Avatar sequels completed by Animal Kingdom’s 40th anniversary? Feel free to let me know your thoughts on that too.

Add a little (wild) magic to your world!