Animal Kingdom falls short

[RollTideMickey]

I am not saying AK is a boring park by any means. I think it needs more attractions, it seems like it is missing something. Yes I know it's more about observing the animals and taking in the scenery. The problem I have is I can see and ride everything in a little more than half a day or so. Does anyone else agree that it needs more of something (attractions,shows, or more trails to wonder)? Or am I just completely wrong??

[zippitydoodah]

While I think it could use something new (hey, I'm game for something new in ANY park) I've done two full days at AK on a trip before, easy. I find it much easier to fill my time than at the studios!

However, if you were someone that didn't like parades or the two shows they have there (they're all musts for me) I guess that takes out a big chunk of the day. I've also had dinner at Yak and Yeti before (yum!) which takes up more time I guess. But... even then I can spend a full day there, those things all just warrant the second day for me

[lilo88]

AK is definitely just a half day park for me, although I'd like to try to explore a bit more.

[HauntedGabe]

Yes.

I enjoy it but it lacks the Big Draws. We give it generally 4 hours. We were there when the AK originally opened. As we departed CM-Suits met us for our opinion and why we left so early. We did the Safari, Tree, boats were down (now gone) little A/C. At least restaurants and stores are now fitted with A/C. Suits said it was the Jungle theme. No A/C in the Jungle. Boy they missed the mark on that one.

It is a hard park with children too old for strollers yet too small for big ticket attractions. Everything is far apart. No train to hop or boats for tired legs to get from one side to the other. The walk to get to the entrance to the Bug/Tree, yikes.

I believe it was imagineered to linger and soak in the tranquil parts of the park. Most do not have that luxury of time. WDW costs a fortune and we all try to make the most of our time. Linger time just isn't there for most of us. So we hit the main attractions and move on. There are not that many so a half a day is it.

[heatherhy01]

AK has always been a half a day park for us. We hit the major attractions and then leave. Our family is not crazy about this park. We like the studios much better.

[tmbcole]

AK is one of my favorites and we can easily find enough to do for an entire day. We only stay four days at a time, so one park per day. AK has the safari, Rafiki's planet watch, everest, restaurants, shows, parades, the tree of life, etc. If you're looking for more information or would like to try something new, try one of the tours.

There is so much to do and see. It's never boring for us.

[supernova]

AK has been a half-day park for me since it opened. Usually I'll go to AK in the morning/early afternoon, then head to the Studios, Disney's other official half-day park, for the rest of the day.

[DisneyGuy87]

I think Animal Kingdom is the greatest! I can easily fill a day in the park experiencing all it has to offer. I think you have to be willing to take it all in and really enjoy the detail and everything it has to offer. Plus a few rides past the Yeti never hurts :-)

[LordQx4]

Animal Kingdom has always been a near full day for me and my wife, because its her favorite park. We tend to take it easy in the park and make sure we go on the Kilimanjaro Safari twice (once at park opening and another at park closing) and usually find ourselves eating most of the time we are there, so we do a lot of sitting around.

We can never pass up the Jalepeno Cheese Pretzels, the Pulled Pork sandwhiches (at flame Tree), or an ice cream at some point. We usually get a dino leg or two as well.

Another thing that takes up a lot of our time is that we always go to meet the characters when ever we see them as well as hit most of the shows like Nemo and Lion King.

The other thing I love about this park is the design and the time they put into it. Joe Rohde did a wonderful job here. Every time I go to the AK park I always find something new.

[edwardsfire]

I think you are wrong.
A.K. is only a half day park if you skip things. All in all, it is a fabulous park.
We DO only say a half day at times....but we also stay the entire day and see what there is to see.
I consider it to be a full day park, I dont think it is missing something.
I find there is much more "to do" than The Studios. (i also enjoy the studios) but it, to me, is more of a half day park than A.K.

[NC_WDW_Daddy]

I think it depends on how much time you spend observing all the wildlife and not just the attractions. For an animal lover, you can spend all day and skip most of the rides while still having a full day.

[the7thAve]

We definitely spend a full day there. We love the atmosphere and we love all of the attractions and shows. We also take our time on the walking trails and take our time eating at places like the Donald Duck breakfast and Yak'n Yeti. In fact, we usually schedule 2 full days at the AK nd only one full day at the Studios.

[TTAfanatic]

I could spend at least 2 days of a trip exploring Animal Kingdom. Out of all the parks, this one barely nudges out World Showcase as best themed park in my opinion. While MK, Studios, and Future World seem very theme-parky to me, AK has so much vegatation and theming that I could spend countless hours exploring without even taking in an attraction. But I do agree that it is not as kid friendly as other parks.

[williams]

Animal Kingdome is really a beautiful and has huge attractions variety but it is absolutely true that it needs more attractions variety. I have lots of tours and now I want to see something changed in our next AK’s tour.

Best Regards,

[elvistelth]

I've never spent more than 5 hours at AK. If you are the wander around, sit on a bench and relax type tourist you probably love it there. But, if you are the run to each ride, time is money type, not so much.