How long do you visit AK?

[TikiGoddess]

Hi all,

Here's my dilemma -- for our next trip I'm trying to decide whether we should visit AK in the morning or the afternoon. We only have a 1/2 day to visit.

So in the interests of research:
What hours are you normally in the park? When do you get there? When do you leave? Do you stay for the parade?

Thanks!!
TikiG

[mttafire]

For us A.K. IS a 1/2 day park. We get there when it opens and almost always leave at or around 2pm. That leaves the rest of the day for...REST at the pool. A.K. is our mid trip park of choice.:thumbsup:

[LudwigVonDrake]

I haven't been there since Everest opened but usually it's a half day park :mickey:

[SBETigg]

We've always gone at opening time in the morning and we've been done by around three.
We do fit in most attractions and trails, with repeats of a few, but this was pre-Everest and we never do the Lion King or pay attention to parades.

It was a 1/2 day park for us, but for our next vacation, we have scheduled two half days at AK. We all loved it so much last time that it's worth a second visit for us now. We've decreased our time at Studios, as we find there is less and less of interest to us there.

[Jen66]

I really love it, so I always schedule at least a morning and an evening. But, if I only had a half day, I wold do morning as soon as the rope drops!

[Jared]

With each passing trip we spend more time at Animal Kingdom. My mother, sister and I were at the park until nearly 5 p.m. Friday.

Although Expedition Everest is a major draw, the other attractions are truly spectacular. Finding Nemo- The Musical is almost as great as Festival of the Lion King.

But if you only have a half-day allotted for Animal Kingdom, go in the morning when the animals are more active at Kilimanjaro Safaris.

[Davyjones]

My wife and I always spend the entire day at AK. We go right as they are opening; if not, we are waiting in line for it to open. We are nature people and we take our time in the park. We'll see everything and read everything! We enjoy it all!

[lindique]

I have found myself spending more time at the Animal Kingdom than I used to, as they have added more rides and shows that I am interested in seeing. The Finding Nemo show is excellent and well worth seeing, IMO. I also found that I enjoy the 2 walking paths (the one in Asia I like slightly better). The landscaping and "ruins" are incredibly done. And I never miss the Lion King show.

[BritCody]

We always go for when the park opens. We leave shortly after 4:00 and go to Chef Mickey's for dinner. After dinner we head onto the MK

[psychotekkie]

You should probably do some research into what attractions there are before you decide. You can easily spend a whole day in this park, but it depends if you are into all the attractions and if you have kids and whatever other factors there may be. Last my family of 4 spent the whole day there and still didn't manage to get to dinoland at all.

This year we have a limited number of days at Disney so we could have done a 1/2 day AK and 1/2 day MGM, but I hate to feel rushed in a park. So instead we will just do one or the other.

[Seasonscraps]

We usually get there early for an EMH morning and leave around lunchtime unless we go to a show in which case it will be around 2.

[MinnieMommie]

We always get to AK as soon as they open and EMH (morning) is even better. We are literally there at the rope when it opens and follow a stategic plan for the day. We usually spend around 5 hrs at AK and do not do everything every time we visit (not all the shows and walking paths but get in all the rides at least one time and some of the shows and walking paths). You will have a long wait at EE and KS if you don't catch them 1st thing so I recommend making them a priority if you plan on experiencing each without a very long wait. :mickey:

[kgoulash]

another vote for the morning, k safari is better then imo

[merlinmagic4]

Last visit we arrived at opening and left around four for AKL and dinner at Boma. I have to say, we weren't ready to leave and missed some things we really wanted to do (Lion King show for one). If you only have a half day, I would most definitely go in the morning. The safari really was great!

[Raye3201]

And yet another vote for the morning! We try to get there as early as possible, fast pass the safari ride (or walk right on depending on the season) and then take our time looking at the animals and enjoying the music. DS(6) loves the drums that he gets to practice on and DD(8) loves all the exotic animals.
:mickey:

[Sean Riley Taylor's Mom]

We spend 1 1/2 days at AK each year. We have really grown to love it!!

I agree with the others, if you can only spend a short amount of time there, try and go in the morning.

[BrowncatP]

I spent the entire day at AK, and still missed a few things. I did go on EE twice, with the second time waiting in line of 30 min. I went at the end of September before Nemo opened. I do recommend for those having a full day to ride the Safari twice. Once early in the day, and then later in the afternoon. The animals move around, and your driver changes too.

[kakn7294]

We usually spend 1 full day and still miss some stuff. If you only have half a day to spend there, go in the morning. Try to hit an am EMH day if you can. We've never managed to see the parade although I would like to.

[Darbylew]

Most of the time we spend and entire day at
AK. It is a lot to see and do there. At times we
have left before it closed but not very often.
We like AK very much. :thumbsup:
BEEN THERE, DONE THAT AND GOING BACK
MAY 29! JUST TWO DAYS FROM NOW!!!!!!!!!!
:mickey::D

[dtootsie42]

I think it depends on how much you like Animal Kingdom. As a family it is our least favorite park so we usually end up only staying for a 1/2 day. We usually go in the morning as soon as it opens and then leave between 12 and 2. Of course we have not been since EE opened so we may stay longer this trip :mickey:

[wedway76]

We arent big AK fans. We get there when it opens and are out by noon or 1:00. We go right to EE, then Kilimanjaro Safaris then Dinosaur, then Kali River Rapids and SOMETIMES Primeval Whirl

[MrPeetrie]

With each passing trip we spend more time at Animal Kingdom. My mother, sister and I were at the park until nearly 5 p.m. Friday.

This is true for us, as well. On our first trip, we didn't even visit AK. On our 2nd trip, we stopped there on our arrival day and that's it.

Now, it's a FULL DAY at AK. For one, my DD4 LOVES Animal Kingdom. ("She's curious about animals, you know.") But I think this is a park you really have to take your time and savor. I know it still doesn't have nearly as many attractions as the other parks, but it still has much to offer. On our last two trips, our first full day on property was spent at Animal Kingdom. It will probably be the same this October.

[Mickey91]

No more than one day. Usually we go a partial day.

[EpcotFan182]

I usually get there early in the morning to catch the popular rides and am usually out of there by noon.

[Lorraine444]

what's up girlfriend....
As you know, I'm no professional, but the a.m.
is more logical to me.....
I myself am deciding what park to do @ night time.
How is your Holiday weekend going?
We just got done blowing some fireworks off, and a little bit of partying & playing cards.
Bedtime for me.
We still need to hook up and discuss the Magical World of Disney.
Go to A.K in the a.m. TO THE SAFARI...
Night night.

[DisneyMP3Maker]

this last trip, we got there at 9am and since there were EMH, we didn't leave until 8pm. there is always a lot to do for us, so we find that we need an entire day to do everything we wanted. this was pre-everest, so there is more reason to stay now.

[TikiGoddess]

Original poster here...

Okay, here's my reasoning. We really don't have any pressing need to visit MGM or Epcot -- we are taking a week long trip next year and we'll have plenty of time to see everything. I know what each park has for the kids but for US, right now, there's nothing we're dying to see.

So, I was thinking that we could spend 1/2 day at AK, 1/2 of the day at MK. I never tire of MK and neither do the kids! We can't do AK in the morning and MK at night because that night is evening EMH at the MK and it will be crazy with people. So here's the possible plan: visit the MK for 2 hrs (ahh... morning in the MK...), go back to the hotel, take a break, then head to the AK at 3-3:30. See the parade, see the Nemo or Lion King show, eat sandwiches for dinner, see the animals, safari, and hit Dinoland at the end of the day and hope for multiple rides on Triceratop Spin. Bliss for preschoolers. :)

Now after reading all the posts, I think we might do AK all day but keep the same schedule. I'll present both ideas to my DH (who of course thinks I'm way overthinking this -- he usually decides what park to visit when he steps out to the bus stop!) and see what he says. I'll report what we decide!

Thanks for all the replies! Keep 'em comin'!
TikiG

[Bear Lee]

We usually spend 1/2 day there and then finish the day at the MK or EPCOT. We mainly go for the Lion King show and Bugs Life. My kids are still too small to ride on some of the rides. I'm hoping as time goes on that they will add more rides to AK and we will be able to stay all day.

[TheRustyScupper]

1) You are right, thinking only 1/2-day for AK.
2) It is not a full-day park.
3) We arrive early so we see animals before their nap.

[mickey-mouse35]

We spend the entire day at AK so we can see everything! Love the Lion King festival show and can't wait to see the Nemo musical. I agree to do the safari in morning and afternoon--see different things.

As far as your plan, I vote for going to AK only for that day--too much trouble to do MK for just 2 hours and then switch, IMO. Whatever you decide, have fun! :D

[tinksmom02]

On our trip in January, I didn't schedule ANY time for AK LOL We went for a couple hours before we headed to the airport, at DD's insistence.

For our September trip, I'm giving us a whole day. I don't think we'll need it, but our dinner ressies aren't until 5 at Boma, so we can take our time with everything this time around.

[rnin02]

We usually spend the majority of a day at AK. Getting there early morning is a great time to to the safari, but later in the afternoon the crowds seem to thin out a bit...at least in September. We usually skip the parade, try to avoid all that mess. In fact, we usually leave around parade time.

[grumpycajun]

The first time we went it was a 1/2 day, but last year we spent almost the entire day. There really is a lot to see if you go with the idea of just taking your time and really looking. AK is a good park to do in the afternoon simply because it has far more shade than any of the other parks. It's cooler during the hottest part of the day.

[Mickey'sGirl]

We usually get there early for an EMH morning and leave around lunchtime unless we go to a show in which case it will be around 2.
Same here. It gets pretty hot as the day heats up!

[Wrigley]

We usually get most of our "must see" attractions done in the morning. We used to spend very little time at the AK it seemed like, but now, we are there longer. We get there as soon as it opens and usually leave around 1 or 2 and head back to the hotel to swim and relax. When we get into the park we either head straight to the safari or to the Lion King show (which is our favorite!!!!). We like to just mosey around and take our time-take it all in!

[Disney4]

I like to spend the evening EMH hours at AK. It gives a different perspective of the park. Since the evening EMH only happens once a week, it might not fit your schedule, but it is worth attending IMO.

[Momof2boys]

The Jammin' Jungle Parade is our favorite parade at WDW ! The character interaction is great and we love dancing to the music. We usually get to AK around 10 and stay until the park closes, when we head to DTD.

[DNS]

We usually spend about 4 half days. A couple of mornings and a couple of afternoons. We don't do any of the parks for a whole day. We like to park hop.