Trip Reports

Craig's Animal Kingdom Trip Report - 4/17/98

Hiya gang!

My family of three was lucky enough to attend a resort preview of Animal Kingdom on Friday, April 17. The players? Me (Craig, 28); my wife (Allison, 26); and our daughter (Katelyn, 2).

The Adventure Begins

We tried to get there early. Honest, we did. We did our best and made the big left turn into AK right at 8am. I couldn’t help but notice the lack of any "park" when driving up. I guess I’m used to seeing a Cinderella Castle or a Spaceship Earth. We walked up to the entrance and, honestly, saw nothing. Just a woodsy/jungle feel. This wasn’t bad...just different.

The excitement really began to grow when we arrived at the turnstiles and saw "Animal Kingdom" above the gates. Cast members were everywhere...smiling, handing out guides, and wishing you a good day, and an occassional "Jamba." The costumes all looked so cool. Not "cool" like "groovy" (though they were), but "cool" like "comfortable on a hot day."

We walked through and entered The Oasis. The first thing I noticed was a lack of "the way to go." There was no one place to walk that seemed to get you anywhere. It was as though you could choose your path to adventure. All the paths seemed to be interconnected, but the choices were yours. We went to the right and noticed lots of little nooks and crannies filled with small, exotic animals. There were no "THIS WAY TO THE WHATEVER" signs. Just little surprises here and there, waiting to be discovered if you took the time.

The one word I can think of to best describe this area is "lush." It seemed as though there was cool shade, overhanging trees, and water everywhere. You could spend so much time just here soaking up the atmosphere and getting lost in the jungle.

We wandered through the Oasis, before we all got itching to see more. We saw a break in the trees to what looked like a clearing. Ducking under some branches we saw early morning sun. We emerged from the jungle and saw...

The Tree of Life

It’s awe-inspiring. You can’t really see the Tree until you exit the Oasis and just...SEE it. The land from where you stand just seems to roll on down past the tree forever. (Does it?) It was so big it was hard to take in all at once. In fact, I think it lost some of its "tallness" because it was so wide. It did not seem as tall as other park icons, because it was so big. Does that make sense?

We took the path to the left of the tree, and just couldn’t help looking at it the entire time. I can forsee many bumps with feet and strollers in this area, as folks realize that can’t take their eyes off of it. We took one of the many smaller paths around the tree, just staring at its beauty. As we moved, new carvings came into view, and perspectives changed. Viewing the tree is an attraction all to itself.

We made our way around the left side and across a very old looking bridge to...

Africa

We passed the neat "Welcome to Harambe" sign and entered another world. I had imagined the Africa section of AK to be much like Adventureland in the Magic Kingdom. It was completely different. Adventureland is like stepping into a glossed over, fun version of all that’s neat in Africa. Harambe was like stepping into the real thing.

It was here that I first noticed the wonderful attention to detail that has since made me remember AK so vividly. The worn look to the buildings. The neat details on the shops and restaurants. The look of the CMs that seem to so beautifully blend in with the surroundings.

I found myself making eye contact with every CM we passed, just so I’d have an opportunity to say hello and talk for a minute. I hate to sound like "We Are The World" but AK gave me such a "we’re all part of the same place, and not so different from each other" feeling. I suppose I could spend all day just talking and learning. But, alas, it was time for the Safari!

We made our way through the winding queue area of Kilimanjaro Safari and I realized one thing. I had walked...a lot! It is a long way from the entrance to the front of the Safari queue. The queue itself was great. It had little hidden animals, an abadoned tour desk, and informational signs. I liked the signs with Swahili translations of animal names that you would see. I stopped to notice all these things, and saw what was to become a trend for the day...masses of people pushing by me to get to the next "high ticket" item.

We made our way to the front of the line and boarded a half-full Safari vehicle. Those with small children can keep in mind that we rode with a two-year old. The ride itself was awesome. It was very bumpy, but I never felt I was going to be thrown from the vehicle or anything. I never feared that Katelyn would be thrown either, although Allison did hold on tight. The creaky bridges felt as though they would give way, but it was fun, not life-threatening.

I won’t even begin to name the animals we saw, but I was amazed at how Disney has hidden the boundaries. The trip really felt like we were with the animals, and like there was nothing between us. I also felt like I was really in Africa. The moment when you emerge from the jungle into the savannah is like nothing else. Some animals were active, some were not. Some animals were visible, some were not. The poacher chase was bumpy, twisty, and fun, but nothing like a thrill ride at all. KJS will now rank in my top 5 of WDW attractions.

Next for us was Gorilla Falls. We spent about 45 minutes wandering this path taking in all the neat things to see. One gorilla was very near the viewing area, so a crowd of people were gathered. Several meercats were waiting to be seen. Lots of birds. We spent some time here. Let me repeat...we spent some time. We did not rush through to see what was next. We waited and watched. A lot. And it made all the difference.

Exiting the Gorilla Falls trail, we boarded the Wildlife Express train to Conservation Station. The train ride was nice and breezy and allowed us some looks at backstage areas. The Station itself was set up very nicely, and reminded me a bit of an AK CommuniCore with lots of interesting exhibits and hands-on activities.

This area holds one of Katelyn’s favorite things in AK. The elephant hand washer thingie. Wash your hands under one elephant trunk that spews water. Dry your hands under another trunk that blows air. She spend quite some time here.

We took a CM’s advice and left our stroller behind when boarding the train to get here. I will not do this again. The walk from the train station to the exhibits, and the walking among the exhibits tired Katelyn out. She was asleep as soon as she hit the stroller when we returned to Harambe.

While Katelyn slept, we took in some of the atmosphere and shops of Harmabe. As we exited the village, we heard the faint sounds of music and Katelyn woke up. We had just happened upon the March of the Animals, the daily "parade." As I watched I just knew this was going to flop. The people around me looked at is so funny, or just left completely. I loved it.

I loved the March in a lot of the ways I loved AK. It’s different. Yes, you can see the faces of the performers. No, the music isn’t recognizable for the most park. No, Mickey and Minnie are not part of it. It is hard to describe this in terms of a parade, so I suppose it is most suitable to call it a March. Each section had a theme, like bees or spiders, and it was totally unique. Judging from some crowd reactions, I do have a feeling that it won’t be here for long, and that’s too bad.

Exiting Harambe and Africa, we headed toward Camp Minnie-Mickey for...

The Festival of the Lion King

I admit that all I knew about this show was the rave reviews from Barb. I hate to build up unrealistic expectations for others, but prepare yourself, folks. This show blew me away so far and so high that I don’t know if I’ve come down yet.

We were seated in the warthog section, third row, and there was excitement in the air. Let me tell you where this excitement was coming from. The folks seating us and talking to us. The show had not even started, and you could already feel something special was about to happen.

The four lead singers came out and started with "Welcome to Our World," a neat little song that I wish would be released somewhere. They all had awesome voices and fantastic personalities. Then the floats came out. Kids cheered. Adults craned their necks for a better view. Toes were tapping. My heart was stirring.

This might be the time to tell you that this was not a re-telling of "The Lion King." That would be The Legend of the Lion King. This was The Festival of the Lion King, and the feeling was completely different. The songs were all sung, but there was a more showy, celebratory feel to it. And it was great. There were dancers, singers, stilt-walkers, high-flying monkeys. And the birds! A lady-bird flying right there above our heads!

The costumes! Light airy fabrics blowing everywhere. Colors lighting up the stage begging to be looked at.

The music! I’m a huge fan of Lion King type music anyway. These slightly altered versions, heighted by the fantastic singers, blow away the original film music. It is much like the Lion King Broadway music. African rhythms, flowing costumes, smiling faces, swaying audiences. This was one awesome moment after another. Are there breaks between the songs? I didn’t notice, as it seemed to flow so seemlessly together.

The audience was invited to participate in the singing of "The Lion Sleeps Tonight." Everyone was getting into it. Everyone. The excitement level was so high that, by the finale, everyone in the auditorium was staring, wide-mouthed, at the huge ensemble singing, dancing, and flying all at once. "Cirle of Life" never seemed so beautiful or as fitting as at the end of this performance.

Have I said enough? I can’t possibly communicate the power and sheer brilliance of this show and the impact it had on me that day. Perhaps Barb with her flair for words can help me here. This was the high point of the day and the trip.

As an aside, let me tell you that I am the biggest fan of the Jungle Cruise and Pirates of the Caribbean. These have been my favorite parts of WDW for so long I can’t remember liking anything else. Festival of the Lion King blows them away. It has become, far and away, my #1 favorite thing in all of the World.

Whew! Things seem almost downhill from that high moment. After all that energy spent, we were hungry. So we headed around the Tree to...

DinoLand, USA

I admit it. I was a staunch opposer of McDonalds in my park. Allison and Katelyn love it. I gave in, and we ate lunch at Restaurantasaurus. And I admit something else, too. I liked it. The food was good. When I say large drink, they know what I mean. And any place with a topping bar can’t be wrong. I loved the theming of the place too. My one complaint...someone needs to record more prehistoric-themed music. You can only take so much of "Walk the Dinosaur" and "It’s the End of the World as We Know It."

It was approaching 3:00 for this, our last day at WDW. Due to an unfortunate falling accident before we left home, we were due to take Katelyn to an outpatient clinic that day, and had to leave early. We made another partial trip around the Tree, taking one last look at it, before re-entering The Oasis. An awesome sight.

Many CMs stopped us, hoping we had had a good time. We had, and I was sad to leave. I mean, really sad. After exiting the park, I turned around for one more look, seeing this time The Tree peeking out from above the jungle. We left the parking lot with me thinking some...

Final Thoughts

Animal Kingdom is one of the finest things I’ve experienced at WDW. It will not be everyone’s cup of tea, but that’s okay. I like what Deb said...this is a "park." The atmosphere and details are every bit an attraction like the rides.

A half-day park? Not for us. We were there 6 hours, and here’s what we did not do:

Everything in DinoLand, including Countdown to Extinction
Jungle Book show
Pocahontas show
Discover River Boats
Meet characters at Camp Minnie-Mickey
It’s Tough to Be a Bug
Flights of Wonder
All the Tree of Life paths
All the paths in The Oasis
Plus, for me, I would have seen KJS and Festival of the Lion King again, easily. Then you’ve got Asia soon...

Unless you run from ride to ride and experience only rides and shows, I can’t see how you can be done so quick. This is not a compaint directed at a particular "you." All I know is that spending time with the animals on their time, discovering little surprises, exploring details, and seeing everything there is to do would have taken my family a full day, if not more.

Thanks, Disney, "asante sana," for creating a new park that’s different. Change is good. I had a blast and can’t wait to go again. Long live the uniqueness, the adventure, and the excitement that, to me, is Animal Kingdom

Craig

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