Disney's Animal Kingdom: Ultimate Guide to Conquering Disney's Wildest Park

A comprehensive guide to touring Disney's Animal Kingdom, featuring insights from travel advisors Ryan and Julie. Learn optimal touring strategies for both families with young children and adults.

Key Topics Covered

Best Touring Strategy for Families

• Relaxed morning arrival recommended (no rope drop needed)
• Optimal ride sequence: Na'vi River Journey → Kilimanjaro Safari → Festival of the Lion King
• Strategic Lightning Lane recommendations for Flight of Passage
• Afternoon activities including Discovery Island trails and the Boneyard playground
• Character dining at Tusker House Restaurant

Adult/Older Kids Touring Plan

• Early morning arrival recommended for Flight of Passage
• Morning ride sequence: Flight of Passage → Na'vi River Journey → Kilimanjaro Safari
• Afternoon focus on shows and animal treks
• Evening entertainment and dining options

Dining Highlights

• Quick Service: Satu'li Canteen, Flame Tree BBQ
• Table Service: Tusker House Restaurant
• Nearby options: Sanaa and Boma at Animal Kingdom Lodge
• Nomad Lounge for specialty drinks

Pro Tips

• Request the back row on Kilimanjaro Safari for better views
• Watch for DiVine, the camouflaged performer
• Try the Night Blossom drink (available with rum)
• Best Tree of Life photo spots from Asia section
• Don't miss Winged Encounters show featuring macaws
• Visit the Adventurers Outpost for unique Mickey and Minnie meet-and-greet

Lightning Lane Strategy

• Individual Lightning Lane recommended for Flight of Passage
• Multi-pass options for Na'vi River Journey, Kilimanjaro Safari, and Expedition Everest
• Festival of the Lion King Lightning Lane optional but convenient

Planning Your Visit

Contact the All Things Travel team at allthingstravelpodcast.com for customized Disney vacation planning services.

Featured Location

This episode's "Where in the World" segment highlights Lincoln Woods State Park in Lincoln Road Island, Rhode Island.

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Transcript

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 1:30

Hello and welcome to All Things Travel. We've made it to our last theme park in our series on the best ways to tour Walt Disney World. Today we're going to tell you what you need to know to have a great day in Disney's Animal Kingdom.

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 1:44

Listen in with travel advisors and destination experts, Ryan and Julie. I'm your travel professor teaching you everything you need to know to have a magical vacation. And she's a Disney loving Maryland mom of three and a specialist in family travel. we're discussing incredible destinations, top vacation tips, or sharing personal stories, it's always all things travel. How are you doing today?

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 2:12

well. I'm excited for what's coming up this week. I had a good week last week. What about you?

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 2:18

we are recording ahead, but I tomorrow leave for Walt Disney World to meet up with some of our friends down there. And then you are gonna be coming down in a few days for our yearly agent training and we have some fun plans. we're gonna be doing a, food crawl at Disney Springs. We're gonna be hitting up Epcot, we're gonna be doing some late night hours at Magic Kingdom. It's going to be a good time to be together.

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 2:45

Yeah, I'm really excited and with all that a lot of training

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 2:50

A lot of training where we get super excited about travel. We learn a lot of stuff. We meet new people. I'm sure at least several podcast episodes will come out of the things that we learned this week, but it's just, it's a really energizing time. The weather looks really good right now because it's cold in Indiana.

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 3:11

We have not gone outside for a very long time because of the polar vortex.

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 3:16

The Polar Vortex. All right.

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 3:18

my favorite.

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 3:19

let's get into Animal Kingdom.

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 3:22

So I just want to start by saying that Disney's Animal Kingdom is sometimes skipped over. If I have clients that are only doing a three day ticket, most of the time Animal Kingdom is what they're skipping. I do think it's really great for kids and I have a really great tried and true touring plan that I'm really excited to share.

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 3:43

like I said in the last week's episode, Animal Kingdom, for me, if I do need to skip one, it tends to be that. Now, if I have a park hopper, I'll always jump over there for at least a little bit but I totally get it. That being said, it's a good park in and of itself. I have people that will stay at Animal Kingdom Lodge. Just because they know they're going to be going to Animal Kingdom multiple times because they're animal lovers and they want to be right there. And that's not a bad idea. Yeah.

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 4:14

when people think of Walt Disney World, I think they think of attractions and they think of Magic Kingdom and a lot of people measure their, I don't want to say like productivity, but that's kind of what it is, by how many rides they get done instead of focusing on how great of an experience they

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 4:32

Right. How immersed they are. And Animal Kingdom is certainly a place where you can get immersed.

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 4:37

You can get very immersed, but on the other side of that, there's not a lot

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 4:41

Yeah.

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 4:42

I think that's where a lot of people want to skip it, but let us tell you how to do Animal Kingdom when you go on your next trip.

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 4:50

So before we do that, I want to remind folks that last week we did a how to series with Disney's Hollywood Studios. And speaking of a lot of rides, that park has a lot of rides. So go back and take a listen. Alright Julie, Animal Kingdom with families and little kiddos. What do you got for us? First off, when should we arrive?

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 5:12

I don't think that you need to do rope drop for this park.

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 5:15

Really?

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 5:16

yes, this is usually when I tell people, if you've got little kids, this is your day, get there when they open, but you don't need to be the first people in the park. with little ones, the first thing you do is you go over to Navi River Journey Navi. And then you go to Kilimanjaro Safari, and after that, you go over to Festival of the Lion King. in there somewhere, I highly recommend a Lightning Lane single pass for Flight of Passage. the reason why I say don't rope drop it, but get that single pass is because even if your kid is tall enough, they may not be ready for that kind of ride because you do sit solo. So it's not like they can be near you or really hold your hand or something like that. And I just think, and I've had this happen before, If you are going to chance rope dropping and going through the line, it's very unpredictable how long that can be. It can be 20 minutes. It can be an hour. And the rest of your party is just like waiting for you. So when you do the lightning lane, you know, you're going to be in and out. So to me, that is the bonus of the lightning lanes. not everyone is getting on that ride. So I don't think you need to rope drop it.

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 6:29

and to remind folks that are doing Lightning Lanes for the first time, you do not have to get Lightning Lanes for everybody in your party. You only have to get Lightning Lanes for folks that want to use them. don't feel like it's an all or nothing type of thing when it comes to individual or even multi pass Lightning Lanes.

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 6:46

Yes, exactly. So, again, for families, I don't think you need to rope drop it. I think this is the day you have a little bit of a more relaxed morning. However, Animal Kingdom does open earlier than other parks. I like Navi River Journey, Kilimanjaro Safari, and then the Festival of the Lion King. And those are all kind of stacked right together. on the left side of the park as you go from Pandora up towards Africa. And then I say you get lunch at Tusker House.

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 7:14

Perfect.

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 7:15

House is an attraction in and of itself. It is one of the best character meals on property, if not my favorite character meal. I love the food. There is African music with some awesome vibes going on. The videos I have of Donald Duck dancing are just, I don't know who plays him in that restaurant, but he is a phenomenal dancer. I have videos throughout the years of my kids going to Tusker House and just dancing all over the place. It is such a fun time. After lunch, I say, put the kids in the stroller. That's a good time to go walk through the Discovery Island trails, the Gorilla Falls exploration trail, or even the Maharaja, or the Jungle Trek trail. I don't think you need to go through all of those. maybe you pick one and walk through them because it is a lot of walking. Maybe the kids have finally, gotten a little bit of downtime somewhere in there. If the adults want to do Expedition Everest, it's a great time to do that, as you're kind of winding around like the top of the park there through Asia, or coming from Africa into Asia, then you're going to make your way down towards Dino Land. At least right now how the park is set up because we know Dinoland is in the middle of a retheme and there's not a lot open over there, but there is one thing that is amazing that is still open and that is the boneyard.

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 8:42

It's amazing for little kiddos, amazing.

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 8:44

I will admit that I had never taken my kids here. I did not even know it was here until two years ago because on the map I would always see that it was called the fossil dig site and as a parent I was like, Absolutely not.

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 8:59

We're not going to get dirty!

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 9:02

Right. I'm not doing that. However, then I walked into the boneyard when I was on a trip without the kids, just to go check it out. And it is like this huge playground area. with like an industrial vibe. lot of climbing, a lot of big slides. Very, very fun. It is so, so big. you're going to need to split up where one parent goes with one kid, one parent goes with another because they're inevitably going to go different directions. So that is one thing is that you do need to keep an eye on them because it is a big area. being said, I have been at the entrance and seen a kid try to leave and a cast member say, wait, where are your parents? they are really good about helping you with that. when you're in the boneyard. you can go to the left and go up to the top of the climbing structures, walk across the bridge over the dinosaur, and then go down a flight of steps. It's all outdoors, so you're still outside, and that's where the fossil dig site is, and it is like a massive sensory bin. It's not sand. It's like, Very small And there is like, dinosaur bones that you can uncover, but there's also buckets shovels and toys. And I think my kids sat there for an hour and we just sat on a bench drinking a Starbucks and it was. Amazing. that is my biggest thing to say. It's still so great for families. There's still rides you can do. There's still great shows. There's great food. They have this awesome playground. And right next to Dinoland is the Finding Nemo, the Big Blue and Beyond show. And that is such a great puppet show to end your day with.

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 10:40

Julie, I think this is a fantastic family touring plan for Animal Kingdom. I agree with everything, the flow that you have here. The one thing I'm surprised that isn't on there is Rafiki's Planet Watch. You've got a train ride, a petting zoo, animal things. I think it depends on your kid, but that could certainly be an extension too.

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 11:02

Yeah. I agree. And I think it depends on how much of a break the kids need. We have done it before, but we don't do it every time because sometimes you get over there and not all the animals are out or

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 11:13

Yeah,

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 11:14

into certain places. sometimes we get over there and it's a bit of a letdown, but you have someone who's very into animals, you can see the, into like the animal hospital area and those things are really cool and educational too. So briefly about Lightning Lanes, for Animal Kingdom, there is not a Tier 1 and a Tier 2 for the multi pass like there is for the other parks. pre book your multi passes for Navi River Journey, Kilimanjaro Safari, and then either Festival of the Lion King or Everest for the adults. I say either because I don't think you need a Lightning Lane for Festival of the Lion King, but it certainly is nice because the show fills up. so you can either plan to get there 20 minutes before showtime, or can get the lightning lane for it, be a little bit more relaxed getting into the show, and then pick up a lightning lane for Everest later in the day if the adults want to do it. I also say, get the single pass for Flight of Passage. okay, so dining. Animal Kingdom is like, The best for dining, like the best

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 12:17

it's very good dining.

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 12:19

Quick services. I love Satooli Canteen over in Pandora and Yak and Yeti local food cafes. I think a lot of people forget about that one, but I love that they have like as a side or a snack, stuff like fried rice and egg rolls. my kids would just eat that and it's easy and inexpensive. Table service is Tusker House all the way. I love all the table services there, but you have to do Tusker House.

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 12:42

All right. So before we get into the adult side of Animal Kingdom, I want to talk about where in the world is all things travel. When I looked at new locations this week, Lincoln Road Island popped up. Lincoln Road Island is a town north of Providence, and it actually used to be part of Smithfield, Rhode Island, and then they changed the name to Lincoln in honor of President Lincoln. this town or area was part of the original Rhode Island plantation in the 1600s, so it's been around for a while, Julie.

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 13:18

That's really cool.

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 13:19

So I would like to meet our listener at One of their top locations, which is the Lincoln Woods State Park. It just looks like a gorgeous state park. Hey, let's do some leaf peeping, let's go on a nice little walk, and then maybe go get some nice New England seafood. How does that sound, listener? So do us a favor, reach out to me or Julie. You can do that either via email or on our website, because I would love to send you a little thank you gift for being featured on today's show. thinking of adults or older kids. I've got some different thoughts when it comes to animal kingdom. Julie, I do think you should rope drop. And I say that because if you want to do flight of passage, I think it is good to go right there and get in line Now, if you want to use the individual lightning lane, go ahead and do that. you don't have to go as early, but it's good to get in the park and get your day started because you can get a lot of things done and have. Rest time, Disney Springs time, water park time, later in the day after Animal Kingdom. I go right from, Avatar Flight of Passage over to the Navi River journey. Boom, boom. I think you hit the safari next because the animals are more active in the morning. So I think heading up there is a good thing. If you want to do Cali River Rapids, go ahead and do that next. I have kind of a love hate relationship with Cali River Rapids because you do get really wet. So I'm that guy that wears a poncho if you, want to store your stuff, they have lockers right there. It's a great water ride. so that's what I would do first thing. Oh, and then, Expedition Everest goes in there too. You can get all that boom boom boom and you have done a massive part of the parks. I'm leaving Dinoland out cause I know that's changing. I think then afternoon and evening you focus on the shows and the animal treks. just relax get a drink, get a snack and see what else Animal Kingdom has. Don't forget the bands in different areas Africa specifically has some really good Music and good places to relax and take it all in For me the lightning lane plan is flight of passage expedition everest and then the safari I don't think you need a lightning lane for animal kingdom if you're strategic and hit it in the morning other than getting the individual lightning lane for flight of passage I would just skip it for that day

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 15:49

I agree with that. I don't think you need to have the lightning lanes, but I do think it gives you a good opportunity for like a relaxed morning.

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 15:58

Yes.

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 15:59

lanes, that makes it like a very relaxed day

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 16:02

Yeah, because I think you miss a lot of the Imagineering by running from place to place and Harambe, the African area and the Asian area, just amazing. Imagineering like just next level imagineering when it comes to theming.

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 16:22

I agree.

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 16:23

So dining for me, quick service is Sotuli Canteen or Flame Tree BBQ, but the winner for me is always Sotuli Canteen. really good food, unique, more unique than other places. I also like going to Nomad Lounge, which is right there at the entrance to Avatar. really good drinks, and nice, menu for later bites. that's what I would do. When it comes to that if you are a Disney character lover, You will get some amazing character interaction and pictures at Tusker House and the food is really good When it comes to table service I'm gonna head over to either Sanaa or Boma at Animal Kingdom Lodge because those are really good meals and They're not that far from Animal Kingdom. All right, Julie. What are your pro tips when it comes to Animal Kingdom?

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 17:16

So for Animal Kingdom, don't forget about the characters. There is a really great Mickey and Minnie meet and greet. They don't greet together very often or in a lot of places. there is the Adventurer's Outpost. if you want to do Mickey and Minnie, head over there while you're on that left side of the park between Pandora and Africa. Don't miss the shows. Like Ryan said, there's a lot of live entertainment and one of the best ones is called Winged Encounters.

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 17:43

Yeah. Yeah

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 17:46

It's by the Tree of Life. It's right in front of it. And they come out and give you a little bit of information about macaws. then they call them and so many come flying right over you. it is just amazing. It is an amazing show. It is short, like five to ten minutes tops. But it is a very cool experience. and my really big pro tip for Animal Kingdom is when you ride the safari, ask for the last row.

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 18:14

Got it.

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 18:14

Ryan?

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 18:14

Yes, I have

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 18:16

Yeah. I do that every time. And if you want to know, a lot of kids are like, no, I want to sit in the front. No, you want to sit in the back because as you go, you can turn around and

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 18:24

Yep

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 18:24

another look at those,

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 18:25

Yep

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 18:26

as

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 18:26

As long as you stay seated, because if you don't stay seated, the drivers, watch you, but yeah, you get a whole unobstructed view there. Well, my first tip comes from an experience that I had several years ago going into Animal Kingdom. Have you heard of Divine, Julie?

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 18:42

Yes.

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 18:44

is a performer that does Like interpretive movements, so she's almost in camouflage and then she has like these extended arms and extended legs you can walk right by her and not know she's there, she's often on the left hand side walkway, which is not the walkway. You intuitively go to everybody goes right. Go left next time and see if you can spot her It's really cool. You would get some really good videos and it's fascinating to watch her do her thing.

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 19:17

She very much just blends in.

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 19:20

So drinks at Flight of Passage, right outside of, Thule Canteen. There's a really good, quick service kiosk that has some good drinks. They have some really interesting beers that are only brewed for Walt Disney World. And they have a drink called the Night Blossom, which is just so good. you can get it with rum in it if you ask very nicely. and then my last tip is don't stop and take your picture with the tree of life right as you come into the park because everybody's doing that go across the river to Asia and there's actually walkways that you can go down closer to the water where you can get unobstructed views of the tree from across the lake that are so much better than that initial picture at the front of the park.

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 20:08

I really do love Animal Kingdom when we go there it just so happens that we tend to have shorter trips sometimes. But when we go, it's such a great day. It feels more relaxed. The kids have so much fun. You know, sometimes you run into like Doug and Russell

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 20:25

Yep, Kevin.

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 20:28

Kevin walking around the park

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 20:30

it's amazing.

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 20:31

of the best interactions. You're going to have as well. there's just a lot going on over there that. Animal Kingdom has going for it. I do think when I write touring plans for clients, I do tend to say you're going to be done with this park by 2 p. m. If you go at park open.

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 20:46

Yeah.

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 20:47

You have a great morning, a great early afternoon. You have that great meal at Tusker House and then you can go back, enjoy your pool, have kind of like some downtime that evening and that's how I really love to fit that into your day.

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 20:59

Yep.

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 21:00

if clients are limited on time and can't get that full rest day, I'm like let's make that your animal kingdom day and you get the best of both worlds.

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 21:08

I like it. you can make it a shorter day, or if you are an animal lover, you've got a lot to explore there, so it's really how you want to make it.

j_1_01-26-2025_200339: 21:19

You want to plan a trip to an amazing destination like Walt Disney World, but don't know how to get started. As your travel advisors, we work with you to create a customized itinerary for your vacation and take the stress of planning away so you can focus on the fun and creating memories. You can reach us at allthingstravelpodcast. com.

ryan_2_01-26-2025_200338: 21:40

we look forward to talking to you next week on all things travel.