Arrival Time Key to Animal Kingdom

There is a rule of thumb when heading to any zoo or animal park that it is best to arrive early in the day. The thought is that the animals are often most active in the mornings and the cooler temperatures are best for everyone.

Keeping this in mind, on a recent trip, our family arrived shortly after the opening of Disney’s Animal Kingdom (map) at Walt Disney World (map).  While one member of our party traversed the crowd to secure a FastPass for Expedition Everest, the rest of us slowly meandered through the park stopping to look at the animals on display along the way.

At one stop we discovered an animal care team member feeding and tending to the birds in her care.  Feeding them by hand allows the caregiver to closely inspect each bird, ensuring their health, she explained.

She patiently shared information about these birds with my youngest daughter.  We had a delightful and educational conversation, and peering into the “feed” bucket, we discovered several small fish and, to my surprise, a few mice were on today’s menu.

With our party all together again, we found a bank of  “FastPass” machines all in a neat row displaying the names of several of the live action programs, including Flights of Wonder, Festival of  The Lion King and Finding Nemo – The Musical.  These machines actually dispense a FastPass ticket to the performances and unlike traditional FastPasses, you may hold more than one at a time.

Having secured tickets for a later performance of Finding Nemo, we rounded the corner to find the entrance to It’s Tough to Be a Bug and an extremely short line.  With our day off to a great start, it seemed that the early morning arrival had been an excellent idea.

Animal Kingdom is created to allow guests to feel as if they have traveled to the bustling narrow streets of an African marketplace or Asian bazaar.  It is this density that makes the paths of Animal Kingdom jammed with activity.  As the hours in the day increase so do the throngs of people and the temperatures.

Double checking our theme park map, we discovered we had accomplished much of our must-dos for this outing.  Heading out of the park, we noticed we were not the only weary guests leaving for the day. Yet, at the entrance, I noticed only a few guests entering.

Was this a fluke or a pattern I wondered?  Consulting with a security guard, he assured me that this was indeed an everyday occurrence.  The crowds arrive early and leave late afternoon, around 3:00 pm, he stated.

So when is the best time to visit Animal Kingdom?  An early arrival allows for great animal encounters, but arriving after 3:00, according to my new security friend, would allow for less human encounters.  HINT: One huge item to consider when planning your arrival, FastPasses for the most popular attractions may have already been distributed before your late arrival.

Whenever you go, I am sure you will enjoy the largest Animal theme park in the world.

Photo Selections: Giraffe by WDW News, Bird by J. Ingersoll