In an evolving Animal Kingdom Park, is this classic safari ride worth your time?
The truth is Kilimanjaro Safaris shouldn’t be that good. Yes, you’re riding closer to animals – at least certain animals – than you would be at your local zoo. But you’re not in control. There’s a line of trucks filled with other tourists behind you.
So. like any theme park ride, you’ve got to keep moving.
At your local zoo if the elements are up to something interesting, you can stay as long as you want. At our local zoo, you can even feed the giraffes. You don’t get closer than that.
But somehow, riding the in the truck across Disney’s Savanna as the giraffes feed and the deer and antelope and their many cousins play, is effective at making you feel more involved than at your local zoo.
The Harambe Wildlife Reserve is built in such a way that you really feel in you’re in their territory and not that they are trapped in yours.
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What is Kilimanjaro Safari?
It is, really, the essence of the Animal Kingdom’s mission. Opening with the park in 1998, the ride travels through a 110-acre “fictional” animal reserve. Fictional, I suppose, in the fact it’s not really in Africa, but the animals are very, very real.
Of course, they weren’t at the start – or at least not all of them. For the first several years of its life, the ride featured an anti-poaching theme that included the story of a captured mother elephant and her child aka Big Red and Little Red.
Today, the Little Red theme is no more. The ride is a guided tour through the “reserve” including the area where several types of animals like giraffes and gazelles and others who are able to coexist safely – mull about and can come right up to the vehicle. Sometimes you’ll see them break into zoomies racing around the Savanna.
That’s my favorite part.
Disney says you can see more than 30 species of animals but I think native Florida birds add to that total.
Other animal enclosures include lions, cheetahs, rhinos, elephants crocs and more. You really get a nice selection of animals in the 18-20 minute ride and the guides knowledgeable tidbits and trivia enhance the experience.
Is Kilimanjaro Safaris safe?
Yes, perfectly. While in the Savanna, the animals like the giraffes and others can walk right up to the vehicles, they’re not going to hurt anybody. And the enclosures for the more dangerous animals are built in such a way that you are safe-guarded from them being able to reach your ride vehicle.
I guess I should mention the caveat that they are safe as long as you remain in your ride vehicle. There was a case that went viral recently in which a man jumped off the ride vehicle to heed the call of nature on a nearby bush. He returned safely, but it was still ill advised. Just stay on the vehicle.
When is the best time to visit Kilimanjaro Safaris?
We have almost always gone first thing in the morning. The ride doesn’t open for early access rope drop for resort guests but with the full opening of the park. In the old days, we were able to get a character breakfast at Tusker House and step right out just as the ride opened. But now, with Tusker House’s earliest reservations at 7:30 a.m. and the ride opening at 8 a.m., there’s not enough time to get your full character breakfast experience and catch ride opening.
I grew up in the shadow of a National Park and the rule always was if you wanted to see the animals active, you should go early in the morning or right around dusk. That same rule applies for Kilimanjaro Safaris. Get there early or late in the day to see the most active versions of the animals.
It’s not a hard and fast rule, I suppose. We’ve seen cool stuff all through the day. But I still think early morning is best.
What we usually do – if we have early entry – is rope drop Na’vi River Journey and then make our way to Africa, which lines up pretty nicely. If we are staying off Disney property and don’t have early entry, we rope drop at 8 a.m. and wing it a little but usually just make a bee line for Safaris.
Now, it’s important to remember that AK is a park in transition and a lot will change with the opening of the Tropical America’s part of the park. The Encanto ride and the Indiana Jones ride will like draw good crowds and change the way rope drop dynamics work.
Is Kilimanjaro Safaris worth it?
Right now? Absolutely. With only a handful of rides available in the park, you need to see them all. But even once the new rides open, I think Safaris is still going to be a go-to destination. It’s at the heart of the spirit of the Animal Kingdom.
And honestly, I don’t know that there’s anything in the park that gives the satisfaction of seeing the giraffes gallop, or the cheetahs up and moving or the lions sitting majestically atop their rocks. Disney can do a lot of amazing things, but it can’t quite match the wonder of the nature and the actual Animal Kingdom.
