Animal Kingdom! 02/14/26
Outfits
Morning and Happy Valentine’s Day everyone! We’re tired, we’re exhausted, it’s been an amazing trip, and we’re going to finish it out strong. We’re both in Animal Kingdom shirts, mine being forest green with a khaki skirt, Anth’s being grey with seafoam green shorts. He is telling me that AK won’t be an all day event and we don’t need to Rope Drop, but this girl ain’t listenin. Get moving lazy butt!
Rope Drop
We got our coffee and burrito from Café Rix and hopped on the bus to AK for early entry. I bought an individual Lightning Lane for Flight of Passage, and Anth agrees that there isn’t any other reason to use Lightning Lane at AK, at least currently. I suggested we Rope Drop Na’vi River, which Anth says is a “meh” ride. We shall see.
We made our way through the line and onto the boats. They seem nearly identical from the Frozen boats at EPCOT, and probably are. The ride is soft and soothing, taking you into Pandora where there’s so many different takes on creatures. Ideally the world comes alive a bit, though the projections seem to take away from that somewhat. The lighting is cool, giving a true bioluminescence to the ride, and the animatronics are pretty good. I don’t know. I think it’s a good ride to simply relax and forget about things.
Next up we went straight over to Kilimanjaro Safari. If you get here after Rope Drop and don’t want to wait in a long line, this ride is definitely worth a Lightning Lane. The ride opens up a little later than actual Rope Drop and we had to wait roughly ten minutes or so before they’d let us enter the queue, and this is because not all the animals are out in the Safari yet. It only took about twenty minutes, and then we were allowed in. Lucky us, we were put onto one of the VIP Trucks and taken around.
We got onto the Safari, unfortunately no Giraffes were out, but we did get to see plenty of others, including the painted dogs. The Cheetahs were running alongside their fence, and the Rhinos came right up to the trucks. The lions weren’t out, but that’s to be expected. Anth has done this Safari three other times and only saw the lions once.
Great start to the day!
Rides/Trails
Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail
Right alongside the safari is the Gorilla Falls trail, which is a beautiful walk through so that you can see so many creatures up close. Could you go to a local zoo and see something similar? Sure, and if that’s what you want to do, to each their own. I can see why a lot of people skip Animal Kingdom, when they can see similar attractions close to home. That being said, I view the trails and the Safari differently. Instead of them being the main attraction to AK, they’re ad-ons to the already wonderful atmosphere in Disney provided Pandora, Zootopia, and Festival of the Lion King.
Maharajah Jungle Trek
Now of the three trails that exist, this one is my favorite. It’s so cool to come across the bats (which you can skip!), or see the tigers, or walk through the bird enclosure and be up close to peacocks or other exotic birds. So nice to be here.
Avatar Flight of Passage
Anthony was raving about this, but I’m weary. A few years back I did the Harry Potter ride at Universal and it made me sick, so I’m not thrilled about this. We arrived early for our LL, and asked if we could start early, but were denied, which is totally fine! This is the biggest attraction at AK, and plenty of people were waiting ninety minutes in standby to get on. So what did we do with the thirty minutes we had? We used the heck out of our Disney Memory Maker! Really appreciative that Disney has photographers at all the best spots, and throughout the parks.
Is Memory Maker worth it? To us it is. Yes, you can take selfies or ask a Disney photographer to take one with your phone, but we also like having access to all our pictures, which we get to share with you! Another point, if you arrive a tad early for a LL, look for a photo op! Might make a memory or take a goofy picture that gets a round of applause. Literally, that happened to us as Anthony was selling how awestruck he was that a Pandora Bird was flying overhead. People were laughing and cheering at my manchild.
Okay, so the ride overall was really really good. The immersion was fantastic as they blow the air past you, move the ride beneath you, or spritz you with water. Thankfully I was able to reach across and hold on to Anthony as we rode along. Definitely a 9.5 out of ten.
Shows
Zootopia: Better Together
Zootopia 2 had just released to buy on digital, which I did. We watched it on the flight down, the two of us being fans of the first. I was excited to see this show, as it had thankfully replaced It’s Tough to be a Bug, which unfortunately was outdated. I know people hate to see certain updates to the parks, Tom Sawyer’s Island being one of them, but Disney has to keep adapting.
Anyways, sat down to this show, and they did a fantastic job. It was fun, funny, and exciting. The bumpers underneath the seats were well timed, and the music is fun to be a part of. I know it might be scary for some kids to go down into the theater, but if you can convince them, let them know it’s super fun!
Feathered Friends in Flight!
Anthony said we had to go to this! I was skeptical, but I’m glad we went. This is a great show for kids and adults alike, as it might seem a little corny, but the birds are so well trained and they pull of their tricks so well. Anthony said a lot of the jokes were the same, but he still laughed at them all. I guess it’s kind of like Jungle Cruise where you go for the nostalgia. Good show, will go again.
Festival of the Lion King
I think I was here when I was a kid, but I just don’t remember. Anthony kept telling me how awesome this show is, and I’m excited for it, but not sure what to expect. Let me just say, this show is one of the top three performances on Disney property. Festival of the Lion King, Kilimanjaro Safari, and Flight of Passage are the biggest reasons to come to Animal Kingdom. The performers, the acrobatics, the set pieces, the music, the jokes, and the engaging of the crowd make everything come alive. We will be back here. Hakuna Matata.
Food
Satu’li Canteen
So we hit up Satu’li Canteen for breakfast after doing the Safari. I’ve heard good things about the French Toast, and I WAS NOT disappointed. I love my Mickey Waffles, but you had better believe the French Toast will be a part of every Animal Kingdom adventure going forward. If you’re having breakfast at the park, and want to keep things quick serve and moving, go to Satu’li and get the French Toast, you won’t be disappointed.
We also did the expresso flight. We both suggest skipping it. There was noting to write home about.
Flame Tree Barbecue
After going to Festival of the Lion King we went off to get some late lunch. Flame Tree was packed, and finding a table was not easy. Suggestion for anyone going here during the lunch rush…have a snack and wait, lol.
We shared an Island Breeze, and I had the Baked Macaroni & Cheese with pulled pork while Anth got the Ribs and Chicken combo. Good food, good bevvy, solid lunch.
Animal Kingdom Close
After lunch I realized that I didn’t have more park in me. Dinoland was closed as it was being refurbed into Pablo Esperanza, Operation Everest isn’t my kind of ride, and while I did want to take the Wildlife Express Train back to The Animation Experience and The Oasis Exhibits, I really just wanted to relax. We had done so much over the past few days, that I wanted to enjoy Valentine’s Day.
So we went back to the lockers, grabbed my bag and went back to the resort. With ample time to kill we attempted to go to the Dig Site hot tub again, but found the pool area to well occupied. Not a problem. We grabbed some lounge chairs in the sun, and relaxed. I think Anth fell asleep while I sorted through our pictures. He woke up and we used the time to talk about our next trip. He’s turning the big 4-0 in June, and I think I can convince him that the best way to celebrate is in Disney.
Anthony here. She wasn’t paying attention. I’m using my bounce back offer for my 40th. For those of you that don’t know what a Bounce Back is – If you stay on property you will be given a discounted offer on your next stay, 25% off Value, 30% off Moderate, 35% off Deluxe resorts. It’s my trip, so I booked Animal Kingdom Lodge. My first Disney Resort, and one that I absolutely love. Ash keeps saying she doesn’t want to go there because it’s so far away from the parks and the bus rides and blah blah blah. My birthday, I’m booking, she can come if she wants.
Three Bridges
Anth here. It’s the evening of Valentine’s Day and we’re at a beautiful resort on a warm evening. We walked over to the gift shop at Gran Destino, and then came back across the bridge to see what the wait time would be. It was about 5:30 when we put our names on the list, and the wait would about an hour. We went back to the room, dropped off the items we got from the gift shop, and then loafed. Made our way back to 3 Bridges for dinner and were seated at the perfect spot overlooking the lake and Gran Destino right in Ash’s line of sight. There was a warm fireplace near us, biting against the chilly winds kicking up off the water. It was a perfectly romantic evening.
Ash has a queso addiction, and ordered the White Queso and Chorizo Dip as an app. For dinner she got the Pork Carnitas Tacos and the server was able to talk me into the Three Bridges Signature Pressed Burger, which is famed as the best burger in all of Disney. It sounded like a challenge, as I have had the Bison burger at Geyser Point (Wilderness Lodge). Ash had the Cold Brew Old Fashioned while I ordered the Pineapple Mule.
Dinner was excellent and the server took our picture at the dock with Gran Destino behind us. Perfect spot for a beautiful evening. That being said, know that it is a sought after dinning location, especially on Valentine’s Day, and if you know you want to go there, make a reservation. We got lucky, while others were not.
We ordered churros to take back to the room, and called it a night, calling it a trip. Tomorrow is an early flight out, back to the snow, back to the cold.
Closing thoughts
Anth – Perfect trip. Nothing went wrong, everything seemed to go smooth. Had a ton of fun, and had some good company. Best trip of my life, and for the first time, I’m not leaving with Disney Depression. I know we’re coming back soon.
Ash – Happy with my itinerary, need to tailor a few things differently next time. Perfect trip though, and super sad to leave. I know we’ll be back, but I just don’t want it to end.
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