michelb 3 Posted April 6, 2011 Report Share Posted April 6, 2011 Hi, I suspect this gets asked a lot but didn't find it in the search. We'll be in Orlando at the end of the month and going to Disney for the day. Since we went to Magic Kingdom last fall (which was great with the kids), we were thinking of going to Animal Kingdom this time but weren't really sure if there was enough suitable for young children (5 years old (autistic so really has the maturity and interest of a typical 3 or 4 year old) and 1 yr old). Is it worth it to spend a day at AK or are we better off just going back to MK again?Let me know. Thanks, Mike. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
stefa70 205 Posted April 6, 2011 Report Share Posted April 6, 2011 Hi Mike, and welcome to the boards! In my opinion, for the ages of the kids, I would probably stick with Magic Kingdom. I love Animal Kingdom, but mostly just to watch the animals. I'm not sure that would keep the kids interest for too long. There are a couple of "areas" that are more kid-friendly, but nothing like MK! I hope that helps, and someone else will probably chime in (with little ones) that could give more opinions. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Judy in Texas 150 Posted April 6, 2011 Report Share Posted April 6, 2011 AK is my favorite park. If you choose to go there, make sure you attend the Festival of the Lion King. IMO it is the best of all the Disney stage shows. You can take the train to Rafiki's Planet Watch where there is a petting zoo. I think most kids would enjoy the Kilimanjaro Safari Ride. You can't go wrong with either choice. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
BRDof3...Rob 40 Posted April 6, 2011 Report Share Posted April 6, 2011 AK is my favorite park. If you choose to go there, make sure you attend the Festival of the Lion King. IMO it is the best of all the Disney stage shows. You can take the train to Rafiki's Planet Watch where there is a petting zoo. I think most kids would enjoy the Kilimanjaro Safari Ride. You can't go wrong with either choice.My kids will second both of those, as well as the Nemo stage production and the raging river ride (not sure of their exact names).Depending on the ages and their Disney character preferences, they might also enjoy the Hollywood Studios. Lots of things there for the younger kids. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo..Karla 77 Posted April 6, 2011 Report Share Posted April 6, 2011 Although MK was probably our 3 year old grandson's favorite (especially Peter Pan and Buzz Lightyear), here's what he enjoyed about Animal Kingdom:Bone Yard Play Area - great for getting rid of excess energyTriceritop Spin - like Dumbo ride except with dinosaursDiscovery Island trails - running through tunnels and "hunting" for animalsTough to be a Bug - this might be too much for some children as it is dark and fake spiders drop down from the ceilingKilimanjaro Safari - before we went we explained what a safari was, about riding in the "truck" and watching for animals like giraffe, lions and deerRafiki's Planet Watch - train ride and petting zooFlights of Wonder - got there early and had great seat to watch birds, some which might fly right over your headMaharajah Jungle Trek - tigers, bats, birdsPangani Forest Trail - gorillas, underwater hippo viewingJungle Parade - very colorful, lots of musicFestival of Lion King - lots of action, very colorful and loved the musicCamp Minnie and Mickey (where you find Lion King) - good for meeting many characters at onceFinding Nemo - lots of music, colorful charactersMonkey Island - watching monkeys play (by the kalahari river rapids ride)If you need a quiet place in the park then check out Animal Kingdom's child/baby care center. It's probably one of the nicest, most quiet and cleanest baby/child care centers. It's just down from the Pizzafari Restaurant - look for the lady bug light poles. Go as early in the day as possible since Animal Kingdom tends to get that "steamy hot" feel as the day goes along. You will also see more animal earlier in the day when it's cooler. Hope this is of some help. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
beccaewert 10 Posted April 6, 2011 Report Share Posted April 6, 2011 AK does have a REALLY nice baby care center,....air conditioned, clean, and honestly probably the quietest area in the park!Lion King show is really neat for kiddos,...it doesn't stop! The Finding Nemo show, is good,...but there are parts that got boring for my children (Its a musical)-but they still liked it!Its a Bug life, is a favorite in our household...The Dinosaur graveyard/dig site is a huge playground (if your not careful, you could easily lose track of your kid IMO), Its nice to see the animals, kiddos always love that ....the above list pretty much covers it. Its always a nice park to visit, but its not one we spend all day in. (my boys are 1 & 4) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
PureTcrazy...rita 380 Posted April 7, 2011 Report Share Posted April 7, 2011 :banana: Mike! Glad you joined us here! It looks like you have already been given some good info! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
BR60103 5 Posted April 7, 2011 Report Share Posted April 7, 2011 I think it depends on how interested your kids are in animals.Remember that the animals all head back to the barn about 5:00 for supper. We tried an evening magic hour a couple of years ago and nothing was left but some of the rides -- even the eating places (for humans) had closed. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
michelb 3 Posted April 8, 2011 Author Report Share Posted April 8, 2011 Thank you for all the great responses. Based on your info we'll try it out - I think the younger one will really love it and I'm pretty sure there's enough there to keep the older one interested too. Kind of wish we had gotten ParkHopper though since if we had, it would be a no brainer - try AK, if it isn't working out, head back to another park. When I bought the tickets, I was just thinking that when my wife and I went before kids several years ago, we got ParkHopper but never used it cause we'd just spend the day at one and then were done. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
michelb 3 Posted May 2, 2011 Author Report Share Posted May 2, 2011 Just wanted to put up a quick update. Ended up going to AK with the kids. They did enjoy themselves (I think my oldest one would have happily spent the whole day at the BoneYard) and we were there pretty much from open to close so we had things to see and do but they didn't love it as much as MK so next time we'll go back to MK. Sadly we missed the LionKing show (we were never around at the right time and ended up missing the last show) and skipped the BugsLife because my son got scarred when it started. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
stefa70 205 Posted May 2, 2011 Report Share Posted May 2, 2011 Glad the kids had fun! I don't think younger ones enjoy anything as much as MK, but you had to try it once. Sorry you missed the Lion King. It's really a great show, but at least you didn't sing Hakuna Matata the rest of the day. :banana: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
doodlebug....Cherie 461 Posted May 2, 2011 Report Share Posted May 2, 2011 Am I the only one who liked Tarzan Rocks :banana: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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