Researching a Disney trip for kids under six can quickly become overwhelming, especially when you’re faced with the sheer amount of information, tips, and tricks in trying to ensure your young adventurers are having a magical day.
Luckily, with its varied attractions and only a handful of height requirements, Animal Kingdom is a great park for even the youngest Wilderness Explorers!
The newest of the Disney World theme parks, Animal Kingdom, often falls lower on the priority list for many visitors. It tends to feel less “Disney” compared to the other parks, which is why it can be mistakenly overlooked. And honestly, that’s not such a bad thing.
But if you skip out on Animal Kingdom, you’re missing an experience that goes far beyond animal exhibits.
Yes, it’s easy to think of it as a big zoo, but this park offers so much more than that. With world-class thrill rides, Broadway-caliber shows, immersive interactive experiences, and some of the most beautiful trails and landscapes in any theme park, Animal Kingdom stands out in its own unique way.
In our opinion, Animal Kingdom is one of the most underrated parks at Walt Disney World. While some suggest it’s only a half-day park, we believe it deserves a full day of exploration to truly appreciate all it has to offer, especially with young kids. You can dive into the immersive attractions and take your time a bit more, making it feel like a much more relaxed day than the other three parks.
And while you might not always need Lightning Lanes here, they can come in handy – especially during busier times of the year. And the good news is that you really don’t need the Lightning Lane Multi Pass here if you’re focusing on non-thrill rides and it’s not a super packed time of year. You just need a solid strategy. The park can have short operating hours, and many attractions close even before that, so it’s crucial to walk in with a game plan. We got’chu covered.
And if the budget allows and you just want to spring for Multi Pass (like us, most days here)? Animal Kingdom’s Multi-Pass option is typically the most affordable compared to the other parks, so if you’re thinking about it, we say go for it!
Our itineraries are not just a labor of love; they are also research-backed and tested – thanks to Thrill-Data and our decades’ worth of Disney World experience!
This itinerary is for groups visiting Animal Kingdom for one day, focusing on entertaining young kids.
We’ll cover park-visiting basics AND dive into the best rides, attractions, and entertainment for toddlers and younger kiddos.
Note: Things are constantly changing at Disney. For instance, a big refurbishment of Dinoland USA that’s becoming “Tropical Americas” will be going on through 2027. We always try to update itineraries as fast as our tiny team can, but please be patient with us as we do!
Animal Kingdom Basics
For Animal Kingdom, planning your visit requires a bit of a different strategy compared to the other Disney parks. While it may not have as many rides as, say, Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom offers a unique blend of rides, shows, animal exhibits, and interactive & cultural experiences.
The next best thing is knowing what you want to get out of your visit ahead of time because while some experiences cannot be missed, others can be saved or skipped.
Rides
Whether you’re into escaping the yeti on a certain expedition on Everest, looking for a tranquil boat ride through Pandora, down for an exciting – and soaking wet! – spin down the rapids, or sightseeing across the Savannah, Animal Kingdom has some pretty incredible attractions.
Although home to what is arguably Disney World’s most intense coaster, the attractions offered at Animal Kingdom are the perfect balance between thrills, theming, and immersion. For all ages!
Following this itinerary, you’ll be able to cross all of the best attractions at Animal Kingdom off your list.
Entertainment
Ranging from Broadway-style to animal-centric to culturally unique, there are various show options to keep you entertained on your visit to the Animal Kingdom.
Our number one recommendation for all ages is Festival of the Lion King. No, the goosebumps you get from watching this show are not just from the immaculate AC.
Festival of the Lion King is an incredible performance featuring puppeteers, aerial acts, and elite vocal performances. It is the best show, especially for kids who are fans of the movie.
Note: We’ll discuss other great shows at Animal Kingdom, but this one should be the priority!
Food
Animal Kingdom is one of our favorite parks for savory snacks; it probably has the best and most unique lineup.
We love the combo of a sit-down meal, quick-service, and snack(s) on our park day.
Of course, we can’t cover all of our favorites in this itinerary alone, but no worries! We’re going to tell you the absolute do-not-miss eats and places that should be on your list, and we’ll throw in the best places for picky eaters as well.
Lightning Lanes and Virtual Queues
Lightning Lanes, Multi Passes, Single Passes, Virtual Queues… what the heck is going on?
There is a definite art to making the most of the Lightning Lane Multi Pass (LLMP) system, but for the sake of this itinerary (and if you’re using this itinerary, you’re purchasing and using LLMP!), let’s review the basics:
- Lightning Lane Multi Pass: As we mentioned before, the LLMP is a paid addition to your park ticket that allows you to bypass the regular standby line for participating attractions.
- Lightning Lane Single Pass: Single Passes are designated to certain rides (usually high-priority attractions) as a paid “à la carte” option for guests regardless of whether or not they’ve purchased LLMP, allowing you to bypass the regular standby line.
Lightning Lane Multi Pass Must-Knows
Animal Kingdom is a trickier park as far as “needing” the Lightning Lane Multi Pass goes.
As we’ve mentioned here, you can usually go WITHOUT the Lightning Lane pass if:
- You’re using Early Entry.
You can hit almost ALL of the major rides with barely any waits in the morning if you do it in a strategic order—and then most other standby lines should be less than 20 minutes if you get them done before noon or in the last few hours of park close (Animal Kingdom slows down a lot in the evenings).
If you don’t have Early Entry, you can still knock out quite a few attractions without long waits if you’re there at opening and it’s not a super packed time of year.
- You don’t mind skipping Na’vi River Journey.
It seems weird to mention this one ride, but it consistently holds long lines. If you don’t use Lightning Lanes and hit it early in the morning when lines are short, you are likely to wait at least 30 minutes (if not much longer) at some point in the day. If this is not a priority ride for you and you’re using a good strategy, then going without the Multi Pass is easy.
If you don’t want to do either of the above, you’re visiting during a busy season, budget isn’t a concern, or you’d rather not worry, LLMP will make things much easier.
Note: If it’s a busy time of year or you want to make your day easier, buy the Lightning Lane Multi Pass! We personally purchase it almost every Animal Kingdom visit because we like to sleep in and not deal with lines for rides like Na’vi River and Kilimanjaro Safaris.
And since this itinerary includes Lightning Lanes, let’s dig in!
Ideally, you’re pre-booking your first three LL selections at 7 am EST when your pre-book window opens (3 or 7 days in advance).
Luckily, Animal Kingdom is THE easiest park for Lightning Lanes, and there are no Tiers (categories of LLs) forcing you to pick and give up certain rides. For groups with young kids, we highly recommend these priorities and these times to reduce backtracking:
- Kilimanjaro Safaris (Book 1st in AM)
- Kali River Rapids* (38” height requirement – Book 2nd in late morning)
- Na’vi River Journey (Book 3rd in late afternoon)
At the time of writing, these are the top priority attractions we recommend if you’re focused on younger ones. Since Lightning Lane return times on the day of sell out earlier for Na’vi River Journey, that should be in your prebooking selection.
Most other rides are easier to get day of once you start churning through LLs. If any adults plan to ride Expedition Everest, it’s typically quite easy to get LLs day of, and there’s always a short Single Rider Line as well.
Note: If Lightning Lane sounds like a lot, we feel you. The system can be confusing, especially at first glance. But learning it is half the battle and puts you ahead of the 90% of Disney World visitors who do no research! If you want to visit Disney like a pro and skip waiting in long lines, check out the Lightning Lane Masterclass.
Lightning Lane Single Pass Must-Knows
Currently, there is one Single Pass option at Animal Kingdom, and it’s Avatar Flight of Passage (44” height requirement).
If any bigger kids or adults want to do this ride, your day is definitely easier if you can buy the Single Pass since you will get to bypass the longest standby in the park (which can get up to an average 75-90 minute wait during moderate to busy season, and sometimes terrifyingly longer).
If you decide to purchase the LLSP, we like to purchase a return time between 11 am – 12 pm or after 4 pm. This way, we can get through other attractions in the morning and then ride this at lunch, OR we save it for the evening. We’re fans of hitting Pandora at the end of the day (especially if you’re there when it gets dark early—it’s incredible).
Itinerary: Start Here
For the record, this is not a step-by-step itinerary. We will be breaking your day down into sections and you’re going to sketch out your plan from there.
Don’t worry; you’ll still know what to do and when, and this will put you ahead of other guests (who don’t do any research or follow proven itineraries!)
- Morning
- When to arrive
- Early Entry
- Rope Drop
- The Lightning Lane Situation
- Morning Must-Knows
- Setting up the rest of your day
- Midday: Explore & More
- Lunch
- Touring in the Afternoon
- Evenings at Animal Kingdom
- Nomad Lounge
- Dinner
- Nighttime at the park
- End of Night Strategy
Morning Strategy
Animal Kingdom opens at the crack of dawn most days, so if you can be here that early, you will be rewarded. Just know we’re talking a wakeup time of 6 am-something for the typical 7 am-ish Early Entry, so no worries if you can’t do it. We won’t be “starting” this itinerary at that time.
If you’re using the Lightning Lane Multi Pass, you really don’t need to use Early Entry/Rope Drop or even arrive super early. You’ll be able to easily skip the lines on almost every attraction with the LLMP. We’ll get into this more, though.
But if you want to basically guarantee that you walk on most rides with no waits, getting there as early as possible is your best strategy. This is a solid option if you’re skipping Lightning Lanes here and/or want to ride certain attractions multiple times.
But if you want to do rides multiple times or feel like you “have the park to yourself,” feel free to get there early!
When to arrive
If you’re on Disney property, transportation (buses only to Animal Kingdom!) will start about ~80-90 minutes before Early Entry. If you want to be first, be at your resort transportation stop then. But you don’t have to be!
Once you work through the itinerary, you can decide the best time to arrive. There really isn’t a huge sense of urgency here, so again, feel free to not roll up until later in the morning.
There are also some pro ways to approach Animal Kingdom touring that are different from the other parks: focusing on staying until the park closes. The park really slows down at night, and it closes early most nights, so you’re still not keeping the kiddos up too late. It’s a solid option if you want to have a lazy morning or sit-down breakfast, then head to Animal Kingdom later.
Early Entry
Early Entry, a perk reserved for those staying on Disney resort property, grants visitors access to the parks 30 minutes before the official opening. It helps to know that the park opens a bit before that, and you can line up then.
Some attractions even start operating a few minutes before the official Early Entry starts! It’s never anything crazy early, but sometimes 5-10 minutes in advance. You might as well be there if you’re going to be up early.
Early Entry can be helpful at Animal Kingdom if any grownups or big kids want to ride Avatar Flight of Passage without purchasing the Single Lightning Lane Pass. However, you can also jump in line for that using our “End of Night Strategy,” which we’ll get into!
If you’re getting there during Early Entry, do Flight of Passage OR Na’vi River Journey. You can usually do both (in that order) if desired.
Rope Drop (A.K.A. Park Opening)
After Early Entry, you’ve got the regular park opening when all of Animal Kingdom opens and all guests will be let in. Whether you’re using EE or not, it’s important to know what you’re doing around this time!
By the time the park officially opens, you do need to know that lines for Flight of Passage will have grown to an unreasonable wait. Unless you hit it (early) during Early Entry, it’s just not feasible.
Most other rides are still good options at regular park opening, as it’s usually still quite early.
If you’re USING Lightning Lanes at Animal Kingdom, you’ll want to prioritize meeting Mickey & Minnie at Adventurers Outpost right when it opens (usually it opens with the park, but check the My Disney Experience app)—if you’re using Lightning Lanes.
You’ll want to hit it early before the wait gets long if this character greeting is a priority, as there is no Lightning Lane for this meet-and-greet!
If you’re NOT using Lightning Lanes, you’ll want to prioritize hitting Kilimanjaro Safaris right when it opens (usually it opens at official park opening, but check the My Disney Experience app), as it can draw long waits later in the day. Bonus that animal activity is usually higher in the mornings than in the afternoons!
The Lightning Lane Situation
If you’re using the LLMP for Animal Kingdom, it couldn’t be any easier as long as you’re pre-booking your selections.
You really will only use a Lightning Lane for the following attractions:
- Expedition Everest (44”)
- Kali River Rapids (38”)
- Kilimanjaro Safaris
- Naʻvi River Journey
If it’s a really busy time of year, we do recommend reserving a LL for Festival of the Lion King. Otherwise, you can see that outside of your three pre-booked attractions, you only have two more to book, which is easily done.
We can’t say it enough: if you’re using Multi Pass at AK, it’s an easy day.
Ideally, we like to use our first LL for Kilimanjaro Safaris and then see one of the first few showings of Festival of the Lion King. You can also grab a breakfast treat, your Starbucks fix, and/or do some other attractions in Africa to reduce backtracking later in the day if you prefer.
Morning Must-Knows
Hopefully, you’ve gotten to meet Mickey & Minnie if that was on the list, and use your first Lightning Lane for a Safari ride (or had a short wait for it).
The next thing you’ll want to do while you’re in Africa is sign up for Wilderness Explorers at the station in Africa if you haven’t yet (check out the details at that link—it’s a fun, educational scavenger hunt around the park).
Once 11 am rolls around, standby lines for most rides will grow, and the park will begin to feel more crowded. Hopefully, by now, you have used a few Lightning Lanes and aren’t having trouble continuing to book them, or hit some rides with short waits.
Here is our recommended order of touring WITH Lightning Lanes during the first few hours of the morning/lunchtime to help minimize backtracking:
- Kilimanjaro Safaris
- Festival of the Lion King (ONLY needed if it’s a busy school holiday)
- Book Kali River Rapids as your next LL (for at least an hour out)
- Book Zootopia: Better Zoogether! or Expedition Everest as your fifth LL (if you haven’t already used or pre-booked)
When you start redeeming and booking new Lightning Lanes, you don’t necessarily have to book them for immediate use. While it’s strategic to do this for other parks (to get as many LLs as possible), you really don’t have to at Animal Kingdom since you’ll only use Lightning Lanes for a handful of rides.
As the park gets busier and we get closer to noon, you’ll want to take the time to focus on refueling (with snacks or food!), checking out the entertainment options, or “anytime attractions” that are perfect for filling in downtime.
And once you start to head from Africa to Asia, make sure to get those photos with the Tree of Life along the walking path here; you’ll get a much better photo (with no one in the background!) than the ones in the front of the park.
Outside of the rides listed above, here are a handful of other Animal Kingdom favorites that fall into the “younger kids/family-friendly” category:
- Experience the official animal attractions: The Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail (Africa) and/or The Maharajah Jungle Trek (Asia). You can do these anytime, and there is no wait, so do it when it’s convenient, when you need a shaded break, when the kids need to run around, or you have downtime.
- Grabbing drinks at Dawa Bar or Nomad Lounge, our two favorite spots to relax in the park. And yes, ok, these are more for the adults, but people consistently write in thanking us for including them! We’re pretty partial to Nomad Lounge (more later!), although at Dawa, you can see some live entertainment if you time it right. Both of these places are kid-friendly: bust out the crayons or iPad and let the adults sip on a marg!
- Our favorite, if you have time: Take the train to Rafiki’s Planet Watch! There’s all kinds of stuff here, including a fun petting zoo, an animation drawing class, and more animal exhibits. It’s super fun and relaxing. Consider doing this when you’re in Africa.
Setting up the rest of your day
Hopefully, everything has gone to plan and you’ve knocked out or booked most rides with your Lightning Lanes, plus gotten to experience some of the animal exhibits or entertainment.
We haven’t mentioned exploring Pandora much yet because we prefer to save it for later in the afternoon or the last few hours before the park closes. The entire land glows with bioluminescence (i.e., blacklights) that is absolutely EPIC at night, so if it’s going to be dark in the park before it closes (usually only in the winter, unfortunately), you want to be there then.
Midday: Explore & More
Lunch
If you’re like us, food is probably one of the most important parts of your vacation. And Animal Kingdom is a great park, especially for some of the more savory snacks you can’t find at other parks.
Our Favorite Lunch Options
If you’ve done any research, you’ll know there are tons of options for food at Animal Kingdom. For all ages, here are our favorite (and tastiest) lunch recommendations:
- Tusker House: Anyone who knows us knows this is one of our favorite character meals in all of Walt Disney World for both best experience and value. The food is delicious and often higher quality than most other character buffets, plus it’s usually an easier reservation to nab than others.
Pro Tip: Either grab breakfast after an early Safari, or opt for our “brunch hack,” and secure one of the later reservations for breakfast to experience both the breakfast and lunch menu – all for the breakfast price!
- Flame Tree Barbecue (Discovery Island): We like this option because it’s centrally located, and it’s also pretty good for theme park barbecue. The Baked Mac & Cheese is a delicious (if you get a fresh batch) and popular option and there are a few options for younger kids.
- Restaurantosaurus: In Dinoland USA, this is probably the best option for picky eaters if you’re wanting to do the standard burgers and chicken fingers theme park meal. It also has plenty of seating and usually some fun seasonal treat options, so it works for us!
Touring in the Afternoon
We find that a solid Animal Kingdom itinerary includes a mix of rides, entertainment, and eating that also reduces zig-zagging and backtracking all over the (enormous) map. Don’t worry if you’re not riding rides back-to-back—it’s not that kind of park.
If you’re not using Lightning Lanes, once you get to Asia, we recommend tackling rides in this order:
- Ride Kali River Rapids (38″) if desired, and the line is manageable (and you’re okay getting wet—potentially soaked). Otherwise, skip.
- Experience the Maharajah Jungle Trek and watch Feathered Friends in Flight (check the showtimes in the app).
- If any adults or older kids want to ride Expedition Everest (44″), hit the standby or Single Rider line.
Live Entertainment
You’ll want to check out the My Disney Experience app to see what kind of live entertainment is happening on your Animal Kingdom day.
Entertainment mostly falls into two categories:
- Ongoing Shows: These shows are officially available continuously year-round, just check the app for times.
- Feathered Friends in Flight is an outdoor bird show where the birds are doing all kinds of crazy tricks. Most kids find it quite entertaining, so we say go if you have the downtime and the timing is right!
- The Finding Nemo: The Big Blue…and Beyond! stage show is pretty epic. These are ongoing and official on the map and app, so just check the times.
- Not live, but a fun 3D show is Zootopia: Better Zoogether! in the Tree of Life, which is a must-do with toddlers. It’s zany, loud, but gets lots of giggles.
- Feathered Friends in Flight is an outdoor bird show where the birds are doing all kinds of crazy tricks. Most kids find it quite entertaining, so we say go if you have the downtime and the timing is right!
- Pop-Up Entertainment: There are other live experiences throughout the day at the park, both official and unofficial such as live music, dancing, bird and animal shows, and more. Winged Encounters at the front of the park is awesome, and we’re also big fans of any shows happening in Africa (and watching from Dawa Bar with a cocktail in hand!).
Tips for the afternoon without Lightning Lanes
After Asia, you can head back towards the Tree of Life (the central area) if you haven’t explored there yet.
This is a good time to do Meet Mickey & Minnie at Adventurers Outpost and see Zootopia: Better Zoogether! in the Tree of Life.
The wait for M&M should be at a lower point compared to earlier in the day, but it can close earlier than the rest of the park, so we recommend just doing it now. It’s common for the standby wait to be around ~25-30 minutes later in the afternoon. Hopefully it doesn’t take that long, and hopefully, it’s not longer! Keep an eye on wait times.
Depending on the crowd level and how much you’ve gotten done, evenings are up to you! You should have finished most attractions by now, and we love to save Pandora for last, as we mentioned.
Evenings at Animal Kingdom
Depending on the crowd level and how much you’ve gotten done, evenings are up to you! You should have finished most attractions by now, but we love to save Pandora for last as we mentioned.
Nomad Lounge
This spot deserves its own section on the itinerary. Connected to the signature dining restaurant, Tiffins, this lounge serves delicious cocktails and small plates in a nice indoor space or on the beautiful waterfront porch.
It is first-come, first-served, but they do offer a waitlist within the MDE app (or you can walk up). For a party less than 5, you’re usually looking at a 30-minute wait or less during moderate to slower times of year. When it’s busier, or you have a large party, it can be an hour or more, so you will need to plan accordingly.
We HIGHLY recommend Nomad Lounge for any groups that are all about relaxing, imbibing, or both on vacation. As far as atmosphere and offerings go, it really doesn’t get better than this place. Kids tend to enjoy it more than some other places us adults drag them to, so we say go for it even with little ones.
If you’re looking to go, make sure to start eyeballing the estimated wait in the app and click join when it makes the most sense in your plans.
Dinner
There aren’t many restaurants here if you want to sit down, so we usually recommend working from the previous lunch list to figure out what to do for dinner. Satu’li Canteen is another great option when you’re in Pandora, although we find the kids menu a bit limited.
If you’re open to dinner outside the park, frequent visitors to Disney love to use their Animal Kingdom day to have dinner at Disney Springs or a resort, since the park closes earlier than others.
We personally love visiting the nearby Animal Kingdom Lodge, an incredible resort with amazing restaurants that are worth the trip.
Note: If you opt for this and are using Disney transportation, just know you will need to figure out transport home (i.e., taxi, rideshare, or bus and connect at a park that’s still open).
Nighttime at the Park
The bummer about Animal Kingdom is it often closes early, sometimes as early as 5, 6, or 7 pm. That means that in the summer, you won’t get to experience the park after dark. Whomp whomp. But if it’s winter, hopefully, you’ll get some of that after-dark Pandora glow!
Evenings tend to slow way down at Animal Kingdom, and it’s our favorite time to be there. If the kids are at the stage where they can hang a bit (or stroller nap), we like to sleep in on our AK day, arrive later to the park, casually tour and hit everything as we stroll along, chill for 1-2 hours at Nomad Lounge, then hit Pandora in the evening.
Other evening favorites include hitting Kilimanjaro Safaris for nighttime animal activity or riding Expedition Everest after dark for a totally different experience!
Note on Safaris: Be sure to check the closing time in the app! If it’s a time of year where it gets dark early, Safaris often close BEFORE the official park close.
End of Night Strategy
What you will almost always catch us doing if we’re at Animal Kingdom in the evening is getting in line for Flight of Passage RIGHT before the park closes—we’re talking within the last 10 minutes of the day. Adults and big kids should really do this attraction, even if it means having parties do Rider Swap or split while the other part of the group waits outside (or shops around Pandora!).
If you haven’t seen from our other posts or itineraries yet, this is our favorite strategy for riding headlining attractions that hold long lines through the day or that cost extra via a Single Lightning Lane.
With a little strategy, we can save ourselves some extra cash and the headache of arriving for Early Entry or waiting in a wildly long standby line.
But here’s the kicker: Disney falsely elevates the posted wait times for attractions near the end of the night before the park closes. This is done intentionally as a method of crowd control.
Typically, an ACTUAL wait for most rides in the last few minutes of the evening will be anywhere from 25-50% of the POSTED wait. Rarely have we experienced in all of our park testing a wait that is longer than half the posted time.
Flight of Passage will usually be posted anywhere from 30 to 90 minutes at the end of the day. We’ve waited as little as 5 minutes and waited as long as 45 minutes during a busy winter holiday/Spring Break time (honestly, pretty reasonable for that ride). On average, we usually end up waiting around 25 minutes.
Worth it!
In Conclusion, Class
If that felt like a lot, it’s because it is. However, know that Animal Kingdom is a MUCH more relaxed park than any of its other 3 sisters —especially if you’re using Lightning Lanes and do not need to do the thrill rides multiple times. There is a lot to know before you head into the parks, but don’t let that overwhelm you. This park is easy to figure out day of, and you don’t need nearly as much strategy – but even a little helps!
Most people book their trips and don’t research anything, which equates to long lines, short tempers, and what is potentially a total waste of a very expensive trip. You’re already way ahead of the curve!
And if we’ve got you sold on strategy being the key to a line-skippin’, snack-eatin,’ magical visit to Walt Disney World, be sure to check out the Complete Parks Strategy Playbook for a run-down on the best way to visit all four Disney parks.