If you've read my prior Animal Kingdom post, you already know to always bring rain ponchos with you on a Disney World trip!
If you haven't read it... the short version is that on our very first trip to Animal Kingdom via cruise ship, we found ourselves stuck in a downpour. We didn't have any rain ponchos with us, and by the time we got to a shop for shelter, it was too late to buy one as we were already soaking wet!
Fast forward to our most recent Disney trip and our visit to Animal Kingdom. This time I was prepared! I had a multi-pack of rain ponchos stored in one of the stroller's pockets and didn't worry one bit about whether or not it was going to rain.
The number one attraction that was on our to-do list for the day was the Kilimanjaro Safaris. We got lucky and were able to get a Lightning Lane spot (the only ride for the day.... maybe next time Avatar!).
We got to Animal Kingdom, and first went to It's Tough to be a Bug! located at the Tree of Life.
Warning: if your child doesn't like loud noises or is scared of bugs, do not, I repeat, do NOT go to this show!! I ended up having to run out midway with a screaming baby and a 9 year old following me about to have a panic attack! The 2 year old loved it though! Maybe I'll be able to see the whole thing one day.... Anyways....
We had some time to kill prior to our time for the Kilimanjaro Safaris so we went to get lunch stopping on the way for a picture perfect moment:
We placed our mobile lunch order via the Disney app while stopped so that by the time we got to Restaurantosaurus in DinoLand U.S.A., our food was ready! Stupidly we got a table outside despite it getting cloudy and looking like rain. If it looks like rain, most likely it will rain in Florida, so do yourself a favor and get a table inside. Unless eating in the rain is your thing... Then by all means, grab that one outdoor table that nobody else wants! 🤣
If you didn't guess already, we got caught eating in the rain! We did have an umbrella over the table but when it's a thunderstorm and a bit windy, the umbrella only helps so much. Good news though! I was prepared with rain ponchos (and a stroller rain cover)! We had about 20 minutes to go until our Lightning Lane time slot. It's thundering so we're sure every attraction has been shut down. We figured we could at least get to the queue and hang out there until they open back up.
To our surprise, the Kilimanjaro Safaris does not shut down in thunderstorms! Apparently the only time it'll shut down is if it starts to flood. So yay! We get to go on it... but wait, in a thunderstorm? This is going to suck! We won't see any animals... But hey, at least we'll be protected from the rain...
We go park the stroller and join the Lightning Lane queue. We wait maybe 5 minutes to get on, mostly in covered areas so it was a nice escape from the rain. We load the Safaris truck and head off expecting the worst.
We first see some okapi, birds, hippos and where the crocodiles are. There's plenty of hippos and crocodiles, but they like the water so that was to be expected.
Next up hyenas... We won't see anything in the rain. Wait, what's hiding in the cave? The entire herd of hyenas laying next to each other waiting for the rain to stop!
Next up.... two zebras huddled up under a tree with wildebeests in the distance!
We continue on and catch up to the wildebeests. Ahh, hold on!!! We come to a complete stop as a wildebeest leaps in the air as if it's trying to attack the truck then runs in front. That's a first! We drive parallel to the wildebeests and see seven giraffes huddled around in a half circle!
We keep going and find plenty of elephants scattered throughout. They apparently aren't afraid of the rain.
After the elephants we saw the flock of flamingos. Rain or shine, flamingos are pretty much guaranteed to be seen.
We're nearing the end of the safari, it's pouring even harder now. It looks like there won't be anymore animals to see but then we look over towards some trees and find a cheetah!
We keep going and then stop at the rocks where you normally can spot a lion or two. Unfortunately we don't see any. Super disappointing because Anabelle is super into the Lion King right now and it would have made her day to see a lion. Just before we start to move again, Anabelle goes "Lion, lion, herrrreeee lion!!" To our surprise, a lioness appears at the top of the rocks!
As we near the end to our Safaris, we find three ostrich laying on the ground.
Our safari finally comes to an end, but we get to see lots of goats huddled together in their barn just before arriving back at the platform.
Wow!!! That was by far the best Kilimanjaro Safaris we have been on! Normally I would call a thunderstorm during a Disney park visit an inconvenience but this time it was truly a blessing! If you find yourself at Animal Kingdom during a rain/thunder storm, definitely head over to the Safaris!
Unfortunately there was more rain coming our way so we didn't get a chance to continue exploring the park and checking out all of the animal exhibits. We did get lucky and passed by the Tree of Life when they had Winged Encounters – The Kingdom Takes Flight (a macaw show!) We stuck around to see the beautiful macaws and then headed back to our car. Perfect timing too because as soon as we closed the last car door, it started to pour again!
We did get another special treat. Being that we visited during Disney's 50th Anniversary, we found several of the golden 50th statues throughout the park - Bambi, Nemo and Dory, Simba, and Pumbaa:
