This is the question we get asked most often by our friends who are visiting for the first time. The answer depends completely on how much you want to do and how long you want your days to be. If you want to do all the rides and shows, meet all the characters etc, our general rule of thumb is you can do everything in around 2 days. However you could probably tick off the main headline attractions in one day if you really wanted to. On the other hand if you want to take it slower and dip in and out its very doable - it all comes down to what you want to make of your trip!

Because of the nature of the park, it can be difficult for Disney to have many extra out-of-hours events at Animal Kingdom. There is a DVC member Moonlight Magic event but that’s about it for evening events. There are some other special extras you book, mainly around VIP backstage tours that get you closer to the animals. The main ones being ‘Wild Africa Trek’ and ‘Savor the Savannah’, but there are other animal-based extras like ‘Caring for Giants’ and ‘Up Close with Rhinos’. Animal Kingdom have recently introduced deluxe evening hours at the park which is a great addition if staying in one of the on site deluxe resorts.

If you’re lucky enough to have Lightning Lane access then there are a couple of attractions here where it will come in handy. The number one priority should always be Flight of Passage, being perhaps the most popular (and in our opinion the best) ride in Walt Disney World. Not to be overlooked are Expedition Everest and Kilimanjaro Safaris, both which build sizeable queues and are headline attractions. After these three, Na’vi River Journey is also worth a reservation simply because it attracts queues but in our opinion is not a must do.

The park opens with several landscaped walkways dotted with animal enclosures. The main ones being Barbirusa, Spoonbill and Anteaters. The Rainforest Cafe is off to the left just as you enter the park and a shop and stroller rental is off to the right.

Making your way up through the walkways you’ll cross a bridge which takes you onto Discovery Island. This is the central hub of the park, from which all the other lands radiate. The park ‘icon’ the Tree of Life dominates this area and is a spectacular sight, a huge 145-foot sculpture with over 300 carvings of animals from around the world.

Starting in the bottom left of the park and working clockwise, you have Pandora - The World of Avatar, followed by Africa, Asia and Dinoland USA. Rafiki’s Planet Watch makes the final land, which is accessed by train from Africa.

Discovery Island, as well as being home to the Tree of Life, has a couple of great shops, walking trails with more animal such as Otters, Tortoise, Lemurs and Kangaroos. They also usually have ‘Winged Encounters’ show here several times a day where parrots fly in overhead, and the daily evening show ‘Tree of Life Awakenings’ where the tree is lit up majestically each night. There’s also a spot to Meet Mickey and Minnie at the Adventurers’ Outpost, and an attraction called It’s Tough to be a Bug. However this recently closed and is due to be replaced by a new Zootopia themed show. In our opinion a much needed upgrade as the previous version involved darkness and pretend creepy crawlies!

Another key ‘attraction’ is the Wilderness Explorers Outpost. You can become a wilderness explorer for the day, going around the park, completing challenges and earning badges. We LOVE this and have completed it many times and it’s fantastic for kids. Look out for outposts in the other lands around the park.

With regards to character meets, make sure to check the app for details but you can often see Dug and Russell here and Kevin can also sometimes be seen wandering around. Other characters you can often see on the trails include Pocahontas and Moana but we’ve seen characters from Tarzan and Bugs Life in the past as well.

In terms of dining you’ve got Tiffins, Nomad Lounge, Pizzafari, Flame Tree Barbeque, Eight Spoon Cafe, the Feeding Ground, Isle of Java and Creature Comforts. So all in all you’re not short of options here!

One of the key areas of the park, Africa is themed after a fictional African town, Harambe, and is home to one of the main attractions in the park, Kilimanjaro Safaris. This is a must do for anyone visiting the park. The Safari takes you out in open buses into the Savannah and surrounding areas to see the animals here at Animal Kingdom. The highlight for us is the savannah area where you can see giraffes and zebras up close but later in the tour you also spot crocodiles, hippos, elephants and lions to name a few. This often has long queues so use that Lightning Lane if you can.

Elsewhere in the Africa land you also have the Festival of the Lion King show, in our opinion the best show in the park. This is a fun show full of music, dancing, acrobatics and some of your favourite Lion King characters.

You can also catch the train out to Rafikis Planet Watch, that I mentioned earlier, and stroll the Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail, again in our opinion the best of the trails as the Gorilla enclosure is simply amazing.

In terms of characters these tend to be few and far between here, but there is always a buzzing atmosphere with live entertainment, music, and dancers popping up.

Africa is also a good spot for dining with character meals taking place at Tusker House, which we’ve really enjoyed in the past. This is buffet style and usually means you get to meet Mickey, Daisy, Donald and Goofy and we’ve got some wonderful memories from our meals here. Elsewhere another good quick service option is at Harambe Market where there are a range of kiosks to order from and so there should be something for everyone. This is always a good spot to recharge and rest having walked some of the trails.

Asia is as you’d expect, themed around the continent of Asia. There are a couple of excellent attractions here, with the main one being Expedition Everest, one of the headline attractions in the park. The area around the ride is themed around Nepal and Everest, with the ride being the centrepiece. This is a slightly more intense rollercoaster - more so than Big Thunder Mountain, but not quite next level with no inversions etc. It really is loads of fun, including for more daring little ones. Again this is a good one to use your lightning lane passes on if you have them.

The second attraction here is Kali River Rapids - a typical rapids ride that gets you absolutely soaking wet. As well as these rides, there’s a few shows. Firstly a bird show ‘Feathered Friends in Flight’ - not a must do but fairly interesting if you like birds, and Dug and Russell pop up too. Then there’s a Finding Nemo show - Finding Nemo: The Big Blue…and Beyond. This is in massive air conditioned theatre so a good one to break up the day and take a breather.

Just like Africa, there are some walking trails with different animal enclosures on the way - Maharajah Jungle Trek - where you can see tigers, monkeys, bats and komodo dragons.

In terms of characters, Asia is fairly sparse with no meets marked on the current Disney schedule. You used to be able to meet Jungle Book characters but these have long since stopped. Your best bet is to try and spot one of the character flotillas that periodically appear on the lake and rivers.

For food, your main option is Yak and Yeti. We love it here and would highly recommend it. There are a few other quick service options and bars, karts etc but this is the stand out choice.

Pandora is the newest area of the park, themed around the Avatar film franchise. Even if you’re not fans of the films, this area of the park is by far the best, with the best ride and breathtaking theming. The landscaping and theming here is next level, particularly at night when everywhere lights up in bioluminescent colours.

The best ride here is Flight of Passage - in our opinion one of the best rides in the whole of Walt Disney World. As such, it routinely has massive queues so always use a lightning lane or do this first thing before queues build up. The ride itself is a simulator ride where you sit on the back of a ‘banshee’ (like sitting on a motorbike) and ‘fly’ over Pandora. It’s incredibly thrilling, so much fun, and all of us love it. It’s simply not to be missed.

The second ride here is Na’vi River Journey - a dark, slow moving boat ride through Pandora. While the technology and theming is amazing, in our opinion it doesn’t warrant the wait times it usually attracts. It’s definitely worth doing, but don’t queue for too long.

Again, there are no characters in Pandora, and no shows, so it really is all about the theming and rides here.

There are a couple of dining options - Satu’li Canteen offers some good food that we enjoy, and Pongu Pongu has some really cool drinks and snacks. The night blossom slush from here is not to be missed!

This land is in a state of flux at the moment, currently being completely reimagined. The new land will be called the Tropical Americas and is scheduled to open in 2027. This new land will be inspired by the cultures, wildlife, and environments of Central and South America. This will then be home to a new Encanto attraction and the Dinosaur ride will be turned into an Indiana Jones themed ride.

As it stands today though, half of the land is closed while they work on the Encanto area. The half that is open has the Dinosaur ride, which is a bumpy ride through the time of the Dinosaurs. It’s lots of fun but younger kids might find it a bit ‘in your face’ and loud. It also has The Boneyard play area which is a superb outdoor play area. However it has limited shade so can get extremely hot here.

Dinoland is also the place to be if you love meeting characters with Goofy, Donald, Daisy, Pluto, Chip and Dale all meeting here at present.

There is one main dining option here - Restaurantosaurus as well as a couple of snack kiosks.

More of a mini land with no real attractions per se, you reach Rafiki’s Planet Watch by riding the train from Africa. This takes you past some more animal enclosures and drops you at this outpost to explore.

The area consists of the Conservation Station, where you can learn about caring for animals and often see the vets performing procedures on the animals, and the Affection Section where you can pet domesticated animals including sheep, goats and rabbits etc.

There is an Animation Experience here too where you can learn to draw some of your favourite characters, and you can also meet Timon and Rafiki here. However to be honest the main draw for us is usually completing our Wilderness Explorer booklets! If you’re tight on time this is probably the area to skip.

Also keep in mind there are no dining options out here.