Animal Kingdom Bucket List: 30 Things You Should Do

There are activities you can participate in this park. This Animal Kingdom bucket list will help you discover new possibilities and plan your best trip.

Animal Kingdom Bucket List: 30 Things You Should Do

If you have never been to Animal Kingdom before, or if it has been a long time since you set foot in the park, then there is a lot to consider as you plan your Walt Disney World vacation. Since Animal Kingdom is such an enormous park with so many intricacies, It’s important to have a game plan. There are so many things to do at Animal Kingdom, so our bucket list was created to help you plan your trip!

Follow this Animal Kingdom bucket list for the best ideas on what to do as you make your way around this beautiful park dedicated to the animals of the natural world. There are some good tips here, on Character meet and greets, animal viewing, and more.

A bucket list of things to do at Animal Kingdom Theme Park

The first thing you do has to do with how you get yourself into the park. Use the Safari Bar Entrance which is a separate gate from the main entrance. Just go into the Rainforest Cafe gift shop and out through the bar. This is a convenient alternative entrance if there are too many people at the gate.
View the Animals in the Oasis. Before you even get to Discovery Island, the hub that connects to all areas of the park, there are already wildlife viewing areas and trails.
If you have kids with you, stop by the Wilderness Explorers HQ for a fun game to play as you travel around the park. There are Wilderness Explorer kiosks set up in each region of Animal Kingdom.
Take your time on Discovery Island. It is more than an intersection for the park. Rather than breeze right past it, pause a moment to explore the trails and make discoveries on the Discovery Island Trails.
See Tamarinds on Discovery Island near the bridge to Pandora.
See Vultures on Discovery Island near the bridge to Dinoland USA.
Meet Pocahontas on Discovery Island. It’s only fitting that the princess would be standing near the bridge to Pandora, considering the similarities between Pocahontas and Avatar.
Discovery Island is also the place for one of the ultimate Animal Kingdom bucket list activities, the Ultimate Nights of Adventure VIP Tour.
Meet Russel and Doug on the other end of Discovery Island, near the bridge to Dinoland USA.
Have some fun with Timon at the Hakuna Matata Time Dance Party on Discovery Island and tell him you saw some bugs under the Tree of Life.
Explore Restaurantosaurus, the living student quarters near the institute converted into a cafeteria. This detailed quick-service restaurant is full of backstory to shed light on the Dinoland USA theme.
Take a Picture with Dino-Sue, She is the most complete Tyrannosaurus rex fossil skeleton, and she stands outside the entrance to the Dinosaur Attraction.
Meet Donald and his friends at Cretaceous Trail. Donald loves Dinoland USA because he found out some of his ancestors were dinosaurs.
Marvel at Chester and Hester’s Dinosaur Treasures. This busy roadside attraction gift shop is absolutely stunning to behold.
Find the Ketchup, Mustard and Mayo tubes in Dinosaur. This is an exciting detail in the attraction queue leftover from when McDonald’s sponsored the ride. Time to brush up on your chemistry.
Celebrate Donald’s ancestry at Donalds Dino-Bash. This is a big party featuring Scrooge, Launchpad, Daisy and more. Even Chip and Dale are part of the event, dressed in dinosaur costumes.
Take the Maharajah Jungle Trek while you are in the back of the Asia section of the park. This area is about more than Expedition Everest and Kali River Rapids. The jungle trek is a trail that includes viewing for such wildlife as Tigers and Komodo Dragons.
See the Asian ruins before you leave the area.
Take a picture from the Everest Overlook as you approach the transition into Africa. Asia is one of the most beautiful and Picturesque areas in the park.
See Bollywood Beats on the way to Africa from Asia. The dance troupe performs traditional dance and encourages participation.
Take the Kilimanjaro Safari twice. Don’t just do it once. If you ride at different times, you will catch the animals at different points in their routine. This safari has rhinos, giraffes, lions, crocodiles, elephants, and much, much more. Disney uses certain tactics to coax the animals out naturally so you can see them better. So, have your camera ready.
Have a Dole Whip at Tamu Tamu Refreshments. This is one of a few select locations in Walt Disney World that you can get a Dole Whip on a non-seasonal basis. Get it while you can! This is a must!
Visit Gorilla Falls in the back of the park. This section is easily missed even though it is right at the exit from the Safari. The beautifully scenic and tranquil trail leads to an enclosure where you can view Gorillas.
Take the Train to Rafiki’s Planet Watch for some conservation education and a look at some of the research facilities.
If you have kids, take them to the Affection Section of the Conservation Station at Rafiki’s Planet Watch.
See Festival of the Lion King. It’s a short show and worth the time, and it’s one of my favorite shows! You’ll see puppetry and acrobatics in this cultural performance geared toward all ages, with powerful songs from the movie The Lion King.
When in beautiful Pandora, be sure to snap a picture from the Pandora Overlook. Get shots of Pandora by day and by night to capture the scope of this world’s alien beauty.
Join the pandora drummers and explore the sounds you can make on these interactive instruments
Test out all the interactive details in the environment of Pandora. Touch plants that mist you, and activate certain sounds by touch.
The biggest bucket list item for all of Animal Kingdom right now is to get on Flight of Passage. This cutting edge attraction sends guests soaring on the back of a Banshee in a one of a kind exhilarating experience only Disney could do.

Planning tip: If you don’t have time to do all these things or want a shorter list, be sure to check out 12 Bucket List Things to do in Disney’s Animal Kingdom.