Is Disney Animal Kingdom After Hours Event Worth It?
One of the most popular questions we receive Is Disney Animal Kingdom After Hours Event Worth It? We are home from a Spring Break trip to Walt Disney World. One word. YES.
We had an amazing time but I have to share with your OUR favorite time was at the Disney Animal Kingdom After Hours Event. When we were planning our trip I noticed on the app that there was a special after hours event at Animal Kingdom while we were there. I looked at the price and then quickly said no way.
When it came time to schedule our fast I could NOT get a fast pass to ride Avatar Flight of Passage. This is the ONLY request my son had for the entire trip! SO what is a Mom to do? I decided to go for it and purchase tickets to the Disney Animal Kingdom After Hours Event so that we could for sure ride it!
Is Disney Animal Kingdom After Hours Event Worth It?
So was the experience worth the expense? YES it is! I would highly recommend the Disney Animal Kingdom After Hours Event. It was seriously EPIC. I know that may sound strange but it is true! You will be able to discover a world that glows in the night at Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park and it is like NOTHING you will have ever experienced during the day that is for sure.
When you purchase the After Hours Ticket for Animal Kingdom you get to enter the park at 7:00 pm. SO that meant that we were able to enter and ride at least one ride prior to the park closing. We chose Kilimanjaro Safaris. Which was an awesome decision because the animals were so active!
After we got of of Kilimanjaro Safaris we went straight to Expedition Everest and rode it twice. Once on the first seat (THRILLING) if you haven’t done that it is totally worth it! With zero wait time our night was off to a great start.
Next we watched some of the Rivers of Light show. It is really enchanting and a fabulous show. We headed to DINOSAUR and rode it twice! Then we stopped for a snack which was located right outside of TriceraTop Spin. We opted not to ride it but enjoyed lots of delicious snacks instead.
We had as many snacks and drinks as we wanted included in the cost. They included Ice Cream, Popcorn & Bottle Water and Soft Drinks. They were available at three carts stationed throughout Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park (one in Pandora, one by TriceraTop Spin and the third by the Tree of Life). In addition, you can also purchase menu items at select locations throughout the park. They even gave us boxed popcorn and drinks for the way home!
We stopped at the Tree of Life Awakenings (totally awesome to see this at night) and then watched It’s Tough to be a Bug! No visit to Animal Kingdom is the same without these two.
Our favorite part was experiencing the park at night. If you have this opportunity do it. Pandora – The World of Avatar is AMAZING at night! I couldn’t get over how amazing it was to walk through Pandora at night. Seriously. It was worth the expense. We rode Na’vi River Journey (twice) and Avatar Flight of Passage (twice). We had no wait on Na’vi River Journey and waited approximately 15 minutes for Avatar Flight of Passage once and 5 minutes the 2nd time.
We seriously felt like we were the only people in the park at times. There were times where we saw no one other than ourselves. How many times does that happen at Disney World? Walking around without running into others or it being crowded was worth the expense.
We never waited long for a single ride EVEN Avatar Flight of Passage. We rode every ride twice! We had time to eat, ride the rides and even see some of Rivers of Light. We did keep a steady pace and might have been able to squeeze in riding some of the rides three times if we had pushed ourselves a little more. This three hour after hours event is worth every single penny.
There are only a limited number of tickets are available for each event night. This is what keeps this event so special! There are only select dates for the events so check online.
Admission to Disney After Hours at Magic Kingdom park, Disney’s Hollywood Studios or Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park can be purchased in advance for $125 per adult or child, plus tax—or purchased on the day of the event for $129 per adult or child, plus tax. Annual Passholders and Disney Vacation Club Members can take advantage of specially priced tickets for just $95 per adult or child, plus tax.
Guests with Disney After Hours tickets can enter the park at 7:00 PM before the event begins. Check the details of your ticket for event times as they differ between parks and dates. I would highly encourage you to attend one of the upcoming Disney After Hours Events. I want to attend more in my future that is for sure! I really want to attend the Disney Villains After Hours at Magic Kingdom Park.
The attractions that are included:
Avatar Flight of Passage
Na’vi River Journey
Pandora Drummers – Swotu Wayä
Expedition Everest – Legend of the Forbidden Mountain
DINOSAUR
Mickey & Minnie Greeting at Adventurers Outpost
Rivers of Light
Tree of Life Awakenings
It’s Tough to be a Bug!
TriceraTop Spin
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Disclosure: This is NOT a sponsored post. All opinions are 100% my own.
Melissa is a football and soccer mom who has been married to her best friend for 24 years. She loves sharing recipes, travel reviews and tips that focus on helping busy families make memories.
Great Read!!!! I am a Travel Agent and I found your article very informative!!!!! Disney After Hours Events are awesome!
Thanks!
I have to be completely honest, the AK is my least favorite park so this isn’t something I would attend, but the one on the MK on the other hand is totally for me!
We have been saving up to book a Disney vacation. I’ll definitely be looking into the after hours event at Walt Disney World.
It is totally worth the splurge! We did this on a day we didn’t have a Park Hopper.
So fun! I think After Hours is worth it. I just bought my son and I tickets for it at Magic Kingdom. It’s one with Villians so it’ll be extra exciting. We love Pandora and can’t wait to go back in June.
Okay now the Disney After Hours Animal Kingdom event is totally awesome and cool! Now I want to go!!
Yes! You really should!
I cannot wait to go to Florida and see everything they have at Disney. Animal kingdom was not there last time I went to Disney World. This would be so much fun.
What a fun experience for your family! The idea of not having to stand waiting in line forever really makes this sound appealing! There’s nothing worse than spending half the day in lines!
It would be fun but my eyes are so bad at night. I would definately need some light but the wait time would be awesome because there would be none lol
I felt like there were times a flash light would have come in handy. Or I could have really used a head lamp but it was so cool!
I’ve always had the most fun at Disney’s after hours events. They weren’t doing them at Animal Kingdom last time we were there, but I definitely want to schedule another trip just to go now. I’m glad you had a fabulous time!
Yes! It really was amazing! I want to do Magic Kingdom next!
I need to go to Disneyland ASAP, always makes me feel like a kid again. Your trip looks amazing! I will have to check out a Disney After Hours Event soon.
Yes! It was amazing!
First of all, it’s Disney were talking about and if it’s Disney you can’t go wrong. Disney makes everybody happy and make their imagination to the fullest. Thank you for sharing your amazing experience on this event. Loved what you have shared.
I didn’t even realize this was an option! Awesome! I’ll have to remember next time I go to Animal Kingdom.
I’m glad you were able to to make that happen for your son! It seems like you had a great time and got your money’s worth. My sister goes to Disney quite often, I’ll have to tell her to do this!
I love that Disney is constantly thinking of ways to improve the customers’ experience. I cannot wait to see what they think of next.
I’ve actually questioned this before. I know a handful of mamas who’ve been looking for cheaper tickets to Disney.
No crowds and no wait time? That is awesome to know! I will keep that in mind because visiting Disney is definitely on our bucket list.
It looks like you guys had an amazing time! I would guess that the temps are so much more enjoyable during the evening hours as well when the weather is so hot. I would love to visit Animal Kingdom, and probably the most out of the Disney properties.
I had no idea that Disney even offered after hours passes and events. It sounds like a great way to see Animal Kingdom without the crowds.