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30 September 2003: The Festival of the Lion King (Thanks SillySpook)
The show has reopened since its rehab, with fully enclosed walls and AC.
11 August 2003: "Festival of the Lion King" rehab
"Festival of the Lion King" theater in Camp Minnie-Mickey is set to go down for rehab from August 25 to September 25 2003. During this time, the theatre will be fully enclosed, with AC also being installed.
26 July 2003: Flicks Funfair
As part of the increasingly HUGE year celebrating the 50th year of Disneyland, there are some strong rumors suggesting that Flicks Funfair from DCA will shortly begin construction at Animal Kingdom in the current Camp Minnie-Mickey area of the park. Remember, until officially confirmed, plans may change.
27 May 2003: New Birth!
One of AKs elephants gave birth, you can view the photo here
21 May 2002: New AP Holder Lounge (thanks Sean23)
New Annual Pass Holder lounge at Pizzafari
14 May 2002: New AP Holder Lounge
Look for a new Annual Pass Holder lounge to open at Pizzafari on May 18.
30 April 2002: Orlando Business Journal Quote
http://orlando.bizjournals.com/orlando/stories/2002/04/29/story8.html
When asked about the impact of DinoRama on attendance,
Walt Disney World Resorts President Al Weiss said,
"I don't think we know exactly what's next. We're really focused on
Chester & Hester's Dino-Rama. We found out over Easter and spring break
that it really did extend guest length-of-stay and ride-per-capita in
the park, and that was a good thing. Animal Kingdom's length of stay is
still shorter than the other parks, and we want to continue to look at
that. "
7 November 2001: Disney's Animal Kingdom Opens Six Kids Discovery Club Locations
Creative activity locations have been introduced at
Disney's Animal Kingdom, providing young guests with new fun and
activities. Youngsters ages 4-8 can excavate assorted fossil pieces in
Dinoland U.S.A., examine clues left behind by animals in Africa,
discover objects found in an Adirondack forest and more at six Kids
Discovery Club locations. As kids journey to each stop, they get a
special stamp in their Kids Discovery Club field guide.
11 September 2001: Changes to DAK Shops
Starting this past weekend, Garden Gate Gifts will be
the area to pick up photos taken throughout the park. It is returning to
the camera shop, like it was at park opening. They are
remodelling the shop, taking the center fixture out and extending the
counter.
Wonders of the Wild will also be changing name, possibly to Disney
Outfitters. Look for interior changes to, with each section will have a
theme, like World of Disney.
25 June 2001: Concept Art for floats from the
"Mickey's Jammin' Jungle
Parade' from AK for 100 Years of Magic
23 June 2001: New AK Exhibit
The new Colobus Monkey Habitat is now open on the Pangani Forest Exploration trail.
18 April 2001: Asia delayed opening, and other closings
We have some more details on changes, delayed opening and closing at Disney's Animal Kingdom (changes are effective Sunday, April 22). This information comes to us from a reliable source within Disney. However, this information has not been officially released by Disney, for official information, please refer to www.disneyworld.com
There is no information yet as to how long these
changes will remain effective.
The entire land of Asia will open at 9am
(one hour after the advertised park opening time)
Wildlife Express railway and Rafiki's Planet Watch will open at 9am
(one hour after the advertised park opening time)
The Boneyard located in DinoLand U.S.A. will open at 9am
(one hour after the advertised park opening time)
Restaurantosaurus will be open 11:00am-4pm
(when park is open to 5pm or 6pm)
and 11:00am-5pm
(when park is open to 7pm)
Flame Tree Barbecue will be open 10:30am-3:30pm
(when park is open to 5pm)
and 10:30am-4:30pm
(when park is open to 6pm)
Tusker House Restaurant will be open for breakfast each day from 8:30am-10:30am. It will be open for lunch and dinner 11:00am-3:00pm (when park is open to 5pm), 11:00am-4:00pm (when park is open to 6pm), 11:00am-5:00pm (when park is open to 7pm), and 11:00am-6:00pm (when park is open to 8pm)
Drinkwallah in Asia will close
Mr. Kamal's Burger Grill will close
Beastly Bazaar and the Beastly Bazaar cart will open one hour after the scheduled park
opening
Creature Comforts and the Creature Comforts cart will open one hour after the scheduled park opening.
13 April 2001: Disney’s Animal Kingdom will celebrate Earth Day
Disney’s Animal Kingdom will celebrate Earth Day 2001 with Artistry of the Earth featuring exhibitions of wildlife paintings and photography and African furniture, butterfly releases, specialty pin-trading and more April 19-22.
Disney’s Animal Kingdom is open daily. Hours April 19-21 are 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. On April 22, the park is open 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
3 October 2000: Construction Walls Everywhere
There seems to be walls everywhere around AK right now.
- Areas around the Cretaceous Trail in Dinoland - part of the Dinoland expansion
- Around parts of Safari Village opposite Tough to be a Bug
- Along the walkway to Conservation Station - possible enhancement to increase popularity of this area
- In the parking lot, near to the resort bus stops (not large enough for a monorail station)
30 September 2000: AK Expansion Confirmed
Published in The Orlando Sentinel on September 30, 2000
Two of Walt Disney World`s four theme parks are getting new attractions: a dinosaur-themed "fun fair" at Animal Kingdom and an Aladdin ride at Magic Kingdom.
Walt Disney World Imagineers on Friday outlined the upcoming projects, including a section at Animal Kingdom`s DinoLand U.S.A. called "Chester & Hester`s Dino-Rama!"
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| Things to come. Walt Disney World plans to open this dinosaur-themed land at Animal Kingdom during the next few years. The area, aimed at attracting kids, will include 2 rides and carnival games. Magic Kingdom will also get a new attraction. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel) |
The new "mini-land," named after the proprietors of the existing Chester & Hester`s dinosaur toy and trinkets shop, will feature:
» Primeval Whirl, a family-style roller coaster that creates rider-controlled, spinning "time machines," which transport riders through curves, short drops and the jaws of a dinosaur skeleton. The opening date is spring 2002.
» Triceratop Spin, a children`s ride takes guests on an up-down-and-around ride in four-passenger vehicles that move around a giant spinning toy top that opens to reveal a dinosaur. The ride is set to open next year.
The two-acre area also will have carnival-style midway arcade games and a 50-foot-tall "concreteasaurus."
Vice president for Walt Disney Imagineering Joe Rohde said the attractions will bring a new energy to the theme park.
"The idea is to create a kiddy-land carnival as you remembered it," Rohde said.
The expansion allows Disney to broaden the appeal of Animal Kingdom to younger visitors while building on the momentum of the park`s April 1998 opening. The 500-acre theme park is the largest of four at Disney World.
The project also furthers Disney`s prehistoric push that accompanied the release of its big-budget animation movie Dinosaur. Animal Kingdom this spring renamed its Countdown to Extinction ride after Dinosaur and made some adjustments to accommodate younger children.
Rohde didn`t rule out plans for future expansions at Animal Kingdom, including a possible land called Beastly Kingdom.
At the Magic Kingdom, the Magic Carpets of Aladdin will take guests on a magic-carpet ride by next summer. Sixteen four-person "carpets" circle a giant Genie`s bottle, while water-spewing camels spit at airborne guests.
The development, named after the 1992 hit Disney animation movie, also will include an open-air marketplace - Agrabah Bazaar.
Continuing the pattern of recent years, Disney will buy the rides from outside vendors: Zamperla of Italy (Aladdin and Triceratop Spin); and Reverchon of France (Primeval Whirl).
Aladdin is intended to bring more excitement to Adventureland, which has not had a major new attraction since the Magic Kingdom opened in 1971, Disney officials said.
Disney designers on Friday also gave a preview of the Animal Kingdom Lodge, a 1,293-room deluxe resort in which guests will be able to view a savanna with 200 animals and birds from their balconies.
The lodge, set to open in April, will capture the "spirit and romance of Africa," senior development manager Jim Kwasnowski said. Animal Kingdom Lodge already is taking reservations for rooms, with prices from $199 to $510.
30 June 2000: Latest Dinoland Changes (Thanks Fudgie for photos and text)
The Dinosaur Jubilee actually looks pretty good. All the tacky decorations are still up, but the only real atrocious part, the cheap carny games, are gone. In their place, in the gravel lot next to the Dino Jubilee tent, another tent has been set up. The Truckosaurus, which has been parked all over Dinoland recently, is now under the far side of this tent, and a small rock band uses it as a stage, where they teach kids dance moves and play music. It looks like a lot of fun, actually. The inside of the Dino Jubilee has been modified a bit, with a time tunnel and three animatronic dinosaurs - one has the skin removed and you can control the robot. So it's still tacky, but in a good way. (If that's possible.) It all really fits into the Chester & Hester's theme, and adds a bit of life to DinoLand.
19 June 2000: Dino Sue - outside Dinosaur (Thanks Billy for the photo)
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18 June 2000: Dinosaur FASTPASS ticket and News from Andrew
I can also confirm that there have been NO changes to the ride
itself. If you blinked walking on to the ride and missed the sign you
would have no idea anything was different. The interior queue is the
same, same pre-show, same plot, same ride with a few minor tweaks. Looks
like all the concern was for nothing. There is still a good,
high-quality and yes very thrilling ride in Animal
Kingdom.
11 June 2000: New Dinoland Jubilee Photos
Fugie has sent us some more photos of the terrible Jubilee events going on at Dinoland. Thankfully this event should be over by July 5th - and hopefully be gone forever.
15 May 2000: Eisner confirms expansion
From the Orlando Business Journal, 5/15/00
Eisner: Disney ready to expand
Animal Kingdom slated for `whole new area,' says Disney exec.
Alan Byrd Staff Writer
LAKE BUENA VISTA -- Animal Kingdom is about to get a bit wilder.
Walt Disney Co. CEO Michael Eisner confirms that a "whole new
area"
currently is being designed for Walt Disney World's fourth theme park.
Eisner gave few details about the new section of the wildlife exhibit.
Officials at Walt Disney World will say only that the area has not yet
been
announced.
However, Eisner listed the Animal Kingdom expansion along with the
Safari
Lodge and Pop Culture Hotel -- both of which currently are under
construction -- as examples of how Disney is not slowing down its
capital
spending in Orlando.
"We need more capacity and more rides," the Disney chief said
while in
Orlando to kick off the Millennium Dreamers event.
When the formal announcement comes, it should put an end to persistent
rumors about what would come next for Animal Kingdom -- rumors that
began
almost as soon as the park opened in 1998.
One likely addition is Beastly Kingdom, which originally was planned for
the
park. The area, which would be devoted to mythological creatures, also
would
feature rides, something Animal Kingdom now is missing.
In fact, the marketing materials and logos for Animal Kingdom always
have
had the silhouette of a dragon -- yet to date, there are no references
to
dragons anywhere in the park.
However, there are plenty of other candidates for expansion. Among them:
Shortly after Animal Kingdom opened, Disney officials stated they were
considering opening another park area featuring animals from Australia,
South America or North America. Currently, the wildlife showcased at
Animal
Kingdom hails from Africa and Asia.
Disney has been looking for ways to boost attendance at Conservation
Station -- and a currently unused tract of land connects that area to
the
"Asia" section of the park.
Finally, there has been talk of an expanded Dinoland -- including a
roller
coaster.
15 May 2000: New Dinoland Photos
Fugie has sent us some new photos of the changes going on over in
Dinoland.
Dinosaur new signage, Aladar, and an unknown statue, plus tacky carnival
games in front of the Dinosaur Jubilee.
10 May 2000: CTX Update
I was in Animal Kingdom yesterday, and rode Dinosaur 4 times. I did
not
notice any difference in the roughness on any of the 4 times, nor a
difference to the first time I rode it, a month after it opened!
Scºoºtt Reed
ScottR407WDW@aol.com
May 2 2000: New look Dinosaur (CTX) building
The new sign is now in place - along with Aladar the main character from the new movie. Is this the animatronics version that was in the Discovery River Ride previously? Anyone confirm?
Thanks to Doug for the photos!
May 1 2000: CTX Name change
Its official - the ride formerly known as Countdown to Extinction is now Dinosaur.
9 March 2000: The saga continues
A good source at another Disney coaster has told us that whilst the Vekoma lay down coaster (Fire Mountain) has been given the go ahead, it will not be at MK. Instead the coaster will make an appearance at Animal Kingdom.
March 1 2000: CTX name change
DIS is reporting that CTX will have a permanent name change to "Dinosaur" to coincide with the release of the new Disney movie. The changes, happening May 18 2000, will also involve a new soundtrack to the ride, new sculptures around Dino land, and special weekend events.
February 24 2000: CTX Improvements
It seems that guest reactions to the reduced thrill of CTX have not been good. The park has been continuing to change the programming of the rovers. We have reports of 3 programs - with varying degrees of motion. It looks like they are trying to find somewhere between the 2 extremes.
We are also receiving reports of a new show scene being added to CTX. The area with the long necked dino is now clear, and at least one raptor has been installed. Looks interesting so far....
February 11 2000: Paris style coaster?
Screamscape are reporting that it is rumored that the adult portion of the dual track Excavator coaster will be similar to DLParis Indy coaster. Let's hope this is not true, Indy at DLP is not a good coaster at all. The Intanmin designed coaster has a short mine-train style track, with a 360 loop. The kids portion of the Excavator is suggested (by FAB) to be a spinning wild mouse type coaster.
Guest reports from the last few days indicate that there is some construction going on at Chester & Hesters, but no sign of a coaster. Appears to be roofing work on Chester & Hesters. (Thanks Ntpadude)
February 4 2000: 2 new rides?
Strong rumors suggest that Animal Kingdom will receive not one, but two new rides in the very near future.
The long rumored kids coaster - "Excavator" with its dual track layout and spinning cars will be built near Chester and Hester's. Recent reports from guests indicate that some construction is underway at that site - although we wait for official confirmation.
The second new AK ride is a variant of the long time favorite Dumbo, with riders controlling motion of the ride vehicle.
January 24 2000: CTX Motion Downgrades
CTX has been having several upgrades recently, ready to promote the new Disney movie Dinosaurs. While the animatronics and effects are being improved, the bad news is that the actual ride system has been considerably downgraded. To please guests with small children who were previously too small to ride, the ride height has been reduced from 46" to 40". To make this possible the motion base effects on the vehicles have been drastically reduced. One of the best parts of the ride, the evasive maneuvers following the Carno chase, is now just a series of gentle left, right turns, using hardly any motion base actions. This is not a good direction for this AK thrill ride to take, as the park already suffers from guest complaints of not enough rides, especially thrill rides. Lets hope it is only temporary until the new Excavator kiddie coaster is built. Until then please do let Disney know your feelings, either at guest relations in the park, or by email
Janaury 6 2000: Kilimanamjaro Night Safaris
During the extended opening hours over Christmas, AK ran the awesome night safaris. New for this year, the safaris runs a different show starting at dusk. A whole new audio track accompanies the tour, with animal sounds appearing in the distance, comments from Wilson, an encounter with Miss Jobson, a local tribe wedding, and of course a chase with the poachers! Seeing the tour a night is a totally different experience. Some of the animals were resting in plain sight of the ride, and others, like the lions were more active than they are in the day! The savannah had no lighting, just the light rigs that were attached to each vehicle. The lighting was automated to vary light levels at different points, and the spotter (there were 2 CMs in each vehicle) could control one of the spot lights to highlight animals etc.
AK CMs have really made an effort with this show - they should definitely continue it as often as they can! Great job to any CMs reading!
December 2 1999: Improvements to Dinoland
It is being widely reported that Dinoland USA is set for some improvements.
- Continued updates to Countdown to Extinction. Over the past few months extra movements have been added to some of the dinos, and at last we may some some animation to that dino that should swoop in over your head.
- The Iguanodon that was in the water has been long rumored to appear on land during this past summer. It didn't happen, but with the imminent release of Disney's Dinosaur Movie it could be time to see this guy back!
- The Excavator Kids Coaster seems to be a go. Whilst many rumors indicate that it will go where the current Dino Jubilee is, we have word that it will be put between Theater in the Wild and Chester and Hester's Gift Shop. This kiddie coaster is in response to many guest complaints that there is not enough for small children who are too small to ride CTX. Our source also says that the coaster is ready, and is currently in pieces at Central Shops.