Discovering the Holidays and More at Disney’s Animal Kingdom
We hit the trail at Disney’s Animal Kingdom at Walt Disney World to see the park both during the day and night. Beginning and ending at the Christmas Tree in the front of the park, it’s a chance to check out all of the holiday decorations found in Discovery Island, DinoLand, Asia, Africa, and Pandora: The World of Avatar. We not only check out the decorations but holiday foods currently offered and other happenings at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Check out our ideas for the best menu ideas at Sat’uli Canteen, the re-opening of the Harambe Market, anteater happenings and so much more. And be sure to check out our post at DisneyatPlay.com for additional photos, videos and links.
The video and podcast contain visuals and narrative of the entire experience. You can find our podcast here on Podbean, iTunes, Spotify, MyTuner, and ListenNotes. Key notes and additional photos are below, but you’ll find most of my commentary on the podcast and video.
Holiday Decorations
The big news in this update are the holiday decorations and lights. The video showcases both day and night, but you get a sense of what is offered below. The first few images come from the holiday decorations in Discovery Island, which are as beautiful by day as they are by night.
Africa offers some very makeshift decorations. Check them out!
A small slice of Pandora has created makeshift holiday decorations for a planet that is light years away from earth:
Great news about these decorations in Asia. They are here all year long!
DinoLand Missing Lights
We showcased the entrance to DinoLand as having some terrific holiday lights. But the rest of the land was pretty much in the dark. Below is what was offered back in 2019, none of which is being offered this year, or at least, has yet to be displayed. This is partly because there are no connected character meet ‘n’ greets.
Pandora: World of Avatar at Night
The YouTube video did not do justice to Pandora at night. Therefore, we offer some additional photos. You haven’t done World of Avatar if you haven’t also seen it at night.
Tree of Life Awakenings
This Instagrammable wall also gives a hint at the great projections that occur on the Tree of Life during the holidays.
Here is Disney’s preview of the Tree of Life Awakenings below:
This show has been so successful at the Tree of Life, that it may have added to the eventual retirement of the Rivers of Light show, which is not only not happening during the holidays, but will apparently never come back according to Disney CEO Bob Chapek. I think that’s a miss, but with the pandemic, it has become one of the casualties. Here is the full show:
We return to the entrance to see the Christmas tree all lit up for the evening. Definitely Disney’s Animal Kingdom is worth checking out during the holidays!
More Holiday Magic
We have a big update from Magic Kingdom showcasing not only the holiday decorations but construction updates and other happenings throughout. Check it out!
