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What I Would Do Locked in Animal Kingdom Overnight

If you’ve been following along with my series of things that I would do locked in Magic Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, and EPCOT overnight, this next article will come as no surprise. I think that Animal Kingdom has made a comeback over the last few years. It’s no longer just a “half-day” Park. In my opinion, there are so many hidden possibilities within this wild Walt Disney World Park. In this latest fantasy of mine, I will be going into Animal Kingdom overnight to run wild and have elephant-sized fun all night long!

Pictures, Of Course

Every overnight fantasy has to start with pictures. The Park is empty, for Pete’s sake! I can’t remember ever having a clear shot from the bridge to the Tree of Life. This would be my chance! Not to mention some great pictures of Everest, safari pictures, and so many more.

The Tree of Life

Credit: Matthew Cooper

Ask the Tumble Monkeys to Teach Me Some Moves

Okay, so I love The Festival of the Lion King. It might be my favorite show on property. And I am always mesmerized by how incredibly talented the tumble monkey gymnasts are. If it were just me, I would totally ask them for a monkey lesson! We also need to remember that in my fantasy, I cannot get grievously injured, so that helps….

Credit: wdwlive.com

Related: 5 Reasons We Love Festival of the Lion King

Take a Super Leisurely Safari to See Every Animal

The only negative part of Kilimanjaro Safaris is that sometimes you don’t get to see your favorite animal. Every safari is different, after all. For example, I love elephants, so if I had control of the safari, we’d hang out in the elephant section for hours to watch them do their thing!

Credit: Disney

Ride Flight of Passage Multiple Times

Flight of Passage in Pandora is such a cool ride. But like most Disney World rides, it’s way too short! I could fly through the world of Avatar for hours! And since it’s my dream, I can. Plus, because it’s a fantasy, there is no insane queue to even get on the ride in the first place. Win-win!

Credit: DisneyDining.com

Play All the Dinoland Games

My family and I almost always skip Dinoland U.S.A. It’s not that we don’t like it, it’s just that we never want to spend much of our day in this part of Animal Kingdom. But the carnival games always look so fun to me! So with unlimited access and unlimited money to play said games, I would go to town.

Eat Every Yak & Yeti Meal

The food at Yak & Yeti in Asia is so good. Have you had their coconut shrimp? Wow. I always want to eat everything on the menu, so now is my chance! Plus, I just love the theming and story behind the restaurant. Like everything in Disney, every single aspect serves a purpose. It’d be cool to spend some more time in there.

Credit: DisneyDining.com

Go Behind the Scenes To Animal Habitats

Disney+ has ruined me. All I want is to meet Dr. Dan and hang out with the animals behind the scenes. The care and attention Disney gives these animals is fascinating and inspiring. I would basically pass out if I got to meet some of these animals and learn more about them.

Credit: DisneyDining.com

Say Hi to Tusker House Friends and Snag a Samosa

Let’s not forget our Disney animal friends! Let’s also assume I’m not absolutely passed out from the Yak & Yeti meal. I would HAVE to pop into the Tusker House to say hi to Mickey and the gang. Come on, you can’t go to Disney without a Mickey picture, right? And while I was there, I’d snag a samosa from the buffet for the road.

Credit: Disney

Ride on a Cavalcade

In Animal Kingdom, the new cavalcades are often on boats floating through the river that runs through the Park. Mickey and Minnie and random other friends can be seen waving and having a good time. I want to be on that boat!

Play with Otters

The otters are my favorite animals in the Park. I love the otter habitat and often spend a good chunk of time there on a regular Animal Kingdom day. But in my nighttime fantasy, we are going swimming! How amazing would it be to hop in that tank and play with them for a while? Truly a dream.

Go On as Squirt in Finding Nemo – The Musical

In Finding Nemo – The Musical, Disney got super creative when it came to sets and costumes. They had to portray this under the sea adventure on a stage. So for Squirt, for example, they created this half suit/half prop that can fly about the stage as if he’s swimming. I want to be Squirt. My stage debut. I think it’d go swimmingly.

Credit: DisneyDining.com

Watch the Tree of Life Dazzle

To close out my Animal Kingdom fantasy night, I would need to just soak it in for a while. My night was pretty packed, so I would enjoy taking a seat in front of the Tree of Life and watching it light up the night sky. Maybe Kevin from Up would come and join me. She’s pretty cool. Animal Kingdom is such a gorgeous Park. At this moment I would be able to just sit and appreciate the fact that I get to experience the adventure at all.

About Molly Elias

Molly Elias has been a dedicated Disney fan since she was 18-months old. She has grown up with and learned from Disney her whole life. As her family's main vacation spot, Disney World is a place of love and laughter and magic for her. Her family also prides themselves on their Disney Cruise Line knowledge and would rather be on the high seas with Mickey than anywhere else in the world. Molly plans to keep Disney in her life forever, while also pursuing a writing career. She recently completed a master's program in creative writing in the hopes that someday she will be able to be a writer for the Happiest Company on Earth. Molly keeps Walt's famous quote at the forefront of her life: "Around here, however, we don't look backwards for very long. We keep moving forward, opening up new doors and doing new things, because we're curious...and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths."