As it was our last full day at Animal Kingdom Lodge, we decided to pack this morning. I try to pack the cases in an organised way to make unpacking as painless as possible, because let’s face it, it’s a horrible task at the best of times! I also wanted to put all the clothes we’d need for the final 3 nights of our trip into one case so the others could stay as they were. We were pretty much sorted by 9.30am so headed to the pool for one last time.
The girls were really tired, so we decided to give them a quick nap before heading to Animal Kingdom for the final night. And I bet you can guess who joined in the with the napping shenanigans! That’s right, Mr P (not bad for saying he got a full 11 hours in again last night! It really is a super power I would like!)
Every day in the Animal Kingdom lobby you can have your face painted in traditional African patterns, and we’ve promised the girls they could have theirs done. However, we’ve never been around at the right time so today was their last chance. We were aiming to leave for the park at 2.30pm, so when everyone was still asleep at 2pm I decided to wake Winnie (the one who needs least sleep out of the 3!) and sneakily get her ready to go and get her face painted. Steve woke up just as we were about to leave and offered to take her, so I said I’d stay and get Polly ready. But that involved waking her, which proved to be more difficult than anticipated. Gentle whispering didn’t work. Gentle shaking didn’t work. Speaking her name in her ear didn’t work. Shouting in her ear didn’t work. In the end Winnie started crying because she genuinely thought something was wrong and that’s when Polly woke up asking what the matter was! I think she may have been more tired than I thought!! Anyway, a quick get ready and both girls were having their faces painted by the loveliest ladies. Animal Kingdom Lodge really is amazing for children. There are so many wonderful activities happening for them every day. We have absolutely loved it here.
We arrived at Animal Kingdom before 3 and saw a dance party happening (it was just finishing when we got there last time) so the girls spent some time dancing before we headed to Tiffins for our dinner reservation.
We’ve often passed Tiffins but never been before. However, we cancelled a few ADRs due to tiredness/ generally feeling like we were eating for the sake of it earlier in the holiday and suddenly realised we had more credits left than days. We’d already got 2 meals booked for tomorrow (the last day to use our credits) so had to choose a 2-credit meal for tonight. We were planning to be at Animal Kingdom so Tiffins was the only real choice without altering everything. Plus, for the 2 credits you can book the Festival of the Lion King Tier 2 package which gives you a 3 course meal with drink plus reserved seats near the front of the show (not necessary but as it cost no more and meant you got an extra appetiser we went for it!) We got inside and you could immediately tell that it was really nice place. It is beautifully decorated and has a really lovely atmosphere. Our server was from England and was absolutely lovely, offering recommendations without being pushy. The food was absolutely incredible. I’d go as far as to say the best I’ve ever had at Disney (and possibly anywhere). The attention to detail was amazing and it was really delicious. I had corn chowder, surf and turf (lobster tail, wagyu steak, purple potatoes and roasted veg with the nicest sauce) and then the trio of desserts (don’t ask what they were as I don’t know but they were all exquisite, and I’m not a big dessert person at all). The main alone would have been $65 so even at 2 credits we felt it was still great value and will definitely visit again.
Our Lion King tickets were for the 6pm show but as it was 4.30pm and stormy our server switched them to the 5pm show for us. We got 2nd row seats which were great, and had a fabulous view of the whole show, which was as amazing as always, and the girls got to take part in the finale again. We’ve seen The Lion King on Broadway and I honestly love this show just as much. The singing is out of this world and I don’t think there was a person there who didn’t have goose bumps.
After the show we had fast passes for Everest. Now we didn’t think there was any chance of getting Winnie on it as Slinky Dog was hard enough at the start of the holiday, but as we thought Polly might possibly ride it we got 4 fast passes so we could both go on it with her if she enjoyed it and wanted to ride twice. Since having the girls we’ve always only gone on rides with them. I know we could use rider switch but we like being together, and love that each year we all get to go on new things as a family. I know it’s not the way everyone does it, but for us it’s worked perfectly. So, we were quite prepared for Polly to get to the ride and decide it wasn’t for her at which point we’d leave and go elsewhere. But when we got there not only did Polly decide to ride but so did Winnie. Now, we haven’t ridden Everest since before we had the girls so I couldn’t actually remember how bad it was. I did warn them about the yeti but that’s all I could offer in the way of advice. I also asked them not to hold it against me for the rest of my life if they ended up hating it! I needn’t have worried. They both loved it and giggled and squealed the whole way around!! Phew!
We then headed back across the park for our 4th and fast Flight of Passage fast pass of the holiday. The girls loved it as much as ever but for me, the motion sickness was too much to take today and I had to keep my eyes closed most of the time. I think doing it so soon after Everest was just too much for me. Still, I’ll be back to see Dr Jackie Ogden and her Pandora Conservation Initiative again next trip as it really is an amazing ride.
As I was holding onto my stomach the girls, who’d previously said they were ready to head back, decided that they did actually want to use the Kali River Rapids fast pass. So, as it was starting to get dark giving us no chance of drying out, we headed onto the ride. Steve and I were really hoping we wouldn’t get too wet. However, we aren’t the luckiest of people and ended up in the wettest seats on the ride. I’m not kidding when I say I wouldn’t have been any wetter if I’d jumped out of the raft into the water!
We were planning on heading straight out but there was no way we could get on a bus, so we thought we’d get the girls some supper from Starbucks to use a few of our quick service credits whilst we dried off a bit. They had a cheese and ham croissant and we snaffle the drinks (got to get a chatty latty as the girls call it whilst it’s still free!) and although it wasn’t the most cost-effective use of a quick service credit it was just what everyone wanted, and that is sometimes all that matters. Polly did inadvertently pile Winnie in the eye whilst we were waiting for Steve which caused a very dramatic Winnie to declare how upset she was because her eyelashes are ‘so long and delicate, just like a giraffe!’
It was now dark, so we had a quick walk around Pandora, which is absolutely beautiful. It isn’t lit up in the traditional sense but has so many incredible glowing details that you just don’t notice in the light.
Winnie was desperate to go to The Boneyard in the dark, and although Polly really wanted to go back to the hotel, she went along with it to make her sister happy. She’s such a little treasure. Anyway, 15 minutes of burning energy and drying out (although I was still soaked!) and we set off for home. The Rovers of Light show was starting as we crossed the bridge from Dinoland and although the view was from the wrong side, it was still lovely to see. Polly declares that even though it wasn’t planned it was magical, and Winnie said we had a VIP view. As we were walking out of the park Polly said she was really going to miss Animal Kingdom, then her little voice cracked and she started to cry, which made Winnie cry, which made me cry! We then had to walk through the crowd to the pick-up point (we ordered a Lyft as wanted to get back quickly!) with two sobbing girls. We’ve had such a good time here and today has been a fabulous final visit to what is becoming one of my favourite parks. I think doing more shorter visits is the way to go, as it’s so big (and hot…even the queues aren’t air conditioned) that full days can quickly zap the full enjoyment from it if you aren’t careful.
The girls eventually calmed down after we listed all the things they have to look forward to at home and had a quick look through the night vision goggles on the way to the room before saying one last goodnight to Animal Kingdom Lodge. We have honestly loved it here this time. We’ve stayed twice before and although the girls loved it, we were a bit indifferent. However, the refurb and lack of foisty carpets that played havoc with my asthma (I have a feeling that may not be s real word, but it’s one I’ve grown up with!) along with having time to access all the activities on offer has made us all fall fully in love with it. We’ll actually be sad to leave tomorrow but looking forward to seeing if The Grand Floridian lives up to its name.
Goodnight lovely people!
Doodle & Peg Do Disney 