You’ve conquered the Magic Kingdom, you’ve expanded your horizons at Epcot, and you’ve walked in the spotlight at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, so where do you go now? If you’re craving more park action like we tend to do, you’ll head over to Disney’s Animal Kingdom to see Disney Magic go wild.

As the largest park or property in all of the Walt Disney World Resort, you can imagine the amount of care that went into creating this park. There’s so much to see and do, you might be a bit unaware of some of the hidden features the park has to display. Have a look at these ten things you might have missed on your last visit.

2000+ Animal Species

If there’s one thing you absolutely, positively have to do when you visit this park, it’s go see all the different animals and exhibits on display. Disney’s Animal Kingdom is unlike any zoo or similar experience, with over 2000 species to discover, it can be a lot to take on in one day. But anything is possible with a little Disney Magic.

We highly recommend checking out the tigers, the komodo dragons, and the various creatures you’ll see on the Kilimanjaro Safari for a bare minimum of an experience. Disney takes care of their critters, and provide some of the best ways to view and learn about them.

A Story Coaster

The Magic Kingdom has Space Mountain, Hollywood Studios has Rockin’ Rollercoaster, and Animal Kingdom has Expedition Everest. Not only is this one of the most intense thrill rides in all of Disney, but it has one of the most unique features any ride has on park property. It tells a story.

Expedition Everest is a story coaster, which means it uses environment, ambiance, and visuals to tell a definite narrative. The ride’s queue and area tell the story of a lost expedition who ascended the Forbidden Mountain, beginning in the village of Zerka Zong and ending with a frightful encounter with the mountain’s protector, the Yeti.

Disco Yeti

Speaking of the big hairy brute, the Yeti is definitely one of the largest and most frightening things Disney Imagineering has ever invented. But the problem with gigantic animatronics is that it takes a lot to keep them working. The Yeti, though intimidating, has a history of stalling and complications. And how do the Imagineers fix this? Two words, strobe light.

To create the illusion of movement, a strobe light was fixed above the creature to make the yeti seem like he’s taking a swipe at the oncoming guests. Looks like this snowman isn’t so abominable after all.

 

The Tree of Life is to Animal Kingdom as Cinderella Castle is to the Magic Kingdom. It’s the epicenter of the park’s hub where you can easily find your way around.  It’s a magnificent carved sculpture inspired by Rafiki’s baobab tree, and it serves as the symbol of the park, but there’s more to this tree than meets the eye.

The bark of the tree is made up of carvings of 320 different animals, representing the various species the park pays tribute to. It’s an absolutely beautiful piece of Disney artistry and definitely deserves closer attention than just a faraway glance.

Simply DiVine

You’re walking through Animal Kingdom, perhaps on your way from your favorite ride or looking for something to snack on. Suddenly, you see something move amongst the trees. Did those vines suddenly walk? Are those leaves alive? Or is it something else entirely? If this has happened to you, you’ve probably had an encounter with DiVine.

It’s easy to miss this performer, given to how well her costume camouflages with the rest of the park’s vegetation. But the surprise of catching her is always a delight. It’s astounding to see how she becomes part of the park and brings a piece of the atmosphere to life. Keep your eyes peeled for her next appearance on your visit.

Similar Streets

This is more of an Imagineer fun fact than a hidden feature, but it’s definitely worth mentioning due to the Disney Parks famous attention to detail and immersion. Like with many of the Disney Parks, guests are typically too mesmerized by the sights and sounds of their theme park of choice that they forget to look to the ground on which they tread.

In the other parks, you can find character prints, hidden Easter-eggs, and other odds and ends imbedded in the walkway. The paths in Disney’s Animal Kingdom are modeled after actual roadways in African villages, just to go that extra mile in creating this unique world to explore.

And Several Safaris

Everyone and their brother will tell you that if you go to Disney’s Animal Kingdom, you absolutely have to board Kilimanjaro Safaris at least once on your trip. Not only is it the best way to see the most animals, but it puts you right in their world. It definitely diminishes any regular trip to the zoo.

What some guests might not realize is that the safari attraction absolutely demands multiple ride-throughs due to a few factors. The animals all have different activity levels, they’re constantly on the move, and some are only nocturnally active. If you really want to experience this attraction, ride during different times of the day.

The Masters’ Hands

We can’t visit Animal Kingdom without taking a foray into the beautiful moon of Pandora in the world of Avatar. The amount of visual detail to recreating this imaginative world is enough to make your head spin, but only the top-tier sci-fi fans could pick out this specific detail in this highly developed land.

If you only ride one ride here, make sure it’s the Flight of Passage. While you’re making your way through the attraction, pay attention to some of the wall decor. If you look carefully, you’ll see a set of red handprints left by James Cameron and the creators of the Avatar film.

Wild Characters

Walt Disney Pictures is responsible for creating some of the most beloved animal characters the world has ever known. So it’s no surprise that some of these awesome animals make frequent appearances in the park’s Meet and Greet areas. But trust us, there are more than just your average Mickey and Minnie encounter.

Characters like Launchpad and Scrooge McDuck, Baloo, and even Kevin from Pixar’s Up have been seen mingling with their fans. Many of these mentioned characters can only be met in the Animal Kingdom park, so keep your eyes peeled. You never know who might show up.

Remnants of a Lost World

Any Disney Parks fan worth their salt knows about the sad fate of Disney’s Beastly Kingdom, the park that never was. Beastly Kingdom is an unmade Animal Kingdom land that was designed, conceptualized, and many ideas and plans were approved by the Imagineer teams themselves. So what happened?

Due to financial choices and management conflicts, the park was unfortunately canceled, but not before pieces and hints to it had already been built. There’s a dragon head at the park entrance and a dismantled dragon skull in the Asia area of the park, as well as a unicorn in the parking lot. What might have been, right?