Disney’s Night Kingdom lives to see another day (sort of) with DAK’s Wild Africa Trek

Jim Hill

14 years ago

Do you remember that niche park which the Imagineers toyed with building back in 2008? You know, that project which went by a variety of names among them Disney's Night Kingdom & Disney's Jungle Trek)? Which then would have given WDW Guests the opportunity to have all sorts of hands-on experiences?

If not … Well, here's a few quotes from that online survey that Disney representatives sent out to UK tourists back in late 2007 / early 2008 just to gauge their interest in this proposed theme park. Which described Disney's Night Kingdom / Jungle Trek as being …

… a premium, exclusive experience (during which) your very own personal adventure guide (would lead) your expedition party of around 8 people through the wild … From crossing rickety bridges or navigating narrow paths, to encountering rare animals up-close … there are unbelievable experiences at each stage of your journey.

Does any of this sound familiar to you folks? It should. Given that – just this past week – The Walt Disney World Resort began taking reservations for Wild Africa Trek. Which will give visitors to Disney's Animal Kingdom theme park the chance to …

… navigate a seemingly precarious rope bridge over the Safi River or venture to the edge of a cliff to get close to the hippos and crocodiles below (both while safely harnessed).

Mind you, there are key differences between these two projects. For starters, Disney's Night Kingdom / Jungle Trek was to have been a stand-alone park. One that would have given a limited number of Guests (according to Company insiders that I've spoken with over the past 2 years, daily capacity for WDW's proposed 5^th gate was to have been set somewhere between 1500 – 2000 visitors per day) a unique & exclusive experience " … with no lines, no crowds, and no waits. " Where a single admission price was to have covered all aspects of your 5 hour-long stay in Disney's Night Kingdom / Jungle Trek. The live shows, the food, even the soft drinks.

Whereas Wild Africa Trek … This three hour-long "up-close-and-personal" adventure basically builds on what already exists at this 12-year-old theme park. Indeed, a seldom-used corner of Tusker House is now being repurposed as this new tour's check-in area. And what had previously been a backstage area at this buffet-style restaurant is now being redressed as an onstage-though-out-of-the-public-eye test facility. Where would-be Wild Africa Trek participants will have to prove that they're actually up to the challenges that lie ahead on this "expert-led adventure" by first strapping on a safety harness and then making their way across a test rope bridge.

That – to be honest – is what's kind of unusual about WDW's Wild Africa Trek. In that this is not an attraction / experience which is intended for all Disney World visitors. Indeed, Disney's own description of "… this unique outdoor adventure" is that it's " … aimed at active vacationers" who are " … adventure-minded."

Translation: Disney's recreation of an African bush walk isn't intended for every member of the family. You must be at least 9-years-old to participate in this new DAK program (More to the point, anyone under the age of 18 must be accompanied by an adult) and at least 48" tall. And because you're going to need to cross " … a seemingly precarious rope bridge" over the Harambe Wildlife Reserve's crocodile enclosure … Well, the Mouse will need Guests of a certain size to prove that they're actually under 310 pounds before they'll then be allowed to walk out over that expanse.

But the upside is … Those who qualify / are actually up for all of the physical challenges that are a key part of Wild Africa Trek are going to see a whole new side of Disney's Animal Kingdom. Which will start when your two guides takes your group of no-more-than-12 Guests down the Pangani Forest Exploration Trail. Where you'll hear all sort of stories about this part of the theme park that you've never heard before.

But the real fun starts once you get past the meerkats. When you'll actually head out into the brush at Harambe Wildlife Reserve. Where – in order to stay on this deliberately overgrown path – you or the guide will often have to hold back branches & duck under fallen-down trees.

Mind you, there's more to this three-hour-long experience than just mushing through the brush and/or leaning out over DAK's hippo pool. Guests who sign up for this Wild Africa Trek will eventually be able to climb aboard a custom-built, open-air vehicle for a trip through Harambe Wildlife Reserve's savanna. Where – unlike those trucks full of Guests that are expected to make it through the entire Kilmanjaro Safari in under 19 minutes – your vehicle will be allowed to linger. Even go off-road and follow an animal (for a while, anyway) as it heads backstage to the barns. If that's what it takes to give WDW visitors an intimate & personalized safari experience.

But the downside to Wild Africa Trek is – because of the number of backstage areas these Guests will be passing through over the course of this three-hour-long experience – they won't be allowed to bring along any cameras or cell phones. What's more, given the rugged conditions that these WDW visitors will be dealing with over the course of this three-hour-long experience, Disney's placing some pretty restrictive wardrobe restrictions on Wild Africa Trek as well.

To be specific, Guests who show up for this new DAK tour wearing flip-flops will be turned away. For safety's sake, given the terrain people will be hiking through, closed-toe shoes with a back strap and/or hiking boots are required. Disney's also got some pretty strong suggestions (i.e. skirts and dresses are not recommended) in regards to what women should be wearing before they then head out on their Wild Africa Trek.

That said, Disney does hope that the finale of this new WDW experience (i.e. where tour participants will spend upwards of 30 minutes in a private safari camp. Where – from an elevated viewing platform – they'll then have a commanding view of the savanna and will be able to look down at all the wildlife while they sample African cuisine) will make all of the effort, exertion and restrictions involved here worthwhile.

However, recognizing that it may take a while to get the balance of elements on DAK's Wild Africa Trek just right … Well, that's why WDW is now booking tours from January 16th – February 26th at the introductory price of $129 per person. With the understanding that – should Wild Africa Trek prove to be popular – Disney World will then bump the price point of this premium experience up to $189 per person.

Which is kind of ironic. Given that – in order to take part in DAK's Wild Africa Trek – you first have to purchase admission to this WDW theme park. So if you tack that $82 one-day, one-park base price onto the $189 per person charge that Disney eventually hopes to get for this new premium experience … Well, that puts you roughly (factoring in tax) at $275 per person. Which is about what WDW officials were hoping to charge for admission to Disney's Night Kingdom / Jungle Trek.

So what do you folks think? Do you like the fact that some of the concepts that the Imagineers initially dreamed up for WDW's niche park have now been resurrected for DAK's Wild Africa Trek? Or do you wish that Disney had just bitten the bullet and gone ahead & built the full-blown version of Night Kingdom / Jungle Trek back in 2008?

UPDATE: I got a call earlier this morning from someone closely associated with the development of Wild Africa Trek who wanted to quickly address one concern that many JHM readers seem to have about this new Disney's Animal Kingdom premium experience. And that's that cameras & cell phones won't be allowed on this tour.

"It's true that — mostly due to safety-related reasons — that we don't want tour participants to bring along their cameras and cell phones. But that doesn't mean that we'll be sending Guests away empty-handed from Wild Africa Trek.

Over the course of this three-hour-long experience, the Guides themselves will be taking pictures of the participants as they go through various aspects of this tour. And at the end of their Wild Africa Trek, each Guest will be presented with a few complimentary photos for their bush walk through the Harambe Wildlife Reserve. With the option of then purchasing additional images of their tour through Disney's PhotoPass program.

I'm sorry that I can't be more specific about how many free photos we'll giving tour participants. But you have to remember that we haven't actually run any Wild Africa Treks yet. So we don't really know which pictures of which activities the Guests are going to want. More importantly, whether we're going to need to supplement this part of DAK's new premium experience with a video offering.

It's important to stress here that Wild Africa Trek will be a work-in-progress for its first few weeks of operation. And that we'll be making adjustments to both the tour itself as well as the souvenirs we offer as we go along."

So I hope that this update clears up any concerns that JHM readers may have about that no-cameras-or-cell-phones rule that Disney has in place (for now, anyway) when it comes to Wild Africa Trek.

Your thoughts?