Rafiki’s Planet Watch had been reported to permanently close around October 20, which came as a bit of a surprise to guests. However, Disney has since reversed that decision and the area will reopen in the spring of 2019.
According to the Orlando Sentinel, a Disney spokeswoman confirmed that the attraction will reopen this spring. She also said that the part of Rafiki’s Animal Planet that works with and cares for animals was never in danger of closing. That portion would have remained intact, regardless of whether or not the attraction closed to guests.
Rafiki’s Animal Planet is located in Disney’s Animal Kingdom park. In order to get to it, guests need to ride the Wildlife Express Train. We always find this area to be a fun little “side trip” when you are exploring Animal Kingdom. Rafiki and Doc McStuffins both met guests there, though there is a possibility they will not return when the attraction reopens in the spring.
It’s also interesting to see the care given to animals there. The glass windows in the Veterinary Treatment Room allow guests to look in as animals are being cared for. So guests can learn a little about animal care when visiting this area.
In the middle of the room is a “Wishing Watering Hole” where guests can toss coins and make wishes. Disney collects the coins and uses them to help animal conservation efforts.
One of my favorite areas is “Songs of the Rainforest,” which is a hallway of different rooms where guests can where headphones to hear different animals and insects from the Rainforest. It’s a great place to take a break! I hope it returns when the area reopens, but we will see.
Rafiki’s Planet Watch also has a petting zoo called Affection Section, a discovery trail called Habitat, Habit!, an Animals Encounters Stage, the Nutrition Center, Science Center, and the Amphibian, Reptile and Invertebrate Windows.
My family and I have always enjoyed this area, so I’m glad that it is not closing permanently. However, it will be interesting to see what changes have been made once it reopens in the spring.
Do you usually visit Rafiki’s Planet Watch when you are in Animal Kingdom, or do you skip it?
Thanks for reading!
*Liz*
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Liz
I love all things Disney, but my main love is for Disney World and I'm always planning for the next trip. Before becoming a Disney blogger, I was a radio DJ, so I guess I'm just continuing in the communication industry, just in a different form. I love talking Disney and I could talk about Disney all day. That's why I started blogging and created the Facebook group. The Disney community is full of friendly, helpful, and happy people...and I love being a part of it! If there is any Disney subject you would like to see covered just let me know! Need help planning your Disney vacation. Feel free to contact myself or Melissa at Never Stop Dreaming Travel Co. We love helping people plan their trips! Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy! Don't forget to check out our Countdown to Disney app! Feel free to email me with suggestions of things you would like to see in the app :-)
We just missed the last train for the day on our last trip a few months ago. We were looking forward to doing it next year. My 2 and 7 year old love to ride trains and we knew we would not be able to ride the Magic Kingdom train on our next trip due to Tron construction. We were upset to hear at first a couple weeks ago that we would not be able to ride this train either. We are so glad it should be up and running again when we go back at the end of April. Thanks for the update.