Animal Kingdom has picked up two more hours on the Monday before Thanksgiving. The park now runs from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Monday, November 23, instead of closing at 6 p.m. Early Theme Park Entry for Disney Resort hotel guests and guests of other select hotels still starts at 7:30 a.m.
That gives Animal Kingdom later closings four nights in a row heading into the holiday, and it makes Monday and Tuesday the park’s two longest days of Thanksgiving week, at 12 hours each.
Thanksgiving Week At Animal Kingdom
Here is how the week now looks:
Saturday, November 21: open until 7 p.m.
Sunday, November 22: 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., with Tree of Life Awakenings starting at 6 p.m.
Monday, November 23: 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., with Tree of Life Awakenings at 6 p.m.
Tuesday, November 24: 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., with Tree of Life Awakenings at 6 p.m.
The extra evening time stops after Tuesday. From Wednesday, November 25, through Saturday, November 28, Thanksgiving Day included, Animal Kingdom keeps its usual 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. hours for now. Guests at select resorts can still stay late on Wednesday, when Extended Evening Hours run from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
More Shows And Later Dinners
The longer days come with more to do. Festival of the Lion King adds a 5 p.m. show on November 23 and 24, and Feathered Friends in Flight! adds a 4:45 p.m. show on both days. Avatar Flight of Passage, Na’vi River Journey, Expedition Everest and Zootopia: Better Zoogether! all follow the later 8 p.m. close on Monday.
Tree of Life Awakenings, the projection show that brings the animal carvings on the tree to life after dark, is now listed on November 22, 23 and 24. With the sun setting early in late November, a later close leaves plenty of time to catch it.
Restaurants are staying open later on Monday too. Tusker House Restaurant serves until 7:30 p.m., Yak & Yeti Restaurant until 7:50 p.m., and Rainforest Cafe at Disney’s Animal Kingdom until 8:30 p.m. Tiffins Restaurant stays open until 7:30 p.m. on both Monday and Tuesday.
The Rest Of Walt Disney World
Monday had been the one gap left after Disney added time to Thanksgiving week at Magic Kingdom, Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom earlier this month. Magic Kingdom already has its own long holiday, as we covered when Magic Kingdom’s Thanksgiving hours moved to 8 a.m. to 11 p.m.
If you are planning Thanksgiving week now, Monday and Tuesday now offer the most time at Animal Kingdom, with room for the evening shows after dark.
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