It's Tough to Be a Bug!

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What It Is
3-D theater show
Our Rating

Current Wait Time
Shows every	8.0 minutes
Average wait	2 minutes

Appeal By Age
Based our reader surveys. See our Ratings and Research page for details.
Preschool
Grade School
Teens
Young Adults
Over 30
Seniors

Touring Info
Wait per 100 people ahead	12.0 minutes
When to go Before noon or after 4 p.m.

General Info
Location	Discovery Island
Opening Date	April 22, 1998
Duration	8 minutes
Scope and Scale	Major Attraction
Closures / Refurbishments

Inaccurate/stale data?
Let us know.

Description And Comments

The Tree of Life, apart from its size, is a work of art—the most visually compelling structure in any Disney theme park. Although it’s magnificent from afar, it’s not until you get up close that you can truly appreciate the tree’s rich detail. What appears from a distance to be ancient gnarled bark is, in fact, hundreds of carvings depicting all manner of wildlife, each integrated seamlessly into the trunk, roots, and limbs of the tree. Look for these carvings on the front left side of the tree, along the Discovery Island walkway to Africa.

In sharp contrast to the grandeur of the tree is the subject of the attraction housed within its trunk. Called It's Tough to Be a Bug!, this humorous 3-D presentation is about the difficulties of being a very small creature. Contrasting with the relatively serious tone of Disney's Animal Kingdom in general, It's Tough to Be a Bug! provides some much-needed levity and whimsy. The show is similar to Mickey's PhilharMagic at the Magic Kingdom in that it combines a 3-D film with an arsenal of tactile and visual special effects. A mom of two from Williamsville, New York, shared this experience:

It’s Tough to Be a Bug! was my girls’ first Disney experience, and almost their last. The storyline was difficult to follow—all they were aware of was the torture of sitting in a darkened theater being overrun with bugs. A constant stream of parents headed to the exits with terrorized children. Those who were left behind were screaming and crying as well. The 11-year-old refused to talk for 20 minutes after the fiasco, and the 3½-year-old wanted to go home. Not back to the hotel, but home.

From a Louisville, Kentucky, family:

My 12-year-old-son and I were laughing at the comments made by concerned parents in the It’s Tough to Be a Bug! review, thinking it would be fun to watch families leave early with crying kids. And our particular show didn’t disappoint, even in ways beyond my expectation, for, as the show progressed, my son became eerily quiet. In fact, it was only a matter of time that I found him hunkering down underneath his seat for survival after he saw the bugs coming at him and “feeling” their presence. Needless to say, he ended up being a good sport, and we were able to put it behind him after spending several hours with the on-site child psychologist. (Just kidding!)

Touring Tips

This attraction offers Lightning Lane via Genie+.
Open for Early Theme Park Entry.

It's Tough to Be a Bug is rarely crowded even on the busiest days. Go in the morning after the Pandora attractions, Kilimanjaro Safaris, Kali River Rapids, Expedition Everest, and DINOSAUR. If you miss the bugs in the morning, try again in the late afternoon.

Note that It's Tough to Be a Bug! is very intense and the special effects will do a number on guests of all ages who are squeamish about insects. A mother of two from Williamsville, New York, shared this experience: