Starlight Safari is Worth the Splurge

Kidani Village is my favorite Disney resort, and it’s the sort of place where a walk back to the room after a park day can be five minutes of looking for giraffes, instead of thinking about how tired our feet are. Which brings up a perfectly reasonable question about Starlight Safari. If I can watch animals from an overlook at Animal Kingdom Lodge for free, what am I getting for another $89 to $99 per person? Or if I’m not staying at Animal Kingdom Lodge, is it worth the cost and the effort?

I think so! For about an hour, you get to go out onto the resort’s savannas in a guided, open-sided truck with a night-vision device. That changes where you can look, how much you can see after dark, and what you can learn about the animals that live there. I think it’s worth both the money and the evening, especially for the people who always need “just one more minute” looking at the wildlife over at Animal Kingdom.

Where to Go and How Much It Costs

Starlight Safari leaves from Kidani Village at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge. That puts you at the resort, on a different set of savannas from Kilimanjaro Safaris at Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park. You can book it whether you’re staying at the Lodge, somewhere else at Disney World, or off property. The safari requires no park admission, so it works on a day you’ve set aside for the pool or a late start.

• Price: List price is $89 to $99 per person, plus tax. Disney currently lists a 15% Annual Passholder discount off the regular price for the Passholder and up to three guests. I successfully used the AP discount for my tour, and paid just about $75 after discount and tax.
• Ages: Everyone must be at least 8. Anyone younger than 18 needs a participating adult who is at least 18.
• Timing: The tour takes about an hour. Departure times will depend on sunset, but as of this winter they’ll usually be at 7:00, 8:30, and 10:00 p.m. Check your date for the times actually offered.
• Check-in: Arrive at least 15 minutes early at Kidani Village’s covered front entrance with a valid photo ID. Disney won’t accommodate arrivals after the tour starts. And you’ll need time to fill out waivers for each attendee.
• Cancellation. Disney has a 24-hour cancellation policy. Cancel inside that window or miss the tour and you forfeit the full price. Disney may cancel for inclement weather.

Booking and Getting There

You can book online or in My Disney Experience. If you’re staying off property, look 60 days before the date you want to go. If you’re staying at an eligible Disney resort, you can book starting 60 days before check-in for your stay, up to 10 nights. I’d put this near the top of your booking list. It’s a very popular activity, with relatively low capacity. If you have that resort booking advantage, start by checking dates toward the end of your trip. And if your first choice is full, check again as plans change and people cancel.

If you’re coming from a park, take the Animal Kingdom Lodge bus and get off at Kidani Village. From Jambo House, there’s a walking path that takes about 10 to 15 minutes or an internal shuttle between the two lobbies. If you’re driving, have your reservation handy at the Kidani entrance so that they’ll let you in park.

The ride back is the one I’d figure out in advance. Disney buses generally connect resorts with parks or Disney Springs, so a trip back to another hotel can mean a transfer. A 10 p.m. safari puts you back at Kidani around 11 p.m. Check what’s still running at that hour or budget for a rideshare. If I were building a whole evening around it, I’d book an early dinner at Sanaa, spend a little time at the overlook while there’s still daylight, and head up to the front entrance to check in. Dinner is separate from the tour, so give yourself enough time for the bread service. It would be a shame to rush it.

What Happens Out on the Savanna?

The guide takes you onto the Lodge’s savannas in an open-sided vehicle, and Disney loans you a handheld night-vision monocular, which is a scope you look through with one eye. From the truck, you’re looking across the savanna at ground level, a different angle from a room balcony or an overlook.

The Lodge is home to more than 30 species, including giraffes, zebras, wildebeest, and ostriches. Think of that list as a field guide, because the animals get to decide how much of themselves they make available for viewing. Some may be standing right where you can see them. Others may be farther away or resting. For what it’s worth, this is as much time that I’ve ever spent this close to any animals on a safari at Walt Disney World, including Kilimanjaro Safaris, Wild Africa Trek, and Savor the Savanna.

Having a guide to point out where to look and explain what you’re seeing matters a lot more when the view out of the truck starts out as a series of dark shapes. And there’s also time to ask the questions you come up with along the way, which is part of the appeal if you’ve ever wanted to know more about how Disney cares for the animals at the Lodge.

I’d treat photos as a bonus. The night-vision device helps you see things your phone may struggle to capture, and a dark savanna is an excellent place to spend ten minutes taking twelve pictures of the same blur (examples below). Follow the guide’s photo instructions, leave the flash off, and give yourself time to look through the device.

A Few Things to Know Before You Board

It’s an open-air ride on uneven ground, so I’d bring a layer on a cool night and use the restroom before boarding. If darkness, loud noises, or bumps are a concern for anyone in your group, Disney’s sensory guide is worth a look. Disney advises against riding while pregnant and lists other health restrictions on the tour page. If you use an ECV, you’ll need to transfer to an available wheelchair for the tour. Guests who need to stay in a wheelchair should confirm space in advance at (407) 938-1373.

Is Starlight Safari Worth the Time and Money?

Yes, especially if you or anyone in your party are passionate about animal behavior and/or care. At close to $400 before tax for a family of four, I’d consider it the main event for a special evening during your vacation. The best reason to book is that the guide and the night vision let you spend an hour paying attention to animals you could easily miss from the Lodge after dark. And since the tour happens in the evening at a resort, you can do it without giving up park time or buying a park ticket for that day. That combination makes it an easier splurge to fit into a trip than some of Disney’s longer tours.

For an animal-loving older kid, a couple who has already done the parks together, or a family staying at the Lodge, this would be high on my list. If half your group would happily spend an hour scanning the savanna and the other half would spend it asking how much longer they have to scan the savanna, I’d book for the interested half.

I’d make an evening of Starlight Safari on a resort day, or after an Animal Kingdom day that ends early enough for dinner and a breather. An hour out on the savanna is a pretty good reason to stay up a little later at Disney World.