A holiday cupcake, a big change to kids’ meals, and…dinosaur POOP?
Tree of Life
Disney’s Animal Kingdom is always an exciting place to be, with thrill rides like Expedition Everest, fan-favorite shows like Finding Nemo: The Big Blue…and Beyond, and delicious snacks like cheeseburger pods. But it’s even more exciting right now since we just spotted several changes at this park! Come with us to see everything that’s NEW at Animal Kingdom.
Before we get to all the updates, make sure you download our FREE Animal Kingdom checklist so that you don’t miss any of the best rides, snacks, and activities in this park! Just enter your email, and we’ll send the checklist straight to your inbox.
Let’s start with some big food updates at this park.
Animal Kingdom Food Updates
Flame Tree Barbecue
This holiday season, you can find the Merry Menagerie Cupcake yet again! It’s a returning treat and you can get it from multiple quick service spots, including Flame Tree Barbecue, Pizzafari, and Restaurantosaurus.
Menagerie Cupcake
The cute cupcake costs $5.99 and matches the Merry Menagerie puppets that you can find on Discovery Island.
Click here to read our review of the Merry Menagerie Cupcake.
Restaurantosaurus
We stopped by Restaurantosaurus to check out a big change that was recently made — they’re now offering books with the purchase of a kids’ meal.
The new kids’ meal
But there’s a catch! Previously, you could choose three sides with a kids’ meal here, but now you get the choice of two sides along with a National Geographic book. So you’re giving up an extra side to get that book.
Get more details about this kids’ meal change here.
Animal Kingdom Construction Updates
While we were in DinoLand, U.S.A., we saw that there were still big hedges up around the fountain at the DINOSAUR ride. This ride is still open, but the fountain is getting some refurbishments done at the moment.
Construction
And at the front of the park, the Christmas tree is officially up!
It’s the holiday season!
There are lots of pretty decorations up around this park, especially at Discovery Island. But don’t miss the colorful hanging lights in the Asia section of the park! These look gorgeous at night.
Click here to see more construction project updates in Disney World.
Animal Kingdom Merchandise Updates
Discovery Trading Co.
There were some new Mickey ears at this gift shop! We spotted some Santa hat Mickey ears for $34.99 (but they’re just $27.99 if you buy them online!)…
Santa Hat Mickey Ears
…Coco Minnie ears for $34.99…
‘Coco’ Ears
…and lumberjack Mickey ears, also for $34.99.
Lumberjack Mickey Ears
We haven’t spotted the Coco or lumberjack ears online yet, but we’ll be on the lookout for them!
Windtraders
At Windtraders (the gift shop in the Pandora section of this park), there were some new items as well. There was a Pandora puffy jacket for kids for $59.99…
Avatar coat
…a Pandora fleece jacket for kids for $59.99…
Fuzzy Jacket
…and a Na’vi baby plush for $34.99.
Na’vi baby plush
We also spotted a new Avatar-themed Spirit Jersey for $84.99…
Avatar Spirit Jersey
…and a matching bucket hat for $39.99.
Bucket Hat
Looking for a quick snack in Pandora? Check out the Lionberry Rice Krispie treats for $5.49.
Lionberry treats
On to the next shop!
Dino Institute
Did you know you can buy REAL dinosaur POOP in Disney World? Yep — just head to the Dino Institute to get your hands on some fossilized feces.
Should we buy it?
You can pick up the poop for $9.95 — this would make a great gag gift or a fun stocking stuffer for kids!
Click here to check out Disney’s 100th anniversary merchandise!
If you’re visiting Animal Kingdom (or any of the Disney World parks) soon, we’ve got a great resource for you to use – our DFB Guide to Walt Disney World Dining. We wrote our ebook after decades of visiting Disney World so that we could help you have a stress-free vacation! Click here and use code WDW2023 to get 25% off!
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What’s your favorite thing to do in Animal Kingdom? Let us know in the comments.
The post What’s New at Disney’s Animal Kingdom: Dinosaur Poop and a Kids’ Meal Update first appeared on the disney food blog.