Wilderness Explorers at Animal Kingdom



You learn something new every day, and this is especially true at Disney. There's park secrets, ride facts, and hidden Mickeys. These are all good things to know, but Disney World also has a lot of educational value. You can learn a lot about science at both Epcot and Animal Kingdom, and Animal Kingdom will teach you all about many kinds of animals.

If you are looking for something to educate your kids while they're having fun, especially if you took them out of school for this vacation, Wilderness Explorers at Animal Kingdom is for you.

This is also fun for adults, too. We took part in this free activity on our last trip and had a lot of fun.

Let us give you some background information. Wilderness Explorers is a set of interactive activities located throughout Animal Kingdom where explorers young and old can earn badges like the ones that Russell has in the movie Up.

Getting Started
Singing up for the Wilderness Explorers is easy. When cross the bridge after climbing the hill at the entrance of Animal Kingdom there will be a kiosk on your right as you are facing the Tree of Life. All you have to do is let the Cast Member know that you are interested in participating and you will be given a guide book, pencil, and a Wilderness Explorer’s sticker. At this stop you will earn your first merit badge by learning the Wilderness Explorer sign and call. Caw, Caw, Raw.


The Badges
There are a total of 31 badges to be earned. If your kids are slightly older or really ambitious – or adults (even with a baby) are taking part in earning badges then you can easily complete all of the badges in one day. However, if your children are on the younger side and are doing all of the work for the badges by themselves (expect for maybe the writing parts) then you may need more than one day to complete all of the badges.

Some badges are easy to achieve – like the initial badge, but some require the completion on more than one activity. For example: At Rafiki’s Planet watch four badges can be earned inside Conservation Station, but to receive the last badge you have to complete the other three first.



Not only does this activity provide you and/or your children with knowledge of animals, wildlife conservation, and culture, but it helps to give you an experience at this under-appreciated park that you may not get without it. You will have to look for the Cast Members with the Wilderness Explorers badge as well as some clues for completing badges, so you may end up seeing things around the park that you would have missed otherwise.

Completion!
Once you have completed all of the badges return to the kiosk where you signed up where you will be awarded the Senior Wilderness Explorer badge.

Even though Christian was only 7 months old when we participated in the Wilderness Explorers he enjoyed it and so did we. We learned a lot, had a lot of fun, saw things around the park that we had not seen in our previous 4 visits, and completed all 31 badges. We recommended it and think that you should check it out next time you’re at Animal Kingdom – even if you don’t have kids with you.

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