The holidays are a magical experience at Walt Disney World. While Christmas at the Magic Kingdom is hard to beat (snow on Main Street? Perfection), I’ve fallen in love with the holidays in Animal Kingdom as well.
From the giant Christmas tree with ornaments inspired by world cultures and the animal world, to the Diwali lights in Anandapur, the park takes on a wonderfully festive feel. The Tree of Life Awakenings show gets a holiday music score with new scenes set in the winter wild. The vignettes are whimsical and poignant in their beauty. It’s an ongoing show, cycling through scenes throughout the evening, so you can stop and watch at your leisure.
All that said, I have to say that as of right now, the new Merry Menagerie is my favorite holiday experience at Animal Kingdom. Introduced this year, this “menagerie” features ornate, life-sized puppets that roam around Discovery Island. There are polar bears, reindeer, seals, foxes, owls, birds, and penguins. Oh my goodness, the penguins. There’s a baby penguin that looks like a little puff ball that absolutely melted my heart.
The puppeteers use a variety of theatrical techniques while operating the puppets that make them seem truly alive. The fox crouches down mischievously, inviting Guests to play, wiggling its hindquarters and shaking its head. The reindeer and polar bears sniff and revel in any head pets Guests might offer. The birds sweep around over head. All the while, musicians stroll around performing holiday music performed on steel drum and violin.
Different puppets are out at different times throughout the day, so who you meet is up to chance. Our whole family fell in love with the puppets, more or less forgetting that they weren’t technically alive at all. Then again, it’s Walt Disney World. Who is to say they aren’t?
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