It’s a great way to see characters!Over the past few weeks I’ve been adding some #ThrowbackThursday and #FlashbackFriday pictures to the Disney Over 50 Facebook and Instagram accounts. I love looking back. Many of the pictures that I’ve added are from rides or attractions that no longer exist. Some aren’t missed, like The Legend of Captain Jack Sparrow at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Others, like The Great Movie Ride, people do truly seem to miss. There has been a lot of change at Walt Disney World in the 13 years that my family and I have lived here. Some changes have been hits, while others have missed the mark. I thought it might be fun to write a short series on these hits and misses.
So far I’ve covered a major hit with Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, and perhaps the biggest miss of all with Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser. I’m going with another hit today, this time at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. I’m talking about the Flotillas.
When Walt Disney World reopened in July, 2020 after a four month closure due to Covid, characters were problematic. How could guests still see all of their favorite characters, but at a safe distance? The solution was to have Character Cavalcades, mini pop-up parades that would feature a few characters. At Disney’s Animal Kingdom, someone had the brilliant idea to have characters cruise around the Discovery River. Flotillas (or as I’ll sometimes call them Character Cruises) were born.
As restrictions eased and more people visited Walt Disney World, the Character Cavalcades faded into the past. There is only one left, Disney Adventure Friends Cavalcade at the Magic Kingdom. Flotillas, though, are still going strong.
The characters on the Flotillas have changed somewhat since meet and greets have returned to Disney’s Animal Kingdom. You won’t see Mickey and Minnie cruising by any longer, but there are still plenty of other characters. I’ve recently seen Russel and Dug, Pocahontas and Meeko, Uncle Scrooge and Launchpad McQuack, Goofy and Pluto, and Rafiki and Timon.
The Discovery Island Drummers also have a Flotilla. It’s fun and high energy, and they love to wave and get people into the music as they cruise on by.
In the early days of Flotillas there was no published schedule. Now, you can find the times in the My Disney Experience App. Just look under “entertainment”, or search for “Flotilla”. The times for the rest of the day will come up.
If you can see the Discovery River, you’ll be able to see the Flotilla. There are good viewing areas throughout Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Keep in mind that the entire journey takes several minutes, and the posted time is from the beginning of the route.
I hope that Walt Disney World decides to keep Flotillas indefinitely at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. They offer a fun way to interact with the characters, and watching doesn’t take up more than a few minutes of your day. In my book, Flotillas are another major hit.