Wildlife Express Train
The Wildlife Express Train is an attraction located in Disney's Animal Kingdom
| Wildlife Express Train | |
| |
| The Wildlife Express Train in the statio. | |
| Disney's Animal Kingdom | |
| Land | Rafaki's Planet Watch, Africa |
|---|---|
| Theme | African Railway |
| Opening date | October 1, 1971 |
| Duration | 12(Roundtrip) |
|
| |
Attraction Description and History
The Wildlife Express Train is a locomotive steam engine that takes guests from the village of Harambe in Africa to Rafiki's Planet Watch and vice versa. The train takes guests on a 1.2 mile circuit, along a narrow path between Africa and Asia. Along the way, guests can get a backstage view of the animal care facilities where the park's animals are kept overnight. According to Disney, “The three engines and two sets of cars belonging to the Wildlife Express line were built in 1997 only a few miles from William Shakespeare's cottage in Stratford-on-Avon by the model-railroad firm of Severn Lamb, Ltd., at Alchester, England.”
Early plans for Animal Kingdom called for a steam engine railway which would have taken guests through the Savannah plains. The idea was changed however after concerns about the safety of the animals was raised. Since the Wildlife Express Train opened on April 22, 1998, no significant changes have happened to the attraction.
Fun Facts and Trivia
- According to the attraction's backstory, the Wildlife Express Train is a part of the fictional Eastern Star Railway.
- Harambe is Swahili for "coming together".
- On the way from Rafiki's Planet Watch to Africa, guests can get a glimpse of the backstage behind Asia.
- It takes seven minutes to get from Harambe, Africa to Rafiki's Planet Watch, but only five minutes to make the return trip.
- On top of the trains, red and green bins can be found. These are meant to represent the luggage that passengers have brought aboard the train. The color of the bins is a good way to tell the trains apart.
- The engine with the serial number 02594 has been named the R. Baba Harpoor in honor of Imagineer Bob Harpur.
References
http://www.magicalkingdoms.com/wdw/parks/ak_wetrain.html
http://touringplans.com/animal-kingdom/attractions/wildlife-express-train-africa-station
http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/parks/animal-kingdom/attractions/wildlife-express-train/
