Hi there Melanie, and welcome to planDisney!
Starting your day early
with a buffet breakfast at Tusker House Restaurant is definitely a great way to get ready for your journeys throughout Africa and beyond at
Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park, and I can definitely understand why you'd want to get there on time! Taking a look at the
Park Hours for this upcoming Friday, it also appears that it'll be open for
Early Theme Park Entry at 7:30 A.M. which sees quite a few guests arriving sooner for their chance to rope drop locations like
Pandora - The World of Avatar to be the first in line for
Avatar Flight of Passage. We recently enjoyed several early Disney's Animal Kingdom days this past week and I'm happy to lend some insight on what you might expect for your upcoming morning mealtime:
- Since you'll be arriving after Disney's Animal Kingdom has already opened, I've found that you won't need to worry about lining up anywhere in particular, let alone necessarily arriving much earlier like the folks and families who are prioritizing getting on rides or attractions. (For example, this might be a different scenario altogether if your dining reservation was scheduled to take place prior to opening for day guests but this doesn't appear to be possible for the next few months.)
- Based on my observations this week, by the time that the park had officially opened there were so many guests who had already begun heading off in various directions and hopefully walking safely and not stampeding like a confusion of wildebeest. The entrance to Disney's Animal Kingdom was actually quite calm and relaxed after that initial early rush, resulting in a leisurely trek over to Tusker House Restaurant in Harambe. In my personal opinion, your reservation time being half an hour after Disney's Animal Kingdom theme park has opened wouldn't normally require the need to get there super early or wait in line.
The fact that this is a buffet dining experience means that you can be a bit more relaxed with your time as you await for your favorite Character Pals to make their way around in their best safari wear. I do highly recommend pacing yourself and enjoying sips of the signature Jungle Juice throughout your meal just so that you're settled before you venture off into the wilds of the theme park. (Personally after such a bountiful breakfast all I want to do sometimes is enjoy an easygoing stroll through the nearby
Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail while I digest - and certainly not immediately hopping on something with a lot of movement like the
soon-to-be-extinct DINOSAUR or
Expedition Everest - Legend of the Forbidden Mountain!) I hope this helps Melanie, you're always welcome to come back to us at planDisney to let us know how it went - and for any other tips or advice!
Wishing you all the best on your wild Breakfast quest!
Prince