Hi Mabel!
Welcome to the Disney Parks Moms Panel.
Thank you for sending in such a good question.
Rainforest Cafe at Disney's Animal Kingdom is located at the entrance to the theme park, and is very unusual in that it has two entrances, both inside and outside the park. Your friends will not need an admission ticket to enter the restaurant from outside the park, but if you wish to exit the restaurant straight into the park after your dinner, you will need a park ticket.
Here is a park GuideMap so you can see exactly where the restaurant is located - at (2) on the map. Anyone wishing to use the parking lot at
Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park will be required to pay the parking fee. If your friends are visiting another theme park earlier in the day, and have already paid for parking there, this ticket will be good for the whole day and they won't have to pay again prior to your dinner reservation. Also, if your friends are staying at a Disney Resort hotel,
Disney Resort Transport is complimentary to/from the Walt Disney World Resort theme parks, and the bus service runs approximately every 20 minutes, with a return service operating for around 2 hours after park closing.
Please come back and visit us if you have any further questions. We will be happy to help you plan your magical vacation to Walt Disney World Resort.
Sue