The Kali River Rapids attraction has reopened at Disney’s Animal Kingdom following an accelerated timeframe for the annual repairs. Typically, the you-will-get-soaked attraction is closed during the coldest times of year. That usually means a January closure and a March reopening. However, that timeframe was accelerated this year due to the upcoming closure of the DINOSAUR attraction. Here’s the latest.
Kali River Rapids Reopens from Refurbishment
Kali River Rapids reopened on December 12th, and we made it out to Disney’s Animal Kingdom recently to grab a few photos of the attraction. Given the cooler temperatures this morning, we didn’t actually ride the attraction, but we did snap a few photos from a bridge near the end of the white water rapids ride.
Lower temperatures today and this weekend have kept the average wait time to around 10 minutes, but the attraction’s popularity will rise with the temperature.
The Kali River Rapids refurbishment was pushed up in the calendar due to the upcoming February 2026 closing of the DINOSAUR attraction. As a reminder, the final day to experience the DINOSAUR attraction is February 1, 2026. When DINOSAUR closes, it will remain closed for some 18 months as it is reimagined into an Indiana Jones-themed attraction. Disney likely didn’t want two attractions closed at the same time and pushed for the Kali River Rapids refurbishment to be completed on an accelerated timeline versus the annual cadence.
It will be interesting to see if Kali River Rapids closes either in late 2026 or early 2027 ahead of the planned 2027 opening of the Tropical Americas area within Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
As always, keep checking back with us here at BlogMickey.com as we continue to bring you the latest news, photos, and info from around the Disney Parks!