If you haven’t been to Disney’s Animal Kingdom lately, you might notice that quite a bit has changed!

Holiday decorations are up, they’ve got new merchandise, and a couple of rides are looking very different. We’re heading around the park today to get you updates of what’s new in terms of merchandise, food, construction projects, and more!

We’ll start out with an exciting new collection of 50th Anniversary souvenirs that we found very recently!

Animal Kingdom Merchandise Updates

If you head into the Riverside Depot or Discovery Trading gift shops in the Animal Kingdom, you can find the newest Dooney & Bourke purse collection, which has a 50th Anniversary theme.

These bags are black with a pattern of iridescent “50th” logos. Although they’re leather bags, the material felt a little strange to us. It might just be a different finish on the outside, though! And the pattern itself looked sort of distressed, which isn’t something you usually see on these designer handbags.

But you can get a tote bag, domed satchel, or crossbody bag in this collection, both in the parks and online! And if you’re in Disney World, look out for the Annual Passholder bag that’s part of this collection as well.

The tote was $348, the satchel was $318, and the crossbody bag was $268. If you’re buying the Annual Passholder bag (which is similar to the tote bag but with different handles), it’ll cost $318.

Click Here to Shop the Dooney & Bourke 50th Anniversary Collection Online

Animal Kingdom Food Updates

We’ve been on the lookout for the holiday refillable popcorn buckets and sippers, but we haven’t found them yet in any of the Disney World parks. The good news is that there seem to be plenty of Mickey Mouse 50th Anniversary popcorn buckets available!

You can get these buckets at most snack stands in the Animal Kingdom. The bucket is $18.99, and then any popcorn refills after you buy it are $2 each.

Over in the Africa section of Animal Kingdom, we stopped into Zuri’s Sweets Shop to see if there were any new goodies there.

We found some Lion King-themed gummi candies that you can get shaped like animals or creepy crawlies (slimy…yet satisfying!).

And there were also some trail snacks with new packaging, like Mountain Mambo Seed & Fruit Mix…

…and Cinnamon Swirl Mini Rice Crisps.

You can also check out the display case here to see holiday treats like caramel apples, Mickey rice krispie treats, fudge, and more!

Click Here to See Reviews and Photos of All the 2021 Holiday Treats in Disney World

Animal Kingdom Construction Updates

You might already know that the Kali River Rapids attraction is closed right now, and it’s not scheduled to reopen until January 1st of next year.

We saw some construction over in this area as Cast Members complete some routine maintenance and updates on the ride.

DinoLand U.S.A. also had a bit of construction going on. We’ve already taken a look at the demolished Primeval Whirl attraction…

…but this time we noticed that a lot of the arcade games in Dino-Rama were also closed even though there were plenty of guests in the area.

Other Animal Kingdom Updates

If you’re a major Animal Kingdom fan, then you already know who DiVine is. The character is camouflaged in vines and other plants, but if you’re lucky then you can spot her walking around the park sometimes. We saw her recently playing with bubbles and greeting guests on the walkways!

That’s it for our Animal Kingdom updates! Keep following DFB for more news on the latest additions in Disney World.

Click Here to See What’s New at the Disney World Hotels

What’s your favorite ride at Animal Kingdom? Let us know in the comments.