Backstage Tales — Former Show · History & Timeline

Former Show · the memorial record

⚰ Permanently closed · Feb 13, 2018operated 3 years · 2015–2018

This show is gone, but its history stays documented — the full lifetime log is below.

Show history

the lifetime record

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2026

UpdateAug 2, 2026#

The published Animal Kingdom tour lineup consisted of Caring for Giants, Savor the Savanna, Wild Africa Trek and Up Close with Rhinos, with no Backstage Tales offering.

Tracked byTheme Park Patch Notes
2021

Coming SoonDec 16, 2021#

When Disney announced the 2022 return of guided tours, the Animal Kingdom lineup resuming February 6, 2022 covered Caring for Giants, Wild Africa Trek, Up Close with Rhinos and Savor the Savanna, with Backstage Tales absent.

Tracked byTheme Park Patch Notes
2018

◆ Latest milestone

RefurbishmentFeb 13, 2018#

Backstage Tales had been phased out by February 13, 2018, when Disney was testing a free 30-minute backstage walking tour that checked in at Rafiki's Planet Watch ahead of the park's 20th anniversary.

No source gives an exact final operating date. BlogMickey reported on 2018-02-13 that the three-hour paid tour had already been phased out, and Disney Food Blog carries a standing "no longer offered" notice, so early 2018 is the corroborated point by which the tour was gone rather than a confirmed last day; an end in late 2017 is not ruled out. The free 30-minute test tour was marketed under the same Backstage Tales name but was a substantially shorter, free offering, not a continuation of the ticketed tour.

Tracked byTheme Park Patch Notes
2015

UpdateNov 23, 2015#

A published walkthrough documented the tour as a roughly three-hour-45-minute, $90 experience visiting the Pangani Forest aviary, the elephant and rhinoceros barn, the Animal Nutrition Center, the back rooms of Conservation Station and the lion house.

Tracked byTheme Park Patch Notes
NewMar 1, 2015#

Backstage Tales opened at Disney's Animal Kingdom as a paid backstage program running roughly 7:30 to 11:15 a.m., taking guests to backstage animal housing areas, the Animal Nutrition Center, the veterinary hospital and the Animal Programs Administration building.

WDWNT described it as an enhanced version of Backstage Safari and TouringPlans, reviewing the operating tour, called it a mashup of Backstage Safari and Wild by Design weighted heavily toward the former. Chip and Co listed different hours (Mon-Fri, 8:30 a.m. and 1:00 p.m.) and is not cited here; the 7:30-11:15 a.m. window is what WDWNT announced and what TouringPlans documented on the operating tour.

Tracked byTheme Park Patch Notes
Coming SoonJan 2015#

Disney announced in January 2015 that the Backstage Safari tour would be retired on February 27, 2015 and replaced on March 1 by an expanded tour called Backstage Tales, open to guests ages 12 and older.

Tracked byTheme Park Patch Notes

Questions & answers

When did Backstage Tales open?

Per the documented record, Backstage Tales at Animal Kingdom opened on Mar 1, 2015.

When did Backstage Tales last close for refurbishment?

The most recent closure/refurbishment documented for Backstage Tales is dated Feb 13, 2018: Backstage Tales had been phased out by February 13, 2018, when Disney was testing a free 30-minute backstage walking tour that checked in at Rafiki's Planet Watch ahead of the park's 20th anniversary.

What changed recently on Backstage Tales?

The latest documented change (documented Aug 2, 2026): The published Animal Kingdom tour lineup consisted of Caring for Giants, Savor the Savanna, Wild Africa Trek and Up Close with Rhinos, with no Backstage Tales offering.

How many changes are on record for Backstage Tales?

6 documented changes, dating back to 2015 — the fan-kept show changelog nobody else keeps.

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