Kidani Village vs. Jambo House??

[Pluto14]

I booked our trip for a 1br Savannah view today from July 11-July 18. Member services booked directly into Jambo House. I was a bit surprised she didn't say "would you like Jambo House or Kidani Village?" I just figured I would get the choice. So I asked why not Kidani Village and she said something about checking for availability and was checking, but at the same time she was trying to almost "sell" me on staying in Jambo House...saying things like, "You do realize Kidani Village will be one mile from the main hotel and things like the food court and bus stop....there will also be more construction noise in Kidani Village." and then as we continued to talk she stopped looking for availability.

I felt a little confused. Could someone HERE sell me on the differences between Kidani and Jambo??? Should I call back and change to Kidani? Please help me figure this out! Thanks!

[Lynn5700]

We are going in May but are staying in Jambo House...I want to wait till kidani is all done to maybe stay there. I know that there is not a food court in Kidani but I did not know it was a mile away??

[Pluto14]

Yes, I'm really wondering if the CM was exaggerating??! It can't be a mile away...however, I'm reading on other threads that the pool wasn't going to be done until Sept 09. So, that might be a con.

[erionm]

From the member website:
Will the two buildings be in walking distance from each other?

Yes, there is an outdoor walking path between the two buildings (approx. 2,500-foot walk from the porte cochere of one building to the other).

2,500 feet = approx. 1/2 mile. The Porte Cochere is the covered entrance of the resort.

As for the pool, it should be open when Kidani Village opens on 5/1/2009. Kidani Village will have a store with groceries and it's own bus stop. There will not be a quick service dining location, only table service will be available.

[jbrowna]

Yes, I'm really wondering if the CM was exaggerating??! It can't be a mile away...however, I'm reading on other threads that the pool wasn't going to be done until Sept 09. So, that might be a con.

Where did you read that? Everything I've seen indicates that the pool will be open in May. In fact, I just booked for the end of July and specifically requested Kidani. :thumbsup2

[Laneychris]

Interesting, we wanted Jambo House for the location and were told we had to have Kidani becuase of the roll in shower.

[Donald is #1]

Let's see. From your post you are booking a 1 br, so here is the pros/cons list of each building in my opinion.


Kidani:
Pros:
1) 1 BRs have 2 bathrooms
2) SV room may be on a lower floor
3) Maybe (I don't remember) the rooms are slightly bigger?


Cons:
1) Resort will not be fully open until September. I don't think any of us really knows what will be open and what won't be open.

2) Can be a long walk to Jambo House. I am not sure if it is a mile or not from the end of Kidani to Jambo House but it is atleast a 1/2 mile.

3) No counter service


Jambo:
Pros:
1) Entire resort is open

2) Lots of activities going on

3) Mara, Boma, Jiko


Cons:
1) DVC rooms are only on the 5th floor so you are fairly high up above the animals

2) 1 BRs only have 1 bathroom

[drusba]

Front door to front door from Kidani to Jambo will be about 1/2 mile. From the Kidani lobby to the very end rooms on the northern wing of Kidani (furthest from Jambo front door) will likely add another 1/5 mile or possibly more. Most of the northern wing rooms do not open until Sep. Pool, lobby, restaurant, store, other facilities are supposed to open May 1. Kidani will have its own bus stop. Have no idea why the MS employee was saying what was said and I question whether any of it was authorized or suggested by management. They are supposed to warn of construction noise but they are not supposed to try to convince you to stay at Jambo rather than Kidani.

Kidani will not have a food court or buffet restaurant. Jambo has both (for us personally that creates a big advantage for Jambo). Kidani studios will be about same size as Jambo but 1BR (and thus 2BRs) will be significantly larger (about an extra 100 sq ft) than Jambo. Kidani 1BRs will have two bathrooms (thus 2BRs three) whereas the Jambo 1BR has one. Also, the Jambo 1BR has a combined tub/shower while Kidani's master bath in the 1BR will have separate tub and shower. If you are going to have 5 (and possibly just 4) in the 1BR I would definitely consider the extra space and extra bathroom a reason to choose Kidani. Kidani will have the new pool and recreation area which looks impressive on paper but Jambo also has a very good pool and pool area.

[shellybaxter]

I didn't realize that there was a regular tub/shower in the Jambo house one bedroom. That is a deal breaker for me. The separate tub is one of the main reasons we bought into DVC

[crbruce_us]

We just stayed 5 nights in a one bedroom at Jambo house (12/21 - 12/26). The spa tub was combined with the shower, but I will have to say that it was a VERY NICE spa bath tub. It was really long and deep and I didn't have to bend my legs to sit in it. The jets also worked very well. I also liked the setup of the bathroom being accessed from the hall, instead of those annoying multiple doors the other resorts have. I thought it made the bedroom and bathroom more private.

[La2kw]

I didn't realize that there was a regular tub/shower in the Jambo house one bedroom. That is a deal breaker for me. The separate tub is one of the main reasons we bought into DVC

I agree. I think Kidani will be more along the lines of what I expect DVC to be. Jambo just seems like DVC lite. I also would rather wait until Kidani is finished to stay there, but by that time BLT will probably be open and I will prefer staying there anyway.

[pouncingpluto]

If only Kidani had its own food court, it would sound perfect to me.

[Mahusky]

Can Jambo DVC guest use the new Kidani pool?

[AKV707]

Everyone has accurately represented both locations. Each has their plusses and minuses. We are booked in a 2 br at Kidani in mid June and are really looking forward to it. I don't understand why the MS person would tell you that. I would definitely call back, and check availability at Kidani and share that first conversation with MS.

But you can't go wrong with either. We love AKV!

[keishashadow]

we luved our 1st stay in Oct in value studio (sav view) in jambo house:goodvibes

had it booked again for June trip:) , yet recently had to tweak days a bit and wound up with a day missing mid-trip in same studio type:eek:

could've had Kidani standard studio, yet we turned it down because of distance, lack of food court and the fact that MS wasn't able to confirm that the pool would def. be open by the end of June/early July:confused3 . I was told it was "supposed to be open" by then...didn't want to take a chance...very long walk to the other pool after long day in the parks

always next year;)

[erionm]

Can Jambo DVC guest use the new Kidani pool?
From the AKV FAQ on the member website:
Will Disney Vacation Club Members staying at Disney's Animal Kingdom Villas be able to enjoy the amenities at both locations?

Yes, Members and their Guests staying at Disney's Animal Kingdom Villas will be able to enjoy the amenities of both Jambo House and Kidani Village, regardless of in which building they are staying.

[GuySmiley]

Im going in October and I was suprised I did get a choice between Kidani and Jambo. Of course by then Kidani is supposed to be fully finished. But my res on DVC member even says Kidani. I figured that would be a request-but-not-guaranteed type thing.

[hakepb]

Im going in October and I was suprised I did get a choice between Kidani and Jambo. Of course by then Kidani is supposed to be fully finished. But my res on DVC member even says Kidani. I figured that would be a request-but-not-guaranteed type thing.

No, Kidani vs Jambo is a guaranteed booking category, not a request (It will be like Standard Vs Preferred vs Boardwalk at BWV or HH / no HH at OKW)

[LisaS]

Im going in October and I was suprised I did get a choice between Kidani and Jambo. Of course by then Kidani is supposed to be fully finished. But my res on DVC member even says Kidani. I figured that would be a request-but-not-guaranteed type thing.It's a separate booking category. Kidani will have its own check-in desk so you need to know up front where you are staying so that you go to the right building to check in.

[DisneyBuffinDE]

I'm sure this is a no brainer but my home resort is AKV Kidani. So my question is am I just a DVC AKV or DVC AKV Kidani? When I make a res 11 months out can I make one for only Kidani or can I make one for Jaambo since it is AKV? I'm so confused??????????:confused3

[KAT4DISNEY]

I'm sure this is a no brainer but my home resort is AKV Kidani. So my question is am I just a DVC AKV or DVC AKV Kidani? When I make a res 11 months out can I make one for only Kidani or can I make one for Jaambo since it is AKV? I'm so confused??????????:confused3

AKV is both Jambo and Kidani so you can book and get a room in either building at 11 months.

[DisneyBuffinDE]

AKV is both Jambo and Kidani so you can book and get a room in either building at 11 months.

Thank you so much for the info. Newbie at this DVC thing. First DVC trip Feb 10-15 at SSR with developer points.

[pilgrimr]

We have a vacation booked for May 3-9 at Kidani Village. We originally had reservation for OKW, but we saw the model when we were there a couple of weeks ago and liked the double bathroom for the one bedroom. We did not have any problems switching. We are hoping that the pool will at least be open. We are not to concerned about the resturants being open as we plan on eating in the room. Thanks for the information provided. It has been helpful. It will be very interesting to see how it is when it opens.

[mef78]

Thought this might be interesting: Jambo House vs. Kidani Village -- reader responses (http://www.aklresort.com/content/jambo-house-vs-kidani-village) from AKLresort.com

[dgaston]

This thread is old -- most of it is from 2008!;)

[TLPL]

After tried both Kidani and Jambo, I can say I perfer jambo house. I love the grand scale of the jambo house lobby, the CS option, the bigger store, the buffet, more activities. Kidani is brand new and has the community hall, but has no place that serve breakfast and no CS, so it is not a complete resort and also far from the main resort. The walk to the bus stop and Jambo house is boring and not covered. Unless Villas at Wilderness Lodge, Kidani and Jambo is far enough they have seperate bus stops.