Back from AKL - Our Thoughts... UPDATED WITH PICS

[c&m]

We came back home last Tuesday, but between work, a family wedding, and getting the kids ready for back-to-school, I hadn't had a chance earlier to scribble up a quick review. Here is a review, but pictures to come later.

To describe our AKL experience...it was simply AMAZING!

Pre-Trip: We had struggled whether to upgrade (an extra $700) from CSR to AKL. We finally decided, with the help of others on this forum, to upgrade because free dining helped bring the trip cost down. Thanks to those of you who helped us decide, because AKL was well worth the upgrade. We still plan to stay at the CSR at some point, because moderates are a great value for what you get IMHO.

Check-in: It took us about 3-5 minutes to check in. We had completed the online check-in 10 days prior to our departure, so all they had to do was hand us our package, our KTTW, and directions to our room. The lady was friendly. Only downside was that I had requested a room on the 3rd floor or above, and we got a room on the 2nd floor, Zebra Trail, pool view. It was disappointing at first, but we realized afterwards that we still had a great view of the pool area and we saved time by simply walking the stairs instead of taking the elevator. As well, I discovered mid-trip that our room locale was perfect because of our proximity to the laundry room.

First impression of AKL: The lobby was magnificent and impressive. The hotel staff was friendly (probably the most friendliest out of all our experiences at WDW) and most helpful. The sitting areas, some with fireplaces, some with rocking chairs, were well placed. The viewing areas for animals were great, and we saw elk, giraffes, zebras, and many more. The hallways and public areas were clean and well maintained. It was definitely "deluxe", worthy of its title.

Our room: Really nice with bunkbeds. I would have preferred 2 queens, but that was what we got and I didn't want to go back to front desk to make a switch. The room was small but that was OK as we weren't going to hang out at the room all day anyways. The separate bathroom and vanity areas were a decent size and allowed us to get ready for the day without space challenges. The carpet looked new, as was all the furnishings. No wear and tear of any sort. We had a big flat screen TV - nice touch. There was a coffee maker and a fridge. We only had 1 luggage rack, so we requested 2 more and they were sent up with no problem. Most importantly, we all slept really well because of those amazing beds. The mattresses were ever so comfy. We'd stay at AKL just to sleep on those beds! I also want to emphasize how clean this room was -- as you can see from the picture below, no grout in the bathroom tiles.






Mousekeeping: Excellent mousekeeper we had (Ana Delia). She made us towel animals and kept us well supplied with a lot of the H2O products. It was a treat to return to our room each day to see what she had created.





The pool: We didn't have time to try out the pool. Our stay (7 nights) was too short, and our time was spent at the parks and water park. It did look like a very nice pool and pool area. Lots of shady spots and loads of lounge chairs. It also didn't look crowded -- maybe because it's such a good sized pool area that it didn't feel cramped. Our DDs didn't seem too impressed by the pool slide. I think that because they are older now and have gone on the most extreme water slides at Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach, they prefer something longer and more challenging. I do think they would have enjoyed it, maybe just not as much now as when they were a bit younger.

Laundry: We found the laundry room (on the 1st floor at Zebra Trail, below our room) to be really nice, with lots of washers and dryers. There was a sitting room with a TV so you could be entertained while doing the laundry. The washer/dryer were $2 each. You can get change from a machine in the room. The dryer wasn't able to get our clothes dry on the first run, so I had to plop in another $2 to give it more time. Seemed to be the case for most everyone in the room using the dryers. This is not the only laundry room in the resort. There is another one in another location of the hotel.

Fitness room: My DH loved the fitness room. The equipment was up-to-date and well maintained. It was also well supplied with towels. It is only for guests ages 14+, which was disappointing to my oldest DD13 who wanted to work out but couldn't due to the age restriction.

Transportation: We rented a car from MCO, so we didn't need to use ME or Disney buses to move around from AK. From our experience with a car, we had no problem getting around and had no problems getting a good parking spot at AKL.

Mara CS restaurant: We went there twice for breakfast and lunch (we woke up late one morning and missed their breakfast menu by minutes). The menu is rather limited. But the servers/cashiers there are really nice. I don't drink caffeinated drinks in the morning, so I only asked for hot water. Because we were on the dining plan, I was supposed to get a drink, and the cashier allowed me to get fruit instead. I will do a food review later on the Restaurants board.

Boma TS restaurant: We had breakfast there on the first morning of our stay. Really extraordinary. We also had dinner there on the day we did AK park. Another amazing meal, probably the best meal we had the entire stay. Again, reviews and pics later on the Restaurants board.

Zawadi Marketplace: What a great store! They had some food items and souvenirs. I found a nice 3 pack of AK/Disney character themed notepads for $1.99 (on sale). I bought them for my DDs to bring home to their friends. I also found a nice notebook (autograph book sized) with the same AK/Disney character themed cover for $1.99. I bought one for my DD13 who had forgotten her autograph book at home. There were some nice AK themed mugs on sale for $4.99.

Check-out: That was a SAD day. We didn't want to leave. We stored our luggage with bell services since our flight wasn't until 6:30pm. The only bad service we had at this hotel was with the lady who took our luggage. She was grumpy, scowling, couldn't fill out our info on the tags correctly (which I ended up completing for her), and just left me wondering if she would misplace our luggage. Well, I needn't have worried, because we got all our luggage when we came back to retrieve them, and we dealt with a different, much nicer bell services person.

Final thoughts: We were completely and beyond satisfied with our stay. I think the concensus in our family was that this was definitely the best WDW resort we've stayed -- in terms of theming, service, cleanliness, restaurants, and comfort -- and the one to return to on future trips (if affordable!!!).

[karentan]

good to hear you had an amazing time, we stayed there for 2 nights last year, and loved it so much we'll be back there on the 20th staying in one of the DVC rooms

[tallen429]

Thanks for posting this, it was just what I needed! I too am struggling to decide if I should upgrade our bounceback from POR (where we just stayed) to AKL.
I thought about upgrading for this last trip and didn't. Even though we really enjoyed POR and would absolutely stay there again, I really want to try AKL. My kids are smaller and they were pretty tired out by dinnertime so we spent alot of evenings at our resort so I think we'll get alot out of the upgrade. They're also a bit too young to bother spending the $$ to go to the waterparks so we use the pool at the hotel alot.
I'm going to call today to ask about the price difference for the upgrade.

[720L]

Originally Posted by tallen429

Thanks for posting this, it was just what I needed! I too am struggling to decide if I should upgrade our bounceback from POR (where we just stayed) to AKL.
I thought about upgrading for this last trip and didn't. Even though we really enjoyed POR and would absolutely stay there again, I really want to try AKL. My kids are smaller and they were pretty tired out by dinnertime so we spent alot of evenings at our resort so I think we'll get alot out of the upgrade. They're also a bit too young to bother spending the $$ to go to the waterparks so we use the pool at the hotel alot.
I'm going to call today to ask about the price difference for the upgrade.

Since you are going to use the pool a lot and hang out around the resort in the evening...definitely go to AKL! You and the kids will love it I promise. In the evening they have lots of kids activities for free that our kids love. AKL is a very relaxing resort. We've stayed lots of places now, and AKL is my all time favorite.

[2manypets]

Thank you so much for this review. We'll be arriving on Saturday and can't wait! It sounds like you had a wonderful time. Did you spend much time on the balcony? I was wondering if it was big enough for 3 people to sit.

[karentan]

when we were there last year there was only 2 chairs on the balcony, but it had a table out there too so yeah i'd say it was big enough for 3, as long as you can fit one of the inside chairs out there. but dont forget to bring it back in!

[LUVDZNY2008]

Thanks for the review. DS & I just returned from an eight night stay at AKL on 9/1, and we loved it too. We had a bunk-bed pool view room on the 4th floor, Zebra Trail. I hope we can stay there again (need another code).

[Jane-in-PA]

Welcome back! This is an awesome review! I haven't really considered or desired to stay at AKL in the past, as it just didn't appeal to me all that much. But your review makes me think I will give it a try someday, especially if I can get a good deal-something not too much more than a mod.

Thanks for sharing your review.

[Bearybear]

Originally Posted by 2manypets

Thank you so much for this review. We'll be arriving on Saturday and can't wait! It sounds like you had a wonderful time. Did you spend much time on the balcony? I was wondering if it was big enough for 3 people to sit.

We stayed at AKL in August. The balcony is definitely big enough for 3 people, but there are only 2 chairs and a small table on it. Many mornings and evenings me, DH or my son sat on the table while we watchd the animals from our balcony.

We love this resort so much, we're going back in February. Our son is 5 years old, and the resort was like a theme park by itself. The animals are really close to the rooms, the cast members are so friendly. The animal keepers are very knowledgeable on not just the exotic animals but the local (and exotic to us) animals that also hang out on the Savannahs. There are tons of children's activities and lots of great places to sit and relax. The pool is huge and we never had a hard time finding lounge chairs.

[snykymom]

Leaving tomorrow for AKL, pool view room! I requested Zebra Trail. One question - how noisy was the room so near the pool?

[raenyny]

You just made me want to upgrade...each year we say lets stay at AKL we are a family of + 2 under 3 so it would cost us a fotune right now we are booked for Riverside but I must say after reading this thread I am even more tempted to make the switch

[KatMark]

Thanks for the great review. Your review has made us even more excited about our split stay at the AKL next year. Can't wait to see the pictures.

[StitchandPooh'sMom]

We just booked AKL for January, and I love reading reviews like yours! We have wanted to stay here for a while, and January can't come fast enough!

[MarkinNM]

NICE, gald you enjoyed your stay, AKL is in our furtue................

[LilGMom]

Great review!!

We just AKL!!! We have always found that the CMs are just absolultely wonderful and very friendly. We leave in 87 days for AKV and are going with some friends on what will be their first WDW trip. Can't think of a better resort to have a 'first trip' at than the AKL!!