AKV (Kidani) versus BCV (RCI Exchange)

[3kids4me]

I had recently booked an AKV Kidani two bedroom, but read a poor review and am now considering BCV. Can anyone give me their feedback based on the following parameters?

1. Do RCI exchangers tend to get poorer room locations, and are there more of these locations at one resort versus the other? (By poor I mean long walks or noisier)

2. Noise level (at night) of one resort versus the other. (A friend who stayed at BCV told me their room was near some kind of small highway and cars rushed by all night?)

3. Convenience (I know Kidani is farther out...but how is the on-site transportation of one versus the other?)

4. Any other comparisons?

5. Any feedback on exchanging to DVC through RCI in general?

Thank you for any help!!

 

[Lynne M]

I'm going to move this over to our DVC Planning board for you. You'll be more likely to find people who are familiar with the RCI exchange process there.

 

[pyrxtc]

I had recently booked an AKV Kidani two bedroom, but read a poor review and am now considering BCV. Can anyone give me their feedback based on the following parameters?

1. Do RCI exchangers tend to get poorer room locations, and are there more of these locations at one resort versus the other? (By poor I mean long walks or noisier) I would like to think that once you are in the system we are all treated the same and just randomly given a room number.

2. Noise level (at night) of one resort versus the other. (A friend who stayed at BCV told me their room was near some kind of small highway and cars rushed by all night?)Kidani is very quiet outside at night and so are the hallways. the only places you'll hear noise there is the lobby. At BCV, I never heard any noise either and we overlooked a pool. Maybe it was just too cold to have anyone out there but even when we could see people out there, we heard nothing.

3. Convenience (I know Kidani is farther out...but how is the on-site transportation of one versus the other?) you will have to take a bus to go anywhere from Kidani, from BCV's you will only need to take a bus to Magic Kingdom or AK and you can walk or take a boat to Epcot and DHS.

4. Any other comparisons? They are like day and night in color and ambiance. I like BCV and love staying there but I LOVE AKV's even if not Kidani so much but neither one of them have a quick service breakfast place onsite.

5. Any feedback on exchanging to DVC through RCI in general?sorry, I own DVC and have never used RCI.

Thank you for any help!!

I hope my answers helped.

 

[drusba]

AKV Kidani: wonderful resort but risk of getting room far from the lobby and walk can be huge (lobby to end of north wing is over a quarter mile and just under a quarter mile to end of south wing). If you have car, parking is under the building and can park near an elevator that is close to your room. Not sure how exchange in works -- are you reserved for a savanna view room or do you just take what you might get? Savanna view (most rooms) is ideal, standard can be road or pool view. Has only a table service restaurant (Sanaa) which is very good. You can walk (very long unless at end of south wing) to Jambo or take bus and it has three restaurants (a counter service, a very good buffet, and an upscale table service). 2BRs are very large and have 3 bathrooms. Bus system is usually good. Pool is not large but there is elaborate kids play area

BCV: not big on views although many rooms face Epcot (and that road you mentioned) which is not really noisy unless you consider hearing Illuminations noisy. Easy walk to Epcot (can also take boat but reality is that walk to boat is not much shorter than the quick walk to Epcot. Walk to Studios is long (25 to 30 minutes) but boat is fine. Busses are usually good (although they sometimes share with other Epcot resorts). With two parks and Epcot resorts it is ideal for access to many restaurants and night time entertainment. 2BRs are smaller than Kidani, but large enough, and have only 2 bathrooms. Huge main pool at YC/BC which is considered by many the best on site.

 

[3kids4me]

Thank you for the input. RCI doesn't tell you whether you would have a Savannah view or not, but I'm thinking it might be unlikely, and so the question is whether one would still prefer AKV without that view. My kids are all teenagers, BTW, and we are going in winter so pool use is not a priority.

 

[siobhan1997]

Thank you for the input. RCI doesn't tell you whether you would have a Savannah view or not, but I'm thinking it might be unlikely, and so the question is whether one would still prefer AKV without that view. My kids are all teenagers, BTW, and we are going in winter so pool use is not a priority.

You can put a unit on hold and call RCI to ask the code on the unit. e.g if the code is 1BSavSu that means 1 bedroom Savanah view Sunday checkin, if the code is 1BStdSu that means 1 bedroom Standard view (pool or parking lot) Sunday checkin. Then if you do not like the fact that the view is not Savanah you can release the unit on hold and bookd BCV

 

[3kids4me]

You can put a unit on hold and call RCI to ask the code on the unit. e.g if the code is 1BSavSu that means 1 bedroom Savanah view Sunday checkin, if the code is 1BStdSu that means 1 bedroom Standard view (pool or parking lot) Sunday checkin. Then if you do not like the fact that the view is not Savanah you can release the unit on hold and bookd BCV

Unfortunately those codes don't exist when booking with RCI points; I think they may just be available when booking on the weeks side of RCI.

 

[drusba]

Personal view (not shared by all) is that I would not do AKV without savanna view. You can see animals in various places at the resrt other than your room but to me AKV is ideal with savanna view but not so without.

 

[rutgers1]

I am at Kidani right now. The animals are cool, that's for sure. If your family is big on that, then a AKL trip is definitely worth it. I don't think it even matters if your room looks out over the Savannah, as you see the animals when you look out any common area window.

However, if you could care less about the animals, then it is my opinion that most people (at least those I have spoken to) would prefer Beach Club. My family is having a very nice time at Kidani, but we prefer the Epcot DVC resorts (Beach Club, Boardwalk) because of the colors, dining options, overall vibe, and walking/boat access to Epcot and Hollywood Studios. For us, although we don't have any major complaints, AKL is too dark, and the inability to walk to any of the parks makes it take a back seat to Boardwalk/Beach Club. We also prefer the dining options at Beach Club/Boardwalk, especially when you factor in ALL of the restaurants that are a quick walk from those hotels.

If you are a runner/jogger, then Beach Club and Boardwalk are the absolute best hotels in Disney. They are situated around a lake, with an incredible running path circling it. That alone is a huge selling point to me.

 

[prov3v56]

We traded into AKL Kidani last summer through RCI weeks. We were given a standard view. We asked about upgrading since we had one night at the end of our week booked in a Savannah view through DVC, and were told no.

We really liked AKL but if given the choice between AKL and BCV, I would choose BCV. The access to Epcot is worth it.

Other things to consider though, if you don't plan on going to Epcot a lot, Kidani has an extra bathroom in the one bedroom and the master bath is beautiful. The room is also more spacious and sleeps 5.

We did find that the bus transportation from Kidani was very good compared to both BCV and SSR, at least for us.

 

[zulaya]

I own at both resorts.

Don't let one review of Kidani sway you. It's ONE person's opinion.

Long hallways...sure...for some. There are also some people who think if you get the end of BCV that it's a long hallway.

Keep in mind all these reviews are subjective.

Noise: yes, there is a road outside BCV. For some people it's loud. For others, it's tolerable.

BCV is more centrally located. Kidani is an experience all by itself.

If you don't have a savannah view, you can still enjoy Kidani. There are a lot of public viewing areas.


One thing I will tell you is that the 1BR at Kidani is much bigger than the 1BR at BCV.

If Kidani initially caught your eye, go for it.

 

[3kids4me]

Thanks to all for the input. I ended up switching to BCV. We have a two bedroom so we will have two bathrooms anyway, just not a third as we would at AKV. I do like the proximity to Epcot especially, and it certainly does sound like we would have the standard view had I stuck with AKV. Also, when someone mentioned AKV being a bit dark, I remembered that I didn't like VWL for that reason so I knew what "dark" meant.

Thank you all again...you were a big help!