Disney's ANIMAL KINGDOM LODGE Information & Questions

[abbydancer]

Glad to have found this thread! We are going to AKL for the first time January 3-8. We have never even been to the resort for a visit so we are super excited about staying there. We have an Arusha view room with bunk beds. My two kids, DS7 and DD 9 are going to love the savannah view and the bunks. This will be a Christmas surprise so they don't know yet. Any tips you can provide on room requests or the resort in general would be much appreciated.

The only thing that worried me about choosing AKL was what I had heard about it being the furthest away from the parks and difficulty with the buses. We stayed at POR in 2011 and felt like we wasted so much time on the buses - and vowed to choose a monorail resort on our next trip. But my heart was telling me to pick AKL so here we are!

We are driving so we will have a vehicle - should we drive to some parks to have that flexibility? Or are you just trading waiting for buses to waiting for parking trams? Any advice here would be appreciated too!

Thanks in advance for any guidance or tips!

We just got back from a 9 day stay at Kidani. We loved it. We had a split stay and the first room was at the far end of the resort. My fitbit reported a .75 mile walk to Boma. There is a shuttle between Jambo and Kidani, and from Kidani you can take any bus.

We had a car, and pretty much drove to the parks. The buses came somewhat regularly, but on the last day my husband waited almost 30 minutes for an Epcot bus, so there can be waits.

The only time we took a bus was to the MK because we were coming for a dinner reservation on an EMH day, so knew parking would be crowded. The bus came quickly but we had to wait quite a while after dinner.

I would drive to DT Disney. deal with the stuff

That was the one place I was sorry I drove to. Because of all the construction, there may be lane closures, and a lot of parking is blocked. It can take a while to get directed into a parking space. On Sunday, we had to park at the cast building across the street.

Although, if you're there after Xmas time, it might not be so bad.

 

[kimmar067]

I would drive to DT Disney. But otherwise, I would take the bus. Driving the MK would be a waste because you need to park, walk 10-15 minutes to either the bus or boat and wait for that... For the rest of the parks, parking distances can be quite far, and waiting on the tram is lengthy too... You have to wait for the tram to appear, you have to wait for the original people to get off, then you have to wait for extra people to arrive to get on. OR you walk from your car to the entrance 10-15 minutes. The buses are a HUGE advantage at staying at a resort. And so you are in the bus 20 minutes to get to MK, you are still in your car quite a long time and you have to deal with the stuff mentioned above...

...oh yes - I quite agree!

 

[chasemac]

Thanks for all of the input! Sounds like it will be easiest to just use Disney transportation, which will probably make my DH happy after an 11 hour drive just to get there. He will be glad to park the car for a week!

I was hoping we would still get to see some of the Christmas decorations, but figured we would be cutting it close. At least we will still get to see Osborne lights one night and ride Splash Mountain before it closes for refurbishment!

17 days to go and can't wait!

 

[dolphingirl47]

We stayed at Jambo House for one night on January 5th in 2011 and the Christmas decorations were still up.

Corinna

 

[grover]

Does anyone have the fax number in which to send a room request to AKL? Not CL..just the regular number

 

[RachelTori]

Does anyone have the fax number in which to send a room request to AKL? Not CL..just the regular number

They quit accepting faxed room requests several years back. I believe a couple of the Mods still do it, but no deluxes. Your best bet is to call and get the request noted on your reservation.

Also, if you do online check-in, it will wipe out any of the requests you have made (just a heads-up!).

 

[kimmar067]

We stayed at Jambo House for one night on January 5th in 2011 and the Christmas decorations were still up.

Corinna

....I think it depends upon what day falls on the weekend...

 

[kimmar067]

They quit accepting faxed room requests several years back. I believe a couple of the Mods still do it, but no deluxes. Your best bet is to call and get the request noted on your reservation.

Also, if you do online check-in, it will wipe out any of the requests you have made (just a heads-up!).

....that's why I don't do the online check-in thing....I hope for a really nice CM when we get to the counter.

 

[RachelTori]

....that's why I don't do the online check-in thing....I hope for a really nice CM when we get to the counter.

I used to always do online check-in, but stopped after having a very insightful conversation with a CM who actually assigns the rooms at a Deluxe!

 

[gwynne]

I used to always do online check-in, but stopped after having a very insightful conversation with a CM who actually assigns the rooms at a Deluxe!

Rachel, Thanks so much for posting your insight on this subject.

 

[RachelTori]

Rachel, Thanks so much for posting your insight on this subject.

You're welcome! I thought that was an important piece of information and was very grateful to the CM for sharing!

 

[kimmar067]

I used to always do online check-in, but stopped after having a very insightful conversation with a CM who actually assigns the rooms at a Deluxe!

....'insightful'......hmmmmmm....

 

[mickeymedic]

I'm staying at AKL for the first time in May for the Expedition Everest Challenge. Arusha View. I'm really excited! We usually stay moderate or value. My only other Deluxe we have stayed at is The Grand Floridian.

What are your must-do things to do at AKL?

 

[kimmar067]

I'm staying at AKL for the first time in May for the Expedition Everest Challenge. Arusha View. I'm really excited! We usually stay moderate or value. My only other Deluxe we have stayed at is The Grand Floridian.

What are your must-do things to do at AKL?

.....hmmm, lessee :
a nahtazu drink from the pool area
night-vision glasses to view the animals at night
a sit by the fire
a dip in the jacuzzi
dinner at Jiko

....yup, I think that sums it up!

 

[Octoberbaby]

I'm staying at AKL for the first time in May for the Expedition Everest Challenge. Arusha View. I'm really excited! We usually stay moderate or value. My only other Deluxe we have stayed at is The Grand Floridian.

What are your must-do things to do at AKL?

Definitely sitting by the fire in the lobby
Smelling all of the wonderful aromas in the lobby! Boma and this "other" smell the resort has is fabulous!
Sitting on my balcony and drinking my coffee and OJ in the AM
The ZEBRA DOMES! I ate 20 or more on my last trip!
Getting a mimosa and sitting by the pool
And the zebras. They were my daughter's favorite so...naturally they are mine

 

[kamikazecat]

Hello everyone! Just wanted to check in. We are staying at AKL-Jambo in a DVC studio from June 19-July 2. We have stayed at Kidani but never at Jambo. Looking forward to the trip!

 

[kimmar067]

....another addition to my TR....

 

[kimmar067]

Hello everyone! Just wanted to check in. We are staying at AKL-Jambo in a DVC studio from June 19-July 2. We have stayed at Kidani but never at Jambo. Looking forward to the trip!

.... and JAMBO!

 

[kimmar067]

Definitely sitting by the fire in the lobby
Smelling all of the wonderful aromas in the lobby! Boma and this "other" smell the resort has is fabulous!
Sitting on my balcony and drinking my coffee and OJ in the AM
The ZEBRA DOMES! I ate 20 or more on my last trip!
Getting a mimosa and sitting by the pool
And the zebras. They were my daughter's favorite so...naturally they are mine

....uh, TWENTY ZEBRA DOMES ??!??!?!!!?!





















....I'm SO PROUD.

 

[mickeymedic]

.....hmmm, lessee :
a nahtazu drink from the pool area
night-vision glasses to view the animals at night
a sit by the fire
a dip in the jacuzzi
dinner at Jiko

....yup, I think that sums it up!

Definitely sitting by the fire in the lobby
Smelling all of the wonderful aromas in the lobby! Boma and this "other" smell the resort has is fabulous!
Sitting on my balcony and drinking my coffee and OJ in the AM
The ZEBRA DOMES! I ate 20 or more on my last trip!
Getting a mimosa and sitting by the pool
And the zebras. They were my daughter's favorite so...naturally they are mine

Thank you for your suggestions. The fireplace sounds delightful. I can't wait to try out some of the food and adult tasty beverages. And I would never have known that there were night vision glasses available.