Tell me why you love AKL!

[LuvLDM]

I am trying to decide on a resort for next Feb 2019, it will be myself and DS14 & DD9, maybe DD19.

We usually stay at BC or BWI but I thought perhaps AKL might be nice for a change.
While AK park is not our favorite the resort just seems so lovely!

I'm curious about the transportation time to/from Epcot as we do spend a lot of time there, I don't think AKL shares buses with any other resort?
My kids love to swim even if it's cold out, how great is the pool there??

Is booking a Savannah view room worth the extra money?

I would love to know what you loved or didn't love about AKL!
Thanks : )

 

[FSU Girl]

I love this resort, it is so unique. I will only stay here with a savanna view room. It is really cool to go out on your balcony and see zebras and giraffe.

The bus does not share with another hotel, but it does share between Jambo and Kidani, which are the two separate buildings. Jambo is the main building that came first. It is mostly normal hotel rooms with some DVC on the 5th floor. Kidani is the new DVC building, it is only Studios, one, two and three bedroom villas.

The nice part staying in either building you have access to the other pool, so you basically get two great pools.

 

[Shellyb84]

The pool area is lovely, however it's nothing like Stormalong Bay (BC is our favorite resort), my DD was a little underwhelmed by it and she said the slide was boring. The hot tub area is very nice and peaceful. We preferred the pool at Jambo house over the one at Kidani (it was much more crowded). We booked a standard view and got lucky and had a partial savanna view which was amazing. If the money's not a huge issue I would book Savanna view just to be sure that you have one. I would be disappointed if I couldn't sit on my balcony and watch the animals, that was the BEST part of the resort.

We really loved the theme of the resort and the food there is great, both QS and TS. The Mara is my favorite QS of any resort so far. My biggest complaint would be the bus service, I know it varies at every resort but we had a bad experience there. We only used the bus for AK and MK (we were there for the first part of a split stay with BC so we saved EP and HS for that reservation).

Overall we enjoyed our stay there and want to return. We're hoping for a good AP discount and will do the same split as last June, AKL and BC.

 

[oceanmarina]

Having stayed at all 3 resorts, I liked the pool area much better at Kidani (as opposed to Stormalong Bay). My kids abhorred the Clown pool at BWI and only swam in it once, we spent the majority of our time over at the Community Hall pool. My kids loved the community hall at BWI, but I believe there is a Community Hall at Kidani as well.

It was such an amazing resort with so much to see.

Here was our Savannah View over at Kidani, I never got tired of sitting out there;

 

[MaryLovesPoohBear]

I'm watching this thread, as well.

We have our first stay at Animal Kingdom, Jambo, in September.

 

[MainMom]

We have stayed at BWI and YC. While we love the location of these resorts, we also love AKL. For us, the AKL pool is the best. We stayed there in June 2016 for the first time at Jambo and it became our favorite pool. We found it really relaxing. Busy, but not overwhelmingly so. We had great luck with transportation during our week long stay except for one single time out of all of the bus rides. I guess we liked it enough that we are headed back there next month and taking my parents.

 

[Redbudlover]

I stay at all 3 for different reasons. When I want to be close to EP. and HS I prefer BC though my DGD loves the clown pool too. I love AKL Jambo but only with Savannah view. It is too far from other parks unless you are there for the animals - and then I want to see them from my room. But I love their tales around the campfires and marshmallow roasting. The ambiance feels like like a jungle camp... Great restaurants are both faves of mine and Mara is terrific with wonderful outdoor seating if you like being outside. I like the lounge and it is just beautiful. I love the sound of the drums. Best gift shop ever. I personally prefer BCs pool but AKL pool is really nice. The evening safari is also special. Plus you can get a massage there! I will be there in April with two girl friends. Am so excited!

 

[LuvLDM]

Thank you all, I appreciate all the input!

 

[gillep]

YC/BC and AKL are my favorite resorts. We always stay at YC/BC when we are going to the Epcot festivals, for easy walking, and AKL any other time.

SAB is my favorite pool, but the Jambo pool is a close second for me. There is a lot of seating, both loungers and tables, so it is usually pretty easy to find a place to sit, and easy to find a chair that is a little farther from the pool to relax a bit. I also like how secluded the hot tubs are are Jambo, so they are usually a little less crowded than the ones at SAB. It is also nice that you get to use both the Jambo and Kidani pools. There are also really nice showers by the Jambo pool that come in handy if you want to swim on your last day before leaving, or just need a shower when you don't have a room, and they are not nearly as utilized as the newer ones at YC/BC.

AKL/V has my favorite on property restaurants. We have always enjoyed our meals at Jiko, Sanaa, and Boma. The Mara also has many more options as a QS location than anything at YC/BC/BW. Victoria Falls lounge and the Jiko bar are both great places to grab a drink and some food if you don't want to do an ADR.

Watching the animals, and talking to the CMs by the savanna is fantastic, and a favorite pastime of mine, but I also enjoy the fire pits and the various tucked away areas around the resort to relax.

The gift shop at Jambo is quite large, and my favorite on property, I am currently drinking coffee out of my AKL mug!

If you haven't been, AKL is at least worth a visit, the lobby is so beautiful, and the savannas are such a unique and amazing experience. I always book a savanna view room, and the premium is worth it to me, but just note that you may not see a lot of animals. We have always had good savanna views until this past January when we basically just saw a few Zebras, the resort manager said that they were keeping the giraffes inside a lot because it was so cold, so that was disappointing, but it was still a great stay.

We primarily use buses, with an uber here and there, and have never had any more of an issue at AKL than anywhere else, personally, I think the buses are about the same everywhere, and it has more to do with timing as to how your experience will be. The bus ride to Epcot in particular isn't bad at all, MK is obviously a little longer as MK is the most out of the way park, and AKL is the farthest resort from MK.

 

[keaster]

I like the fact that AKL doesn't share buses with any other resort (just between Kidani/Jambo) so even though it's a bit further out, it makes for a pretty easy ride.

 

[RmeDad]

Rooms, Views and FOOD!