AKL Disappointments!

[klmall]

We just returned from a 5 night stay at the AKL (3/28-4/2) and maybe I was just too hopeful but here are some excerpts from my trip report posted on the Trip Reports board:

We just got back last night from five nights at the Animal Kingdom Lodge (3/28 through 4/2) and two nights at the Hard Rock Hotel at Universal (4/2, 4/3). We also stayed one night before the AKL at the Howard Johnson Maingate East (which was passable but nothing more).

Hate to say it but, our stay at AKL was mixed at best from an initial room assignment (#2212) that faced a wall of doors of some kind (I am a balcony person) and had the tremendous noise of outside air conditioners and forced me to immediately request another bunk bed room. We finally ended up in a “Smoking Optional” room (#4548) which had a much better view but was a long walk for my husband who has back problems. We at least checked in early at 9:00 AM; I would have hated to be in this same situation and have no choice at 9:00 PM! We had paid for a savannah view and had two large, teenage boys so sharing a queen bed was not really an option for them!

We did see animals on our savannah; as well as the road that runs behind the AKL which no one had mentioned in any of the newsgroups! While the road wasn’t noisy unless busses or trucks were passing there was definitely a large divided road there (I – 4? 82?) In fact, when we first got to our final room (#4548) I quickly grabbed the binoculars because I could see the bright colors of something in the distance. Imagine my disappointment when I realized that it was the back of a billboard sign! We could also see a 7-11 sign. Well at least the animals didn’t seem to be bothered by the road as my husband pointed out. And the soundproofing is good when your balcony door is closed.

One of the other little things we found out about the AKL that I hadn’t read anywhere is that it seems everyone, at least on our wing, went out on their balconies to talk on their cell phones. Well, guess what! All conversations were public!!!! This includes conversation in your room when your balcony door is open. Given the acoustics of our wing a conversation that sounded right next door could be five rooms over and two floors down! We could hear kids kicking railings, crying etc. and actually did hear the woman next to us berating her son in front of her boyfriend. We ended up keeping our balcony door closed sometimes just to NOT hear other people. That didn’t spare me though when I spent my hours balcony sitting which I always do.

On a more positive note, the busses were excellent from the AKL to the parks, always appearing quickly and while they did fill since it was Easter week the only lengthy ride was to/from the Magic Kingdom (25 minutes or so). The CMs in the halls were extremely friendly, polite and helpful and the check-in CM on her own initiative went out of her way to note the birthday of one of our teenagers. Sadly, the birthday several days later passed unnoticed by Disney. Most days we hit the parks early, returned to the room to relax and then either went back to a park or went swimming. We did not handle the heat or the crowds very well!

Also, Boma on Easter Sunday was not following PS reservations it seems until I reminded them that we were on the list and had waited for a half-hour while walk-ins were being seated! When I went back to the podium the one CM said to the other that she didn’t realize we had a PS. The other CM pointed to the screen and showed her that we were. Also, while the food was excellent the noise echoed throughout making conversation difficult.

On 3/31 (Easter Sunday) we could not get near Mara for breakfast or lunch. The hotel did seem to empty out somewhat by 4/1 and Mara became easier to slip into for food. FYI – I had read on the newsgroup that the 2 different Mara mugs hold the same amount of liquid; they do not! We measured! In general we found the food to be very tasty if overpriced at Mara and the coffee, as usual at Disney to be weak. (Just close your eyes and pretend!) Quote heard in Mara: “Honey, promise you’ll stop at the first Starbucks we see on the way home!”

On 4/2 we moved to Universal's Hard Rock Hotel which we loved but I won't review that here!

Any questions? Feel free to e-mail me!

 

[Janet2k]

Klmall, I am glad you had a nice vacation overall. I just love Florida. I am sorry, however, that you had to deal with inconsiderate guests and their cell phones at the AKL (I have had to “listen” to them at the GF). I hate cell phones, I really do, and refuse to use one in a restaurant or on a balcony or any place public like that (“Can you hear me now?”). But it seems that folks like you and I are in the minority. I hope you got to at least spend a little quiet time on your balcony because it is such a relaxing way to spend an hour or two.

I always wondered about the different mug sizes at the resorts but always assumed that the larger ones held more liquid. It sounds like you verified that one for me. Thanks!

Welcome home!

 

[Babblin'Boo]

Interesting...

I booked AKL and HRH as well for August. I did hear about obstructed views at the AKL and made sure that I specified in my reservation request "savannah room with no obstructed views".

The letdown I recently found out about the HRH is that they charge you $6/night parking fee! What kind of a ripoff is that?

Anyhow, thank you for a different point of view.

 

[klmall]

Thanks for the replies!

Janet2k - Yes, we did have a great vacation overall! I'm glad to hear that AKL isn't the only hotel where cell phone conversations are public property. Maybe Disney should look into a polite reminder that guests who think they are getting privacy out on a balcony really aren't! Irony is most of the conversations were business-oriented and I ended up feeling sorry for the families who weren't getting their full attention. And yes, I did balcony sit for many hours on Easter Sunday. I think it's particularly a problem that Disney should think about at AKL since one of the main reasons people stay there is to see the animals and you really can't see them from inside the rooms!

Babblin'Boo - You will probably love HRH as much as we did! My understanding is that they don't always charge the $6 fee for parking. Given the week we were there, the close-in lots were full and we wanted to get in and tour so we decided to valet park our Suburban for a total of $12 more for our stay.

Also, Room #2212 at AKL probably wouldn't be considered "obstructed view" since nothing blocked its view of the savannah itself. It was right in the corner where the wing meets the lobby. If I hadn't gone out to look at the view AND opened the balcony doors I never would have heard the air conditioners (probably for one of the storage areas or restaurants or the lobby). Also, the air conditioners did cycle off while we waited for the CM who was calling on her cell phone to find us another room. In a way, I was lucky since I did hear the noise at the right time!

 

[Janet2k]

A friend of mine tried to use his cell phone late one evening from the main pool at the CBR (no one was at he pool but us that evening), but he couldn't get a signal. I tried to use my cell phone from within my room at the CBR and could not get a signal (I had to use the room phone in order to call my parents). It seems that the CBR has a little problem with cell phones in certain areas. Maybe the AKL should acquire the same little problem? (Hee hee!)

 

[Babblin'Boo]

Cell phone problems.. I am willing to bet they were all Sprint calls!

One more use for my Passporter is to keep note of all these room numbers when people complain about them. I am keeping a list of the "good" room numbers and the ones to avoid...

I am one really appreciative of every post that not only reports the experience but the room numbers as well!

 

[zurgswife]

Sorry to hear about your problems with AKL....I have been twice and while I haven't really noticed any problem with the balcony and overhearing conversations....I have had room assignment problems....

Our first visit Sept 2001...40% capacity they place us in a Savanannh view room that you hae to stretch over the balcony to see the savannah....a immediatley get moved to a better view....the second visist I fax a requested stating that we had a poor view the first time and had to change rooms and could be be put on the zebra trail arusha rock....well as luck would have it I got the same horrible vview room on a different floor...I realized it before we got into the room this time so I madee them change our room before leaving the checkin area....

 

[cottontail]

Hello:

Can I ask if your boys fit okay on the bunkbeds and if they were sturdy to hold teens?

Also what type of room did you get at the hrh a deluxe or gardenview, whatever room you had was it an adaquate size for the four of you, and was it noisy at around ll:00p.m. to sleep.

Deb.

 

[Minybear]

Glad your back and sorry to hear about your problems at AKL, but at least you had a good trip overall. When we were at AKL this last January. I also noticed someone on a cell phone when I was on the balcony looking at the animals. I could hear every word of her conversation. It sounded very clear like it was next door. People do not realize that everyone could hear their conversations on their cell phones due to the acoustics and we were on the East Wing Zebra Trail.

I also noticed that the buses at AKL were also excellent. You did not have to share the buses with any other hotels. It went from AKL to the theme park you were going.

One of these days we may go back to AKL and do deluxe savanna room or do GF lagoon view (Cali I am still hoping for GF one of these days).

 

[klmall]

Our boys fit great in the bunks! One is 6'2" and could be a quarterback and he was very comfy.

The bunk beds are very sturdy and attractive as are the ones at the Wilderness Lodge.

We had a regular room at the Hard Rock Hotel but on the Club level which is sort of the equivalent to Disney's concierge but much cheaper if you look around for deals. HRH also has deluxe rooms which are larger I think but not on the Club level. Our room was huge though compared to the regulars at AKL and WL; more like the one we had at the Poly years ago but with a high ceiling and light colors. The bathroom was divided like at the AKL but the toilet area was larger. The toilet area had a small sink inside and the dressing area had a single sink outside. The Universal Board has much more info which is where I got all my places to check for good room deals and advice. The Club room price was only about $30 more a night than the garden view for us which was a bargain given that we had two teenagers eating the doughnuts, fruit, cereal, bagels, and drinking their juices and sodas every morning alone not to mention the dinner and evening snacks. What noise? They close the pool at 10:00 and we never heard anything other than the fireworks. I'm not sure if it would be noisier lower down on other floors but it surely wasn't on ours and the hotel was certainly at or close to capacity.

Hope this helps!

 

[LvsTnk]

Thanks for the info about the use of cell phones on the balcony. We have AT&T so we have not had a problem using cell phones in our rooms. Unfortunately if my DH did not use his phone on vacation he would not be able to go, he has his own business. He is considerate so we spend alot of our vacation time looking for him using the phone in an out of the way place when we are in the parks .

 

[CaliforniaDreaming]

Originally posted by Minybear
One of these days we may go back to AKL and do deluxe savanna room or do GF lagoon view (Cali I am still hoping for GF one of these days).

I'm glad!

klmall, sorry about your disappointing stay at AKL.

 

[renessa]

I have read on other reports that the pools were open 24 hours. There were no lifeguards or slides after a certain time, however. Has this changed? I was really looking forward to some quiet pool time late after returning from the parks in July!

 

[klmall]

The HRH pool was definitely closed both nights at 10:00 pm when we were there and the printed literature stated such. Given that it was a holiday week I imagine that the pool would be open late if that were true.

The AKL pool was open 24 hours while we were there. We did notice people in the pool as late as 11:00 pm although it was hard to judge if noise was a problem or not from inside.


I also forgot to say yesterday that seeing all the animals on the savannah kept us from wanting to go on the AK Kilimanjaro Safari Ride; we felt we had seen enough animals even though we had not seen any lions etc. at the Lodge. We also didn't mind being up on the 4th floor vs. being on the 2nd floor. It gave us a better overall view of the savannah and the animals. But then again we didn't have any large trees such as we saw on the other (Arusha savannah).

 

[SeaLion]

I was just wondering if you or anyone else could help me with a room to request since you've been there a couple of times. We are leaving tomorrow and have adjoining Savannah view rooms.

I have this horrible luck and seem to always get stuck in not so nice rooms. If I had some info ahead of time it might really help so maybe we wouldn't have to change rooms. We are traveling with my in-laws who already think I'm a loon!! We'd really like a nice view of the animals.

Thank you in advance!!

 

[ducklite]

The road you saw was 192, Irlo Bronson West. Yes, from parts of the AKL the neon lights of the 7-11 are very visable at night.

Most WDW resorts have decent cell phone reception in the rooms as long as you are near the exterior window or door. AKL and SoG are two exceptions that I know of. That is with several cell carriers. I wonder if it's the way the buildings are constructed, as I haven't had any problems using a cell phone in the room at the BC, BW or GF.

We made a cell call to home every day during our stay at the AKL, but kept it short and tried to be as quiet as possible. On the other hand, we had a neighbor who spent half an hour on her balcony talking very loudly (it's a cell phone, not a tin can with a string for crying out loud!!) about someone's very personal medical problems. Yuck!

Other than loud lady we found our room to be pretty quiet, and the hotel was full. There were definitely more adults than children there during our visit, and that might have had something to do with it.

Anne

 

[Miranda]

Originally posted by ducklite
Most WDW resorts have decent cell phone reception in the rooms as long as you are near the exterior window or door. AKL and SoG are two exceptions that I know of. That is with several cell carriers. I wonder if it's the way the buildings are constructed, as I haven't had any problems using a cell phone in the room at the BC, BW or GF.

Maybe Sprint just has bad coverage on the grounds. We were unable to get a signal at all either in the room or out on our balcony at BWI, and I also was unable to get a signal at POFQ either inside or out.

 

[adams66]

I hate to be the dissenting opinion here, but I think that the problems you experienced were not with the AKL itself but with other inconsiderate guests. I don't see that as being a problem of the hotel itself. Yes, cell phones can be extremely bothersome and people using them can be extremely inconsiderate. I find this to be a problem everywhere...from restaurants to airports to theme parks. Also, one complaint that the restaurants were full and crowded...you were there on probably the busiest if not second busiest time of year. I am truly sorry that you did not have the wonderful experience that we did at AKL and you are entitled to 100% of your own opinion, but I feel that this is an unfair judgment of the AKL. For anyone planning to stay in the future, I highly recommend room 4435, Zebra Trail, Arushna Savannah. It was far enough from the lobby noise but not anywhere near the highway. If anyone has any other questions, I will be glad to answer them. Also, please don't blast me for this response, I just felt that the other side needed represented.

 

[klmall]

I do appreciate the range of opinions offered here regarding my experience at the AKL.

While it was a busy time my disappointment was due to the following:

1) checking in early but still getting an ugly view and noisy room then
2) having to settle for a "smoking optional room" so the boys could sleep comfortably; luckily the cigarette smell wasn't overwhelming in our room but the smell drifting over from other rooms at times was bad!
3) seeing a busy road and commercial signs from a deluxe hotel room balcony (don't think that is true from any other deluxe hotel at WDW!)
4) hearing constant cell phone conversations from other balconies and other rooms even when we weren't on our balcony
5) having a PS reservation not being honored at Boma until I spoke up
6) noise in same restaurant due to the design of restaurant

I am not going to continue listing things here. I just wanted to describe some of my disappointments because all but # 5 was a true surprise. Considering that I read literally every word I could find on this hotel and saw nothing about these I wanted to let people know these things as an FYI.

While we will probably never return to the AKL in the future, we are glad to have had the chance to stay there. I just wish I had known about these items before I had arrived at the Lodge not learned about them the hard way.

Thanks everyone for your info about the other hotels with similar issues; hadn’t read about all this elsewhere before!