AKL-Jambo or Kidani??

[Momamae]

Hi All,

We have a vacation planned at the end of July. 3 nights at Vero, 5 nights at BCV and we just extended our vacation by adding 3 nights in a studio (savannah view) at Animal Kingdom Lodge - Kidani (we have never stayed at AKL). We could have booked either Jambo or Kidani. I know that the walk is a little further to get to the main lodge if we stay at Kidani but other than that is there any big differences? The main reason we chose Kidani is b/c we heard the pool was nicer there and you can't pool hop if you are staying at Jambo house. I know we will be using the pool a lot since we will be going in July and I don't plan on being in the parks in the afternoon heat. Any advice would be helpful.

Thanks!!
Michelle

 

[Mike2023]

Hi All,

We have a vacation planned at the end of July. 3 nights at Vero, 5 nights at BCV and we just extended our vacation by adding 3 nights in a studio (savannah view) at Animal Kingdom Lodge - Kidani (we have never stayed at AKL). We could have booked either Jambo or Kidani. I know that the walk is a little further to get to the main lodge if we stay at Kidani but other than that is there any big differences? The main reason we chose Kidani is b/c we heard the pool was nicer there and you can't pool hop if you are staying at Jambo house. I know we will be using the pool a lot since we will be going in July and I don't plan on being in the parks in the afternoon heat. Any advice would be helpful.

Thanks!!
Michelle

The pool is better at Kidani, but the pool at Jambo is very good as well. Unless they changed it you are able to hope over to Kidani if you are staying at Jambo. I know when I asked at check in 2 trips ago they said it would not be a problem, but I am sure you will get conflicting info on this.

Kidani itself is very nice, but keep in mind that there is no counter service at Kidani, so if your looking for breakfast or lunch quick your going to be out of luck.

Have a great trip

 

[ToddyLu]

We loved Kidani. The lobby is smaller but with a more homey feel. Jambo is bustling with activity like any large lobby would be. Just get on any of the park buses (not the DTD) bus and it will take you directly to Jambo for meals. Then take the DTD to get to Kidani from Jambo. Mara is located downstairs and the entrance is downstairs by the Jambo pool. We looked for it for about 20 minutes when we went and between us there were several college degrees. Not very well marked or shown on the lobby map.

We really did not mind the bus ride over to Jambo at all. The transportation was very efficient.

The laundry for studios is to the right of the lobby just past the arcade, very nice with a television. Take the time to talk with the visiting CMs from Africa, they were great. Don't forget there may be an elevator closer to you than going through the lobby and out to the pool area. There are lots of goodies and refill drink station in Johari the gift shop at Kidani. Jambo has a much larger gift shop. If you are in to pin collecting I hop eyou can find a Kidani or AKL pin--they were out completely--even in parks--when we were there in Nov.

We also later figured out that the computer cord was in the small bag hanging up in the armoire.

Have a great time!!

 

[drusba]

Anyone staying at Jambo can use the ameneties at Kidani including the pool and vice versa. The walk, door to door, is about 1/2 mile and takes 10 to 12 minurtes. As an adult who cannot sit in the sun for long periods, I prefer the Jambo pool, which is larger, because it has lots of shaded areas and two hot tubs in shaded areas and Kidani has mostly "sun" areas. Kids are likely to enjoy Kidani more because it has a much longer slide and an elaborate kids water play area.

Kidani is very nice with an impressive lobby but not as large or impressive as Jambo. Its store is smaller than Jambo's and it has only one restaurant, Sanaa, which is table service but very good. Jambo has three restaurants, very good upscale -- Jiko, excellent buffet--Boma, and counter service-- Mara. Kidani's large advantage is when you get a 1BR or 2BR which are much larger than Jambo's and have an additonal bathroom. Studios are about the same size. Another Kidani advantage is if you have a rental car. The parking is at ground level under the building and no matter where your room is you can park near an elevator that is fairly close to your room.

At Jambo you can have fairly long walks to your room from the lobby. However, at Kidani you can have the walk down the endless hallway to nowhere to your room. I have never been in another hotel like Kidani where the last rooms on a wing are more than 1/4 mile from the lobby. Thus, the walk to your room can be more than 5 minutes which indicates that one should give serious consideration to requesting a room close to the lobby.

 

[princessbride6205]

We stayed at Kidani in January (studio SV as well!). We had a great experience. We requested to stay near-ish to the lobby but on the right (Jambo) side of the resort. This put our "bead" right behind the bus stop and a bit shorter walk to Jambo than if we were on the left side of the lobby. I liked that Kidani had a cozier feel than Jambo, despite being huge. The DVC element of the Community Rm was nice. We did not experience either pool on this or previous visits when we've stayed at Jambo. It really depends on what is important to you.

 

[bunkkinsmom]

What a great thread! I am thinking of taking my parents on a surprise trip to the World in January. They are divorced but amicable, and both have significant others. My ideal would be to put them in two separate hotels, but they both have always wanted to stay at AKL. So I thought about putting one couple in Jambo and one in Kidani.

Any more info on the differences would be much appreciated.!!

 

[MikeyNS]

Just back from Kidani.. we've now stayed at both Kidani and Jambo and probably will be requesting Jambo next time if we go back to the AKV. Kidani is nice but Jambo suits us better.

 

[EAP'sDAD]

Is there a community hall in Jambo or only Kidani. Also how is the community hall, my kids love the one in OKW and BWV.

 

[CocosMeme]

The Community hall is in Kidani and it is really nice. There is a balcony overview of the Savannah with doors and chairs to sit in while your kids play. It is one of my favorite things at Kidani. It is also right across the hall from the arcade. We prefer Kidani, and have discovered that you can hop in your car, which is right below you in the parking garage, and zip over to Jambo whenever you want to for dinner, or whatever in going on at Jambo.Then you get to zip right back to Kidani for the peace and quiet.

 

[dianeschlicht]

First of all, as others have corrected, you have a bit of misinformation about the pools. Jambo guests AND Kidani guests can use BOTH pools.

I'm also going to dispute some information given by others as well. We stayed at Kidani last week, and once you get outside the building, the walk to Jambo from Kidani will take you all of about 4 minutes to the Jambo lobby door. Not long at all.

Now, no matter which resort you choose, you will very likely have a long walk INSIDE the resort. The hallways at both resorts are very long and somewhat annoying, but the good thing is that both resorts have huge windows along the hallways looking out onto the savannahs, so that part is a plus.

Bus service is a bit more convenient from Kidani, since most buses start there first. That means that if you are going to MK from Jambo, the bus could already be full of Kidani guests by the time it stops at Jambo House. The reverse is true of the DTD bus.

 

[Momamae]

Thanks everyone for the info. You all have been very helpful! I think we will stick with Kidani and see how it goes. Kidani and Jambo both look so beautiful so I think we will be happy with either.

 

[mdinme]

Both are amazing. Kidani might have the edge esp. if your not going studio and I'm fairly sure any kid would chose it over Jambo due to pool and play area. The bus begins at Kidani and then goes to Jambo, this can be important when it's busy since you'll be getting on an empty bus.

Jambo wins on food (by a wide margin) as mentioned, but Kidani is less than a year-old, which is nice.

 

[DVClurkerRob]

There is an awesome community hall at Kidani. I couldn't tear my kids out of it. They also have guided tours for the kids to see how they feed and care for the animals (about 90 minute tour). They do bingo and games in the pool in the afternoon with a dj. The community hall experience at Kidani was perhaps the best I've ever encountered.