AKL Jambo vs Kidani...a few questions

[Garretts92]

We've got a 2br at Jambo but are considering moving to Kidani for the extra bathroom since we have another adult staying on the pull out couch part of the stay. We've stayed at AKL before (before Kidani was built) and loved the access to Boma, the gift shop and other activities. My questions are as follows:

1- Does AKL and Kidani share the bus line? How painful is it?
2- Is Kidani a close walking distance to AKL?
3- Is Kidani set up like like SSR/OKW (apartment bldg style)? Or more hotel style like AKL?
4- Does Kidani have a gift shop with grocery type items like AKL?
5- Any other advantages/disadvantages to consider?

All people in our party are 15yrs old and up so we're not worried about playground access or other activities geared towards younger guests.

I appreciate your input! Thanks!

 

[brettcw23]

We've got a 2br at Jambo but are considering moving to Kidani for the extra bathroom since we have another adult staying on the pull out couch part of the stay. We've stayed at AKL before (before Kidani was built) and loved the access to Boma, the gift shop and other activities. My questions are as follows:

1- Does AKL and Kidani share the bus line? How painful is it?
2- Is Kidani a close walking distance to AKL?
3- Is Kidani set up like like SSR/OKW (apartment bldg style)? Or more hotel style like AKL?
4- Does Kidani have a gift shop with grocery type items like AKL?
5- Any other advantages/disadvantages to consider?

All people in our party are 15yrs old and up so we're not worried about playground access or other activities geared towards younger guests.

I appreciate your input! Thanks!

We stayed at KV last March...
1- Does AKL and Kidani share the bus line? How painful is it?
>>> Same bus line but not painful. KV was first pick up and then Jambo.
2- Is Kidani a close walking distance to AKL?
>>>You can walk from KV to Jambo in about 10 minutes for an avg adult. I walk briskly and it took me about 7 minutes each time. They also have a shuttle van that will take you from to the other.
3- Is Kidani set up like like SSR/OKW (apartment bldg style)? Or more hotel style like AKL?
Hmmm...not sure how to answer this one. I'd say it's Hotel style. One main lobby and then long hallways.
4- Does Kidani have a gift shop with grocery type items like AKL?
>>>It has a MUCH smaller one than Jambo but just as serviceable. The big difference was with the souvenir type items.
5- Any other advantages/disadvantages to consider?
>>>We loved Kidani. Our only complaint, if you want to call it that, was that Kv didn't ahve a quick service eatery. We had to go down to Jambo for a quick meal. Not a big deal but a nuisance when you get back late fromt he parks with a 7 and 4 yr old and you'd prefer to just grab something and bring it up to your room.

 

[CarpeDisney]

1. Yes, Kidani does share a bus line with Jambo House. Some people say that buses are packed because of this, but we've stayed there a few times (some stays during peak times of the year) and never had an issue with busses. The buses going to the parks pick up at Kidani first, and then Jambo House. The bus going to downtown disney picks up at Jambo first, then Kidani.

2. The walk from the main lobby at Kidani to the main lobby at Jambo house takes no more than 5-10 minutes. If you want to use the buses to go from one place to another, hop on a park bus to get from Kidani to Jambo, and the downtown disney bus to get from Jambo to Kidani. (I've also heard some people mention that there is an internal van that goes from one area to the other, but haven't seen this)

3. Kidani is set up with internal hallways, like Jambo House. Again, one of the more negative things you may hear about this set up is that some people believe the hallways are too long from the central lobby to the out-lying rooms at the ends of the wings. We've stayed in rooms not central to the lobby, and haven't had an issue with the length of the walk.

4. Kidani does have a small gift shop / grocery store in the lobby.

5. Advantages: Kidani rooms (1 BR and 2 BR villas) have one extra bathroom as compared with similar units in Jambo House. Additionally, these rooms all contain both a sleeper sofa and a chair that converts into a single bed. This increases the occupancy limit of the Kidani Rooms by one over those in Jambo House. Kidani is also much quieter of a building than Jambo. Some people prefer this over the noisier, more active lobby of Jambo House. The villas in Kidani (1 BR and 1 BR have a HUGE master bathroom, with separate tub and shower).

Disadvantages: Hard to say. Comes down to preference for many.

Good luck with your decision. Post any other questions you may have.

 

[drusba]

1. They share buses making two stops total. Park busses run Kidani to Jambo to Park. DD bus Jambo to Kidani to DD. Based on experience with AKL busses and others, it is one of the better bus systems.

2. 1/2 mile front door to front door. Can also take buses and they often have a shuttle between them.

3. More hotel style with all rooms in one building with two wings from lobby, store and restaurant in building.

4. Has gift shop with grocery items but shop is much smaller than Jambo, as is lobby.

5. Kidani has no counter service and thus must go to Jambo for it which is not a short walk. Kidani 2BR not only has extra bathroom but is significantly larger room, with nicer master bath that has separate tub and shower, and more closet space. Also you can get dedicated 2BRs at Kidani with two queens in the second bedroom. If you have car, Kidani is ideal with under building parking and with elevators along the wings you can always park fairly close to room. Kidani has the community hall, Jambo does not. (Note, both Kidani and Jambo 1 and 2 BRs have the sleeper chair so 2BR sleeps nine; the exception is the small number of value rooms in Jambo that do not have the chair).

 

[magicaldisney]

A few things that haven't been mentioned:

In our opinion, you have a better savannah view from lower level rooms. Kidani offers villas on all floors, where Jambo villas are only on the 5th and 6th floors.

Jambo is very active, where Kidani is more laid back and quiet.

 

[rentayenta]

We've got a 2br at Jambo but are considering moving to Kidani for the extra bathroom since we have another adult staying on the pull out couch part of the stay. We've stayed at AKL before (before Kidani was built) and loved the access to Boma, the gift shop and other activities. My questions are as follows:

1- Does AKL and Kidani share the bus line? How painful is it?
2- Is Kidani a close walking distance to AKL?
3- Is Kidani set up like like SSR/OKW (apartment bldg style)? Or more hotel style like AKL?
4- Does Kidani have a gift shop with grocery type items like AKL?
5- Any other advantages/disadvantages to consider?

All people in our party are 15yrs old and up so we're not worried about playground access or other activities geared towards younger guests.

I appreciate your input! Thanks!

We just got back this Wed from an amazing stay at Kidani.

1. Yes they share a bus line and pick up Kidani first. As far as it being painful? We never saw a packed bus. As far as waiting? It was minimal.

2. Kidani is about a 5 minute walk or less. We went to Jambo for Boma, the gift shop to trade with the King Pin, and also so DS could get all of the beads for various activities. The walk is nothing.

3. Hotel

4. Yes. Smaller gift shop though but the food items were the same.

5. Having stayed in both, I much prefer Kidani.

We did not miss having a counter service at all. When at the pool we ordered in room dining and had it delivered to the pool. Kidani's pool also has a bar and food items.

Good luck with your choice.

 

[Cee]

What I enjoyed about staying in Jambo House were the amenities of a deluxe hotel and the kitchen, laundry and extra square footage of DVC.

The best of both worlds!

 

[Garretts92]

Thank you all for your detailed responses. This helps me a great deal in choosing! I may actually be leaning toward Kidani now.

Can't wait to go!

 

[CruznLexi]

We have stayed at both and prefer KV due to the quietness of it. First bus stop for parks and first stop coming back too. We stay at KV for this. There is a shuttle than can take you to both resorts. Sometimes hard to get so we walk maybe 10 min max. No counter service but the store does have sone food items for sale plus the refill mugs are there too. We only stay studio so can't comment on that. It is more of a hotel style . Long hallways.

 

[LisaS]

With someone sleeping in the living area, I would recommend Kidani. The master bathroom in the Kidani 1BRs/2BRs is directly connected to the master bedroom so you can move between the two in privacy. In Jambo, the master bath is shared with whoever sleeps in the living area so a small hallway separates the bathroom from the master bedroom. Anyone moving between the master BR and bath is in view of those in the living area. In some Jambo 2BRs, the connecting door to the studio is in the living area, directly across from this hallway so you would also be in view of those in the studio.

As already mentioned, the master bathroom in Jambo has a combined whirlpool tub and shower. The master bathroom in Kidani also has a whirlpool tub but it has a separate shower stall which is huge and easier to get into and out of than having to step over a high-sided tub.

I think the animal viewing is better from lower floors so I prefer Kidani since Jambo's DVC rooms are all on the 5th and 6th floors (6th floor is Club level).

We enjoy the restaurants in Jambo House but we don't mind the 10-minute walk each way. In fact I really appreciate the walk back after a big meal at Boma or Jiko.

 

[Robundrh2o]

We just got back from Kidani this past weekend. While I can't comment on the room size everybody else mimiced our concerns. The only down side was the lack of a Quick Service food option.

 

[MrsDuck]

We prefer Jambo. I really like the QS option being so close. That said, Kidani is SO quiet and relaxing. Just depends on what you're looking for!