AKL - Smells??

[StirlingSilver83]

ok sort of off topic but maybe not lol, we are also considering AKL for our next trip...my hubby has a very sensitive nose and can't stand the smell of any type of perfume. Last year we got the chance to stay GF, but he wouldn't let me book it until he knew that I was 100% sure that the lobby smell was not throughout the entire resort, lol. I was on the phone with lke 6 different people trying to figure out if the rooms had a perfume type smell in them lol. Anyways does AKL have any of those types of smells in their room? Along with Wilderness Lodge bc we are also considering that lol

 

[Happy_Haunt999]

ok sort of off topic but maybe not lol, we are also considering AKL for our next trip...my hubby has a very sensitive nose and can't stand the smell of any type of perfume. Last year we got the chance to stay GF, but he wouldn't let me book it until he knew that I was 100% sure that the lobby smell was not throughout the entire resort, lol. I was on the phone with lke 6 different people trying to figure out if the rooms had a perfume type smell in them lol. Anyways does AKL have any of those types of smells in their room? Along with Wilderness Lodge bc we are also considering that lol

The AKL no, at least not at Kidani. The WL usually smells like pine lately.

 

[Minnesota!]

Akl smells amazing. Wood fired grill, clean, homey. Like sitting around a fire pit! Love it!

 

[Micca]

Smells like teen spirit

 

[Mr.Matt]

Thank you everyone for your wonderful feedback! We will be akl bound now! We are all excited to go! Thank you all!!

 

[jvattes]

AKL smells - AMAZING. As others have said I wish I could bottle it up and take it home. I did order some wax melts (like scented candles) on Etsy that are supposed to smell like it, and they come close but miss the mark a little. Still, it's close enough for me to get a fix from far far away. Best smelling location anywhere!

 

[JerseyJanice]

Not quite on point, but when we were there, the van that runs between jambo and kidani smelled - like animal poop - every time.

LOL! I've always wondered if you can detect animal smells while on the balcony of your AKL room. The thought of smelling giraffe poop while out there isn't appealing. Never thought about how the cooking might smell.

 

[Happy_Haunt999]

LOL! I've always wondered if you can detect animal smells while on the balcony of your AKL room. The thought of smelling giraffe poop while out there isn't appealing. Never thought about how the cooking might smell.

FWIW, we've stayed there many a time and never ever smell animal anything while in our savannah view room or on the balcony. And IDK what van they were riding in b/t Kidani and Jambo that they said smelled of animal feces, but the shuttle I've always ridden in b/t the two smells like car.

 

[jvattes]

LOL! I've always wondered if you can detect animal smells while on the balcony of your AKL room. The thought of smelling giraffe poop while out there isn't appealing. Never thought about how the cooking might smell.

No animal smells as far as I ever noticed

 

[nkereina]

We were there in October. We stayed on the Zebra trail in a savanna view DVC room in Jambo House. We'd always walk down the hall towards the lobby to get to the bus stop, and as soon as we hit the last set of 10 rooms or so, we definitely noticed African food smells from Boma. We did not care for it and always commented that it stunk, and we were glad we weren't in one of those rooms. Never noticed any animal smells, not even on the balcony.

I wouldn't let the food smell deter you from staying at AKL, though. You could add a room request to be away from the lobby or on the Kudu trail which would be further away from the lobby area where the smells seem to be most prevalent from the open Boma down below.

 

[kyleandconnorsmom]

We also thought the smell at AKL was amazing and our room was right over the lobby. I miss the smell and am not a fan of exotic food.

 

[OhThePain]

The lobby of Jambo has a bacon scent in the morning. The rest of the day it smells like a firepit/fireplace/smoker. It's quite heavenly. We also don't find that The Mara or Boma or Sanaa or Jiko have any sort of a heavy spice smell to it and the food at all 4 is excellent. Even with sensitive stomachs, you could find plenty to eat at any of them (maybe not Sanaa).

 

[LaidBackDad]

Long time lurker, first time poster. Several trips to Disney but never AKL. Wife's milestone birthday trip so trying to make it perfect! I really tried to find this answer before posting a question, but never really found a topic that answered this question. We have stayed at CBR a few times but considering staying at AKL this trip as older kids would love to be so close to animals like zebras and giraffes and with FD this time AKL is (nearly) affordable for us. We have sensitive stomachs and noses and are worried the scent of African food being cooked in the resort may cause a week long vacation sour. Can someone tell me if there are any strong/offensive scents from African food are offensive or linger into common areas? Does Maru or Boma smell of curry or indian spices? We like the smells of barbeque and grilled chicken and steak and all - but some of the menu items do seem a little nauseating to us.

***I certainly do not mean to offend... and this might walk a fine line with some... but I am hoping some people who may understand my question may be able to help clarify.

I have no insider information but I am nearly 100% certain there aren't any "smells" from the restaurants at AKL which carry throughout the resort. Even the "smokey / burning wood" smell people describe in the lobby does not come from the restaurants. Many large resorts including Disney have "air fresheners" as part of their HVAC systems. They can pump in their desired fragrances to different parts of the hotel to add to the ambiance / experience of the guest. The "smokey" smell is strongest closer to the large gas fireplace / fire pit in the back of the hotel lobby. It is one of Disney's little magic details it adds give us a more authentic African feel to the resort. I know scents are "pumped in" in different areas throughout WDW. The most famous example is if you walk down Main Street at the MK and you smell Sugar Cookies baking, that is an artificial scent pumped onto the street designed to stimulate our sweet tooth and give us a "homey feel" and encourage us to spend money in the candy shops. It's similar technology used on Soarin when you smell the oranges "flying" over the orange groves and pine over the forest.

 

[DisneyPrincessTink]

Long time lurker, first time poster. Several trips to Disney but never AKL. Wife's milestone birthday trip so trying to make it perfect! I really tried to find this answer before posting a question, but never really found a topic that answered this question. We have stayed at CBR a few times but considering staying at AKL this trip as older kids would love to be so close to animals like zebras and giraffes and with FD this time AKL is (nearly) affordable for us. We have sensitive stomachs and noses and are worried the scent of African food being cooked in the resort may cause a week long vacation sour. Can someone tell me if there are any strong/offensive scents from African food are offensive or linger into common areas? Does Maru or Boma smell of curry or indian spices? We like the smells of barbeque and grilled chicken and steak and all - but some of the menu items do seem a little nauseating to us.

***I certainly do not mean to offend... and this might walk a fine line with some... but I am hoping some people who may understand my question may be able to help clarify.

I've stayed there 5x. I've never smelled the animals or the restaurants from my room, the hallway or the lobby.

 

[busymommy2pink]

The only food smell I ever noticed was bacon from the morning buffet. It made me hungry lol