AKL -Too Far Away

[NJBILL]

I am thinking of booking AKL. I have read that it is a 10 minute bus ride and other folks say 10-20 min. With 3 kids (9,9,11), I do not want to spend a long time on busses. Is it really that much farther to stay at AKL than other resorts? Also, since we plan on spending a lot of time in the "parks", is it worth the extra $$$, as time will be minimal?
Thanks.

 

[michelewdw]

We just stayed there in July and it honestly did not seem as far away from the parks as I thought. The bus rides seemed pretty quick. It does help that there is one bus stop at AKL so the bus pulls in and pulls out and goes directly to the parks. My family and I loved the AKL and we will definitely stay there again. Also the pool area was very nice and open 24 hours.

Michele

 

[zurgswife]

Unless you stay at the Yacht Club/Beach Club or the Boardwalk all resorts take some sort of bus ride, and depending on which park your headed too the length varies. At the above mentioned resorts you can walk or take a boat.

AKL has never seemed any further away then any other bus ride.

 

[kpk89]

I don't think the busses there take significantly longer than any other -- what's key to me are the stops. There aren't any. My kids are fine ON the bus, but if it starts stopping other places and we're not "there yet!" they start to get antsy.

Have a great trip! AKL is beeyootiful. The pool, especially. You'll love it.

 

[CharlesTD]

If you plan on spending a large majority of your time at the parks then maybe look at staying at CSR or another moderate or even 2 value rooms would work. You will save money and still have a room close enough to everything.

 

[Artemus]

We love AKL! But IMHO, if you don't plan to "stay home" and enjoy the resort, you may be wasting both a great stay and money too. My kids, 12 & 9 had so much fun with the activities at AKL that they did not want to go to a park for two days! When we are just hitting the parks, we stay at a moderate (our favorite is POR) and even then we enjoy a couple days at the resort (half the price of AKL).

The bus ride isn't any worse than any other resort that is not "at the park" really, and it is pretty close to AK. Where ever you end up, HAVE A GREAT TIME!

Artemus

 

[NJBILL]

Thanks for the advice. We have been to the parks before when the kids were younger, and will have 3 nights on land/ 4 nights at sea. I like the idea of seeing the animals, but it may not be worth the extra $$$, as we did try to want to maximize the park time.

 

[iggbees]

we stayed at akl in 2002, so i'm not sure if this still applies, but the wait for the buses could get into the 30 min or more time frame. especially when you are at the parks wanting to come home in the middle of the day. the actual time spent on the bus was not long since it was only one resort and usually only one stop.

i agree with the person who said not to stay at akl if you don't plan on actually spending time at the resort. stay at pop or one of the all stars for that, it's way cheaper. you can always have a nice dinner at akl and see the animals then...

 

[Tinkerbelll]

Ahhh the bitter-sweet AKL....

 

[Holly]

I went last June and the busses were excellent. I never felt that it was any longer of a ride than from other resorts, and never waited long for a bus.

 

[Tiffany]

I am thinking of booking AKL. I have read that it is a 10 minute bus ride and other folks say 10-20 min. With 3 kids (9,9,11), I do not want to spend a long time on busses. Is it really that much farther to stay at AKL than other resorts? Also, since we plan on spending a lot of time in the "parks", is it worth the extra $$$, as time will be minimal?
Thanks.

It depends on the park you are going to. It is 10 to 15 to the MK from the AKL but it is also that long from the GF, POLY, CR or WL to the AK.

It really depends which park are you going to spend the most time in. If the MK is going to be a staple then I would say go with WL, same price range as the AKL, if the Studios and Epcot then I would suggest the YC/BC or BWI. These are pricier then the AKL so if price is a concern check out CBR.

We enjoy staying at the AKL and do not find it to be that far away from anything. Like I said no worse then someone staying at the CR going to the AK.