AKL vs. moderates?

[seeweb]

I am planning our first family vacation for next April to Disney. It's our 10 year anniversary and my daughter will be 3 so we want to go somewhere special that she will enjoy too.

I've been doing tons of research (and this forum has great ideas!) and wanted to know if there was really a huge difference between the AKL and the moderates (Coranndo or Carribean). I'm really stuck on AKL b/c my daughter loves animals and would much rather have a queen size bed than a double. BUT, the cost is quite a bit more and I wondered if it was really worth it. I do think we will spend a lot of time at the resort b/c of my daughter and not wanting to overwhelm her.

Also, the only week we can go is Easter week (dh is a teacher) and I wanted to know if it is just unbearably crowded at that time.

Thank you so much for your help!

Cheryl

 

[soccer mom]

We are very happy staying at moderates (POR & POFQ being our favorites), but there is no comparison to AKL. The moderates do not have balconies and we tend to keep our blinds closed because of the foot traffic by your window. As far as AKL, you are in Africa from the moment you see the lodge. The theming, decor, and art are wonderful. Sitting on your balcony and watching the animals is great. It has a really large pool with a zero entry for the little ones and two hot tubs. There is an outdoor firepit where a young person from Africa will talk and tell African folklore every evening. I could go on and on. Really an awesome resort!!!

 

[Viki]

I am planning our first family vacation for next April to Disney. It's our 10 year anniversary and my daughter will be 3 so we want to go somewhere special that she will enjoy too.

I've been doing tons of research (and this forum has great ideas!) and wanted to know if there was really a huge difference between the AKL and the moderates (Coranndo or Carribean). I'm really stuck on AKL b/c my daughter loves animals and would much rather have a queen size bed than a double. BUT, the cost is quite a bit more and I wondered if it was really worth it. I do think we will spend a lot of time at the resort b/c of my daughter and not wanting to overwhelm her.

Also, the only week we can go is Easter week (dh is a teacher) and I wanted to know if it is just unbearably crowded at that time.

Thank you so much for your help!

Cheryl

Hi, Cheryl, welcome to the Dis boards.

My advice is this: IF you can afford it, do AKL. I've stayed at both moderates and deluxe (never value), finally switching over to just deluxe a few years back and have never regretted it. While we very liked the CBR, for example, there's something about the deluxes which just kicks the whole disney resort experience up a couple notches. Perhaps it's the theming, the smaller size of the resorts - or the lodge feel at WL and AKL, and fewer people at the bus stop.


Of course, whatever you decide, you'll have fun.

 

[Mousemom]

We love the moderate resorts, especially POFQ. POFQ has a nice pool with slide, food court with good variety of food items, beautiful grounds, rooms that have just been redone, and a boat to DD. But...we abosolutely love AKL. We have stayed here twice and will be staying again this Christmas. My husband was not real excited to stay here because he did not think he would like the African theming (how can it be Disney?). But when we got there he was amazed. We think that this is the coolest place we have ever stayed. The look on my kids' face when we went in to the lobby was priceless. The AKL has balconies at every room, a great food court, wonderful restaurant, and beautiful pool. Getting up in the morning and sitting on the balcony with a cup of coffee looking at the animals is awesome. If your daughter loves animals she will love this. If you stay here explore the resort and ask questions. There are people all over ready to answer them. Going during Easter will be crowded. We went last year and left the Saturday before Easter and could not believe how many people there were. If you use fast passes and plan it right you will still have fun. We are planning to go 3/24-4/2. Still spring break but right before Easter rush. Stay at aKL if you can, you won't be sorry!

 

[gigi1313]

having stayed at POFQ and AKL on our last trip, i personally would recommend POFQ or Riverside... we were not overly impressed w/AKL... yes, you see animals... but only from your room, not while you are doing lotsa cool fun stuff like at POFQ/R (i.e. biking and boating and fishing) PLUS (and this is huge for me) the mods are far more centrally located than AKL... just the travelling from AKL to/from parks was a bit much for us... really made us "think" about going and if it was worth the hassle...

 

[YCFAN]

WELCOME TO THE DIS!!! I prefer AKL over the moderates. I have a young one too and even though the AKL has only bus service (so do the other moderates except POR which has boat service to only DTD) the buses are very efficient and I like having everything under one roof instead of in alot of different buildings.

 

[dixipixi]

I have not stayed at all the moderates, only at CBR. While I can't say I would never stay at a moderate again, I will say I enjoyed my stay at AKL much more than CBR.

This is just my personal opinion, but I absolutely LOVED AKL. I will say, however, that I don't think I would be happy there for more than a few nights. The resort is just too isolated.

If you don't mind changing resorts and are planning on staying more than a few nights, why not do half at a moderate and half at AKL? That way you could decide for yourself which way you would rather go for future visits.

Like I said, I LOVED AKL. Didn't have one complaint while there. But I was very glad that we moved to YC for the rest of our stay. Just because there was more to do at night around the Epcot area.

 

[cjsmom5]

AKL has activities that your youngster will enjoy. They have flamingo feeding, African music, African Games (might be a bit old depending on the level), a wonderful firepit to sit around (tends to amaze the young ones), storytelling by the firepit, etc. They have a whole list of them.

Also, the zero entry pool is very nice when one has a little one. It is very nice. Also, the playground there is lots of fun.

We typically split our stay between the POFQ and the AKL. There really isn't a lot of comparison since the rooms at the AKL are bigger, the beds are bigger, the AKL offers a wonderful lobby area if it is yukky outside, interior hallways, animals at every possible viewpoint, doesn't share transporation with another resort, etc.

If you can afford it, I would splurge for the AKL. My dh used to be a teacher so understand that is the only time you can go. Just plan to take a break in the afternoon, spend some time at the pool, and don't push your little one. You will have lots of fun. We've had our DS at WDW every year and sometimes twice since he was 18 months. There is a new place at MK (Pooh playground) that should be perfect.