AKV is NOT far away :)

[AKLFan3]

I have noticed on forums that people state, "AKV is very far away" or "it's waaaay out there!" I tend to raise an eyebrow because AKV is only a 5 minute bus ride to Animal Kingdom Park! It's not in the middle of nowhere.

It is my guess that those who believe AKV is very far away are comparing it to their favorite and most popular park, Magic Kingdom. However, even the bus ride to Magic Kingdom is only 20 minutes. I could say that VWL is "far away" because it is about a 20 minute bus ride to Animal Kingdom park. I also find that the VWL buses are slower to pick up guests than AKV buses...just based on the few times I have stayed there. I actually feel like SSR and OKW are "very far away" because of the multiple bus stops and 15-20 minute ride to Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom.

What is your opinion?

 

[disney1474]

I totally agree. One time we stayed at WL and it was 20 minutes before we even got to Magic Kingdom on one of the boats! We didn't care though...we really like WL also

 

[bobbiwoz]

I own and love AKV (and other DVCs) but I cannot say that I don't think that AKV is "far away."

However, I don't think that it's "too far away" to totally enjoy the WDW experience while staying there.

I hope that makes sense to someone other than me. I love VWL because it feels so far removed from the rest of WDW. We always liked the VWL area, even when there was only FW and River Country and Discovery Island.

Bobbi

 

[Brian Noble]

AKV is "isloated", but not really "far away". All of the other DVC resorts are either within walking distance of, or have non-bus transportation to, something else. OKW and SSR have the boat to DTD (and you can walk from parts of SSR). VWL has the boat to the contemporary and the Fort. BLT has the monorail, and the boat to WL/Fort. BCV and BWV are walking distance to anything in the Epcot area.

For AKV, to do anything "not local", you have to get on a bus. And that makes it "feel" far. But, to the parks, it's not really all that much farther than some others. For example, here are the Unofficial Guide "average times" in minutes to get from AKL/AKV to the parks, and from OKW to the parks:

AKL/AKV MK:35, EP:28, DS:26, AK:11
OKW MK:30, EP:25, DS:26, AK:30

They aren't *that* different, except for the trip to AK. At worst, AKL/AKV is five minutes farther.

 

[AnnaS]

I do not own here but have stayed here. I have no complaints about how far/close it is. Would stay here again in a heartbeat.

 

[DebbieB]

I thought that too before I stayed there. I don't think it's any different than OKW/SSR (no park within walking distance), I think it's better because there are only 2 stops within the resort.

 

[Norm1]

We own at AKV but stay at the other DVC resorts from time to time. No matter where we stay we always make reservations at Jiko's or/and Sanaa for dinner each trip and do not find it hard to get to AKV. When we do stay there we find it fairly easy to get around the world. We have found at times much easier than some of the other resorts.

 

[mdsd8700]

AKV is "isloated", but not really "far away".

For AKV, to do anything "not local", you have to get on a bus. And that makes it "feel" far.

I completely agree with these statements. We have stayed at AK but not in quite some time and it would have to do with the fact that it seems "isolated". We have however eaten there several times over and always like to at least make a visit every trip. My son has been talking about staying there lately, so I think a stay there is in our future.

 

[Pakey]

When you are on an SRO bus back from the parks to AKV, they all seem pretty far. Much more so than back to OKW or SSR.

 

[emlutz23]

As long as I'm on WDW property, I'm not too far away!

 

[DizGirl20]

I have stayed at Magic Kingdom properties, Epcot properties, OKW, Coronado Springs... only 2 of those locations do I recall thinking it saved time:

Grand Floridian ---> Magic Kingdom
Beach Club Villas ---> Epcot

But if I want to go to, for example, Animal Kingdom from the Beach Club or Hollywood Studios from Grand Floridian... that all takes extra time, whether it be by Disney Transportation or by rental car. We almost always rent a car. That way we can stay wherever we want and not be concerned about transportation times. I don't think staying at AKV is any different than staying anywhere else. In fact I kinda like sometimes that it is not connected by a monorail or near Epcot - keeps things a bit quieter IMO!

 

[stopher1]

Personally I agree that it is isolated, but at the same time, getting around WDW takes time regardless of which resort you stay in, especially when using Disney transportation.

Last year we stayed at multiple resorts over multiple stays. On one we stayed at the WL, and just to get to DTD to see a movie took just under an hour - about 50 minutes - with the stop at the Poly, the stop at the Grand Flo and then the drive way over to DTD. On another stay we stayed at AKV and went to DTD and got there in 25, and from AKV to the MK took about 30 minutes. Conversely, when we stayed at the WL and went over to AKV to eat at Boma, it took about 40 minutes. One of the big things to consider in the resorts is the type of transportation and how many stops it has. I left SSR this morning after a few days, and getting anywhere took quite a while with all of the stops. One of our "worst" stays was at the Boardwalk, and how long it took to take the buses anywhere. After a couple of long delays in getting back to the resort, we learned to get off at the Swan/Dolphin and walk across the bridge rather than waiting for all of the stops before the BWV.


EVERYTHING at WDW is "far" from something. No resort is perfect. Walking distance is great, but having that everywhere just isn't possible.

 

[La2kw]

I do enjoy staying at AKV, but it is definitely far away from the things that we enjoy. AK is our least favorite park and we don't even bother with it every trip, so being nearby is no perk. However, I think that the remoteness is a part of what makes the lodge special. You really feel like you are heading somewhere remote.

 

[Mickey Fliers]

My DH felt that way. We always have a car, but he just "felt" AKV was far. I didn't have the same feeling. I think he might feel different in Jambo house. I think he just didn't really care for Kidani.

That being said, we tried to get from the Poly to AKV this past Jan. and it was an absolute nightmare!! We didn't want to take our car (had planned on a few cocktails with dinner) and in hindsight, should have just taken a cab. Trying to get on the bus at AK was crazy. There were 3 bus loads of people waiting.

 

[madvcfan]

It's not that is far away, it's the only DVC resort that's not walking distance from other parks and Shopping Village, and Boardwalk. Makes it a little difficult, if you are relying on just Dis transportation.

We are staying a AKL for our school vacation in Feb(NH). We have a Savannah view. Can't wait. We are bringing our daughter and granddaughter with us. We are driving, also celebrating granddaughter's 6th birthday.

Hope it gets warmer.

 

[tjkraz]

I did a short 3D, 2N stay last month in which Disney transportation was exclusively used. Stayed at Kidani. The resort itself was very nice and really I have few issues with the dining situation (ate at Boma once, Mara twice plus drinks at Sanaa), but bus ride times felt quite long.

We never visited Animal Kingdom--not enough time and not enough appeal. So the benefit of it being the nearest park was lost on us. And honestly, even if this was a week-long family vacation we only would have visited DAK once vs. 2-3 times at every other park.

Getting to and from Downtown Disney was also a pain as that's clearly the furthest destination. Didn't put a watch to it but the trip TO DTD--which wraps all the way around Disney Vacation Club Way by SSR and OKW--seemed to take about 45 minutes.

I will say that the quality of bus service was very good overall. I can only think of one time we waited more than 10 min for a bus. But speaking as an able-bodied 40 year old who is pretty much obliged to stand during peak travel times, some of the trips weren't a lot of fun.

 

[CarnotaurDad]

We (DW, DD 10 and I) came back from a 8 night stay at Kidani and used Disney transport exclusively.

As noted, we never waited more than 10 minutes for a bus either at the resort or at the parks.

DTD felt the furthest away but it wasn't too bad. The most crowded moments were when DAK closed and everyone was headed to Boma/Sanaa/Jiko for dinner. SRO at that point.

Felt like the walk to our room from the bus stop was longer than the bus ride from Kidani to Epcot!

 

[2binak]

I made a point to watch the clock when we took the bus from AKV to MK. It was 17 mins from the time we left AKV until we arrived at the MK bus stop.

Part of the reason I love staying at AKV is the remote feel of the resort. I don't want to look over my balcony and see neon signs, crowds of people or a busy road.

 

[BWV Dreamin]

We stayed for four days last August at Jambo value studio. While I loved the room decor, that is the only thing I liked about it. Our bus rides were looooonnnngggg. Unless I can't get SSR, that will be the only time I'll be back to AKV.

 

[photobob]

I've never really felt any Disney resort was along way away to anything. I guess if you are comparing BWV and BCV's proximity to Epcot and DHS and BLT's to MK it is a long way.