AKV Savannah View, really, is this it?

[MAGICX2]

We stayed for one night in a savannah view studio at AKV Jambo House on 12/6/08. I was so excited that we were able to get this room! However, when we came out on to the balcony we had a small group of trees (about the size of a cul-de-sac) surrounded by a CM parking area and cement roads. There was one zebra in the trees. That was it.

Is this the savannah view everyone has RAVED about? The view people go on waiting lists for? I found it extremely disappointing and a total waist of the points. Was this really it, or was I jipped? What about all the pics of the wide open savannah with rooms in the background that you see everywhere?

 

[DeeCee735]

I'm bringing guests in November to AKV in a Savannah View at Jambo (studio), I want to avoid this type of view, anyone have any suggestions as where to request the room be to get a better savannah view?

TIA

 

[Desnik]

We were just at AKV Jambo house in a studio savannah view on the Kudu Trail. Here is an example of what we saw on our balcony:

We had Zebra, Giraffe, lots of birds and other animals that I don't know the names of. There was no cement I can remember. It was a great view and worth the points.

OP, sorry you had a crummy view, I do think you got jipped! This was our 2nd time at AKV in a savannah studio and we have had fantastic views both times with lots of animals.

 

[MAGICX2]

I did some research before requesting this view, but maybe not enough. I understand that there are three different savannah's. We were in a Sunset Savannah room. This room really isn't supposed to have zebra on the savannah, but that is the only animal that was there and it was alone. There was a lot of trucks and CM's walking around in the area. Do you think we were affected by the animal acclimation even though it wasn't scheduled to begin until Jan. 2009?

 

[MAGICX2]

I'm bringing guests in November to AKV in a Savannah View at Jambo (studio), I want to avoid this type of view, anyone have any suggestions as where to request the room be to get a better savannah view?

TIA

Request a Zebra Trail room. I wish we had!

 

[marx]

The 5th floor DVC rooms are too high in Jambo - you get blockage from the trees. Lower floors are under the canopy.

I've stayed on the 3rd and 4th floors in the lodge, and twice on the 5th in DVC and noticed a big difference.

 

[Lexxiefern]

I can't speak for the DVC rooms, but I have stayed at AKL a bunch of times. We had sunset savannah once and I did not care for it at all and asked to be switched to Arusha savannah. The arusha savannah was great! Another time I had booked pool view and was "upgraded" to a savannah view all the way at the very end of the hall looking at a people pen. The animals were so far away and there was alot of fencing. Not attractive. The next morning I went back to the front desk and asked to be downgraded to the pool view I payed for. (the pool view was lovely, btw)

Sorry you didn't get a great view.

 

[DeeCee735]

Request a Zebra Trail room. I wish we had!

Did you see the giraffee and other animals as well? I'm guessing that's a yes

Also, how far from the lobby were you?

TIA

 

[drusba]

As to seeing animals there will be times of day when you look and there are none to see and other times when there are a number. As to the OP with the sunset view: That has not been good for several months because of the construction (and what I think you saw was a worker temporary lot which is part of the construction). You can not only see it but hear it and it is not that far away from the Jambo rooms and they have temporary fencing dividing the areas and temporary roads. However, it is also my personal view that once everything is done, sunset savanna will likely be the best of them all.

 

[MAGICX2]

Did you see the giraffee and other animals as well? I'm guessing that's a yes

No we did not see any animals other than the one little ol lonely zebra. He really was the only thing out there.

Also, how far from the lobby were you? TIA

We were VERY close to the lobby. It was actually right around the corner from our door room. You went upstairs, crossed the suspended bridge above the lobby and walked about 20 feet to our door.
Our room was directly across the hall from the Presidential Suite featured in the Samantha Brown show. The people who were staying there were leaving the day we checked out and they let me take a peek inside!

 

[DeeCee735]

I just put through a request for a zebra trail room! hopefully we'll get it for our Nov trip

thanks for the advice

 

[LisaS]

We stayed for one night in a savannah view studio at AKV Jambo House on 12/6/08. I was so excited that we were able to get this room! However, when we came out on to the balcony we had a small group of trees (about the size of a cul-de-sac) surrounded by a CM parking area and cement roads. There was one zebra in the trees. That was it.

There is no part of any savanna that is surrounded by a CM parking area. You were facing the construction of the new Kidani Village building so the vehicles you saw were construction related. They will be gone by May 1st and that area will be grass and trees and hopefully many animals.

 

[mblsj]

No we did not see any animals other than the one little ol lonely zebra. He really was the only thing out there.

We were VERY close to the lobby. It was actually right around the corner from our door room. You went upstairs, crossed the suspended bridge above the lobby and walked about 20 feet to our door.
Our room was directly across the hall from the Presidential Suite featured in the Samantha Brown show. The people who were staying there were leaving the day we checked out and they let me take a peek inside!

We stayed in the exact same room on 12/19. While we liked the convenience of being close to the lobby, the view was not at all worth the points IMO.

Hey, at least you got a zebra- all we saw was an ostrich. If I want to see a "Big Bird" I'll watch PBS.

But you got the peek into the Presidential Suite- very nice!

I will say my DSIL and her family had a studio much farther out- out in the last hallway in fact, also overlooking the Sunset Savanna. They had giraffe, zebra and lots of them, and took lots of great pics. So I think it's not the savanna as much as the particular vantage point that makes the difference. I would suggest doing a savanna view again, just a different room.

 

[jjohnson]

We had the same cruddy view for our stay last April. I agree it was a big waste of points and I had used weekend but I did know ahead of time we may get it so there's not much I could do about it but look at the 3 cattle for 4 days.

 

[hakepb]

I think it all depends on typical animal feeding times, luck, and how much time you can spend on your balcony

On the sunset last Sept/Oct (facing the new Kidani lobby) the best animal viewing time seemed to be late afternoon (I am guessing they puropsely put out food near the real sunset time) Most mornings I was lucky to see one or 2 animals. (many days I saw none). But during late afternoon naps, there were always animals roaming by on their feeding schedules.
Most amusing one evening was seeing the Zebras feed, to be "scared off" by the Ankole Cattle, and they were scared off by the wildebeast. (But I guess the zebra's are friends with the wildebeast so they came back) We would occasionally see Giraffe wandering through (to eat out of their tall feeders). and the osterich cranes and sone other (antelope?) animal. At night I would usually see some of the ankole? cattle laying down in the tall grass, only to leave when the 11pm sprinklers turned on.
Even with all my "sightings" I was usually jealous of the other areas down the hall (both sunset and arusha side) because they usually had more animal activity by the viewing windows than I just saw from my balcony.
I could certainly believe if stayed on your sunset balcony all morning, left for the parks and got back late you may not see any animals...

It may be good idea to have a printed feeding schedule for all the areas because where/when the CM's put the food, there will be animals

 

[El&Asmom]

This is why we won't book AKV until Kidani is open. IMO, the 5th and 6th floor are just too high to have a great view with the tree canopy. Add construction and animal relocation to that, and it is not worth taking the chance to use the extra points for a SV. Our first WDW stay was at AKL and it was amazing. We were on the Arusha savannah and saw a wide variety of animals everyday. Plus we were on the 3rd floor, so we had a great expansive view.

 

[jennyl772003]

I'm sorry you had a crummy view! That would really stink to spend the extra points and not feel like you got your moneys worth.

When we were there in Aug I thought our view was really good! We saw ankole cattle all the time, zebras pretty often, giraffes occasionally and some other animals here and there.

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[Anal Annie]

Not all Savanna Views are created equally. I do not think they would be worth the extra points. Way back when AKL first opened we paid extra for a "deluxe savanna view" or something and ended up with like one lonely giraffe out there all week. We seriously got NOTHING all week in the way of animals and we were allllllll the way down at the end of hall...easily a 10 min. walk to the pool or lobby. We simply don't spend enough time in the room to spend the extra points on them since I think they're a gamble on what you may or may not see. The public viewing areas are usually great (well attended), are plentiful and are FREE!

 

[hakepb]

Extra points for Savanna view.

Waking up your first am to a rustling of the curtains as you son yells "Look a zebra,
2 zebras,
no 3 zebras!
and an osterich!!"

....... priceless

that's DVC

 

[SoThisIsLove]

Hi,

I have a quick question.......I have a 1 Bdrm Savannah view in Jambo booked for the last week in August. I was wondering if the Savanna is "active" during that season or am I better off holding off til a fall/winter trip to try this resort. I am torn between this and BCV for Stormalong Bay. We have a DD who is 2 and are looking for a good resort for her in the heat of the summer.