Animal Kingdom Lodge - A Skeptics Review...

[Andy123]

I admit it. I just wasn't that excited about staying at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. I was of the attitude that it was a place to sleep, in Disney World, so how bad could it be - but I honestly wasn't expecting much more than that. We are big fans of the Wilderness Lodge (which was our first choice this trip, but after AP rates came out, the only thing available was the Animal Kingdom Lodge - I had to go down for a two day conference), and the Polynesian. So, my wife and I made the 9 hour drive from Charlotte, NC excited about Disney World, but not about the hotel all that much.

All of that changed the second we drove up to the guard house, showed my license and pulled under the vast canopy that covers the valet area. WOW. We were starting to get excited about the hotel. As a side note, when you are driving up the road, past the Animal Kindgom Park, the palm and scrub underbrush turns to waving grasses, hinting at the adventure up ahead. A bellman helped us unpack the car, while my wife went inside and I went to park the car. I walked past the first set of doors, to find another set of doors that opened to reveal an amazing lobby. A HUGE window overlooking the savannah was right ahead... the woods, the music, the smells (!)... my wife was standing in line to check in with a HUGE smile on her face. I knew we were going to LOVE this place... We had a Standard View room for 8 nights (room 5117 - fifth floor, left side as your facing the resort)... and we were overlooking the brush, and could see the parking lot. The room itself was beautiful. Wonderful soothing colors, beautiful furniture, mosquito netting over the beds (I thought it was just a decoration, but later could have used it - we found the mosquitos to be especially bad this trip, FYI). All in all, the room was fantastic.

Back to more of the hotel... there are soooo many places to go exploring in this hotel! We were there 8 nights and probably didn't find half of them! There are viewing areas everywhere! Ever go swimming and watch a giraffe eat? I did! This place embodies what we loved about the Animal Kingdom park - it makes you want to search out those undiscovered places, find the path less traveled, and have fun!

We also found this to be the most romantic of the WDW hotels we've stayed at... it's not too busy, lots of cozy places.

The bus service was outstanding!!! It took a while to get to the MK, but everywhere else wasn't too bad... actually added to the remote feel of the resort.

The Mara was wonderful. Very large, a nice variety of foods. Would like to see it be 24 hours though...

Victoria Falls Lounge was beautiful, on the second floor overlooking Boma. The smells wafting up made you hungry!

My wife did laundy one day... she went to take the clean clothes out of the dryer (I went upstairs to our room). Not two minutes after I get into the room does the phone ring... "GET DOWN HERE! THERE ARE 3 GIRAFFES RIGHT OUTSIDE THE WINDOW!!!!"... so I ran down, and there they were!

Only one problem... every night we could hear a dumpster/busses/etc. Made it a little harder to fall asleep, and waking up at 5:30 every morning was not my favorite thing... but even that was not that big of a deal! It was a standard view room after all...

I'll be more than happy to answer any questions...

By the way... we just booked another stay there (Standard View Room!) for the end of January... It's out new favorite hotel!

 

[stinkerbelle]

<giggle>

another converted over from the WL! yeah!

glad you enjoyed your trip!

treat yourself to a savannah room one of these trips - it's amazing!

 

[Disney Fool]

Glad to hear of another convert. Maybe you'll be fortunate enough to get an upgrade to savannah view in January. Or, better still, treat yourself to the concierge level for a couple of days. You won't be sorry.

 

[Daisie]

I too love the Animal Kingdom Lodge......we booked a standard room and were upgraded to Savannah upon check in...I agree with you, even if we didn't have the savannah view, there are so many places to explore and see the animals there. I just love it.
Thanks for the wonderful review.

 

[Pluto2003]

Welcome to the club! Glad you and your wife could join us.......But let us keep it a secret, OK?

 

[sherry8253]

WL used to be my favorite too until my first stay at AKL. Now it is my all time favorite. But alas the Swan's rates were too good to pass up this year. Hopefully next year it will be back to AKL for us.

 

[>>^..^<<]

Another AKL success story

and proof positive that you don't need to stay in a savanna view to see animals and have a great time.

Thanks for posting

>>^..^<<

 

[septbride2002]

Thanks for your review. I have been nervous since DH and I booked a Standard Room and I was afraid I would never see any animals. It sounds like you had a wonderful time and it is great to see a someone else convert to the AKL.

~Amanda

 

[Sally Bradley]

You now have me jumping up and down....in anticipation.


Woo Hoo!!!!!! Can't Wait!!!!!

 

[IMISSDISNEY]

Thanks for the great review.

 

[MarkLem]

Is there a swimming pool that little kids would enjoy?

 

[jcemom]

Thanks for the great review! I've just breathed a huge sigh of relief!
We're staying for 9 nights and I was worried my boys (9, 10) would get bored with AKL. Glad to hear you found many areas to explore...I think they'll enjoy that. I also didn't realize you could see animals from the pool area...they'll love that as well!

OOOOO...I can't wait!!!

 

[DisneyFreaks]

Great review Andy! I felt the same way as you when we were bumped from PO/FQ to AKL. We too had standard view rooms for the very first time at WDW and found it not to be that bad at all. My family fell in love with this resort and now refuse to stay anywhere else. We can't wait to go back next year. Can you actually be "homesick" for a hotel? LoL

 

[joyjoy]

Originally posted by MarkLem
Is there a swimming pool that little kids would enjoy?

The big (huge, actually) pool has a zero-level entry (like a beach) and the little kids I saw there loved that. If they are REALLY little kids, there is a baby pool, too.

AKL is the best.

 

[shrpgy]

Could not have said it better myself!

 

[froglady]

There is also a slide, and a playground area nearby. There are two hot tubs, which are actually closer to the animals. Your children might enjoy the storytelling around the fire at night, and my son loved crossing the "bridge" in the lobby, along with exploring the pathways around Victoria Falls.

The many windows along each "trail" give your aview of different areas, and there are many overlook areas with guides who are delighted to answer questions.

It's our favorite resort, and if I weren't meeting up with lots of people next trip, I'd be staying there again.

 

[jdads2]

The resort also has a great Hidden Mickey hunt. Just go to guest relations and ask about it.

I remember hearing or reading that the WL and AKL were designed by the same people. You can see that with the scale of the resorts. We also found the staff there to be fabulous.

 

[Andy123]

One of the cast members we were talking with (and be sure to talk with them!) said that they are amazed at the number of repeat guests at the AKL... The WL and AKL were designed by the same people, and you can certainly tell... but while the WL makes you feel like you are in the NW, it doesn't feel all that remote... the AKL FEELS likes it's in the middle of the bush... one of the Cast Member's we were talking with on the Arusha Rock Overlook one night was actually a bushman (safari guide!) in Africa! He was just here for a few months... amazing to talk with someone like that! Also... although we didn't do it... three words... NIGHT VISION GOGGLES... nuff said.

Seeing the giraffes from the pool was amazing... though in our 8 night stay it only happened once... but the number of animals we saw was amazing... just don't be afraid to walk around! And don't be afraid to talk to the CM's! What we did find was the all of the animals (with the exception of the birds) tended to stay together according to species... if 1 giraffe moved, the others moved too... but they also moved amongst each other, something I had never really seen before. Bongo and giraffe walking around each other... amazing... to those of you going shortly, ENJOY! I am jealous!

 

[afsi3838]

That was a terrific review. I'm curious as to where and what you can explore in the resort besides the viewing of the animals?

 

[Andy123]

There's a library... with drums! so many sitting areas... and there are sooo many artifacts from around Africa... but you have to wander down hallways to find them...