Animal Kingdom Lodge Questions

[Terk-1]

Have a frist time ressie at the AK Lodge and have a few questions. I booked a standard view room, but the CM kept pushing the savannah view room. Is it worth that much more $$ to upgrade? If I ask for an upgrade, do they usually charge the difference in the current rates? If I don't upgrade, is the views at the standard room that bad? Does it really matter? I'm looking for a room that is fairly close to the main lobby. Any specific area or room I should request? The only room requests I have on record right now is a non-smoking room with king bed. I explained that the bed issue is not a problem, but most definitely needs to be non-smoking. Is this resort really spread out?

 

[solotraveler]

I just returned from AKL yesterday.

For me, the upgrade was very much worth it. I was originally booked into a pool view room, but was able to upgrade (for less money) with the AP rate. I did overhear a couple of people talking about their view of the parking lot, which IMHO would have been kind of a downer. It was wonderful to be able to wake up in the morning, open the drapes and watch the giraffes eating breakfast while you are. For me (and again, just my opinion), AKL is a very immersive experience and part of that for me was having a savannah view. Only you can decide if it's worth the money to you, but for me it was worth every penny.

I would make sure to state a request to me near an elevator if that is important to you. It was about 125 paces from the elevator to my room and there were rooms much further out than that.

Hope this helps!
Solotraveler

 

[KristiKelly]

I think the Savannah room is definitely worth the money. We stayed in 2002, standard room was not even an option for us. Just as solotraveler said, it was really nice waking up, opening the curtains and watching the animals. DH & I also sat on the balcony at night after we put the kids to bed and watched them. It was very peaceful. If you're going during a slow time, you MIGHT be able to upgrade once you get there for a little less money but if you think you would like the Savannah view, I would go ahead and reserve it now - they could book up.

 

[Tinkaroo]

Terk-1,

DH and I just got back from AKL late Saturday night. We had a standard-view, non-smoking, king bedroom right off the lobby on the Ostrich Trail - #3125.

We elected not to spend the extra $$ out-of-pocket for the savannah view room, since we are park people and don't spend that much time in the room, anyway. There were plenty of public viewing areas for the animals for our taste, and we wouldn't have changed our experience for anything.

Now, was I hoping for a free upgrade like we all sometimes hear about on these boards? Yes - but I was just happy to get all my initial requests! The resort was 90% full when we checked in, and that we got non-smoking, king bed, 3rd or 4th floor for 7 nights was a blessing.

I think you just have to decide what is important to you. HTH!

 

[gizfish]

If you can afford the upgrade, go for it. AKL is beautiful, and the areas around the hotel where you can go to view the animals is wonderful. But, if you are staying at this hotel, do it right and if at all possible pay extra for the hot and cold running giraffes right outside your balcony. You just can't beat that, and to be honest, if I could stay at AKL but not get the savannah view, I would personally just stay at another resort, probably a moderate.

 

[bethymae5539]

YES! This resort is very spread out. It was built in a cresent shape to offer more views of the savannah, so the walk to the rooms at the far end of the cresent are probally the farthest walk of any of the resorts.
I also would urge you to upgrade to a savannah view room, having the animals right outside is really worth the extra money. IMHO, AKL is one the most beautiful Disney resorts, and I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

 

[SqueakyMouse]

Dh and I booked a standardview room at AKL this past fall. As we were waiting in line to check-in, we quickly decided that we did not care if we looked out on a blank wall. There were plenty of places other than your room to view the animals. Of course, we were pleasantly surprised to be upgraded to a savanna view. We saw lots of animals from our balcony. However, we were seldom in our room. We also spent more time at the different viewing areas around the resort than we did on our balcony. We'll see if this remains the same with the children along...in just 25 days!!

 

[MouseDogMom]

We had a savannah view and loved it. But we were at the FAR end of the lodge, and it was quite a hike from our room to the lobby, and by the time we got to the bus stop we felt like we'd walked a mile. If it's important to you to be near the lobby, be sure you request it and be prepared to give up the view. There are many viewing areas around the hotel, so you'll still see plenty of animals. I did get quite addicted to looking out the window at all hours, though, and found it very hard to get ready in the morning!

 

[Miller1412]

We had a savannah view and loved it. But we were at the FAR end of the lodge, and it was quite a hike from our room to the lobby, and by the time we got to the bus stop we felt like we'd walked a mile. If it's important to you to be near the lobby, be sure you request it and be prepared to give up the view. There are many viewing areas around the hotel, so you'll still see plenty of animals. I did get quite addicted to looking out the window at all hours, though, and found it very hard to get ready in the morning!

It is a long hike from some rooms to the bus stop (we were at the end) but the walk isn't too terrible...there are lots of windows along the way to look at the animals out on the Savannah. The Savannah view is great...I really enjoyed seeing the animals, but I must admit, I didn't spend Tons of time watching them. The kids loved watching them though, my 2 y/o woke up every morning happy to say "hi" to the giraffes.

 

[Terk-1]

It's a tough choice to make. Typically I'm only in my room either at night to sleep or for a short break during the day. I think my main choice to is be somewhat close to the lobby. I also can't decide on whether to convert this to a package or keep it booked separately.