Animal Kingdom Refurb Video

[AstroBlasters]

Update: Longer walkthrough (8min video)

 

[Androzor]

We purchased an AKV resale contract over this past summer (our first DVC purchase) and we love the refurb. Very relieved that they kept the strong theming which has always been one of the things we love most about Animal Kingdom Lodge!

 

[RuntheMouse]

I’m think they did a nice job. It looks a lot lighter. Any owners have an opinion?

I love it! I think they did a great job lightening it up but keeping it true to its roots.

 

[Brittleebee]

I think they did a fabulous job. I have a few thoughts, but they’re all small potatoes.

For the cons: I’m not a fan of the striped pattern on the couches. I think the maroon is a great choice, but the stripe combo is giving me 2003 vibes. I’m also not a fan of the Murphy bed and twin pull down art. It looks very very very suspicious of being made by AI in my opinion. My sister is a graphic designer and she immediately noticed it.

The backsplash in the kitchen is giving me “appalachian quilt” vibes and not African-inspired vibes and the tile in the bathroom is giving Poly/Aulani vibes. The nightstands in the bedroom leave quite a bit to be desired.

For the pros: color! The lighter doors with the design up top look fantastic. I like the choice in kitchen cabinet paint. I love how they kept some of the original furnishings- they are very quality wooden pieces and I’m happy to see them reuse things. I feel like this is the first time we’ve seen furniture reused in a hard refurb. Correct me if I’m wrong there. Like someone said earlier, it may be a replica but still nice to see a familiar touch.

More pros: The flooring looks great, both the faux wood and the carpet. Lighting looks way better overall. MURPHY BEDS!!! The lighting in the bedrooms is very nice and on theme albeit not the classic egg lamps. Grateful to see they’ve kept desks in the bedrooms and not traded them out for a different furniture type. They kept ceiling fans!

All of this to say - I have stayed at AKL 6 out of 8 of my DVC trips for at least one night. I have willingly slept on that pull out couch more than once (iykyk that is the worst pull out Disney had on property) and I would do it again if I had to because I LOVE this resort and I’m scratching my head on why I don’t own points here already. Overall I’m super excited about the refurb and looking forward to my first stay in a new room!

 

[Brittleebee]

Also: the wooden bird art highlights the two types of birds you will encounter on the Savanna and I just think that’s such a great touch!

 

[kilik64]

Not an owner and never stayed at AKL yet, but looks good to me. The living rooms looks massive without the huge furniture that used to be there from old videos that I remember.

 

[muppets3d]

I think they did a fabulous job. I have a few thoughts, but they’re all small potatoes.

For the cons: I’m not a fan of the striped pattern on the couches. I think the maroon is a great choice, but the stripe combo is giving me 2003 vibes. I’m also not a fan of the Murphy bed and twin pull down art. It looks very very very suspicious of being made by AI in my opinion. My sister is a graphic designer and she immediately noticed it.

The backsplash in the kitchen is giving me “appalachian quilt” vibes and not African-inspired vibes and the tile in the bathroom is giving Poly/Aulani vibes. The nightstands in the bedroom leave quite a bit to be desired.

For the pros: color! The lighter doors with the design up top look fantastic. I like the choice in kitchen cabinet paint. I love how they kept some of the original furnishings- they are very quality wooden pieces and I’m happy to see them reuse things. I feel like this is the first time we’ve seen furniture reused in a hard refurb. Correct me if I’m wrong there. Like someone said earlier, it may be a replica but still nice to see a familiar touch.

More pros: The flooring looks great, both the faux wood and the carpet. Lighting looks way better overall. MURPHY BEDS!!! The lighting in the bedrooms is very nice and on theme albeit not the classic egg lamps. Grateful to see they’ve kept desks in the bedrooms and not traded them out for a different furniture type. They kept ceiling fans!

All of this to say - I have stayed at AKL 6 out of 8 of my DVC trips for at least one night. I have willingly slept on that pull out couch more than once (iykyk that is the worst pull out Disney had on property) and I would do it again if I had to because I LOVE this resort and I’m scratching my head on why I don’t own points here already. Overall I’m super excited about the refurb and looking forward to my first stay in a new room!

Well you probably don't own points there because it's a fairly easy 7 month booking, although the refurbishment may change things somewhat now particularly for studios. So many people need that second bed and as you said - that murphy bed is a huge upgrade if you need the second bed.

 

[thanxfornoticin]

Looking forward to checking these refurbished rooms out in person to get a better feel. From what we've seen, some good changes, some less good, but I need to actually see and stay to make up our own minds. The new Murphy Beds in the 1BR look amazing, so glad I'm not having to deal with the pullout sofa! Hopefully, more and more refurbed rooms will be released on the Jambo side of Kidani. How they do the transition over to the other half of the resort will be interesting, but if we can get a refurbed 1BR in Jan/Feb 2026, we'll be very happy! It's the most amazing resort at WDW for us, but it absolutely needed some updating with furniture and paint and some appliances. Glad those increases to the dues are going for some positive changes we can see!

 

[Bo1203]

10/10 from what I've seen!