Animal kingdom?

[margot31]

So..looking to do a 40th birthday trip with my own (fairy) godmother in Sept. I called Disney for military discount and Animal kingdom came up. While I normally would say I want to wait to take my own giraffe....I mean daughter, but my husband is said not to rule the resort out. One of the biggest things have learned is it far out there. All transportation is a bus which is ok. One of my things is our arrival night as I won't get in till about 4/5 and what do we do for dinner. We could go back to Disney Springs but I might not be willing to get on a bus at that point so how are the restaurants or lounges for that resort.

I have only been in that resort for a short few 30 min to see the Christmas decorations one year.

So I would love to hear(read) your opinions on this resort.

I was looking at touring plans and saw some photos of the layout. SO....for those who have stayed here often, how many of you have gotten a rooftop or a pool view in the long run.

 

[Marthasor]

The restaurants at AKL are great! We love Sanaa in the Kidani building. If you are able to eat prior to the sun going down, you will most likely see animals from the restaurant. Boma has a fabulous buffet. If you would like to do something even more casual, the QS is very good. Personally, I would stay at the resort, explore and just eat somewhere there.

 

[CarolynFH]

Don’t worry about dinner on arrival night - as above, you have multiple choices. Are you looking at a hotel room in Jambo House or a DVC villa (studio or larger) at Jambo or Kidani? Savanna view rooms at AKL are my favorite views at WDW, so I’ve never booked standard view there and can’t speak to likelihood of rooftop or parking lot views. However, no matter whether you’re in Jambo or Kidani you can use either pool, and there’s a shuttle bus that runs continuously between them if you don’t want to walk (or you can ride the park bus Kidani to Jambo or the DS bus Jambo to Kidani).

 

[Kailunkat]

AKL is absolutely fantastic and I would highly recommend either lodge. I prefer Jambo a little more because it has a very impressive lobby and seems a little more compact to me - but Kidani has larger studios so that tips it to that side for many people. I took a girls trip there last year with my college buddies (all of us 40ish women) and everyone loved it. Seeing the animals outside your window and just hanging out and chatting was half the fun. It's a great place to spend some relaxing time in the room. You can walk between Jambo and Kidani or take a quick bus ride (you'll wait longer for the bus than it would take to walk over).

For food - it is consistently rated either 1st or 2nd best resort (the other one being Grand Floridian) for food. Ive never had a bad meal at any of the restaurants there and it's definitely the most interesting set of restaurants on site.

Boma (Jambo side) is a buffet and offers African inspired buffet items and comfort food. It's delicious. I've never eaten there with someone who didn't like it, it manages to be both a unique experience and a crowd pleaser. Highly recommend the Lamb Bobotie, Squash soup and the Spiced Green Beans. It can get a little loud/hectic in there but it's a Disney buffet, that's pretty much par for the course.

Jiko is the upscale TS at Jambo. They have a nice (for Disney) wine list and the food is great here too. If you want a sit-down dinner with nice ambience this is your spot. The waitstaff here are just really sweet. I think the calmer atmosphere here just makes people happy? The Braaied Wild Boar is great, Seswaa Short Rib (I'm a sucker for short rib) is great and the Injera basket (vegetarian) is really good.

Sanaa (Kidani side) is table service but you can also get it as "table service to go" so it also functions kind of like a QS/Takeout. Everyone will tell you to get the Bread Service (and everyone is right). Sanaa is more global cuisine - they have Indian, African and Asian inspired options. But seriously - the Bread Service. Just get it. I also like the Potjie options if you need an entree (meaning you shared too much of your bread service, next time you'll know better).

The Mara is the QS (Jambo side). It's well above the average Disney QS. Burgers, Rice and Veggie bowls, Flatbreads, Salads... and that Squash soup from Boma. Yumm.

For sure give AKL a try. I love it there. The only downside is that you have to take the buses everywhere (but it sounds like you don't mind) and that the lodges are large/spread out so the walk to the room can be long. Everything else about it is perfection IMO.

EDIT: THANK YOU FOR COMING TO MY TED TALK/LOVE LETTER TO AKL

 

[yaksack]

We are going to Kadani in October. We have been to Boma 2X and the three kids and the wife like it a lot.

 

[MPD]

AKL is fantastic - one of my favorite resorts. We always book savanna view and love seeing the animals roaming around. As for dinner your first night - Jiko, Boma, and Saana are all great! Jiko is a bit more of a splurge but the atmosphere and food are worth it. Mara (quick service) is quite nice too. You can spend hours just exploring the resort and looking out on the various savannas.

 

[Anthony1971]

From other posts it seems you were looking into renting points? If that is the case for Jambo there are 3 Cat. Standard, Pool and Savannah. Pool and Savannah are just that. Standard which you 99.9% you will not be able to rent may.
As above there are plenty of options at AKL from CS (which is easily one of the better options on Disney property) to Signature.
As far as Disney springs it will be a slightly shorter ride then staying at the Poly which I know you asked about. AKL will also be closer to both EPCOT and HS and faster to get to then POLY. and of course very close to AK. MK will be the furthest. All Disney resorts in the end will close to the same as far as transportation give or take a few minutes. The only advantage I have ever found overall is a walkable resort at closing.

 

[jason423]

While the distance is not great at AK the few times we have used the buses they have been decent from there (usually we have a car). Both resorts are great. There are more options at the Jambo/AKL side than Kidani but you do get access to both. Dining options are good there. The quick service is good. Boma is, IMO, the best buffet especially for breakfast in Disney. Saana is excellent. We have never eaten at Jiko but the reviews have always been good. I think the one thing with dining there is to look up the menus ahead of time to make certain that they fit what you like as sometimes the menu can have some different options than you would be used to.

 

[Wiltony]

I fully admit that I'm in the minority, but I am not a fan of the AKL. I do not care for the African-themed aesthetic, and I've been to enough zoos (and on Kilimanjaro Safaris enough) that the animals don't particularly excite me. I do like the large lobby, but I much prefer Wilderness Lodge's lobby over AKL. With the transportation options and its remote location, AKL was a one-and-done for me. I cannot speak to the food, however. My only experience was that I visited Jiko once in 2012, but it was great!

 

[IndyToThere]

We own DVC at AKL - it's a great place to stay. The African culture vibes are really cool.
I would not recommend bussing over to Disney Springs on arrival night - that bus ride is the longest of the main x5 areas (the four parks + Springs). I would choose the amazing buffet at Boma or Sanaa.

 

[margot31]

From other posts it seems you were looking into renting points? If that is the case for Jambo there are 3 Cat. Standard, Pool and Savannah. Pool and Savannah are just that. Standard which you 99.9% you will not be able to rent may.
As above there are plenty of options at AKL from CS (which is easily one of the better options on Disney property) to Signature.
As far as Disney springs it will be a slightly shorter ride then staying at the Poly which I know you asked about. AKL will also be closer to both EPCOT and HS and faster to get to then POLY. and of course very close to AK. MK will be the furthest. All Disney resorts in the end will close to the same as far as transportation give or take a few minutes. The only advantage I have ever found overall is a walkable resort at closing.

After talking with my husband more he wants to go directly through Disney or military...Right now there is a good military discount.

 

[HopperFan]

Probably one of the most unique resorts in the country! The ability to see the animals from so many vantage points at your hotel! A stunning hotel, with lots of dining options, great pool areas and truly a vacation in it's own right.

I've stayed Savanna and honestly I never wanted to leave the room aka balcony. That would always be my goal and worth a bit more than I would normally pay. We did book Pool once and was disappointed with a roof view. Going forward I would only book Savanna or Standard. Since Pool "view" doesn't look at animals why pay extra for it, even a few Standards have a view of some animals. I'd just save the money for other things and enjoy all the wonderful places to sit.

 

[DebLovesPooh]

Animal Kingdom Lodge is fabulous as long as you’re happy with the decor. We got to the parks on the bus in 15 minutes and the dining is some of my favorite on Disney property. If you can get a military discount to stay there, I would seriously consider it.

 

[thanxfornoticin]

AKL is our favorite resort. The only longer bus ride you'll need to worry about is the ride from AKL to Magic Kingdom and back. The other parks and Disney Springs are pretty quick. It's not nearly as 'remote' as some would have you believe. At the same time, it's away from things and has an amazing peaceful vibe. The dining options there are really good. Beware of the Zawadi gift shop - it just might impact your budget!!

 

[kiford]

Everybody slams AKL for being "so far away," but I've never really found that to be an issue. The buses go only to Kidani Village and Jambo House and you can check the app for when the next bus is going to arrive. We timed how long it took us to get from our room to the bus stop, and on our last trip there (last December), every time we went to the bus stop, it was just arriving. Getting back to the resort from the parks we found was no more inconvenient than going to any other resort. It may take a few minutes longer from AKL to one of the parks than perhaps another resort, but every resort is farther from at least one or more parks, and we are literally talking about 10-15 minutes more max during the morning rush. It's honestly not that inconvenient, and you are at a resort with some of the best restaurants, in my opinion, a very nice pool area, a good lounge, great scenery, a nice shop with some unique items and lots of things to do.

On the last trip, we booked a pool-view room and ended up on the first floor near an exit door. It was literally steps to the pool area. We've had pool views before, but higher up, which was nice but we loved this ground-floor room. We used to book a Savannah view room but I don't think it's a great value. We didn't spend enough time in the room when the animals were active near us and you can sit out on the porch or go for a walk through the outdoor pathways to see the animals. And those rooms are often quite a distance away from the lobby.

 

[Brob2132]

Agree with the last two posters: people make it feel like it’s in the next county over. The buses are fine and typically get you there in a reasonable amount of time. It’s a negative but not the only factor.

On hotel alone it’s my favorite resort at Disney.

 

[kanerf]

I own and stay there frequently. One of my favorite resorts. I really don't mind being a bit farther away from the other parks. It makes the place quiet and peaceful at night.

 

[0FF TO NEVERLAND]

Don’t worry about transportation either. Vastly overblown. 8 mins to Epcot or Hollywood. 5 min to AK. 11 mins to MK.

I kid you not. Took me longer to get to HS and Epcot from GF due to the amount of guest cars getting in and out and the poly stops than AKL.

Clocked them myself with my phone stop watch over major holiday weekend.

Buses always there or not far behind.

Usually splurge for savanna view.

 

[Robber Baron]

Everybody slams AKL for being "so far away," but I've never really found that to be an issue.

Really. It seems people complain about how far AKL is from Magic Kingdom, but, nobody complains about how far Poly, GF, CR are from Animal Kingdom.

 

[nursejackie]

I would love to stay at AKL again. It always comes up as the cheapest deluxe hotel (on Disney's UK booking site) but my nephew has his heart set on Poly next year (twice the price for me!). I have stayed once mid-December and visited most years we travel to WDW to dine, and enjoy the whole ambience of the resort. I could just wander around Jambo house all day. If I ever fulfill my dream of a solo runDisney trip, AKL will be top of the list for resorts.