AOA or Kidani?

[Ashwin Lakhi]

I know at first glance this seems like a weird comparison but I am going to Disney in December over Christmas with my wife and daughter (7) and my parents. We are staying for 8 days and I would like to stay somewhere with two distinct living spaces as well as two bathrooms. I am considering a family suite at art of animation or a Savannah view 1bd villa at Kidani village.

I've stayed at AOA before and thought it was okay, the wifi and phone service was awful, it was somewhat far from the parks and it was just kind of blah.

My parents have never been to Disney before and they love animals so that's another reason I would love to stay at AKL.

The only downfall is the price, AKL is about $4,000 more than AOA and I am not sure that is justified.

I am also looking a little at Beach Club (2 queens and a day bed) or a 1bd villa at Old Key West.

Any thoughts or feedback would be greatly appreciated!!

 

[jvattes]

That's a steep price difference. But you get 807sq ft at Kidani vs 520sq ft at AOA, plus animals outside the balcony... It's not my money so it's easy for me to say AKL

ETA OKW1br is even larger at 942. Pretty huge - larger than my first apartment.

Which layout at BC has 2Queens? Those villas are even larger.

 

[Haygar2]

That is A LOT of money. But my vote would be Animal Kingdom hands down. That is my dream resort.

 

[jvattes]

That is A LOT of money. But my vote would be Animal Kingdom hands down. That is my dream resort.

I love spending money when it's other people's

 

[DisneyWishes14]

Are you looking at a standard or deluxe room at BC? If so, neither of those would give you two living spaces.

I would do Kidani over AoA, but $4K is a lot. Have you considered two rooms instead of a family suite or villa? Even two standard view rooms at AKL would be lovely and might save you some money. You can see the animals from viewing areas in the resort if you don't have a savannah view. IMHO, I would do two rooms at a mod over AoA. We also stayed at AoA and was less than impressed.

I think OKW would also be a good choice. Big rooms and boat service to DS!

 

[Haygar2]

I love spending money when it's other people's

Me, too! Which is why I am spending their money and we are staying at CSR. Lol. I WISH we could have stayed in an AK villa. So I have to live vicariously through someone else.

 

[TsLoveMickey]

Have you looked into renting DVC points for a one bedroom at AKV-Kidani? Significantly cheaper than a cash reservation, and the seven month window for Dec is opening now. I'm no expert but sometimes AKV is still available. I used a great broker last April that I'm happy to recommend via PM if you're interested.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

The 1BR is usually the last of the DVC unit types to become unavailable. Because many 2BR units are lock-offs made of a studio + a 1BR, every studio booked puts a 1BR on the market.

 

[PatMcDuck]

I'm a DVC member who loves Art of A. I stay there every year (I suffer from not enough points, plus I am a CM and get AoA discounted). If you do AoA, I like Cars the best, tried all 3 suite options.

 

[happymommy]

I just got back from a one bedroom at AKL Kidani. The kids took the living room, so it worked out okay. But, with both beds pulled out, there was barely any room to step around them.

I wouldn't put adults on the sofa sleeper personally. There is no privacy then.

Have you considered two rooms somewhere instead?

 

[Yahweh]

I would forgo the Savanna Veiw at Kidani and save the money and stay at a standard view at Kidani. While the Sav. view is nice we have alway found it gets old in a hurry. There are so many lovely places to see animals at Kidani outside the room that for us it just makes sense to not do the savanna view.

 

[Yahweh]

Of course I'd do Beach Club over all of them hard put a price on being that close to Epcot!

 

[Ashwin Lakhi]

Have you looked into renting DVC points for a one bedroom at AKV-Kidani? Significantly cheaper than a cash reservation, and the seven month window for Dec is opening now. I'm no expert but sometimes AKV is still available. I used a great broker last April that I'm happy to recommend via PM if you're interested.

I can't figure out how to PM you. Can you send me a message?

 

[MomTo3PrincessesInNJ]

I've don't both and while I thought the AKL Kidani 1BR Savannah view was beautiful, I told my husband we would never pay for it (we were upgraded from a Wilderness Lodge studio for free due to construction). When we're in Disney we spend very little time in our room, so having the full kitchen wasn't helpful. The living space was nice, but again -- we didn't use it. I will say AKLK has an amazing pool area, but your 7 year old might be a little old for the splash park. We have taken day trips over to enjoy the animals and views since our stay, but I doubt we'd pay to go back. There's a lot you can do with $4k.

On the same note, we've stayed @ AoA when it first open (and it was MUCH cheaper) and I've said since that I will never pay what they are asking for a value resort stay.

Have you considered 2 rooms at a moderate resort? We love Port Orleans Riverside, and Coronado Springs has a bookable category called business class that's like lite-club level (we love "free" alcohol in the evenings!). It will be more than AoA, but not nearly as expensive at AKLK (cash or points).

 

[jvattes]

On the same note, we've stayed @ AoA when it first open (and it was MUCH cheaper) and I've said since that I will never pay what they are asking for a value resort stay.

THIS!

I cannot believe that people pay this amount for that level resort! A suite is nice, but if I'm paying for a suite, I want a sweet one with some plushness and bling.

 

[Ashwin Lakhi]

I've don't both and while I thought the AKL Kidani 1BR Savannah view was beautiful, I told my husband we would never pay for it (we were upgraded from a Wilderness Lodge studio for free due to construction). When we're in Disney we spend very little time in our room, so having the full kitchen wasn't helpful. The living space was nice, but again -- we didn't use it. I will say AKLK has an amazing pool area, but your 7 year old might be a little old for the splash park. We have taken day trips over to enjoy the animals and views since our stay, but I doubt we'd pay to go back. There's a lot you can do with $4k.

On the same note, we've stayed @ AoA when it first open (and it was MUCH cheaper) and I've said since that I will never pay what they are asking for a value resort stay.

Have you considered 2 rooms at a moderate resort? We love Port Orleans Riverside, and Coronado Springs has a bookable category called business class that's like lite-club level (we love "free" alcohol in the evenings!). It will be more than AoA, but not nearly as expensive at AKLK (cash or points).

Can't do POR with free dining and CSR has no rooms available for my dates.

What are thoughts on Caribbean beach?2 rooms there is about $1500 more than AOA

 

[cruisingtwins]

I think that's way too many people for a AoA suite. I owuld pick 2 connected rooms in a value or mod.

 

[MomTo3PrincessesInNJ]

I've never stayed @ CBR, but it looks nice.

When you were coming up with the cost for AoA did it include paying to upgrade the dining plan form QS to DDP?

The "value" of free dining becomes less when you split into rooms with 3 and 2 people -- it's usually cheaper to get a room discount then to get "free" dining.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

I've never stayed @ CBR, but it looks nice.

When you were coming up with the cost for AoA did it include paying to upgrade the dining plan form QS to DDP?

The "value" of free dining becomes less when you split into rooms with 3 and 2 people -- it's usually cheaper to get a room discount then to get "free" dining.

This. If you haven't factored in the difference in price between the QS plan (which you'll get free at AoA) and the DDP (which you'll get at CBR), you are looking at a "free" dining upgrade worth about $650 by going to CBR. Meaning that $1500 upgrade is really more of an $850 upgrade for the two mod rooms (does that make sense?). I would definitely pay $1500 more to get two rooms at a mod with free DDP over an AoA value suite with a QS plan.