CBR vs AKL

[chari273]

I am currently booked in a preferred room at CBR, we have stayed there once and loved it! I was disappointed only pirate rooms were included in the summer discount. I looked around and for about $20 cheaper (with summer discount) I can upgrade to AKL in a standard room. I like the idea of staying at a Deluxe, we've never been able to swing it before. I just wonder how it's laid out there? Would I be far away from the pools and food court in a standard room? How are the pools? Since I've never stayed at a Deluxe level before, I don't know really all the advantages of deluxe over moderate?

 

[sweetvixendreaming]

Following to see what you get as answers. Ultimately, given this same choice, we picked AKL for the last full week of May in a standard room. WE have never been to Disney as a family, and not at all as grownups, so we are hoping for a good time!

 

[Babsy]

The pool is fabulous at AKL! you will love it. The rooms are all under one roof, standard, savanna and pool views. Some are more distant (further along the hall) than others. If you want to be near to the buses, QS and TS restaurants (no actual 'food court' as such at deluxe) then request rooms close to those. You will have a slightly larger room than at a moderate and also have a balcony. Some standard rooms will have a partial view of savanna or a somewhat less desirable view due to 'people pens' below, but most will have view of the parking lot.

the AKL is an absolutely awesome resort! and for $20 less than CBR? WOW! I wish that I could be there when you step into that Lobby! Great choice!

 

[TeamSy]

We've stayed at both and honestly, I really liked both, which I know is basically no help. They both had their +/-...

Transportation: Both only offer bus transportation, so neither really wins out over the other. That's why AKL tends to be the "cheapest" deluxe. Personal experience, the buses at CBR were a lot faster/better than our experience at AKL.

Distance: CBR wins. I felt like we were on the bus for forever with AKL, especially given the wait times for the actual buses. 9/10 times we were on a 2 bus deep line waiting for an AKL bus to show up (which could have just been a fluke experience).

Pool: I heard a lot of great things about the AKL pool and I am the TOTAL minority here, but I was a little underwhelmed by it after hearing such amazing things. I actually liked CBR pool better.

Rooms/Resort: I prefer the layout of AKL (where you're in the one building) vs. the spread out feel. We had no complaints with either room, with obviously AKL's being a bit nicer. We rented points at AKL, so we were on the top floor (5th floor) and our "standard" view ended up being a re-classified Savannah view, so we can now never stay there without the savannah view. Lesson learned: it's worth it, and honestly, the total appeal of the hotel. It was WONDERFUL seeing the animals from our private balcony, and I can't imagine staying there without it. However, if you don't spend for the upgrade, you can see animals from around the hotel, which is a plus. But really, it's worth the upgrade. Total cool factor. Inside AKL is beautiful. We really felt like we were at an African lodge. However, being at CBR we also felt like we were at some tropical oasis.

Dining: AKL wins. It has deluxe dining amenities (room service, more restaurants, etc), so that wins for us. Jiko ended up being one of our all time favorite Disney meals, which I would have never gone to if we didn't stay at AKL because it's SO FAR.

 

[Mousemommy1]

For a cheaper price, I would 100% upgrade. But then again, we did not care for CBR, so there's that.

 

[jvattes]

I am currently booked in a preferred room at CBR, we have stayed there once and loved it! I was disappointed only pirate rooms were included in the summer discount. I looked around and for about $20 cheaper (with summer discount) I can upgrade to AKL in a standard room. I like the idea of staying at a Deluxe, we've never been able to swing it before. I just wonder how it's laid out there? Would I be far away from the pools and food court in a standard room? How are the pools? Since I've never stayed at a Deluxe level before, I don't know really all the advantages of deluxe over moderate?

Always, always, always go for AKL if it's in the realm of possibilities. AND if it's cheaper than a mod?! You'd be crazy to pass it up.

Standard rooms here reflect the view (not savanna, not pool) vs distance from things. Nothing is far from anywhere, really, as it's all one building unlike the mods. My favorite wing is the zebra trail, but those are either pool or savanna views; for comparable I would select giraffe trail.

The only reason to NOT stay here is that it will make it hard to stay anywhere else, ever again. We made the mistake of staying here on a trip a few years ago, and now DS refers to it as "our resort" because we really don't stay anywhere else anymore.

Here is a great resort map:
https://touringplans.com/hotel_maps/disneys-animal-kingdom-lodge

 

[mickeynut1]

The pool is fabulous at AKL! you will love it. The rooms are all under one roof, standard, savanna and pool views. Some are more distant (further along the hall) than others. If you want to be near to the buses, QS and TS restaurants (no actual 'food court' as such at deluxe) then request rooms close to those. You will have a slightly larger room than at a moderate and also have a balcony. Some standard rooms will have a partial view of savanna or a somewhat less desirable view due to 'people pens' below, but most will have view of the parking lot.

the AKL is an absolutely awesome resort! and for $20 less than CBR? WOW! I wish that I could be there when you step into that Lobby! Great choice!

I agree! We've stayed at both CBR and AKL and while we loved CBR, AKL is amazing! We loved everything about CBR and wouldn't hesitate to return, but for that small of a difference, I'd definitely go with AKL.

 

[ellie05]

I would hands down upgrade AKL is my favorite we didn't really like CBR.