Current AK DVC owners opinion wanted

[Buttcracker]

AK is one of the few places at Disney we have not stayed but I'm curious what current DVC owners who have stayed there multiple times think. We've been there for dinner and drinks multiple times but haven't stayed at the resort. It seems like a very intriguing option on the DVC resale market. Thanks in advance.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

It's so very unique - nothing else like it. When you stay savannah view and can just walk out on your balcony and see a giraffe or zebra or even an ostrich anytime? Awesome.

 

[BillPA]

Great resort, but be warned, you could be in for a very long walk to/from your unit and the bus or restaurants. . The place is very spread out.

 

[gillep]

Love it. We have owned there for 10 years and stay for a week at least once a year. I love the buildings and decor and of course the animals.

I also love that we can choose Jambo or Kidani for our room location, but then use the amenities of both resorts, as they definitely have a different feel and amenities. I love that Kidani one and two bedrooms have the extra full bath.

 

[aoconnor]

I love it because it's richly detailed, has great artwork throughout, and is incredibly unique (not just at WDW but globally). It has two of the best pools on property and certainly some of the best restaurants.

When you look at bus travel times the complaints about it being far from the parks are overblown. It is a little far from MK (as in, 5-10 minutes further than other DVC resorts) but it's *faster* to the other 3 parks than any of the monorail resorts or Wilderness Lodge. I personally love that it's a little secluded, a nice refuge from the craziness of the parks.

 

[gzmtlock]

We're extremely happy with our AKV purchase. Agree completely with PP that it's a unique property from a global perspective. Also agree about the theming being immersive, but not Disney. It's a great break from the intensity of the parks. And we don't mind the sometimes-long walks to our room. We knew that would happen sometimes when we bought.

Another thing we appreciate is the ease of renting our points. A few times, we have wanted to skip time at WDW for other vacation options. Using David's, we have easily rented our points within weeks of listing them. That gave us $$ for non-WDW vacations. There will likely never be another property remotely similar to AKV, and that makes it desirable. So easy to rent.

I would recommend AKV to anyone who wants excellent, unique accommodations on the edge of the Disney bubble!

 

[Buttcracker]

I just rented some DVC points there for a 2 BR Lock off through Davids- Super awesome value! Thank you all for your responses!

 

[Buttcracker]

I love it because it's richly detailed, has great artwork throughout, and is incredibly unique (not just at WDW but globally). It has two of the best pools on property and certainly some of the best restaurants.

When you look at bus travel times the complaints about it being far from the parks are overblown. It is a little far from MK (as in, 5-10 minutes further than other DVC resorts) but it's *faster* to the other 3 parks than any of the monorail resorts or Wilderness Lodge. I personally love that it's a little secluded, a nice refuge from the craziness of the parks.

AK has their own dedicated bus system correct? What I mean by that is when we stay at the Contempo-the bus usually stops at WL first and then comes to Contempo?

 

[quandrea]

Another thing to consider is the low point chart. You can stay at AKV for a very reasonable price.

And the walks to your room are greatly exaggerated. I can walk to the most remote room in about two minutes—EASY!

 

[striker1064]

AK has their own dedicated bus system correct? What I mean by that is when we stay at the Contempo-the bus usually stops at WL first and then comes to Contempo?

Yes, but AKL has two buildings - Jambo and Kidani - and as such, the same buses stop at both buildings.

 

[Buttcracker]

Yes, but AKL has two buildings - Jambo and Kidani - and as such, the same buses stop at both buildings.

Gotcha! Thanks!

Any troubles waiting at Kidani and missing out on a bus ride?

 

[gillep]

Gotcha! Thanks!

Any troubles waiting at Kidani and missing out on a bus ride?

The theme park buses actually stop at Kidani first and then Jambo, the Disney Springs bus is the only one that stops at Jambo first.

It does happen that people at Jambo miss a bus because it is too full and can't take all those waiting, primarily in the mornings, but we almost always stay at Jambo and it is not a frequent problem we have. I also find that they often send separate buses to Jambo and Kidani, especially going to MK, during the busiest of the morning rush to mitigate this issue.

 

[AvidDisReader]

I have owned for about 8 years and stayed at both Kidani and Jambo. Jambo has the terrific lobby and the convenience of a quick service known as the Mara. Kidani is unique in that all the 1 BR have 2 bathrooms and the 2 BR have 3 bathrooms so if you are traveling with a group there is not an issue of everyone trying to get ready in the morning for a long day at the parks. When we go we almost always get a rental car- to me the most prized possession is time and I absolutely hate waiting for buses. About half the time buses are not an issue, but the other half you can very easily end up waiting over 20 min for a bus. So just as long you are aware possible wait times, the resorts themselves are the best on property in my opinion.

 

[Buttcracker]

I have owned for about 8 years and stayed at both Kidani and Jambo. Jambo has the terrific lobby and the convenience of a quick service known as the Mara. Kidani is unique in that all the 1 BR have 2 bathrooms and the 2 BR have 3 bathrooms so if you are traveling with a group there is not an issue of everyone trying to get ready in the morning for a long day at the parks. When we go we almost always get a rental car- to me the most prized possession is time and I absolutely hate waiting for buses. About half the time buses are not an issue, but the other half you can very easily end up waiting over 20 min for a bus. So just as long you are aware possible wait times, the resorts themselves are the best on property in my opinion.

I'm the same with the time. I use uber/lyft all the time.

 

[Dan1]

In our opinion, $ pp cost to purchase contract, felt it is hands down the best value.....and including that its contracts expire after many of the other resorts. We also own a little contract at the Boardwalk when we want to spend time at Epcot and Hollywood Studios (Food and Wine Festival.....new Star Wars area, etc.)

And, as owners, you get first crack at the Value rooms 11 months out. We just booked for 11 nights from New Year's Eve to the Monday after the marathon Sunday in a 1 bedroom value unit. Great value with having washer and dryer in the room for all 11 nights. Sure, we won't get the Savannah view most likely but we've had those before and can find over the course of 11 nights time to just sit in one of the many viewing areas to unwind from the parts. And no way we can afford a 1 bedroom Savannah view for 11 nights. We'll return for a Savannah view studio in the future for the views in a shorter stay.

Plus, we are early morning people and like to get the parks out of the way on park days so we wouldn't really get much out of Savannah view's premium number of points over the long 11 nights stay for much relaxing viewing in the morning. Plus my DW is doing all 4 runs over the marathon weekend so we won't be getting any morning views from our room those 4 days either.

For young children (3 years and up) who wouldn't want to stay in a 'hotel' beside Giraffs, Zebras, and the like.

 

[TonyaG83]

My favorite resort hands down. Animals outside your window and awesome food and pools. The 1 bedroom villas at Kidani are hard to beat space-wise. If I’m in a studio, I prefer Jambo because of the proximity to the QS. I also love that there is a regular shuttle between the two. My only complaint is that the rooms can feel a bit ‘dark’.

 

[Wakey]

I liked it but didn’t love it. This is because it is very cut off. We are active people and like to walk and run. There are no running trails or outside walking trails. This means the gym running machines get packed out and you go to the gym and cannot get on one. People were running around the car park. If they put a path down to say the park, that could also be used for running on etc, it would elevate the resort massively for us. They really should have built a path here, even if it meant a bridge as well.
Kidani pool was also swarmed with bees, one of which stung my wife.

 

[jarestel]

AKV is a beautiful resort and that alone would be reason enough to stay there. But when you throw in the animals it bumps it up to another level. We always enjoy our stays there!

 

[DisneyStarWisher]

I liked it but didn’t love it. This is because it is very cut off. We are active people and like to walk and run. There are no running trails or outside walking trails. This means the gym running machines get packed out and you go to the gym and cannot get on one. People were running around the car park. If they put a path down to say the park, that could also be used for running on etc, it would elevate the resort massively for us. They really should have built a path here, even if it meant a bridge as well.
Kidani pool was also swarmed with bees, one of which stung my wife.

This is my only complaint with AKV. I like to walk but I prefer to walk in places with pretty scenery, and it's not particularly appealing to walk on the sidewalk from Jambo to Kidani. But that is the only place to walk really. I can't walk on a treadmill due to vertigo issues. So the only walking I can get is to go to a park or to resort hop.

 

[PsycProfPlum]

When we went to add on a direct purchase to get our blue card, we bough AKL. It was no contest as I feel it's very undervalued on the resale market. The lobby, vibe, and savannas are completely unique. Jambo lobby is my favorite on property. We also own SSR and BWV and while I generally prefer BWV, AKL is the best value in my opinion (as I prefer it a good bit to SSR).