Help Me Love AK

[southjerseymom]

So I was a knucklehead and booked room only at YC. Couldn't modify that to Free Dining and the only thing left was AK Savanna View. Help me love it! How bad are the busses? Why do you love it? Any advice would really be appreciated!

 

[dansdad]

So I was a knucklehead and booked room only at YC. Couldn't modify that to Free Dining and the only thing left was AK Savanna View. Help me love it! How bad are the busses?

No worse than any other WDW resort we have stayed.

Why do you love it?

There really is no other WDW resort like it. It's like you are in a completely different place. To us the resort is an experience in and of itself. It's hard to explain and has to be experienced.

Any advice would really be appreciated!

Expect it to be like no other WDW resort.

 

[cassie58]

We love AKL! It is a gorgeous building with an amazing lobby. Great choice of restaurants with Boma, Jiko, and Sanaa, as well as Mara for QS. There are two pools between Jambo House and Kidani, with splash area at one if you have younger kids. And of course the animals! We are animal lovers, and DD wants to be a vet, so we are in heaven seeing them from our balcony - giraffes, zebras, gazelles right in your "backyard" - so cool! There are also lots of great activities if you have kids to learn about Africa and animals. We would stay there every time if we could afford it!

We found the buses to be fine - very short ride to AK, which will be nice if you want to hop over to check out Pandora early or late. Check out the the AKL thread for more info and pics.

I am also a South Jersey mom! What area are you in?

 

[mdelano4]

So another person from NJ will chime in. I really have no idea why so many people complain about buses. If you stay home and do day trips for vacation or just go to the beach, how far do you drive every day? Get on the bus and enjoy the air conditioned ride with someone else driving. Are there annoying things about the buses? Absolutely, but it's better than being at work.

We have done the Savannah view once and we are heading back this year. Can't wait! Nice relaxing on the balcony watching the animals.

My opinion? You will absolutely not regret it.

 

[BelleBriarRose]

Lucky you! It's on my Disney bucket list to stay in a savanna view room at AKL. It's a gorgeous resort, and the fact that they have animals right on property (or in your case, right outside your window!) is completely unique and special.

 

[Babrook]

I was skeptical the first time I stayed, as well. Wasn't sure if I was going to like the aesthetic, not the biggest fan of Animal Kingdom, had heard about the commute.

It is phenomenal. The themeing is outstanding, the attention to detail is absurd even by Disney standards. No other resort on property can touch it in this regard, IMO. You feel like you're in a different world. The food there is great - Boma, Jiko, or Sanaa - all top notch. Savannah view is just icing on the cake - you're probably never going to experience drinking morning coffee and watching zebras on your balcony anywhere else.

Yes it is in the middle of nowhere and the bus rides are a bit longer. At the end of the day, is an extra few minutes on a bus going to make that big of a difference on your trip? The biggest issue I have with AK is now I want to stay there every trip and I need to remind myself there are other resorts.

 

[mickeynut1]

No worse than any other WDW resort we have stayed.

There really is no other WDW resort like it. It's like you are in a completely different place. To us the resort is an experience in and of itself. It's hard to explain and has to be experienced.

Expect it to be like no other WDW resort.

We love AKL! It is a gorgeous building with an amazing lobby. Great choice of restaurants with Boma, Jiko, and Sanaa, as well as Mara for QS. There are two pools between Jambo House and Kidani, with splash area at one if you have younger kids. And of course the animals!

There are also lots of great activities if you have kids to learn about Africa and animals.

We found the buses to be fine - very short ride to AK, which will be nice if you want to hop over to check out Pandora early or late. Check out the the AKL thread for more info and pics.

I really have no idea why so many people complain about buses. If you stay home and do day trips for vacation or just go to the beach, how far do you drive every day? Get on the bus and enjoy the air conditioned ride with someone else driving. Are there annoying things about the buses? Absolutely, but it's better than being at work.

We have done the Savannah view once and we are heading back this year. Can't wait! Nice relaxing on the balcony watching the animals.

My opinion? You will absolutely not regret it.

I agree with all of the above .

 

[Pmlocke]

I also agree with everyone. AK is a beautiful and unique resort. You will enjoy your stay. As for the buses, I always consider the bus another ride that I don't need a fast pass for. My wife and I enjoy meeting new people and we have met people from all around the world. Thebus drivers are mostly a very nice peron who you can have fun with as well. Air conditioning, nice pople to talk to, driven up to the front of the parking lot and dropped off. Why do so many people complain about the buses?

 

[DJFan88]

LOVED AKL SV! Was our favorite resort so far. Weve been to all mods, and YC and Dolp. Busses were awesome too. Always had a seat with seats to spare, absolutely zero bus problems. Enjoy!!! You have no choice the place is amazing, take some time to read some things in the lobby like about the big mask that is there, fascinating.

 

[tweedletwin]

AKL is easily one of my favorite resorts. It's where my husband and I honeymooned! Admittedly, for me, it wasn't a stretch to love it- I'm a zookeeper, so the theme was right up my alley. But I have to say, the theming is truly second to none. The lodge and grounds are beautiful. I've gone on safari in Kenya, and this is pretty much as close as you will get to the "real thing" without actually heading to Africa.

It's such a pleasure to enjoy a coffee and walk around the grounds in the early AM, or do an afternoon break with a cocktail. AKL has some of the better restaurants of any of the resorts. Both my husband and I loved Jiko and Boma, and were pleasantly surprised by the Mara as well!

I never felt any issue with the bus services. Sure, it's not quite the same as being able to grab a monorail or walk to the gate of a park- but we were still able to make it to rope drop any day we wanted to, just by being mindful of the time it took us to get ready, and not dawdling over early morning meals at the resort.

All in all, it's a phenomenally relaxing atmosphere, and truly beautiful! I hope you enjoy!

 

[MinnesotaMouseketeers]

Love AKL!!!

I too do not understand the issue with the bus service or the location. Why do people make it sound like it's located at the end of the World? The theme is fun, the lobby beautiful, we had a Savanna view and loved it; for us worth the extra money, love Boma; enough to have made an extra effort to eat there when we were staying at a different WDW resort one year, s'mores making for the kids, night vision binoculars. And make sure you visit with the Cast Members, love listening to their stories. Which country from Africa they are from, how they ended up in WDW, do they live in an area where they are seeing the same animals as are at AKL, etc. A great learning experience for children (and adults). Have your kid/s ask if the CM still have cards to hand out. It's about the size of a playing card with a map of where they are from and a little information.

 

[PollyannaMom]

Lucky you! It's on my Disney bucket list to stay in a savanna view room at AKL. It's a gorgeous resort, and the fact that they have animals right on property (or in your case, right outside your window!) is completely unique and special.

I was going to say the same thing! Staying at AKL is part of my DS's dream trip. We were in Disney just last week, and we had dinner there to check it out. I think we're going to try for it next time we go (hopefully about two years from now).

 

[bumbershoot]

Did you check to make sure there isn't a room only discount at YC that would make the package you got at AK not much of a discount? I was reading a post yesterday where they compared, and even added dining (making a ticketless package but they kept the discount) and it still came out to under FD but they got DDP not QS DDP. This was at a moderate but it's worth a shot.

That's all I got. Can't help you with akl. I've given it three chances. I'll visit the public areas and eat at Sanaa but then I'll go back to a resort I like to sleep.

Why do so many people complain about the buses?

Because those of us who speak poorly if the bus situation there have had lousy experiences there that are far and beyond worse than our experiences at other resorts.

It's not just for fun or to mess with people.


But OP not everyone had had the same experiences as my family has, so maybe you'll like it if you can't get back to YC.

 

[iona]

Count us as fans too (although we also love Beach Club).

The bad news is that you can't walk to Epcot/DHS like you can from Yacht Club and of course there's no Stormalong Bay...

The good news is that having spent about 50 nights at each we've found the buses to be better to & from AKL than YC/BC. There's also the small matter of the animals and the general atmosphere of the place...

 

[DJFan88]

Count us as fans too (although we also love Beach Club).

The bad news is that you can't walk to Epcot/DHS like you can from Yacht Club and of course there's no Stormalong Bay...

The good news is that having spent about 50 nights at each we've found the buses to be better to & from AKL than YC/BC. There's also the small matter of the animals and the general atmosphere of the place...

Agree! That YC/BC bus loop is not the most desirable, luckily you don't need it for everything.

Never have I had such room on a bus as with AKL, no seat issues. It seems it always went to Kidani first, but whatever. Still better than any bussing Ive ever had.