Resort Thread Jambo! Disney's ANIMAL KINGDOM LODGE

[jvattes]

Nice pics. I just asked my husband if he would consider upgrading to Club Level

I just sent my husband a link to this post for same reason! LOL

 

[jvattes]

I wish I had more pics to show. I must have been real hungry. lol To be honest I thought I wasn't going to like the hot offerings after seeing the digital menu that was posted a while back. I tried most and they were all good. I'm a picky eater. The chef served the offerings on an as need basic. They were in pots keeping warm. There was a mac and cheese with some little crumnble that was right up my alley. Various stews were served over rice or mashed potatoes on other nights. For desert, the choc mousse in pretty glasses were yummy. Rice Kripies balls, cookies and peanut butter brownies were plentiful everynight.

Seems like a good way to have a taste of something new and different without committing to a whole entree. This could be good for my family (soooooooo vanilla about food!)

 

[AKL_Megs]

I just sent my husband a link to this post for same reason! LOL

Haha good luck! They do say the way to their heart is through their stomach, so...

 

[PrincessRogueOne]

How can I found out which villas are club level? If I use DVC points to book a studio villa, is that at club level?

 

[paradesintherain]

Hello! My family and I have booked a trip at Animal Kingdom Lodge in a 1-bedroom standard view villa in Jambo House November 4-12! I'm so excited! AKL is my all-time favorite resort ever since we visited it in 2001 when it was brand new (it helps that The Lion King is my favorite movie). And then in 2006 I did the DCP and ended up working at The Mara and in in-room dining. I was lucky enough to stay at AKL once back in 2008 - we had a great pool view room.

 

[dgbg100106]

Hello! My family and I have booked a trip at Animal Kingdom Lodge in a 1-bedroom standard view villa in Jambo House November 4-12! I'm so excited! AKL is my all-time favorite resort ever since we visited it in 2001 when it was brand new (it helps that The Lion King is my favorite movie). And then in 2006 I did the DCP and ended up working at The Mara and in in-room dining. I was lucky enough to stay at AKL once back in 2008 - we had a great pool view room.

November

ALK$Disney, 1st - 9th, AKV Jambo House

DizDad7, 3rd - 11th, SSR

Paradesintherain, 4th - 12th, Jambo House

TaraPA, 11th - 13th, AKL CL

Chimo2u, 11th - 16th, AKL CL

Mindy S, 11th - 19th, AKL

RmeDad, 14th - 21st, AKL

Bjcaed, 15th - 23rd, AKL

Sparty, 15th - Dec 2nd, AKL

DevonsDisneyMom, 17th - 22nd, AKL

Sassy2000, 17th - 24th, AKL

Greg36, 25th - Dec 9th, AKL

 

[iona]

How can I found out which villas are club level? If I use DVC points to book a studio villa, is that at club level?

Not unless you book a club level studio villa (of which there are five). They're a specific booking category and cost more points per night. They also tend to be fully booked pretty much as soon as the 11 month window opens because there are so few of them.

 

[Hannahh25]

Hi guys, I've been following this thread for a while now and there's so much invaluable information! We'll coming from the UK to stay at AKL from 6 Sept - 21 Sept '17, and I just have a few questions:

Pool
How easy is it to find sunbeds around the pool throughout the day? We stayed at POFQ in 2014 and had a hard time finding 2 sunbeds together during the afternoon. We're looking forward to lots of pool time during this trip.

Is it worth walking over to Kidani's pool? Am I right in thinking it's only a 10 minute walk from Jambo house?

Rooms
We have booked a standard room, and called our UK travel agent last week to see we could possibly upgrade to a pool view but were told they have sold out ! Does anyone know if it's possible to call Disney and pay them to upgrade, or would this not be an option as we booked with a third party?

Food/drink
Is Victoria Falls a popular place to go? We're thinking of having a couple of pre-dinner drinks some nights and would love a nice lively place to go beforehand.

Is the outdoor seating area at the Mara near to the pool?
Sorry for posting so many questions - we're very excited and are trying to get the most out of our time there . in advance!

 

[jedijake]

Hi everyone,
Taking my daughter on her first WDW trip with her two older brothers and my wife in december , it will be all of ours first visit to the AKL and the first in a deluxe, obviously very excited. We have a Savanna View - Club Level Access room, can anyone tell me where about we would be in relation to the resort, mainly interested in the distance to the lobby and bus stop. also having paid for a preferred room twice at the all-star movies and one visit we were put in the fantasia building which is the closest to the pool and lobby and the next time we were put in the love bug building and that is quite a bit further a certainly not what i considered a preferred room. anyways round about way of asking my question, does a savanna view room guarantee us a view of the savanna? I guess you can laugh it off at the all star resorts but at this price you want what you pay for.
Thanks everyone

 

[GoGoBeans]

Vikster1 thanks for the pics.

Agreed! Thanks for sharing. Those granola bars remind me of the caramel bars from Germany and the chicken corn chowder is my favorite! Yum!

 

[RachelTori]

Hi everyone,
Taking my daughter on her first WDW trip with her two older brothers and my wife in december , it will be all of ours first visit to the AKL and the first in a deluxe, obviously very excited. We have a Savanna View - Club Level Access room, can anyone tell me where about we would be in relation to the resort, mainly interested in the distance to the lobby and bus stop. also having paid for a preferred room twice at the all-star movies and one visit we were put in the fantasia building which is the closest to the pool and lobby and the next time we were put in the love bug building and that is quite a bit further a certainly not what i considered a preferred room. anyways round about way of asking my question, does a savanna view room guarantee us a view of the savanna? I guess you can laugh it off at the all star resorts but at this price you want what you pay for.
Thanks everyone

You will be on the 4th floor (lobby is on 3rd floor), in one of the first 2 pods off the lobby -- Kudu or Zebra Trail. While the location is 2 floors from the Club Lounge, you will quickly learn the quickest route from your room to the Lounge! You will be close to the lobby. Transportation isn't far from the lobby. It's very easy to get around the resort!

Here is a link to the resort: http://www.wdwinfo.com/resortmaps/aklmap.htm

 

[disnmooner2013]

You will be on the 4th floor (lobby is on 3rd floor), in one of the first 2 pods off the lobby -- Kudu or Zebra Trail. While the location is 2 floors from the Club Lounge, you will quickly learn the quickest route from your room to the Lounge! You will be close to the lobby. Transportation isn't far from the lobby. It's very easy to get around the resort!

Here is a link to the resort: http://www.wdwinfo.com/resortmaps/aklmap.htm

That map is a big help thanks.

 

[disnmooner2013]

Please add us for May 30-June5 2018 we decided to change from YC regular room to AKL CL

 

[keelyhealthnut]

That's amazing. Thanks for those pictures!!! Club level sounds amazing! We are renting DVC points so we are going to be on the 5th floor. It makes me wonder if we should try to switch to Kidani to try to get a lower floor closer to the animals! Decisions, decisions.

 

[keelyhealthnut]

Are the adult beverages at the bars served with any type of straw at all? If paper ones, How well do they hold up?

I was thinking if all they have is paper straws, maybe I should buy some reusable metal straws to take with us. There are also glass straws, but I would worry about chips or breaking those if dropped (or the pressure while in the luggage).

I'm not sure about the drinks specific to AKL, but we have metal straws that we use daily. I recommend them! They're great.

 

[bookgirl173]

You will be on the 4th floor (lobby is on 3rd floor), in one of the first 2 pods off the lobby -- Kudu or Zebra Trail. While the location is 2 floors from the Club Lounge, you will quickly learn the quickest route from your room to the Lounge! You will be close to the lobby. Transportation isn't far from the lobby. It's very easy to get around the resort!

Agreed. Just got back last night from CL on the Zebra Trail - it was super fast from lobby and from the Lounge. Bonus: that side is also very close to Simba's Cubhouse. I did laundry once which was *very* far away and discovered how lucky we were to be in our location. Have a great time!!

 

[dsnycrzy]

Can I please be added to the August list. August 13th-15th. Thanks

 

[jedijake]

Agreed. Just got back last night from CL on the Zebra Trail - it was super fast from lobby and from the Lounge. Bonus: that side is also very close to Simba's Cubhouse. I did laundry once which was *very* far away and discovered how lucky we were to be in our location. Have a great time!!

will do thanks for the info!

 

[jvattes]

Pool
How easy is it to find sunbeds around the pool throughout the day? We stayed at POFQ in 2014 and had a hard time finding 2 sunbeds together during the afternoon. We're looking forward to lots of pool time during this trip.

Is it worth walking over to Kidani's pool? Am I right in thinking it's only a 10 minute walk from Jambo house?

Rooms
We have booked a standard room, and called our UK travel agent last week to see we could possibly upgrade to a pool view but were told they have sold out ! Does anyone know if it's possible to call Disney and pay them to upgrade, or would this not be an option as we booked with a third party?

Food/drink
Is Victoria Falls a popular place to go? We're thinking of having a couple of pre-dinner drinks some nights and would love a nice lively place to go beforehand.

Is the outdoor seating area at the Mara near to the pool?

It can be a bit of a challenge during the busier afternoon hours by the pool to find two chairs together, particularly if you are wanting to be in the row closest to the pool's edge. But hunt around some and you'll be okay. And we have found it unnecessary to be shy about using a chair that has a towel on it with nobody in sight and no other belongings there; we figure if the person returns in a reasonable amount of time we will gladly surrender the chair but if nobody comes back within 30 minutes it's ours

Kidani is about 10 minutes walk, yes. We've walked over for dinner but never to use the pool so I cannot speak to that.

I believe when you book with a TA, all changes have to go through them. But it can't hurt to call - you'll be no worse off than you are now if they say they can't help, but if they can you might improve your situation. Please see my remarks on a standard room, though. Pool and savanna views are certainly nice, but not entirely necessary in order to enjoy this beautiful resort hotel, and not always super conveniently located.

Victoria falls isn't what I would call "lively" although it does overlook Boma which is pretty bustling. It's a nice place to enjoy pre-dinner drinks and we have done this several times.

The outdoor seating at Mara is indeed poolside

 

[jvattes]

does a savanna view room guarantee us a view of the savanna? I guess you can laugh it off at the all star resorts but at this price you want what you pay for.

Yes. But some savanna view rooms are quiet a distance away from the lobby. I"m not sure where the club level rooms are located, but I think they open into the hallway overlooking the lobby, so if that's true you'll be very close to the lobby