Jambo or Kidani?

[maraki527]

Thank you all for your responses. We have decided on Jambo. We are going Dec 2-8 and staying in a Savannah view studio. Dd will be turning 4 on the trip. Dh would rather stay at Bay Lake Towers so I had to waitlist bay lake

 

[Mickey'sApprentice]

Yes, Mara and Boma are big draws for me too. I had originally booked Kidani for October. But after visiting last week, I changed to Jambo. Boma's breakfast is a last day tradition for us, and Mara's butternut squash soup is excellent. And there's the Sunset Lounge, a small room off the lobby, where I love to sit and read and view the animals. That room is always so quiet, and sadly rarely used during the day. Also, the CMs in the gift shop there are the best!

Hey Simba's Mom: I hope you and Guy had a great Anniversary. Were you in the world? We were. OMG! What a trip...

 

[Alexander]

We've stayed at both and although we prefer the pool area at Kidani better, the walk over to Jambo House to eat is a long walk. If we could be sure to get a room in one of the "beads" closest to Jambo, we would probably choose that. Then we'd have the best of both worlds.

In August, we'll stay at Jambo because DH has little legs and the walk is just too much for him. We're also in a studio, so that is a plus for Jambo House.

 

[Simba's Mom]

Hey Simba's Mom: I hope you and Guy had a great Anniversary. Were you in the world? We were. OMG! What a trip...

The anniversary experience is something I'll always remember. We were at OKW, and spent most of our time there. Guy has an unrepaired hernia (two hernias, actually) and my back was acting up. Buy stock in ibuprofin!

 

[ltktmk]

Kidani

 

[wcpamotm]

We just returned for a vacation at Jambo House, which we enjoyed immensely. I think dgaston's list above seems pretty comprehebsive; I would add that the pool area at Jambo is rather more lushly landscaped than its Kidani counterpoint. And because we were booking a standard view room for this trip, I wanted that pool view (and got it). I suspect that's a better view than what Kidani standard view can offer.

Next trip to AKV though, we will try out Kidani Village, if for no other reason than to be able to make a fairer comparison.

 

[dgaston]

We're at Jambo now in a value studio -- 5014. This is on the pool side, but is a roof view and pool view. It's very close to an elevator down to pool and also near the ice machine. It's dedicated so has the extra hall closet. Disappointed at first since we're not on the savanna, but I've come to like this room too. As my son says, he's at home looking at the coffee table, and I have trees, and boat-tailed grackles, and people to watch.

Weather is steamy in the 80's and had an afternoon thunderstorm yesterday. WESH said it's the first of the summer weather patterns.

Tomorrow we eat at Sanaa.

 

[jekjones1558]

I am at Kidani now for the first time and I just love it. I have also stayed at Jambo and enjoyed that. I am not much of a CS person so I don't miss it. If I had young kids with me I would absolutely prefer Kidani for the pool. I think Sanaa is one of the best WDW restaurants. And I have seen tons of animals from my balcony. I did score a room close to the lobby and I know that has been a big plus for me.

 

[dgaston]

Lucky you jekjones! Hope this trip is all you want it to be, Which special events did you decide on? Lunch with an Animal Specialist is our treat this trip.

But we did have a terrific lunch at les Chefs de France yesterday -- complete with a visit from Reny and Armand.

 

[iluveeyore]

Hi Jean - wave at the giraffes for me! Tell them I'll be there soon! Hope you have an amazing time!

 

[jekjones1558]

Lucky you jekjones! Hope this trip is all you want it to be, Which special events did you decide on? Lunch with an Animal Specialist is our treat this trip.

But we did have a terrific lunch at les Chefs de France yesterday -- complete with a visit from Reny and Armand.

I did Wild Africa Trek yesterday and Segway at Fort Wilderness today. I was going to try to do Chefs tonight without an ADR but headed back to Kidani from Epcot when the weather started looking threatening. I got to the resort just as the skies opened up. Boy did I LOVE having the underground parking. I strolled to my room without getting a drop of rain on me! It is raining lightly now and I am posting from my COVERED balcony, another nice feature here.

 

[jekjones1558]

Hi Jean - wave at the giraffes for me! Tell them I'll be there soon! Hope you have an amazing time!

Will do! I can't believe how much I like the peacefulness of sitting on the balcony watching giraffes, zebras, lots of other animals. I wasn't even that bummed out about missing Illuminations again tonight because I have my balcony. It's strange because I also love the busyness of the Boardwalk. I am trying to talk DH into switching our Oct. reservation from a BW view to Kidani savanna view but so far no dice.
I will think about you next week when I am missing my balcony!