I've uploaded some of my NON-Christmas photos I took of AKL during our Dec 16-21 stay (I posted some Christmas photos earlier)...so here's Part 1 of my "report"---big on pics, small on verbiage.
FIRST NIGHT, BOMA DINNER BUFFET
Our Boma ADR was for an hour after our Saturday afternoon arrival, which we thought would be the perfect way to begin our stay. In retrospect, although we enjoyed the meal and the experience, we'd have enjoyed it lots more had we waited until the "trip wearies" had worn off.
The restaurant is more beautiful and welcoming than I even imagined, but there were two problems:
1) It was EXTREMELY busy, and that created overstimulation for two weary travelers.
2) The food was very tasty and well-prepared, but given how tired I was, it was spicier than I could handle well (surprisingly, my wife did just fine, and generally I'm the one who handles spicy foods better). Each individual item tasted great going down, but as is typical at a buffet, I ate decent portions of a LOT of different things, and because each item was spiced differently, before the end of the meal my stomach said "enough". Still, we'd go back again...just under different circumstances!
OUR ROOM (2020, Giraffe Trail, free upgrade from Standard to Pool View)
Aerial Bird's Eye view (note red arrow)
Views of the room from the pool deck
Views from the room
As I said in my post just after we got back, this was a room that a lot of folks might think was sub-par, but both of us LOVED it!
The negatives were that it was an especially dark room down an especially dark hallway hidden in the trees, and since it was at one of the lower points in the Lodge and just off the pool, there was a faint musty/mildewy smell in both the hallway and room.
The positives were:
1) It was one of the most convenient rooms in the whole lodge!..to the left, just 50 feet away from and on the same level as the Bus Stops, and to the right a few steps from an elevator and stairs that took you (one floor down) out to the pool and across to the Mara and (one floor up) to a short corridor leading to Zawadi Marketplace and the lobby. Our tired bodies really appreciated getting off the bus in the evening and being in our room in less than a minute. And for me in the early a.m., it was a quick and beautiful jaunt to the Mara for breakfast, and to Zawadi for my morning paper!
2) It had the most private balcony we've ever had at a Disney Resort...well-shaded by a variety of lovely trees, and with a view of the pool but unviewable by those on the pool deck. With the weather being so terrific and given our location, we spent FAR more time sitting in our Zebra chairs (sometimes enjoying our take-out Zebra Domes!) than we have on any Disney balcony, EVER!
Parts 2 and 3 will be coming up!
too late!!
ATTN: all you folks just getting back!! 
