JAMBO! The UN-official AKL Thread ~ UPDATED(short film/pg 8 & slideshow/pg 12) Part 2

[dixiedizfan]

Wow, you sure take the most gorgeous pictures! Thanks for posting them; looking forward to the rest!

 

[dlcharbonneau]

Thank you for the wonderful photos! They certainly are beautiful - can't wait to be there in person

 

[Ronald Duck]

INSIDE THE LODGE
Near Guest Room Elevator

Kids' TV in the Lobby...often busy

Sunset Lounge...beautiful lounge, lousy view

Near Boma

My wife's favorites (I'd have missed them...glad she didn't!)

Another surprise (although I was forewarned) was how much of a visual feast the indoor areas were. Even moreso than at WL, the design elements, art pieces, and artifacts were worth taking the time to explore (which I WOULDN'T have done without my camera).

All in all, AKL was better than we expected, and we had pretty high expectations. It moves into the top 3 (along with WL and Poly) for me. In terms of how photogenic it was, it's tied with WL for #1. For those who will be going soon...BE EXCITED!

 

[dixiedizfan]

Thanks again for the beautiful photos ... We are leaving for AKL in four days and yes, we ARE excited!

 

[dixiedizfan]

Sorry ... double post.

 

[brookelizabeth]

Love the pics Ronald Duck! Beautiful!!! I totally missed that one light fixture-they are very cool.

Here are the elevator doors-don't think I shared this one yet:

I miss the AKL!!!!

 

[jaysbabe]

RDuck -- these pictures are awesome. I can't wait until our visit in Jan!!!

 

[Ronald Duck]

Love the pics Ronald Duck! Beautiful!!! I totally missed that one light fixture-they are very cool.

Here are the elevator doors-don't think I shared this one yet:

I miss the AKL!!!!

Thanks for the Giraffe Elevator pic, brookelizabeth! "Our" elevator didn't have one on it!

 

[kimmar067]

EDIT:

wonder why my pic won't post.....

 

[terryfromhawaii]

if so, how big is the daybed? How comfortable are the Deluxe Concierge rooms for 5 people? We are thinking of staying here for 2 nights before moving on to GF-SL. TIA!

 

[kimmar067]

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!

....lovin' it all SO FAR.....waiting for MORE pix (especially of that AWESOME-looking food.....you've now succeeded in making me perfectly RAVENOUS!! -gurgle-gurgle- ...uhhhh, THAT'd be my rumbly tummy.......)

 

[kimmar067]

if so, how big is the daybed? How comfortable are the Deluxe Concierge rooms for 5 people? We are thinking of staying here for 2 nights before moving on to GF-SL. TIA!

...if that 5th person is small, then this room is right for you! Also, consider 5 people getting ready and only ONE bathroom.....

 

[terryfromhawaii]

...if that 5th person is small, then this room is right for you! Also, consider 5 people getting ready and only ONE bathroom.....

The 5 people would be:

Me, dh, twin dd's 11 and dd5. Would that be too cramped? Other room would be dmil, dsil, dbil and dd15.

 

[macrosswife]

Oh my goodness! I forgot to do my "One Week Wiggle!!" So...I'll do my 5 day wiggle:

Or as Cass wrote: 5 more sleeps until AKL!!!

~Kimber

 

[Cass]

5 more sleeps, you lucky duck!

 

[willis37862]

Love the pics Ronald Duck! Beautiful!!! I totally missed that one light fixture-they are very cool.

Here are the elevator doors-don't think I shared this one yet:

I miss the AKL!!!!

Well thats a cool picture.

I hope to stay here someday.....
Just gotta convince DH we can afford it

 

[TiggerAllie]

Hi all!

I just wanted to let you know that I started my trip report!
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=16101236#post16101236

 

[Ronald Duck]

Hi all!

I just wanted to let you know that I started my trip report!
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=16101236#post16101236

Thanks for alerting "us"...great start!

I gotta get in the habit of checking the Trip Report boards .

 

[HarryLeg]

Ronald Duck,
We had room 1020 in 2004 and preferred this location to the Arusha savana view we had the year before.

 

[plutospup]

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!

Did AKL stop delivering a morning newspaper outside your door each morning? I loved taking the newspaper and going to the hot tub each morning!