JAMBO! The UN-official AKL Thread ~ UPDATED(short film/pg 8 & slideshow/pg 12) Part 3

[silverangel879]

Does anyone knows if they are moving guest from a specific room? (Savannah view, etc)...I'm checking on July 8th, to a Pool View room and haven't receive the call. So I'm guessing I'm not on the "moving" list

 

[amycishere]

I just called to try and add a night to my AKL reservation and they CM said AKL standard club level rooms are completely sold out. I don't know if she meant for the month of October or what. Should I keep trying to call and see if the night opens? Looking for OCT. 23RD.

 

[jaycns]

I am so very excited...September 1 is NOT that far away!!

Does anyone have any feedback on the Sunset Safari that they would be willing to share? I know it's a tour in a van of the lodge's savannahs...but more detail would be great!!

How was the dinner afterwards? What was that like? Any feedback at all from those who have done it is VERY welcome and appreciated!!!

 

[Tink-aholic]

Does anyone knows if they are moving guest from a specific room? (Savannah view, etc)...I'm checking on July 8th, to a Pool View room and haven't receive the call. So I'm guessing I'm not on the "moving" list

We were booked for a pool view room from July 28 - Aug 3 and we got the call last week. On the "Just got booted from AKL" thread, several people had savannah views, too.

Good luck. I'm sure you'll have a magical time no matter where you end up.

 

[mirlow]

Does anyone have any feedback on the Sunset Safari that they would be willing to share? I know it's a tour in a van of the lodge's savannahs...but more detail would be great!!

How was the dinner afterwards? What was that like? Any feedback at all from those who have done it is VERY welcome and appreciated!!!

My dh and I did this in April of 05. We weren't sure if we wanted to spend the money to see the animals we could see from our balcony. We decided at the last minute to go for it and were we so glad we did! It was so much more than looking at the same animals that you see from your room.
We were the only ones to do the Safari that night. Our guides were wonderful. I just really liked getting to see the other savannas up close. Our room has always overlooked the Arusha SV. We learned a lot about the way the resort works with the animals. We had fun watching the animals interact. We saw a number of them doing things that you can't see from your balcony.
We had a nice treat afterwards and then an incredible dinner followed. There was so much wonderful food. The chef was great telling us all about it and answering any questions we had. Our server was fantastic as well.
It was an amazing night and we were so glad we did it!

We're going in Sept. as well and are thinking of doing the Sunrise Safari. We haven't done it on any of our previous trips because my dh HATES waking up that early on vacation (although he has no problem if it involves a tee time!).

 

[prncssmel]

FWIW, my TA called AKL this week, and the hotel said there would be no problems for anyone coming after September 1. She is a Disney-only TA (from Small World), and so far she has been right about everything else with this trip. We have concierge for part of the trip also, and they assured there would no problems for September visitors.

 

[I Run Long]

That's great to hear prncssmel!! I'm using Small World Vacations too and I trust my TA too. I was starting to get worried wondering if I should email her but now I'm just going to stick it out. Can't wait to go!

 

[tiggrbaby]

My dh and I did this in April of 05. We weren't sure if we wanted to spend the money to see the animals we could see from our balcony. We decided at the last minute to go for it and were we so glad we did! It was so much more than looking at the same animals that you see from your room.
We were the only ones to do the Safari that night. Our guides were wonderful. I just really liked getting to see the other savannas up close. Our room has always overlooked the Arusha SV. We learned a lot about the way the resort works with the animals. We had fun watching the animals interact. We saw a number of them doing things that you can't see from your balcony.
We had a nice treat afterwards and then an incredible dinner followed. There was so much wonderful food. The chef was great telling us all about it and answering any questions we had. Our server was fantastic as well.
It was an amazing night and we were so glad we did it!

We're going in Sept. as well and are thinking of doing the Sunrise Safari. We haven't done it on any of our previous trips because my dh HATES waking up that early on vacation (although he has no problem if it involves a tee time!).

Must echo what you said! They not only showed you the animals, but gave you great detail. The one gal who was the main CM for our tour truely loved her job and loved the animals. She gave us so many details and answered so many questions. The dinner was an experience you could not have by simply dining in the restaurant. It was a "sampling" of the menu, but there was so much it was almost like an entire buffet! And there was wine, too! They gave you a souvenir menu (which I posted about a zillion pages back; I will try to locate it if you are interested). I will attempt to post a few photos. I did use the zoom, but you are pretty close.

 

[tiggrbaby]

 

[tiggrbaby]

Can you tell which ones were my favorite?

 

[Donald is #1]

Can you tell which ones were my favorite?

Awwwww!

 

[Tig-girl]

Fabulous pics Tiggrbaby! Gotta love those faces!

 

[jaycns]

Mirlow and Tiggrbaby...THANK YOU!!! Did the chef come out and tell you about each item? Were you done at about 7:00? Do you think the construction will impact the tour? I am so excited about going!! Tiggrbaby, those pictures are incredible!! I especially like the close up on the giraffe!!

Silly question, but my dh and I will be celebrating our anniversary that night...do you think I could still have something special done?

Okay THANK YOU again for the info and if anyone else has any more info....I would love to hear it!!

 

[mirlow]

jaycns, I think it is a great way to celebrate your anniversary!
The chef came to our table with each course telling us about the food.
You could still do something more if you want to celebrate your anniversary. I don't know if I would do it at the restaurant you really end up with a lot of food. I think sitting on your balcony with some champagne would be nice!
I'm not sure how the construction will impact the tour.

I just found out today that our family can't stay at the Lodge like I had hoped I got the call today. It really makes me sad. I LOVE AKL. It sounds like it will be much harder and more expensive for our family of five to stay at CL over there anymore.

Have a great trip and a wonderful anniversary. We've celebrated a couple of them at the AKL!

 

[tiggrbaby]

Mirlow and Tiggrbaby...THANK YOU!!! Did the chef come out and tell you about each item? Were you done at about 7:00? Do you think the construction will impact the tour? I am so excited about going!! Tiggrbaby, those pictures are incredible!! I especially like the close up on the giraffe!!

Silly question, but my dh and I will be celebrating our anniversary that night...do you think I could still have something special done?

Okay THANK YOU again for the info and if anyone else has any more info....I would love to hear it!!

Yes, we were done around seven. I know this because my sister and went back to the room to take a little nap (so much more wine than I'm used to!) with the idea of going to the Poly to watch Wishes from the beach. Weeelll, we did not wake up until after nine!!!

But you will have plenty of time to go and do something special in addition to the safari.

BTW, the chef came out for each course and the head chef (who I understand is taking a job with some other company) even came out. And thanks for the compliment on the pics!

 

[wvdislover]

Hey mirlow, I just noticed that you're from Mt. Airy. Is that Mt. Airy, NC? We used to live in Winston-Salem, and we drive thru the Mt. Airy area whenever we go back home to visit!

 

[mirlow]

Hey mirlow, I just noticed that you're from Mt. Airy. Is that Mt. Airy, NC? We used to live in Winston-Salem, and we drive thru the Mt. Airy area whenever we go back home to visit!

It's actually a neighborhood in NW Philadelphia. We moved out here over a yr ago and one of the best things is how much closer we are to WDW.

 

[John's Mom]

Tiggrbaby,

Thanks for posting those great pictures!

 

[WickedWench]

I booked the Sunrise Safari on 6/16, and my credit card hasn't been charged yet. I didn't get a confirmation number from them either, so I'm a little worried. Is this normal?

 

[RachelTori]

I booked the Sunrise Safari on 6/16, and my credit card hasn't been charged yet. I didn't get a confirmation number from them either, so I'm a little worried. Is this normal?

Your credit card is only used as a "guarantee". They won't charge your card until the morning of the Safari. You should contact IPO and ask for your booking # - just to be on the safe side.