jogging at Animal kingdom lodge?

[surgefest]

I posted this in the WISH section as well but didnt have any luck. I'm curious from those DVCers that are runners, what do you do when staying at Animal Kingdom Lodge to get your run in??? I know these's a pathway from kidani to Jambo house, but its short. Anywhere else you've been able to run around the resort??? I bet they frown upon you jogging through the parking lot, but i dont see much other choice. Thanks for your opinions/help.

 

[mickeymom629]

DD and I stayed at Jambo before the 2014 PHM. We walked (me)/jogged (she) from the Jambo bus stop to Kidani parking garage, back and forth. It felt a little odd, and you had to watch out for the service entry, but it was a good "work out".

 

[kirstenb1]

I don't think there is a good route, so I'd just do the treadmill (I know, I know)

 

[surgefest]

yeah thats what i was afraid of..... last time we stayed there i did jog back and forth a few times.... i guess thats the only thing other than the treadmill.

 

[Brancaneve]

According to my husband, that is the only downside to AKL. Due to the animals he felt that there was a lack of unrestricted, free space to run like what is found in Saratoga Springs, for example. Your best bet is the walking trail from Jambo to Kidani as PP stated.

 

[Simba's Mom]

According to my husband, that is the only downside to AKL. Due to the animals he felt that there was a lack of unrestricted, free space to run like what is found in Saratoga Springs, for example. Your best bet is the walking trail from Jambo to Kidani as PP stated.

I agree with your DH. My DH is a runner, and for him that's one of the few downsides of AKV. Yes, there's a workout room with a treadmill, but he likes outdoors and trees to run.

 

[DMKEDM]

I'm a jogger-turned-hiker (oh, "old age!")...I agree that the only real downside to AKV is the lack of "running (walking)" room...and you can't run/walk out of the resort because there's no shoulder to the entrance/exit road used by trucks, buses and cars...BUT, I manage to get my hour in w/out restricting myself to only the short-ish path between Jambo & Kidani (I think it's about 1/3 of a mile)...I use the parking lots regularly and have never been frowned at--not by other guests and not by CMs...I usually am out early in the morning, so in-and-out traffic is light, but you do need to watch for cars...there is a fairly big lot in front of Jambo, and another smaller (but still good sized) lot closer to Kidani...if you go up one aisle and then down the next one, you can get a mile in in just the parking lot pretty easily...there's also the area around the barbeque and sports courts, and I've found that at pre-pool opening time (if the CMs aren't cleaning, and sometimes they are and sometimes they aren't) there's a pretty fair distance you can go around each of the two pools...put all that together and you only travel the same route 2-3 times (hiking fast--4-5 times jogging) in an hour of aerobic pace...and one trip, when it was freezing rain outside (literally--it was January and highly unusual, but it really was freezing rain), I hiked up and down hallways, floor to floor, in Jambo...there's a LOT of distance in those hallways!

Bottom line, tho, wonderful as AKV is (and it IS), it's not a good place for an outdoor workout (running, jogging or hiking)...

 

[MickeyT]

We own at AKV and I try to bombard them with this complaint every chance I get.
I did get in a long run on the road out behind the tennis/basketball courts. There is a sign saying "No Authorized Vehicles Beyond This Point" but I thought "hey, I'm not technically a vehicle". It extends out to the employee entrance but there is a spur road that goes out to the old construction yard. I made a few loops around that and back.
Again. Not authorized so I'm not condoning or suggesting. Just what I did.

 

[surgefest]

Wow great info from the last two postings! i usually do the parking lot thing when running at a resort that doesnt have a dedicated path. Good to know i'm not the only one. i love the idea of the unauthorized road as well. i guess my fear is that i'll get into some sort of trouble when really i'm just trying to get my run in and not get in anyones way. thanks again for the descriptions of where to look to find some extra room. i think the one time we stayed i ran the path back and forth about 20 times. is there much room across the street where the tennis courts are? and i didnt realize that the pool area COULD be an option as well. it will be a lot of back and forth, but the more little nooks and crannys i can find to duck into the better! thanks!

 

[jimandami]

That is our big complaint with AKV as well. In January, we used the treadmill and also once took the bus to DHS and ran over there in the Epcot resort area and once to SSR to run over there. I'm sure the other guests on our buses back to AKV didn't enjoy our sweaty odor though!