Kidani Village? Never again... (now with pics!)

[toniosmom]

Thank you for posting the photos. We were there a little over a month ago and I agree with you wholeheartedly. The resort is very relaxing and it's location or proximity to the parks is a non-issue. I never felt like I was on a never-ending bus ride. We had a savannah view and I loved watching the animals from our balcony. Glad you enjoyed your trip.

 

[PoohNFriends]

Loved the pics and saying to my DBF - look at the view out the lobby of our second home

 

[KyCruisinSusan]

Thanks so much for the pics. We just bought into Kidani and have our 1st trip planned for December. We can hardly wait for our 1st stay and your pics make the wait just a little easier.

 

[es45]

La2kw, thanks for the pics. Several were for what I've been searching, especially those of the Community Hall.

 

[ercrbc]

Nice report and wonderful pics! DH and I stayed at Jambo last year and spent an afternoon at the Kidani pool. We both said that we would want to try it next visit to AKV. Loved the quietness and the pool was fabulous! Thanks for the review!

 

[Anal Annie]

Glad you enjoyed it. We stayed there a couple of weeks ago for the first time and were unimpressed and concluded that we like Jambo better. We also had a std. studio but I guess location is everything. We were on the 2nd floor which was nice (didn't have to use the elevator) and we were sort of across from the bus stop which was very convenient BUT that was our view too. (Could hear the late night buses pulling in & out at night too...) I did not like the bathroom layout on the Kidani studios (prefer the tub would be in with the toilet). We thought the lobby and store were under-whelming compared to Jambo and didn't care for the schlep to the pool but the public viewing areas were nice. I will agree with that point. We tried Sanaa and DID enjoy it fairly well (we had a great server) and liked it better than Jiko (priced much better) but not as much as Boma. I think we just really like all the selection available at Boma. Gosh I missed the soups! When we wanted to shop we went over to Jambo as the Kidani store was about the size of my kitchen. Since we were there over spring break we felt the biggest advantage to Kidani over Jambo was that the buses stop there first. The Jambo people often had to stand or couldn't get on 'cuz it was so busy. The pool was nice but the water was COLD so I expected more there and was disappointed. Nice that AKV now offers both buildings so there's something for everyone.

 

[mickeysmyboy]

Glad you liked it so much! We truly love our home!! Thanks for sharing your pictures too! It was a nice little disney escape on a rainy day in NY!

 

[tinksfan]

Thank You so much for your photos. We are just under 180 days and are staying at Kidani for the 1st time. We have been to Jambo twice and were a little nervous about the switch. I always like trying something new though. Your pictures have eased my mind and made me super excited to get my ADR's done.

 

[La2kw]

Glad you enjoyed it. We stayed there a couple of weeks ago for the first time and were unimpressed and concluded that we like Jambo better. We also had a std. studio but I guess location is everything. We were on the 2nd floor which was nice (didn't have to use the elevator) and we were sort of across from the bus stop which was very convenient BUT that was our view too. (Could hear the late night buses pulling in & out at night too...) I did not like the bathroom layout on the Kidani studios (prefer the tub would be in with the toilet). We thought the lobby and store were under-whelming compared to Jambo and didn't care for the schlep to the pool but the public viewing areas were nice. I will agree with that point. We tried Sanaa and DID enjoy it fairly well (we had a great server) and liked it better than Jiko (priced much better) but not as much as Boma. I think we just really like all the selection available at Boma. Gosh I missed the soups! When we wanted to shop we went over to Jambo as the Kidani store was about the size of my kitchen. Since we were there over spring break we felt the biggest advantage to Kidani over Jambo was that the buses stop there first. The Jambo people often had to stand or couldn't get on 'cuz it was so busy. The pool was nice but the water was COLD so I expected more there and was disappointed. Nice that AKV now offers both buildings so there's something for everyone.

I agree about the bathrooms. I prefer the bathrooms where the shower and toilet are together and the sink is outside the bathroom. I think the bathrooms and the closets were a definite miss, but the keyless safe was great (Disney takes forever to get caught up with the rest of the hotel business for some reason. I can't think of any other hotel I've stayed in lately where the safes are not keyless). It also sounds like you got a less desirable view.

As I stated, the smaller size of the lobby and store are what appeal to us. Jambo's store and lobby is just too over the top for us. If you are someone that prefers the hotel type DVC's I can see Kidani being less desirable. If you are someone who prefers the stand alones like OKW and SSR, like we do, Kidani is more in that style.

 

[bgraham34]

Thanks for the pics. The resort looks really nice.

 

[robandkelly13]

Kidani is our favorite resort I'm glad you guys enjoyed your stay. I can hardly wait be back in July....

 

[La2kw]

How about some savannah shots now?

Sunset Savannah

These next shots were taken from the balcony in Community Hall.

This round building has the library on the second floor and a viewing area and waiting area for Sanaa on the first floor, along with really nice restrooms. Community Hall is right next to this round area on the second floor and located in what would be a 2bedroom villa.

The round building has a great viewing area with rocking chairs on top and Sanaa on the first floor. You can see animals from this area and there is a feeding area right in front of Sanaa's windows.

Pembe Savannah as seen from the pool overlook. The okapi are here as well as the red river hogs (my favorite). I couldn't get a pic of them as they kept heading behind the bushes.

 

[La2kw]

Kidani is our favorite resort I'm glad you guys enjoyed your stay. I can hardly wait be back in July....

We're going back in June. Canceled our Vero ressies just so we could come back to Kidani, and we love Vero!

 

[La2kw]

Since nothing is perfect, especially Disney, here are some things I didn't like about Kidani.

1. The music becomes a bit annoying after a few days. Hearing drum beats all day, every day still doesn't convince me I'm in Africa. I know it's just a nice, heavily themed resort in central Florida. I'm sure there is African music other than constant drumbeats!

2. I agree with Anal Annie regarding the bathrooms. Why did they abandon the bathroom configuration of tub and toilet in one room and sink outside the room. It's fine for a married couple such as us, but for families or just friends traveling together means one person in the bathroom at a time.

3. From a few areas of the resort, you can see buildings outside in the real world. A few well placed trees would take care of that issue and I hope DVC takes care of that.

4. Why did DVC cheap out with shingles on the roof of the grand villas, elevator towers, and Sanaa and Library buildings? Concept art shows thatch. Jambo house has thatch. This was clearly a penny pinching move and detracts from the building, IMO. It really shows up when you look across the savannah at Jambo. Here's what I mean.

Concept art:

Reality:
Kidani with shingles

Jambo with thatch:

So that's it. Four things I didn't like. None of them stop me from loving this resort, but they sure would help make it even better.

 

[tinksfan]

Your pictures are killing me. I can't stop thinking about our trip 176 days and counting. I can't get my house work done!

 

[Brave teacher]

Thanks for the pics! I can't wait to be back there in 6 weeks!

 

[DjdBrit]

Call me soft but I actually got teary looking at all these pictures. I will be staying at Kidani in 12 days!!! I am SO excited! We have a 2 bed savannah view booked on rented points and I can't wait Thanks for starting this thread and posting....

 

[PMDR59]

Got Me! Thought this was going to be another Kidani bashing thread.

We love our Home at Kidani!!!. Unlike others I HATED OKW. And SSR was just OK. I'll let you know what I think of Vero later this year.

We had a 1BR SV and LOVED LOVED LOVED IT!. 2 bathrooms were great. I felt the Living area was sooooo much bigger than a 1br @ SSR.

I know Kidani is not perfect and everyone loves different resorts for different reasons, its just nice to hear someone else that enjoyed it as much as we did.

Great Pics by the way

 

[Eeyores#1Fan]

We stayed there a few weeks ago for the first time and LOVED IT!!!! Would definitely stay there again.

 

[cogero]

Thank you so much for the pictures. I am truly homesick right now.