Moonlight Magic-At AK Kidani?

[WilsonFlyer]

OK. Full disclosure. The title was to get your attention, though it's not as deceiving as you may think.

When we purchased AKK when it first became available, one of its rather unique sales pitches along with the savannah in the center, included simulated lighting on the savannahs to simulate moonlight on an African savannah, and to allow viewing, albeit understandably limited, of the animals during nighttime hours. For the first several years, this was wonderful and made savannah view rooms even more enjoyable.

For the last several years, the savannahs at Kidani have been pitch black every night of every stay we have had there, and we stay there a lot. I'm not sure the lights are even there anymore. I certainly can't seem to find them, even in daylight and I think I remember seeing them before this all started. Maybe I'm just imagining that. Are they gone? Are they just not being used anymore? Has my luck just been bad for the cycle on the weeks we have stayed there for the last several years? Are the savannahs over at Jambo still lit at night? Like a lot of other things at WDW, I think I can draw a line to this back to the pandemic. I may be wrong, but I don't think I am.

Does anybody know what gives? I feel like I've been sold a 'pig in a poke' as we say in the south. I was told it was/would be part of our dues and the maintenance for the savannahs, and part of our experience when staying there. I don't think our dues have been reduced. LOL

I really miss the night lighting. Anybody got any answers?

 

[thanxfornoticin]

We've been enjoying Animal Kingdom Lodge for well over a decade, and I don't recall there being lighting on the savannas to enhance viewing. Over the years, we have done the night goggle vision, which is really cool. But for us, it's always been way too dark to see much unless we have the goggles or the animals are right next to the lookout area. If they made changes to the lighting over the years, it was probably better serve the animals. If a salesperson convinced you that there would be lighting on the savannas to enhance viewing, they did sell you something they couldn't deliver on. It certainly wouldn't be something they could know was always going to be there. The changes on the savannas are almost always about the animals.....

 

[WilsonFlyer]

This was not speculation sold that never happened. It most certainly existed, at least at Kidani We've been staying there since opening day. It wasn't stadium lighting, nor was it ever intended to be.

 

[sndral]

We stay at Jambo every other year but often overlook Sunset savanna which is shared between Jambo & Kidani. The last couple of visits we’ve been way out by the barn on Kudu trail & there was lighting in that area of Sunset savanna - here’s a photo using available light taken Dec. 2021 @ 11 pm. I think how much you can see depends on where your villa is located on the savanna .
I’ll be staying there next week & will report back .

 

[WilsonFlyer]

I think for literally the last 5-6 trips, we have ended up down at the lost area of Kidani that no regular guest ever sees, Zazu. LOL Maybe that's part of the problem.

I've sworn down for the last 2-3 trips that if we ended up there again, I would request a room change, but so far, I just haven't done it. I can see enough of the savannah from there to know it's not just Zazu that's affected though. I admittedly haven't walked the entire hall in a long time just to see if it's true for the entire length, but I strongly suspect it is based on what I can see from our balconies.

Again, it wasn't like this for the longest time, and then all of a sudden it seems, it was and has been ever since. What's even more fascinating is that I seem to be the only one that's ever brought this up. AK owners should be up in arms, IMO. This is a big deal. It's part and parcel to what we were sold and are PAYING for. The maintenance of those savannahs ain't cheap, and our dues reflect that, and we deserve to get what we are told we are paying for. The lighting is part of that.

This is one of those things that, as an owner, you really miss because you've been there when it did exist. I can understand families not familiar never "knowing the difference" because they've never seen it before, but it drastically affects the entire nighttime vibe of the resort from a guest experience standpoint.

Maybe it's something as sinister as they simply couldn't sell the nighttime tours when it wasn't really as necessary when the lighting was being utilized, though we have done the tour when the lighting was in place and it is an entirely different experience, obviously.

I have speculated, as someone noted above, that it could have had something to do with the animals themselves, but it's hard to accept that as the answer when it was that way for almost 10 years and stopped almost exactly at the time of the shutdown and never returned.

I think owners deserve an answer, and so far as I can determine, none has ever been offered. One of many, many things just shoved under the carpet post-pandemic, hoping no one would ever notice or care. Well, I do.

 

[Simba's Mom]

I think for literally the last 5-6 trips, we have ended up down at the lost area of Kidani that no regular guest ever sees, Zazu. LOL Maybe that's part of the problem.

It could be worse-there's another pod actually past the Zazu elevator. I've been out there a couple times. When directions to my room include the phrase "Go past the Zazu elevator," you know it's a long walk. And it was top floor besides-talk about feeling isolated!

 

[WilsonFlyer]

It could be worse-there's another pod actually past the Zazu elevator. I've been out there a couple times. When directions to my room include the phrase "Go past the Zazu elevator," you know it's a long walk. And it was top floor besides-talk about feeling isolated!

Yeah. We just refer to it all the same. Been there, done that as part of all of this too. We drive so we always have a car so it's not that big of a deal to us as far as that part of the remoteness of it all. I don't think we've even seen the lobby the last couple of trips.

We never use the buses and being so far away, there's just no incentive to walk all the way to the lobby to buy something at 3x the price when 192 is a hop and a skip away next time we wander out anyway. Sorry for the tangent, but putting guests so far away is necessary, but it has ramifications too. $$$