Please Help!!! Kidani or Jambo?

[mouseloversVT]

We are trying to decide on either Jambo or Kidani. I see the Kidani has 2 baths in the 1bdr, and Jambo only has one. I've read that the Jambo villas are on the 4th/5th floors, can any one tell me where the Kidani are. We would love to hear any other info you think may help us. There are 5 of us travelling for this upcoming trip.

 

[dgaston]

The rooms at Jambo are on 5 and 6 (concierge). At Kidani, the rooms are on 2 through 5. Garage is floor 1. Tomorrow from work I'll add my usual comparison list.

Jambo:
large impressive lobby, larger gift shop
busier atmosphere
larger pool, wimpy slide (IMHO)
steam room in workout area
counter service at Mara
value and concierge rooms
rooms retrofitted from existing hotel rooms
Master bath has shower/jetted tub combo plus toilet in one room (toilet is split off)
Parking in lots
Bus to DTD first stop
Rooms on 5th floor, except for 5 2br lockoffs on 6th for concierge

Kidani:
smaller, more intimate lobby and gift shop
quieter atmosphere
splash area at pool, and better slide (IMHO)
rooms designed for DVC
extra bath in one and two bedrooms
separate shower and jetted tub in master bath
community hall
Under building parking
Park buses first stop
Rooms on floors 2 through 5

HTH

 

[Pennyguy23]

We love Jambo. We like the busy lobby and just walking into that lobby everymorning and every evening

 

[twinklebug]

Kidani is entirely DVC. 1st floor is parking, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th floors are villas.

 

[disneymomjcs]

I like both but Love Jambo House more! When we purchased our SSR the guide asked what my hesitation was and I said If I could purchase anywhere it would be at Animal Kingdom Lodge. We purchased SSR and a few months laster AKV were annouced so I have a special place in my heart for AKV. Mara quick serve is a bonus. Love the pool here and the two hot tubs. Enjoy being close to Boma.

 

[dianeschlicht]

I like both, but LOVE Kidani. The little best kept secret at Kidani is the wonderful cultural exchange presentations they give in the library every evening at 8:15. The ones at Jambo pale in comparison. I also think we have seen more animals at Kidani on a more consistent basis. Perhaps that is because of the smaller size.

While the decor is dark in both Jambo and Kidani, I find it to be less of a problem at Kidani. I think perhaps they did some changes in the color scheme between building Jambo and Kidani that makes it a little better there.

 

[drusba]

Jambo has the larger and more impressive lobby and store, the larger pool with lots of places to find shade, and three restaurants (table service, buffet and counter service). Kidani has one table service restaurant, the elaborate kids water play area near the pool, the longer pool slide, and the ability to get lower floor rooms for more direct sight line to animals. If you have a car, Kidani has ideal parking right under the building with elevators along the wings so you can always park fairly close to your room.

We believe the deciding factor when choosing which resort is the room. If studio or GV go with Jambo (studios are same size as Kidani and Jambo has the very impressive single story GVs). If 1BR or 2BR choose Kidani because the Kidani room is 100 sq ft larger (a very noticeable and comforting difference), has the extra bathroom, more closet space, and separate tub and shower in master bath (Jambo has a combined tub and shower).

 

[madelyn]

Not sure if the OP has young kids who will be going on the trip. I have stayed @ Kidani twice but never at Jambo. We had a convenient room location both stays - lobby level/near the lobby. The Community Hall room was just down the hall and it was easy to take my young daughter down there for a quick visit to do crafts. The playground and pool at Kidani seems better suited for younger kids. Jambo was a short walk away but both our stays were in November so the heat was not a factor. I would pick Jambo if I wanted to take advantage of club level or value rooms. But the extra space and extra bath that another poster mentioned are nice to have at Kidani if you are going w/ a larger group.