The All-New "unofficial" AKL/AKV's Jambo & Kidani FAQ thread.....

[joelp]

There are activities every hour ... and you can also walk over to Kidani (5 minute walk) and there are activities there, too ...

 

[minnie2]

Is there a list of activities offered at AKL? We visited several years ago and they had a lot of programming, but it seems many things have been cut back in recent years.
Thank you,

yes there is. We got ours with our welcome packet when we checked in. You can also get one in the Community hall and at the front desk.

We did one of the things in Jambo house it was very interesting and the gentleman who ran it was super nice I just feel bad I was SO tired from the parks I almost fell asleep on him.

 

[DCDisney]

We recently returned from another lovely stay at the AKL. As much as we have loved it here I'm not sure that we will opt to stay here again. The staff and activities were all wonderful as usual. The bus service was slower than it had been in the past because of the Kidani addition but we never had to stand even though the buses go to Kidani first. Even though the buildings are physically close the amount of time it takes to drive on the bus is much longer than I anticipated because the driveways aren't linked. With the addition of Kidani I wonder if they added any/many more animals as well. Normally on the Arusha savanna in the past we could almost always see something over a weeks trip where we spent more time than average at the resort we saw less than half of what we saw in past. At most we saw 2 giraffes at a time and 3 zebras at a time. That wasn't even a daily occurence either. Even the amount of birds and various types of cattle and antelope were much fewer. On past trips we often saw 6-8 giraffes at a time for comparison sake. The Mara was great at dealing with my food allergies but it was very time consuming because they added falafel to their menu so now their fryer's can't be used for allergy orders so anything fried we ordered had to be made separate in Boma's dedicated fryer plus anything oven baked had to go there as well. It was great having safe foods and they really tried hard to please it just was a very slow process (45-60 minutes for a sandwich and fries) as compared to the past where the menu enabled them to use the regular oven and fryer.

Kidani seems to be having some growing pains. We heard many disgruntled folks about the bus stop construction. Since the bus stops are all out of use the bus just pulls up near the front but there was only 1 bench and many people waiting. Also heard lots of comments on the lack of QS and animals as well.

AKL is by far our favorite resort and we had a wonderful time there just certain expectations we have weren't met particularly the lack of animals.

 

[minnie2]

DC Disney, sorry to hear that. We just left a weeks stay back on the 7th and we had NONE of those issue! Buses where great! no real waits at all. We didn't see many animals out of our room but saw a bunch in the main areas. Which was fine.

We LOVEd it so much and can't wait to go back.

 

[Calgary DISHeads]

I know this is a totally selfish reply (and should be reserved for my "inside voice") but this makes me happy we didn't buck up the extra $$$ for the savannah view.

 

[withrow13]

We are staying 2 nights, savannah view. We have no plans to visit the parks during this time or really doing anything but hopefully free programs at the lodge and sitting on our balcony hopefully watching animals. I read through as much of the AKL threads with views as I could find to try to find out where I wanted to request, but it seems pretty hit or miss. One family will get great animal sightings on Arusha, another poor animal sightings. We stayed 4 years ago and it was amazing. Both mornings we opened the blinds and there were giraffes, right outside. It was amazing. I didn't want to leave to go to the parks. Can we get a repeat performance? I wonder if they did take animals out of the old main savannah for the villas?

 

[hematite153]

I wonder if they did take animals out of the old main savannah for the villas?

They definitely haven't done this since the new savanna has a different set of animals.

 

[livie1205]

I just booked 6 nights at AKL CL for christmas 2010!!! yaayyy I got 1 CL room and 1 standard room because there are 7 of us going...my parents will be there also.I got the CL because the kids love the lounge...I guess now I will be looking for a discount code all year.lol we have APs so if all else fails we us our AP discount when it comes out but the CM told me it is best to get the room now because CL sells fast and I can always apply the discount.

 

[nittanyliongirl02]

I'm all booked for AKL Savanna view for 12/6- 12/14 (and was just able to apply the 4/3 deal...yea?!), what I was wondering if anyone still faxes their room requests prior to arrival. If so, does anyone have that fax number, and how soon should I fax it?

Thanks!

 

[Flossbolna]

I'm all booked for AKL Savanna view for 12/6- 12/14 (and was just able to apply the 4/3 deal...yea?!), what I was wondering if anyone still faxes their room requests prior to arrival. If so, does anyone have that fax number, and how soon should I fax it?

Thanks!

Congratulations on getting that deal! I think i have read that faxing doesn't help at all any more. There were too many faxes so they stopped bothering with them. You should make sure that it is noted on your reservation by calling CRO.

 

[nittanyliongirl02]

Thanks! Any suggestions for DH and I on location? I was thinking the giraffe trail....it's our first time there?!

 

[itchin2go]

We are staying 2 nights, savannah view. We have no plans to visit the parks during this time or really doing anything but hopefully free programs at the lodge and sitting on our balcony hopefully watching animals. I read through as much of the AKL threads with views as I could find to try to find out where I wanted to request, but it seems pretty hit or miss. One family will get great animal sightings on Arusha, another poor animal sightings. We stayed 4 years ago and it was amazing. Both mornings we opened the blinds and there were giraffes, right outside. It was amazing. I didn't want to leave to go to the parks. Can we get a repeat performance? I wonder if they did take animals out of the old main savannah for the villas?

We stayed in January on Uzima savannah and had AMAZING views of the giraffes (and other animals). They were SO close to our window - I couldn't believe it.

I had requested Arusha, and was pretty unhappy when they sent me to Uzima. The CM said it was a beautiful view and we should try it out, and if we wanted to switch the next day we could. Well, one look and we were sold. The views were amazing. I kind of thought that we would see fences if we were on anything other than Arusha, but while there were fences over to the side of our view, the main view was unimpeded and just amazing. Those big Ankole cattle slept outside our window. It was strangely comforting.

Due to noisy neighbors, we had to move rooms halfway through our trip. We moved to Arusha. WAY worse views. It was certainly unimpeded, but we just didn't see any compelling animals -- nowhere near as amazing as at Uzima.

If I'm describing where our fantastic view was - I guess it was on Greater Kudu trail, way at the back of the resort. We had to walk quite a ways, and the views we saw walking to and from the room were always a revelation.

I cannot say enough good things about AKL and the view we had. We did many of the kids activities if anyone wants to know about those. We did cookie decorating, medallion rubbing, decorating ducks for a race. Then we also did the (free) culinary tour which I HIGHLY recommend.

I also highly recommend Boma and we had some tasty things at the Mara as well. Jiko was kind of meh for us this time. It had some misses.

 

[jennifer in canada]

Anyone have pics of standard room club level and does it have a balcony/savannah view?Good choice for two kids-one is 4 other under 2?

 

[LuvLuvLuv]

so as my "final answer" we're staying at AKL in may.

not doing a savannah view... but are going for a pool view instead.

its me and my DBF(will be turning 30 midway thru the trip) and being close to the bus is a major major plus.... and being close to filling our mugs is the second plus. i'm thinking giraffe trail from the map.... but how do the rooms work there?? what's the lowest floor you can be on?? we like convenience any suggestions on rooms???

i'm booking with the 40% pin within the next 2 weeks... i'm waiting on his final 2 college classes to be booked and my next paycheck to come in

anyone ever do the spa services??? i think a massage would be nice after i trek the parks normally i just use a basin therapy bath bomb

thanks so much

 

[west&east]

Anyone have pics of standard room club level and does it have a balcony/savannah view?Good choice for two kids-one is 4 other under 2?

My then 9 and 5 year olds loved it. We requested bunk beds. All club levels have balcony and savannah view. Built in entertainment for the kids. It is a great resort!

Here are some pics (wooohoo! I finally figured out how to post from picassa. It seems to work, I hope everyone can view them):

 

[jennifer in canada]

Thanks!!!I'm sure it will be great-we have req the bunkbed too and bed rails for the bottom for the youngest child, i know they will be so excited to be able to see the animals from our room!

 

[PearlySwan]

Hi Everyone! I asked elsewhere, but I'll repost here. I'm sure these have already been answered elsewhere on this thread, but it is a loooooong thread! We booked AKL for next June. It will be our first trip to this resort. It was the only deluxe resort we didn't get to see this past June; hence, we still have a few questions about it. We've only stayed at WL so far and absolutely loved it. However, we wanted to try out AKL for a change plus DH thinks it would be super cool to see animals roaming around. We are animal lovers so we think this resort will be a great fit for us. We can't wait to try it out, but we still have a few questions about it:

1. What are we going to love about this resort besides the amazing theming?
2. Are there any special things we should request and/or try to fit in during our short stay (4 nights)? We are traveling with DD (9 yr) and DS (4 yr).
3. Is there a way to get from AKL to AK without using the bus?
4. Do the shuttles that take people from AKL to DCL leave the resort at noon? Or do they leave right after check out? 11AM?
5. How big is the pool slide at this resort? DD is a fish and loves the pool slides!
6. How far is the wading pool from the main pool? DS hates the water and will only splash around in the wading pools.
7. How many Hidden Mickeys does the resort have? We like to look for these.
8. Is Jiko ok to do with kiddos, or should we check them into the kids program?
9. In the kids programs, if it happens to coincide with dinner time, do the children get fed? Provided we pay for it of course! DH and I are considering this option.
10. Will the kids like the children's programs?
11. What do they typically do in the kids programs?
12. What is your favorite thing to do at this resort?


Any input would be greatly appreciated.

 

[joelp]

so as my "final answer" we're staying at AKL in may.

not doing a savannah view... but are going for a pool view instead.

i'm thinking giraffe trail from the map.... but how do the rooms work there?? what's the lowest floor you can be on?? we like convenience any suggestions on rooms???

We've had Pool View rooms on both the Zebra and Giraffe Trails - both are very convenient to everything. Rooms start on the
1st floor - which is where all the restaurants and pool are located. The Lobby, gift shop, etc. are on the 3rd floor. Zebra Trail rooms are a little closer to the restaurants, Giraffe Trail rooms are closer to the lobby.


anyone ever do the spa services??? i think a massage would be nice after i trek the parks normally i just use a basin therapy bath bomb

My wife has had a massage at the AKL and loved it - of course!!

thanks so much

Have a great trip!!

 

[joelp]

Hi Everyone! I asked elsewhere, but I'll repost here. We booked AKL for next June. It will be our first trip to this resort. It was the only deluxe resort we didn't get to see this past June; hence, we still have a few questions about it. We can't wait to try it out, but we still have a few questions about it:

1. What are we going to love about this resort besides the amazing theming?

Everything!! Seriously ... Everything!! Plan on spending a good chunk of time just hangin' and doin' stuff (as opposed to going to a park) ... And, you can also walk over to Kidani Village and do stuff there,too!!

2. Are there any special things we should request and/or try to fit in during our short stay (4 nights)? We are traveling with DD (9 yr) and DS (4 yr).

There's a list of daily activities - something going on every hour! So try and block out a morning, afternoon, and evening to just stay at AKL and do stuff ...

3. Is there a way to get from AKL to AK without using the bus?

Cab? But's it's only a 5 minute bus ride ...

4. Do the shuttles that take people from AKL to DCL leave the resort at noon? Or do they leave right after check out? 11AM?

I have no idea!!

5. How big is the pool slide at this resort? DD is a fish and loves the pool slides!

Not too big - but it's a lot of fun (even for us BIG kids!)

6. How far is the wading pool from the main pool? DS hates the water and will only splash around in the wading pools.

The main pool has a "zero-entry" area - the kids can just walk right in like they're at the beach ... The smaller wading pools are located right by the main pool.

7. How many Hidden Mickeys does the resort have? We like to look for these.

Don't know ...

8. Is Jiko ok to do with kiddos, or should we check them into the kids program?

Jiko is more for adults - but if your kids are used to going out to nice restaurants and like "different" food - they should be fine.

9. In the kids programs, if it happens to coincide with dinner time, do the children get fed? Provided we pay for it of course! DH and I are considering this option.

Do you mean Simba's Clubhouse? The answer is "yes" - they get the food from Boma. And my DD still won't tell me what her and her cousin did there. If you're asking about the general "daily actvities" - no - you'll need to sray with your kids.

10. Will the kids like the children's programs?

There's a wide variety of things to do - so some they'll love, some they'll like, and some won't be their cup of tea. So just look at the descriptions and decide what to do based on your kids ...

11. What do they typically do in the kids programs?

All kinds of things ...

12. What is your favorite thing to do at this resort?

Walking into the Main Lobby when we first arrive!!


Any input would be greatly appreciated.

You'll have a great time - !!!

 

[minnie2]

Hi Everyone! I asked elsewhere, but I'll repost here. I'm sure these have already been answered elsewhere on this thread, but it is a loooooong thread! We booked AKL for next June. It will be our first trip to this resort. It was the only deluxe resort we didn't get to see this past June; hence, we still have a few questions about it. We've only stayed at WL so far and absolutely loved it. However, we wanted to try out AKL for a change plus DH thinks it would be super cool to see animals roaming around. We are animal lovers so we think this resort will be a great fit for us. We can't wait to try it out, but we still have a few questions about it:

1. What are we going to love about this resort besides the amazing theming?
2. Are there any special things we should request and/or try to fit in during our short stay (4 nights)? We are traveling with DD (9 yr) and DS (4 yr).
3. Is there a way to get from AKL to AK without using the bus?
4. Do the shuttles that take people from AKL to DCL leave the resort at noon? Or do they leave right after check out? 11AM?
5. How big is the pool slide at this resort? DD is a fish and loves the pool slides!
6. How far is the wading pool from the main pool? DS hates the water and will only splash around in the wading pools.
7. How many Hidden Mickeys does the resort have? We like to look for these.
8. Is Jiko ok to do with kiddos, or should we check them into the kids program?
9. In the kids programs, if it happens to coincide with dinner time, do the children get fed? Provided we pay for it of course! DH and I are considering this option.
10. Will the kids like the children's programs?
11. What do they typically do in the kids programs?
12. What is your favorite thing to do at this resort?


Any input would be greatly appreciated.

I think the other poster did a great job answering you but I wanted to add Jiko's was GREAT we did it with our 7 and 10 yr old. Actually we did a bday celebration for my 10 yr old there.