***The Official AKV Owners And Lovers Thread***. Come And Chat

[LauraLap]

I'm still waiting for all my closing documents and such and haven't sent the "big" cheque (check for Americans ) yet.....but I need to close before November 10th so I can call to book our October 10-17 trip. Hopefully all the stuff gets here soon!

 

[stopher1]

Just Added On At Akl Today

Congrats!

 

[blossomz]

Hi fellow AKV owners..does anyone know if there will be quiet pool at Kidani Village?

 

[edk35]

I completely agree with all 10 things you mentioned. I can only add 1 thing:

11. The remoteness adds to the illusion of being on an African Safari. A lot of people mention this as a negative but its one of the things that we really liked about it. Its the only DVC resort with a unique theme that isn't spoiled by being able to see a theme park, shopping area, etc right across from it. It keeps the illusion intact and is a nice break from the hectic days of park hopping and shopping.

We just added on to AKV in Aug. site unseen except for models last Nov. I am sooooooooooo excited about experiencing exactly what you described. I think our family is going to absolutely love it. We are going in Nov. using our SSR developer points and we plan on finally visiting our new home. I am sure we will get very excited about next July's trip there after finally seeing it. I am happy my children enjoy non park days.......they love hanging out and doing off the beaten path stuff and what a better place to do that than AKV.

 

[timandlesley]

Hi fellow AKV owners..does anyone know if there will be quiet pool at Kidani Village?

I don't know if you would consider it a quiet pool, but it will have it's own huge pool with pool slide, zero entry, hot tubs and an interactive water play area that we are looking forward to experiencing!
Lesley

 

[edk35]

I don't know if you would consider it a quiet pool, but it will have it's own huge pool with pool slide, zero entry, hot tubs and an interactive water play area that we are looking forward to experiencing!
Lesley

What exactly is the interactive play area? I remember seeing some drawings at the sales office way back when....but can't recall exactly what it was. I know my kids thought the drawings look like a lot of fun.

 

[MiaSRN62]

Added on to AKV on Saturday !

 

[Lynn5700]

I can't wait to go in May...we are staying in Jambo House..can't wait to check out Kidani though.

 

[Beavertails Queen]

I was lucky enough to stay at Jambo for the first time since buying at the start of September. I can't say enough how much I love AKL. I was in a value studio which was larger then I anticipated. The pull out couch was so comfortable to sleep on as a could I just removed the extra cushions and slept on it like that! My 2 year old nephew loved the animals and the fact that we could walk around and see them. We had a pool view and could also see the flamingos. The hotel didn't feel busy at all and the pool was never crowded.
A report on Kidani - the construction is moving along nicely. I can't wait to see the finished product when I return in May.
All in all AKL is everything that I could have wanted it to be and I couldn't be happier to be an AKL owner!

 

[timandlesley]

What exactly is the interactive play area? I remember seeing some drawings at the sales office way back when....but can't recall exactly what it was. I know my kids thought the drawings look like a lot of fun.

the play area looks very cool with lots of squirting fountains, etc. the pictures/drawings of it look unreal. If you look at the dimensions below it will be quite large. Here are the ameneties listed for AKL Kadani:

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]New proposed amenities include:[/FONT]​

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Sanaa - 120 seat table service restarant with a 24 seat lounge. Breakfast and dinner will be offered. Sanaa means "work of art".

Maji Pool Bar - may also include lunch items. Maji means "water".[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Samawati Springs Pool - 4,700 sq. ft. with slide and two whirlpool spas[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Uwanja Camp - 4,200 sq. ft. interactive water play area for children to teens. [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Barbecue Pavillion
Basketball and Shuffleboard Courts
Community Hall
Johari Treasures
Survival of the Fittest Fitness Center
Safari So Good Arcade
Tennis Court[/FONT]
​

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Other notes about the Kidani Village:[/FONT]​

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]A separate bus stop and parking area is currently in the plans.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]It is highly UNLIKELY there will be a trail to the Animal Kingdom from anywhere at the Animal Kingdom Lodge/Villas resort.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]While a Nature Trail in the Kidani Village is on the "wish list" there are no plans for one at this time.[/FONT]
​

 

[edk35]

the play area looks very cool with lots of squirting fountains, etc. the pictures/drawings of it look unreal. If you look at the dimensions below it will be quite large. Here are the ameneties listed for AKL Kadani:

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]New proposed amenities include:[/FONT]​

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Sanaa - 120 seat table service restarant with a 24 seat lounge. Breakfast and dinner will be offered. Sanaa means "work of art".

Maji Pool Bar - may also include lunch items. Maji means "water".[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Samawati Springs Pool - 4,700 sq. ft. with slide and two whirlpool spas[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Uwanja Camp - 4,200 sq. ft. interactive water play area for children to teens. [/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Barbecue Pavillion
Basketball and Shuffleboard Courts
Community Hall
Johari Treasures
Survival of the Fittest Fitness Center
Safari So Good Arcade
Tennis Court[/FONT]
​

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Other notes about the Kidani Village:[/FONT]​

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]A separate bus stop and parking area is currently in the plans.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]It is highly UNLIKELY there will be a trail to the Animal Kingdom from anywhere at the Animal Kingdom Lodge/Villas resort.[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]While a Nature Trail in the Kidani Village is on the "wish list" there are no plans for one at this time.[/FONT]
​

Thanks sounds like a great resort. I can't wait to stay there.

 

[dddisrunner]

Can anyone show me standard view studio pictures from Jambo house? We totally chickened out and rebooked our stay at Jambo instead of Kidani and downgraded from savannah view to standard BUT the good news is we saved a TON of points so that means a longer stay next year!

 

[edk35]

Can anyone show me standard view studio pictures from Jambo house? We totally chickened out and rebooked our stay at Jambo instead of Kidani and downgraded from savannah view to standard BUT the good news is we saved a TON of points so that means a longer stay next year!

why did you chicken out??

 

[dddisrunner]

Maybe "chickened out" isn't the appropriate phrase.We decided to switch because we decided to save our first stay at Kidani for when we know the resort will be completely finished (total personal preference). We really wanted to try and save points too based on our 2010 plans and at Jambo a standard view is a guaranteed poolview where as at Kidani it could be pool or parking lot view. We have stayed at Jambo before and feel very comfortable there. Also, our stay at AKLV will be after a 10 night stay at SSR and we plan on just relaxing at the resort and not really going to the parks much for those few days. So we would rather have our first "home" experience be familiar and comfortable especially with our kids.. With that being said, we are so excited to check out Kidani while we are there!

 

[Glendamax]

I've just started writing my trip report. Here's the section I posted about my room:


Arrival Day:

My Mother and I arrived in Orlando around 12noon on Southwest. Fortunantly, we arrived on time, inspite of the storms and hurricanes.

Unlike my previous trips, I had to head to baggage claim, then onto Alamo. This would be the first time I'd rented a car while staying on property. Special thanks to MainStMandy for getting me the reservation, and Antss for driving directions and toll info!

It was wonderful arriving "home". This would be my Mother's first stay. So I was excited for her to see everything for the first time.

Surprisingly, our room was ready. Originally, there were going to be 4 of us. So I booked a one bedroom standard view. As some of you may know, the standard view rooms are closer to the lobby. I'd take that over seeing animals outside my balcony ANYDAY!

View from the room:

LONG Balcony:

Separate "room" for toilet!

Art in Room:

These pics arent very good, because I'd actually did a VERY nice video of the whole room. These were just "extras". However, photobucket will not upload ANY of my video clips. So there will be many gaps in this report. If any of you know of another site where I can upload my clips, PU-LEEEEZ let me know.

But back to the room. . . It's actually like a one bedroom apartment. It was awesome having a full kitchen, an eating area, separate bedroom, HUGE bathroom, and a "water closet". I'm actually tempted to book this room even when I'm solo!

 

[edk35]

I've just started writing my trip report. Here's the section I posted about my room:


Arrival Day:

My Mother and I arrived in Orlando around 12noon on Southwest. Fortunantly, we arrived on time, inspite of the storms and hurricanes.

Unlike my previous trips, I had to head to baggage claim, then onto Alamo. This would be the first time I'd rented a car while staying on property. Special thanks to MainStMandy for getting me the reservation, and Antss for driving directions and toll info!

It was wonderful arriving "home". This would be my Mother's first stay. So I was excited for her to see everything for the first time.

Surprisingly, our room was ready. Originally, there were going to be 4 of us. So I booked a one bedroom standard view. As some of you may know, the standard view rooms are closer to the lobby. I'd take that over seeing animals outside my balcony ANYDAY!

View from the room:

LONG Balcony:

Separate "room" for toilet!

Art in Room:

These pics arent very good, because I'd actually did a VERY nice video of the whole room. These were just "extras". However, photobucket will not upload ANY of my video clips. So there will be many gaps in this report. If any of you know of another site where I can upload my clips, PU-LEEEEZ let me know.

But back to the room. . . It's actually like a one bedroom apartment. It was awesome having a full kitchen, an eating area, separate bedroom, HUGE bathroom, and a "water closet". I'm actually tempted to book this room even when I'm solo!

Thanks for sharing. I get more and more excited about staying there next summer with each post I read on this thread. Can't wait to hear more.

 

[MiaSRN62]

Glenda....
Enjoying your TR and pics so far.

As far as Photobucket. Have you emptied all your cookies/internet files and restarted your computer ? I had to do this once to get PB to work.

If you have done this however, and still no luck, you could try Webshots.com ? Good luck !

 

[LauraLap]

So are the Standard View rooms waaaay further out than Savannah View? How about at Kidani Village? Does anyone know? I'm now worried about my two little ones and the big walk (though we will have a stroller, so shouldn't be too bad).

What do you all prefer? Seeing the animals or the shorter walk to the lobby??

Glendamax - Thanks for sharing!

 

[LisaS]

So are the Standard View rooms waaaay further out than Savannah View? How about at Kidani Village? Does anyone know? I'm now worried about my two little ones and the big walk (though we will have a stroller, so shouldn't be too bad).

If you look at posts 98 and 99 back on page 7 of this thread there are maps showing the location of each booking category in Jambo House.

In Kidani, the Standard View rooms have a view of the pool, garden or parking lot. They will run along the front of the resort on either side of the main entrance. They do not extend all the way to the ends of the building though. On the end closest to Jambo House, the Kidani building is only one villa deep (savanna view only). On the other end is the new Pembe Savanna so there will be Savanna View rooms on both sides of that end of the building.

 

[Donald is #1]

But back to the room. . . It's actually like a one bedroom apartment. It was awesome having a full kitchen, an eating area, separate bedroom, HUGE bathroom, and a "water closet". I'm actually tempted to book this room even when I'm solo!

I'm with you. Actually, I have a 1 BR booked for my solo December trip (BWV/SSR/BCV). After staying at a 2 BR at OKW with my 2 sisters in October (yes 3 of us in a 2 bedroom - developer's points), I did another add-on so that I could have a 1 BR every year even when I am solo.