Views from AKL Rooms

[Jalva22]

I will have a 5 and 9 year old with me next June on their first WDW trip. Looking at staying at AKL. Our guidebook says most rooms have views of the savannah. Is it worth springing the extra money for a "savannah view" room, or can animals also be seen from the "pool view" and "standard view" rooms? It would be nice to save the money, but it would be a definite disappointment to not have a good view of the animals. Thanks!

 

[Lyn-CA]

I'd vote for the Savannah view. It will make your kids' first trip to WDW even more memorable.

 

[Bstanley]

Unfortunately you will not be able to see the AKL critters from rooms other than the Savannah view rooms (well, you might catch distant glimpses).

If you will be visiting when it isn't busy you can take a chance and try for an upgrade from a standard or pool view to a Savannah view (it worked for us). Also if you are going when it isn't very busy you could try for a complimentary upgrade and if they say no - you could then offer to pay the difference.

Also - there are MANY viewing areas scattered around the resort so it's easy to view the critters. In fact even if you are in a Savannah view room you will probably want to go use many of the viewing areas anyway because each of the "Savannahs" has a different mix of critters.

I'll admit it though it was very kewl to sit on our 2nd floor balcony (the lowest floor obviously and have exotic critters doing their thing 25-30 yards away. So if you want to guarantee that you will need to reserve Savannah view.

 

[SuperDuperBounce]

Savanah view is definitely better. We told our five-year-old she'd wake up in the morning, look out the window and see giraffes. Sure enough, it happened that way the first two mornings. We went concierge which puts you in a slightly bigger room on the fifth floor. AKL is definitely a place where the concierge rooms are not in the best location (especially the sixth floor ones). If animal viewing is your top priority, don't go concierge so that you get a room on a lower floor. The fifth floor rooms more or less overlook the tree tops and are a lot farther from the animals. Second or third floor would provide the best view (there are no first floor savanah rooms). It's very peaceful in the morning/evening to sit on the balcony, sip your favorite beverage, and observe the animals.

 

[PSUfan]

Savanah View was fantastic! We had our 77 year old MIL with us and she could have stayed on that balcony all day and watched the giraffes. We had breakfast in our room each morning so we could sit and watch them while we ate. Definitely worth the extra $. Try it, you won't be disappointed.

 

[Jalva22]

Thanks for the responses, helps a bunch! We are still debating AKL, Poly and WL. Had been leaning toward the Poly, but now I'm seriously thinking AKL savannah view may be the best for my bunch!

 

[KristiKelly]

We stayed there 2 years ago & paid for the sav. view. Some of the non-sav. views are of the parking lot. My kids loved sitting on the balcony in the mornings while eating their breakfast & Dh & I would sit out at night after we put the kids to bed. Definitely worth the extra $. We were at the opposite end of the resort from where the pool is & at night we could hear people at the pool. I think a pool view might be noisy.

 

[classicpooh]

We stayed in a standard view room and loved it. We had a great location, not far from the lobby and bus stop. It was nice to have a short walk @ the end of the day.
We also had plenty of opportunity to see the animals from around the resort.
The view from our room was of trees.

If you can afford Savannah view and plan to be in your room a lot - go for it! If not, still stay @ AKL, it was a wonderful place.

 

[GEM]

Hey! It's me.

I just stumbled across this thread, and I wanted to let you know that I think the savannah view at AKL is definately worth the extra money! For me, half the point of staying there is being able to sit out on the balcony in the early morning or in the evenings and watch the animals. It just doesn't get any better than that! This is one resort where the vew really DOES matter. If you can do it, I would definately say go with the savannah view. I have two favorite memories from our May trip. The first one is getting up to go to the bathroom about 3am on our first night there and seeing two zebras playing in the moonlight right under our balcony. The other is ordering room service breakfast one morning and eating out on the balcony while we watched the animals enjoy their breakfast, too. It was so special!

But, for what it's worth, the Wilderness Lodge and Poly are two of our other favorite resorts.

Anyway, I just wanted to weigh in here, in case you haven't made up your mind yet!

Let me know if there is anything I can do to help you guys. Have fun planning!!

 

[disneychrista]

There is no way I would stay at AKL and not stay in a Savannah View Room. That is the entire reason to stay there IMO.

 

[cjsmom5]

Our son is now 6 .. last year was the first time staying at the AKL. We had a savannah view room and wouldn't have it any other way. Worth every penny for us. My son loved waking up and going to the balcony to see what animals he could see. One of the funniest stories he tells is watching the ankole cattle chase the handler ... he laughs every time he tells it.

We love animals so sitting on the balcony watching them is worth every penny for the room.

If you aren't animal fans, though, that might not be the case. And, if money is the issue, there are numerous viewing places throughout the resort that will allow you to see the animals.

For us, though, a savannah view room is the only way to go.

 

[racheltyler]

In case you were even considering a pool view room, we have one in Zebra Trail and loved it! We considered it an adventure to go searching for animals at the lookouts. Although we are ones to stay at the resort alot and enjoy the property so we like to get out and explore alot. Pool view was extremely quiet and beautiful to look out, day or night. Nice privacy also with trees.