Which resort, AKL, WL, or BW?

[cgattis]

Just stayed at WL in November and loved it. No construction issues whatsoever. Love AKL, but really like to spend some time there, and you won't really be doing that. Love the Boardwalk area for convenience (and DD loves to wave to the boats from the balcony). I think that's the one I'd pick for this trip and save the Lodges for when you'll spend more time there. Wishing you a better year *hug*

 

[kamerino]

Thank you everyone for all your advice and input!

Ok, so now I'm leaning towards AKL! I think it's boiling down to the savannah views. I think that after such an utterly awful year, for all of us waking up to those views will be worth more to my crew than park proximity. We've dealt with the buses before staying in values and moderates, so I don't think we will feel much of a difference. I may have a preference for BWI, but I'm thinking I might book AKL and surprise my SO and DD with it as we pull in that day (I always end up doing the driving!). We need as much magic as we can get, and I think that those views, the animals, and that atmosphere might be the right choice this time around.

Any advice on room requests for a savannah view room at AKL?

 

[loves to dive]

Given how short a time you are going to be there and your pretty active schedule, I'm going to be different and say go for whichever one is less. All three are beautiful resorts and all three have their advantages. We've stayed at BW and AKV and have visited WL many times. We were there last week, stayed at Dolphin but visited all three of the resorts to see the decorations and other than the outside construction, we didn't even know there was any going on. Once you get into the lodge, it's not visible at all. AKL isn't as far out as it seems and is a beautiful resort. BW has the proximity to Epcot and HS, WL has it's proximity to MK and the monorail to Epcot.

 

[DizDaD7]

Thank you everyone for all your advice and input!

Ok, so now I'm leaning towards AKL! I think it's boiling down to the savannah views. I think that after such an utterly awful year, for all of us waking up to those views will be worth more to my crew than park proximity. We've dealt with the buses before staying in values and moderates, so I don't think we will feel much of a difference. I may have a preference for BWI, but I'm thinking I might book AKL and surprise my SO and DD with it as we pull in that day (I always end up doing the driving!). We need as much magic as we can get, and I think that those views, the animals, and that atmosphere might be the right choice this time around.

Any advice on room requests for a savannah view room at AKL?

If you're going to be staying in a villa @ Kidani..Then for sure Sunset Savanna lower floor.

If you're staying in a villa @ Jambo, it'll be on the 5th floor, but I would choose ARUSHA Savannah.
Regular room @ Jambo & I would choose lower floor Arusha, & CLOSE to elevators...

For either I would choose close to elevators, especially Kidani, which has very long halls if you get one off the last pods....

 

[kamerino]

Just to update everyone, my stepdad (or better, my other dad, he was with us since I was 1) passed away early in the morning on January 1st. This trip now has become the one little bright thing that we have to look forward to. I've lost both of my dads in 3 and a half months, and I'm beside myself with grief... just so so sad

Thanks for all of your help in making the decisions, I really do think my family will love the extra magic that we'll have because of your suggestions and advice. I hope everyone has a happy and healthy 2017, with more love and adventure than ever.

 

[sleepydog25]

Condolences to you for your losses, especially at this time of year.

I have very little to offer that others haven't said--each resort has its draw. I will say that your idea of making AKL part of the surprise pushes it in front just a little over the others. While construction isn't an issue at WL (it's still gorgeous and the work unobtrusive) and BW does have park(s) proximity, you'll get a magical start/end to each day at AKL. The architecture is superb (though Jambo is clearly more awe-inspiring) and you do get a sense of being transported to a different world. I believe it would create warm, loving memories that won't soon be forgotten. Best wishes.

 

[kamerino]

Condolences to you for your losses, especially at this time of year.

I have very little to offer that others haven't said--each resort has its draw. I will say that your idea of making AKL part of the surprise pushes it in front just a little over the others. While construction isn't an issue at WL (it's still gorgeous and the work unobtrusive) and BW does have park(s) proximity, you'll get a magical start/end to each day at AKL. The architecture is superb (though Jambo is clearly more awe-inspiring) and you do get a sense of being transported to a different world. I believe it would create warm, loving memories that won't soon be forgotten. Best wishes.

Thank you. <3

I finally decided and booked a savannah view room at AKL, and I'm going to surprise my crew with it. We're driving up from Miami, so I'm making my daughter 3 "goodie bags" to open at different parts of the drive. One when we get on the highway, one at our rest stop, and one when we pull into AKL. The first two will have a a small hint as to the surprise, like a USB with the Lion King for her to watch during the drive, and I ordered a resort pin (it doesn't explicitly say the resort, it's more abstract) to put into one of the bags. The final bag will have all kinds of resort goodies, and a resort scavenger hunt. For my partner, I've booked a night safari for the night of our arrival, and an ADR at Sanaa for our final lunch before we leave on Monday. Like I said before, we need all the "magic" we can get!

 

[sleepydog25]

Thank you. <3

I finally decided and booked a savannah view room at AKL, and I'm going to surprise my crew with it. We're driving up from Miami, so I'm making my daughter 3 "goodie bags" to open at different parts of the drive. One when we get on the highway, one at our rest stop, and one when we pull into AKL. The first two will have a a small hint as to the surprise, like a USB with the Lion King for her to watch during the drive, and I ordered a resort pin (it doesn't explicitly say the resort, it's more abstract) to put into one of the bags. The final bag will have all kinds of resort goodies, and a resort scavenger hunt. For my partner, I've booked a night safari for the night of our arrival, and an ADR at Sanaa for our final lunch before we leave on Monday. Like I said before, we need all the "magic" we can get!

All of your plans sound wonderful and undoubtedly will add to the magic. Coincidentally, I was going to suggest in my last post that you try Sanaa if you hadn't before. While not terribly exotic, it does at least have some flavor profiles you won't find in most Disney restaurants, americanized as they may be. We especially love the bread service. Have a superb trip!

 

[kamerino]

All of your plans sound wonderful and undoubtedly will add to the magic. Coincidentally, I was going to suggest in my last post that you try Sanaa if you hadn't before. While not terribly exotic, it does at least have some flavor profiles you won't find in most Disney restaurants, americanized as they may be. We especially love the bread service. Have a superb trip!

Thank you

 

[justme0729]

We didn't like Boardwalk at all... we felt like we had a very long walk to the boat and to get back to our room. We would have been happier walking to a bus stop and riding than walking from our resort room to Epcot or DHS. We also didn't really feel magic because the Boardwalk was actually pretty quiet and many places are limited to 21+. We looked at AKL during our trip and it feels magical/ Disney and looks like the perfect hotel to feel relaxed at.