Why are AKL rooms so dark?

[gatordoc]

Maybe it's just me, but on two different trips (one-bedroom at Kidani and studio at Jambo) I've found the rooms to be uncomfortably dark. In the Kidani one-bedroom, it was especially bad in the bathroom, where shaving became an adventure in muscle memory as I could barely see what I was doing. And the Jambo studio is even worse. The bathroom lighting is OK, but the front of the room is nearly unmanageable - the kitchen area is borderline, there's a full length mirror by the door that's useless because there's no light anywhere near it, the thermostat is impossible to read (not only because of lighting but because of the location that requires a contortionist to see), and the safe is such that items placed in it are identifiable by touch only. And all of this is with every light in the room turned on and the drapes wide open. Am I the only one who's had these issues?

 

[DizDays]

I have found the lighting at both AKVs to be dimmer than usual, but not as challenging as you encountered. I found it to be the case at BLT as well. At AKV I was told the lighting is dimmer because of the spill over to the animals on the savannah during the evenings. Apparently the savannah lighting is intentionally designed for a moonlit night.

The only thing I truly had a problem with is the down-lighting in the bathroom which makes putting on makeup a challenge - at AKV-J, AKV-K, and BLT. Other than that, I found the dimmer lighting to be cozy.

 

[disneynutz]

Theming and low wattage light bulbs.

Send a email to Member Satisfaction and request a change.

dvcmembersatisfactionteam@disneyvacationclub.com

Bill

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

Not to that extent but I don't enjoy the choice of "green" bulbs they've put in at all the resorts.

 

[drusba]

The theming of the resort Is a savanna at dusk. The dark, rustic room colors are a result of that theming. The lights are the modern energy saving lights and bulbs that do not provide the same brightness that incancdescent bulbs provided. When you combine them with the dark room colors you get the problems you experienced. Those were also installed and being installed in other resorts as renovations are done. Following the renovation of BWV that was completed in 2010, we noticed its lighting had become darker also, although fortunately the rooms there have bright colors.

 

[drusba]

Double post, delete this one

 

[gatordoc]

Yes, but the bulbs are bright enough. The more I look at the Jambo studio setup (where we are now), the more I'm convinced it's just poor engineering/design. For example, when you turn on the light switch entering the room, the overhead light is not by the door. It's further in, between the kitchen and bathroom sink areas. Well, those areas have their own lighting, so it doesn't add much. But if they'd put it closer to the doorway, between the closet and the wall mirror, then that would have made the mirror usable and probably also added at least a little light to the safe, which is in the closet. A closet light would be better, but simply placing the aforementioned light in a more appropriate location would have helped significantly.
Unfortunately, I don't think member satisfaction would be able to do anything about this.

 

[MousekeTom]

We noticed this before we bought. As my wife and I took the tour, I was thinking to myself. "Yes, my wife will hate this because of the lighting and I will get BCV". My wife has something critical to say about everything - BUT WAIT. She didn't mention one word about the lighting. When I mentioned it to her, and the guide, she said "I love how it fits in with the theme of the room." On the other hand, when we toured BCV, she was displeased with the upkeep of the rooms. Well I was convinced anyway with the state, theme, atmosphere, length of contract and the pool area was quite nice for our current and future infant Grandkids. I hope they don't take the animals away.

 

[chalee94]

...she said "I love how it fits in with the theme of the room."

yeah, i kinda feel the same way. if they brighten it up, it won't feel right...

 

[twinklebug]

It's the Jambo lobby I can't see in. Or more precisely, the stairway going up/down to Boma where I feel my way down like a blind person and fear I'm about to trip on a small child.

I don't have an issue with the room lighting. Maybe it has to do with the position of the room in relation to the sun & I've lucked out?

 

[fmer55]

Why are AKL rooms so dark?


The simple, quick answer? because there is not enough light!

 

[PrincessV]

You're definitely not alone on this, OP. My first Kidani stay, in a 1-bedroom, I literally could not find a white sock on the bedroom floor with the lights on! Finally found it after the sun was up and I opened the curtains. I didn't mind so much in the rest of the villa, but the bathroom was impossible; I had to do make-up by flashlight. There's no reason they can't provide better lighting in the places that need it - bathroom, kitchen, reading lamps - and still maintain the theme. Do write in - if they never hear about what we don't like, there's no chance at all for change!

 

[Muhlenberg]

The lampshades and light fixture covers make the lighting "duller", too.

I hear ya, on the Jambo lobby. I can't see in there, either! And I have decent eyes for my age. My poor mother must have thought her eyes were closed!

I'm glad I brought along a portable sewing lamp for Mom, for our recent stay at Kidani.

 

[jlovesee]

You know I haven't stayed at AKV yet, (in two weeks!) but I have stayed at WL (the hotel) and AKL, both of which have had complaints of being to dark. ITS THE THEME! I am so irritated that so many complained about WL being to dark that they lightened the rooms and hallways considerably and it just doesn't feel the same, nor carry the theme as well IMHO. Don't ruin a good thing for those that love the theme. That's the great thing about Disney (and DVC) if you don't like one resort there are 20+ others to choose from.

Jennifer

 

[jekjones1558]

I understand the theming but especially wish that the bathroom lighting were better. I knew ahead of time and brought a lighted makeup mirror.

 

[PrincessV]

I understand the theming but especially wish that the bathroom lighting were better. I knew ahead of time and brought a lighted makeup mirror.

Exactly. I fail to see how providing adequate light in the bathroom would ruin the overall theme for all. No reason to make the entire resort super-bright; just put better lighting where we need it! I did resort to buying a light-up make-up mirror and it helped some, but that's one more thing I have to drag along if I want to stay in what's become a favorite resort.

 

[twinklebug]

Exactly. I fail to see how providing adequate light in the bathroom would ruin the overall theme for all. No reason to make the entire resort super-bright; just put better lighting where we need it! I did resort to buying a light-up make-up mirror and it helped some, but that's one more thing I have to drag along if I want to stay in what's become a favorite resort.

This was the solution a number of folk here resorted to back when the villas first opened and complaints were heard. Nothing has been done since to help with the lighting. Either as owners we have no pull in these sort of things or not enough folk complained to warrant a change. As I mentioned, I had no trouble seeing, but then again I've only been in studios at AKV & the issues seems to be with the larger units.

The most inexpensive solution would be to fix the bulbs over the sinks in the bathrooms and to add variable light switches to the rest of the unit - particularly in the kitchen. If they need to add a diffusing fillter to scatter the light it might run into a little more money, but still fairly easy to implement once they have the attachments.

My bet: if they did look into the issue, they over-thought the solution (meaning, someone may have thought the only solution was to replace all light fixtures) and then wrote it off as too expensive at this time. With a proper electrician and a couple of dollars per room for stronger bulbs and swapping out switches, Lighting is one of the easiest and most inexpensive things to fix. I don't want to see them replace the fixtures - I like them!

 

[Muhlenberg]

AFAIK, CFL's can't be used with dimmer switches. They need a "distinct" off/on. I think most of the lighting consists of CFL's. They COULD put incandescents in the bathrooms. The bigger question would then be, WOULD they. Only Disney knows for sure. A lighter paint color in the bathrooms would also help.

Oh well. We survived when we were there, and had a wonderful time!

 

[twinklebug]

AFAIK, CFL's can't be used with dimmer switches. They need a "distinct" off/on. I think most of the lighting consists of CFL's. They COULD put incandescents in the bathrooms. The bigger question would then be, WOULD they. Only Disney knows for sure. A lighter paint color in the bathrooms would also help.

Oh well. We survived when we were there, and had a wonderful time!

Dimmable CFL and LED lamps are now on the market. They do not work with all incandescent dimmers, so some care needs to be used when selecting the right components. It wouldn't take one electrician more than a couple of hours to figure out which combo is the best one to install. (I can see someone who has no clue turning this into a multi-week long research project LOL)

Thinking... It might be that the light is strong enough, just too focused in the wrong areas. I do recall in the studios I had to lean in over the sink to get into the light to apply makeup. In this case a diffusing cap attached below the ceiling light would help as would attachments to lights on the sides of the mirror. With a bit of creativity I'm sure a solution there can be found that is not only functional but retains the look of the lamps.

 

[Breyean]

We stayed here for a few nights back in 2010 and were struck with how dark the rooms were. While talking to a CM at the front desk, I noticed she was using her smart phone as a flashlight so she could see her keyboard. She said it used to be REALLY dark at the front desk area and the CMs had asked for more light so they could see what they were doing. Whatever DVC did it wasn't enough and she said a lot of CMs working there were using their phones as lights as a work around.