Wilderness Lodge VS Animal Kingdom Lodge... Which should I choose?

[Mitchell59]

Hello!

We are taking our first family trip to WDW next August (2015). We are currently booked at Wilderness Lodge for 6 nights/7 days. I'm having second thoughts, and am thinking of switching to Animal Kingdom Lodge. We have two kids, ages 10 and almost 7 at time of trip.

What would you do? Do you believe one is better than the other? Which do you think the kids will enjoy more? Any pros/cons you want to throw in?

Any help is much appreciated!

 

[emldrl]

I think they both have their pros and cons, but for me, WL would win. With the ages of your kids, being close to MK would be great, plus have transportation other than a bus. AKL is pretty far from everything but AK. You could go see AKL for a meal and to explore the resort.

Also, there are a lot of things to do, places to eat, etc. pretty close to WL, that your kids would probably really enjoy. I think AKL looks interesting, but for a first trip, I believe you should stay put. Good luck, and have fun!!

 

[elaw]

... but for me, WL would win. With the ages of your kids, being close to MK would be great, plus have transportation other than a bus. AKL is pretty far from everything but AK. You could go see AKL for a meal and to explore the resort ...

I agree

 

[Sunshine11]

Ditto! For a first stay I'd choose WL. The closeness to the MK and other resorts is unbeatable. Plus, it's a fantastic resort. The lobby is awesome. We stayed in August too and loved it. The compactness of the resort and the boat to MK was two highlights to our trip. The quiet pool is super close too, should you want a switch of environment or the resort pool is crowded. My suggestion would be to have a meal at AKL (Boma is good) to check out this resort for a possible future trip.

 

[elaine amj]

My kids absolutely loved playing with the giant building blocks and other toys in the lobby of Wilderness Lodge. On the other hand, I loved the look of the secluded hot tubs at AKL. Plus, there is just something about going home and saying, "I stayed in a resort surrounded by animals!". Just magical.

Good luck - I was considering a deluxe and spent some time debating WL and AKL. I don't know which I would choose either!

 

[GrandCalifornian]

Both Lodges are great resorts. WL has the advantages of proximity to MK and boat transportation options, while AKL has a larger Quick Service food area, a zero entry pool, and of course the animals.

For us WL has always won out over AKL because we really love its location on Bay Lake. Taking the boats is fun and pretty, and we also enjoy being able to walk or boat over to Fort Wilderness. WL also has a super fast 5 min bus ride to MK, which is even shorter than the bus from AKL to AK. The biggest drawback of AKL for us is that it only has bus transportation, but for us the buses have been fine each time we have visited there, so we still wouldn't hesitate to stay there.

Either way enjoy your trip, and be sure to take time to visit the other lodge.

 

[worleygirl26]

We stayed at WL April 2013 and are headed to AKL-K May 2015. I really loved WL and would have stayed there again but I want to try every deluxe resort on property before returning. The boat is great and the theming is gorgeous. I'm hoping we enjoy AKL as much. Sorry I'm not helpful about AKL but I did want to chime in that WL is a great place to stay!

 

[ProudMommyof2]

We love both but for a first trip I would choose WL. It's proximity to MK and the other MK resorts is awesome. The boat to MK is really special.

 

[DVCcurious]

I've been to both and I'll never go back to AKL again.

We can stay at WL and take a boat to the MK, or we can stay at AKL and take a bus to MK.

The boat trip is a short wait, they are very reliable since there isn't very far for them to travel. Then it's a short ride to the MK. The bus ride from AKL is very unpredictable and takes a long time to get from AKL to MK.

Here's what you should do. Go to Animal Kingdom and leave for lunch and ride a bus to AKL. Then go walk out in the public viewing area and then grab lunch at their quick service. Then go back to Animal Kingdom.

You will get everything you want from AKL with a two hour visit. It is a very nice resort, and the animals are great, but those buses are just terrible.

 

[xlsm]

We love Wilderness Lodge so much...so much in fact, that it's the only resort we stay at!

We talked about trying AKL or Contemporary for our next trip, and the kids begged and begged to do WL again.

The location is prime, the restaurant offerings are great, the transportation options are good, everything is under one roof, everything is easy to find, the pool is fabulous...I can keep going, but I'll stop here for now, lol.

So I can't give you any advice on AKL, except to say we've considered it...but we always go home to Wilderness Lodge.

 

[tinkerbee]

Another vote for WL. We just returned from AKV and loved it but we pretty much stayed at the resort (it was a short trip). For your first trip WL would be the way to go. Have a magical stay

 

[Sue M]

Both are fabulous resorts. It would be hard to pick for me. Everyone has mentioned the pros to WL being close to MK, and ease of going to the different monorail resorts for dining, etc. And it is a beautiful resort.

But AKL is great too, and very unique. Especially if a savana view room fits into your budget. I don't think a 20ish min bus to MK is that far removed, and 15 min to Epcot or DHS, and 5 min from AK park.

However if this is your first trip to WDW, I think WL is a good choice to be closer to the MK area. Maybe next time you can try AKL!

 

[Sarahleigh]

I've never stayed at Wilderness Lodge but I just have to chime in and say that after just returning from 6 nights at AKL, we LOVED it! Our first night we had to wait 22 minutes for a MK bus after just missing the first but other than that the bus transportation was fine! The rides to the parks, with the exception of AK of course, are a tad bit longer but we never found them to feel so long that we'd never stay there again. They had plenty of fun activities for the kids through out the day as well. I think at your kids age they'd love AKL and having animals right outside your room if you stayed in a Savanna view room.

I really don't think you can go wrong with either resort though.

If you choose to stay at WL do take some time to check out AKL! It's worth the trip! Maybe book a meal at Boma after a day at Animal Kingdom and check out the resort and you will know for next time if it is something your family will enjoy.

 

[mickeynut1]

Hello!

We are taking our first family trip to WDW next August (2015). We are currently booked at Wilderness Lodge for 6 nights/7 days. I'm having second thoughts, and am thinking of switching to Animal Kingdom Lodge. We have two kids, ages 10 and almost 7 at time of trip.

What would you do? Do you believe one is better than the other? Which do you think the kids will enjoy more? Any pros/cons you want to throw in?

Any help is much appreciated!

We've stayed at both a couple of times and like others have said, you can't go wrong with either one. Both have nice atmospheres, great dining options, and great transportation (IMO). WL is convenient to MK as it's a quick boat or bus ride away, but we found the buses at AKL to be fine. AKL is out away from everything with buses as the only transportation, but since the buses only service AKL and Kidani, there's no sharing with any other resort(s). We found that it took maybe 5 extra minutes to get around compared to other resorts. With all of that said, you really can't go wrong with either resort as they are both great places to stay. Good luck.

 

[AngiTN]

We've stayed at both a couple of times and like others have said, you can't go wrong with either one. Both have nice atmospheres, great dining options, and great transportation (IMO). WL is convenient to MK as it's a quick boat or bus ride away, but we found the buses at AKL to be fine. AKL is out away from everything with buses as the only transportation, but since the buses only service AKL and Kidani, there's no sharing with any other resort(s). We found that it took maybe 5 extra minutes to get around compared to other resorts. With all of that said, you really can't go wrong with either resort as they are both great places to stay. Good luck.

Same here. I did not have a single issue with the bus service or travel times to AKL. I wouldn't hesitate to stay there again, after we make the rounds to all the other resorts. We are making a 2nd stay at WL next week mostly because I want to stay there for Christmas.

As for which gets a nod over the other, they are so very even it's hard to say. I did love the animals outside the room. We spent many an evening soaking our feet in Epsom salts and a bowl watching them. There is just no where else you can do that. It's more than well worth the extra 5 min travel time we had to the parks. If you have anyone in your group that is fond of watching animals just be animals then opt for AKL.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

Animal Kingdom Lodge is far away from pretty much everything except Animal Kingdom, but it does have dedicated bus service which doesn't share with other resorts. We stayed at The Polynesian in 2012 and that resort shared buses with Wilderness Lodge, The Contemporary, and The Grand Floridian. Because we had so many stops, the ride was sometimes pretty long.

Wilderness Lodge is convenient if you want to eat dinner at any of the Magic Kingdom area resorts and there are some great dining options in the area (Ohana, The Wave, The Grand Floridian Café, Whispering Canyon Café, etc.). We even took a boat to the Contemporary, took the resort Monorail to the TTC, and transferred to the Epcot Monorail. We weren't in any hurry and this took some time, but it was fun

Both of these resorts are on my "Disney bucket list". I think for a first trip, there's a lot to be said for having access to more than just bus transportation.

 

[Networth]

Wl > akl

 

[Disnsyncey]

for the first trip, with kids that age, I would go WL....

for ANYTHING ELSE....I would always go AKL.....SO AWESOME.....

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

I have not seen the updated pool at WL.
But we have stayed at both. They are both themed well, but we are partial to AKL. I have kids 14 down to 4 and they love AKL. The pool at Kidani (use permitted by lodge guests) was a lot better than WL and they have the animals my kids enjoy. Distance was never an issue.

But since you first choice was WL--I don't see a reason to switch as it is a great resort and I would not hesitate to stay there again. Plus, you can take the boat to MK, FW and Contemporary. I would tell your second thoughts that it will be a wonderful trip.

 

[Canadian Girl]

We love AKL so much we bought DVC points there. For my family, the animals and activities are a huge part of the trip and other resorts are just, resorts. We never minded the bus rides.