Wilderness Lodge vs. Animal Kingdom Lodge

[EsmeraldaX]

Originally posted by pirateofthecarolinas
I know you are on a tight schedule in Dec. Could you possibly do a quick run through of each resort? AKL takes less than 5 minutes to get to from the AK. I love the AKL.

We are going to stay at the WL in Dec. I'll let you know when we get back. Everyone seems to really love the WL, so we are looking forward to staying there.

Lori

We haven't fully planned all of our meals yet. We might try to have breakfast at AKL one day, and maybe stop by WL another day to check them out (and see the holiday decorations!!).

Thank you for the input everyone. It's still a way off so we have time to decide.

Does anyone know when the AP rates for May usually come out?

 

[ducklite]

FWIW, the AKL is about seven years older than the WL, not eight.

At any rate, I've stayed at both. I prefer the AKL. Both have wonderful theming, but frankly I can name half a dozen resorts in North America with similar theming to the WL (The Rimrock in Banff, The Lake Placid Lodge in Lake Placid just to name two). Nothing compares to the AKL though.

There's nothing like waking up and having giraffes grazing under your window.

The AKL also IMHO has much better dining options. Artists Point is good, but Jiko is exceptional. Boma offers one of the best breakfasts we've ever had at WDW.

I also think there's more to do at the AKL if you're looking for non-park days.

Anne

 

[TJA]

We went to WDW last May and the AP rates were released in early March, I believe. I think you will find the rates and discounts to be comparable for both WL and AKL.

We have stayed at both WL and AKL. Here are some tidbits for each place that might pertain to your situation (2 adults):

WL~nice walking/jogging paths, beach area, water rentals, bike rentals, boat to MK.

AKL~has none of the above. We like the food options better at AKL and it also has the animals to view. An opinion here, but to get the feel for this resort, you should stay in a Savanah room (where you can view the animals from your room). We stayed in a standard room with a parking lot view and forgot there were even animals at the resort. We rarely went to the look-out points.

Will you frequent parks or spend time at your resort? I guess choosing your resort may depend on that question. If we were going to frequent the parks, we'd probably stay at AKL again in a Savanah room so that we can view the animals in the morning while having coffee and getting ready for the day. If we wanted to spend quality time at our resort, then we'd choose WL because of the above-listed reasons.