Jambo! The newest AKL Information thread

[gillep]

We are staying CL and plan to partake in the appetizers there, but would also love to have a few items from Sanaa and Jiko. Would rather not make ADRs since we will probably only want a couple of appetizers and if we are too tired or full from the CL, we may not go at all on any particular day.

Does anyone know if the Sanaa lounge / bar is considered part of Sanaa and takes TiW?

Also the Lounge area outside of Jiko (Cape Town?). The description on the official Disney site mentions getting appetizers, but the menu only shows alcohol. Can you order the appetizers from Jiko in here? Anyone done this?

You can order from the full Jiko menu at Cape Town, I have done this many times quite recently. Cape Town takes TIW as well, the last time we at at the lounge in Sanaa they did take TIW, but it was a couple years ago.

 

[vinotinto]

You can order from the full Jiko menu at Cape Town, I have done this many times quite recently. Cape Town takes TIW as well, the last time we at at the lounge in Sanaa they did take TIW, but it was a couple years ago.

Fantastic, thank you! Enjoy the rest of your trip and thanks for reporting!

 

[pepperandchips]

Does anyone know if the Sanaa lounge / bar is considered part of Sanaa and takes TiW

Yes they do. Used it many times - most recently in November 2018.

 

[Zmack]

Heading for the airport now, We will be at AKL Jambo in 8hrs .

 

[essentialt21]

any info on the soft refurb? anyone stay in an updated room as of yet?

 

[cadien]

any info on the soft refurb? anyone stay in an updated room as of yet?

How would we know? I check in next week.

 

[essentialt21]

Wow, Sorry I figured one of the thousands of people who frequent the board perhaps visited recently or has some info, didnt mean to bother you

 

[cadien]

Wow, Sorry I figured one of the thousands of people who frequent the board perhaps visited recently or has some info, didnt mean to bother you

No. I mean how can we tell that our room has been recently refurbed? I'm happy to report back but I don't know what to look for.

 

[vinotinto]

Yes they do. Used it many times - most recently in November 2018.

Yeah! Thanks!

No. I mean how can we tell that our room has been recently refurbed? I'm happy to report back but I don't know what to look for.

I'm also wondering about the room refurbishment. If it's soft goods, that usually means new mattresses, new curtains, bedding, sometimes a new chair. If it's a room refurbishment, the furniture and light fixtures may be changed too.

Do the rooms look any different than the standard pictures?

Here is a pic of a current room:
https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/r...EC-WDWShareEmailroom-qa-g00&slideShow=1/0/2/0

 

[SeasideMM]

We are staying at AKL Jambo for 2 weeks in March. We have booked a standard room, but wondered whether it is worth asking for a partial savannah view (totally understanding this is not a given). I have looked at the touring plans room map, but find it very confusing. Can anyone tell me which location I might find the partial savannah view rooms (preferably also near the lobby if possible as have young children. Thank you

 

[pepperandchips]

We are staying at AKL Jambo for 2 weeks in March. We have booked a standard room, but wondered whether it is worth asking for a partial savannah view (totally understanding this is not a given). I have looked at the touring plans room map, but find it very confusing. Can anyone tell me which location I might find the partial savannah view rooms (preferably also near the lobby if possible as have young children. Thank you

It's not just one area that has these type of rooms available so it would be hard to give you an idea. What I suggest is requesting exactly what you just typed out - "I have young children and we would love any partial savanna view. If we could be near the lobby that would be great since the children are young. Thank you so much"

If you would like to preview some of these rooms here is a little step by step tutorial for the touringplans room view tool:

Select your room type from the drop-down



Select "show matching rooms"









You can then go back "out" to the resort map to view the matching rooms on other trails.

I hope that helps!

 

[ready2cmickeymouse]

We stayed in room 3228 last week. It was near the lobby and on the same floor as the lobby. We also saw a lot of animals. About 4:30-5:00 pm every day they put out food for the animals, that’s when we saw the most animals. There was also a viewing area near our room. The only negative is they are doing some outside painting so we saw a lot of lifts. It didn’t really bother us or really affect our view of the animals. We loved this room and for a standard view we felt like it was a bargain.

 

[SeasideMM]

It's not just one area that has these type of rooms available so it would be hard to give you an idea. What I suggest is requesting exactly what you just typed out - "I have young children and we would love any partial savanna view. If we could be near the lobby that would be great since the children are young. Thank you so much"

If you would like to preview some of these rooms here is a little step by step tutorial for the touringplans room view tool:

Select your room type from the drop-down

View attachment 379094

Select "show matching rooms"

View attachment 379096

View attachment 379095

View attachment 379093

View attachment 379092

You can then go back "out" to the resort map to view the matching rooms on other trails.

I hope that helps!

Thank you, that is really helpful!

 

[maryj11]

Is there an elevator in Giraffe Trail near the center of the wing near the fitness room or is there only one by the lobby?

 

[Wayland10]

I was reading another thread about people's least favorite resort, and AKL was not getting much love. So tell me- what is your FAVORITE thing about AKL?

 

[Shellyb84]

I was reading another thread about people's least favorite resort, and AKL was not getting much love. So tell me- what is your FAVORITE thing about AKL?

Watching giraffes from our balcony! Second favorite is Uzima Springs pool, it's in my top 3 resort pools.

 

[Miss Frankie J]

[EDIT]

I Just noticed that they changed the room categories that you can book so that solves my question

 

[vinotinto]

I was reading another thread about people's least favorite resort, and AKL was not getting much love. So tell me- what is your FAVORITE thing about AKL?

It's just so unique. So many hotels feel like you could be anywhere, but the entire theme is just so unique and well done. It's not just the animals (they are pretty cool though). There are a lot of African pieces in cases throughout the resort. It feels a little bit like you are sleeping in an anthropological exhibit. And the restaurants are also unique with interesting food offerings.

There are some that are not fans of AKL. Some of the rooms at the end are a bit far from the lobby and pool. That can be minimized by booking a pool view room. Some don't like that the rooms are a bit dark. I find that to be part of the theme. It doesn't bother me at all.

 

[L_MD]

I was reading another thread about people's least favorite resort, and AKL was not getting much love. So tell me- what is your FAVORITE thing about AKL?

I only stayed there once for a few days, but I really did love it. My favorite thing was probably the lobby, but that encompasses tons of things: the fact that it's basically a tiny museum, the fireplace, the water feature, how Victoria Falls Lounge blends seamlessly in, the REALLY AWESOME bridge (what other hotel has a freaking bridge in the lobby?! I mean, minus WL's little one), the giant windows...so cool.

 

[igrsod]

I was reading another thread about people's least favorite resort, and AKL was not getting much love. So tell me- what is your FAVORITE thing about AKL?

There are some things that I would say could be problematic for some... buses, long walks, dark rooms etc., but their are some great things, the animals, the gorgeous lobby, the fireplace, the activities always going on, the cast members so excited to tell you about their home and culture, the great restaurants.