***The Official AKV Owners And Lovers Thread***. Come And Chat

[twinklebug]

But AKL has thatched roofs...not sure if that's just for show and there's regular shingles underneath or something, but if it's all really thatched then I don't think tar would be an issue.

Kidani is mostly flat rooftop, the "thatching" is only indoors in the lobby, on top of the lobby and Porte-cochère outside. Note also that the thatching is ornamental more than functional and is attached to an actual roof surface underneath. There are also some shingles outdoors to be dealt with. Kidani:





Even Jambo which appears to be "thatch" has the same structure with all flat rooftop over the wing room areas. It happens to have more of the decorative bits added on the wings, but the entire top is flat.

Jambo:


I'm assuming that when they say it will take so long to work on the roof they're talking about the large flat surfaces, but I'm sure the decorative parts could use replacing by now too.

 

[DisneyRunner2009]

Is the door to your room metallic like some of the other resorts?

 

[preemiemama]

We stayed at Jambo in July 2021 when they were re-doing the roof there. It was while the resort itself was still closed- only DVC rooms were open. We saw the people working on the roof that overlooked the pool (and over Mara), but did not notice any noise or other disruptions. They worked only during the day- by 4-5 pm they were finished. It was not a disruption to us.

 

[DisneyRunner2009]

A few observations after our first night. We are in a studio lock off. I could hear housekeeping doing something with the dishes yesterday. Last night I could clearly hear the new occupants. So walls are thin just like other resorts. A long that same line, I can hear toilets flushing, too. Another difference we noticed is children running in the hallway. We also reported the chain on the ceiling fan was broken. Come to find out, they remove them do to children pulling on them. On the other hand, there are so many animals to stop and look at when walking down the hall.

 

[sndral]

A few observations after our first night. We are in a studio lock off. I could hear housekeeping doing something with the dishes yesterday. Last night I could clearly hear the new occupants. So walls are thin just like other resorts. A long that same line, I can hear toilets flushing, too. Another difference we noticed is children running in the hallway. We also reported the chain on the ceiling fan was broken. Come to find out, they remove them do to children pulling on them. On the other hand, there are so many animals to stop and look at when walking down the hall.

Are you at Jambo or Kidani? I’ve never noticed noise from other units, but we always stay in Jambo & in the 1 br. portion of the lock offs (lately we’ve been in 2 br. villas.) In Jambo the kitchen/living room is next to the studio portion of the lock off, you might try putting a rolled towel at the base of the connecting door.
Then again, there have been lots of complaints about noise at the new resort studios at the VGF & I didn’t hear a peep when I stayed there a couple of nights in Nov., so maybe I’m hard of hearing .

 

[KKKKCS]

Well, nice to finally find this group. We have been AKL-Kidani owners since our very first Disney Cruise (7 night Magic Mexican Riviera) in August 2008. We went to the DVC meeting one afternoon just to see what the heck DVC even was because we'd never heard of it. It sounded great, but we're just not time share people you know. We went up to the pool, got a couple of umbrella drinks, and talked about how much fun we and the 3 kids were having. In that conversation we came to realize two things, 1. That cruise was the first real family vacation we had been on in 7 years. And 2. For the cost of 2.5 cruises we could have a guaranteed vacation for the next 50 years. So, we marched right down to the DVC desk and booked a time with a guide. We bought two 180 point contracts and the incentive at that time was double points your first year. Our first use of points was the DVC members cruise in September 2009 and our first stay was December 2009 in a Grand Villa with 13 family members. Since then we have only had a grand total of 1 point go unused, in fact we use them so frequently we bought a third 180 point contract (same resort, same use year) on a cruise (also Magic, but 5 night Bahama) in January 2019. We have stayed at Aulani, Vero Beach, and Grand Californian, but when we are at WDW we have always stayed at Kidani, always savannah view. We love it!

We had 93 2021 use year points banked that had to be used by November 30th 2023 so, since no rooms were available at Kidani in March, we are using them to stay 3 nights at Saratoga Springs and 2 nights at Old Key West before our Wish cruise. We will probably have to ride the bus to Kidani at least once though to feed my wife's giraffe addiction. We have heard great things about both resorts and are actually looking forward to trying something new. Wish us luck!

 

[DisneyRunner2009]

We are in Jambo.

 

[sndral]

We are in Jambo.

My favorite hope things become quieter for your stay.

 

[earfulofmagic]

Had a great stay (as always at AKV) in a value studio -- first time in a value studio! -- weekend before this one. Those rooms are so convenient with the elevator nearby going right down to the gym/pool/Mara, and so close to the lobby and everything. Of course the low points were nice too.

In December we stayed on rented points through someone on the DIS in a standard 1-br, and when we got the "room ready" text I saw they had upgraded us to a savanna view 1-br! Not sure if it was because we had put we were celebrating our anniversary or they just had room issues, but we were super surprised and had an absolute blast. We were out on that balcony watching the animals all the time.

 

[Drew729]

Had a great stay (as always at AKV) in a value studio -- first time in a value studio! -- weekend before this one. Those rooms are so convenient with the elevator nearby going right down to the gym/pool/Mara, and so close to the lobby and everything. Of course the low points were nice too.


Agree. We stay in the values at AKV quite often and at first I liked the low points but really came to enjoy the convenience of the room location more than anything. At some of the larger resorts you can put in a room request but never know until arrival where exactly that room will be located. It is nice to know that when booking a value you will always be close to all the amenities even if the room views may vary.

 

[goferrarif1]

Going to be staying at Kidani later this year for the first time, we usually stay in Jambo House. I know that the rooms in Jambo have the new smart tvs with casting ability, but have they been added to Kidani rooms yet (specifically the studios)?

 

[jcourtney]

Going to be staying at Kidani later this year for the first time, we usually stay in Jambo House. I know that the rooms in Jambo have the new smart tvs with casting ability, but have they been added to Kidani rooms yet (specifically the studios)?

yes, they had it when we stayed in a studio last summer. But it was a little hit or miss for whether or not the casting worked at any given time.

 

[MamaKate]

Has there been any word when the rooms are scheduled for a full refurbishment? I'm not so patiently waiting for Murphy beds versus sofa beds...

 

[drusba]

Double post

 

[drusba]

Has there been any word when the rooms are scheduled for a full refurbishment? I'm not so patiently waiting for Murphy beds versus sofa beds...

Kidani actually started an outdoor refurb early 2022, beginning with the pool, which then moved to other outside areas, and is now starting on the roof, which is supposed to continue until Oct. However, there has been no word yet on the start of an internal refurb.

 

[MamaKate]

Kidani actually started an outdoor refurb early 2022, beginning with the pool, which then moved to other outside areas, and is now starting on the roof, which is supposed to continue until Oct. However, there has been no word yet on the start of an internal refurb.

Thanks! I couldn't find any information but I was hoping I missed an announcement. Wishful thinking...

 

[stevelle]

Add me as an owner! Just closed today on 160 pts at AKL!

 

[twinklebug]

Add me as an owner! Just closed today on 160 pts at AKL!

Welcome home!

 

[crazycatlady]

We just closed today on our first DVC contract! We bought 120 points at AKV and I am SO excited!

 

[E2ME2]

Tell me how you get them "quite often", as I have yet to grab a Value-Studio; they disappear at 11Mo + 1 nano second!!