We're back already????

[CJK]

Hi all!

We just walked through the door a few minutes ago and what's the first thing I do??? LOL Check the Dis!! Here's a brief synopsis. The weather was terrific with the exception of our first day and a couple hours of the second day. Otherwise it was hot and sunny. We stayed at the All Star Sports for the first three nights and ran into problems with some of the teens there for grad nights. We got prank calls during the night and lots of noise. The next 3 nights were at Animal Kingdom Lodge which was FANTASTIC. We got a free upgrade to a Savannah view. WOW! Our last night was at the Hyatt Regency right inside the Orlando airport. Very nice hotel and the location can't be beat. Crowds were moderate but MK was busy on both parade/fireworks days. We just used fast pass as much as possible and avoided the big lines. Should go get settled. For some reason dh doesn't want to do all the unpacking! Feel free to ask any questions. I'll be doing a trip report once I get my act together.

 

[Scratch42]

There is a lot a furor going on here regarding the Fairytale Packages!
I've lost my marbles and have booked AKL! Need details! Which floor is better? How's the transportation? What is the resort like? I'll take any information you can give!

Glad you had wonderful weather and a great time!

Thanks in advance.

Scratch

 

[cdnmickeylover]

CJK -- sorry you didn't have a great time at ASSp. We stayed there the end of September and had no problems with noise etc. We went over to AKL to look around and would love to stay there next time although we are booked into the CBR for the time being.

Scratch -- when are you going to akl? The deal looks really good but we're trying to decide whether to go with the deal or get AP's like we had planned to.

Cdnmickeylover

 

[CJK]

Hi again!

We couldn't recommend AKL more! We stayed in the Zebra wing on the 3rd floor. It was sooo quiet! We had booked a standard view room and had read here on the DIS to request the Ostrich wing on an upper level. The reason was so that we may get a tree view instead of a parking lot view. I think we got upgraded because POFQ was closed and people who had been booked there got moved to AKL.

If you have booked a standard view, I recommend you ask for an upper floor (away from the noise of the bus stop) and on the Ostrich wing. If you have a Savannah view room, the floor doesn't seem to matter because these rooms are all quiet (from our experience and from what other people have said).

The hotel has lots of fun activities. There was a culinary tour at 4pm that was great. You get a bit of a tour of the hotel followed by a closer look (with SAMPLES!) at both Jiko and Boma. It will help you make a good decision as to where you would like to dine. The night vision goggles is a real treat too. They bring the goggles out daily at 9pm in the back Savannah. We enjoyed the storytelling at 6:30pm at the campfire. There's just so much to see and do there. If time allows, ask for a hidden mickey list at the front desk and have fun finding all the hidden mickey's. We managed to find them all (with a little help from the CM's!).

cdnmickeylover - This was really our first bad experience at ASSports. I think it was probably just bad timing.

 

[bunnyfoo]

Welcome back CJK! I'm going to AKL too and I'm really looking forward to it I'll take your suggestions, I'm hoping for a quiet room too! How was the pool at AKL? Was it very crowded? Did you have a hard time finding a chair?

The night vision goggles sound like fun! Last year when we were at AKL on a visit, I thought they should have those so we could see the animals at night

 

[grover]

Sounds like a great time you had!! I have to agree with you on AKL-we loved it for all the same reasons! We took part in many of the daily activites-every resort should do this! My son (10) and I did the culinary tour-what I liked was that they didn't ignore him because he was the only kid in a whole group of adults (well 5 of us actually)..they brought out stuff he would like to sample! And the guide spent a good 15 mins talking to him about sliding in the winter (he had never seen snow!). We also did the cultural safarie -did you take part? They were wonderful! The night vision goggles are cool! AKl gets top marks for wonderful CM's and the free upgrade they gave us!! We could not find all the hidden mickeys...you will have to give us some tips for next time! Can't wait to read your trip report!

Scratch--we found the bus service great-you are literally two minutes from AK!! No sharing bus's and there is only one main stop that is very convenient. Also check out the gift shop-it is the best!! The food court is great to-they have some african dishes-very different from the other food courts we had visited.We we given a free upgrade to the main savannah-3rd floor, the view was awesome! Also take the time to walk thru the resort-very nice art work and the cm's linger around for questions ect. Take part in the daily activities-definately worth it!They also have guides in the room that list all the animals you can spot on the savannahs. Two very nice spa's at the pool area. We found that we just wanted to hang at the resort as there was plenty to see/do! Enjoy AKL!!

Grover in Winnipeg

 

[Scratch42]

around since I felt gipped by what AT did! That one day missed really made a huge difference.

Well when this deal came out! Too good to be true. Had kicked the idea of buying AP's last trip but line up too long before we got to MK and then we closed the place down, guest services were closed. So never really got around to it. Really not in the cards right now anyways. And of course we are going cruising in January, which means DD is off for one week. Frowned upon at school as it is.

Ok, so the only option left is the last week of August. No camps thru Parks and Rec, my mom is in a seniors residence now and don't really want to pay for babysitter.(yeah I know cheaper than WDW). I have always wanted to stay at a Deluxe so with this deal can do it! Out of all the Deluxes figured AKL was the most kid friendly! We both love animules. I've wanted to do an African Safari, so this is as close as I'm gonna get...

Sorry for rambling but I can't believe I'm doing this! But when opportunity knocks!

Plus what better way to end your summer vacation!

Scratch

 

[TimNDansMom]

Welcome back CJK! Your trip sounded wonderful. We just loved our stay at AKL too. We were there the summer after it opened. I now always have to go back for a visit and dinner at Boma. It got busy with teens and cheerleaders at ASSp for us this past March Break but fortunately our room was in a quiet area and we had no prank calls. Looking forward to reading your trip report!

Ohhh Janet, I am sooo jealous! Another trip ~ sounds like us a couple of years ago! We couldn't stay away and went 6 times in two years. I'm afraid to look at the FT packages because I really want to go back again this year.

Vicky, not much longer now!

 

[CJK]

Hey everyone.

I just can't shake the Disney bug just yet and have finished 5 days of our trip on the trip report board. Check it out if you want a quick Disney fix!