WHY do you love Animal Kingdom Lodge?

[lorenae]

I know that AKL is well loved. We are currently booked at ASMovies during May for 5 nights. What happened was I booked the room first, and when I got the air we ended up needing an extra night at the beginning.
We booked at CSR for that one night, and then got an upgrade to Beach Club!
So we have BC one night and ASMo for the rest.

Well, I think it was @AngiTN who told me that those upgrades may encourage you to go deluxe in the future- and It may have already happened! So I’m looking at AP rates for the deluxes, and the pool view room at AKL is $336- a little more than double the ASMo rate we have.

I never considered AKL before- it doesn’t seem to be my thing I guess. But I have never been there, or even considered dining there.

I guess I”m asking you all to tell me specifically what it is that you love, keeping in mind that I cannot upgrade to a Savannah view (can barely think about the pool view rate!).

I will be with my two grandsons, ages 6 and 9, one of whom has never been to WDW. It will be mid May, so I expect we’ll have some pool time and take a relaxed park approach, although I do tend to go commando style all too often and I’ll have to rein myself in.

If it was 100% my choice, and money was no object, I think I’d be a Poly or BC kind of girl.

 

[AngiTN]

Seeing Giraffes, buffalo, gazelle, and various other creatures right outside the resort, even if it's not your room, it's UNIQUE to Disney, unless you are really in Africa. They have a lot of activities in the resort, more than most. And lots of cultural representatives to learn and speak to. For 2 boys, I would RUN to AKL over ASMo. Personally. Unless they just care not a thing for animals, most kids love being right in the "zoo"

 

[Gino USMC]

The hotel is beautiful inside and out. The theming and back ground music puts you at ease and is relaxing. Food is pretty good no matter what you choose. Pool is fantastic and calming.

 

[ClapYourHands]

Even if you don't have a savannah view, there are some standard rooms that have partial savannah views. You might want to check out Touring Plans and their room finder tool to request a room. But if you don't get a view, don't despair. There are plenty of public places around the resort where you can sip your coffee and view the animals.

All deluxe pools have waterslides, so that will definitely be a step up from ASMo, and greatly enhance your grandsons' pool time. There are also cultural experiences, like traditional African craftspeople working in the main lobby, and enhanced opportunities like watching the animals with night vision lenses.

It is a bit of a haul to any of the parks other than AK, but if you're replacing an All Star stay, you're at no real disadvantage because your original resort was all bus transportation anyway.

 

[gharter]

We stay at Kidani when we stay at AKL.
The main lobby is beautiful, love the theme. The Savannah view is amazing to see in the morning and fun to walk out to in the evening.
Boma, Jiko and Sanaa are some of the best retaurants at WDW.
The only downside, is its not really close to any parks, even AK is a bus ride. But, the bus transportation has not been bad when we have stayed.

 

[Celesdragon]

It was my first resort stay and made the largest impression on me of all the different resorts I've done since. It's beautiful and unique, it actually feels like you are 'away' somewhere. We watched a massive thunderstorm roll in once via one of the covered balconies adjacent to the lobby while sitting in the rocking chairs. Was an amazing experience.

 

[eeyoreandtink]

It is beautiful.
Nothing like drinking coffee while watch giraffes from your balcony
Its peaceful. We look at it as our oasis from the chaos of the parks.

 

[lorenae]

I knew I could count on your to help convince me!!!

I paid $691.74 for 5 nights at ASMo.
The cost for 5 nights at AKL (standard view) for those same 5 days is $1891. $1200 more. That’s huge to me- but...... I think I have to go for it!

The other thing for me to consider is that the dining costs also be higher- since we would eat at AKL for several meals instead of a food court at ASMo. {gulp}

You guys are the best!

 

[lorenae]

Next question for you, then!

I paid the deposit for AKL, but still have the ASMo in there because I have the FPs all set. If I cancel it now, that should not be an issue at all as I do have the AKL set.

Oh my gosh, I’m so excited!!!! I’ve never imagined staying deluxe at WDW, not in a million years and now I’ve got Beach Club and AKL!!!!! You are all a bad influence on me!!!!!!!

 

[ClapYourHands]

Next question for you, then!

I paid the deposit for AKL, but still have the ASMo in there because I have the FPs all set. If I cancel it now, that should not be an issue at all as I do have the AKL set.

Oh my gosh, I’m so excited!!!! I’ve never imagined staying deluxe at WDW, not in a million years and now I’ve got Beach Club and AKL!!!!! You are all a bad influence on me!!!!!!!

As long as you can see the new reservation in MDE (which is usually pretty instant), you’re fine to cancel the reservation you’re not using.

Also, I object to being called a bad influence. My preferred term is enabler.

 

[cincystamper]

The other thing for me to consider is that the dining costs also be higher- since we would eat at AKL for several meals instead of a food court at ASMo. {gulp}

You guys are the best!

For the record, there's a quick service option at AKL, too. So if you're concerned you'll have to pay sit-down prices because you'll be eating at the resort for a few meals, that's not necessarily true.

Enjoy your trip!

 

[Disneylvr1971]

I think you and the kids will love AKL. It is not only our home resort, it is our favorite. Nothing like being able to walk out by the animals. It is also a more laid back quiet resort compared to the values. (And yes I do like the values). As far as the bus, I usually find that most of the time they aren't over packed. Be sure to check out both Jambo and Kidani. Have a fantastic time!

 

[_matthias_]

the theme and hotel are beautiful, the animals are neat, lots of free animal related activities, and the restaurants are extremely underrated- quite delicious and usually easy to get into

 

[lorenae]

This now skips over to restaurants, but if we were to do only one table service dinner, where would you go with a 6 year old and 9 year old?

 

[GovieMom]

AKL was the most massively themed, gorgeous resort we've stayed at. My kids were SO impressed with it; it remains their favorite resort to date and we've tried them all.

 

[gharter]

This now skips over to restaurants, but if we were to do only one table service dinner, where would you go with a 6 year old and 9 year old?

So many options.
Resort - Boma. Something for everyone, standard fare to adventurous and all you can eat. No characters.
If you want character, Tusker House is very good and has characters.

 

[KenHutch]

We stayed at AKL for 10 days last year for the 1st time. What sold me on the place is obviously the animals. I booked standard rooms (have to have 2). First they put me in would have been a savanna room except it had one of the people pens directly below us so we had spectacular views. And the other thing was one evening we stopped in the room to change clothes for a Boma dinner well there were 2 giraffes outside. A mother and her young one. It was raining very lightly and these 2 were playing tag running after each other.I thought the girls were going to die of joy watching these 2 play. Totally made the whole trip worth it.

 

[epcotobsessed]

BC and AKL is my ideal split stay. AKL rooms are dark and cramped BUT the lobby, theming, balconies (if you get one overlooking the animals - if you don't, there are places to sit and watch them from other public places) are truly the best on property, by a significant margin imo. I also don't like that you have to take a bus or Uber everywhere from AKL but, again, the feel of the resort makes up for it. It's truly a wonderful experience to just be there for a few days. I think you will love it.

 

[Cajun23]

We have 2 little ones so the excitement of seeing the different animals the kids loved. I like the theme of the resort and the restaurants and food options were excellent for our taste.

 

[BobbyDukes]

Best average consistency for food in the whole property for a resort. Breakfast lunch and dinner. Four amazing restaurants.