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We are going to Animal Kingdom mid January with our 4 and 2 year olds. We'd like to stay at the AK Lodge. My questions are:
How do you get to the AK park from the lodge? Does their bus take you, or (may be a silly question) can you walk to the park, since it's on the same property??
Is the AKL REALLY worth the extra $$$? Do you get to see lots of animals with a Savannah View? I hear they only let the animals out in the AM and PM and sometimes you dont get to see many.
If we dont stay there, our other options are one of the Port Orleans resorts (which one?) or back to the Wilderness Lodge where we've stayed before.
Thank you for any recommendations/opinions!
Questions about Animal Kingdom Lodge
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From the Animal Kingdom Lodge you can take a bus to any of the theme parks, including Animal Kingdom. You cannot walk to the Animal Kingdom.
We've never stayed at AKL but have been there many times for meals at different parts of the day and there have always been several animals on the Savannahs. Note that if you're not in a Savannah view room, or if you are just visiting the hotel, you can still use various public viewing areas to see the animals.
It is true that the animals are mostly out in the early morning and late afternoon. Your proximity to the animals depends on where your room is. Check disboards.com's hotel board to get the scoop on exactly what rooms are best for animal viewing. I've been there but can't recall even the name of the section we stayed in.
You take the bus to get to the AK park from the AKL. Because of AKL's location in WDW, you will have longer bus rides to the other parks. If you are a family that likes to go back to your room during the day for naps/rest/pool time, you need to factor in the extra time it takes to get to AKL.
Your kids will be excited about seeing the animals from their room but how long that excitement will last depends on how animal crazy your kids are. I have nephews that would want to just stay at the AKL to see the animals, and skip the parks. When we stayed at AKL, my sons liked seeing the animals out of our window whenever we were in the room but in the time it takes you to read this post, they were ready to leave for the parks. You know your kids best.
We have stayed at WL, and based on experience being at WDW with 2 and 4 yr olds, I think WL is a much better location. Your kids are probably going to like MK the best, and as you know, WL is just boat ride away. My sons thought the boat ride to MK from WL was just the first ride of the day when they were your kids' age.
I am glad we stayed at AKL, but if we went back, I'd stay at WL. (We have also stayed at the Contemporary, Polynesian, and Coronado Springs).
Also, I think whenever someone asks if somewhere is worth the extra $$$, it probably isn't. Go have dinner at AKL, and checkout the animals that way.
We haven't stayed at Port Orleans, so I can't help you with that one.
We have stayed at Port Orleans as well as AKL and WL. Animal Kingdom is out of the way but fun to visit. We stayed on the Club Level and have enjoyed the service but would go back to Port Orleans in a heartbeat. The value, pool and riverboat made it inviting.
I'm not so crazy about Port Orleans but haven't stayed at AKL yet. If on a budget, I'm not sure that any of the upgraded hotels are really worth it. You aren't going to be doing much there during a Disney vacation if you plan to see the parks.
AKL is removed from the parks, but it's a beautiful facility and waking up to the animals was a novelty that my husband and I splurged on last year
I haven't stayed in Port Orleans in a few years, so I can't really comment on that.
What about the Polynesian or one of the boardwalk resorts?
We've stayed at AK Lodge twice. It is wonderful. The first time was just the two of us, the second time we took my nephew who was 12 at the time. We had a blast both times. The rooms are a bit dark because of the decor, but that's fine. The second time our room was in the back facing the new construction (time shares) and STILL saw animals. The whole feel of the place is great, and, of course, the staff is fantastic. Many are from different countries in Africa. There are activities for kids so they will enjoy it if you stay at the lodge instead of going to the parks. The pool is awesome. And the restaurants, Boma and Jika, should not be missed. Yes, Animal Kingdom Lodge is more expensive than other resorts, but you really get a fantastic experience. I definitely recommend it.
Oh, one more thing, we've stayed at Dixie Landings (which is now part of Port Orleans I think), Carribean Beach Resort, and Animal Kingdom Lodge. They are all great but AK is an experience.
We'll be there in two weeks for 8 days...I'll let you know.
Just got back from the Animal Kingdom Lodge - we had a blast. We could have stayed there the whole week and never leave, and having morning coffee while sitting in one of the common areas watching the animals is fantastic. The pool is wonderful and so is the staff.
To your questions:
"How do you get to the AK park from the lodge? Does their bus take you, or (may be a silly question) can you walk to the park, since it's on the same property??"
There are buses to all Disney parks as well as downtown Disney etc. from the Lodge. AK park is about a 5 minute ride, but it is NOT on the same property and you do need a ticket to get in even if you are staying at the lodge.
"Is the AKL REALLY worth the extra $$$? Do you get to see lots of animals with a Savannah View? I hear they only let the animals out in the AM and PM and sometimes you dont get to see many"
We saw many animals every day (we didn't have Savannah view but there are many common areas very close to our room 3434). Especially in the morning and evening. If it's very hot you won't see many animals.
I can't answer "worth the extra $$$" because that's up to you to decide. The rooms are Holiday Inn +- but the hotel is beautiful and lots to do for the kids each and every night (story time, small parade with African instruments the kids play, night viewing of the animals with night-vision goggles as well as arts & crafts - and those are the FREE activities, there are many more if you are willing to pay a few extra bucks).
You can see some pictures we took here: http://www.travelpod.com/travelblogphotoalbums/laorfamily/14/1253473483/0/12/YES/tpod.html
Several pictures of the common area.