Beach Club or AKL?

[correcaminos]

Ugh I'm facing the same dilemma right now, right now i have a 2 bedroom villa for Animal Kingdom Kidani village savannah view and a Beach Club 2 bedroom villa booked both for 4 days and need to decide soon which one i want to keep.

I think the idea of seeing animals right outside your balcony is AMAZING and since we'll only be at Animal Kingdom park for half a day it might compensate for that.

The only thing that I'm having trouble with is the fact that Animal Kingdom lodge is just so isolated from everything, and I've heard that a lot of the rooms at Kidani village are far from the lobby, as well the Jambo House and Kidani village being seperated by about a mile.

I have one member in my party that can't walk well, especially after a day at the parks.

But i'm also a bit worried we might over-do the "Beach" theme (If that's possible?) because after the 4 nights we check into A bungalow at the Polynesian for 3 nights.

Just curious if you are at Kidani. The extra bathroom there is really nice if you are. It's about a half a mile between the two and you can take a shuttle if you want.

Our room was about halfway down the lobby and we get it wasn't bad. If walking is a consideration remember the walk from Epcot or the boat from DHS isn't that short either.

Just being realistic on the points. Both are great though.

 

[ToTBellHop]

are the rooms nicer than the YC? Will be staying at BC for the first time in Nov and hoping they are nicer than next door, we were not impressed with YC since the changes.

Can’t help you there—we loved the updated rooms at YC.

 

[nancynancy428]

Very very easily. I've stayed at BCV many times and more often than not I prefer the quiet pool. It's called an opinion and I have valid reasons why.

The actual pool area is too small for the amount of people in it.
The chairs are crammed together so tight it's hard to get on them. If you can find them at all. Lack of covered seating to is big.
The pool is so spread out you cannot find people easily.
The slide entrance is outside of the pool area so you are utterly exposed to people out in public as you get to it. Plus the slide isn't great.
The lazy river is too small to be useful and is too deep and slow so you constantly run into people.
The service from the bar area is pathetic.
The sand on the bottom gets everywhere and bugs me.

Are those enough reasons? Not everyone has to like it, but honestly Kidani's pool is far better in many ways to us and I'll stand by that any day. I think SAB is way too over hyped for what it is.

I found this super helpful- I was torn between these two resorts as well and a big draw for beach club was SAB- (we ended up ruling it out bc of our kids desires for wanting to see animals from the room at AKL) - so just reading that perhaps it's not worth all the hype, for everyone at least, made me feel better
I

 

[correcaminos]

I found this super helpful- I was torn between these two resorts as well and a big draw for beach club was SAB- (we ended up ruling it out bc of our kids desires for wanting to see animals from the room at AKL) - so just reading that perhaps it's not worth all the hype, for everyone at least, made me feel better
I

LOL - obviously those were our feelings on it as a whole, but I know I'm not alone in it. We truly didn't even use the main pool until this past year because it was stressful with younger ones. Kidani I think is my son's favorite pool if I have that right. I think you will have a fantastic stay at AKL! I t is a family favorite for sure (ranks above BC )

 

[nancynancy428]

Ugh I'm facing the same dilemma right now, right now i have a 2 bedroom villa for Animal Kingdom Kidani village savannah view and a Beach Club 2 bedroom villa booked both for 4 days and need to decide soon which one i want to keep.

I think the idea of seeing animals right outside your balcony is AMAZING and since we'll only be at Animal Kingdom park for half a day it might compensate for that.

The only thing that I'm having trouble with is the fact that Animal Kingdom lodge is just so isolated from everything, and I've heard that a lot of the rooms at Kidani village are far from the lobby, as well the Jambo House and Kidani village being seperated by about a mile.

I have one member in my party that can't walk well, especially after a day at the parks.

But i'm also a bit worried we might over-do the "Beach" theme (If that's possible?) because after the 4 nights we check into A bungalow at the Polynesian for 3 nights.

Big Poly fan over here, and just want to say I don't think it would be redundant theme wise in combo with BC- bc Poly isn't the same type of beach theme. Poly is Walts idea of paradise (and mine) and the BC is more of a New England beach theme, not tropics ....full disclosure I haven't stayed at BC or AKL yet....but I'm going to vote AKL- it's super themed like the Poly and as far as transportation, the Poly is so convenient so not as big of a deal if the first leg of your trip is buses, and definitely request a close to lobby room for AKL

 

[NelsonRD]

Choosing Beach Club over Animal Kingdom because of location alone, thinking it is faster to the parks, is like preferring Fast Food, to a Restaurant, because you can get your food faster.

 

[ToTBellHop]

Choosing Beach Club over Animal Kingdom because of location alone, thinking it is faster to the parks, is like preferring Fast Food, to a Restaurant, because you can get your food faster.

Beach Club is the world’s nicest McDonald’s.

Personally, I think that within a resort category (i.e. if I know I want a deluxe), location and ease of travel to parks is the greatest determinant of my satisfaction. The pools all have their pros and cons. They all are wonderful. Same for the dining. Rooms are interchangeable, especially after recent refurbishments.

I won’t do AKL again due to location, lack of adequate dining at Kidani, and the frequency with which I saw NO. ANIMALS. ON. THE. SAVANNA. I know they are live animals, but routinely seeing just grass before 9 am (the bulk of the time I’m at the resort during daylight) kind of defeats the purpose of staying there. I’m sure they were out at 2pm, but the crappy transport and lack of dining similarly defeats the purpose of the mid-day break. At Jambo, you get better dining but the downside is the crappy pool. But yes, the nice Kidani pool is a quick 20-minute walk along a parking lot away...

At Beach Club, I have 3 QSR options, more at BoardWalk, a sand-bottomed pool, can walk to two parks, get a resort basically at the center of WDW where nothing is more than a 15 minute bus ride away. I can even use the monorail to get from Epcot to MK so that some days, I don’t ever set foot on a bus!

I can reasonably have an 8 am breakfast at DHS or Epcot and leave my room at 7:30 to get there. I can be at DHS, remember there is nothing to do there, make a FP at Epcot, and walk over there, filling my mug with an icy beverage on the way. I can freaking relax over fireworks at 2 of the 3 park’s where I do nighttime spectaculars because there will be no 90 minute wait to get a bus afterward. I’ll be in my bed 20 min after the show ends.

Ample Hills is within walking distance. As is the gelato and bakery in France. As is Sweet Spells and its carrot cake cookie sandwich.

I’ll take the fast food any day.

 

[nancynancy428]

Beach Club is the world’s nicest McDonald’s.

Personally, I think that within a resort category (i.e. if I know I want a deluxe), location and ease of travel to parks is the greatest determinant of my satisfaction. The pools all have their pros and cons. They all are wonderful. Same for the dining. Rooms are interchangeable, especially after recent refurbished.

I won’t do AKL again due to location, lack of adequate dining at Kidani, and the frequency with which I saw NO. ANIMALS. ON. THE. SAVANNA. I know they are live animals, but routinely seeing just grass before 9 am (the bulk of the time I’m at the resort during daylight) kind of defeats the purpose of staying there. I’m sure they were out at 2pm, but the crappy transport and lack of dining similarly defeats the purpose of the mid-day break. At Jambo, you get better dining but the downside is the crappy pool. But yes, the nice Kidani pool is a quick 20-minute walk along a parking lot away...

At Beach Club, I have 3 QSR options, more at BoardWalk, a sand-bottomed pool, can walk to two parks, get a resort basically at the center of WDW where nothing is more than a 15 minute bus ride away. I can even use the monorail to get from Epcot to MK so that some days, I don’t ever set foot on a bus!

I can reasonably have an 8 am breakfast at DHS or Epcot and leave my room at 7:30 to get there. I can be at DHS, remember there is nothing to do there, make a FP at Epcot, and walk over there, filling my mug with an icy beverage on the way. I can freaking relax over fireworks at 2 of the 3 park’s where I do nighttime spectaculars because there will be no 90 minute wait to get a bus. I’ll be in my bed 20 min after the show ends.

Ample Hills is within walking distance. As is the gelato and bakery in France. As is Sweet Spells and its carrot cake cookie sandwich.

I’ll take the fast food any day.

Just when I was so sure and locked in on AKL you've got me doubting! I'm used to the Poly, most convenient of ALL the resorts- but was looking for a change this year so thought we'd try animal kingdom lodge, but man are you selling the beach club. idk maybe I'll stick with akl now and do BC when Hollywood Studios actually has attractions?!? So torn!!

 

[NelsonRD]

Beach Club is the world’s nicest McDonald’s.

Personally, I think that within a resort category (i.e. if I know I want a deluxe), location and ease of travel to parks is the greatest determinant of my satisfaction. The pools all have their pros and cons. They all are wonderful. Same for the dining. Rooms are interchangeable, especially after recent refurbished.

I won’t do AKL again due to location, lack of adequate dining at Kidani, and the frequency with which I saw NO. ANIMALS. ON. THE. SAVANNA. I know they are live animals, but routinely seeing just grass before 9 am (the bulk of the time I’m at the resort during daylight) kind of defeats the purpose of staying there. I’m sure they were out at 2pm, but the crappy transport and lack of dining similarly defeats the purpose of the mid-day break. At Jambo, you get better dining but the downside is the crappy pool. But yes, the nice Kidani pool is a quick 20-minute walk along a parking lot away...

At Beach Club, I have 3 QSR options, more at BoardWalk, a sand-bottomed pool, can walk to two parks, get a resort basically at the center of WDW where nothing is more than a 15 minute bus ride away. I can even use the monorail to get from Epcot to MK so that some days, I don’t ever set foot on a bus!

I can reasonably have an 8 am breakfast at DHS or Epcot and leave my room at 7:30 to get there. I can be at DHS, remember there is nothing to do there, make a FP at Epcot, and walk over there, filling my mug with an icy beverage on the way. I can freaking relax over fireworks at 2 of the 3 park’s where I do nighttime spectaculars because there will be no 90 minute wait to get a bus. I’ll be in my bed 20 min after the show ends.

Ample Hills is within walking distance. As is the gelato and bakery in France. As is Sweet Spells and its carrot cake cookie sandwich.

I’ll take the fast food any day.

My opinion is different. Hotel to Hotel, I can buy your argument about the Beach Club, but Animal Kingdom Lodge is so unique, I place it in its own category altogether. The attraction here are the animals, not proximity to the Parks, not pools, not food. The seclusion of Animal Kingdom lodge fits the theme. Unlike the Beach Club, there are no people wandering the boardwalk late at night, no loud golf carts, and definitely more peaceful to relax in after touring the parks. We saw almost every animal on the Legend from our balcony. I have a hard time understanding how such a gorgeous hotel is belittled because its location. Everybody seems to downplay that the walk from Crescent Lake to Epcot Future World is a little under a mile, and the walk to Hollywood Studios is a little over a mile, but quick to point out the distance of the Animal Kingdom Lodge. No Disney hotel has the perfect location where transportation at some point is not needed. If Animal Kingdom lodge is in consideration, it should be experienced first.

 

[eliza61nyc]

So this is a tough one.
Beach club will always be my favorite resort. so it's special to me. to that end let me just say anyone you go with will be great.
As others have pointed out Animal kingdom is Unique. you simply will not find many heavily themed resort. We love the beach club for the following.
Our kids are fishes, they loved the pool always have. lol a couple of times they didn't want to go to the parks for hanging in the pool. I've only stayed in Jambo house and the pool was a bit of a hike. didn't like that.

stuff to do at night: because of BC's location there were night time options easily available. I mean just a simple walk around the lake.
tons of places to eat: not sure how someone thought of Mcdonalds in relation to the Beach club. I mean if you don't like what's offered at the Beach club, you've got everything from ESPN club to the Yacht club NOT to mention the entire world showcase at your door steps. Boardwalk bakery for breakfast and dessert at night.

Now for us the animals were ok. basically because most of them are nocturnal. since by the time we got back to the room after a day in the parks and the night time shows my kids were wiped out. we didn't really do a lot of Animal gazing.

 

[eliza61nyc]

M I have a hard time understanding how such a gorgeous hotel is belittled because its location. Everybody seems to downplay that the walk from Crescent Lake to Epcot Future World is a little under a mile, and the walk to Hollywood Studios is a little over a mile, but quick to point out the distance of the Animal Kingdom Lodge. No Disney hotel has the perfect location where transportation at some point is not needed. If Animal Kingdom lodge is in consideration, it should be experienced first.

Unfortunately because for many location is very important, lol remember the old real estate mantra "location, location, location". so in my real life I work 41 miles from my house, we're talking a 55 minute trip each way every day. So in my world having to get on a bus or in my car every single time I want to go some place is not appealing especially on vacation. we usually drive but the one time we took disney transportation to get back to our room at AKL it took well over 45 minutes.
A mile in my world is a "stroll" and it's not a mindless walk. once you leave the Beach club, you are almost immediately in world showcase with stuff to look at.

The contemporary is one of my "least" favorite resorts as far as themes go, but I have to tell you the one time we stayed there, my family loved it. why? you cannot beat the ability to walk to MK. At the end of the night simply passing all those poor souls trying to get back to their resort is enough to make us stay there again and their pool isn't that special then throw in the monorail to Epcot and you've got your two main parks at your finger tips.

 

[ToTBellHop]

My opinion is different. Hotel to Hotel, I can buy your argument about the Beach Club, but Animal Kingdom Lodge is so unique, I place it in its own category altogether. The attraction here are the animals, not proximity to the Parks, not pools, not food. The seclusion of Animal Kingdom lodge fits the theme. Unlike the Beach Club, there are no people wandering the boardwalk late at night, no loud golf carts, and definitely more peaceful to relax in after touring the parks. We saw almost every animal on the Legend from our balcony. I have a hard time understanding how such a gorgeous hotel is belittled because its location. Everybody seems to downplay that the walk from Crescent Lake to Epcot Future World is a little under a mile, and the walk to Hollywood Studios is a little over a mile, but quick to point out the distance of the Animal Kingdom Lodge. No Disney hotel has the perfect location where transportation at some point is not needed. If Animal Kingdom lodge is in consideration, it should be experienced first.

AKL is beautiful. I'll gladly take a Minnie Van there for dinner at Boma. But at some point in a week-long vacation, your hotel room (at least for me) becomes your bed. The excitement of "ooh, a giraffe," wears off. What you are left with is the resort's amenities. And if that includes unacceptable dining, one of the weakest pools of the deluxe resorts, and an hour wait to get anywhere, it leaves a bad taste in your mouth. My jaw still drops when I first step into the Jambo lobby for the first time during a vacation. But that stops if I'm actually staying there for multiple days. It turns into, "time to wait for another G.D. bus to get anywhere."

The mile walk to DHS is by a waterway, surrounded by themed resorts, then wildlife, then the sounds of DHS. The mile walk to Future World is by a waterway and then through World Showcase. In either case, 20 minutes of my time are required to get from my room to the destination.

At AKL, it takes an hour to get to Epcot. I see a giraffe, then follow a (pleasant-ish, unless someone is smoking) walkway along a driveway to a bus loop, where I get to smell bus exhaust and watch the monitor tell me my bus is coming in 20 minutes, at 1:56 pm. I mean 1:58 pm. No 2:00 pm. Or, rather 2:02 pm. Oh, wait, 2:05 pm. But I bring good news, 2:03 pm. Actually 2:06 pm. It finally arrives at 2:07 pm and I enjoy the 20 minute drive to Epcot, likely standing if I'm staying at Jambo where all the theme park buses go to Kidani first. Then I walk past the Epcot parking lot until I finally hear the Epcot entrance music at 2:32 pm. Joy.

 

[CLEtoWDW]

Choosing Beach Club over Animal Kingdom because of location alone, thinking it is faster to the parks, is like preferring Fast Food, to a Restaurant, because you can get your food faster.

With all do respect that's a pretty terrible analogy.
Going from BC to EPCOT is literally a walk that takes 4 minutes from room door to International Gateway entrance. So the location is unbeatable if you are going to spend a lot of time in EPCOT.
Now comparing BC to "fast food" and AKL to a "restaurant" is where you lost me. In my opinion the BC has some of the best amenities on property and it's why it's often one of the busiest resorts on property. Maybe it's just your personal preference but I can assure you that the masses don't agree with your sentiment.

 

[nancynancy428]

Unfortunately because for many location is very important, lol remember the old real estate mantra "location, location, location". so in my real life I work 41 miles from my house, we're talking a 55 minute trip each way every day. So in my world having to get on a bus or in my car every single time I want to go some place is not appealing especially on vacation. we usually drive but the one time we took disney transportation to get back to our room at AKL it took well over 45 minutes.
A mile in my world is a "stroll" and it's not a mindless walk. once you leave the Beach club, you are almost immediately in world showcase with stuff to look at.

The contemporary is one of my "least" favorite resorts as far as themes go, but I have to tell you the one time we stayed there, my family loved it. why? you cannot beat the ability to walk to MK. At the end of the night simply passing all those poor souls trying to get back to their resort is enough to make us stay there again and their pool isn't that special then throw in the monorail to Epcot and you've got your two main parks at your finger tips.

45 minutes to get back to AKL wouldn't be fun....I feel like either people are saying the buses are fine or the buses are a nightmare to and from AKL....just so hard to decipher what it would actually be like which has me more confused than ever about whether or not to book AKL. I'd love to hear more anecdotes on bus travel times from people! (Love nothing more than Disney research)
Also, as for BC, sure you can walk to Epcot and hollywood, but what are the magic Kingdom buses like? I've heard not so great....and are they shared with yacht club? What's that like?! Any travel times anecdotes for that would be awesome too!
A week ago, before I decided to search the forums for this, I was locked in on AKL (after considering returning to Poly, trying BC and Bay Lake towers were even in the running)
Now I am utterly confused,

 

[NelsonRD]

With all do respect that's a pretty terrible analogy.
Going from BC to EPCOT is literally a walk that takes 4 minutes from room door to International Gateway entrance. So the location is unbeatable if you are going to spend a lot of time in EPCOT.
Now comparing BC to "fast food" and AKL to a "restaurant" is where you lost me. In my opinion the BC has some of the best amenities on property and it's why it's often one of the busiest resorts on property. Maybe it's just your personal preference but I can assure you that the masses don't agree with your sentiment.

It is a proper analogy. I am suggesting that your willing to pass on a figurative unique dining experience, for a burger you can get anywhere, simply because you do not want to drive across town.

The point is, if you have considered staying at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, it should not be dismissed solely because of the location.

 

[ToTBellHop]

It is a proper analogy. I am suggesting that your willing to pass on a figurative unique dining experience, for a burger you can get anywhere, simply because you do not want to drive across town.

The point is, if you have considered staying at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, it should not be dismissed solely because of the location.

Nor should it be selected merely because you can see animals which you can already see on Kilimanjaro Safaris.

It's a great resort if you actually plan to spend many hours in your room watching giraffes. If you tend to spend the bulk of your time in the parks or at the pool, it makes sense to be closer to the parks.

To the OP, yes, Yacht and Beach Club combine to MK, but they are right next to each other. It's no different than Jambo and Kidani combining to all parks. Think of it this way--bus service may take up to an hour to MK from Beach Club, but you can walk to Epcot and DHS in under 20 min. Bus service may take up to an hour to EVERYWHERE EXCEPT DAK from AKL. I don't personally spend all that much time at DAK anyway, so that's not much of a perk, and you still have to take a bus there anyway.

Are you looking to spend the bulk of your time in a park or pool or are you looking to spend the bulk of your time sitting in your balcony? If the former, I would argue BC is the better choice; if the latter, AKL is nice.

 

[Herdman]

We are staying at the AKL in May for the first time at Jambo. It's our first time at a deluxe with most of our stays at either POFQ or POR. I'm very anxious to see how we compare the two. The bus comments to me are most contrasting. I've read how some people say it's not that bad, others it's like their worst nightmare. The "independent" authority in the Unofficial Guide definitely has the MK at a longer ride, but only by like 10-15 minutes compared to the other resorts. HS and Epcot are not that much different from the other resorts. It doesn't say anything near like it takes an hour to get to Epcot. So, we'll see I guess. It's just three of us, with my daughter being 19 so we can definitely handle slightly longer bus rides better than a family with young children. When we decided to buy DVC points to stay at the AKL, it was solely based on the unique theming. We weren't about to let a little longer wait for the buses influence that decision. If it takes 15 minutes longer to get somewhere I guess we'll just get up 15 minutes sooner. Seems simple enough to me. Don't sweat the little things....

 

[eliza61nyc]

45 minutes to get back to AKL wouldn't be fun....I feel like either people are saying the buses are fine or the buses are a nightmare to and from AKL....just so hard to decipher what it would actually be like which has me more confused than ever about whether or not to book AKL. I'd love to hear more anecdotes on bus travel times from people! (Love nothing more than Disney research)
Also, as for BC, sure you can walk to Epcot and hollywood, but what are the magic Kingdom buses like? I've heard not so great....and are they shared with yacht club? What's that like?! Any travel times anecdotes for that would be awesome too!
A week ago, before I decided to search the forums for this, I was locked in on AKL (after considering returning to Poly, trying BC and Bay Lake towers were even in the running)
Now I am utterly confused,

lol,
well look at it this way, this is a great decision to have to make.
Unfortunately you hit on the one big problem at disney, INCONSISTENCY. I really believe that is why Disney tells folks to allot an hour to every trip. pretty much after two years of hit or miss, we now always have a car with us.
many folks use Uber when they really want to get some where a bit quicker. it's weird I find that in the morning, they are really efficient getting to MK. by the early evening, not so much

 

[correcaminos]

Just when I was so sure and locked in on AKL you've got me doubting! I'm used to the Poly, most convenient of ALL the resorts- but was looking for a change this year so thought we'd try animal kingdom lodge, but man are you selling the beach club. idk maybe I'll stick with akl now and do BC when Hollywood Studios actually has attractions?!? So torn!!

I'll say it, if you were sold on it, then don't let someone else turn you away from the idea since we are all different in what we like.

I'll be honest, we were just at BC twice this year. We're kind of over the area right now. Ample Hills is nice, but you can walk to it from Epcot. We were considering BWV for next June but we're thinking of ditching the area and going for WL. Our bus service at BC was really bad. I mean people were waiting an hour to get to MK and the boats were kind of hit or miss and very crowded. For every wonderful thing we have about BC we can find negatives - and the fact is you will find this *everywhere* I'm not sure there is a perfect location (with the exception of Polynesian LOL).

I think your idea of going back to BC after DHS is open is a good one. Give AKL a try. Even if you don't love it as much as BC, I doubt you'll be sorry. We are complete Polynesian lovers and AKL is right there with it. Well Kidani is at least. You can have QS at Sanaa in the morning and the pool side QS is good too. You can also order from the bar to go items from Sanaa. So there are options there too. Don't forget you can very easily go to Mara as well if you are at Kidani. You have a ton of food options right there if that is important.

 

[BuddyThomas]

Nor should it be selected merely because you can see animals which you can already see on Kilimanjaro Safaris.

It's a great resort if you actually plan to spend many hours in your room watching giraffes. If you tend to spend the bulk of your time in the parks or at the pool, it makes sense to be closer to the parks.

To the OP, yes, Yacht and Beach Club combine to MK, but they are right next to each other. It's no different than Jambo and Kidani combining to all parks. Think of it this way--bus service may take up to an hour to MK from Beach Club, but you can walk to Epcot and DHS in under 20 min. Bus service may take up to an hour to EVERYWHERE EXCEPT DAK from AKL. I don't personally spend all that much time at DAK anyway, so that's not much of a perk, and you still have to take a bus there anyway.

Are you looking to spend the bulk of your time in a park or pool or are you looking to spend the bulk of your time sitting in your balcony? If the former, I would argue BC is the better choice; if the latter, AKL is nice.

Grrrrr.......You're making me real nervous for my upcoming trip at AKL in a couple of weeks, but at a rate per night just over $200 (convention rate), I guess I will endure the buses, or just take cabs.