About a month ago, I stayed in a 2 BR villas at AKL. I thought some of you may be interested in it. This was our first time using our new DVC membership at our home resort.
Construction
On a 1 to 10 scale, the construction's effect on my stay was about a 2. Meaning I was aware of it, but it had the impact of a maid going down the hall with a squeaky wheel on the cart. I was there most days from at least 1 to 4 PM and I never really heard it. It was minimal at most.
Animals
We were on Zebra Trail with a Savannah View. There were Animals out there at least 80% of the time I looked. This was overlooking the center of the resort (Ashura Rock sp?). Over by the pool, I saw animals often also. I never looked on the west side though.
Service
Buses, Food Court, bell, valet, check In. All were great. Only had 1 slow service, and it was caused by an unexpected circumstance of someone quitting their job.
As I said, we were on Zebra trail, on the fifth floor, rooms 5429 and 5431. This was in what I call the second "set" of rooms down the hall, approx. equivalent to between the Mara and the bank of elevators, or about just above the arcade. Our balconies were about as far out as the end of the viewing area at Ashura Rock.
Kitchen is tiled, with black appliances. The fridge is an over/under type, so it does not have an ice maker, but it did have ice trays. We had all we needed after two cycles of freezing. Counters are marble, I think. Stove is flat top. The dishwasher was neat. It was dual. It was two smaller dishwashers in one in an over/under fashion. I like this idea and would put one in my own home if I ever replace the one I have now. You can load dirty dishes into one half of it, while the other half is still cleaning the previous load. How many times have you had to put a cup on the counter because the washer was still running? Well that is Wakie Nu NU! Not a problem here. I LOVE APPLIANCES! One thing you may want to know: bring liquid detergent if you bring it. I like the 3 in 1 powerballs thingys, but they are too big for the little soap drawer thing.
The TV's are LG. I don't know enough about new TV's to know if that is a good brand or not, but the picture was fantastic compared to what I have at home.
The Living room ,as you may know, sleeps three with the use of a pull out sleeper-chair. In the model pictures, it almost looks too crowded to be effective. It is not a problem though. We could still walk over to the child in the sleeper chair with out having to climb on top of the sleeper sofa. Kids said they were comfortable.
Dining table can accommodate six fairly well. If one person can fit in the high chair, you might could get seven. How often does your family all sit down for a breakfast or lunch at the exact same time though when you are on vacation? With us, usually someone is in the shower or getting dressed and we eat/dress in shifts.
The washer dryer is also an over under unit. Its controls confused me a little at first. I can"t tell you how nice it was to have this ready and available 24 hrs a day.
The king bed is extremely comfortable. It has many, many pillows too. I almost wish they made the 1 BR available with a queen too. The king takes up so much space, I would rather have more room to move around the room I think.
The bath on this side has plenty of room for moving around. I don't know if all are this way or not, but ours was an "accessible" bathroom. Two people could change at once due to the door between the sink area and shower area. These doors are sliding doors, which had its pros and cons. The con is because of the way the handles are on the doors, they come in direct contact with the door jamb. It is real easy to pinch a finger tip between the door handles and the door jamb.
I didn't spend a lot of time on the studio side, but it looked spacious enough for 4 to me.
I wish I could figure out how to use the "insert image" button, but I am still learning this message board stuff.
If you have any questions, feel free.
Also, I have a rather long trip report on that board from this trip if you are into that sort of thing.
Construction
On a 1 to 10 scale, the construction's effect on my stay was about a 2. Meaning I was aware of it, but it had the impact of a maid going down the hall with a squeaky wheel on the cart. I was there most days from at least 1 to 4 PM and I never really heard it. It was minimal at most.
Animals
We were on Zebra Trail with a Savannah View. There were Animals out there at least 80% of the time I looked. This was overlooking the center of the resort (Ashura Rock sp?). Over by the pool, I saw animals often also. I never looked on the west side though.
Service
Buses, Food Court, bell, valet, check In. All were great. Only had 1 slow service, and it was caused by an unexpected circumstance of someone quitting their job.
As I said, we were on Zebra trail, on the fifth floor, rooms 5429 and 5431. This was in what I call the second "set" of rooms down the hall, approx. equivalent to between the Mara and the bank of elevators, or about just above the arcade. Our balconies were about as far out as the end of the viewing area at Ashura Rock.
Kitchen is tiled, with black appliances. The fridge is an over/under type, so it does not have an ice maker, but it did have ice trays. We had all we needed after two cycles of freezing. Counters are marble, I think. Stove is flat top. The dishwasher was neat. It was dual. It was two smaller dishwashers in one in an over/under fashion. I like this idea and would put one in my own home if I ever replace the one I have now. You can load dirty dishes into one half of it, while the other half is still cleaning the previous load. How many times have you had to put a cup on the counter because the washer was still running? Well that is Wakie Nu NU! Not a problem here. I LOVE APPLIANCES! One thing you may want to know: bring liquid detergent if you bring it. I like the 3 in 1 powerballs thingys, but they are too big for the little soap drawer thing.
The TV's are LG. I don't know enough about new TV's to know if that is a good brand or not, but the picture was fantastic compared to what I have at home.
The Living room ,as you may know, sleeps three with the use of a pull out sleeper-chair. In the model pictures, it almost looks too crowded to be effective. It is not a problem though. We could still walk over to the child in the sleeper chair with out having to climb on top of the sleeper sofa. Kids said they were comfortable.
Dining table can accommodate six fairly well. If one person can fit in the high chair, you might could get seven. How often does your family all sit down for a breakfast or lunch at the exact same time though when you are on vacation? With us, usually someone is in the shower or getting dressed and we eat/dress in shifts.
The washer dryer is also an over under unit. Its controls confused me a little at first. I can"t tell you how nice it was to have this ready and available 24 hrs a day.
The king bed is extremely comfortable. It has many, many pillows too. I almost wish they made the 1 BR available with a queen too. The king takes up so much space, I would rather have more room to move around the room I think.
The bath on this side has plenty of room for moving around. I don't know if all are this way or not, but ours was an "accessible" bathroom. Two people could change at once due to the door between the sink area and shower area. These doors are sliding doors, which had its pros and cons. The con is because of the way the handles are on the doors, they come in direct contact with the door jamb. It is real easy to pinch a finger tip between the door handles and the door jamb.
I didn't spend a lot of time on the studio side, but it looked spacious enough for 4 to me.
I wish I could figure out how to use the "insert image" button, but I am still learning this message board stuff.
If you have any questions, feel free.
Also, I have a rather long trip report on that board from this trip if you are into that sort of thing.
