?s Animal kingdom lodge or Shades of green

[babirell]

Hello everybody long time no see lol. Well just a couple of questions for everybody. Me and my wife (and maybe some friends) are going to disney. My wife and I went last year and had a great time. We stayed at the shades of green resort. So the questions are: 1. Should we stay at shades of green or upgrade top animal kingdom lodge? What time of the year should we go? thanks everybody

 

[Jessie&Buzz]

I've stayed at Shades before. It's beautiful! It depends on if you want to use any of the perks for Disney resort guests like Magical Express or the dining plan. If you do then stay at Animal Kingdom Lodge. When doing the planning for our last trip we figured that staying at Shades over French Quarter w/dining plan only saved us about $50 so we opted to use the dining plan. I can't remember if we had figured in the cost of either Meers or a car service from the airport or not.

As for the time of year, I can't help you out. We usually go when we can afford to and deal with the crowds if there are any.

 

[FatBoy976]

If money is not a problem, than Animal Kingdom Lodge is the way to go. Shades of Green may be updated, but it is one of the first hotels on property. Animal Kingdom Lodge is spectacular. If nothing else, you have to go there and eat dinner at Boma's, the buffet. It's worth every penny.

Have fun no matter what you choose!

 

[Deadmanwalking]

If money is not a problem, than Animal Kingdom Lodge is the way to go. Shades of Green may be updated, but it is one of the first hotels on property. Animal Kingdom Lodge is spectacular. If nothing else, you have to go there and eat dinner at Boma's, the buffet. It's worth every penny.

Have fun no matter what you choose!

I would have to disagree with this opinion a bit. Animal Kingdom Lodge was the biggest disappointment I’ve ever experienced at Disney. We stayed in June of this year and expected to see animals…. We took a Savanah view based on the Disney travel telling us it would allow us to see animals… Well the fact is there are two Savanah view rooms, standard and deluxe. Deluxe view gives you the view of the animals’ field so to speak, the Standard view allows you a view of the alley ways that lead to the actual field. The way lodge is mapped it is basically a big U that has the animals in the center of the U anyroom that is facing the prime spot in the center of the U is considered Deluxe. If you aren’t getting the Deluxe view then you should stay in the cheapest possible as non-deluxe views don’t offer any decent viewing possibilities of animals. In the week we were there we saw one giraffe walk past our view… We saw more animals in 5 minutes at the Animal Kingdom park than we did in a week at the Lodge. The other item they don’t tell you until you get there is that most animals are only out and about early in the morning or after sunset. So if you get up real early you can see some animal from the viewing decks or if you are out at night you can see some provided the moon is full.

The other issue with this lodge is the size of the rooms. They are on small. Having stayed at the contemporary they seemed to be about 2/3rd the size. You will also only have one pool at the animal kingdom lodge which is very crowded. You’re forced to use the buses or your own car, the bus service is horrible so you really will want your car.

 

[imamouse]

Sorry to hear that you had such a negative experience at the AKL. We have stayed there several times and have nothing but good things to say about each of our stays. We also booked a standard Savannah view room and had excellent views of a variety of animals. One giraffe in particular, spent a lot of time outside our balcony. We even named her Lola .

We also enjoyed walking around the various viewing areas at the resort and speaking with the knowledgeable spotting guides who answered our many questions. We like the AKL so much that we're going to spend a few days there in late Jan. We are also big fans of the Wilderness Lodge (both resorts were built by the same architect).

As for the OPs question as to when to go - try the crowd calendar www.tourningplans.com for the lowest crowds. We prefer early Dec, Oct or early May.

 

[Master Yoda]

I would have to disagree with this opinion a bit. Animal Kingdom Lodge was the biggest disappointment I’ve ever experienced at Disney. We stayed in June of this year and expected to see animals…. We took a Savanah view based on the Disney travel telling us it would allow us to see animals… Well the fact is there are two Savanah view rooms, standard and deluxe. Deluxe view gives you the view of the animals’ field so to speak, the Standard view allows you a view of the alley ways that lead to the actual field. The way lodge is mapped it is basically a big U that has the animals in the center of the U anyroom that is facing the prime spot in the center of the U is considered Deluxe. If you aren’t getting the Deluxe view then you should stay in the cheapest possible as non-deluxe views don’t offer any decent viewing possibilities of animals. In the week we were there we saw one giraffe walk past our view… We saw more animals in 5 minutes at the Animal Kingdom park than we did in a week at the Lodge. The other item they don’t tell you until you get there is that most animals are only out and about early in the morning or after sunset. So if you get up real early you can see some animal from the viewing decks or if you are out at night you can see some provided the moon is full.

The other issue with this lodge is the size of the rooms. They are on small. Having stayed at the contemporary they seemed to be about 2/3rd the size. You will also only have one pool at the animal kingdom lodge which is very crowded. You’re forced to use the buses or your own car, the bus service is horrible so you really will want your car.

Many of the points you bring concerning room location and size are quite true. There definitely are rooms that provide a better Savannah than others. The rooms are small when compared to the Contemporary which has the largest standard rooms on property but compared to a value or a moderate the rooms are larger.

The other problems you had ,viewing the animals and the pool were really more related to the time of year that you went. June is peak season which means packed resorts and crowded pools. Also the extreme heat will drive the animals to the shade. The first time we went to AKL was May 13 2001 and we saw a plethora of animals at all hours of the day and night. The same will also be true for KS at AK

We never had a problem with the bus system at AKL. It is one of only a precious few Disney resorts that have a 1 stop dedicated bus system, however the quality of the bus system seems to be declining property wide as of late. For the first time we are starting to drive to the parks instead of taking the bus.

To the OP it is really hard to compare SOG and AKL. If all you want is a place to shower and sleep by all means go with the less expensive option. If you want a complete escape from reality at one of the most unique resorts on property than AKL is your best choice.

 

[flscooman]

thought you had to be military to stay at shades?

 

[ClemsonTigger]

As others have said, if money is not a critical item, AKL is an amazing experience. Also as discussed, some rooms are better than others for view, but that is the case at every resort. Rooms are smaller than other deluxe (same size as Wilderness Lodge). There are options with those however including deluxe rooms that are larger.

As for time of year, if you want to avoid crowds, Jan through early March, early Nov. or Dec. will be least crowded, followed by April/May/early June (avoiding whenever spring break/Easter is) or Sept./Oct. Each time has special offerings that can add more to your vacation. Check out www.allearsnet.com for events listings for the year.

Let us know how your plans progress.

 

[Jessie&Buzz]

thought you had to be military to stay at shades?

You do. You can also be retired from the military.