staying at akv. suggestions?

[Obi]

looking for thoughts, opinions, facts, whatever anyone wants to share on the animal kingdom villas.

my fiance has requested to stay at akv for our disneymoon. sounds good to me. we'll be renting points from the dvc rental store.

interested in hearing the pros and cons for jambo and kidani.

annnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnd

GO!

 

[bubster]

Jambo House! We've stayed at Kidani and Jambo and Jambo wins hands down. Kidani can be so remote if you are on the far end and there is no way to get a quick bite to eat easily. Under the building parking is nice there but if you don't have a car that won't help. My 2 cents.

 

[lostpro9het]

Overall for us, Jambo wins. Here are some things that stood out for us:
Jambo
Pros:
We enjoyed the pool more, seemed larger.
We enjoyed the Dining more
Larger store
Arusha Savannah was awesome
Flamingo/Crane pool right next to the swimming pool was neat
We went during Christmas so it was pretty awesome in the lobby
Cons
Second stop on the resort loop drop off/pickup
parking was outside and a bit of a walk.

Kidani
Pros:
Parking was covered and you could park almost underneath where you are staying and take an elevator straight up.
Bathrooms were larger in our studio room when compared to the studio room at Jambo
First stop on bus loop.
Cons:
Smaller shop
Smaller pool area, felt congested
We went in October and the lobby was a bit "meh" compared to Jambo

 

[slappy magoo]

I've only ever stayed at AKL once, 10 years ago when it was relatively new and not part of DVC but it really is an impressive hotel and that lobby is amazing. Seems like square footage between the two are the same (unless you're shooting for a Value sized room, in which case it's only Jambo house anyway, and they are noticeably smaller). In my situation, while my kids would probably prefer being close to the water-play are in Kidani, and I would prefer the covered parking especially in summer months, what would put probably put Jambo over the top would be the proximity to the awesome lobby (and the cast members who can tell you about the various pieces of artwork throughout), the proximity to the food court and gym and the larger pool

EDIT: I am now aware that Kidani Village has its own fitness center. I am also aware of the irony in thinking "I want to go work out but I have to walk HOW far?"

 

[tlev]

I just returned from a 4 night stay at Kidani Village and LOVED it!!! It was so quiet! We saw lots of animals including giraffes and zebras. We took the quick shuttle over to Jambo House for lunch one day. Boy was it different over there! Very loud and crowded. There was alot of construction going on and it was difficult to grasp the beauty of the resort. My daughter (age 7) liked Jambo better because of all of the action, but I loved the peace and tranquility of Kidani Village.

 

[dreamfinder]

The biggest difference is the food choices, and size of the lobby. As pointed out, Kidani only has Sanaa, but there is a soda fountain in the store, and I believe at the pool for the refillable mugs. The pool at Kidani is a bit more elaborate for the kids, and most of the resort buses stop at Kidani first, then go to Jambo. (DTD is the exception) It's only a 10 minute walk between the two. Jambo has more animal viewing areas, and more overall activity. The CS is here, the Mara, so it's mostly a problem if you want food right when you wake up or when you get back to the hotel at the end of the day. Kidani is all DVC units, so you tend to have more regulars and people staying longer periods of time (IMHO) so it a slightly different vibe.

 

[Obi]

thanks for all the info so far....

we are looking to book a dining reservation at sanaa. i also like that kidani is the first stop on the bus route.

i still have to talk to the soon to be wife on whether she would want to stay in jambo or kidani, if that is even a option because we're renting dvc points. my choice, at the moment, is leaning towards kidani only because i haven't visited that section yet. i've been to jambo a couple of times because of dining reservations at boma. loved the main lobby area.. however, i can see how it can be really busy...

appreciate all the info so far. any more info, that anyone wants to share, would be great!

 

[RevKjb]

looking for thoughts, opinions, facts, whatever anyone wants to share on the animal kingdom villas.

my fiance has requested to stay at akv for our disneymoon. sounds good to me. we'll be renting points from the dvc rental store.

interested in hearing the pros and cons for jambo and kidani.

annnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnd

GO!

For honeymooners, it might be good for you to stay at the quieter Kidani. Jambo is a pretty busy place! Enjoy...

[COUNTDOWN=2015/02/12]Until we are home and ready to board The Magic [/COUNTDOWN]

 

[PhilharMagician]

They both are beautiful and we have stayed at them both many times and Kidani is our favorite. We like the fact that Kidani is not the center or hot spot of the AKL resort. Jambo is much busier and has much more going on and only a short walk away. We have made the walk many time between the resorts and I don't think it is that far at all. Here are a couple of think we like about Kidani:

Bussing going to the 4 main parks picks up at Kidani first. Manu times by the time the bus gets to Jambo specially in the morning it is full already. This is also your way to get from Kidani to Jambo without walking.

The bus to DTD goes to Jambo first so if you want a ride back to Kidani from Jambo this is it.

Samwati Springs pool at Kidani I believe is quieter and certainly more entertaining for kids with the spray area. I tend to like the bar here a little better since it is back away from the pool a little more and there seems to be more room around the bar itself.

Sanaa restaurant is amazing. I like to request a table by the windows. It is amazing watching the wildlife while enjoying a fantastic meal.

After a day in the parks we sometimes would stop at the Sanaa bar and get a cocktail and head out to the fire pit on the Savanna, hang out and talk with the CM and other guests around the fire. We have met so many nice people.


Enjoy your stay. No mater which building you stay your should have a great vacation.

 

[KingdomofDreams]

I just returned from a 4 night stay at Kidani Village and LOVED it!!! It was so quiet! We saw lots of animals including giraffes and zebras. We took the quick shuttle over to Jambo House for lunch one day. Boy was it different over there! Very loud and crowded. There was alot of construction going on and it was difficult to grasp the beauty of the resort. My daughter (age 7) liked Jambo better because of all of the action, but I loved the peace and tranquility of Kidani Village.

This post is from a month ago, but the bit about construction going on caught my eye. Does anyone have any info about construction going on at AKL Jambo?

 

[tlev]

We were only there for a short time so I am not sure what all was going on. All of this was located near the pool area and outside of the quick service dining area. There were many walls up around this area while we were there. It was quite an eyesore, but maybe it was just something short term that was being refurbed.