Reviews of Animal Kingdom Lodge KIDANI Village (Disney Vacation Club)
Animal Kingdom Lodge KIDANI Village (Disney Vacation Club)
Opened May 1, 2009
For full details, Fact Sheet, Photos and Videos visit: http://allears.net/acc/faq_kidani.htm
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Reviewed by BethWebb1981 Review Date: 04/14/2020
Rating: (10) Recommended
We had an upgrade here for our family of six, when our room at another resort was closed due to a hurricane. We have a two-bedroom suite with a savanna view. I wouldn't change a thing. I was so glad we had a resort day to relax at the pool (there were about 10 people at the pool), engage with all of the learning opportunities for the kids. They loved earning their African beads at the different activities. We loved the Bread Service at Sanaa for a break in our resort day. The animals were perfect! Even though there isn't a QS, there are items you can buy & cook in your room...we grabbed some frozen pizzas when we arrived late on our first night.
Pros:
Peaceful. Unique. Beautiful. Large rooms. Great food! Easy access to Jambo House for "more excitement."Cons:
Only buses available to parks.Reviewed by hystericalbender Review Date: 04/24/2019
Rating: (8) Not Recommended
We stayed at Kidani in January 2019 with a savanna view room. We really loved the room and the ability to see the animals at any time. Kidani was the first bus pick-up and drop-off (vs. Jambo), which gave us better transportation options to the parks. It was rather limiting, though, not having a quick service location on-site. The gift shop carries very limited snacks and drinks. While the African food on-site is delicious, it can become tedious if staying for several days. Also, the animal views of the savanna made us feel a little guilty leaving to go to the parks each day. If staying here, I would recommend paying for the savanna view. Otherwise, I don't think I would have felt our stay was worth the cost. In the future, we will likely return to view the animals or grab a bite to eat during our trip, but we would not choose this property as our hotel for future visits.
Pros:
Unique atmosphere, friendly staff, access to animal viewing, efficient bus serviceCons:
very limited food options, difficult to travel to Jambo for amenitiesReviewed by HeidiC Review Date: 04/24/2019
Rating: (8) Recommended
I enjoyed staying at Kidani Village. The room was spacious and I loved having a 2nd bathroom in the 1 bedroom suite. The suite was set up like an apartment and had all the amenities of home. We loved having the Savannah view and really enjoyed watching the animals roam.
Pros:
The space of the room and the view of the SavannahCons:
You do a lot of walking to get yo your room if your room is not close to the elevator. It can be exhausting after a long day at the park.Reviewed by csfranklin Review Date: 04/24/2019
Rating: (10) Recommended
We recently stayed here on our first DVC stay. We loved everything about it. The animals are out a lot and can be seen, not only from savannah rooms (which we had, and I highly recommend), but from viewing areas all over the lodge. The gift shop has a drink station, so we were easily able to fill our mugs (unfortunately, it closes at 11, and we were not back by then and really wanted a drink, but no biggie!) The shuttle to AKL was efficient and quick. We never waited long. It took us to the quick service at AKL, and we enjoyed the food there, since Kidani does not have one. The pool and slides were fun. The buses were excellent both to and from the parks and DS. The hallways are long, but if you were walking to a room at All-Stars or a moderate, you'd walk the same distance. Overall, we loved it and highly recommend the night time viewing of the animals with the night vision googles. Too cool!
Pros:
Small Good bus service Clean AnimalsCons:
No quick serviceReviewed by JessicaBonnell Review Date: 04/17/2019
Rating: (9) Recommended
We stayed here at the end of Jan 2019, for 7 nights. We had a savanna view studio room on the 5th floor. I requested a room near the lobby, as I knew it could be a very long walk otherwise. The room itself was great. It was very clean and tidy. I especially like that the bathroom was separated with the toilet in its own room. It was very quiet, we had people on both sides of us and we never heard them. I think that is a distention between the level of Disney resorts. I have noticed the more moderate/deluxe resorts have MUCH better sound proofing than the values. The only real downside to the room was that the fan was on a very low speed and it could not be changed. I was very much looking forward to the sound and circulation of a fan, and it was basically useless. As for the resort, it is very beautiful. It is much smaller than Jambo House, which is nice because it is not as full of people not staying there, but it does not have that dramatic effect that you get when you enter the Jambo lobby. It also does not have a quick service restaurant, which really sucked! There is a very timely shuttle that will take you back and forth to Jambo. It came promptly every 5-10 minutes. The gift shop is also very small and doesn't have a fraction of the selection of Jambo. We did not experience the pool, as it was in the 50's when we were there. Another upside to Kidani is that the buses pick up and drop off here first. So, if it is a busy day, you will be more likely to get a spot. It is a wonderful resort, and we would absolutely stay here again.
Pros:
animals, theming, cast members, atmosphere, clean spacious rooms, shuttle to JamboCons:
location, no quick service, small shop selection, small communal spaceReviewed by Melanie M Review Date: 02/06/2019
Rating: (8) Recommended
Very pretty scaled back version of the lodge but with few amenities. No quick serve for those coming in late, gotta stop at Jambo House. This is a VERY quiet resort....no drink refills til they open at 7 am and there is little to no movement until then! Our room was literally .25 miles from the drink refill station/lobby. That’s a bit of a hike since it is so sprawled out.
Pros:
Quiet, beautiful, nice pool Area especially for kidsCons:
Lack of amenities for food and distance from end to lobby can be dauntingReviewed by ChallengerHK1 Review Date: 02/05/2019
Rating: (7) Recommended
Kidani was a mixed bag for me and my wife. On the one hand, it's pretty, but I much prefer the scale of Jambo. The small public areas mad navigating difficult for my wife's wheelchair, especially the corridors leading from the lobby.
The resort is remote, which has its advantages, but it's far from everything. We spent more than 45 minutes going to Disney Springs one day.
The savannas are pretty, and the wildlife is fun. To really get any good views, though, you'd have to spend hours out there, which is time away from enjoying the parks and other recreation.
I do recommend Kidani, with the caveat that you need to stay for at least a week, and spend some serious time with the savannas and wildlife to get anything out of them.
Pros:
Savannas and wildlife Beauty SanaaCons:
Distance to everything Small public areasReviewed by annat856 Review Date: 12/05/2018
Rating: (8) Recommended
From the moment we pulled up and were greeted with Welcome Home until we left the staff, decor, activities, animals and food were wonderful. We stayed at a 1 bedroom villa and it is so spacious! Great layout with 2 bathrooms! Our teens slept one on the pullout sofa the other pullout chair, they are big 6ft. plus guys and were comfortable. The king bed was great and I love that you get a door to the large balcony from the master bedroom. The tub was great and I made use of a nice relaxing bath, it's vacation afterall. we only used the kitchen for coffee, cereal stuff like that but it's a full kitchen and can easily do more cooking. We were on the Dining plan so didn't need to. We had a standard view and made use of the viewing areas around the hotel.There also was some work on the outside of the building which meant 2 days we were unable to make use of the balcony.
Pros:
Beautiful well themed, friendly staff, and zebras and giraffesCons:
far from everything although we didn't mind. The bus system could seriously be improved if going in the morning and evening it's fine but not reliable in mid afternoon.Reviewed by StephieEH Review Date: 09/30/2018
Rating: (10) Recommended
LOVED this resort! We had a Studio room in the Pumbaa section with a Savanna view. We saw animals all the time. The staff was amazing and loved that the bus rides didn't take to long no matter where you went. We rented DVC points and can't wait to go again. Pool was amazing and they provided the children with life vest so if you travel from far away you don't have to pack anything other than your bathing suits.
Pros:
Staff are amazing. Views of the animals is like nothing you will experience anywhere else. Best swimming pool for adults and children.Cons:
NoneReviewed by maze4 Review Date: 09/28/2018
Rating: (8) Recommended
Stayed using DVC points 7/26-7/31 All girls trip celebrating my mothers 70th and my daughter 10 birthday. My mom has mobility issues and was renting a ECV I had requested a room on lobby level closest to lobby for ease of travel. We received lobby level but was very far from the lobby. did not see any animals the entire stay even though we had savannah view. Requested egg crate mattress for pull out sofa and it worked for my mom. We had stayed at this resort in January and really like the location. Was able to use the pool this time and really liked it. Will stay here again. buses were frequent and only waited for the HS bus.
Pros:
point value, location,Cons:
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