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Disney's Animal Kingdom Resort in Orlando

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atroop711

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We just booked our flight for our summer vacation and we're going to the Animal Kingdom Resort. I'm wondering if anyone has been and can give be some BTDT TIPS!!!?!?!?!

Any information that you wished you knew before you arrived would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!! :wavey:
 
Disney!! Yay!!

One of my neighbors stays there every other year with her family, at Christmas time. I will ask her for some insight.
 
meresal|1299163052|2863682 said:
Disney!! Yay!!

One of my neighbors stays there every other year with her family, at Christmas time. I will ask her for some insight.

Oh thank you..I would appreciate if you could get me some info. We love Disney so much because they make traveling with children EASY esp. the smaller ones (my son will be almost 3 at the time and my others will be 11yr and 7yr).

Thanks again!
 
Atroop, I totally agree about the ease of traveling with kids. We took our 5 month old this past October, and it helps that everyone there is prepared for kids, strollers, etc.

We stay at the Grand Floridian. My husband likes to be on the Monorail, and I love the pool there! :bigsmile:

However, my neighbor and her family swear by the AK Resort. They love seeing the animals in the morning when they come out to eat. It sounds like it would be very relaxing to look out and see exotic animals wandering about, underneath your balcony!
 
meresal|1299163618|2863692 said:
Atroop, I totally agree about the ease of traveling with kids. We took our 5 month old this past October, and it helps that everyone there is prepared for kids, strollers, etc.

We stay at the Grand Floridian. My husband likes to be on the Monorail, and I love the pool there! :bigsmile:

However, my neighbor and her family swear by the AK Resort. They love seeing the animals in the morning when they come out to eat. It sounds like it would be very relaxing to look out and see exotic animals wandering about, underneath your balcony!


Yes Disney really knows how to spoil their guests because they make it so easy to be there and if you need anything, they're so great in helping you out. We go almost every other year..this is our longest time we've stayed away. Our last trip was when I was pregnant with my son 3 yrs ago. We've stayed at many of their different resorts (categories) and wanted to stay in AK this time since this was on our MUST STAY LIST.

BTW we've also done the Disney Cruise 3 times and I HIGHLY recommend it with kids. IMO it's even better than the park but wait until your child is at least 3 yr old then they could participate in the Disney Camp which is out of this world. We were going to do the Cruise this summer but we will leave it for next summer when our son is almost 4 and then all 3 kids will be in the camp..and Mommy/Daddy could have some alone time at night ;)
 
Atroop - You guys will have so much fun there! There is a water ride so bring ponchos just in case you decide you want to go on it. They now have the roller coaster that goes backwards. It is set up much like Big Thunder Mountain, so no upside down or anything like that. Make sure to see the tigers! There is also a huge "tree" in the middle of the park that is carved to look like a tree full of animals, horses and giraffes for branches etc. There's a show inside there, so make sure you don't miss that. I don't remember much about food there.
 
Ahh I'm jealous. I went to DW in 2008 and loved it. We didn't stay at the AK hotel but the one that is New Orleansy (can't remember the name right now). It wasn't THE most relaxing (through no fault of the DW) because our 2 year old had a cold and was not feeling well. I I would love to go again because you do feel catered to.

That cruise sounds great. I feel a little guilty going on a vacation without my kids (husband and I haven't been on a solo trip since the first one came 8 years ago) but a ship with basically babysitters sounds good to me, or at least one with activities. My husband goes back and forth about this. He feels uncomfortable with the idea of hotel/cruise ship babysitters because they are strangers and we don't have personal references from them. But that would rule out the usefulness of taking a cruise to have both family AND adult time. Hmm maybe this is why we can't seem to plan a trip.
 
part gypsy|1299189086|2864070 said:
Ahh I'm jealous. I went to DW in 2008 and loved it. We didn't stay at the AK hotel but the one that is New Orleansy (can't remember the name right now). It wasn't THE most relaxing (through no fault of the DW) because our 2 year old had a cold and was not feeling well. I I would love to go again because you do feel catered to.

That cruise sounds great. I feel a little guilty going on a vacation without my kids (husband and I haven't been on a solo trip since the first one came 8 years ago) but a ship with basically babysitters sounds good to me, or at least one with activities. My husband goes back and forth about this. He feels uncomfortable with the idea of hotel/cruise ship babysitters because they are strangers and we don't have personal references from them. But that would rule out the usefulness of taking a cruise to have both family AND adult time. Hmm maybe this is why we can't seem to plan a trip.


I've also been very careful with who I leave my dcs with but I have to tell you...on the Disney Cruise I felt so comfortable. The staff are trained and certified (as many daycare workers are). The nursery for the infant to 3 yr olds is great. They have the cribs in a dark room so the smaller ones could sleep..they have lots of toys for the dcs to play with. The CAMP for the kids 3 yr and up is AMAZING. My dcs wanted to be there all day because they had so much fun. I told them that after dinner they could join the other kids but the first part of the day is family time. The have PJ parties with the characters, treasure hunts, computerized animation, ect. I'm telling you...this trip is A MUST!~!
 
We stayed in AK lodge in 2009. This is, in my opinion, the best resort. The resort is long with the parking lot located in the front so be prepared for a good amount of walking if you have a car. The bus stop is fairly close to the entrance. I would also request a room in one of the first 3 buildings on the savannah. We stayed on the Kudu trail with the Arusha rock in view. We were in the 2nd building on the second floor and we loved it. We had a room that was in front of a feeding post and saw lots of giraffe and zebra! Also be sure to let your kids sit in the lobby and watch classic Mickey cartoons after a long day at the parks, it's such a great memory! There's also many activities to do at the resort including night animal viewing with night vision binoculars. Just ask at the front desk. Also check out Boma, one of my favorite restaurants. I hope you guy's have a blast! We were just there at the end of November and I'm still jealous! :wavey:
 
heb|1299214514|2864413 said:
We stayed in AK lodge in 2009. This is, in my opinion, the best resort. The resort is long with the parking lot located in the front so be prepared for a good amount of walking if you have a car. The bus stop is fairly close to the entrance. I would also request a room in one of the first 3 buildings on the savannah. We stayed on the Kudu trail with the Arusha rock in view. We were in the 2nd building on the second floor and we loved it. We had a room that was in front of a feeding post and saw lots of giraffe and zebra! Also be sure to let your kids sit in the lobby and watch classic Mickey cartoons after a long day at the parks, it's such a great memory! There's also many activities to do at the resort including night animal viewing with night vision binoculars. Just ask at the front desk. Also check out Boma, one of my favorite restaurants. I hope you guy's have a blast! We were just there at the end of November and I'm still jealous! :wavey:


Oh HEB thanks so much!!! I'm so excited about our plans..and glad to hear you loved it. Thanks for the info about the buildings.
:wavey:
 
Big Disney Fan here. AKL is a lovely resort. I have only visited there, but been impressed. We will stay when my son is a little older and will appreciate the animals even more. Our next trip will be at the new Bay Lake Tower at the Contemporary.

http://allears.net is my favorite go to site for everything.

I also use www.mousesavers.com for discounts on other things like rental cars and the like.
 
Thanks Atroop! I feel the same way in that the Disney staff are so professional and with their reputation, it's not quite the same as strangers.

I brought it up with my husband and he made a good point since the younger one was only 2 when we went, if we ever did the DW experience again, he would prefer to go to DW again (versus a cruise). Wish I could do both. But this is a loong term plan, like if I plant the seeds now, we'll go 4-5 years from now (DH is anti "commercial" vacations).
 
clgwli|1299255613|2864611 said:
Big Disney Fan here. AKL is a lovely resort. I have only visited there, but been impressed. We will stay when my son is a little older and will appreciate the animals even more. Our next trip will be at the new Bay Lake Tower at the Contemporary.

http://allears.net is my favorite go to site for everything.

I also use www.mousesavers.com for discounts on other things like rental cars and the like.


Thanks for the links! I will look at them now!
 
Disboards.com has everything you want to know about staying at DisneyWorld! My daughter used to drive the safari at Animal Kingdom, best job ever! Have a great time!
 
AprilBaby|1299281177|2864953 said:
Disboards.com has everything you want to know about staying at DisneyWorld! My daughter used to drive the safari at Animal Kingdom, best job ever! Have a great time!


Thanks for that link!! BTW I love the safari there. Can't wait for my son to see it.
 
AprilBaby|1299281177|2864953 said:
Disboards.com has everything you want to know about staying at DisneyWorld! My daughter used to drive the safari at Animal Kingdom, best job ever! Have a great time!
How awesome! One of my friends worked there for a while :)

Disboards does have a nice forum, but some of them a bit "overzealous" when it comes to planning. Don't let them scare you off LOL
 
Oooh - a Disney trip! Hubby and I were there last year. I was in Orlando for a conference and was hoping to get placed at Contemporary Resort, but we were placed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. I was really disappointed until I got there. That place is awesome!!!! We stayed for a week after the conference was over so we could do the whole Disney thing. One thing I remember most is the wonderful smells drifting up from the restaurants on the lower level. There is a restaurant called Boma with an African Buffet, and the food was really good. Every evening we wandered around the pool area to watch the animals hanging out on the savannah. There were several giraffes and zebras wandering around, and lots of other animals and birds too. I have very good memories of that place! In fact, we have recommended it to several people who are planning Disney vacations. The magical express from the airport to the hotel was great. We did the luggage thing where you go straight from the plane to the bus to the hotel, and your luggage magically arrives in your room a few hours later. They definitely know how to spoil you. It was my hubby's first trip to Disney World, so it was like being there with a kid!

One thing that people suggested that we do...but we didn't...was to make dinner reservations far ahead if there were any restaurants we really wanted to go to. We thought since we would be there in November we'd be okay, but nope! There were a couple of nights we were eating really late (like around 11pm) at Downtown Disney because we couldn't get in anywhere in the parks.

I think I requested a DVD from allears.net that was helpful to us. Have fun planning!
 
deegee|1299296517|2865178 said:
Oooh - a Disney trip! Hubby and I were there last year. I was in Orlando for a conference and was hoping to get placed at Contemporary Resort, but we were placed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. I was really disappointed until I got there. That place is awesome!!!! We stayed for a week after the conference was over so we could do the whole Disney thing. One thing I remember most is the wonderful smells drifting up from the restaurants on the lower level. There is a restaurant called Boma with an African Buffet, and the food was really good. Every evening we wandered around the pool area to watch the animals hanging out on the savannah. There were several giraffes and zebras wandering around, and lots of other animals and birds too. I have very good memories of that place! In fact, we have recommended it to several people who are planning Disney vacations. The magical express from the airport to the hotel was great. We did the luggage thing where you go straight from the plane to the bus to the hotel, and your luggage magically arrives in your room a few hours later. They definitely know how to spoil you. It was my hubby's first trip to Disney World, so it was like being there with a kid!

One thing that people suggested that we do...but we didn't...was to make dinner reservations far ahead if there were any restaurants we really wanted to go to. We thought since we would be there in November we'd be okay, but nope! There were a couple of nights we were eating really late (like around 11pm) at Downtown Disney because we couldn't get in anywhere in the parks.

I think I requested a DVD from allears.net that was helpful to us. Have fun planning!


deegee thanks so much!!

We go to Disney often and we Resort Hop..every time we try a new resort...so this time it's AKL. We've very excited and I'm more excited to see the faces of our 3 children when they see the animals. I agree with you with the Magic your way. My dh asked me when I booked will we just drop our luggage off at our NYC airport again and say Bye-bye until we get to our resort room..I told him Of course ...you know how Disney is!! Yes I'm about to start making reservations (later today) for the character meals if not they book quickly. Since the trip is in Aug, it's within the 6mo you can book in advance...so nuts but it's a must.

Thanks so much for taking the time to write. I'm even more excited every time I hear from someone who loved the resort! :appl:
 
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