AKL vs WL

[tfiga]

My husband and I are planning a club level trip to either Wilderness Lodge or Animal Kingdom Lodge in February 2025. We plan to spend a couple of days hanging out at the resort to recover from our park days. We plan on going to MK and Epcot. We are in our 50’s and enjoy just relaxing outside but would like a resort with a few things we can find to do during the day. It would be a bonus if there were board games we could use. My husband loves, loves the POG juice which they don’t appear to have it at the Wilderness Lodge club but do at Animal Kingdom Lodge club. Wilderness Lodge is about $80 a night cheaper. Which would you choose and why?

TIA

 

[Grace&Carolinesmom]

I would choose WL. You have much easier access to dining, shopping, etc. at monorail resorts via a quick boat ride. You also have evening fireworks and EWP at WL. While AKL affords animal viewing, it's also quite isolated.

 

[tfiga]

I would choose WL. You have much easier access to dining, shopping, etc. at monorail resorts via a quick boat ride. You also have evening fireworks and EWP at WL. While AKL affords animal viewing, it's also quite isolated.

Thank you for the detailed response!

 

[Marthasor]

My husband and I are planning a club level trip to either Wilderness Lodge or Animal Kingdom Lodge in February 2025. We plan to spend a couple of days hanging out at the resort to recover from our park days. We plan on going to MK and Epcot. We are in our 50’s and enjoy just relaxing outside but would like a resort with a few things we can find to do during the day. It would be a bonus if there were board games we could use. My husband loves, loves the POG juice which they don’t appear to have it at the Wilderness Lodge club but do at Animal Kingdom Lodge club. Wilderness Lodge is about $80 a night cheaper. Which would you choose and why?

TIA

Another vote for WL. If you do AKL CL, your room will not be on the same floor of the lounge which I found a bit inconvenient. We love the standard WL CL rooms as it's possible (but no guarantee) to get a room with a view of the monorail and the fireworks. As PP noted, there is a ton to do in the MK area as opposed to the AKL area. With an $80 a night savings, you could get POG juice delivered to keep in your fridge or just go to some of the restaurants that serve it!

 

[JennaDeeDooDah]

Add me to the Wilderness Lodge camp. That resort is possibly the most peaceful on property which is great after a long day in the parks or for a down day. Fort Wilderness is also a short walk, boat ride, or bus trip away and has Hoop Dee Doo Revue, Tri Circle D Ranch, and trail rides. The lobby of WL is completely breathtaking. In fact, at one time they had tours you could book of the lodge. Not sure if that is still a thing. Lunch out at Geyser Point Bar and Grill is delightful and it is a lot of fun to watch the geyser go off at the top of the hour. Depending on your room, you might have a view of the Magic Kingdom fireworks. As others have said, it is much closer to Magic Kingdom and why take a bus when you can take the relaxing boat to and from the park? It also has boat access to the Contemporary, if you have an interest in that.

 

[tfiga]

Another vote for WL. If you do AKL CL, your room will not be on the same floor of the lounge which I found a bit inconvenient. We love the standard WL CL rooms as it's possible (but no guarantee) to get a room with a view of the monorail and the fireworks. As PP noted, there is a ton to do in the MK area as opposed to the AKL area. With an $80 a night savings, you could get POG juice delivered to keep in your fridge or just go to some of the restaurants that serve it!

Thank you!

 

[japanese maple]

We chose AKL out of the two. They both seem nice but we think that AKL will give an experience that you can't get anywhere else. Plus they have some of the best restaurants on property. Yes it's bus only, but that doesn't bother us in the age of Uber. We've toured there and one of the things we loved was the amount of places to just sit and relax, both inside and outside. Lot's of activities also.

AKL truly seems like a resort destination.

 

[tfiga]

We chose AKL out of the two. They both seem nice but we think that AKL will give an experience that you can't get anywhere else. Plus they have some of the best restaurants on property. Yes it's bus only, but that doesn't bother us in the age of Uber. We've toured there and one of the things we loved was the amount of places to just sit and relax, both inside and outside. Lot's of activities also.

AKL truly seems like a resort destination.

Thank you! That is exactly what I am struggling with as AKL seems like the more relaxing of the two.

 

[tfiga]

Add me to the Wilderness Lodge camp. That resort is possibly the most peaceful on property which is great after a long day in the parks or for a down day. Fort Wilderness is also a short walk, boat ride, or bus trip away and has Hoop Dee Doo Revue, Tri Circle D Ranch, and trail rides. The lobby of WL is completely breathtaking. In fact, at one time they had tours you could book of the lodge. Not sure if that is still a thing. Lunch out at Geyser Point Bar and Grill is delightful and it is a lot of fun to watch the geyser go off at the top of the hour. Depending on your room, you might have a view of the Magic Kingdom fireworks. As others have said, it is much closer to Magic Kingdom and why take a bus when you can take the relaxing boat to and from the park? It also has boat access to the Contemporary, if you have an interest in that.

Thank you!

 

[japanese maple]

Thank you! That is exactly what I am struggling with as AKL seems like the more relaxing of the two.

The cast members are great too. They will sit and talk to you about the animals on the Savannah.
I'm talking this up a lot, I hope when we actually have our stay it's good.

 

[RanDIZ]

We own DVC at both. So in my eyes you can’t go wrong either way. WL will give you more accessible options with the boats and monorail close by. Both are peaceful places to relax. AK has the better restaurant selection. And you can’t go wrong relaxing by the many savannas. So I’d give the edge to AK.

 

[CynBeth]

Another vote for WL!

 

[matt and beth]

In our 50s too! Both lobby’s are very similar. Honestly, we prefer the meat and BBQ at WL over the African ethnic food at AKL. Both are about the same speed. Generally quiet and laid back. We were BWV DVC and had visited both but bought at CCV WL because it had a slightly better fit. Cool outside bar restaurant we can pony up to and have a couple of ipas, watch a game, chat with the bar tenders, and eat a meal. It’s over looking the lake. If you like hanging outside this is the place for you.

 

[Rex1993]

AKL all the way! My wife and I are in our early 40s with young kids so a bit different situation. That being said we are staying at VGF on our upcoming trip only because of the kids. If it were only us, there is zero question we would stay at AKL.

What's interesting is that we read so many bad things about AKL, especially Kidani, that we never put it on the list. Last summer when we sailed in the Wish, we decided last minute to stay three nights on property before going on the ship. The only options were SSR and Kidani. We ended up doing Kidani and it was the highlight of the whole trip. We all agreed we liked staying at Kidani better than concierge on the Wish.

 

[tfiga]

We own DVC at both. So in my eyes you can’t go wrong either way. WL will give you more accessible options with the boats and monorail close by. Both are peaceful places to relax. AK has the better restaurant selection. And you can’t go wrong relaxing by the many savannas. So I’d give the edge to AK.

Thank you!

 

[tfiga]

The cast members are great too. They will sit and talk to you about the animals on the Savannah.
I'm talking this up a lot, I hope when we actually have our stay it's good.

The cast members are great too. They will sit and talk to you about the animals on the Savannah.
I'm talking this up a lot, I hope when we actually have our stay it's good.

Thank you!

 

[tfiga]

In our 50s too! Both lobby’s are very similar. Honestly, we prefer the meat and BBQ at WL over the African ethnic food at AKL. Both are about the same speed. Generally quiet and laid back. We were BWV DVC and had visited both but bought at CCV WL because it had a slightly better fit. Cool outside bar restaurant we can pony up to and have a couple of ipas, watch a game, chat with the bar tenders, and eat a meal. It’s over looking the lake. If you like hanging outside this is the place for you.

Thank you!

 

[westie55]

We all agreed we liked staying at Kidani better than concierge on the Wish.

Not to hijack the thread, but how was your concierge experience on the Wish? I’m booked for concierge later this year.

OP, I’ve stayed at WL and AKL and enjoy both. I have young kids so prefer the proximity of WL to MK at this time in our lives, but I think AKL is stunning.

 

[ChrisnKim913]

We didn’t stay club level but we just did a split stay at AKL & WL a few weeks ago. I will just say I wish we spent the whole time at WL. It was nice to try AKL but WL was just amazing. Boat transport to MK was great and a nice bus ride to EPCOT. Geyser point was fantastic and we had multiple meals there. Also the AKL lobby was just too dark for our liking.

 

[tfiga]

We didn’t stay club level but we just did a split stay at AKL & WL a few weeks ago. I will just say I wish we spent the whole time at WL. It was nice to try AKL but WL was just amazing. Boat transport to MK was great and a nice bus ride to EPCOT. Geyser point was fantastic and we had multiple meals there. Also the AKL lobby was just too dark for our liking.

Thank you!