Animal Kingdom - 1st time

[briand1023]

I am surprising my wife with a trip for Christmas and we are staying at AK - night 1 Jambo House and nights 2 and 3 at Kidani Village. I am hoping to get night 1 at Kidani so we dont have to move but I just booked this 2 weeks ago as a last minute thing...going for New Years. Anyway....whats the difference between Kidani and Jambo, I have Savannah view for both reservations.

we have always stayed at BWV as its our home resort but it was not available on short notice and since this will be more relaxing without the kids and rope drops each day I thought we might be able to relax with a coffee and watch the animals....will I really see animals from my room? any advice on things to do while at the resort? thanks!

 

[DenLo]

Jambo House DVC villas are all converted hotel rooms, located on the 5th floor. They are all lockoffs. You can view either the Uzima or Sunset Savannas. There are AKV Concierge or Club level rooms on the 6th floor.

At Kidani Village there are dedicated 2 BRs in addition to lockoffs. The savanna rooms all face either the Sunset Savanna or the Pembe Savanna (there are no zebras nor giraffes on the Pembe, they have other animals including Okapis.)
The 1 or 2 BRs at Kidani Village have an extra bathroom off of the living room. So 1BRs have 2 bathrooms and 2 BRs have three bathrooms. All of the 1 & 2 BRs at AKV have a sleeper chair in the living room so they sleep 5 and 9 respectively.

Jambo House has two TS restaurants, Boma and Jiko as well as a QS, Mara.
Kidani Village has one TS restaurant, Sanaa. There is a small shop at Kidani Village with some groceries, with a refillable mug station, including coffee and tea. Another station is at the pool bar at Kidani Village. The gift store and market at Jambo House is much larger. However I believe the refillable mug station is at Mara. I'm not sure if the pool bar at Jambo House has a refillable mug station, or if you just have to go into Mara.

You can walk between the two resorts in 8 - 10 minutes. Or there is a shuttle van (9 passenger) that drives between the two resorts. You pick it up at the main entrance. Or any park bus (from the bus stop) leaving Kidani Village stops at Jambo House. And the DTD bus starts at Jambo House and stops at Kidani Village before heading out to DTD.

 

[erionm]

Jambo House DVC villas are all converted hotel rooms, located on the 5th floor. They are all lockoffs. You can view either the Uzima or Sunset Savannas. There are AKV Concierge or Club level rooms on the 6th floor.

There are also DVC rooms in Jambo House that face the Arusha Savanna.

The DVC Concierge Level rooms overlook either the Sunset Savanna or Uzima Pool. There are only 5 2-bedroom lock-offs that make up the DVC portion of the Concierge Level rooms. Three face the Sunset Savanna, the other two face the Uzima Pool.

 

[briand1023]

We are getting a Studio - Savannah view...the only rooms available....how are the restaurants for breakfast?

 

[erionm]

We are getting a Studio - Savannah view...the only rooms available....how are the restaurants for breakfast?

For a quick service breakfast at AKL/AKV, there's the Mara in Jambo House.

Menu can be found here: http://allears.net/menu/menu_mara.htm

 

[DisneyDiana]

Boma has a fabulous breakfast!

 

[DVCTigger]

I am surprising my wife with a trip for Christmas and we are staying at AK - night 1 Jambo House and nights 2 and 3 at Kidani Village. I am hoping to get night 1 at Kidani so we dont have to move but I just booked this 2 weeks ago as a last minute thing...going for New Years. Anyway....whats the difference between Kidani and Jambo, I have Savannah view for both reservations.

we have always stayed at BWV as its our home resort but it was not available on short notice and since this will be more relaxing without the kids and rope drops each day I thought we might be able to relax with a coffee and watch the animals....will I really see animals from my room? any advice on things to do while at the resort? thanks!

We love Kidani especially for more relaxing trips! Kidanis rooms are a little bigger than at Jambo. And as other posters have mentioned, no QS at Kidani. The walk to Jambo is quick and easy, well, depending on where your room is! The hallways are really long at Kidani, so you may want to request a room closer to the lobby.
As far as things to do, make sure to get an activities guide! There are things like a culinary tour of Boma (highly recommend, and it's free!), cookie decorating (also free at Boma), pool parties, outdoor movies by the pool, cultural talks and demonstrations, night vision goggles to see the animals in the evenings, etc. Boma breakfast is one of our favorite on property. And yes, you really will see Animals from your room! They have feeding stations all around the savannah so the animals will roam around and find the food.
Enjoy your stay!

 

[erionm]

We love Kidani especially for more relaxing trips! Kidanis rooms are a little bigger than at Jambo.

With the OP booked into a Savanna View Studio at both buildings, there is only a 1 square foot difference between the two.

 

[LisaS]

Kidani studios are laid out differently than those in Jambo. I like the Jambo layout better because the bathroom sinks are outside the bathroom where they can be accessed even if someone else is using the toilet or shower. Kidani studios have more storage space however so each have their advantages. They are nearly identical in size.

The big advantage to Kidani is that you can request a room on a low floor, putting you closer to the animals. When we stay at Kidani we always request "Sunset Savanna, low floor".

And I agree with what has been posted about the breakfast at Boma. It's a buffet restaurant open for breakfast and dinner. At breakfast they have omelets made to order and many other things. It's pricey but worth a visit once in a while. The quick breakfast at The Mara is good if you're looking for a hot breakfast at a reasonable price.

 

[Disney Dreams]

I thought we might be able to relax with a coffee and watch the animals....will I really see animals from my room? !

This was taken from our balcony. (I have a small obsession with giraffes. )

We own at AKV and I personally think it's a pretty magical place. Where else can I sit on the balcony of my hotel and watch giraffes and zebra roam in my "backyard"?

Enjoy!
- Dreams