First time at Animal Kingdom Kidani Village...any tips

[Ariel 1715]

We are hopefully going to Kidani Village in October in a Savanna View 2 bedroom. Any tips for room location or resort tips is appreciated

 

[GrumpyInPhilly]

We were supposed to be in the same type room @ Kidani this week but oh well.
It would have been our first trip to AKV. Based on research on the boards my room request was (and will again be for our rebooked dates): lower floor near the Timon or Rafiki elevators. This puts you on the savannah view with the giraffes.

 

[Ariel 1715]

We were supposed to be in the same type room @ Kidani this week but oh well.
It would have been our first trip to AKV. Based on research on the boards my room request was (and will again be for our rebooked dates): lower floor near the Timon or Rafiki elevators. This puts you on the savannah view with the giraffes.

Thanks for the tip!! Sorry you had to cancel hopefully you can reschedule. I am hoping October is even a go at this point!

 

[MBTigger]

I rented points for Kidani in Jan, and I would say that near the elevators is a good request. As many people have mentioned the full hallway walk can be pretty long. Our experience in Jan was that busses to HS and EPCOT run less often in the morning than MK or AK, so if you want to rope drop those parks you might wish to consider Uber/lyft
I loved the resort and having 2 bathrooms in our one bedroom unit. Amazon now food delivery allowed us to make full use of the kitchen. We ate at Sanaa for lunch one day and enjoyed it very much. We also took the Twilight Safari and thought it worth doing, but I am a sucker for up close animal experiences.

 

[GrumpyInPhilly]

I rented points for Kidani in Jan, and I would say that near the elevators is a good request. As many people have mentioned the full hallway walk can be pretty long. Our experience in Jan was that busses to HS and EPCOT run less often in the morning than MK or AK, so if you want to rope drop those parks you might wish to consider Uber/lyft
I loved the resort and having 2 bathrooms in our one bedroom unit. Amazon now food delivery allowed us to make full use of the kitchen. We ate at Sanaa for lunch one day and enjoyed it very much. We also took the Twilight Safari and thought it worth doing, but I am a sucker for up close animal experiences.

Thanks for this info. We will keep it in mind for when we do get to stay there.

 

[Simba's Mom]

We were supposed to be in the same type room @ Kidani this week but oh well.
It would have been our first trip to AKV. Based on research on the boards my room request was (and will again be for our rebooked dates): lower floor near the Timon or Rafiki elevators. This puts you on the savannah view with the giraffes.

Both times we were at Kidani (once in a savannah view 2 BR) we asked for "near lobby" and got way far out (once we were only a few rooms from the end!). However, you've got me thinking that perhaps I should have requested near a particular elevator instead. At least we were on a savannah that had giraffes.

 

[GrumpyInPhilly]

Both times we were at Kidani (once in a savannah view 2 BR) we asked for "near lobby" and got way far out (once we were only a few rooms from the end!). However, you've got me thinking that perhaps I should have requested near a particular elevator instead. At least we were on a savannah that had giraffes.

Getting the giraffes is a win in my book. Congrats!

 

[DizDaD7]

@Ariel 1715
It is a larger resort (walk wise) to possibly some of the end rooms, but manageable...I usually just say close to lobby.( My daughter had knee problems ) so we tried to limit as much excess walking as possible. The resort is gorgeous. Actually they both are. And I keep flip flopping on which I like better, but since you're staying in Kidani we'll focus on that.

No QS is a slight bummer for morning for us but they do have some odds n ends in Johari Treasures, and the refill station. It's located just off the lobby. Sanaa, to me is a must do...The food is excellent, and where else can you get to dine that close to the animals right there.
The pool here is a lil smaller but it's setup is very nice n secluded...Almost feels like you're in the middle of nowhere...The slide is cool, the hidden hot tub up top, the gym right there too, and also the mini water park/ features...

I love this resort because it's a vacation from your vacation when you return from the parks...The CM's here are so friendly and knowledgable and never hesitate to give you a cultural/history lesson from their country... The decor is soothing and peaceful here, and scenery as well. Also I've only had 1 day of an issue with the busses out of our 3 stays here. It was a day that we had scheduled for MK and bus after bus for the other parks as well as DS kept coming, and we ended up waiting roughly 30- 35 mins...Not a big deal, because all the other days combined were perfectly fine.

 

[Ariel 1715]

I rented points for Kidani in Jan, and I would say that near the elevators is a good request. As many people have mentioned the full hallway walk can be pretty long. Our experience in Jan was that busses to HS and EPCOT run less often in the morning than MK or AK, so if you want to rope drop those parks you might wish to consider Uber/lyft
I loved the resort and having 2 bathrooms in our one bedroom unit. Amazon now food delivery allowed us to make full use of the kitchen. We ate at Sanaa for lunch one day and enjoyed it very much. We also took the Twilight Safari and thought it worth doing, but I am a sucker for up close animal experiences.

Thanks SO much for all this great information!!

 

[Ariel 1715]

@Ariel 1715
It is a larger resort (walk wise) to possibly some of the end rooms, but manageable...I usually just say close to lobby.( My daughter had knee problems ) so we tried to limit as much excess walking as possible. The resort is gorgeous. Actually they both are. And I keep flip flopping on which I like better, but since you're staying in Kidani we'll focus on that.

No QS is a slight bummer for morning for us but they do have some odds n ends in Johari Treasures, and the refill station. It's located just off the lobby. Sanaa, to me is a must do...The food is excellent, and where else can you get to dine that close to the animals right there.
The pool here is a lil smaller but it's setup is very nice n secluded...Almost feels like you're in the middle of nowhere...The slide is cool, the hidden hot tub up top, the gym right there too, and also the mini water park/ features...

I love this resort because it's a vacation from your vacation when you return from the parks...The CM's here are so friendly and knowledgable and never hesitate to give you a cultural/history lesson from their country... The decor is soothing and peaceful here, and scenery as well. Also I've only had 1 day of an issue with the busses out of our 3 stays here. It was a day that we had scheduled for MK and bus after bus for the other parks as well as DS kept coming, and we ended up waiting roughly 30- 35 mins...Not a big deal, because all the other days combined were perfectly fine.

Thank You SO much!!!!

 

[holden]

The shuttle back and for between Kidani and Jambo is super easy and convenient. We never waited more than 5 minutes for it.

 

[Firepath]

If you'll have a car, you'll definitely want to be by one of the elevators. If not, probably close to bus stop. We're waiting for the moving walkways like in the airport.

 

[MBTigger]

t was a day that we had scheduled for MK and bus after bus for the other parks as well as DS kept coming, and we ended up waiting roughly 30- 35 mins...Not a big deal, because all the other days combined were perfectly fine.

Funny how timing can be different. On our MK day we only waited about 5-10 min for the bus. On our Epcot and HS days there were multiple MK Busses that loaded for each EPCOT or HS bus and we waited much longer. The HS bus was close to 45 min wait IIRC. We figured with more morning dining options at MK that more MK busses ran early.

 

[Ariel 1715]

If you'll have a car, you'll definitely want to be by one of the elevators. If not, probably close to bus stop. We're waiting for the moving walkways like in the airport.

Moving walkways would be great We will not have a car so what would you request?

 

[DizDaD7]

Moving walkways would be great We will not have a car so what would you request?

Lower floor close to lobby..

 

[Ariel 1715]

Lower floor close to lobby..

So no need to request near Timon or Rafiki elevator? Just ask for near lobby?

 

[CarolynFH]

So no need to request near Timon or Rafiki elevator? Just ask for near lobby?

I’ve read from experienced AKL guests that requesting near Timon or Rafiki elevator is more likely to be granted - everyone asks for near lobby!

 

[Simba's Mom]

Lower floor close to lobby..

Unfortunately I've put in that request both times, and only got one of those requests (lower floor) once. Never near lobby.

 

[GrumpyInPhilly]

Unfortunately I've put in that request both times, and only got one of those requests (lower floor) once. Never near lobby.

I've learned that it's best to check on your room request a couple of weeks after submitting it. Several times when I checked there was no room request attached to my reservation or it was not the complete request. I submit my requests via e-mail and check via chat. Maybe you did this and the room assigner just missed it or couldn't accommodate the request.

 

[TraderSamWDW]

Bread Service at Sanaa!