Need help Animal Kingdom & Borwalk

[dalidaz]

Hi! we are new owners at the AKV.
We will be staying 2 weeks in May 2014. After reading the boards for couple of weeks i have a few questions

1- I currently booked 2 weeks split out 1 week Standard view and 1 week Savannah view (at Kidani) on May 1. Are there better "standard view" rooms? I need a quiet room, my husband and i are both light sleepers and with 2 kids we need any little sleep we can get (I would normally ask for a room away from elevators and vending/ice machines in a "normal" hotel...) is this something i should/could ask for?
2- Is Kidani a better choice than Jambo? I am ok with going back and forth for food, but what about coffee and soft drinks (refill station)? do they have stands at Kidani? is there really nothing to eat at Kidani? what about a gift shop?
3- We are thinking of switching our Savannah view week to go to the Boardwalk (i fell in love with the boardwalk this April . was my first time visiting , and i have no idea why i never went before?!? Anyway, What is the Boarwalk Inn and Boardwalk Villa? we can only book at the Villa correct?
4- at the Boardwalk, we are thinking of staying in the stardard view Boardwalk/Preferred view. is it true it is noisy? (we are ok with noise until 11 pm, but nothing during the night and not early in the morning before 8).
5- I've read that the Boardwalk rooms are "old". I am very picky when it comes to cleanliness, and i expecting all rooms to be at Disney standards, but i've read the contrary about the Boardwalk (which surprises me because of how gorgeous it is from outside)

We used to stay at the ALl Star Sports hotel and used to stay in the preferred rooms, so we are used to the pool sound and are aware that it dies down at around 11 pm.

Any more info that any of you would like to share with me would be greatly appreciated as well. I feel a bit lost and confused which i hate because i thought i was an expert with Disney knowledge, but this new membership has got me confused

thanks everyone

 

[drusba]

Kidani has two long wings with three sets of elevators on each so simply asking not to be near an elevator could you put in a lot of different places. There is not any real noise level when in the rooms. However, there are many standard rooms near the bus station and road. You may want to request pool view and high floor for standard viewto avoid those. The pool is actually some distance from the rooms so you won't be hearing noise from it and that standard room area is quiet at night.

Kidani has only one restaurant that is table service and does not serve breakfast. It has a soft drink refill station in the store/gift shop but if you want a quick service restaurant, you really need to stay at Jambo. Most of the Jambo standards overlook the pool and thus you can get pool noise during the day but again the room with doors closed gets little noise. In fact the noise you will get at either Jambo or Kidani is likely to be some overly loud guests walking the hallway past the door than anything else.

BWI (the Inn) is the hotel half of Boardwalk which cannot be reserved on points. You would be in the Villas half, which is also where the main pool is. BWV has standard view that overlooks road, front entrance and tennis courts, preferred boardwalk view that overlooks the boardwalk, and preferred pool/garden view which is more than 60% of the rooms and can be main pool, quiet pool, canal, or village green view (which is almost a boardwalk view). Standard view and preferred boardwalk view are usually difficult to get at 7 months out as owners lock those up during the 11 month window, standard because of low point cost and boardwalk view because it is the best view at WDW. You can get some noise issues with boardwalk view rooms and the small number of pool/garden views which overlook village green and that can even happen at about 1-2 a.m. when the dance hall and night club close. You can also have some noise issues if overlooking main pool or canal. You get little noise with quiet pool view because there are usually not many people there.The higher the floor anywhere at BWV, the less risk of any noise you have and thus request high floor with whatever you get.

 

[dalidaz]

thanks for the info very helpful.

i was aware that it might be hard to get a room at bwv at the 7 month mark. i will try my best.

does the 7 month mark happen at midnight EST time or on regular business hours?

thanks again

 

[Deb & Bill]

thanks for the info very helpful.

i was aware that it might be hard to get a room at bwv at the 7 month mark. i will try my best.

does the 7 month mark happen at midnight EST time or on regular business hours?

thanks again

Online booking starts at 8AM ET for 11 and 7 month booking. MS opens for phone booking at 9AM ET.

 

[Annielkd22222]

I loved Boardwalk....but didn't like animal kingdom at all. However....to me, it see,Ed all the rooms were quiet....so that shouldn't be a problem.

 

[GoofyforDisnee]

I can only speak for BWV. DH and I love this resort! I have always found it to be clean and am never disappointed. We like to request a room on the 4th floor facing the courtyard. You are able to see some of EPCOT's fireworks from there. We have never experienced a noise problem except Easter Sunday when all of the kids were getting their candy . In my opinion, it's almost like they "roll up the streets" after a 11pm, but we have never stayed close to the Jelly Rolls end. Enjoy your stay.

 

[DenLo]

. . . ..

Kidani has only one restaurant that is table service and does not serve breakfast. It has a soft drink refill station in the store/gift shop but if you want a quick service restaurant, you really need to stay at Jambo. . . . . ./QUOTE]

Or you have the option of taking any park bus to Jambo House, use the van that shuttles guests between the two resorts, or you can walk over to Jambo House, it's no more than a 10 minute walk even with young children or pushing a stroller.

 

[Splashboat]

OP,
For the light sleepers, have you ever tried one of those sound machines that plays white noise or another constant sound like a babbling brook, waves....? You can get one for around $20 now.

We use it every night at home or away and I don't think we can sleep without it at this point.

 

[dalidaz]

thanks everyone

So there is only a Soda counter and no coffee at Kidani? (if that is the case we are in serious trouble LOL)

Im ok with going back and forth for lunch and or supper if we will be dinning at the resort that day. We went on our last day this past April after we signed our papers to check out the hotel and we walked from Jambo to Kidani. It is a nice walk (if it isnt raining )

What i am worried about now (after reading some more sigh ) is the walking distance inside the hotel.. I dont mind walking (hey afterall we are at Disney and that is all we do!), but some ppl seem to make it look like it can be a veryyyyyyyyyy long walk if you just want to go grab something to drink downstairs! And i am affraid to ask "near the lobby" and they put me near elevators, or on the main floor where it can be noisy (and not such a nice view perhaps?)

I guess i just need to relax and hope for the best this trip around

I will learn with time like i got to learn and become an expert on my previous hotels and all of the rest of WDW stuff.

Even looking into going to the BLT as well. but i think that will be too much Hotel Hopping with 2 little kids and all the luggages and no car.

thanks again for all your help

 

[NoleFan]

I loved Boardwalk....but didn't like animal kingdom at all. However....to me, it see,Ed all the rooms were quiet....so that shouldn't be a problem.

totally agree

 

[Geomom]

What type of room did you get? Studio, 1 BR, 2 BR? Even the studios have coffee makers, small fridge, microwave, and toaster. If you don't like the coffee they have, bring your own and basket style filters. The coffee is now 'Joffreys' brand. Kidani does have the little shop, so you can buy very basic groceries there--milk, juice, poptarts, wine, etc.

When we stayed at Kidani in 10/11, we ended up getting room service for dinner one night (very rainy vacation...came back early to the resort to get away from the rain) and for breakfast one day. The food comes from Sanaa, so you can get some food with an Indian flair to it.

We stayed at Jambo for 3 nights last week. I actually preferred our Kidani stay as they have the water play area for the kids near the pool, the community hall for activities, the cultural activities in the 'library' and it just seemed quieter in general. Jambo does have the cultural activities as well, but the lobby area is just a lot busier than Kidani.

As far as walking down the long hallways...it's better than walking around at OKW or SSR to get to the main areas...at least at Jambo/Kidani it's all inside which is great if it's raining out.

I really love Savanna view...after kids are in bed, DH and I will sit on the balcony and watch the animals at night and have a glass of wine. Personally, I'd change your standard week to Boardwalk and keep your savanna week. We love Boardwalk and the easy walk to both Epcot and Hollywood Studios--if you want to request something with the preferred garden/pool view--ask for the garden view and it will be quiet vs. having the pool noise from the main pool or some of the community hall noise over by the 'quiet' pool. We've never had a problem with cleanliness at any of the resorts.

Split stay: We just did 3/3 at VWL and AKL. Call Bell services the morning you're leaving and they'll transfer all your packed bags over to the new resort sometime between 1-3PM.

 

[dalidaz]

Oh wow, they transfer our bags for us? I was thinking about getting a cab for that. WOW! Thanks for the info

We are staying in a Studio this time around.

I am really thinking of keeping the 2 weeks at AKV. But a few things are holding me back (that of course if the other rooms are available at BWV or BLT).
1- the no coffee (i am on vacation, i really dont want to do anything at all, even prepare myself a cup of coffee. And i am one of those rare ones that loves disney coffee (the taste is unique to disney. it's my "Disney" coffee). Other than that i have my k cup because i am picky when it comes to coffee)
2- the sit down restaurants. I like to go to the parks on day, stay one day at the hotel (specially on weekends i like to stay away from parks) and i was reading the menu's at AKV. We will be eating at Sanaa and Boma but i am not sure we will like it. I like the fact that we are at the hotel so i dont have to pull the kids out of the pool 2 hours before our reservations to quickly shower and dress them to go grab the bus. Feels like i am always watching the clock. I am reading great things about the food (and we did eat at the quick service on our last day there this year) but i am not sure about the "indian" twist since hubby and i dont like indian food.
3- the distance from the hotel to the parks. Again we do not want to rent a car because we are on vacation, i dont mind waiting for the buses and love the trasport (hey you are at disney what do you have to complain about?!?!), but some parks are pretty far.
4- and lastly i want to discover all the hotels now that we have the chance to since it is "paid" let us enjoy all these nice hotels and see which one we truly love

I might be stressing over nothing and might have to stay at AKV the entire 2 weeks... but no coffee dispenser at Kidani is stressing me out , my poor poor husband and kids

 

[Nanajo1]

There is coffee in the gift shop as well as some food items snacks and milk,beer etc. In the studio there will be a small fridge,coffee maker, toaster and microwave. If you bring your own coffee bring Mr Coffee type filters. There are ceramic mugs, paper plates and bowls with plastic flatware.

 

[DizDaD7]

We also are DVC owners for 2 years now, & our last 2 trips involved both the BWV & AKV.

1st off both are great resorts for different reasons.

The only negatives I have for either are these:

BWV alhtough is dated a lil, it's super clean ( as any WDW resort should be) The laundry situation was horrible...Only 3 washers & 2 dryers ( 1 of which was broken) & took 4ever to DRY. The did give me a $50 credit for my time spent in there and some change for the laundry room over at BWI, but unfortunately that wasn't muh better..The AC was broken in that room & it was otter than HE-L. Other than that AWESOME

AKV. the only thing ( & its minor) that was bad was that it was further away from anything...Others may say this is a plus, not a negative..LoL

To be honest...If i had 2 full weeks, this would be the perfect time to try both resorts...I wouldn't split stay just from a standard to Savannah...Also remember there are some Savannah view rooms that are standard...I personally had a value room studio and mine was over looking the pool just over Jiko, and only 2 doors down from the elevators in the front of the bldg...Great location, and far from noisy.

Big difference between kidani & Jambo ..Both pools are awesome...Jambos was a lot bigger but had a smaller slide...While the opposite for Kidani...

They also serve sandwiches n stuff at the poolside bars, & you can refill you cups at both of these.

true the Jambo has the Mara QS, which is super convenient, & Bomas (DELICIOUS), & jiko.

Kidani only has the quick fill up in the store, but I do believe it has the coffee fill up there too... And Sanaa was an absolute gem...Best dining experience yet for us.... I personally would probably stay at Jambo again, but thats just me...Its got a bigger feel to it.. Also to me the extra points to stay in a savanna is not worth it IMHO...Unless you stay in your rooms for a decent amount of time...You can view the animals just about everywhere...True you can have your coffee on your Balcony and see the sunset w/ animals, but not worth the pts...

BWV: Location Location Location...So close to HS, & EPCOT.. So many restaurants on the Boardwalk & over at BCV to choose from. The main clown is awesome , Great slide great atmosphere... Also Pool bar that has food drinks, & refills.

Outside entertainment on the BW, can't be beat either... Just an FYI though, there isn't a BW standard preferred/ bw view...It's either or.

Standard usually go first...And most of those are far from the elevators....Mine was down the hall facing the buses , but I had a stairwell across from my room, whih took us directly to the main pool...

Also nice to have a boatride to either park...

Oh I almost forgot...1 more slight negative was going to MK from BWV...The bus stopped at ours 1st which was nice, but then went to wan, Dolphin, YC, then BC then finally to MK....It's a shorter distance from BWV to MK but took around 23 minutes or . On the other hand AKV, which is the furthest from MK took about 20-21 minutes...

 

[DenLo]

I agree there is coffee in Johari Treasures gift shop. Hopefully by time you go Nescafe will be replaced. http://www.wdwmagic.com/resorts/wal...ghout-disney's-domestic-parks-and-resorts.htm

 

[Geomom]

BWV alhtough is dated a lil, it's super clean ( as any WDW resort should be) The laundry situation was horrible...Only 3 washers & 2 dryers ( 1 of which was broken) & took 4ever to DRY. The did give me a $50 credit for my time spent in there and some change for the laundry room over at BWI, but unfortunately that wasn't muh better..The AC was broken in that room & it was otter than HE-L.

Laundry--I did laundry at Jambo house at the DVC one on the 5th floor--similar situation to you. 2 washers, 4 dryers...2 dryers didn't work (I had half of mine in one that got hot but never actually dried my clothes.) Busy night doing laundry anyway, I had to wait for 1 person's to finish, other people had to wait for mine, etc. Spent hours doing laundry, especially as it didn't want to dry...and it was a long walk from my room to the laundry. It was too hot to stay in that room for long.

OP: If you're going to be doing laundry--studios don't have the washer/dryer, but the machines are free for DVC users, you need to provide your own laundry detergent or buy the packs for $1 from a machine in the laundry room. If you're doing a resort day, you may have better luck than I with getting machines that are free--just make sure you check that the dryers are working before you leave your laundry too long!

 

[dalidaz]

Thanks everyone.
I am aware of no laundry machines in our rooms so will dedicate a day to do laundry specially with two little girls.
Relieved about the coffee dispenser at the gift shop. I was ok with the nescafe coffee as I stated since it was a unique taste that links to Disney.
As for the Savannah view I had to split it that way to use up our points otherwise we will lose them. I might look into staying a bit longer in the standard view and the last few days in the 1 bdr villa if available since you are right about seeing the animals almost everywhere in the hotel. And how much time do we really spend in our rooms?
That is what we said at first but I booked it this way for now to use up the points. Only time will tell because I really want to check the BWV.

 

[dalidaz]

Oh and for the white noise machine , we have one for the kids that we take along. Didn't help hubby and me lol.