1st visit: Trying to decide between AKL standard room and POR Princess Suite

[Vintage princess]

Hello!! I am planning our family's first visit to WDW this September. (I am the only one who has been and it was as a child 20+ yrs ago.) We will be celebrating my daughter's golden birthday! (turning 10 on the 10th) We are a family of 3 staying 7 nights. I currently have a POR princess suite booked. I am thinking about changing to AKL standard view. (can't afford Savannah view) We will spend a lot of time at the parks as it is our first time, but I also want to make sure and build in plenty of pool and resort time.

We do have a couple early ADRs and I am worried about transportation issues when taking the bus. Is there a difference in transportation times between the two resorts?

Also, we aren't super adventurous eaters.... are the majority of foods at AKL African inspired?

I would appreciate any insight! Thank you so much!!!

 

[ZebraDomeCrazy]

You MUST switch to Akl, lol! Akl is an amazing place, especially if you are planning some resort time! Don't worry about having a standard view room... there are viewing areas all over the resort, and many standard view rooms end up having animals outside. As far as food is concerned, Mara, the quick service, has plenty of pizza and burgers, etc. available. Boma, the resort's TS buffet, still has plenty of American meat,potatoes, and mac n cheese, for most people. The buses are very efficient,no worries there! This is our favorite resort hands down. Please feel free to ask any questions.

 

[jolene63]

They are both great resorts. You will love whichever one you choose.

 

[Vintage princess]

Thank you for the advice! I know this sounds crazy but we aren't really big animal lovers. (we do have a well taken care of fish!) so the Savannah view isn't super important. I just thought the resort itself looks lovely and any animal sightings would be an added bonus. I just kept reading about transportation times and I was worried we would miss our very important 8:40 surprise birthday breakfast with pooh. (I read AKL is far and takes a while to get to MK but POR and POFQ share a bus so I was worried either way!)

 

[Shanti]

Hello!! I am planning our family's first visit to WDW this September. (I am the only one who has been and it was as a child 20+ yrs ago.) We will be celebrating my daughter's golden birthday! (turning 10 on the 10th) We are a family of 3 staying 7 nights. I currently have a POR princess suite booked. I am thinking about changing to AKL standard view. (can't afford Savannah view) We will spend a lot of time at the parks as it is our first time, but I also want to make sure and build in plenty of pool and resort time.

We do have a couple early ADRs and I am worried about transportation issues when taking the bus. Is there a difference in transportation times between the two resorts?

Also, we aren't super adventurous eaters.... are the majority of foods at AKL African inspired?

I would appreciate any insight! Thank you so much!!!

1. AKL is fabulous, as is staying at any Disney deluxe resort, but AKL is extra special due to the animals. We stayed in a standard room on the Kudu trail in April, and had animals outside of our room 24/7. We saw giraffe, zebra, ostriches, cranes, etc. outside of our room, but not all at the same time. So even some standards have animal views. Our room was on the 3rd floor, fyi.

2. AKL has completely normal American food available at the Mara, its very nice counter service restaurant.

3. We found bus service to & from the parks very efficient from AKL.

4. A nice bonus about AKL is that all guests are allowed to use the feature pool at both Jambo House (bigger pool & better hot tub) and Kidani Village (better water slide and a kids' water play area).

 

[Wood Nymph]

Your bus service will be better at AKL than at POR. Although POR is a very nice moderate resort, the amenities are much better at AKL.

 

[Vintage princess]

Thank you for all of the advice! It is so hard to make up my mind. I have been pouring over the disboards, pinterest, etc to learn everything I can. I really apprecirate all the tips everyone has to give! My husband has never been to WDW and I really want to plan an awesome trip so he will want to come back over and over again!!!!

 

[earfulofmagic]

Have you considered a split stay? Your family and my party have a pretty similar story (except that we don't have kids, just me and my partner). I LOVE the look of the royal guest rooms and really wanted to experience Riverside, so I booked one additional night there on the front of our stay, and the rest (was already booked) for a week at AKL.

Depending on what your ADRs already look like, you could consider doing, for example, 4 nights at POR then 3 nights at AKL. I guess you would probably prefer to arrange it so that on your daughter's big day she'd be spending the night in the princess suite, so however that works out is my vote. You can read more about split stays around the forums; they'll transfer your luggage for you (can sometimes take a while) as you go off and play in the parks.

Finally, whether you choose a split stay or a full stay at one or the other, I don't think you can wrong

 

[Vintage princess]

Have you considered a split stay? Your family and my party have a pretty similar story (except that we don't have kids, just me and my partner). I LOVE the look of the royal guest rooms and really wanted to experience Riverside, so I booked one additional night there on the front of our stay, and the rest (was already booked) for a week at AKL.

Depending on what your ADRs already look like, you could consider doing, for example, 4 nights at POR then 3 nights at AKL. I guess you would probably prefer to arrange it so that on your daughter's big day she'd be spending the night in the princess suite, so however that works out is my vote. You can read more about split stays around the forums; they'll transfer your luggage for you (can sometimes take a while) as you go off and play in the parks.

Finally, whether you choose a split stay or a full stay at one or the other, I don't think you can wrong

I like the idea of a split stay! My husband doesn't love the idea because we are going to do a couple beach days at the end of the trip and will be moving hotels then, however, this way we could have the best of both worlds! I will look at the forums about split stays.

 

[earfulofmagic]

I like the idea of a split stay! My husband doesn't love the idea because we are going to do a couple beach days at the end of the trip and will be moving hotels then, however, this way we could have the best of both worlds! I will look at the forums about split stays.

Hooray! Beach days sound like a perfect way to recuperate from a Disney vacation

I was about to add to my original comment: totally forgot you would need to repack during a split stay before transferring luggage. And repacking takes valuable time! We just won't unpack for one night at POR before moving, so that slipped my mind. And your husband has a great point, you're already doing a split stay when moving to another hotel at the beach!

 

[Sue M]

Both are great resorts. POR is more centrally located so travel times to MK will be shorter. I found we didn't share bus with pofq except for mid day. But peak travel times didn't share bus service.
I would encourage you to try the different foods, the flavours are wonderful. Boma is perfect for trying different things because you aren't committed to one particular dish being a buffet.

 

[Hopefully]

Personally, I don't like Split Stays. I am a "nester". I like to unpack and settle in for the week. Plus with a Split Stay you are "homeless" on move day.
I would choose one resort for this trip and help your husband relax and enjoy Disney

 

[Surgie2]

Personally I think 7 days is too short to bother with a split stay. But I am one who settles in and it would be a bummer to have to be packing up 3-4 days in. But others enjoy the move.

 

[Pennstate6411]

Our family debated between the exact same scenario- At the end of all the comparisons and this and that AKL won hands down. I have only been to AKL and AS sports but my wife has been to POR and AKL. I would definitely chose AKL over POR and I mean that cause we actually did for our upcoming trip in November.

 

[mickeynut1]

You MUST switch to Akl, lol! Akl is an amazing place, especially if you are planning some resort time! Don't worry about having a standard view room... there are viewing areas all over the resort, and many standard view rooms end up having animals outside. As far as food is concerned, Mara, the quick service, has plenty of pizza and burgers, etc. available. Boma, the resort's TS buffet, still has plenty of American meat,potatoes, and mac n cheese, for most people. The buses are very efficient,no worries there! This is our favorite resort hands down. Please feel free to ask any questions.

1. AKL is fabulous, as is staying at any Disney deluxe resort, but AKL is extra special due to the animals. We stayed in a standard room on the Kudu trail in April, and had animals outside of our room 24/7. We saw giraffe, zebra, ostriches, cranes, etc. outside of our room, but not all at the same time. So even some standards have animal views. Our room was on the 3rd floor, fyi.

2. AKL has completely normal American food available at the Mara, its very nice counter service restaurant.

3. We found bus service to & from the parks very efficient from AKL.

4. A nice bonus about AKL is that all guests are allowed to use the feature pool at both Jambo House (bigger pool & better hot tub) and Kidani Village (better water slide and a kids' water play area).

I agree with both of the above .

 

[Shanti]

Whichever you choose, I don't recommend a split stay as you're new to all this. Pick one resort & get settled into it upon arrival, & make it your home throughout your stay.

 

[unrequited23]

Is there a considerable price difference? Would the savings be a nice start to your next Disney vacation fund? Does your daughter love princesses? At 10, she could be close to aging out of the princess thing. Are you planning on going to Disney Springs more than once?

I think both options would offer a lot to do at the resort, since they both have sister resort privileges (POR & POFQ) and (Jambo & Kidani).

 

[DisneyWishes14]

They are both lovely resorts and I prefer AKL (it's really stunning and amenities are nicer), but if you are doing heavy park touring, it may not be the best choice (unless you would consider taking cabs or uber to cut down on bus time). Yes, you will be closer to AK, but far from MK and neither gives you a real transportation advantage for early morning ADR's.

Have you considered Wilderness Lodge if there is availability? It was designed by the same team that designed AKL, so similar set-up (soaring lobby, all rooms under one roof) and the food choices may appeal to you more as you say you aren't very adventurous eaters. The rooms are about the same size as AKL as well. WL is closer to MK, so it would be easier to get to the birthday breakfast.

 

[Aristo-cat]

My family stayed in a POR princess room a couple of years ago. While the resort was great and the room was great, I realized what Disney did here was to specially renovate these princess rooms at POR and the pirate rooms at CBR to entice guests to want to stay in these areas as they are the furthest areas from the Food court/pool area.
They are a bit of a bait and switch, but if you don't mind walking a bit further the princess room is a fun room.

 

[Babsy]

You MUST switch to Akl, lol! Akl is an amazing place, especially if you are planning some resort time! Don't worry about having a standard view room... there are viewing areas all over the resort, and many standard view rooms end up having animals outside. As far as food is concerned, Mara, the quick service, has plenty of pizza and burgers, etc. available. Boma, the resort's TS buffet, still has plenty of American meat,potatoes, and mac n cheese, for most people. The buses are very efficient,no worries there! This is our favorite resort hands down. Please feel free to ask any questions.

1. AKL is fabulous, as is staying at any Disney deluxe resort, but AKL is extra special due to the animals. We stayed in a standard room on the Kudu trail in April, and had animals outside of our room 24/7. We saw giraffe, zebra, ostriches, cranes, etc. outside of our room, but not all at the same time. So even some standards have animal views. Our room was on the 3rd floor, fyi.

2. AKL has completely normal American food available at the Mara, its very nice counter service restaurant.

3. We found bus service to & from the parks very efficient from AKL.

4. A nice bonus about AKL is that all guests are allowed to use the feature pool at both Jambo House (bigger pool & better hot tub) and Kidani Village (better water slide and a kids' water play area).

I agree with both of the above .

I also recommend staying at the AKL. We have stayed in the Royal Rooms in POR and in the AKL rooms. The AKL is a much better deal, IMO. You are staying in a deluxe resorts you have additional resort amenities, larger rooms, interior corridors, balconies, more dining options and a real lobby to relax in and enjoy. The AKL has lots of activities for kids to enjoy, great pools and truly friendly CM's. It is one of my all time favourite resorts at WDW. Even if we don't stay there every trip, we visit this resort at least to dine on every trip. This is the only resort where we at least visit every trip.


Don't worry about transportation. You will have an extra 5-10 minutes on the bus when going to the MK. You will save that time when going to the AK to visit Pandora, so it isn't as much time overall as you might think. Also, the buses here only have two stops - one at Kidani and one at Jambo House, so you are very quick getting underway.

As others have said, The food is great here, and there are lots of options for unadventurous eaters.

Everything under one roof means less time running through inclement weather.

I would definitely move to AKL!!!

Enjoy!