Will i miss my boardwalk villas if i book animal kingdom villas?

[disneynutz]

To the OP, let us know what you decide to do and if you give AKV a try, please share your thoughts after your stay.

Bill

 

[Silver19]

We have this debate every year. In the end, no matter how interesting or beautiful we find the other resorts (AKL in particular), nothing can come close to the convenience of the BWV. We can walk to nearly all of our "Disney Favorites" in mere minutes. So we never stay anywhere else.

 

[NoleFan]

We've stayed at VGF, SSR, AKV (Jambo & Kidani), VWL. All are nice but none compare to the fun we have at BWV & BCV. We just love the location& everything about it. My dh & I both agree with AKL been there, done that. However, we have friends that love it there. My DS 8 asks to go to BW when we are not staying there so owning & staying there is a must for us. Staying elsewhere re-confirmed that.

 

[LSchrow]

we found "try a new resort" nights a great way to test out the unknown - been doing that for years


after many years of WDW resorts, we can honestly say that we simply don't enjoy a vacation that totally excludes the BW CMs, activities, entertainment, scents, views, eateries, etc...

try a night or 2 elsewhere, then continue your stay at your favorite

 

[michelleiada]

When we were first considering DVC back in 2007, they tried to sell me AKV points. At that time I did not find it attractive at all....I don't know why. We ended up buying at BCV because we love it so much. This past December we did a week at BCV and decided to do one night at AKV Jambo in a one bedroom savannah view. WE ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT! Sitting on the balcony, drinking coffee, watching the animals was so relaxing. Now I want to buy a contract there! The resort is beautiful, pool is beautiful. We still love our favorite Beach Club but it is nice to experience something new.

 

[MarlaSingersLaundry]

We love AKV. We've stayed at both Kidani and Jambo. We first fell in love with Kidani; it always feels like going home when we are there. The rooms are large, and the extra bathroom is nice too. We love the theming, sounds, animals, CM's, restaurants and activities. If we stay at Kidani, we request to stay in the wing closest to Jambo so we can walk over there easily for dinning. We've stayed at all the resorts other than BWV and BCV. We like the atmosphere at those resorts. We're looking forward to trying them out sometime. Give AKV a try for a few nights and see how you like it.

 

[Peggy Sue]

We just returned from AKV - Kidani Village Thursday afternoon. We are OKW/BWV owners, and LOVE the BWV for the same reasons you do. We invited my niece and her family to join us this trip (ages 3 and 5) and I wanted to try a different experience with the kids this trip so we opted for Kidani Village. WE LOVED THIS RESORT!

Our Experience ... We rented a car so the long hallways (people complain about BWV, but we thought Kidani had MUCH longer walks that BWV!) didn't bother us. We wanted to be near the pool area so we had asked for a room near the Rafiki Elevator, we ended up closer to Pumba, but our room was great and still close enough to access the pool area from the Rafiki Elevator.

Pool --- The kids LOVED the pool area. The pool has 0 entry, great for the 3 and 5 year old. The really loved the water play area and we spent a lot of time in this area every day. We thought this was the best pool area for kids that we've seen on property.

Animals ---- Our room was 7852 and we saw lots of different animals (including Giraffes) throughout the day. The Animals migrate around the Sunset Savanna to find their food sources that are replenished twice a day. We were on the 4th floor and I wish our request for a lower floor had been granted....on the 4th floor it's difficult to see below the tree tops, so we had to wait for the animals to come out of the trees to the feeding areas. We noticed the difference when stopping at the viewing areas off the main lobby.

Transportation ... Having a car we normally drove to the parks, but we did take a bus to Epcot one day. From our room location it's a fair hike to the bus stops. If the bus transportation is important you may want to consider requesting a room by the north elevator or Zazu elevator. The bus to epcot arrived within a couple of minutes of getting to the bus stop and it was also quick to arrive when leaving Epcot.

Dining ... We found the best kept dining secret at Kidani ... Sanaa is EXCELLENT ...and we will be adding to every trip! If you are a plain eater, I wouldn't recommend, but if you like to try new things, the food here is great! We also walked over to Jambo House a couple of times for Breakfast. Boma's (excellent) and Maura (don't waste your money!) We watched the kids one evening while my niece and her husband went to Jikos and they had a great meal there too.

Room ... We stayed in a dedicated 2 bedroom (7852) and had plenty of room for the 6 of us. the wireless internet speed was good and we had no problems accessing MDE to switch fast passes, dining etc. from our room. We thought the living room area was larger than BWV, but don't know if that's a fact or not. The living room couch (sleeper) was one of the most comfortable we've sat on from the DVC resorts! Loved the huge walk in shower in the master bath.

So, after all this rambling I would not hesitate to try AKV. Yes, it is remote, but it is a beautiful resort, and having the animals and great pool area for the kids were major pluses.

good luck with your decision and enjoy your trip!

Peggy Sue

 

[all4fun]

We love staying at BWV for the location but have stayed a few times AKV and loved it as well. If you really want a treat, and if it as all possible, book concierge level and take advantage of some of the perks like the special tours. That really made for a special vacation for us! Our first time we just did a couple of days in a Savannah view room. Even though my son was only a toddler, he loved going out on the veranda and watching the animals. We have enjoyed each stay there for its own merits and even though BWV is our preference, I can say I never really pined for it when we were at AKV because it was so different and interesting. Hth.

 

[2binak]

We like the quiet secluded feel of the resort and the wonderful African theming. The splash area alone at Kidani is a great reason to take your 3 and 4 yo to AKV. The pools at Jambo and Kidani are both awesome, although we like the Kidani pool area better. Of course, you have the animals, which your children will never get tired of looking for and watching.

This is exactly how we feel about AKV. We love BWV too (even bought a small BWV contract after our first stay), especially the walks to/from the parks, but one of the main draws of AKV for us is the relaxing vibe. You really do feel like you're worlds away from everything when you stay there and sometimes, that's the vacation vibe we're looking for so those are the times we choose to stay at AKV.

 

[eporter66]

Love the boardwalk villas, the vibe the location the bakery with the great sandwiches for lunch, walk to Epcot at night for my little one to go on nemo and stop at the character spot.They love it. And of course the fireworks from my standard view balcony(sometimes). I really "have" to try other resorts but I fear I would just miss my boardwalk. My kids would love the animals at AKV but not sure if units worth all the bus rides when my kids are 3 and 4. Baylake seems great but ONLY for the walk to MK. I've stayed at the contemporary( when I wasn't a member) and didn't like not having any grounds to walk around. Restaurants there were great though too. But points are much higher.Thoughts?

You never know unless you try. I will say that if you enjoy the BWV's due to all that is going on (Boardwalk, EPCOT etc...) you may disappointed due to location of AKV being a bit remote for Disney. Our DD loved AKV, and we went a number of times. We did rent a car the times that we have stayed at AKV. We love SSR, my wife is a runner, so it is a nice resort for that. Plus, we walk over to DTD to get food or a different atmosphere.

Maybe try a split stay?