Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge

In 2001, Walt Disney World built the beautiful Animal Kingdom Lodge to complement their newest theme park Disney’s Animal Kingdom, which opened three years prior. Animal Kingdom Lodge is an African-themed hotel which is best-known for being surrounded by savannas where African animals graze. Many rooms are even facing the savannas so guests have the pleasure of watching the animals from their own private balconies. Animal Kingdom Lodge was designed by architect Peter Dominick who also designed Disney’s Wilderness Lodge at Walt Disney World and Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa at the Disneyland Resort. The resort is spilt into two large sections. The original building is called Jambo House and the second section, built in 2008 and 2009, is called Kidani Village. Kidani Village houses Disney Vacation Club properties whereas Jambo House is home to both regular rooms and a few DVC rooms as well.

Animal Kingdom Lodge is considered a deluxe resort. This means that it is in the top tier in both price and amenities. The standard rooms tend to be in the lower price range of deluxe resorts, along with the Wilderness Lodge. However, the savanna rooms can end up being quite pricey. Rack rates for standard view rooms can fluctuate anywhere between $350 to $550 a night, and savanna view rooms can be between $550 to $750 a night. However, it is the only deluxe resort that offers only bus transportation. The others all have boats, monorails, or are walking distance to a Park. It is a common misconception that guests are able to walk to Animal Kingdom from Animal Kingdom Lodge, but unfortunately it is still a bus ride away.

The layout of the hotel is very unique. The hallways, or trails, are made up of a bunch of semi-circles to reflect an African village where animals are kept in the middle of the village to keep them safe. This is known as a Kraal design. At Jambo House, guests walk into a grand and beautiful lobby but this entrance level is actually the third floor. Right off the lobby is Zawadi Marketplace, a shop that sells merchandise as well as convenient items such as snacks and toiletries. The operating hours are 7:30am to 11:00pm. The merchandise even includes items exclusive to Animal Kingdom Lodge as well as African-themed specialties.

The restaurants are all located near the pool area of Jambo House. Victoria Falls Lounge is on the second floor with the other three dining locations on the first floor. Boma – Flavors of Africa and Jiko – The Cooking Place are both table service restaurants and are right next to each other. They are connected to the main lobby via stairs or elevator. The Mara is a quick service restaurant but guests need to go outside and past the pool to get there. This is also where the rapid refill stations are. Please note that Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge is currently doing a cash-free test. This means that all of the restaurants and shops throughout Jambo House are only accepting credit cards, debit cards, Disney gift cards, Magic Bands, etc: anything but cash.

Kidani Village is located next to Jambo House and there is an outdoor path connecting the two sections. It is about a ten minute walk between the two. Kidani Village does not have a quick service restaurant so the rapid refill station is in the Johari Treasures shop. The operating hours are 7:00am to 11:00pm with the hot beverages being available earlier. There is one table service restaurant at Kidani Village called Sanaa with an adjoining lounge. This restaurant is famous for their Bread Service which includes different flavours of naan bread with different dipping sauces. And all the choices are delicious!

There are many options for different types of rooms at Animal Kingdom Lodge. The options in Jambo House include:

• Standard View Room: Views of the rooftop or parking lots with either two queen beds, one queen and one bunkbed, or one king and one daybed.
• Pool View Room: View of the Uzima pool with either two queens, or one king and one daybed.
• Pool View Room with Bunkbed: View of the Uzima pool with one queen and one bunkbed.
• Savanna View Room: View of one of the savannas with either two queens, or one king and one daybed.
• Savanna View Room with Bunkbed: View of one of the savannas with one queen and one bunkbed.

Club Level: Kilimanjaro Club includes private concierge and a lounge with snacks, appetizers, and refreshments.

• Savanna View Room: With either two queen beds, one queen and one bunkbed, or one king and one daybed.
• Standard View One Bedroom Suite.
• Savanna View One Bedroom Suite.

Disney Vacation Club:

• At both Jambo House and at Kidani Village there are Studios, One Bedroom, Two Bedroom, and Three Bedroom suites available with standard or savanna views.

All the rooms at Animal Kingdom Lodge have their own balconies, which is a great benefit even in the non-savanna view rooms. Many non-savanna rooms even have partial views of the savannas and the pool view rooms also overlook the Flamingo pond at Jambo House. The balconies have two chairs and a small table.  Other amenities include a safe, a coffee maker and mini-fridge, an iron and ironing board, and two sinks. Animal Kingdom Lodge has the smallest rooms of any deluxe resort with the standard rooms being 344 square feet. The bedroom part of the room does not feel small but the bathroom definitely does. There are many details around the room which really add to the theming. On the wall above the beds is mosquito netting, giving the room an exotic feel. There are hidden animals everywhere including in the wallpaper and in the lace curtains. Each room receives a wildlife spotting guide to help guests identify the different animals roaming around. The rooms in Jambo House are along four main trails of the resort: Giraffe Trail, Kudo Trail, Zebra Trail, and Ostrich Trail.

Animal Kingdom Lodge has two fantastic pools! The Uzima Pool at Jambo House is one of the largest pools of any Walt Disney World resort. It includes zero-depth entry and a waterslide. There are two hot tubs and one children’s wading pool. The Uzima Springs Pool Bar has delicious snacks and drinks. Down Giraffe Trail and Zebra Trails are elevators that go right down to the pool area if guests do not wish to use the main lobby elevators.  At Kidani Village is the Samawati Springs Pool. There are two hot tubs and a waterslide there as well but the best part is the Uwanja Camp. This is a fun water playground complete with geysers, rope bridges, and water cannons! The Maji Pool Bar is nearby for a quick snack.

Other recreational areas include Survival of the Fittest Fitness Center at Kidani Village and Zahanati Massage and Fitness Center at Jambo House. There are two arcades. Safari So Good Arcade at Kidani Village and Pumbaa’s Fun and Games Arcade at Jambo House. At Jambo House there is also the Hakuna Matata Playground and Simba’s Clubhouse, which is a babysitting service. There are plenty of activities throughout the day for guests including games, crafts, movies, campfires with s’mores, tours of the restaurants, and cookie decorating. There are even night vision goggles for guests to use to view the animals after the sun goes down. The goggles are located at the savanna outlook by the Uzima Pool. There are many cultural representatives throughout the resort to answer questions about the animals and African culture.

There are four different savannas at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. The largest one is the Sunset Savanna which is located between Jambo House and Kidani Village. The Pembe Savanna is located on the other side of Kidani Village and the Arusha and Uzima Savannas are surrounding Jambo House. There are numerous locations around the resort to view the animals. The main one is the Arusha Rock Savanna Overlook. This is located off of the far end of the Jambo House lobby and is a large area with views of the animals in all directions. Often animals will be fed near this overlook. There is also a pond here with different exotic birds. Other large overlooks are located near the Uzima Pool and the Kidani Village lobby. But my favourite areas to view the animals are located on the second floor of Kudu Trail and Zebra Trail. Along the trails are numerous large alcoves that are open over the savannas. There are benches, rocking chairs, and binoculars for guests to use.

There are over 200 animals to be found at Animal Kingdom Lodge. Some of the different species include:

• Ankole Cattle
• Giraffe
• Zebra
• Red River Hog
• African Greater Flamingo
• Blue Crane
• African Spoonbill
• Marabou Stork
• Waterbuck
• Roan Antelope
• Ostrich
• White-Bearded Wildebeest
• Lesser Kudu
• Impala
• Thompson’s Gazelle
• And many more!

The best part about Animal Kingdom Lodge is that it is a vacation destination in itself! It is a great resort to hang out at for any non-Park days at Walt Disney World; there is just so much to do and yet perfect for anyone just wanting to relax. The food is phenomenal and is worth a visit to any of the restaurants. I would recommend visiting this hotel during a Walt Disney World vacation, even if you are not staying there.