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Hotel overview

Share the adventure of a jungle safari in lush surroundings showcasing the grandeur of Africa. With many rooms overlooking the beautiful savannahs, grazing zebra, giraffes and gazelles can be seen roaming free in natural environments. The rhythm of tribal drums...the exquisite cuisine...the rich settings...and the lure of authentic African treasures all come together to celebrate the beauty and wonder of this vast and untamed continent. Three animal savannas are home to more than 200 mammals and birds representative of the African animal palette. Some examples are giraffe, zebra, Thomson's gazelle, ostrich, flamingo, African spoonbill, and sacred ibis.

Location

Animal Kingdom® Resort Area
Daytona Beach, FL, USA - Daytona Beach Internation
Orlando, FL, USA - Orlando International Airport ( : 30 miles
Tampa, FL, USA - Tampa International (TPA)

Property information

Year Built: 2009
Accessible rooms: 65
Floors: 3
Nonsmoking rooms: 492
Total rooms: 492

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Hotel details

Dining

Dining options are available for this property.
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Amenities

Multiple amenities are available at this hotel.
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Activities

This property offers numerous activities.
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Hotel advisories

Advisory The resorts are designated smoke free environments. Designated outdoor smoking locations are available.
Advisory Guests dining at Walt Disney World's eateries and are in a group of 6 or more are required to pay a compulsory 18% gratuity charge. Gratuity percentage may change at anytime without prior notification.
Advisory This Disney hotel charges a per room, per day, per vehicle parking fee which will be charged and collected by the hotel at check-in or check-out. The fee is subject to change without prior notice. The information published here is to give the client an estimate of additional parking fees they may be responsible for but not a guarantee of the final amount due. For exact parking rates please contact hotel directly.

General policies & fine print

Check In: 3:00 PM
Check Out: 11:00 AM
Minimum Check-In Age: 18
General Policies:

Smoking Policy - All Disney owned and operated resort hotels are smoke-free environments. Smoking is permitted in designated outdoor smoking locations only.

Guest Names Policy - Walt Disney World reservations must be booked with the correct guest names. A complete name change to the lead name is considered a cancellation and will require a new reservation.

Deposit Requirements - A major credit card and photo I.D. is required upon check-in to cover phone or incidental charges.

Convention Policy - Guests attending a convention at the hotel may not use this package for their stay. If found attending a convention, guests may be charged directly by the hotel.

Room Taxes - Room taxes are included in the vacation price.

As to Disney artwork, logos and properties: ©Disney

Pet Policy Pets Not Allowed

Ratings & reviews

TripAdvisor traveler rating

4.5 8439 reviews
  • 4.0 star tripadvisor rating
    Staying near the animals really felt so special

    Really beautiful grounds and overall the experience of seeing the animals made the higher price point worth it. The rooms though could potentially use a bit of updating. Our shower pressure was really really lacking, the space was a bit small, and unfortunately for some reason our room got skipped by housekeeping one of the days. The positives were the convenience of staying on Disney property and the fact that even though we had a standard room- we still got to see animals from our balcony! That truly was such a pleasant surprise! I think it's a beautiful experience if you have time to really enjoy the grounds at the Lodge but if you are just looking for a comfortable room there may be other options out there for you.

    Nov 28, 2023
  • 3.0 star tripadvisor rating
    Shuttle Buses Slow Down Visiting Parks

    Love the concept - execution and shuttles make it overpriced and a waste. We had one day at Disney and waited for far too long for the shuttle buses. We watched buses come from everywhere else but the closest park - Animal Kingdom - and then traffic jam so lost over an hour. When every minute counts, there are better and cheaper places to stay.

    Nov 08, 2023
  • 3.0 star tripadvisor rating
    Nice, but not the best resort

    We have just stayed here for three nights after spending most of our holiday at Port Orleans Riverside, which I preferred over the AKL. Myself, my daughter and my parents shared a room. We paid for a water view room and arrived a bit early to check in. I asked if they had and partial view Savannah rooms, and they very kindly upgraded us to a full savannah view on the 2nd floor in room 2325 about 3/4 along the left hand wing of the building. Here's what I like about the AKL - The balcony view if you have a savannah room and the lobby. Unfortunately that's where it ends. We knew the buses would take a while. It's about a 20 min ride to Disney springs and it took us a total of 45 mins to get to Typhoon lagoon as you have to transfer from DS for all hotels. The room was actually slightly smaller than Port Orleans Riverside and the beds were hard. You can also here EVERYTHING in the rooms around you, conversations, people going to the bathroom, dropping things, kids running around. The pool looks pretty but they have a very odd fence system around it, sectioning bits of it off, so you have to get out of the pool and walk around to get to the other but, and also putting sun loungers in another section! If you go for a water view room, be warned if it's on the ground or second floor your have people sunbathing right outside it or playing pool games. The quick service meal options are a bit limited and you can't actually just grab something unless it's from the fridge. You have to take a number and wait for it. Both times took about 20 mins. We also had an odd experience in our room. Mine and my daughters bed covers were shaken very fast on the first night as we were dropping off, I initially blamed her and she denied it. Then later that night I thought my dad was stood up but then realised he was asleep. Two nights later my mum woke me up talking to me and asking why I was stood by the door, but I was in bed. I'm not necessarily a believer in the paranormal but this was very odd and my mum wasn't aware of my incident until she told me about hers two days later. All in all its a lovely resort if you're staying in a savannah view room, we loved seeing a giraffe sleeping by our balcony, and if you plan to only do AK. But I wouldn't stay here again. I've stayed in many of the Disney resorts and so far Pop is my fav value, Port Orleans Riverside is my fav moderate and the Polynesian is my fav deluxe.

    Oct 24, 2023
  • 2.0 star tripadvisor rating
    Recent Stay

    Vert disappointed. We stayed at Kadini room 7954 with a Savanna View. Over the course of 3 nights we saw very few animals. 2 ostrich. 2 zebras 1 giraffe and 2 hoofed animals. When we mentioned that there are no animals the cast member said. “I know “. If they know this is an issue. You would think they would correct instead of disappointing guests who pay a lot of money for the experience. The animals we did see where at sunset so most of day nothing

    Oct 23, 2023
  • 4.0 star tripadvisor rating
    Great but address housekeeping

    This hotel is absolutely beautiful from the minute you step inside , I have never seen any place like it It has a very relaxed feel Staff on the front desk are very helpful, check in is fine. There are 3 restaurants to chose from , one being quick service , one a buffet and one sit down service , I can’t fault the food at all and plenty to choose from The pool area is great and plenty of sunbeds around, you’ll never go without one. There’s some games etc at the pool during the day for little ones and simbas club house is open all day for arts and crafts You must go to the viewing areas to see the animals , you can see them so close around morning and late afternoon when feeding. Rooms - this was our second time staying here , and this time I have a little gripe which I’m sad about as we love this resort , housekeeping was not as good as when we went in 2019, something has changed , in our 2 week stay we didn’t once have the shower glass cleaned , floor went over a week without being washed , under the bed was never hovered once , the beds are very high so you could clearly see the thick dust all over (I’ve posted a picture of this) I found this a bit of a let down considering what you pay for this delux hotel, I think Disney need to address this as I’ve seen and heard a lot of complaints about housekeeping since covid Covid is not an excuse anymore All in all an amazing place but please sort your housekeeping out to keep being the best

    Oct 21, 2023