Disney's Animal Kingdom Villas - Kidani Village

I’d read the Disney World website description of Animal Kingdom Lodge and knew that the wildlife held a strong focal point of the theme. However, it was not until I entered my room that I fully understood what it meant. Deluxe Studio - Savanna View: I booked this room pretty late, with only a couple of days' notice, but managed to snaffle a Savanna view room via the DVC website! I was thrilled and super excited, and I really was not disappointed at all. I was assigned a room in Zazu - to the right hand side of the main Kidani Village building. It was a fair walk down the corridor from the atrium, something I wish I knew in advance - after a long theme park day, the trek to the room just felt a little too much. Alas, it was worth it though, as the room itself was perfect. Entering from the hallway, you had the bathroom to the left - a perfectly sized space. A separate toilet and door to the left, and a shower-over-bath to the right, with a sink unit in the middle, and a ton of storage / surface space on either side and beneath. A large mirror took up the majority of the wall above the sinks, which was a great size. The lighting in here was a lovely amber colour - whilst this fit the theme perfectly, it wasn’t fantastic when it came to getting ready - sometimes a simple white light (or the option of such light) is preferable. Alas, this was not an issue, and more of a “it’d be nice to have”. The bath was great, and the shower was incredibly powerful - something that cannot be taken for granted when it comes to hotel rooms, I’ve found. Back in the room, there was a small kitchen space with a drip-coffee machine, microwave and a medium sized minifridge (sadly, no freezer). The sink unit was great for washing up cups that I’d used in the parks, so I could keep everything nice and clean. There was a large wardrobe with plenty of space for all my clothes - with the most beautiful, wooden doors that again, really fit the overall African theme. The TV was inset into the wall with a fantastic wooden surround, directly above a set of draws, providing yet more storage space. To the left was a nice large table (but not too large) with two ornate wooden seats. Directly opposite was a pull out sofa and coffee table that proved to be a perfect space to relax after a long park day. The bed was incredibly comfy, with the most luxurious-yet-simple bedding I’ve experienced across property. The pillows were sumptuous and I fell asleep almost instantly every time I laid down. I cannot fault it at ALL! The balcony was my favourite space in the room - large and overlooking the Savanna. The animals come fairly close, so the views are fantastic, but even when they are off in the distance, the way the building is laid out in a horseshoe shape, they are never really too far away. I enjoyed mornings watching the animals slowly wake up and wander, alongside mid afternoon breaks where the animals ran around. Most of the time there was something to see, and this was my

Our experience at Kidani Village - Animal Kingdom Lodge was magical. We were on the third floor with a wonderful view of the savanna. We saw giraffes, crested cranes, elands, zebras, wildebeests, etc every day from our balcony during our stay. We had a one-bedroom villa which provided plenty of room for our family of five. The rooms were beautiful, very clean, and filled with many artistic references to The Lion King. We loved having a kitchen, washer, and dryer. The lobby was lovely though not as spectacular as the lobby for Jambo. The pool was wonderful with 2 slides and lots of stuff for kids to do. The evening fire with s'mores was a great activity too. All of the staff were super friendly and helpful. Our rooms were cleaned in a timely manner. We would definitely stay here again and would recommend the Kidani Village to anyone that loves animals.

I don’t understand how this hotel warrants a de-luxe status as having stayed at the Grand Floridian ( also classed as a de- luxe) there is no comparison whatsoever. The rooms at Kidani Village are designed for vacation guests and for two people they are fully equipped, clean with an extremely comfortable bed. The rooms however are dark,dated and tired offering no Disney ambiance throughout . The receptionist who booked us in blatantly lied about the distance to our room, a long walk down corridors reminiscent of the Shining! There is no personal touch at the KVL and any requests to house keeping were refused ( room location and extended check out). The transport was very good from both park and hotels but you can only use bus transport from this hotel. I would not recommend this hotel nor would we return.

Do not choose this “deluxe resort”! It ain’t!! Rooms are very very small—cannot comfortably accommodate 4 people. Closet is about 12”—for 4 people! Really? Sheesh 🙄 VERY disappointed 😔 The carpets down the hallway are fraying! This is a 3 star hotel at best. Staff is very kind—that was a plus!

Terrible experience at this resort and the cast members were not helpful at all. We’ve been to several Disney resorts and this was the worse experience. We were told false information about the room accommodations and when we arrived, they refused to rectify the situation. Instead they pointed the finger to everyone else. We called and sent several emails. The first response also included false information and then we didn’t hear anything back for over a week after we checked out which included additional false information. The room was not what we wanted and the experience was terrible. And other than a few birds and deer, we didn’t even see any animals even though we were told we had the best view—-another lie. I don’t recommend this resort.

Honestly, this hotel is the most escapist one we’ve stayed at on Disney property. After a split stay at four different DVC properties we finished our vacation with Kidani and it was the hotel where all our Disney “tactical military mission” stressors evaporated. The pool is so exotic feeling (and in our opinion beats the one over at Jambo) and the music, smells and decor completely transport you to an African lodge. The only reason we give it four stars has nothing to do with the transportation (which really isn’t challenging at all unless you’re someone who loves to rope drop), but because the rooms are showing need for refurbishment (which is scheduled to happen soon) . Once that happens this hotel will be back in our top 2.