Kidani Village at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge by Melissa Gardner

My  family enjoyed the Thanksgiving holiday in Walt Disney World® in 2011. This was a first visit for my son, as well as a first visit for my husband! There are so many resort choices in Walt Disney World®; from the stately beauty of the Grand Floridian to the hip and cool Pop Century Resort, there are experiences for all tastes and for all wallets.

Kidani Village is a Disney Vacation Club® exclusive resort that consists of villa style rooms. Room sizes include a studio with a kitchenette, and one, two and three bedroom villas with full kitchens, living rooms and dining areas.As Disney Vacation Club members, we own shares in Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge – Kidani Village.

For our vacation, we traveled with my parents as well, so we stayed in a two bedroom villa.

Upon entering Kidani Village, guests are welcomed home with dramatic high ceilings, and a wall of windows looking out onto the savannah. On our vacation, it was like Christmas had already arrived as the entire resort had already decked the halls!

There is also dramatic detail in the chandelier and other lighted elements throughout the lobby.

Kidani Village, and the main lodge – Jambo House, consists of low and long buildings. They are no more than 4 stories high but are incredibly long. Our walk from the lobby of the resort to our villa was probably a good 5 – 8 minutes, give or take how tired we were! But the walk was worth it when we arrived in our room.

Here is a photo tour:

And the view? Well, that wasn’t bad either!

On a daily basis, it was normal for us to wake up to giraffes, zebras, and that cattle of which I cannot remember the name. We also saw ostriches, and a few other interesting birds.

Disney’s Animal Kingdom resort includes 3 on site full service restaurants. Two are located in Jambo House – Jiko and Boma. We went to Boma the first evening that we were in Walt Disney World® and it was incredible. Highly, highly recommended. The third restaurant, Sanaa, is located in Kidani Village.

Jambo House is the main building at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge, and where most guests will stay. I have stayed here on one occasion and the details of the rooms are the same as those of our villa. The rooms are basically the equivalent of the second bedroom and bath in the photos above. Jambo House, however, has a much more dramatic lobby area.

Both Kidani Village and Jambo House have beautiful pools and guests of Kidani Village may pool hop over to Jambo House. There is also a quick service restaurant located in Jambo House called The Mara. Here you will find fairly standard quick service fare served for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Some offerings do have an African twist to fit the theme of the resort.

Kidani Village has a small gift shop and convenience store for guests. Because all villas have a kitchenette or full kitchen, many guests take advantage and save a little money by cooking meals in their villa. At the shop you can find everything from bread and peanut butter to frozen meals. It is a little convenience that goes a long way.

In Jambo House, there is a larger gift shop called Zawadi Marketplace. Here you can find standard Walt Disney World® souvenirs as well as several African gifts such as jewelry and musical instruments.

Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge is truly a magical place to stay during a Walt Disney World® vacation. We can’t wait to return!!

Want to Stay Here:

Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge – Kidani Village is a Disney Vacation Club® resort. Cash value for villas within Kidani Village and Jambo house range from $305 to $1720 per night dependent on villa type and time of stay.  Due to the nature and wildlife at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge, the resort is located a good distance from the theme parks, and it is suggested that guests allow 30 minutes to reach their destination within the park.

I am not affiliated with Walt Disney World in any way, and all opinions within this review are 100% my own.