Disney Animal Kingdom Lodge 2 Bedroom Villa
Want to make your next trip to Walt Disney World WILD? Here's how to get a savanna view with the BEST room at Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge!
At the very end of a long hallway there is a magical hotel room that you wake up to the sounds of birds chirping, wildebeests snorting, giraffe-sized doors creaking, and the insistent squealing of a warthog.
No, you're not on a safari in Africa, you're in room 7782 at Kidani Village at Animal Kingdom Lodge.
Why is it The BEST Room at Kidani Village?
Our room is the circle way up in the top right of the photo. The other circles are places I tried to get. So glad we didn't! Photo by Trisha Daab
This 2-bedroom villa room is next to where many of the animals you see on the Savanna eat, sleep and are cared for.
Its unique location at the very far end of the resort also puts it as the access point for the animals to move between the Sunset and Pembe Savannas.
Our family had the incredible opportunity to stay in this room in 2015. Admittedly, I was not thrilled when I saw the incredibly remote location the friendly cast member checking us in circled on the map.
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The Most Remote Room at Kidani Village
This is a time lapse video of the walk from the door of 7782 to the elevator. No, not the busses or the restaurant, the elevator to get down to the lobby. Your day has just started and you're already about 750 steps in.
I honestly pushed quite hard to have us in a room close to the pool, the lobby, civilization, anything! Seriously, this room is far. ⅓ of a mile from the elevato r far. 750 steps at the end of a long day in Disney parks far
But this Cast Member knew something I didn't. He knew that every step of that walk would be worth it.
Every day on our trip we had a new discovery that makes this the most adventurous, unique, and one of the best rooms at Disney World.
Surrounded By The Savanna
On our first night we got into the room right around sunset. The room is a 2-bedroom villa and has this amazing long balcony that runs along the master bedroom, living room, and second bedroom. Almost everywhere you stood, you had a view of the Savanna.
And when you're standing in the living room and see a giraffe wandering by fairly close to eye-level, it's a moment you don't forget.
Giraffes bring families together! Every opportunity, we all ran out onto the balcony to see what animals were out. Photo by Trisha Daab
Every member of our entire group of nine dropped their bags and went running to the balcony our first time in the room. Our friend the giraffe was joined by gazelles bounding around zebras and wildebeests as all the animals were quite active in the cool fall dusk hour.
Where The Wild Things Rest
This giraffe is grabbing a bite right in front of the super-tall giraffe-sized habitats. Photo by Trisha Daab
It was a few days into our trip before we discovered what makes this room unlike any other, the location near the animal cages.
This meant we got to see the talented team of Cast Members (CM) that take care of the animals. We saw them coaxing the animals to bed each evening and getting them out and about in the morning .
We saw zebras lined up at the entrance of the cage as the khaki-clad CM opened up the gates so they could wander into the Sunset Savanna.
There were super tall spaces for the giraffes and each evening bright lights were on as the team checked over the giraffes before they went to sleep.
When we leaned over the edge of our balcony at the very end, right below us were the warthogs.
Where The Wild Things Eat
An ostrich and zebra hang out by the animal habitats as seen from the balcony of room 7782 at Kidani Village. Photo by Trisha Daab
One morning we actually missed a FastPass for Seven Dwarfs Mine Train because of the wildebeests.
On this crisp morning, a CM was just outside the cages for the wildebeests and it was time for them to eat. The animals were all already outside while he gathered trays of food.
The animals were a bit over excited and kept hurrying towards the CM as he tried to put all their trays out. He would just about get one out before they reached him and he had to pop back into the cage to stay out of the animals way.
He'd wait until they walked away a bit, then hurry to try and get the trays out before they came running back, then he would hop in the cage again. This went on for a good 20 or so minutes– the CM trying to get out the trays and then having to run back in the cage before the wildebeests came running over.
We started to wonder how long this would go on…
Then we heard a sound like an animal calling. The CM had radioed someone on the team to get the animals attention to another part of the savanna.
All the wildebeests went rushing away towards the sound and finally, success! All the food trays were out and he was able to hop in his jeep and drive away. It was totally worth missing the FastPass!
Sadly, I have no video or photos of animal experience. We were all too enthralled and wondering what would happen next to get our cameras or phones. But, here is a photo of something else you won't see everyday, an ostrich and a zebra hanging out by their habitats!
8 Tips For Room 7782 at Kidani Village
Photo by Trisha Daab
- Be ready to walk. It's just long. Unless you request to be near the lobby or have a car and are able to park near your room, it's a walk.
- It's an indoor walk. Coming from Chicago, I want to soak up every bit of sunshine when in Florida. If we weren't on our balcony, we were about a ⅓ mile before we could be outside.
- Room service takes forever. They have to do that long walk too
- DON'T FORGET ANYTHING. If you forget sunscreen, a purse, a Magic Band, shoes, your 10-year old, you will find yourself considering not going back.
- Eat at Sanaa. It's one of the most magical dining experiences in all of Disney and home to one of the best dishes at Disney: Butter Chicken. This dish is so good we have an entire post devoted to it . Sanaa is also the only restaurant at Kidani Village. All the restaurants in Jambo House (the main building for Animal Kingdom Lodge) are about a 10-minute walk away. It's an entirely separate building.
- Buy snacks before going to your room. A late night run for chips or a Mickey Bar means a ⅔ of a mile walk.
- Plan for breakfast . There is nothing worse than arriving at a Disney Park hangry. Sanaa serves breakfast but it's not a food court like some resorts have. There is grab n go or sit down.
- It's noisy. And the front desk can't really do anything about the noise of a baby warthog having a moment. Just be prepared to be up early.
A Warthog Alarm Clock
Yep, we had one of those. Every morning around say 6 AM there was a little baby warthog that just really didn't want to get up.
It squealed– a lot. On the bottom floor of this section of Kidani Village there is an area for the warthogs. It's on the inside of the building, but it is open air.
This means when the warthogs make it known they are unhappy, it echoes. And that echo makes it loud and clear up to the rooms above. This typically happened in the morning and at night.
Also, if you decided to jump off the end of our balcony, you would end up in the warthogs' outdoor space. You would be hanging with the warthogs! Well, until Disney Security got there, which I'm guessing would be quite fast.
You can actually see the balcony of our room in this video. Look at the bottom floor and you can see how well the animal habitats are camouflaged.
How To Book The Best Room at Kidani Village
We could see a giraffe while laying in bed in our Savanna view room. Photo by Trisha Daab
- When making your reservation, book a Savanna view room. The specific area around room 7782 are Savanna view rooms only.
- IMPORTANT TIP: Make sure you are also booking villas in Kidani Village. There are also villas in Jambo house at Animal Kingdom Lodge. They are not the same building.
- Request a true 2-Bedroom Villa. 7782 is a true 2-bedroom Villa room. Some 2-bedrooms Villas are called a 2-Bedroom Lock Off. This means it's actually a 1-Bedroom Villa connected to a studio with a door between. Make sure you ask for the 2-bedroom villa
- Book with a human. Use a Disney travel agent or call. This way you can ask if you can be in the specific room or as close as possible to the end. Most people, me included, ask to be near the pool, lobby or as close as possible to the bus stop. They won't guarantee anything, but can be a fun convo with the booking agent.
- When checking in, ask for this room. You never know, you may get lucky. Be ready with your reason why and hopefully you will get that Cast Member who is also in on the secret and knows just how magical this room is.
Want even more amazing animal experiences at Walt Disney World? Check out our April Issue, which covers all things nature, and even has an interview with Dr. Mark Penning, the head of the team that helps care for Disney animals all over the world!
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Disney Animal Kingdom Lodge 2 Bedroom Villa
Source: https://www.wdw-magazine.com/get-a-savanna-view-with-the-best-room-at-animal-kingdom-lodge/
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