Animal Kingdom Lodge Primer

I was researching the Animal Kingdom Lodge today and I thought I'd share some resources I found, or have always liked. Obviously the first thing you need to know about is the Animal Kingdom Lodge Unofficial Fansite. This is a great place to get a broad understanding of what the Lodge is like. Personally one of my favorite characteristics about the Lodge is that it's VERY impressive, but not terribly expensive. While the rooms are fairly small, the amenities, lobby, etc are fantastic. It has many of the advantages of the Wilderness Lodge, but is even better in my opinion. The Wilderness Lodge does however have easy access to the Magic Kingdom, which is a consideration. For more information check out this thread on Animal Kingdom Lodge vs. Wilderness Lodge.

The next question is whether you want to stay in Kidani Village or Jambo House. While Kidani Village is the DVC members area, you can still stay there if you want. Here's a good Kidani Village Review to help you figure out if you want to venture over there. Personally I'm always going to pick Jambo House, because I love both the Boma and Jiko restaurants.

Another interesting consideration from staying at the Animal Kingdom Lodge is the Safaris. There are several of them including the Wanyama Safari and the Sunrise Safari. They have differing constraints on who can do them though so be sure to do your research.

Overall I think AKL has the best combination of price, amenities and style. It's biggest negative is that it's a bit out of the way and it's second biggest problem is that the rooms are small. Fortunately neither of these are huge on my priority list, so it's the perfect resort for me.

Got too much money?

If you're trying to get rid of some you could eat here. There are plenty of good places to eat in WDW, so I've never managed to work up the nerve or financial responsibility to eat there.

Cupcakes

You like cupcakes? I got some cupcakes for you!

Jon Secada

You probably think I don't like Jon Secada. Well you're wrong:

Good Post

If you like your patriotism sprinkled with pixie dust. Check out this post on Meltdown Free Disney:

To Honor America, Disney Style

Contemporary Resort Pictures

If you're looking for a place to stay in Disney World and can afford it, the Contemporary Resort is a big winner in my book. You can walk to the Magic Kingdom quickly and the monorail runs through your freaking hotel!

If you want to see tons of Pictures of the Contemporary the Fan Site has a ton of them. Click the link and check out all the pics. They also have some good articles on staying there. Be sure to check out the California Grill while you're there. The food is delicious and the view is amazing.

Disney Employee Swiping Credit Card Numbers

If you've been to Saratoga Springs or Old Key West you might want to keep an eye on your credit card statement. Apparently a front desk worker was skimming credit card information. If you want to read more you can check out the story on DisZine:

Walt Disney World Employee Caught Stealing Credit Card Information From Hotel Guests

Personally I think it's a testament to Disney that this kind of stuff doesn't happen more often. When you think about how many resorts they have worldwide it's surprising this isn't commonplace.

Disney World for Couples

Honestly when the wife and I go anymore, we do what pretty much everyone else would do at Disney World. We don't go out of our way to do a bunch of romantic stuff. That being said, I think there's plenty available for you if that's your desire.

Here's a good article on Disney World for Couples. It has all the obvious ideas, but plenty of others for those who's definition of "romance" isn't so mainstream.

Personally we think riding Splash Mountain together on a chilly night is romantic, but maybe that's just us?

Preferred Rooms at Pop Century

I always like a better room, so I was curious if I should have any interest in the preferred rooms at Disney's Pop Century. My conclusion is they're not worth it for me. I actually like DisneyZane's logic. Which led me to a couple of useful articles:

Pop Century Preferred Rooms on WorthyPosts and
Are Pop Century Preferred Rooms Worth the Money on the Pop Century fan site.

I still can't tell whether you have to pay extra for a King Room though.

Christine McVie

Christine McVie! I love everything Fleetwood Mac and everyone in Fleetwood Mac does:



I honestly thought this was a Fleetwood Mac song...but I digress. I thought I'd admit I had some taste after the Ke$ha admission!