# Dining Plan at AKL



## Nolathyme (Aug 23, 2013)

I'm thinking of doing the dining plan at AKL due to the quality of the restaurants on site:
Boma, Sanaa, Jiko

I'm thinking the standard dining plan should be enough.
We are 2 adults, 1 4 year old, 1 2 year old. Staying for 7 nights in Feb. 2014.

We are planning on spending most of our time at the resort. We will be going to the MK for one day. I'm thinking Be Our Guest for lunch for the MK day.

Do you recommend the dining plan? If so, how many nights at Boma, Sanaa, Jiko? I'm thinking we would do one breakfast at Boma.

What snacks (of substance/meal replacement) can we get at AKL?


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## vacationhopeful (Aug 23, 2013)

You do realize that the 2 lodges are 1/2 mile apart from each other? And that is the outside edge of each building to the other.

Kidani and Jumbo - most of the restaurant are in Jumbo as that is where the hotel guests stay - along with some TS. Kidani is all timeshares.

Yes, there is a local shuttle which just travels back and forth the 2 buildings - hold 8-9 people - mainly during the dinner/evening hours.


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## Nolathyme (Aug 23, 2013)

We have a savannah view. Do we have some influence on what lodge we get?


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## ScubaKat (Aug 23, 2013)

swj said:


> We have a savannah view. Do we have some influence on what lodge we get?



It is set based on the deposited week you grabbed..check your confirmation.. If the address is 3701 Osceola Parkway you are in Kidani.


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## Nolathyme (Aug 24, 2013)

ScubaKat said:


> It is set based on the deposited week you grabbed..check your confirmation.. If the address is 3701 Osceola Parkway you are in Kidani.



The confirmation shows 3701 Osceola Parkway.   What would it say if it is Jambo House?


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## ScubaKat (Aug 24, 2013)

swj said:


> The confirmation shows 3701 Osceola Parkway.   What would it say if it is Jambo House?



Jambo is 2901 Osceola.. We prefer staying at Kidani.. Have found it quieter and a bit more laid back.  Parking is right under the building and it doesn't take 10-15 minutes walking the hall to get back to the room after a long day at the park.  Have taken the shuttle to go to Jambo for events and dining and was not a problem.


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## alwysonvac (Aug 24, 2013)

> Do you recommend the dining plan? If so, how many nights at Boma, Sanaa, Jiko? I'm thinking we would do one breakfast at Boma.
> 
> What snacks (of substance/meal replacement) can we get at AKL?



I think a good number of folks buy the dining plan for the convenience (not for the savings).

I suggest looking at the various plans and the menus and making your decision based on what your family will eat. I love Jiko & Boma but non-adventurous (picky) eaters may not enjoy it as much. I haven't tried Sanaa yet.

Here are descriptions of the AKL restaurants so you know what to expect (if you're not familiar with the AKL restaurants). 
http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/resorts/aklodge/dining.htm
http://allears.net/acc/faq_akl.htm

You can find the latest restaurant menus with prices on Allears and WDWinfo.
http://allears.net/menu/menus.htm
http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/dining.htm

You can find everything you ever wanted to know about the Dining Plan on the Disboards. They have a dedicated forum just for the Disney Dining Plan with Stickies covering the 2013 plans and 2013 snacks (to give you an idea of what to expect in 2014).

Dining Plan forum - http://www.disboards.com/forumdisplay.php?f=116

Definitely check out the Sticky threads such as....
2013 Confirmed Snacks - http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3039087 (updates are maintained in the first couple of posts)
2013 Dining Plan Prices and Brochure - http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2958846
Kids CS Credits & Menus FAQ & Q&A - http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2479727 (NOTE: In the past, there were complaints about the lack of variety in the kids menu).

*TIP:* Once you decide on which restaurants, make your reservations ASAP (you can make them online).  Popular restaurants and prime dining hours are booked months in advance. 

Good Luck 



> *From the Disboard: 2014 Dining Plan prices* - http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3138911
> 
> _I haven't seen anything official, but after tinkering with the new price plans this morning I was able to come up with this break down:
> 
> ...


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## alwysonvac (Aug 24, 2013)

Update... 
It looks like the 2014 Dining Plans are available on the Disney World site

https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/planning-guides/in-depth-advice/disney-dining-plan/ (see pdf links to the 2014 plans in the right hand column under Related Resources).


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## Nolathyme (Aug 24, 2013)

Is it easy to move to Jambo if I am confirmed for Kidani?


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## davemari21 (Aug 24, 2013)

alwysonvac said:


> I think a good number of folks buy the dining plan for the convenience (not for the savings).
> 
> I suggest looking at the various plans and the menus and making your decision based on what your family will eat. I love Jiko & Boma but non-adventurous (picky) eaters may not enjoy it as much. I haven't tried Sanaa yet.
> 
> ...


 
Definitely agree.  The meal plan is for convenience.  Not a lot of savings unless u love deserts and drink lots of soda.


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## icydog (Aug 24, 2013)

swj said:


> Is it easy to move to Jambo if I am confirmed for Kidani?



You will not be given that option. If your reservation is for Kidani that is where you will be. I love Kidani. I would always choose it over Jambo house.


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## letsgosteelers (Aug 26, 2013)

Just throwing it out there but why only eat at one resort?

There are plenty of restaurants you can enjoy.

If you are going to MK, I would definitely recommend going to the Kona Cafe at the Polynesian for breakfast.

Try the Tonga Toast.....it was spectacular!!!


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## Nolathyme (Aug 29, 2013)

letsgosteelers said:


> Just throwing it out there but why only eat at one resort?
> 
> There are plenty of restaurants you can enjoy.
> 
> ...



We are mostly going to be at the resort. I don't feel like driving or taking a shuttle for a meal to be a relaxing vacation. Our kids are 2 and 4 so hanging at the pool and resort most of the days works for us. 
We most probably won't get the dining plan. Although I like deserts, I don't need one or two every meal. And I don't need to be walking around the resort with a big gulp of soda.
Meals have been booked.


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## rfc0001 (Aug 29, 2013)

There is a good spreadsheet that will compare dining plans, paying cash, and using TIW based on the actual restaurants you plan to visit, # of snacks you plan on buying, and % of meals (other than breakfast) you plan on buying appetizer/dessert (per adult). As much as people have their own opinion based on what works for them, the answer *really* is it depends. There is a video on how to use the spreadsheet that also has a link to download it at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jMDgzoJLI8 (and no this isn't spam ).

It's hard to convince anyone on any side of this "argument" that the other side could possibly be right so I highly recommend just looking at the hard numbers. I like to "max it out" by changing the setting to above average spending (basically the most expensive thing on the menu), and assume 2 snacks per person per day (which is a lot as anyone on the DDP can attest). Even with that paying cash or TIW always come out on top _for me, _and TIW is pretty much a wash for a single visit after subtracting the $100 for the card (although it makes up for it with multiple visits), but it really depends on what type of restaurants you plan on visiting (CS or TS), how often you'll actually order appetizer/dessert (per person), and whether you would actually order the most expensive thing on the menu if not for DDP. In reality, most people don't do all these things, which is why DDP only "saves" money if you use it to the maximum extent.


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## AnnaS (Sep 3, 2013)

You can take the shuttle/bus to Kidani or walk over.  Much better to walk it in February than in July if you decide to walk there.  We walked once or twice in August - it's really not that bad (of course would have preferred cooler weather  )


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## shoegal (Sep 3, 2013)

We stayed at the AKL last year and loved every bit of it. The breakfast buffet at  the hotel (was it Boma? Don't remember the name) was AMAZING!

I did buy the meal plan for our 4 day stay at WDW and did not use up all the coupons, I guess it was mismanagement from my side. I would buy a drink or snack in cash and forget I'd have coupons for this. So in the end I was mad at myself to not have been more careful. Would I do the meal plan again? MAYBE, with exact planing on what to eat when and where. If you go out to the parks make sure to make reservations, many restaurants fill up and you can't get in.


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## ptlohmysoul (Sep 3, 2013)

swj said:


> I'm thinking of doing the dining plan at AKL due to the quality of the restaurants on site:
> Boma, Sanaa, Jiko
> 
> I'm thinking the standard dining plan should be enough.
> ...



For what you're doing, the dining plan does not benefit you.  It would be better to pay OOP (out of pocket).  

We ordered groceries from wegoshop.com (highly recommend), but there is also gardengrocer and a few others.  We cooked breakfast each morning (eggs) before heading to the parks, plus we had fresh fruit and juice for the room.  Kidani doesn't have a quick service, just a sit-down restaurant, room service, and a convenience store.  BTW, the convenience store has mickey bars for slightly cheaper than you can get them at the parks.  It also has a soda fountain for the buy a mug, get sodas your whole visit.

Jambo has the quick service and a buffet (all you can eat) restaurant, as well as a fancy restaurant.  The playground is at jambo.  There is a pool at Kidani and another at Jambo.  You can use all the facilities at both.  

You will have a great time just staying mainly at the hotel.  There are activities and animals .  We stayed this past February, but went to parks every day.


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