Animal Kingdom Lodge

If we had another day in Orlando, I would have visited other Disney resorts. While a great location, the Yacht Club is nothing spectacular (compared with other Disney resorts). I'm so glad that I was able to arrange a dinner reservation at Animal Kingdom Lodge. It was GORGEOUS! I'm also glad that I didn't keep my 8:30 reservations & kept searching until I found the first reservation of the night.

None of my photos do it justice. The lodge is probably the least convenient of all the Disney resorts (we took a cab to the lodge because it's so far away), but after seeing the grounds, I know why people stay on the property.

We had a few minutes of daylight before our reservation. There was so much to see in the lobby and observation deck.

The kids watched birds being fed and listened to a lesson from the workers.

I tried not to think about Nick's comments that he thought it was odd that all the restaurants in the lodge were very meat-centric. 

I remember seeing these birds in Nina's photos from her African Safari. 

In true Disney fashion, all the flora and fauna were brought in from Africa.

We ate at Jiko for dinner that evening. It was a spectacular choice. Easily our best service of the week and the food was fabulous. In addition, the ambiance rivaled any fancy, hip restaurant in your town. It was quiet & relaxed, but not too slow. We had a great wine (all African varieties) and a mini-date night. The kids happily colored on their placemats and ate their kid friendly dinners (that were not chicken strips). Our food was delicious and Nick choose a no-sugar added apple tart with beet ice cream for dessert. Alone, the ice cream tasted like beets. But, the pairing with the tart was lovely (really!)

After dinner, it was back to the hotel to roast marshmallows on the beach. 

Just kidding. We couldn't move.  Too much food for one day. Thank goodness we were walking a lot. The kids went to sleep & we caught Illuminations from our balcony. Another successful day.