Our Animal Kingdom Lodge Vacation

This past week, Andrew, Michael and I were at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge in Orlando, FL. We are part of vacation club, and had wanted to go to Hilton Head, but there were no reservations available, so our only option was Orlando. And since I really wanted to go on vacation, we went with what was available. It is no secret that I am not a huge fan of Disney World, especially no in July. So, I made a deal with Andrew, we could go to Orlando, if he agreed that we would do this as cheap as possible and as relaxing as possible.  If we had gone to Hilton Head, our days would be spent at the pool or beach, and then going to dinner. That’s It! No running around, no waking up early and staying up late. Just a nice, quiet, relaxing vacation. So, that meant to park tickets and no dining plan.  The parks are great, but in July, with a almost 1 year old, it just sounds more miserable than fun. So, Andrew agreed, and we made reservations for the Animal Kingdom Lodge.

We got there Saturday evening, and went straight to our room. We had a Savannah view room, and all throughout the week, we saw so many different animals right outside!

Our days consisted of waking up, going to the pool, coming back to the room for a nap, eating lunch, walking around the resort to look at the animals, taking another nap, eating dinner and going to bed. Andrew’s family was also there, but at a different resort, so we met them two different days to swim. As far as vacations with an almost one-year-old go, it was pretty relaxing. We did get up a lot earlier than we usually do on vacation, but that is because a baby will only sleep for so long in the morning.

For the 4^th of July, we spent the morning at the pool and then went to watch the fireworks over the castle from the 11^th floor of Bay Lake Tower. It was a great view.

The best part of this vacation was watching the animals. I could sit and watch them for hours. It was just so neat. My favorite animals were the giraffes. There were about 3 or 4 different ones we saw during the week. The ones we saw the most were the Mama and baby giraffe. The baby was only 11 months old, just like Michael.  The zebras were also very cool to watch. One day, as we were walking around we saw 6 or 8 zebras running around a chasing each other. They were running through the ponds and all through the Savannah. Later, we asked a guide about it, and he said that that is what healthy zebras do. If you see them running and are very active, that means they are healthy and happy.

One night, Andrew’s parents asked if they could take Michael with them into the Magic Kingdom and to dinner. We, of course, said that was fine. They were going to the Crystal Palace for a character dinner with Winnie the Pooh and his pals. Michael has never seen any characters, so we weren’t sure how he would react. They said he did fine, and really didn’t pay much attention to them. I am waiting to get the pictures from their camera, and I will post them, when I get them.  Andrew’s dad also took a bunch of pictures at the pool, so hopefully I will have those soon also.

This was one of the best “Disney” vacations I have ever had. We would definitely go back, and do the same thing.