Animal Kingdom Lodge and Wilderness Lodge are the two deluxe resorts at Disney World with the best prices and are often considered to have some of the best theming and most impressive lobbies as well. Plus, they both have “Lodge” in the name, which pretty much begs us to write this post. So, what truly separates these resorts, and what differences are overblown? In this post we compare Animal Kingdom Lodge and Wilderness Lodge to help you choose between these great options!
About This Post and Related Posts
The bottom line is that both of these are great options for a Walt Disney World stay, and while I’m thrilled to have the chance to spend the next few thousand words helping you understand where they are and aren’t different, you can probably feel pretty comfortable picking either.
While this post focuses on comparing these two, you might also be interested in our individual reviews:
In the rest of this post, I’m going to compare these hotels point-by-point in the areas of:
Perks
Price
Room Quality
Pools
Theming and Grounds
Location and Transportation
Restaurants
Club Level
Both Hotels Have the Same Perks
Since these are both deluxe Disney World hotels they have the same set of perks. Guests have:
free transportation to all four parks, Disney Springs, and the water parks
Extended Evening Hours at select parks on select nights (deluxe hotels only)
The free transportation is slightly different between the two, as we’ll discuss later. They also both get high marks for Disney hospitality and theming, though the themes are different, as we’ll also discuss.
Animal Kingdom Lodge Costs Less…But It’s Complicated
These are the two lowest-priced deluxe options, mostly due to their locations (more on this below). If you’re looking for a deluxe stay while keeping your Disney World trip cost down, these two will be top of your list. In 2026:
Wilderness Lodge starts at $558 per night
Animal Kingdom Lodge starts at $508 per night
That’s a relatively small difference (10%) and there are two reasons that might not reflect what you see when it comes time to plan your trip.
First, Disney’s own deals vary by hotel and room category, so you might come across seasons where Wilderness Lodge is discounted but Animal Kingdom Lodge isn’t.
Second and relatedly, that 10% variance is less than the variance you’ll find in some room categories within the hotels. If the lowest-cost room category at Animal Kingdom Lodge is fully booked, you’ll be even closer to Wilderness pricing.
More specifically, you might take a long look at the Savanna View room category at Animal Kingdom Lodge. These rooms include balconies overlooking the savanna and start at $717 in 2026.
Or if you’re looking at Club Level at these two options (discussed briefly below), you’ll see Animal Kingdom Lodge’s Kilimanjaro Club starts about 10% higher than Wilderness Lodge’s Old Faithful Club (mostly because all the Kilimanjaro rooms are Savanna View).
Finally, it’s worth noting both of these can be booked by renting DVC points. It’s too much to dive into now, but the “twist” here is that Animal Kingdom Lodge has some categories with extremely appealing DVC pricing, but those lowest rates can be extremely difficult to book.
On the subject of DVC, for the sake of completeness, just know that:
Jambo House is the main Animal Kingdom Lodge building, but it has some DVC rooms
Kidani Village is the main DVC building at Animal Kingdom Lodge, and it’s a neighbor to—a short walk from—Jambo House
Copper Creek and Boulder Ridge are the DVC properties at Wilderness Lodge, and they essentially share the same space as the main hotel (the cabins are located nearby, along the water)
Room Quality Is About Equal
These hotels both have rooms from the same era (2020s). Overall these are two resorts where I felt the “upgrades” (which I generally loved across Walt Disney World Resort) were sort of a thematic downgrade. But I’ve overall been willing to overlook the loss of theme for the increase in functionality. Room quality simply doesn’t factor into how I view these hotels, but here are some simple galleries:
Room at Animal Kingdom Lodge
Room at Wilderness Lodge
There’s a room refurbishment notice at Animal Kingdom Lodge that goes until January 2027, and new rooms at Kidani Village have started to debut.
Wilderness Lodge Has The Better Pool Situation
Relevant to both this and the above section, now might be a good time to pull up the maps of the resorts:
This is where we start to find differences between the resorts. While I don’t think either of these hotels is worth staying at for their pools specifically, if you’re heading in for a longer or more relaxing trip, you’ll maybe want to carefully consider this point.
Uzima Pool at Animal Kingdom Lodge Jambo House
The distinction between these resorts when it comes to pools is more about function and trip style than quality. In terms of quality, each has two pools, one of which could be considered the more fun pool and one which is maybe more chill.
Of the four, probably the Samawati Springs Pool at Animal Kingdom Lodge—with its 128-foot slide and cool water play area—is the best. But Samawati Springs Pool is at Kidani Village, and you’re probably going to wind up staying at Jambo House if you book Animal Kingdom Lodge.
More generally, the problem with the two pools at Animal Kingdom Lodge is that they’re split across the Kidani Village and Jambo House areas. While guests can use either, you’re probably only going to use the one in your part of the resort because it won’t make a ton of sense to walk the half mile over to the other one (to be fair, we make the walk for Sanaa every visit, but that’s less cumbersome than doing it for pool time).
Copper Creek Springs Pool at Wilderness Lodge
The two Wilderness Lodge pools, by contrast, are relatively close. They’re both next to Geyser Point Bar & Grill and basically just separated by a one-minute stroll around the edge of one building.
Unless you’re outlining a full resort day that would allow for travel between Kidani and Jambo, then I’d probably say poolside resort time is better at Wilderness Lodge. Not only will you have two immediately accessible pool areas to choose from, but you’ll have Geyser Point Bar & Grill—an excellent dining option—right between the two.
They Have Distinct Theming and Grounds
These are both unique properties, and with each having such a distinct theme, it’s a good way to distinguish what has so far been a fairly indistinguishable pair. According to Disney:
Animal Kingdom Lodge is themed to “the heart of Africa.” It’s inspired by “the traditional African kraal” and features one of the largest collections of African art in the United States.
Wilderness Lodge is themed to “the rustic majesty of America’s Great Northwest.” It’s inspired by “turn-of-the-century National Park lodges”, and highlights include “towering totem poles, headdresses and more.”
As the descriptions convey, these resorts are both absolute delights to walk in and around. Both have large, open lobbies filled with interesting touches.
Altogether, I do find Wilderness Lodge to be a more complete package. Keeping in mind that I absolutely love Animal Kingdom Lodge, I do think there’a a certain awkwardness to how much it imitates Wilderness Lodge.
Wilderness Lodge has an amazing stream that connects the lobby to the outside portion of the resort; Animal Kingdom has a small waterfall feature. Wilderness Lodge has a large stone hearth and fireplace; Animal Kingdom Lodge has an indoor fire bit.
Perhaps if you’d never read that paragraph, you’d be better for it. But I do think there’s a real sense of “Wilderness Lodge did it first” here, and the original does it better.
The flip side is that Animal Kingdom Lodge has the savanna. This is a real zoological savanna (well, three savannas, actually) with live animals. If you get a savanna view room you’ll be able to sit on your balcony and watch the animals go about their business throughout the day. If you don’t, there is still plenty of viewing space just off the Jambo House and Kidani Village lobbies.
I will say—the savannas aren’t always so busy in the immediate areas around the guests, but I’ve never been disappointed over the course of a stay (and I assume the caretakers but some measure of effort into drawing animals toward the guest areas).
The thing you really have to know about both Animal Kingdom Lodge and Wilderness Lodge is that they’ll almost certainly both blow you away when it comes to design, theming, and grounds. I’ve stayed at some elite hotels, including lodge-style properties, around the world, but these are two very stunning resorts.
Location & Transportation — Probably a Wash
Animal Kingdom Lodge is located next door to Animal Kingdom, at the far west end of Walt Disney World property. Wilderness Lodge is located near Magic Kingdom, at the far north end of Walt Disney World property.
These are (more or less) equidistant from EPCOT and Hollywood Studios, so neither has a distinct location advantage, though being close to Magic Kingdom is maybe slightly “better” than being close to Animal Kingdom. (Except that being close only matters if you’re driving, and you probably shouldn’t drive to Magic Kingdom.)
As for transportation, let’s start with the fact that you cannot walk to a theme park from either of these. And neither is on the monorail or Skyliner. The limited transportation options are what distinguish these two resorts from the other deluxe resorts, which all have walking access to at least one theme park. This is why these stunning resorts are priced better than the other deluxe resorts.
Now, to compare these side by side:
From Animal Kingdom Lodge, you’ll be relying on buses to all four parks, Disney Springs, and the two water parks.
Wilderness Lodge is the same, except with the additional option of the boat to Magic Kingdom.
Generally, we don’t consider the boat to be a real “perk” of Wilderness Lodge. In our experience, it’s a good alternative to the bus, but it’s not better than the bus.
Restaurants — A World of Difference
The biggest tangible difference between these two resorts is their dining offerings. I say this as a non-foodie, in no position to say which is better—but you can draw a pretty clear line between these two in terms of both dining styles and cuisine.
Geyser Point Bar & Grill at Wilderness Lodge
Let’s start with cuisine—Wilderness Lodge food is much more traditional American, while Animal Kingdom Lodge offers African (with Indian “flavors” at Sanaa). Each has a signature dining restaurant and more casual options, but when it comes to specific restaurants, I think they key point of comparison is between these big two:
Wilderness Lodge has Story Book Dining at Artist Point with Snow White
Animal Kingdom Lodge has Sanaa (at Kidani Village)
Story Book Dining, as you might guess, is a character restaurant. It’s considered one of the best character restaurants at Disney World, and it stars Snow White, Dopey, Grumpy, and the Evil Queen.
Bread Service at Sanaa (Animal Kingdom Lodge)
Sanaa is not a character restaurant, and Animal Kingdom Lodge has no character restaurants. Sanaa is more a “cult” favorite (we’re in the cult), specifically owing to their famous Bread Service.
Since neither of these hotels is readily accessible from the parks, you probably won’t be eating meals at them unless you’re staying there. So if either of these restaurants is high on your list, a stay there might be the right call.
Club Level — Kilimanjaro Is (Probably) King
As deluxe resorts, both Animal Kingdom Lodge and Wilderness Lodge have Club Level options:
I have to confess here that I haven’t stay at Old Faithful Club in many years, and I haven’t stay at Kilimanjaro Club in a few years.
If you’re planning to stay club level, I’d encourage you to read our reviews along with more recent ones. We always loved Kilimanjaro Club, and it’s typically heralded as one of the best Disney World club level experiences.
Conclusion
While these are both great hotels with great perks and comparable prices, you can find differences that might nudge you toward one or the other. As you’d expect, the more time you’re going to spend at the resorts—dining, poolside, taking in the vibes—the more these matter. I think you’ll have a great time at either, but there’s no doubting that each has its hardcore fans, and hopefully this post helped you settle on one for your next trip!
Which do you prefer? Animal Kingdom Lodge or Wilderness Lodge?
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