Jambo David, and welcome back to planDisney! I often visit Disney World with my extended family, so I have a lot of experience booking dining for large parties. I’d be happy to help you navigate the best way to make these kinds of reservations!
At many Disney restaurants, it’s hard to snag reservations for larger party sizes. And for some eateries, eight is the limit you can book online. When I travel with my family, I usually opt to make two separate dining reservations within about 15 minutes of each other. You’ll need two different
MyDisney accounts to do this (my sister and I will often tag-team to make these reservations). In your case, you’d make one reservation for a party of five at, let’s say, 5:00 p.m., and another person in your group would make a second reservation for a party of four for the same time (or between 4:45 p.m. to 5:15 p.m.). When you arrive at
Sanaa, let the Cast Member at check-in know that you’d like to be seated together, if possible. While it’s not guaranteed, they’ll try their best to seat you together or at nearby tables.
You could also try calling the dining reservations phone number, 407-WDW-DINE. A Cast Member may be able to help with booking a larger reservation. If not, they can also assist with making the two reservations we discussed.
Disney does recommend including all children, regardless of age, in your dining reservation headcount to ensure there’s enough room at your table. So you’ll want to include your two-year-old in the total party size.
Now, let’s talk about one of my favorite resort hotels—
Animal Kingdom Villas - Kidani Village! There’s so much fun to be had without even heading to the theme parks. When you arrive, snap a picture of the activity schedule, usually posted in the lobby and sometimes by the pool area. My nephew loves the String of Memories Activities, where you can collect beads throughout the day by learning from the different Cultural Representatives.
Jambo House is also just a short walk or shuttle ride away from Kidani Village and has even more activities! Animal Kingdom Lodge has the largest private collection of African art outside of Africa, so the Jambo House Lobby Art Tour is always a must-do for me! It currently runs on weekdays at 11:00 a.m., but double-check the activity schedule or ask a Cast Member when you get there in case things have changed.
The last thing I wanted to mention is my favorite snack at Animal Kingdom Lodge—the zebra domes! They’re a delicious mousse covered in white chocolate with a zebra-inspired chocolate drizzle. This dessert is often found at
Boma dinner over at Jambo House, but you can also usually find it at Kidani Village at the
Johari Treasures gift shop.
I hope you have the most magical stay at Kidani Village in September! And if you have any other questions, you’re always welcome here at planDisney.
JoAnna