Jambo, Louise!
Welcome to planDisney. Asante Sana (that means "thank you" in Swahili) for stopping by with your excellent question. Louise, I'll bet you can't wait to be king (or queen) at
Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge. It's one of our favorite Resorts, and I am looking forward to our own stay there in June. Watching the animals graze the savannah or the sun rising up over the horizon in the morning are definitely the "mane" events when staying at this Resort.
Yes, Louise, the circle of life has brought so much change to
Walt Disney World Resort over the last four years. But Hakuna Matata. It means "no worries." I can help answer your questions!
Let's start with the
Disney Resort Transportation bus timetable. Bus service between Jambo House and the theme parks and
Disney Water Parks usually begins approximately 45 minutes prior to the opening of the park and each theme park bus comes in approximately 20-minute intervals. The bus service typically continues for about an hour after a theme park closes. For
Disney Springs, bus service to and from operates during their operating hours, also in approximately 20-minute intervals. If you need transportation in between or outside of the bus operating hours, I recommend checking out the
Disney Minnie Van Service, which is
operated through Lyft for a fee, but we find it is a quick and convenient way to get where we need to go on property if the bus timing doesn't align with our plans.
For your Disney bands, currently they are only available to be shipped to addresses in the United States. What you can do, though, is purchase them from one of the shops on property like the
Zawadi Marketplace in your Resort. Then, through the
My Disney Experience app, you can link them to your tickets. To do that, you simply go to the app on your phone. Select the little three lines in the bottom right corner. Select "MagicBands and More" and then select the first Guest. You will see a picture of a Disney band with the "+Link" button in the top right corner of that link and you can scan your new band to link it to your ticket. Repeat this for each of the Guests in your party.
Alternatively, if you have Disney bands from your last trip, you can activate those or link them to your tickets. If you have any trouble when you arrive, just check with the Front Desk at your Resort or any Guest Services kiosk in the park to assist you.
I hope you have the best time on your Disney vacation. No one saying "do this," no one saying "be there," no one saying "stop that," no one saying "see here." You'll be free to run around all day and free to enjoy Disney all your own way. If you have any further questions,
stop back and see me. I'll be here, working on my roar.
Have fun making magical memories!
Keri