Jambo House at Disney's Animal Kingdom Villas will not reopen on June 22 with the rest of the Disney Vacation Club resorts at Walt Disney World.
DVC has confirmed that Jambo House will remain closed indefinitely as other areas of the Florida vacation complex begin reopening to guests. A statement posted to the DVC member website indicates that Jambo will remain closed "during this initial period" and that it will eventually reopen "as the volume of reservations increase."
For the time being, guests holding reservations for Jambo House will be relocated to nearby Kidani Village.
In recent weeks, Disney has frequently used phrases like "initial period" to describe the days immediately following hotel reopenings. However, no timeline has ever been attached to this period. For dates in late June and early July, guests with cash hotel reservations are being moved to vacation DVC villa rooms. It does not appear that any of the cash hotels will reopen prior to mid-July. Even hotels attached to DVC resorts like Disney's BoardWalk Inn and Disney's Beach Club Resort will not be operating.
Guest demand will undoubtedly play a role in which resorts reopen and how quickly it happens. A resort like Jambo House--which has just 134 villas and more than 1000 hotel rooms--is low on the priority list. This is particularly true since DVC can offer Kidani Village as alternative lodging to both owners of Disney's Animal Kingdom Villas and other club members.
As we previously reported, DVC availabilty at Jambo House has disappeared and reappeared over the last several weeks. The DVC booking system does show Jambo availability from June 22 forward as of this writing. However, owners who are able to secure reservations in the coming weeks should do so with the understanding that they may be relocated to Kidani Village.
The complete statement from DVC is as follows:
As Disney Vacation Club Resorts at Walt Disney World prepare to reopen on June 22, Disney’s Animal Kingdom Villas - Jambo House will not be open during this initial period. Disney’s Animal Kingdom Villas - Kidani Village will initially welcome home Members and Guests. Member Services will contact Members with confirmed reservations at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Villas - Jambo House to transfer their existing reservations to Disney’s Animal Kingdom Villas - Kidani Village. Over time, as the volume of reservations increase, inventory will be expanded to include Disney’s Animal Kingdom Villas - Jambo House. Upon the reopening of Disney’s Animal Kingdom Villas - Jambo House, some amenities such as restaurants and merchandise locations will likely remain closed until the rest of the Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge opens. However, at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Villas - Kidani Village, merchandise locations and restaurants will be available
