First camping trip to the Fort, but some days are full.

[Abagpiper5]

We just made reservations for our first camping trip to Fort Wilderness. (10/30/09 to 11/7/09)
We are all set for a Preferred site for Nov 1 to 7, but they are filled for Oct. 30 and 31.

It will be my wife, the 4 wee ones, and myself driving down from NJ.


Anyone have any ideas on my options for the nights that I couldn’t get?
Are there any other nice campgrounds close to Disney?
If I was to stay off site in a hotel for the first 2 nights, would there be an issue on parking the Trailer in their parking lot?

 

[Kagoguen]

Maybe you could get a room and park your camper for those 2 nights at the Fort Wilderness parking lot?

 

[bama_ed]

Not surprised the Fort's booked full for Halloween weekend.

A poster on here, stacktester (the honorary Mayor of FW) recommends Turkey Lake campground which is basic but okay - it's slightly north of Universal Studios. http://www.cityoforlando.net/fpr/net/t_ParkRec.aspx?park=336&page=1. It's often recommended if the Fort is full.

Most hotels wouldn't be upset with a trailer parked in their lot overnight as long as you are a guest at the hotel and not boondocking in their parking lot. Of course, check with the hotel when making a ressie.

I'd also advise to keep trying to add those missing dates to your Disney ressie. Call, check the website daily. Ask for longer differing periods that include the days you want. Then you can grab that ressie and "cut-and-paste" your desired dates together into one ressie. Disney's computers often won't show availability for a particular weekend, for example, but will have a spot available for a two-week ressie which INCLUDES the weekend you couldn't get. So since they are "gaming" us you have to try to "game" them.

Good luck!

Bama ED

 

[becky1960]

We are also arriving 10/30/09 and staying till 11/10/09. We want to do Halloween and MVMCP on the 10th. I would keep trying for dates, call everyday, there might be cancellations and take a Premium if you have too.
You might also try online, sometimes the dates are online, I called and they said none available, I went online got our dates and then called to request loop and firm up reservation.

 

[TheFlame]

I would keep trying online. Don't put in just those 2 days. Even though you already have the other dates you are more likely to get the 2 you need by searching for a longer time frame and not just 2 days. That is how I have pieced together many of our trips. If you get them, just call back a few days later and cancel the days you don't need and have them link your ressies. You should also look for a different type of site(full or pref.). If you got one of those diff. sites they probably wouldn't make you move for just those 2 days. We have never had to move and last year we had 6 diff. ressies on 2 types of campsites.

Good luck!

 

[TheFlame]

We just made reservations for our first camping trip to Fort Wilderness. (10/30/09 to 11/7/09)
We are all set for a Preferred site for Nov 1 to 7, but they are filled for Oct. 30 and 31.

It will be my wife, the 4 wee ones, and myself driving down from NJ.


Anyone have any ideas on my options for the nights that I couldn’t get?
Are there any other nice campgrounds close to Disney?
If I was to stay off site in a hotel for the first 2 nights, would there be an issue on parking the Trailer in their parking lot?

I just sent you a PM. I was just now able to reserve the dates you need online. I put in more days than you need and kept playing with the days and adding and taking away until it gave me all of the days including the 2 you need. It was for prem. or tent.

Good luck!

 

[kc5grw]

It's really kind of crazy the way their ressie system works. More than once it's left me scratching my head wondering about the logic behind the stupid thing.

 

[TheFlame]

Them thar college educated peeps who designed that thar website sure does know what thems doin!!!

Good thing us dumb lowly campers have learned how to work the system!

 

[I'mDownWithDisney]

I have a preferred through the 30th and have been trying to add 2 nights everyday. It seems you will have to just get lucky and snag a cancellation.

How are you guys checking online? The one site that I tried didn't seem to work very well.

 

[TheFlame]

Umm....http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/

The only one I know of.

Just put in different days, not just the days you need. You can always cancel the ones you don't need later even if they overlap days you already have. I have had 6 diff. ressies for one stay and some of the night were for a diff. type site but I have never had to move.

I just checked and got all the days you guys say you need!?!? It really is hit or miss but I was able to get the 30, 31 and 1st on my 3rd try with putting in the dates of 10/24-11/7

 

[kc5grw]

Them thar college educated peeps who designed that thar website sure does know what thems doin!!!

Good thing us dumb lowly campers have learned how to work the system!

I see this problem quite a bit from a user perspective and requestor of IT services. Most the guys programming these systems are handed a statement of work with some pretty generic parameters. They build a program to meet those parameters, but unless they are in close contact with the actual user then what you get can be worlds different than what you wanted.

I'm left scratching my head many times at work when dealing with our production equipment because you're trying to figure out what the hell the programmer was thinking when he designed THAT piece of code. It's quite obvious that they have absolutely no, or very very limited knowledge about the application for which they are writing code.


Oh, and no offense to any programmers out there. I understand you can only do so much with what you are given. Most companies to a piss poor job of making sure there is good communication between the person requesting a piece of code and the person writing it.

 

[I'mDownWithDisney]

Umm....http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/

The only one I know of.

Just put in different days, not just the days you need. You can always cancel the ones you don't need later even if they overlap days you already have. I have had 6 diff. ressies for one stay and some of the night were for a diff. type site but I have never had to move.

I just checked and got all the days you guys say you need!?!? It really is hit or miss but I was able to get the 30, 31 and 1st on my 3rd try with putting in the dates of 10/24-11/7

Thank you so much for that info. I was able to book those exact dates in a premium site. I tried calling while online, and the rep could not find those dates anywhere...even as a separate reservation.

I now just have to cancel my old reservation and knock off a few nights from the new one. I was hoping to get into a preferred site, but I will take extra nights over the preferred site.

 

[clkelley]

Actually, in this case, I'm pretty sure the programming is doing EXACTLY what the requesters want it to do.

They DON'T want the Fort filled on weekends and empty during the week.

After the weekends reach a certain level of occupancy, they restrict weekend only reservations to ones that include several weeknites. If they allowed all of the weekends to be filled up without requiring some weeknites in there. Nobody that wanted longer stays would be able to get in there.

Also, weeknites by themselves are harder to sell. Most people include at least one weekend in their vacations. Very few folks go on vacation on Sunday night and leave Friday morning.

Althoug many of us here know how to work the system, we are a VERY small number of the folks booking campsites at WDW.

 

[SandrA9810]

I started looking like 2 months ago for a ressie for the weekend and couldn't find one. My best advice is to keep track of topics on here, see if any one is going to cancel for the weekend and see if you can snag it from them.

Usually if you have 2 ressies, they'll let you stay in the same site.

Halloween is very popular and every year it seems like you have to book earlier and earlier. We've stayed at the Fort for the past 4 years for Halloween and I've never had a problem finding a ressie in april or may. But this year was different.

 

[SandrA9810]

or opt for two nights in a cabin. of course that'll raise your budget by alot. but you'd still be in the fort for halloween.

 

[kc5grw]

Actually, in this case, I'm pretty sure the programming is doing EXACTLY what the requesters want it to do.

They DON'T want the Fort filled on weekends and empty during the week.

After the weekends reach a certain level of occupancy, they restrict weekend only reservations to ones that include several weeknites. If they allowed all of the weekends to be filled up without requiring some weeknites in there. Nobody that wanted longer stays would be able to get in there.

Also, weeknites by themselves are harder to sell. Most people include at least one weekend in their vacations. Very few folks go on vacation on Sunday night and leave Friday morning.

Althoug many of us here know how to work the system, we are a VERY small number of the folks booking campsites at WDW.

Might be. But that just makes might brain hurt to think of something so ridiculous.

 

[TheFlame]

Thank you so much for that info. I was able to book those exact dates in a premium site. I tried calling while online, and the rep could not find those dates anywhere...even as a separate reservation.

I now just have to cancel my old reservation and knock off a few nights from the new one. I was hoping to get into a preferred site, but I will take extra nights over the preferred site.

So glad I could help!

I hope you have a wonderful trip! My favorite time to visit Disney is Halloween!