Disney's WILDERNESS LODGE Information & Questions

Nettlelondon said:

Question that hopefully someone can help with. We are currently booked between 30th November and 10th December at Wilderness Lodge for our 25th Wedding Anniversary. We are not too concerned by the construction in concept - we figure that by December much of it should be done, and if it isn't we aren't really planning on spending hours in the resort during the day. We hadn't booked CL or anything like that - we have the DDP which is more than enough food.

We have stayed there before, love the design, the restaurant options and the great links to MK.

Our dilemma is that two fabulous friends are now going to be joining us for a few days and it makes most sense if we are all in the same resort but at the moment we can't book Wilderness Lodge from the UK. Now. I think I have a few options:
1. hold on and see if WL comes back on to the UK offering
2. phone and plead and see if anyone can do anything to help
3. phone and try to book a room for them and switch our reservation (if so, any suggestions on the best option - AKL is a definite no as our friends are anti-zoo in any form)

Are you still able to book WL for December from the US? If so then I will probably try option 2 first, but I want to have as much info as possible available when I call.

Thanks.

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GrandCalifornian said:

Checking those dates in the US shows Courtyard View and Courtyard Bunk Bed rooms available. Woods View is unavailable (as it appears to be for the rest of the year) and Standard view is unavailable too, likely sold out. The room rate for the courtyard view room is an average of $383.70 a night for the room only.

Good luck with your search, and hopefully you can stay at WL with your friends.

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Nettlelondon said:

Question that hopefully someone can help with. We are currently booked between 30th November and 10th December at Wilderness Lodge for our 25th Wedding Anniversary. We are not too concerned by the construction in concept - we figure that by December much of it should be done, and if it isn't we aren't really planning on spending hours in the resort during the day. We hadn't booked CL or anything like that - we have the DDP which is more than enough food.

We have stayed there before, love the design, the restaurant options and the great links to MK.

Our dilemma is that two fabulous friends are now going to be joining us for a few days and it makes most sense if we are all in the same resort but at the moment we can't book Wilderness Lodge from the UK. Now. I think I have a few options:
1. hold on and see if WL comes back on to the UK offering
2. phone and plead and see if anyone can do anything to help
3. phone and try to book a room for them and switch our reservation (if so, any suggestions on the best option - AKL is a definite no as our friends are anti-zoo in any form)

Are you still able to book WL for December from the US? If so then I will probably try option 2 first, but I want to have as much info as possible available when I call.

Thanks.

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TheLittleKatie said:

Hey sorry I don't have an answer for you, I'm just wondering how you booked Wilderness Lodge (phone/online?) and how far out? I'm in the UK too using the UK site, and I can never find any availability for WL. Just now I've hypothetically searched for Tues 5th - Thurs 7th September 2017 and WL isn't even listed, suggesting it's completely unavailable?! How can a tiny 2 night stay in early September be sold out already?! Just wondering if I'm missing something.. TIA!

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GrandCalifornian said:

In the U.S. the calendar has not been extended into 2017 for resort booking yet. Just for comparison, those dates in September 2016 show rooms available in Standard and Courtyard View on the US website. There's no way it is sold out for 2017 yet, but it might not yet be available.

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ElenaJane said:

Just got back from our stay WL! We did a split stay, a few nights at Poly first, and then WL. Even with half the resort down, we still enjoyed our WL stay the most! I have always found the WL staff to be much more pleasant and approachable than the Poly staff (totally my opinion!!). I am very grateful for this thread, as I would have had no idea what was going on. We stayed Club Level, which is now basically just a hallway. The staff was so apologetic, but it really wasn't a big deal to us (and again, I was prepared thanks to you guys). We would take snacks and drinks back to our room anyway.

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GrandCalifornian said:

In the U.S. the calendar has not been extended into 2017 for resort booking yet. Just for comparison, those dates in September 2016 show rooms available in Standard and Courtyard View on the US website. There's no way it is sold out for 2017 yet, but it might not yet be available.

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Nettlelondon said:

We booked about 6 months ago and at that time there were lots of future dates available. Then, a couple of weeks into this year, as the construction work really got started, WL dropped from the UK site. That probably doesn't help you much - sorry.

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DisneyJenK said:

Glad you had a great time! Did they mention when the lounge expected to be moved to the suite?

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StEpHandMiKe<3Disney said:

Is there a date when all the construction is set to be completed?

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GrandCalifornian said:

There's no specifics besides just "2017" With all that is going on, it will take a while.

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grannyminnie said:

I know I read something earlier on this thread posted about the walk from the lodge to the boat dock being affected since the construction. Is that an issue now, do you know? Seems like someone discovered that the normal path to walk there was lengthened. (hopefully, not very much)

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DisneyJenK said:

Did they mention when the lounge expected to be moved to the suite?

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TheLittleKatie said:

Thanks for your info, I just tried those dates for Sept 2016 too, but from the UK site, and there's still nothing. I'm not actually trying to book it just now (we've booked AKL for September this year, although WL was my first choice!) but if there are still problems in the future maybe I'll try calling the American reservation number instead. Thanks again!

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hbr03 said:

Hello! We were last at WL October 2014 while the main pool was being refurbed. We're planning to return October 1-8. Given the reduction of CV rooms, would you recommend going ahead and booking? I've been waiting to see if any fall discounts are announced. Looking forward to catching up!

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WildMouser said:

Thanks for all the continued construction updates!

Are the OFL renovations scheduled to be complete by August?

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jgriff said:

My fiancé and I will be staying four nights for the princess half. First time staying here but not letting the construction bum me out!

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Ladcassidy said:

We are here now, staying at VWL. The construction has been a non-event so far in terms of disrupting our plans.

We can see the bald former quiet pool site from our balcony, and plenty of other signs of construction: piles of dirt, missing trees, plastic and wooden barriers, and scaffolding. But we've not been bothered by noise or mess.

The main Lodge is still bustling with activity even with half the guests. The transportation, pool activities and smiling cast members are as available as ever.

We do miss the "shortcut" past the quiet pool from the villas to the boat dock, but that's the only construction-related inconvenience we've encountered.

At least for now, I recommend sticking with the VWL.

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Lsdolphin said:

My nephew and I were planing to be the Poly this week and had booked another visit to th WL in August.

I am so sad to tell you that my Adam passed away last Friday afternoon it was sudden and so unexpected. He was 34 yrs old with special needs. Adam brought joy and laughter to everyone he met and our family will never be the same.

I will love and miss him all the days of my life. I can't iamgine ever returning to Disney without him.

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ElenaJane said:

Just got back from our stay WL! We did a split stay, a few nights at Poly first, and then WL. Even with half the resort down, we still enjoyed our WL stay the most! I have always found the WL staff to be much more pleasant and approachable than the Poly staff (totally my opinion!!). I am very grateful for this thread, as I would have had no idea what was going on. We stayed Club Level, which is now basically just a hallway. The staff was so apologetic, but it really wasn't a big deal to us (and again, I was prepared thanks to you guys). We would take snacks and drinks back to our room anyway.

I only had my phone to take pictures, so I apologize for the quality. We had a courtyard view, which is not exempt from construction noise/view. The earliest we heard construction sounds was 8:45am. The Water Electrical Parade was actually MUCH louder!



We have stayed before at Poly when the main pool and lobby were under construction. We have stayed at WL when the main pool and courtyard area were under construction. Out of all of those stays, this construction was the least disruptive. The lobby is still as beautiful as ever, and there were less crowds! There was only one elevator to use, but we hardly ever had to wait longer than one elevator load. The courtyard was as awe-inspiring as ever!

The last one is a video, but not sure it will work.

Transportation to MK was so easy! I got stuck on the monorail for 20 minutes when staying at Poly. Never had a problem like that with the boats!

I hope this is helpful for anyone debating whether to stay or not!

BTWubs - One of my biggest gripes with WL was the lack of espresso/iced coffee options. I am happy to say Territory Lounge now offers fancy coffee drinks until 11am!

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goopysolelady said:

Hugs to you during this time. Disney World may be the last thing on your mind during this difficult time but "this to shall pass". My young (then 24 years old) DD lost her husband in 2009. They honeymooned at DW and vacationed there one other time during their to short married life. She felt the same way. The year her husband passed away her Daddy took her to DC/New York for a week's vacation while myself and her sister and family went to DW. A year later, she was ready to go back. We made it a family trip with my sister and niece joining us and it was SO good for her. We arrived on what would have been their anniversary and her sister had a small Eeyore waiting for her at the BWI upon arrival; Eeyore was her husband's favorite Disney character. She carried him with her the entire trip and said it felt "right"; she knew her DH was "watching her" enjoy, through the eyes of her young nieces, the pure joy of Disney. While it may seem impossible to believe during this time, keep your heart open and know that "joy of Disney" will be waiting for you when you feel ready to return.

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GrandCalifornian said:

There's no specifics besides just "2017" With all that is going on, it will take a while.

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DisneyJenK said:

Email response just received from the Wilderness Lodge IP -

"At this time we do not have any information regarding the move of the lounge offerings to the suite. It is still at the same temporary designated location."

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WDWKOOK said:

Welcome back! The entire South Wing is closed, CYV and WV. I'm not sure if all the construction has been a booking deterrent, but you could always book now and await a discount. However, I thought I read that you can't apply discounts to existing reservations anymore, they have to be re-booked, based on availability - hopefully someone will confirm.



I don't believe an OFC rehab completion date has ever been announced. While the DVC expansion is on-going, I think the OFC work is considered a separate project.



to the DIS and to the WL/VWL thread, @jgriff! Good luck with your run!



Thank you for posting your LIVE report.





I know I'm late with this, but feel free to post a photo of your DN if you'd like. Was WL his favorite resort? Do you have a favorite WDW memory of him you'd like to share?



Thank you for your photos and little TR. ITA about the transportation from Poly. We did a Poly/GF split in August and the monorail was so frustrating and crowded. I missed the myriad transportation options WL offers - makes you feel less "trapped" than GF and Poly, although we do love walking to the TTC from Poly.




What a sweet post, @goopysolelady.



"April" has been mentioned, but you never know with these massive projects.



Thank you for posting your OFC information from the IPO.

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