(CLOSED) Disney's WILDERNESS LODGE and VILLAS Information Thread ~2012~

[Deb & Bill]

Originally Posted by Cinbride

Heading there the end of the month. Yay! Some questions because I simply didn't take advantage of WL last time.
...Do they have certain nights for campfires at Fort W?
...

Fort Wilderness is a different resort from Wilderness Lodge. They have campfires at WL at 5:30 (at least this week).

[pistachio]

Originally Posted by CaliKT

Thanks for posting your photos! I love the WL and can't wait to go back.
We'll be back there in December. Love the tree and decorations.

[Cinbride]

Originally Posted by Deb & Bill

Fort Wilderness is a different resort from Wilderness Lodge. They have campfires at WL at 5:30 (at least this week).

Thanks. I thought they only had them at FW.

[Mousemommy1]

Originally Posted by WDWKOOK

Folks, the OP is going ever so slightly here - although it still has Wilderness in its name

I am all booked for our first stay in a cabin at Ft. Wilderness. We love going over to FW, but I haven't been able to pull the trigger on staying with Musket Mickey before. But, I got brave and did it yesterday. It's pretty much the last resort on my WDW resort bucket list. I know I'll miss the Lodge (and Sturdy Branches), but it's fun to try something new right next door

I'd love to hear from anyone who's stayed in a FWC. I requested loop 2100 which is the first loop nearest the marina. I'm not sure yet whether we really need a golf cart. I think it would be lots of fun and DD would love it, but I guess it depends on what cabin we get. But, by the time we check-in, it might be hard to get one onsite seeing that we'll be there during busy spring break

Can I put myself in the Lodgers' Log?

Have you changed yet????

[nathanyell]

Originally Posted by WDWKOOK

I'd love to hear from anyone who's stayed in a FWC. I requested loop 2100 which is the first loop nearest the marina. I'm not sure yet whether we really need a golf cart. I think it would be lots of fun and DD would love it, but I guess it depends on what cabin we get. But, by the time we check-in, it might be hard to get one onsite seeing that we'll be there during busy spring

Believe it or not I actually loved the FW cabins. 2100 is a great choice, since it is in the middle of the route. You will have to catch the purple outpost bus for Epcot, HS, DTD and AK. Purple settlement for MK boat and WL!!!! The golf cart is truly only useful if you are planning to spend time in the campground. I felt the internal buses were really good overall.

My next trip is to CSR for a work conference. But luckily I'm gonna try business class or as I've been calling it CL lite. ;-)

BTW awesome job on keeping up the thread.

Brian

[RedfromNL]

KOOK, could you delay our arrival on the Lodgers log with a few days? We'll be arriving may the 6th.

DH really wants to stay in St Augustine for a bit. So we will

I only need to decide on accomodation there and rent a car, everything else is BOOKED!

It will be a great trip:
first fly from Rotterdam to London Heatrow, stay there 1 night, go to a play in Shakespeare's globe.
Then we will be picked up by a car to take us to Southampton (which is actually cheaper than 2 single 2nd class traintickets...)
Get on the Queen Mary II which will take us to New York in a week.
From New York we take the train down to Jacksonville. Get a car there and drive to St Augustine.
Stay there for the weekend and then calmly drive to Orlando.
And then we have almost two weeks at WDW!

I'm not excited or anything...

[Dr Ken]

Originally Posted by RedfromNL

KOOK, could you delay our arrival on the Lodgers log with a few days? We'll be arriving may the 6th.

DH really wants to stay in St Augustine for a bit. So we will

I only need to decide on accomodation there and rent a car, everything else is BOOKED!

It will be a great trip:
first fly from Rotterdam to London Heatrow, stay there 1 night, go to a play in Shakespeare's globe.
Then we will be picked up by a car to take us to Southampton (which is actually cheaper than 2 single 2nd class traintickets...)
Get on the Queen Mary II which will take us to New York in a week.
From New York we take the train down to Jacksonville. Get a car there and drive to St Augustine.
Stay there for the weekend and then calmly drive to Orlando.
And then we have almost two weeks at WDW!

I'm not excited or anything...

That's quite a complex trip! Plane, ship, train, chauffeur, and rental car. Hope your return is much simpler, such as "fly" .

You certainly are following the motto that "getting there is half the fun". (We're just taking one non-stop flight.). Hope you make all those connections easily. Most Americans have never traveled on so many types of public transport in one trip. They just drive. <grin>

[monami7]

Wow I have always dreamer of going on the Queen Mary!

What an amazing trip!

[RedfromNL]

Dr Ken
That's quite a complex trip! Plane, ship, train, chauffeur, and rental car. Hope your return is much simpler, such as "fly" .

You certainly are following the motto that "getting there is half the fun". (We're just taking one non-stop flight.). Hope you make all those connections easily. Most Americans have never traveled on so many types of public transport in one trip. They just drive. <grin>

Yes, we fly back.
Actually we are planning a horsecarriagetrip at Fort Wilderness, the only transport we don't take on this holiday is by bycicle really
We like trains, plus it give us a chance to actually see some of America between NY and Florida. Airports aren't that interesting really...

Monami7
Wow I have always dreamer of going on the Queen Mary!

What an amazing trip!

Oh it is an amazing ship! So much to do and see on board, amazing food too.
It does mean taking more luggage since this ship requires you to dress up for dinner but it's worth it!!
(and really not that expensive when you consider meals and (most) entertainment is included in the price. Th WL is more per night

If you ever get a chance: do it!

[lizhall]

We are throwing together a last minute vacation for the first week of Feb. and are debating between Polynesian and Wilderness Lodge. I've stayed at Poly before but not WL. I just read on a previous post that the slide at the pool is closed for now-is the pool still open, just not the slide? and is it still a "fun" pool for the kids with no slide? Also, does anyone know how likely they are to stick with the Feb 5th reopening?
Any help with the pool question, as well as other advice on which resort to pick, would be great!

[WDWKOOK]

Originally Posted by LumosQ102

Hello!

I have been working my way through this post for months. Really. It's been a tab on my internet browser & everytime I've had a moment, back I would go to get my fix of WL. And finally, I have made it to the end - thankfully before the holiday! I'm definately prepared for my first stay at the WL now. thank you so much WDWKook for such a wonderful resource.

I fell in love with the Lodge on my last trip to the world. We were on a bus to the MK one night from DTD and up we drove, with all the twinkly nights on a steamy Florida evening, it looked fairy land. I'm ecstatic that we will be staying there for 2 weeks in a courtyard room from 21st February. 41 days to go...

I can't wait to see that lobby for the first time

You're welcome, LumosQ102! I am very impressed with your thread dedication. Two weeks in February sounds fantastic! I hope you'll post a TR for us.

Originally Posted by jweb20

Can you see fireworks from MK at wilderness lodge??

Do they still play the Last of the Mohicans soundtrack in the lodge?

I have a link on the first page/first post for the WL music that might help you. You can also see some of Wishes from the WL beach and from the boat dock.

Originally Posted by Cinbride

Heading there the end of the month. Yay! Some questions because I simply didn't take advantage of WL last time.

Do they have the activities/movies posted online somewhere?
I have a link on the first page/first post for the activity schedule, however, my source has not been so good about updating the schedule lately, but it can give you a rough idea.

Do they have certain nights for campfires at Fort W?
Both WL and FW have a nightly campfire, with FW also having a Chip 'n Dale Campfire where you can purchase S'mores. The marshmallow roast at WL is described on the first page HERE.

Anyone ever to the buffet breakfast? Do you need ressie for that?
WCC has a great breakfast skillet. It's served family style, but you can also order off the menu. The skillet includes: scrambled eggs, biscuits, gravy, bacon, sausage, and Mickey waffles and is all-you-care-to-eat. If you're going at a busy time or during Free Dining, I would make an ADR, otherwise, I think you'll be fine. Trail's End at FW also has a fantastic breakfast buffet!

How soon can I send a request? AND What should I request? Staying standard. (and is anyone still getting a little pixie dust when it comes to upgrades?; not counting on it but it would be nice)
As soon as you book, you can add a room location request to your reservation. The top floor of the Standard Rooms in the North Wing do have a partial Wishes view.

Last but does the counter service ever serve waffles? I remember last time it was pretty much the same thing every day. I look at all these other resorts and they have a much better menu???
Yes, Roaring Fork does serve waffles:



Here is a December menu for RF:

Breakfast (Updated: 12/12)
Entree/Main Course
Breakfast From the Grill (7:00am-11:00am) - Choose from the Breakfast Platter, Croissant Sandwich, and Pancakes. Price varies.

Breakfast Offerings: Served from 6am-10:30am - Variety of house-made baked goods, Kellogg's cereals, oatmeal, and grits. Price varies.


Thanks!!! (and please excuse all the questions)

You're welcome!

Originally Posted by Mousemommy1

Have you changed yet????

Do you mean to a cabin or since changing to the cabin? Still holding on to the cabin, though DH has asked me everyday since if we're "still staying with the bears." I don't think he trusts me to keep this, but I'm feeling pretty strong.

Originally Posted by nathanyell

Believe it or not I actually loved the FW cabins. 2100 is a great choice, since it is in the middle of the route. You will have to catch the purple outpost bus for Epcot, HS, DTD and AK. Purple settlement for MK boat and WL!!!! The golf cart is truly only useful if you are planning to spend time in the campground. I felt the internal buses were really good overall.

My next trip is to CSR for a work conference. But luckily I'm gonna try business class or as I've been calling it CL lite. ;-)

BTW awesome job on keeping up the thread.

Brian

Well I'll be! Where in the world have you been, Brian? Your daughter must be in college by now?! Great having you back here! CSR "CL" huh? Not WL CL? Well, I'll be curious to see what you think of it. Don't be a stranger!

Thanks so much for letting me know about your cabin experience - very helpful information and your view on the golf cart helps a lot. We love walking, but I thought the cart might be more "exciting." Purple it is!

Originally Posted by RedfromNL

KOOK, could you delay our arrival on the Lodgers log with a few days? We'll be arriving may the 6th.

DH really wants to stay in St Augustine for a bit. So we will

I only need to decide on accomodation there and rent a car, everything else is BOOKED!

It will be a great trip:
first fly from Rotterdam to London Heatrow, stay there 1 night, go to a play in Shakespeare's globe.
Then we will be picked up by a car to take us to Southampton (which is actually cheaper than 2 single 2nd class traintickets...)
Get on the Queen Mary II which will take us to New York in a week.
From New York we take the train down to Jacksonville. Get a car there and drive to St Augustine.
Stay there for the weekend and then calmly drive to Orlando.
And then we have almost two weeks at WDW!

I'm not excited or anything...

I REALLY hope you'll file a TR with pictures for this trip! A whole weekend in St. Augustine? Well, IMHO, there isn't much to do there. A must-do is a visit to the Fort, which only takes a couple of hours at most. The rest is mostly just shopping and eating or maybe a carriage ride around the city. I think half a day would do it then you could even drive down to WDW from there, it's only about a two hour drive - you could be there for dinner! Speaking of eating, we love Barnacle Bills which is right across from the Visitor's Center where we park. It's a very casual seafood restaurant with an extensive menu.

Originally Posted by lizhall

We are throwing together a last minute vacation for the first week of Feb. and are debating between Polynesian and Wilderness Lodge. I've stayed at Poly before but not WL. I just read on a previous post that the slide at the pool is closed for now-is the pool still open, just not the slide? and is it still a "fun" pool for the kids with no slide? Also, does anyone know how likely they are to stick with the Feb 5th reopening?
Any help with the pool question, as well as other advice on which resort to pick, would be great!

to the DIS and the WL thread, lizhall! I've used both pools and here are my thoughts:

My experience has been that it's always difficult to find seating at the Poly. But, the Poly pool is zero entry and WL is not. Only the slide is closed at WL for the next couple of weeks, not the pool. It's always very easy to get a seat on the beach at WL, but the Poly can be harder. There is also a playground right on the beach at WL, but no hammocks like at the Poly. The Poly had started checking KTTW cards for pool entry, but I'm not sure if they only did that last spring break and stopped. I think it's quicker for kids to go down the slide at WL since the crowds seem lower, but as far as which is more fun, I'm not sure. They both seem pretty similar. One thing WL has that Poly doesn't are two hot tubs next to the pool and a kiddie pool, too.

Let us know what you end up booking.

[WDWKOOK]

According to Intercot:

Disney’s Wilderness Lodge
• Dec. 5 – Mar. 15, 2013: Main building exterior repairs will occur.

[TheLodgeLady]

Originally Posted by WDWKOOK

Folks, the OP is going ever so slightly here - although it still has Wilderness in its name

I am all booked for our first stay in a cabin at Ft. Wilderness. We love going over to FW, but I haven't been able to pull the trigger on staying with Musket Mickey before. But, I got brave and did it yesterday. It's pretty much the last resort on my WDW resort bucket list. I know I'll miss the Lodge (and Sturdy Branches), but it's fun to try something new right next door

I'd love to hear from anyone who's stayed in a FWC. I requested loop 2100 which is the first loop nearest the marina. I'm not sure yet whether we really need a golf cart. I think it would be lots of fun and DD would love it, but I guess it depends on what cabin we get. But, by the time we check-in, it might be hard to get one onsite seeing that we'll be there during busy spring break

Can I put myself in the Lodgers' Log?

Hi there!

I have many friends who stay at the cabins. They love it. We would like to stay there sometime. On our visit last year, we walked through some of the sites and thought it was really nice. I will look forward to your review.

[KNJWDW]

This is such an informative thread, but I still have some questions! As of now, we are booked at the Poly for a week in June, however we may need to scale back money-wise, so we are looking at the WL. I am trying to make a list of pros/cons for each and I am hoping some of you WL experts can help me out.
First of all, are bunk beds available with standard view rooms? We have 2 kids - a DS and DD - so it would be nice if they each had their own "space."

How does the pool compare to the Poly's pool? We do plan to spend some time lounging around.

Do all rooms have either a balcony or patio? Having extra space is important to me. I am not as concerned with the view as I am having a place to just sit and chill out, read, etc. (Yes, get away from the kids for a bit!)

What is the overall vibe at the WL? We are looking to relax a little and enjoy a peaceful atmosphere.

Thanks!

Amy

[DevonsDisneyMom]

Hi all! Hoping all you WL experts can help me with some questions/concerns that I have regarding the WL. Ok so here it goes.... In the process of planning our 15 trip to Disney for August of this year and WL is one of the resorts that we are considering staying at.

My first question is have all the rooms been renovated yet? I know they were working on them last year so was just wondering if all have been referbed yet.

Second, if we book a standard room, can anyone recommend a good location to request? Ideally we would like to be close to Roaring Forks, to get coffee in the morning, the pool and transportation.

Lastly, this is more of a concern then a question. Transportation to the parks, WL shares buses with other resorts correct? If so which ones and does this really cause a delay going to and from the parks? The idea of staying at a deluxe resort and having to share a bus bugs me a bit. AS for the boat to MK how is that? Are waits for the boat back from MK at park closing insane?

I really appreciate any feedback that you guys have!