karajeboo
DISmom by land and by sea!
- Joined
- Mar 25, 2007
On the 2nd day of Christmas, Walt Disney gave to me.....
Two and a half hours of drive time
And a room at the Wilderness Lodge.
So we were up at 5:30am on Friday, Dec 11th and out the door by <ahem> 6:40. For some reason I could not get Jeff in the shower! My goal was to be out the door no later than 6:15 but he let me down. Men!
The dog was dropped off at the kennel on Thursday so all we had to do was toss two bags in the trunk and be off.
But nooooooo. Jeff wanted to relax that morning, which is unusual for him. He's usually the one who's up and anxious to get on the road to WDW.
So according to my calculations, if we left at 6:40, with a quick stop for breakfast, we should be checking in by 9am, and in a park by about 9:45.
And I was close.
When we got to WL, I made my way to checkin, half expecting.... okay, totally expecting..... to have our room ready for us. After all, EVERY time we've driven down first thing in the morning, our room as been ready for us!
Again, must be that sparkling personality thing.....
But apparently Mr CM at WL didn't get the memo. I was told they would text me when our room was ready.
Not a problem. After all, all we'd do would be to toss a couple bags on the bed and be back out the door in 5 minutes anyway.
So we grabbed our pin lanyards, backpacks, and our Disney spirit, and we made our way to the bus stop to head to DHS.
The VERY nice thing about the villas at WL is the proximity to the bus stop. They are a bazillion miles closer than the lodge itself.
The bad thing about the villas is that you feel somewhat removed from the lodge. And WL is so beautiful! Especially at Christmas, which is why we chose this resort for this trip.
We have stayed at Pop, ASMu, ASSp, CSR, POR, YC, BWI, and AKL. And the Mahi Mahi, but that's another story.......
I didn't realize when I scored the great rate ($199/night) for WL that we were in the villas. Not that it really mattered, as we ran commando in the parks this trip. But I don't think I would choose the villas again. Nothing wrong. Just didn't feel like we were part of the lodge. And again, if it had been summertime, sunny, and we were using the pool or the facilities more, it might have been different.
This was the beautiful tree in the lobby of the villas:
And the even more beautiful tree in the lobby of the lodge:
Our room had a queen bed and a pull out sleeper, which shocked us at first. I had lost my senses apparently, as I KNEW that the studios were set up this way in DVC properties. But as you will find, I lost my senses, and my DIS knowledge, a couple of times on this trip.....
Ally felt I should include a photo of the sofa pulled out into a bed - her bed for the two nights.....
Actually one of the more comfy pull out beds I've been in. Not bad at all.
We took a stroll the next morning through the grounds on our way to the boat dock to MK, so I'll go ahead and add those pics now.
What I DID like about WL is it's a very "compact" resort. Everything is right there. The pool is just outside, the dining options are all down a short hallway. And of course the rooms shoot straight up.
Unlike the sprawling values, the even MORE sprawling CSR (which I love btw!), and the hallways that go on for mile and miles at YC and BW. Even all those resorts have the pool a good long walk away from the lodging areas.
Not that I'm complaining....at all. I love that all the resorts are so different, but WL is very convenient.
OK, so we're at the bus stop, waiting for a bus to DHS, right?
Bus for MK.
Bus for Epcot.
Bus for AK.
Bus for DTD.
Bus for AK.
Bus for AK.
Bus for DTD.
Bus for AK.
Now I KNOW this can happen at any resort. But IMHO the best bus transportation is at Pop and CSR. Because neither of those resorts have to share a bus with another resort. And that shortens the length of the trip by a TON!
We found out that the buses were in training that morning, and WL is on the training route. So all those AK buses were in training mode.
After about a 20 minute wait (which technically is how often they say they run), we were en route to DHS!!! AFTER a stop at Fort Wilderness.
I do love WL, and I would stay here again. But it would not be my first choice. Not because of anything that is wrong with the resort, I just found that it is so far removed from every park except MK, that even AKL (which does not share a bus with other resorts) seemed more convenient to me.
But the theming was wonderful! To me, this resort would be great for a large family gathering, as there were wonderful little nooks where folks could gather at the end of the day to compare notes, make plans for the next day, etc.
I found that is is almost identical to AKL is many ways. Unique theming that is so warm and inviting. Fairly "compact" resort. Great dining options within the resort. Great little nooks for relaxing at the end of the day. Bus transportaion to most parks. The only "bad" thing that both resorts share is that they are quite a long distance to most of the parks (WL is close to DHS and MK, AKL is close to AK). Again, in the whole scheme of things, an extra 5-10 minutes is no big deal, but I know a lot of people like location, location, location!
Up next, our day at DHS and a review of HOllywood Brown Derby and the Osborne Family Lights!
Two and a half hours of drive time
And a room at the Wilderness Lodge.
So we were up at 5:30am on Friday, Dec 11th and out the door by <ahem> 6:40. For some reason I could not get Jeff in the shower! My goal was to be out the door no later than 6:15 but he let me down. Men!
The dog was dropped off at the kennel on Thursday so all we had to do was toss two bags in the trunk and be off.
But nooooooo. Jeff wanted to relax that morning, which is unusual for him. He's usually the one who's up and anxious to get on the road to WDW.
So according to my calculations, if we left at 6:40, with a quick stop for breakfast, we should be checking in by 9am, and in a park by about 9:45.
And I was close.
When we got to WL, I made my way to checkin, half expecting.... okay, totally expecting..... to have our room ready for us. After all, EVERY time we've driven down first thing in the morning, our room as been ready for us!
Again, must be that sparkling personality thing.....
But apparently Mr CM at WL didn't get the memo. I was told they would text me when our room was ready.
Not a problem. After all, all we'd do would be to toss a couple bags on the bed and be back out the door in 5 minutes anyway.
So we grabbed our pin lanyards, backpacks, and our Disney spirit, and we made our way to the bus stop to head to DHS.
The VERY nice thing about the villas at WL is the proximity to the bus stop. They are a bazillion miles closer than the lodge itself.
The bad thing about the villas is that you feel somewhat removed from the lodge. And WL is so beautiful! Especially at Christmas, which is why we chose this resort for this trip.
We have stayed at Pop, ASMu, ASSp, CSR, POR, YC, BWI, and AKL. And the Mahi Mahi, but that's another story.......
I didn't realize when I scored the great rate ($199/night) for WL that we were in the villas. Not that it really mattered, as we ran commando in the parks this trip. But I don't think I would choose the villas again. Nothing wrong. Just didn't feel like we were part of the lodge. And again, if it had been summertime, sunny, and we were using the pool or the facilities more, it might have been different.
This was the beautiful tree in the lobby of the villas:
And the even more beautiful tree in the lobby of the lodge:
Our room had a queen bed and a pull out sleeper, which shocked us at first. I had lost my senses apparently, as I KNEW that the studios were set up this way in DVC properties. But as you will find, I lost my senses, and my DIS knowledge, a couple of times on this trip.....
Ally felt I should include a photo of the sofa pulled out into a bed - her bed for the two nights.....
Actually one of the more comfy pull out beds I've been in. Not bad at all.
We took a stroll the next morning through the grounds on our way to the boat dock to MK, so I'll go ahead and add those pics now.
What I DID like about WL is it's a very "compact" resort. Everything is right there. The pool is just outside, the dining options are all down a short hallway. And of course the rooms shoot straight up.
Unlike the sprawling values, the even MORE sprawling CSR (which I love btw!), and the hallways that go on for mile and miles at YC and BW. Even all those resorts have the pool a good long walk away from the lodging areas.
Not that I'm complaining....at all. I love that all the resorts are so different, but WL is very convenient.
OK, so we're at the bus stop, waiting for a bus to DHS, right?
Bus for MK.
Bus for Epcot.
Bus for AK.
Bus for DTD.
Bus for AK.
Bus for AK.
Bus for DTD.
Bus for AK.
Now I KNOW this can happen at any resort. But IMHO the best bus transportation is at Pop and CSR. Because neither of those resorts have to share a bus with another resort. And that shortens the length of the trip by a TON!
We found out that the buses were in training that morning, and WL is on the training route. So all those AK buses were in training mode.
After about a 20 minute wait (which technically is how often they say they run), we were en route to DHS!!! AFTER a stop at Fort Wilderness.
I do love WL, and I would stay here again. But it would not be my first choice. Not because of anything that is wrong with the resort, I just found that it is so far removed from every park except MK, that even AKL (which does not share a bus with other resorts) seemed more convenient to me.
But the theming was wonderful! To me, this resort would be great for a large family gathering, as there were wonderful little nooks where folks could gather at the end of the day to compare notes, make plans for the next day, etc.
I found that is is almost identical to AKL is many ways. Unique theming that is so warm and inviting. Fairly "compact" resort. Great dining options within the resort. Great little nooks for relaxing at the end of the day. Bus transportaion to most parks. The only "bad" thing that both resorts share is that they are quite a long distance to most of the parks (WL is close to DHS and MK, AKL is close to AK). Again, in the whole scheme of things, an extra 5-10 minutes is no big deal, but I know a lot of people like location, location, location!
Up next, our day at DHS and a review of HOllywood Brown Derby and the Osborne Family Lights!
I hveonly stayed at Popand have to agree their buses are great from th resort, however at MK you need to pack a bag for the LONG haul to the last bus stop !!!
I don't find POP spread out but then I've only been in 50's ad 60's!I almost styed at POFQ and that is still one want to try!
We knew that about 2pm the rain would hit so we started planning our days to do outside stuff until then. Around 2 we would do inside rides, a nice lunch or the shows. One day we even did a hotel tour! That is all we did...toured all the hotels! It was so fun! It rained off and on all that day tho'. We were never cold just usually wet, which after a while you get crabby especially when your wet and hot from the mugginess. Is that a word? If not it is now 
Mainly MK. AK wasn't too busy Christmas day...great day of fun and not bad on the crowds. We did have one day where the wind blew and I had to buy a sweatshirt it was so cold- upper 50's low 60's. Otherwise it stayed in the 74 to 82 degree range the whole time.
That was the weekend it really warmed up and I was wishing I had packed more shorts & t-shirts! Look forward to reading more. 
