Dates: 9-13 March 2026
People:
I’m going to break this into a trip report that covers the actual trip, and one that focuses on the DVC cabin elements. I’ll load the 2nd part into the DVC trip report page, since that seems to be mostly interesting to DVC members. But the actual trip info will be on the general trip report page.
DVC Cabin.
We were assigned cabin 2701 which was in a really good location for us. It was the 2nd loop in from the parking area, and one loop away from the Wilderness pool, which was where the DVC laundry area was. Since we did laundry, that worked for us! Our cabin was the first one on the loop, which made it a close walk to the bus stop, and an easy exit in and out when we drove to the parks.
You’ve all seen the details on the cabin. Here’s a few photos just to break up the text! But things that were a bit challenging with the layout, at least from my perspective.
On to the resort itself. This was our 3rd time staying at Fort Wilderness, but our last stay was in 2007. In my opinion, this resort absolutely requires a car (or golf cart rental) in order to do the parks. Even going to the pool is a challenge. We could walk to the Wilderness pool, but it had no amenities. In fact, unless the lifeguard is there, there aren’t even pool towels! And the meadow’s pool requires a bus transfer plus a short walk.
I thought we could park up by the settlement (boat dock area), but it turned out that was only cast parking. The only car parking in the entire resort is at your cabin or the outpost parking up by the front entrance. If you are younger/fitter and are able to bring bikes, that could help with the pool access. But it’s literally 3 miles to the boat dock from the cabin area, so that would be a very long bike ride after a long park day. Our longest internal bus delay was nearly an hour from leaving the cabin to the boat departing for Magic Kingdom (90 minutes total to be at the park). The fastest we made that trip was 20 minutes. I’d say that essentially doubled the time for using Disney transportation compared to other resorts. We drove for everything else.
On the plus side, this resort does actually have activities (which you need to bus to). There was a campfire every night, and we saw Chip and Dale doing a meet and greet at the Meadow’s pool. There’s foosball and ping pong as well as a checkers set there as well. And for us, the big hit was the carriage ride, which we did one evening. If you are interested in a laid back vacation, more like Hilton Head, then a non-park trip would be enjoyable at this resort.
People:
- Me, Lisa. Age 61, retired federal employee. I live in Tampa, am a DVC owner (SSR and HH), a long time Disney Annual Passholder.
- DM, my mom Helen, age 88, retired nurse. She lives two hours south of Tampa, and enjoys a more sedate Disney experience. She’s a heart patient, and uses either a scooter or a wheelchair because she can only walk about 25 yards without stopping.
- DS2, my son Casey, age 32, active duty navy sonarman, currently on a shore duty assignment in King’s Bay GA (just north of Jacksonville)
- DDIL, Casey’s wife Kay, age 35, stay at home mom who homeschools the kids and manages a challenging household. She (and my son) are former college program cast members.
- DGD, Ely, who turns 10 just after the trip. This was her birthday celebration. Ely was literally born at Celebration Hospital, and still loves Disney although she’s moved on from the characters. She’s into fantasy (dragons and mermaids are high on her lists) as well as Greek mythology, and loves theater.
- DGS Cayden, age 5. Cayden is autistic, and we are only able to do Disney with the use of Disability Assistance Support (DAS). He’s a super sweet kid, who really loves his Grammy (that’s me) and GiGi (my mom).
I’m going to break this into a trip report that covers the actual trip, and one that focuses on the DVC cabin elements. I’ll load the 2nd part into the DVC trip report page, since that seems to be mostly interesting to DVC members. But the actual trip info will be on the general trip report page.
DVC Cabin.
We were assigned cabin 2701 which was in a really good location for us. It was the 2nd loop in from the parking area, and one loop away from the Wilderness pool, which was where the DVC laundry area was. Since we did laundry, that worked for us! Our cabin was the first one on the loop, which made it a close walk to the bus stop, and an easy exit in and out when we drove to the parks.
You’ve all seen the details on the cabin. Here’s a few photos just to break up the text! But things that were a bit challenging with the layout, at least from my perspective.
- The kitchen area was tough. We actually do some cooking, and with the table right by the sink and fridge, we were constantly banging into someone or something. There are also only 4 chairs, which meant 2 people had to eat over on the couch.
- I hadn’t realized that we were used to the 8 to 9 sets of dishes that come with a 1 bedroom. We were constantly hand washing dishes. And again, Disney really needs to upgrade their kitchen supplies. The skillets are awful! Even with cooking spray, everything sticks and burns. And the ovens NEVER get up to temperature. Finally, our freezer barely made ice. During the entire 5 days, we never had more than 20 pieces of ice in the bin, even after being gone all day, or having it making ice all night. And since there weren’t convenient ice makers, this was noticeable.
- Bathroom was also a bit challenging. On the plus side, they had a step up box in the main bathroom, which is good for smaller visitors. It slides under the vanity when not needed. The separate vanity area was definitely needed, to allow tooth and hand brushing while others use the shower/toilet. On the minus side, the towel hanging is all jammed into a small area in the main bath, so they never dried out in between usage.
- We found that there was sufficient storage for our clothes and food items. The drawers under the bunk beds were really a plus. Just right to store kids clothes.
- Having a full deck was a nice plus. My mom spent a lot of time there, just enjoying the sun and quiet. Although there is a picnic table that would seat 6, I wouldn’t eat out there because of the bugs and the humidity. But for my mom, the armchairs were perfect. And the kids burned off energy out there as well.
- We have 2 plug in hybrid cars, so being able to charge at our cabin was another benefit. We did keep both cars there overnight, but I don’t see where that’s any different from a car plus a golf cart.
On to the resort itself. This was our 3rd time staying at Fort Wilderness, but our last stay was in 2007. In my opinion, this resort absolutely requires a car (or golf cart rental) in order to do the parks. Even going to the pool is a challenge. We could walk to the Wilderness pool, but it had no amenities. In fact, unless the lifeguard is there, there aren’t even pool towels! And the meadow’s pool requires a bus transfer plus a short walk.
I thought we could park up by the settlement (boat dock area), but it turned out that was only cast parking. The only car parking in the entire resort is at your cabin or the outpost parking up by the front entrance. If you are younger/fitter and are able to bring bikes, that could help with the pool access. But it’s literally 3 miles to the boat dock from the cabin area, so that would be a very long bike ride after a long park day. Our longest internal bus delay was nearly an hour from leaving the cabin to the boat departing for Magic Kingdom (90 minutes total to be at the park). The fastest we made that trip was 20 minutes. I’d say that essentially doubled the time for using Disney transportation compared to other resorts. We drove for everything else.
On the plus side, this resort does actually have activities (which you need to bus to). There was a campfire every night, and we saw Chip and Dale doing a meet and greet at the Meadow’s pool. There’s foosball and ping pong as well as a checkers set there as well. And for us, the big hit was the carriage ride, which we did one evening. If you are interested in a laid back vacation, more like Hilton Head, then a non-park trip would be enjoyable at this resort.
