AKL or WL

[bigstick]

I've only stayed at my home resort which is the Boardwalk. My DGF and I are going in late July and want to try either the Animal Kingdom Lodge or the Wilderness. I like the idea of the whole animal thing at AKL but like the idea of being a boat ride away from MK and then monorail ride from Epcot.

Looking for any opinions on which one to stay at ?

 

[Cmbar]

Both are lovely. The AKL has a great pool and bigger than the WL. They also have a large number of areas that have shade by the pool which may be important in summer. Any way you can back your trip up to Aug? BLT opens 8-4-09. Then you would really be on the monorail.

The WL is lovely, however the trip to the MK isnt always that quick since you sometimes have to pick up or drop off at the Fort Wilderness. A quick ride to the MK by bus is sometimes easier. Good luck I am sure you will love where you stay!

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

The WL is lovely, however the trip to the MK isnt always that quick since you sometimes have to pick up or drop off at the Fort Wilderness. A quick ride to the MK by bus is sometimes easier. Good luck I am sure you will love where you stay!

They changed the boats almost two years ago so it's a direct ride from WL to MK. There is still a separate resort boat that goes between CR, WL and FW.

We like both resorts but WL is really a favorite for it's location close to MK and being on Bay Lake. We also like to take the boat over to FW and wander around there as well. They're both great choices and I don't think you'll can go wrong with either one 'cuz it's pretty neat to wake up and see zebras our your window too!

 

[Cmbar]

They changed the boats almost two years ago so it's a direct ride from WL to MK. There is still a separate resort boat that goes between CR, WL and FW.

Really?? Thats great. We were there Nov 07 and the boat went to the Fort. How does the boat work with the Contemporary? We are thinking of buying BLT and want to know how hard it would be to get over to WL or the Fort so we could hike some trails. Is there a boat that just transfers people from those three resorts? At the Contp do you have a boat to the MK? Thanks for any info on that because that was one of our "Cons" for WL was the long boat ride to the MK with stopping at Fort Wilderness.

THanks

 

[Sandisw]

Really?? Thats great. We were there Nov 07 and the boat went to the Fort. How does the boat work with the Contemporary? We are thinking of buying BLT and want to know how hard it would be to get over to WL or the Fort so we could hike some trails. Is there a boat that just transfers people from those three resorts? At the Contp do you have a boat to the MK? Thanks for any info on that because that was one of our "Cons" for WL was the long boat ride to the MK with stopping at Fort Wilderness.

THanks

There is no boat from the Contemporary to MK as it is just a short walk (less than 10 minutes). The Contemporary is on the same side of the lake at MK. That is why it is my favorite resort--the ease to MK is wonderful!!!

Everything that I have researched lately, it states that VWL has a dedicated boat now for MK. I think that is great. I stayed at Fort Wilderness my first year to Disney in 1994, and the boat ride there was nice, it was not a quick way to get back and forth. I can certainly see that being something to think about when deciding to purchase at VWL!

 

[magic2go]

Hey there, as stated, there is a direct boat to MK from the WL. There is also a second boat that makes a loop from WL --> Fort Wilderness --> Contemporary.

It definately makes it easy to get around!

 

[jdb1232]

WL definately has a dedicated boat to the MK. Our children are young, they are impatient and my little one still takes a nap. The boat ride is painless and only takes a few minutes. That alone is worth big bucks to us. I'm sure the AKL is awesome, but I couldn't see waiting and riding a bus for 40 minutes to go to the MK.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

Really?? Thats great. We were there Nov 07 and the boat went to the Fort. How does the boat work with the Contemporary? We are thinking of buying BLT and want to know how hard it would be to get over to WL or the Fort so we could hike some trails. Is there a boat that just transfers people from those three resorts? At the Contp do you have a boat to the MK? Thanks for any info on that because that was one of our "Cons" for WL was the long boat ride to the MK with stopping at Fort Wilderness.

THanks

I think you probably just missed the change. We were surprised by the direct boat in Dec 07 and were told it had happened mid or late Nov 07. WL would have their own route and FW their own direct route.

As others have mentioned the only boat that goes to the CR is the resort boat that does a loop between CR-FW-WL making it very easy to get between the 3 resorts.

To get from the CR/BLT to MK your choices are to walk or take the resort monorail - no boats.

 

[wildernessDad]

I've only stayed at my home resort which is the Boardwalk. My DGF and I are going in late July and want to try either the Animal Kingdom Lodge or the Wilderness. I like the idea of the whole animal thing at AKL but like the idea of being a boat ride away from MK and then monorail ride from Epcot.

Looking for any opinions on which one to stay at ?

And that's all you'll get - opinions.

Wilderness Lodge is not on the monorail route. You'd have to get a boat to the MK or the Contemporary if you wanted to ride the monorail.

Yes, there are now dedicated boats that from WL go to the MK and back. One of the boats use to be a friendship boat, but that was not the case during my visit in December of 2008.

Even though my AKV ownership comes with the animals and a concierge option, I love VWL and WL and it is my favorite.

If you have the luxury of time, you could do a split stay. But either choice is a good one, I think. And remember, you can always choose one this time and the other another time.