anybody stayed in a tent at FW?

[jamimb]

My husband loved going camping in a tent as a child and wants our children to experience it as well so I promised him that we would take the girls camping in a tent (my first time) this spring or summer. Yesterday he says "Hey lets kill two birds with one stone and stay at Fort Wilderness so we can enjoy camping and Disney". Has anyone else here done this before? What was your experience? I need the good and the bad and any suggestions please!!!! Thanks!!

 

[spiceycat]

winter is really a better time to camp at WDW. the cooler temperatures are nice when camping.

summer is awfully (my opinion) - heat and humdity

spring - can be nice or too hot - just depends

here is the camping site - hopefully a moderator will move your thread.

http://www.disboards.com/forumdisplay.php?f=24

 

[CNDKangaroo]

We are going to be camping at Fort Wilderness in Jan. for 12 nights. We opted for the Dining plan so we don't have to worry about cooking but that is mostly because we are flying in from the West Coast of Canada so taking cooking equipment and having to shop for food etc. wasn't a very viable option. We are a family of five with our children ages 8,5 and 4. We are really looking forward to camping at Fort Wilderness (we camp a lot in very rustic areas) The comforts of the fort are very appealing plus is it a lot less expensive than staying in a hotel. I can let you know how our experience was once we are back...just PM me so I don't forget! Our kids LOVE camping!

 

[PolynesianPixie]

We are a camping family! Until recently we always tent camped. This past year we bought a pop-up because my womanly hips just can't handle the hard ground !

FtW is a fabulous place and a good compromise between myself and DH. He is a die-hard camper, and I am a die-hard Disney maniac! The location is phenomenal, there is so much to do at the campground, and it's Disney! You just can't beat the Chip and Dale campfire and movie, the hayride, the horse barn, Micky's Backyard BBQ and the Hoop-Dee-Doo Revue all at the Fort! You will love it! Don't go in the summer, though. Too hot and Too rainy. March, April, October, November-would probably be your best bets.

Although I love to camp, I also am crazy about WDW resorts! So, we are staying a night at CR and camping the rest of the week.

 

[Tent Camping Mom]

Tent camper here too! I've never camped any other way and I think the Fort will be a great place to start for a newbie. But if this is your first time at the parks too, I would give yourselves a couple of extra days to just hangout at the Fort.

I would opt for the Spring or Fall if I were you. I can brave the heat but I'm a wimp when it comes to cold weather.

 

[Rhonda]

We've been tent camping at Fort Wilderness with our son since he was 5 years old (he'll be 24 this year!!)! I still love it!

Feel free to ask any questions -- we're a happy bunch of campers, that love answering questions!

 

[clkelley]

I've tent camped at Ft. Wilderness lots!! Mostly the first week or so of December!!

I've upgraded to a small camper, but would tent camp at the Fort in a heartbeat again if the need arose!!

 

[clkelley]

As far as suggestions. The main thing you need to worry about is waterproofing and ventilation.

It does rain at Disney so make sure all the seams on that tent are thoroughly sealed and seal the fabric of the tent with a Scotchguard type stuff (many camping brands are less expensive than Scotchguard).

Ventilation is very important at WDW year round because of the humidity. In the summer all your stuff will be soaking wet if you don't open that tent up most of the time, in the winter if you keep that tent closed up, the same thing you will freeze yourselves with the humidity you create just by sleeping.

There is ample electricity at Ft. Wilderness so bring a couple 40 ft outdoor extension cords and a few power strips and you can run fans, lights, computer, pumps for the air mattresses, electric blankets, mini fridge (great thing to bring as ice is expensive) cell phone chargers, camera chargers, etc.

Make sure "each" person has their own shower bag/toiletry kit so you can all use the comfort station at the same time.

The same as the other poster stated, I never cooked while tent camping as packing cooking stuff was a pain, plus there are SOOOO many wonderful restaurants at Disney. I only bring minimal breakfast stuff even with my camper.

 

[Conan the Librarian]

We'll be tent camping at the Fort starting Sunday!

The weather is 70s and 50s during that week.

Remember Pop Warner is the first week of December and that the fort is usually full.

 

[BethC1952]

We were there the first week of December, and had a wonderful time. The weather was great (except REALLY chilly one night). The fort was jammed when we arrived on December 1, but it seemed like almost everyone was gone by the evening of December 2!

We traveled from New Jersey by Amtrak, so we shipped our tent and much of our gear to Fort Wilderness ahead of time. They were very nice about transporting us, our delivered items and out 22 pcs of luggage (there were five of us, and DH and I left after five nights for a two-night stay at the Animal Kingdom Lodge and then headed of on Disney Cruise Line for a week) to our site.

If you have any specific questions, don't hesitate to ask here or send me a PM!

Beth

 

[donac]

HI Beth,
I am from West LOng Branch. WHere did you get the AMtrak train? We have taken the autotrain down a couple of times but never just AMtrak.

 

[Conan the Librarian]

Just got back from our week at the fort (dec 9th through the 15th). The weather was perfect tent weather, 80s in the day, 50s-60s at night.

We also had a near empty camp loop, the 2000, for most of our stay. Things picked up after Thursday.

One problem we did have was in the site next to us. Folks came in on Monday night, had a BIG party with really bad rock music, and mysteriously disappeared the next day. I don't know if leaving the Jack Daniel bottles laying around had anything to do with it or not. We also had another guy with a dog in the loop (a non-pet loop) but the managment refused to do anything about it. I love pets...just not other peoples. It's one reason why we got the non-pet loop.

They have cleared almost all of the underbrush from the sites now. You can see the buses run on the main road from our site. If there was a bridge, the bus stop on the 900 loop would be the closest for us. As it was, we used the bus (when we rode) at Creekside Meadow or walked over the bridge at the back of the 900 loop to get to the Meadow or the Settlement.

It really isn't that big a resort you know.

 

[FFXDSNADDICT]

As far as suggestions. The main thing you need to worry about is waterproofing and ventilation.

It does rain at Disney so make sure all the seams on that tent are thoroughly sealed and seal the fabric of the tent with a Scotchguard type stuff (many camping brands are less expensive than Scotchguard).

I wish I would have found the DIS board and this exact quote about 3 years ago. The DH, myself and two friends went tent camping at FW and the boys set up the tent. The rain God's decided to talk to us everynight of our 5 night trip. The worst part. DH and friend didn't put the rain guard on right!!! By the last night we were SOAKED!

 

[BethC1952]

HI Beth,
I am from West LOng Branch. WHere did you get the AMtrak train? We have taken the autotrain down a couple of times but never just AMtrak.

We took Amtrak from Newark. We live about a half-block from the NJ Transit station in Elberon, so we got on the train there, headed straight to Newark and then boarded Amtrak. We took the train to Kissimee (same price as Orlando, but a lot less people getting off, and a bit closer to The World). It was a great trip, I'd do it again in a minute!

Beth