Autism and the Wilderness Lodge

[Disneylvr]

Unfortunately our budget is not going to allow us to stay in a 1 bedroom at a DVC property or at the Polynesian but we can probably swing a standard room at the Wilderness Lodge. Our DD will be 5 years old then, she LOVES water and swimming pools... I think the WL would be calming and relaxing to her (and us) after the sensory overload in the parks. Anyone have experiences (good or bad) with autism and the Wilderness Lodge. At first we thought a kitchen would be necessary to accomodate Madelyn's pickiness but we just got back from a non-Disney vacation and we ate out A LOT! And here at home we eat out once a week and she is doing great with trying a variety of foods and not having meltdowns in restuarants.

 

[livndisney]

One think I noticed about the WL (and I LOVE the WL) is how loud the pool was. The rushing water and the geyser really bothered my DD. (OK it scared her). Just my experience.

 

[Disneylvr]

Thankfully noise doesn't bother DD, especially when water is involved. The only noise that really bothered her at WDW last year was the fireworks (when we were too close) and Spectromagic.

 

[grimley1968]

I know little about autism, except for symptoms as described to me by people who live with it in their family.

However, I think I know enough about WL to give you some advice.

If sensory overload will be a problem, the lobby in WL could possibly be intimidating. The roof is probably about 100 feet high, there are massive windows overlooking the pool area, and there are loads of animals carved into support beams through the lobby. The noise from Whispering Canyon Cafe, which overlooks the lobby, can be quite loud at peak meal hours. I'm not autistic, and I have some pretty severe hearing damage. It's so loud at WCC that even I get annoyed by it, just to give you some perspective on the noise there. You may wish to avoid WCC for meals, as well, as it can be quite involved with the playful antics between CMs and guests.

The rooms themselves, though, are probably among the quietest in all of WDW. They really are a great escape from the parks' sensory overload. Another good thing about the rooms is that you can get to just about all of them without really going near the lobby, if you wish to avoid it. There are multiple doors at each end of the two main wings of the resort, so you would pretty much just have an elevator and a hallway to nagivate to get to your room.

If you think you could deal with the lobby, then WL would be perfect for you. I would just think the lobby might be tough for children who might have trouble with so many sensory stimuli. Everywhere else within WL is pretty calm, compared to most other resorts.

 

[Disneylvr]

Madelyn did okay in the Contemporary lobby last year. She is mostly a sensory seeker but the heat, crowds and movement at the parks wears on her (and us) after several hours so we take a midday break. The lobby sounds echo don't they? She will probably try to make loud noises to hear that echo. That might be a problem if it disturbs other guests.

 

[Tissa]

If she doesn't have any problems with sounds then she would do great there. The lobby made my ds a little nervous but he was fine once we got to the room. I think he was just overwhelmed.

 

[Disneylvr]

I guess in reality we have no idea how she is going to reacte in the lobby or anywhere else to be honest. Last year we had no idea she would go into complete meltdown at Chef Mickeys. Thankfully have since learned coping strategies on how to deal with those kind of situations (thank you Judevine Center for Autism). I am wondering if we should reconsider the DVC properties and scrimp in another area of our vacation.

 

[JakeAlJennMom]

Hi, my DD4 has ASD and last year was her first trip to Disney with us. We stayed at the Beach Club Resort and it was wonderful. The CM's have been trained at Disney (for the most part) how to deal with children with ASD. They will go out of their way to make your stay meltdown free. Jennifer, DD4, loves the water as well, and when things got too hectic we just went back and swam.

I think that having all the problems that we have dealing with ASD, it is important to have that little bit of magic, where people understand the disorder and are there to help your child enjoy her vacation.

Have you been to Allears.net? They have great articles and tips from parents of ASD children. They will tell you as well, if you can, stay on property.

I'll be happy to share all the tips I've learned. My email is wndyeaston@yahoo.com

Good luck and don't be surprised if something magical happens there. I think there is something there in those parks that connects to ASD kids that we can't see. Jennifer spoke more there than we were used to. She connected to us and to the surroundings. Its a wonderful place.

 

[MomOf2DisneyKids]

We just got back last month from our 3rd trip to WL with my ds7 who has ASD! We love it there...it's just so peaceful and relaxing after crazy days in the parks. My ds loves the lobby, and loves sitting in the little chairs and relaxing. We had fun at Pop too, but there's just something so peaceful about WL!!!!

 

[NARM Forever]

Have you considered renting a DVC property through the DISboards? Check out the DVC rental board, it might make a DVC 1-bed more affordable for you. Looking at the DVC Planning forum might help you to understand all about DVC properties and which would be right for your family. Just make sure that if you are renting that you do your research and check out references.

Good Luck

NARM

 

[kcminnie]

We just returned from WL last week. My daughter has autism and we love the WL. We stayed in a 1 bedroom villa and it was great. The quiet pool by the villas is our favorite. It has less people & she likes the "hot springs" in that pool. We use the DVD player in the villa for her down time. You can rent movies in the lobby store. We never eat at Whispering Canyon because she doesn't like the noise there. She is OK walking through the lobby but we like to hang out in the Villa lobby. Very quiet and relaxing there. I would also look into renting points for a villa. We have an AP and stayed with that discount.

 

[Disneylvr]

Is there room in the 1 bedroom villa for a blow up bed? Madelyn has to have her own bed. A friend wants to join us for the trip and would be using the fold out couch as her bed.