We (DH, myself, and 7yo nephew) just got back from a 4-day trip to the WL (06/04 - 06/07). I have to say, I think this is now my favorite resort. It's the perfect balance between theming, location, and price (for us, anyway). The lobby is gorgeous and there are nooks on I think all the floors starting from the third on up so you can sit and watch the goings-on in the lobby. I think it was the third that has an outside terrace area which overlooks the front of the hotel.
Room
- Thanks to all the advice of these boards, we had booked a Woods view room. Four days prior to arrival, I faxed a request for (and got) a North Wing room, 5th floor with a view of the otter pond (room 5006). What a great room! The first night we were there, we watched the MK fireworks from our balcony and saw the castle changing colors (although we could never find the castle during the daytime because the trees were too full). Also, we saw the otters quite a few times during our stay. Very cool. I also liked leaving the curtains open and not worrying about anyone looking in (unlike the lower floor courtyard rooms).
- Mousekeeping was excellent - the room was clean everyday when we came back for our rest. Our mousekeeper left towel animals everyday on the bed, which we loved.
- Yeah, the rooms are a little small but it was just fine for the three of us.
- The woods view rooms run from x0006 through x0034 (or x0038?). The x0034 end rooms are closest to the elevator. Our room (5006) was the furthest from the elevator but perhaps a little quieter because no hallway traffic noise. My ideal room would probably be somewhere in the middle and on the 5th or 6th floor. The elevators very quick and I believe actually faster than walking to a lower floor.
Transportation
- Boats - I still haven't figured out the rhythm of the MK boats. The boat is shared with Ft. Wilderness, but regardless of morning or afternoon, the WL was always the first stop on the way back and when we were picked up to go to the MK, the Ft. Wilderness passengers were already on.
??? Anyway, although we overall liked the boats to the MK and never had more than a 5 min wait, it really would be nice if they had a bus option for anyone who would rather not take a boat (like when it was raining or when we got there and my nephew was worried about going on the boat).
- Buses - Bus transporation everywhere else was excellent and we didn't wait for much longer than 5 minutes or so. AK and Downtown Disney are kind of a hike but since the bus was usually empty, it was a pleasant ride. Oh, on the way back from AK, we shared a bus with the GF, which was strange, especially since the driver got confused and went to the Contemporary, but I think he was new.
Dining
- Roaring Fork was okay, Krispy Kreme doughnuts not withstanding (we have a KK near where I live so they're not such a draw for me, especially if they're not hot and fresh off the conveyer belt
).
- My nephew loved Whispering Canyon. We ate there twice, once for dinner and once for lunch. The dinner food was a little on the heavy side but the chicken quesadillas at lunch are FANTASTIC. The waiters are all funny, and one of the busboys (busmen?) made my nephew a Indian head thing with straws as feathers.
- And for anyone who wants a soda in their room and does not have the refillable mug, the best deal is the vending machines. $1.00 for a 16 oz can vs $2.34 for a 20 oz bottle at the Mercantile. Roaring Fork charged $1.99 for a large but it's not all that big (maybe 16 oz?) and is only refillable while you're in the restaurant.
Other non-resort-related trip notes:
- It rained everyday during our stay but usually tapered off after 1/2 hour or so. The crowds were not bad, although definitely more than when we had been to WDW in October. And it is hot hot hot plus humid humid humid. Once again, I vow never to go to Disney unless it is Nov, Dec, Jan, or Feb.
- E-ride (Friday, 06/06) was fantastic. Light rain, which would alternate between a little heavier and stopping. We went on Buzz MANY times - I rock at the spinning thing. The big 6 characters were out signing autographs in front of the castle. There weren't a lot of people so they were being really cute and funny. My nephew had so much fun. Oh, and I got to show off my DIS-boards acquired knowledge at the Haunted Mansion. My nephew didn't want to go so I went by myself. E-ride had just started so it was just me and a couple. They were looking at the gravestones and I ran over to Madame Leota's and told them about her eyes opening. And the HM is soooo cool when it's only a few people. Everyone took their own cars since there were so few of us and you could actually hear all the sound effects since no one was talking.
- Star Wars weekend was not crowded at all, although we got there at 8:30 and left after lunch. We saw Han, Luke, Leia, Wicket, Boba Fett, and some miscellaneous bad guys. I think my favorite was the stormtroopers at the top of the gate mocking the crowds. Behind the Force was worth it for the bloopers at the end.
- We didn't notice a huge crowd difference when Gay Days started. I asked the monorail driver on Saturday (we were up front) and he said that he didn't either. He said you can usually tell at the TTC by looking at the queue lines. However, I had looked up the Gay Days schedule and avoided whichever park was going to be their park for the day and I guess that worked well.
- The jammitors at Epcot are fun, and very talented.
- Exposition Hall is a *great* place to take pictures. Characters sometimes hang out there because of the A/C, you want to be there because of the A/C, and plus there are lots of cool backgrounds.
- There was a storm heading in on Saturday afternoon, which is when we had planned to rent water mice, so we didn't get to do that, which was a bummer. We did that last time on our last day and it is a wonderful way to end a trip. Very relaxing, refreshing, and you get fantastic views of the MK and lakeside resorts.
- I cannot, just cannot believe, that I have come back from WDW once again and never had a Dole Whip.
Ooo, this is turning out a lot longer than it should. Thanks everyone, for all the tips and advice. They certainly helped us have a better trip, especially since we were only there for such a short time.
Let me know if there are any questions.
Room
- Thanks to all the advice of these boards, we had booked a Woods view room. Four days prior to arrival, I faxed a request for (and got) a North Wing room, 5th floor with a view of the otter pond (room 5006). What a great room! The first night we were there, we watched the MK fireworks from our balcony and saw the castle changing colors (although we could never find the castle during the daytime because the trees were too full). Also, we saw the otters quite a few times during our stay. Very cool. I also liked leaving the curtains open and not worrying about anyone looking in (unlike the lower floor courtyard rooms).
- Mousekeeping was excellent - the room was clean everyday when we came back for our rest. Our mousekeeper left towel animals everyday on the bed, which we loved.
- Yeah, the rooms are a little small but it was just fine for the three of us.
- The woods view rooms run from x0006 through x0034 (or x0038?). The x0034 end rooms are closest to the elevator. Our room (5006) was the furthest from the elevator but perhaps a little quieter because no hallway traffic noise. My ideal room would probably be somewhere in the middle and on the 5th or 6th floor. The elevators very quick and I believe actually faster than walking to a lower floor.
Transportation
- Boats - I still haven't figured out the rhythm of the MK boats. The boat is shared with Ft. Wilderness, but regardless of morning or afternoon, the WL was always the first stop on the way back and when we were picked up to go to the MK, the Ft. Wilderness passengers were already on.
??? Anyway, although we overall liked the boats to the MK and never had more than a 5 min wait, it really would be nice if they had a bus option for anyone who would rather not take a boat (like when it was raining or when we got there and my nephew was worried about going on the boat). - Buses - Bus transporation everywhere else was excellent and we didn't wait for much longer than 5 minutes or so. AK and Downtown Disney are kind of a hike but since the bus was usually empty, it was a pleasant ride. Oh, on the way back from AK, we shared a bus with the GF, which was strange, especially since the driver got confused and went to the Contemporary, but I think he was new.
Dining
- Roaring Fork was okay, Krispy Kreme doughnuts not withstanding (we have a KK near where I live so they're not such a draw for me, especially if they're not hot and fresh off the conveyer belt
). - My nephew loved Whispering Canyon. We ate there twice, once for dinner and once for lunch. The dinner food was a little on the heavy side but the chicken quesadillas at lunch are FANTASTIC. The waiters are all funny, and one of the busboys (busmen?) made my nephew a Indian head thing with straws as feathers.
- And for anyone who wants a soda in their room and does not have the refillable mug, the best deal is the vending machines. $1.00 for a 16 oz can vs $2.34 for a 20 oz bottle at the Mercantile. Roaring Fork charged $1.99 for a large but it's not all that big (maybe 16 oz?) and is only refillable while you're in the restaurant.
Other non-resort-related trip notes:
- It rained everyday during our stay but usually tapered off after 1/2 hour or so. The crowds were not bad, although definitely more than when we had been to WDW in October. And it is hot hot hot plus humid humid humid. Once again, I vow never to go to Disney unless it is Nov, Dec, Jan, or Feb.
- E-ride (Friday, 06/06) was fantastic. Light rain, which would alternate between a little heavier and stopping. We went on Buzz MANY times - I rock at the spinning thing. The big 6 characters were out signing autographs in front of the castle. There weren't a lot of people so they were being really cute and funny. My nephew had so much fun. Oh, and I got to show off my DIS-boards acquired knowledge at the Haunted Mansion. My nephew didn't want to go so I went by myself. E-ride had just started so it was just me and a couple. They were looking at the gravestones and I ran over to Madame Leota's and told them about her eyes opening. And the HM is soooo cool when it's only a few people. Everyone took their own cars since there were so few of us and you could actually hear all the sound effects since no one was talking.
- Star Wars weekend was not crowded at all, although we got there at 8:30 and left after lunch. We saw Han, Luke, Leia, Wicket, Boba Fett, and some miscellaneous bad guys. I think my favorite was the stormtroopers at the top of the gate mocking the crowds. Behind the Force was worth it for the bloopers at the end.
- We didn't notice a huge crowd difference when Gay Days started. I asked the monorail driver on Saturday (we were up front) and he said that he didn't either. He said you can usually tell at the TTC by looking at the queue lines. However, I had looked up the Gay Days schedule and avoided whichever park was going to be their park for the day and I guess that worked well.
- The jammitors at Epcot are fun, and very talented.
- Exposition Hall is a *great* place to take pictures. Characters sometimes hang out there because of the A/C, you want to be there because of the A/C, and plus there are lots of cool backgrounds.
- There was a storm heading in on Saturday afternoon, which is when we had planned to rent water mice, so we didn't get to do that, which was a bummer. We did that last time on our last day and it is a wonderful way to end a trip. Very relaxing, refreshing, and you get fantastic views of the MK and lakeside resorts.
- I cannot, just cannot believe, that I have come back from WDW once again and never had a Dole Whip.
Ooo, this is turning out a lot longer than it should. Thanks everyone, for all the tips and advice. They certainly helped us have a better trip, especially since we were only there for such a short time.
Let me know if there are any questions.
). 
