Boardwalk VS Wilderness Lodge

[hawkeyesparks]

I've stayed at both multiple times, and both have a lot to offer. WL is close to MK, but don't think that means that you can get to MK quickly. Honestly, at times it's a pain because you're at the mercy of the boats, and there's nothing consistent about them. The rooms though are nice, the theming is my favorite of all the resorts. The food is great.

But

Boardwalk is our favorite resort. It's proximity to Epcot is AWESOME. Making it close to great dining, and the Boardwalk itself is a fun place to hangout. The rooms are nice, the staff at Boardwalk are the best of any resort I've stayed at.

 

[sethschroeder]

Swan and Dolphin have basketball courts just a quick boat ride or walk from Boardwalk.

 

[Captainkidd76]

I love both resorts, but in the winter, the Wilderness Lodge take the cake. Fireplaces everywhere. It's very cozy. In the summer, I might go with the Boardwalk.

 

[nyy]

We have stayed at both with our teens. We stayed at WL CL in 2015. Last summer we stayed at BWI. We have stayed at other resorts, both of those are our favorites.
At BWI, we had a large balcony that looked right at EPCOT. We had a stunning view of Illuminations and Spaceship Earth at night. It was fantastic! The room was large and bright. We did not feel crowded. We loved ESPN, Ample Hills, and the snacks on the Boardwalk. The pool was large and we could see the high fireworks from HS When we swam at night. We loved the large gift shop and it’s snacks. The kids used the (small) arcade and were happy with it. The pool bar was nice. We loved the very short walk to EPCOT. We enjoyed visiting the YC/BC to eat and play in the arcade. The walk to HS was too long for us in the August heat.
We disliked having to go so far to refill our mugs. We disliked how long the boats took to get to places. Other than that, we loved it!
We are staying at WL again this August. We are looking forward to Geyser Point and the new pool. We love the lobby at WL more than BWI. We are excited to try the character meal at Artist Point. We already know the rooms will be darker and smaller than BWI. We have booked a Nature View and requested a high floor in hopes of a fireworks view. We are also looking forward to seeing the Electrical Water Pageant again and using the boat to the Contemporary. We love the gift shop. Our least favorite part of WL from our previous stay was the afternoon pool party that echoed up through the courtyard daily. We are avoiding that with Nature View this year.

I think WL is intentionally more secluded and BWI is right in the middle of it all. You know what is best for you.

 

[ktlm]

Wilderness Lodge is absolutely beautiful at Christmas and gives you that Holiday feel. I love it. If you were going earlier in the season, that would be my choice. BUT--- you are going during the busiest week of the year. Boardwalk you can walk to both EPCOT and DHS and not wait on any type of transportation. The ability to walk to 2 of the 4 parks and not be stuck waiting for busses the busiest week of the year would be a decision maker for me.

 

[DJFan88]

Sorry I totally forgot that last trip we stayed at WL and they have a basketball court! My son just reminded me that he used it alot.

 

[CJN]

I would mix it up and try a completely different experience. I would stay at the BW personally. But then again, I am kind of of biased against WL. I live in Oregon I don't want to travel that far to stay somewhere themed after the Pacific NorthWest.

Oh my gosh, that’s me, too. WL is beautiful but it feels too much like home

 

[toodycat]

They are both beautiful. WL has the edge during the holidays. Also, it has the Whispering Canyon Cafe. The Boardwalk Inn is very nice and convenient to DHS an Epcot, but there is no in-house restaurant. You have to go out to the Boardwalk to eat. I would say the WL lobby and pool are more impressive, but the rooms are better at the Boardwalk Inn and you have the option of watching the entertainers on the Boardwalk at night, which is fun. As for Signature Dining, my family didn’t love the nearby Flying Fish Cafe, but maybe that’s just us. We’re adventurous eaters and cooks, and we enjoy fish, but nothing on the menu impressed us.

 

[TigerlilyAJ]

OP, I love the advice and insight here. We're going in January with a little overlap with your own trip, and I've been considering these two resorts. (We "have" to be CL at either, to get a deluxe room for the six of us.)
I've been to dine at WL at Christmas, and it was my fave resort for decorations, closely followed by the guest decorations at Ft Wilderness (for a completely different feel! ) and the Victorian traditions of GF. But I'm also super excited to try BWI to get something close to DLR's great plus over WDW: walkability!
Can't wait to see what you choose!

 

[BobbiP]

I didn't know that any of the resorts offer basketball- that's good to know. What was your bad experience at GF, if you don't mind me asking? The reason I ask is that if your son is really upset about the basketball, that alone might be reason enough to give them one more chance. Any resort can mess something up, but I don't know how egregious the GF issue was.

We've enjoyed both WL and BW, but BW is our favorite for theming. It is more of a summer theme than a Christmas theme, though (although I hear they do have a nice gingerbread display). For a Christmas week trip, I'd probably stay at WL for the Christmas theming and easier MK access, maybe staying Club Level to best enjoy it. But BW does have much prettier rooms.

There were so many mix ups with our stay at GF that it would take an entire page to list them all. If it were only a of couple things I would overlook it, but the staff at the front desk was rude and could not have cared less. I was floored by some of their comments. We are going to try WL since it is Christmas and MK is our favorite park. I am prepared for the rooms to be dark, that is my only concern.

 

[DJFan88]

I don't remember the rooms standing out as dark at all. I think you will Love the atmosphere at WL

 

[DisneyArkie]

Many people love wilderness lodge, but to me, it is like very expensive camping. The standard rooms are not impressive. It is a nice hotel but just not my style. I would definitely pick the boardwalk over WL.
Have you checked out the beach club? To me, the beach club has a similar feel to the GF with all the whites/light colors.
Taste is such a personal thing so take my opinion with a grain of salt. We stayed at the poly last year and I wasn’t impressed with that hotel either. It was just to darkly decorated.
I can’t help on the basketball issue.

Camping? Wonder where in the world you camp that is similar to WL?

 

[Traveling on cc points]

Camping? Wonder where in the world you camp that is similar to WL?

Haha. I don’t camp but it’s how I imagine camping would be like. When we walked out of our friends room their was pine needles and small sticks everywhere. I found it annoying that the needles kept sticking to my shoes (first world problems, I know)
The OP was asking which resort was closest to feeling like the GF and IMO the boardwalk or beach club Is much closer in design/feeling than WL. Nothing wrong with WL and I truly meant no offense, It’s just not my cup of tea.

 

[SwanVT2]

Swan and Dolphin get all decked out for Christmas and I even think Santa makes some visits. They have a couple of great basketball courts and I think your teens would like their pool! Plus, they have really good restaurants: Kimonos for the best sushi on property, and I have heard really good things about Shula's but we can never afford to eat there (especially with our 7 year old who is pickY)!

 

[DJFan88]

Yes Swan Dolphin is great too, esp. location. We liked it there , we liked WL, there both great-- no matter where you choose.

 

[Shellyred8]

You might want to check out Yacht Club. Recently renovated and has a little more "upscale" feel similar to GF. You would also have access to Stormalong Bay. It might be too cold to use it when you are there, but if it's not, the teens would probably enjoy it.
Staying at any of the boardwalk area resorts puts you closer to some great dining options that you may not have experienced before if you have always stayed at the GF. I think/hope you will be pleasantly surprised by the options in that area (don't for get to consider the restaurants at Swan/Dolphin). You are also close to the Fantasia Gardens mini-golf.

We have stayed at WL and all of the Boardwalk area resorts. I would recommend any of the Boardwalk area resorts over WL, given your group dynamics.

A couple of things to keep in mind if you look at staying at the Swan/Dolphin:
1. Swan has queen sized beds. Dolphin has doubles.
2. They charge a daily resort fee.
3. If you are flying in, the Magical Express is not available to you, so you would have to find alternative transportation to your resort.
4. If you drive, they charge a daily parking fee (as does Disney).
5. You don't get magic bands.

Have a great trip!