(CLOSED) Disney's WILDERNESS LODGE and VILLAS INFORMATION THREAD ~11/13 - 6/14~

[wuzzy6]

Hi y'all! It's getting so close now!!! We just added another night - we're arriving Friday 4/25 and staying two nights! I can't believe our Nugget is going to be 15 this Wednesday - can't wait to celebrate this weekend! I hope everyone's doing well and getting excited!!!

 

[GrandCalifornian]

Thanks. Did you ride it back from DTD, too?

Yes we did, and after getting on at Marketplace the only stop was the West Side before WL.

 

[martinmont]

I asked for for 2 queen beds....but told the CM I needed the bathtub.
He said no problem and put in the request. Hopefully it isn't needed and we get two queens like we did last year, but I don't want to cause a kerfuffle at the front desk if they had assigned a king without my request..... Praying I don't get the King lol

I dun really care if we get a kin for 2 queens but really do not want the handicapped bathroom. They should just leave those rooms for ppl who specifically asked for a handicapped room lol

 

[lahobbs4]

Just booked our trip!!! Nov 16-21! Why do I always get a little teary eyed when I get that confirmation email??

Cannot wait! It's our first WL visit and I am so grateful for this thread and the information. I know our family will LOVE it and we are planning one whole day outside of the park just to enjoy the lodge. It's our first time to do that but I know we will find plenty to do. We went the cheaper route last year and stayed at Pop Century. Lesson learned!

YAY!

 

[pas130]

Just booked our trip!!! Nov 16-21! Why do I always get a little teary eyed when I get that confirmation email??

Cannot wait! It's our first WL visit and I am so grateful for this thread and the information. I know our family will LOVE it and we are planning one whole day outside of the park just to enjoy the lodge. It's our first time to do that but I know we will find plenty to do. We went the cheaper route last year and stayed at Pop Century. Lesson learned!

YAY!

What a fabulous time to stay at WL!!!

Hi y'all! It's getting so close now!!! We just added another night - we're arriving Friday 4/25 and staying two nights! I can't believe our Nugget is going to be 15 this Wednesday - can't wait to celebrate this weekend! I hope everyone's doing well and getting excited!!!

Fantastic!!! And to your "Nugget" (cute)

I am jealous of all of you who are there or checking in soon. Over 6 months left to wait here...and in that time I have to take the MCAT's. Give me some Disney now!!!

Good luck on the MCATs!!! 6 months will go really fast!!!!!

There is a small beach with playground at WL itself. The way I understand it you could play there and around 6:45 they roast marshmallows (free, not s'mores?) before they do the movie on the beach after it gets dark. The Electric Water Pageant arrives sometime around 9:30, I think.

At FW there is a dedicated area (not the beach) set up with a concession cart that sells candy, drinks, s'mores kits, marshmallows and hot dogs. They do the same thing with the campfire and movie, but before the movie Chip and Dale arrive for a 40 minute singalong/meet n greet. The characters are free but the marshmallows are not.

I have done both FW back in 2009, and WL with just DH and myself. I will say I enjoyed the "quaintness" of the WL roast. DH even started the campfire, the CM was having difficulty. For the first few minutes it was DH, I and 2 CMs we had a blast! Can't wait to bring my kiddos!!!

Kites? I thought you were asking about, umm, kilts. No, kites are NOT allowed anywhere in Lake Buena Vista. It's a kite-free zone, so sorry.

Well, if you were asking so that you could occupy DD's time, instead of kite-flying, here are some things you can do with her to fill some downtime. These are described in more detail on the the first page:

~Hidden Mickey Scavenger Hunt. Sheets are available from the concierge/front desk

~Cub's Den has activities in the afternoon

~There's a playground on the beach

~Bike rentals

~Pony rides at FW and stables

~Arcade

~VWL has chess/checkers and train models off the lobby

~Take a walk to FW. There are trails in the woods where she can see critters, it starts behind the marina and there's a concrete trail near the bus stop if you want to ride bikes

~Play in the sand on the beach

~Take the boat over to CR and watch the monorail or go shopping

~Rent a boat and take her for a ride

~Tour the grounds inside and out

OOOOOOoooooOOOOOOhhhh there's activities at Cub's Den? Universal did that too, the kids LOVED it. We couldn't drag them out of there, good to know. Thank you

 

[jkramer]

Just booked our trip!!! Nov 16-21! Why do I always get a little teary eyed when I get that confirmation email?? Cannot wait! It's our first WL visit and I am so grateful for this thread and the information. I know our family will LOVE it and we are planning one whole day outside of the park just to enjoy the lodge. It's our first time to do that but I know we will find plenty to do. We went the cheaper route last year and stayed at Pop Century. Lesson learned! YAY!

I'll be here the exact same time!! Yay for Christmas at WL!

 

[pas130]

I'll be here the exact same time!! Yay for Christmas at WL!

Nice! It's so pretty decorated!!!

 

[wuzzy6]

Fantastic!!! And to your "Nugget" (cute)

Thank you!

 

[pas130]

Thank you!

You're welcome! Have an amazing time!!

 

[MaggiesMomNJ]

Just booked our trip!!! Nov 16-21! Why do I always get a little teary eyed when I get that confirmation email??

Cannot wait! It's our first WL visit and I am so grateful for this thread and the information. I know our family will LOVE it and we are planning one whole day outside of the park just to enjoy the lodge. It's our first time to do that but I know we will find plenty to do. We went the cheaper route last year and stayed at Pop Century. Lesson learned!

YAY!

We are the 14th-20th!

 

[MaggiesMomNJ]

I'll be here the exact same time!! Yay for Christmas at WL!

Wow you too?!

I just posted, we are checking in the 14th!

 

[BellsFam]

If you are at VWL or FW do you share the pool with WL?

 

[pas130]

If you are at VWL or FW do you share the pool with WL?

WL and VWL share, but FW has it's own pool. The cabins have several quiet pools as well.

 

[WDWKOOK]

If you are at VWL or FW do you share the pool with WL?

Not sure if you are asking about the number of pools or about pool hopping so...VWL has it's own pool, but WL guests may use it. WL also has it's own pool that VWL guests may use, however, FW guests can only use the FW pools. FW is a separate resort from WL/VWL. They have two pools: Meadows and Wilderness.

 

[BWV Dreamin]

Not sure if you are asking about the number of pools or about pool hopping so...VWL has it's own pool, but WL guests may use it. WL also has it's own pool that VWL guests may use, however, FW guests can only use the FW pools. FW is a separate resort from WL/VWL. They have two pools: Meadows and Wilderness.

Is this a recent change? I've seen many come over from FW and use the WL pool. So much so that the pool gets over crowded at times.

 

[WDWKOOK]

Is this a recent change? I've seen many come over from FW and use the WL pool. So much so that the pool gets over crowded at times.

It's not a new rule, just an old one that's often broken

 

[BellsFam]

So much so that the pool gets over crowded at times.

Yeah, that's kinda where I was going with my post...

 

[WDWKOOK]

Does anyone know what stops the DTD bus makes on the way to and from the WL? Does it also stop at FW and Typhoon Lagoon?

Just adding that I timed it once and from the time we got on the bus at WL until we arrived at DTD was close to 30 minutes. I find it to be the worst bus ride in terms of length and stops from any Deluxe.

I am jealous of all of you who are there or checking in soon. Over 6 months left to wait here...and in that time I have to take the MCAT's. Give me some Disney now!!!

Soon you can make your ADRs and soon your vacation will evolve into an MCAT celebration when you're all done

Thanks. Did you ride it back from DTD, too?

Also just adding to Paul's post that the ride back from DTD has always seemed worse than going, unlike from all the parks. Every time we seem to wait a very long time for a bus back and it always then stops at West Side for a driver switch which takes about 10 minutes. I think the last time we went was 2012 and last year I declared that I was skipping DTD. Now, with all the renovations going on, I have another excuse to skip it in 2014. I even tried to make it interesting once by trying to take the boat back to POFQ for some beignets with DD and then taking the bus back to MK to get to WL, but we had just missed the boat and they said it would be about 45 minutes until the next one so to the bus we went

Just booked our trip!!! Nov 16-21! Why do I always get a little teary eyed when I get that confirmation email??

Cannot wait! It's our first WL visit and I am so grateful for this thread and the information. I know our family will LOVE it and we are planning one whole day outside of the park just to enjoy the lodge. It's our first time to do that but I know we will find plenty to do. We went the cheaper route last year and stayed at Pop Century. Lesson learned!

YAY!

I'll add you dates to our Log. You're going to be hooked on WL and one resort day may not be enough. I still print out those confirmations since I enjoy looking at them - nothing wrong with getting teary-eyed

OOOOOOoooooOOOOOOhhhh there's activities at Cub's Den? Universal did that too, the kids LOVED it. We couldn't drag them out of there, good to know. Thank you

It's an "open house" time for the kids to come and do a craft with a CM. There's a sign out front near the walkway into the Lodge across from the arcade that advertises it. It starts around 2:00 and lasts about 1.5 - 2 hours. On Saturdays, they have a Magic Cookie Hour at Roaring Fork.

 

[fla4fun]

We are party of two. Checked in this morning - two queen beds. Was very happy and did not request

That has been my typical experience when booking solo or as a party of two. In fact, I've only had a king room one time, and that was checking in the night before Thanksgiving (around 6pm) when the resort was packed. It was an accessible room close to Roaring Forks. At first, I was a little disappointed, but I ended up getting the fever and chills flu that trip, so the rails and shower seat in the bathroom came in very handy, as did being so close to Roaring Forks for soup!

I typically don't make much in the way of requests - just "enclosed balcony" because I prefer the privacy. Since most people prefer the open balconies, I usually don't have a problem getting my request.

 

[Lynne G]

We will be at the WL from 8/31 to 9/2 this year. Moving over from the YC for the last 2 nights of our vacation. Never been at the WL before. Looking forward to relaxing the last couple of days of our vacation. Thought there was alot to do at the WL and nearby. We will have finished our park days before checking in, so I thought the WL would be a fun end to vacation with my 2 teen kids. DD' s 13th bday is August 29, so she'll be offically a teen right before we check in.

Thanks for the info in this thread.