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

[Koh1977]

Sayla23 -

I thought I saw somewhere that Elsa and Anna only greet until 5 but I could be wrong.

As for ET, that's one of the only rides I remember from my one and only Universal trip a long time ago...have not been on the new TT, but Soarin' is really tame. DS at 5 or 6 loved it.

Buses to DTD are usually a pain, so maybe a cab if you want to do that.

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[sayla27]

Sayla23 - I thought I saw somewhere that Elsa and Anna only greet until 5 but I could be wrong. As for ET, that's one of the only rides I remember from my one and only Universal trip a long time ago...have not been on the new TT, but Soarin' is really tame. DS at 5 or 6 loved it. Buses to DTD are usually a pain, so maybe a cab if you want to do that. Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

Koh1977 - thanks for the quick reply. I just checked MDE and you are right. Elsa and Anna only M&G until 5 pm. I guess I will try for a FP on my early MK days.

I totally forgot that E.T was at Universal. You definitely confirmed my feelings about Soarin (tame was the right word for me). I'll try for a FP there.

 

[fla4fun]

Now on to planning FP+.

Some random questions:

1) We have a reservation at WCC but thinking about Hoop-De-Do-Revue. Thoughts?

3) Trying to figure out our Epcot Day. I know you can only FP Soarin or TT. I've never been on either of these rides and I'd like to know which is a bit tamer for me and DD6. I am not a roller coaster person (not even the kiddie coasters) and I'm not sure what to expect from these rides. I've watched a Youtube video of Soarin and while it looks very cool I can't tell if there are any sudden drops. I know this sounds stupid but years ago my sister made me ride the E.T. Ride (last time I was in Disney- yep it's been that long!) and I HATED every minute of it. I couldn't wait to get off and the rest of my day was totally ruined. I don't want to repeat that experience for myself or DD6. DH and DD8 are the adventurous ones. Me- I'll take the pool, a frozen drink and my Kindle any day.

TIA and I look forward to counting down the days with all of you.

Hoop De Doo is a fun show. I've been three times and enjoyed it every time. At WCC the interaction depends on the server you get and how enthusiastic they are. If you get a really over the top server, it can be a lot of fun, and it's very personal. At HDD, there is less personal interaction, but quite a bit of audience participation. If I hadn't been to either, and had to choose one, I would probably go to HDD.

As far as choosing between TT and Soarin, Soarin is very smooth, no huge drops like a coaster at all. It's supposed to simulate hang gliding so the motion is more fluid. There are a couple times the seats sort of swing back and forth quickly in response to what is happening on the screen, but that's it. TT on the other hand is much more of a "thrill" ride, with jerky movements, high speed, and very banked curves that can give you the feeling you could fall out of the ride. There aren't any drops here though either. I like both, but I probably ride Soarin a dozen times to every one ride on TT. I can't really compare Soarin to ET because I don't go to Universal much and have never ridden ET. I am not a coaster fan either.

 

[Nicnic]

My husband feels the same way about a split stay, he won't even consider it. The decision of whether or not to stay at BC or WL is hard for us, too, since we like them both. WL is a great place to stay if you want to spend a lot of time at MK. The boat ride to MK is quick and relaxing. It is a nicer boat than the Friendship boats at the YC were. The boat is more interesting because it goes past the CR and you can see the Poly and GF off in the distance. And then the approach to MK is rather exciting, especially for the kids. I think your 11 year old daughter will enjoy it. There is also a boat that travels between WL, CR and Fort Wilderness. It is a nice way to get to CR if you want to catch the monorail. We found that this was a good way to get to the monorail resorts for our dinner reservations. There is also a bus to MK which is direct and really fast. Secret entrances are my specialty. I was dragging my husband all over WL on the last two trips, looking for shortcuts in and out of the resort. There are some staircases, fire exits really, that open out to the inner courtyard or open to the Hidden Springs pool by the villa. But which ones you use would depend on where your room is located. For example, on our December trip we were in room 3104, which is close to the lobby near the Mercantile shop. It is also close to the bus stop. Straight across the hallway from our room was an exit that took us down to the second floor, which was lobby level. We used this staircase instead of the elevator all the time when we wanted to take the bus or go to the lobby. We also used this exit if we wanted to take a shortcut to get to Roaring Forks. If you look at the room map you'll see that there is another elevator about mid-way down the south wing. That leads to a shortcut to the inner courtyard for the pool, the boat, and the path to the beach. If you are in the north wing, then you will mostly be using the elevator near Roaring Forks for everything, boats, buses, food, etc, unless you are on a low enough floor to use the stairs. There are some that open up close to the boat dock. But, to answer your question, you won't have to always come all the way back to the lobby to get to your room, unless, of course, your room is overlooking the lobby, then you would go that way. This wonderful map by GrandCalifornian doesn't show where the exit doors are, but they are located at the ends of each corridor where you see an empty space on the map. For example, there are exit doors between the following rooms: on the south side: between 122 and 123 to go to inner courtyard for pool, boat, Roaring Forks, beach, etc between 120 and 130 - to go to Hidden Springs pool between 165 and 166 - beach, etc on north side: between 043 and 041-that is where Roaring Forks and the ramp to the lobby is located between 003 and 005 - very close to boat dock near the lobby: between 061 and 067 - that exit is right off the lobby, next to Territory Lounge and the top of the ramp just to the left of 100 is the exit to the bus

Wow, your a mind of information! Thank you very much for this. I've been doing the 'YouTube' surfing and found some wonderful videos of the WL, eldest DD was also looking and she seems to like it.

One more question if you don't mind? Do you ever feel that your too far out from everything else? We enjoy DTD and I know the busses are a nightmare from wherever you are, even the BC had us on a 45 min return journey one night, we do hire a car mid trip so only use the bus a few times.
What's it like to get to the other parks? We would also be spending a good few days at AK as the kids love it there.
Is the WL resort smaller than BC, it looks it, if I'm at the far end near the boat dock, is it a major trek to the bus stops? Maybe I'm getting lazy in my old age!
Ok so maybe there was more than one question here!!

Thanks again.

 

[DEDHead]

Apologize if this has been asked, but do the TVs in the rooms (not villas) have USB or HDMI ports that work? I'd love to bring my son's external hard drive with all his movies to watch after a long day at the park...I ask if they work because some hotels don't give you remotes that allow you to move between the inputs
Thanks!

I don't know if this applies to WDW resorts since I haven't been in a while (that's changing in 64 days now!), but if you find yourself in a hotel with locked HDMI ports and they use their own software on the TV. You can enable the HDMI ports simply by disconnecting the coax cable. The software is loaded when the coax is connected, when it is disconnected the TV reverts to its factory state. Only pain is when they put coax locks around the cable so I always travel with a pair of needle nose pliers to get around those.

Works like a champ, give it try!

 

[Wood Nymph]

Two more quick things:

1) if we go to DTD should we take the bus or a cab? I'm thinking the cab might be easier.

A cab is a lot easier than the bus. The problem with the bus is that is very time consuming. You have to wait for a bus to arrive, which can be a fairly long wait, then it will make multiple stops. So you need to plan on a one hour to get there if you are unlucky enough to have a long wait for the bus to arrive. A taxi ride would probably be about twenty minutes at the most from the WL.

2) how big is the whole "pin trading" thing? I don't really remember it from past trips but I also don't want my girls tormenting me to buy them pins to trade. Would rather get a few now off ebay if needed.

Thanks again!

There is a pin stand right in the lobby of the WL, at the top of the ramp to Roaring Forks and the exit to the pool and boats, which means that you will walk right past it several times a day, probably. You would have a hard time avoiding the cute pins for sale. But as far as pin trading goes, that part of the deal, where CM's have to trade pins with guests if the guests want to trade, is really low key. And there weren't a lot of people walking around with lanyards full of pins, either, when we were there recently. We never even knew what the heck pin trading was until we found the Dis. So if you don't want to get the girls into a new, expensive hobby that they don't know anything about, you could probably manage it. But they will probably want to buy a few pins anyway.

 

[attain]

We had to change our trip dates and there were no WL rooms available for us on our new dates. Right now we had to book POFQ, but I'm calling daily to see if something opens up. Anybody have any luck getting a room in a similar situation? It doesn't help that our new dates are in the middle of SWW. Fingers crossed a room opens up!

 

[minniegirl19]

what is the bus transportation like? my family is staying there for our first time Aug 11-18 and i know we can take the boat to MK. Is it faster taking the boat to CR and taking the monorail over to epcot? or is a bus faster? also don't they stop at other resorts on our way to the other parks? has that ever been a big problem for anyone?

 

[Wood Nymph]

what is the bus transportation like? my family is staying there for our first time Aug 11-18 and i know we can take the boat to MK. Is it faster taking the boat to CR and taking the monorail over to epcot? or is a bus faster? also don't they stop at other resorts on our way to the other parks? has that ever been a big problem for anyone?

The bus to Epcot stops at Fort Wilderness first. It is probably a twenty to twenty-five minute ride once you get on the bus. The bus back from Epcot stops at WL first, which makes it about a 15 minute ride. So the biggest factor is how long you have to wait for a bus in the first place. I think our longest wait for an Epcot bus was probably 20 minutes.

Taking the boat to CR and then the monorail to Epcot usually isn't quicker than the bus. You have to wait for a boat, then take the 4 minute ride across the water, walk into the CR, up the elevator to the fourth floor, up the escalator to the monorail level, wait for the monorail, then get off at the TTC. There you have to switch to the Epcot monorail. We've done it for fun, for adventure, for something different, but not for speed.

 

[Wood Nymph]

what is the bus transportation like? my family is staying there for our first time Aug 11-18 and i know we can take the boat to MK. Is it faster taking the boat to CR and taking the monorail over to epcot? or is a bus faster? also don't they stop at other resorts on our way to the other parks? has that ever been a big problem for anyone?

The bus to HS usually shares with the Grand Floridian for some strange reason. And sometimes the AK bus shares with GF and sometimes it shares with FW. But the bus from HS stops at WL first. It takes about 14 minutes and is really fast.

 

[minniegirl19]

The bus to HS usually shares with the Grand Floridian for some strange reason. And sometimes the AK bus shares with GF and sometimes it shares with FW. But the bus from HS stops at WL first. It takes about 14 minutes and is really fast.

Thank you for your responses! Have you ever felt like it was a problem sharing? Is it usually only sharing with one other resort or is it possible to share with the poly too? and we have tusker house reservations at 8:40 A.M. when would you suggest for us to go to the bus stop? sorry for so many questions we haven't stayed deluxe in 9 years and in the past we've only done the poly so this is really new to us!

 

[geminierin]

I don't know if this applies to WDW resorts since I haven't been in a while (that's changing in 64 days now!), but if you find yourself in a hotel with locked HDMI ports and they use their own software on the TV. You can enable the HDMI ports simply by disconnecting the coax cable. The software is loaded when the coax is connected, when it is disconnected the TV reverts to its factory state. Only pain is when they put coax locks around the cable so I always travel with a pair of needle nose pliers to get around those. Works like a champ, give it try!

Thanks so much, awesome tip, will give it a try!

 

[princessesintraining]

We had to change our trip dates and there were no WL rooms available for us on our new dates. Right now we had to book POFQ, but I'm calling daily to see if something opens up. Anybody have any luck getting a room in a similar situation? It doesn't help that our new dates are in the middle of SWW. Fingers crossed a room opens up!

Keep checking. Don't know if you have flexibility in your schedule, but we are checking in earlier than planned, so we could get a standard view and save some money. We also booked a room only reservation for our last night since we check out early. We booked a woods view and a standard just became available. Hoping to not have to switch rooms since we are booked the same view all week. Try playing with package/ room only at the beginning or end of your trip.

 

[WDWKOOK]

Not WL related but......You plan and hope things go well. I made 815pm reservations at LaHacienda de San Angel for dinner tonight. We were told there are only a few tables for two in the "show viewing" area. When seated were at the window with the lake right in front of us. We just had the best view EVER for Illuminations. Pixie dust everywhere this trip.

Sounds fabulous and what a view you must have had. Looking forward to your TR and hope your last night is magical.

Add us to the Lodge Log as we'll! Aug 14-24! Can't wait!

I did

Add us to the Log as well! We are doing a split stay - starting at YC and then ending at WL - Nov. 4 - 8 Super excited!!!

Nice split and you've been added.

Whew! I finally finished reading all 107 pages of this post!!!! Lots of great info.

WDWKOOK - please add us to the log for 7/20-27. First family trip. My DH, DD8, and DD6 will be in one room. My sister will have a connecting room for extra space and my other sister will be with us (hoping on the same floor).

Booked our ADRs at 180 days and 6 am:

7/20 - boat ride to CR for dinner at Chef Mickey's then monorail to MK

7/21 - Epcot Day. Dinner at Rose and Crown

7/22 - MK Day. Breakfast at 1900 Park Fare and dinner at BOG ( so excited to snag a 6:00 pm reservation there).

7/23 - DHS Day. Lunch/ Snacks at 50s Prime Time Cafe. Fantasmic dinner package at Mama melrose's

7/24 - AK Day. Dinner at The Flying Fish

7/25 - Day of rest. Probably head to DTD for some shopping. Dinner at WCC. Maybe head to a park after dinner or catch the movie on the beach.

7/26 - Last Day!! BBB at 8 am followed by CP at 10:20am. Dinner at CRT (again an awesome time!)

7/27 - heading back to Long Island

Now on to planning FP+.

Some random questions:

1) We have a reservation at WCC but thinking about Hoop-De-Do-Revue. Thoughts?

2) I know Anna and Elsa are moving to the MK Princess Hall. This is definitely on the top of DD6 list and I don't mind using a FP for it (I'm not much of a thrill seeker), but I wonder how late they meet. I'd like to book it for after dinner on our first night if possible but imagine the first FP MDE will let me book is 8-9 pm due to our 6:30 ADR.

3) Trying to figure out our Epcot Day. I know you can only FP Soarin or TT. I've never been on either of these rides and I'd like to know which is a bit tamer for me and DD6. I am not a roller coaster person (not even the kiddie coasters) and I'm not sure what to expect from these rides. I've watched a Youtube video of Soarin and while it looks very cool I can't tell if there are any sudden drops. I know this sounds stupid but years ago my sister made me ride the E.T. Ride (last time I was in Disney- yep it's been that long!) and I HATED every minute of it. I couldn't wait to get off and the rest of my day was totally ruined. I don't want to repeat that experience for myself or DD6. DH and DD8 are the adventurous ones. Me- I'll take the pool, a frozen drink and my Kindle any day.

TIA and I look forward to counting down the days with all of you.

Welcome to the thread! I've added your dates to the Lodgers' Log. We love HDDR and if you've never done it, I recommend everyone try it at least once. On thing about Soarin' is if you have a fear of heights, you may want to skip it. It is nothing like a roller coaster, but it does give the impression that you are soaring so if you have a fear of heights, it might make you uneasy.

Two more quick things:

1) if we go to DTD should we take the bus or a cab? I'm thinking the cab might be easier.

2) how big is the whole "pin trading" thing? I don't really remember it from past trips but I also don't want my girls tormenting me to buy them pins to trade. Would rather get a few now off ebay if needed.

Thanks again!

Pin trading is only really obvious when you see CMs or guests with lanyards with many pins attached who trade. There are pin trading books at the resorts that you can look through to trade pins, so you don't even have to trade with other people. If you want to buy them in advance, it might be nice if your kids brought a few pins with them that they could trade using the pin books. They also sell inexpensive starter kits that have the lanyards and a few pins. At WL, the pin trading books are located at the concierge desk and at the pin cart between WCC and TL. Your kids will probably notice there are pins for sale everywhere, but they won't probably notice the actual trading.

Will be at WL Aug 31-Sept 6th for my 40th birthday with just the hubs .

booked in a standard room now with DDP, should I upgrade to the conc level room?

I've added your dates and I think upgrading to the Old Faithful Club would make for a perfect birthday. It will make your birthday celebration extra special and memorable. If it's an option for you, then I say go for it - you won't regret it.

We had to change our trip dates and there were no WL rooms available for us on our new dates. Right now we had to book POFQ, but I'm calling daily to see if something opens up. Anybody have any luck getting a room in a similar situation? It doesn't help that our new dates are in the middle of SWW. Fingers crossed a room opens up!

Sorry to hear that. People cancel and change reservations all the time. Don't give up. I once got the room I wanted about a week before we arrived. Keep looking online and/or calling. Could you get WL for some of your dates and do a split stay?

what is the bus transportation like? my family is staying there for our first time Aug 11-18 and i know we can take the boat to MK. Is it faster taking the boat to CR and taking the monorail over to epcot? or is a bus faster? also don't they stop at other resorts on our way to the other parks? has that ever been a big problem for anyone?

Welcome and I've logged your dates.

 

[Wood Nymph]

Thank you for your responses! Have you ever felt like it was a problem sharing? Is it usually only sharing with one other resort or is it possible to share with the poly too? and we have tusker house reservations at 8:40 A.M. when would you suggest for us to go to the bus stop? sorry for so many questions we haven't stayed deluxe in 9 years and in the past we've only done the poly so this is really new to us!

The Poly and the Contemporary usually share buses. I've never been on a park bus that shared with the Poly or CR, except when the monorail was down for repairs, then the bus to MK stops at CR. But that was only during repair times. The bus to AK usually stops at GF, then Blizzard Beach, then AK. I would give yourself at least 45 minutes to an hour to get to Tusker House via the park bus since you also need time to walk there. We loved the character breakfast there. It was really good.

I'm not fond of the HS and AK buses going to GF first. The traffic seems slow and it seems to take awhile to get there. But most of the deluxe resorts seem to have a few tedious bus routes. There isn't much of an escape from them.

 

[Koh1977]

Changed dates!! Now 7/5-7/11. Still CL

Are there enclosed balconies that are not club level rooms? How are they differnt from CL?

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[WDWKOOK]

Changed dates!! Now 7/5-7/11. Still CL

Are there enclosed balconies that are not club level rooms? How are they differnt from CL?

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All of the 7th floor CL rooms/suites and some of the 6th floor rooms have enclosed balcony railings. From the CL section of the thread HERE: There are only 44 Standard Club Level rooms, 4 Honeymoon Suites and two other suites on the 7th floor and 25 Deluxe rooms on floors 1-6. All 7th floor rooms have balconies with solid railings (dormer balconies).

Some of the Deluxe CL rooms do not have enclosed/dormer balconies.They are located on floors 1-6. Deluxe room info. is found HERE in the thread.

 

[WDWKOOK]

The Poly and the Contemporary usually share buses. I've never been on a park bus that shared with the Poly or CR, except when the monorail was down for repairs, then the bus to MK stops at CR. But that was only during repair times. The bus to AK usually stops at GF, then Blizzard Beach, then AK. I would give yourself at least 45 minutes to an hour to get to Tusker House via the park bus since you also need time to walk there. We loved the character breakfast there. It was really good.

I'm not fond of the HS and AK buses going to GF first. The traffic seems slow and it seems to take awhile to get there. But most of the deluxe resorts seem to have a few tedious bus routes. There isn't much of an escape from them.

Random bus ramblings:

ITA, and for some reason, we have had to wait much longer for the Epcot bus than the other buses and invariably, after waiting a long time, the bus will then go to FW, sometimes quite full.

While the buses to the parks, other than MK, do stop at the GF (unless they are full) and can take a long time (or seem that way when you're excited to get to a park), the buses back to WL are much faster. WL is the first dropped off and it is a dedicated WL/FW bus which doesn't share with GF on the way back. I'd estimate the trip back to WL takes only a 1/4 of the time than going, other than the DTD bus. This is much appreciated after a day at the parks and other than the wait at the bus stop, it's a quick and easy ride back to WL, (other than the DTD bus that is notoriously s l o w from/to just about all resorts).

For those who missed it, Paul (GC) created a bus route time estimate chart HERE in the TRANSPORTATION section of the thread.

 

[fla4fun]

All of the 7th floor CL rooms/suites and some of the 6th floor rooms have enclosed balcony railings. From the CL section of the thread HERE: There are only 44 Standard Club Level rooms, 4 Honeymoon Suites and two other suites on the 7th floor and 25 Deluxe rooms on floors 1-6. All 7th floor rooms have balconies with solid railings (dormer balconies).

Some of the Deluxe CL rooms do not have enclosed/dormer balconies.They are located on floors 1-6. Deluxe room info. is found HERE in the thread.

There are also regular rooms on the 5th floor that have the enclosed dormer balconies in the section of the wings closest to the lake. The only difference between those rooms and a club level room is the club level amenities. Since I like the enclosed balconies, but seldom book CL, I'm almost always on the 5th floor.

 

[Koh1977]

There are also regular rooms on the 5th floor that have the enclosed dormer balconies in the section of the wings closest to the lake. The only difference between those rooms and a club level room is the club level amenities. Since I like the enclosed balconies, but seldom book CL, I'm almost always on the 5th floor.

Do you have any pics of your rooms/balconies? Are they woods or courtyard view?

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