(CLOSED) Disney's WILDERNESS LODGE and VILLAS Information Thread

[bluecastle]

KOOK: We stayed in the Hampton Inn in Brunswick in Dec. 2009. It was very nice, but this trip we are going to try to go a little further south. We are going to stay at the Kingsland Best Western Plus. It had good reviews on tripadvisor and there seem to be a lot of hotels and restaurants nearby. I wish I could remember where we had dinner in Brunswick, but what I do remember is that my DD saw a Sonic commercial on TV and became obsessed with us eating there the next morning, so we may have driven a little out of our way to accomodate her! There was also a Target nearby and we bought her a camera. If we had had unlimited time, I would have loved to have driven over the bridge to the beach. I could feel the ocean calling me! Kingsland is further inland so I won't be tempted!

 

[adrianna_sarah]

"Yes, every room, including suites, is being rehabbed. The North Wing's 7th floor is done, which means the Yosemite Suite has been rehabbed. The CL manager speculated that the lounge might be relocated to the Yosemite (VP) suite for a few weeks in July while the South Wing's 7th floor is being rehabbed. However, the rehab does not include the lounge."

Every time I see this thing about lounge being moved, I get nervous. But really, it seems illogical that the normal flow would be disturbed for more than a day or two. A couple of guys can recarpet a home in a day. I am assuming that an adequately staffed crew could recarpet the club seating area in a couple of days. Are they reupholstering the seating as well? A am guessing that this would be done out of sight, a few items at a time. I am just confused as to why the entire lounge would be closed for three weeks if the issue is the carpeting that surrounds it. Am I missing something?

 

[bluecastle]

Twinkles:Thank you so much for all the info! So glad you enjoyed your trip. So, my questions: (I may have more at some point, but right now these are what popped into my head) Sorry there are so many!
1. Are you a DVCer? I am not, so I was wondering how the Mousekeeping was.
2. Did you use the coffeemaker in the ktichen or did you bring your own? How many cups does it make? I am thinking of getting one with a timer so I can have coffee ready every morning for the 4 of us.
3. There is a microwave, right?
4. Supplies provided in the kitchen- bottle opener, wine bottle opener, paper towels? Did you use the dishwasher? I know it's not the best thing for the environment, but I am thinking of using mostly disposables so I don't have to do dishes!
5. Do either (or both) showers have one of those clotheslines to hang up bathing suits?
6. Is there just the one balcony off the living room or do the bedrooms have balconies too?
7. What was your room number/location? Did you like it? How was the hallway noise? The view?
8. Could you hear any of the construction noise from the lodge at the beach or the villas?
9. Does the music play anywhere in the villas?
10. Are there any CMs around to help with questions or do you have to go into the lodge for that? (not that I would mind!)
11. Do the bedrooms have doors? I know that sounds silly, but I just want to make sure that each couple can feel like they will have privacy and time to themselves.
Thanks!! Have fun planning Yellowstone!

 

[bluecastle]

You're welcome, jak07!

bluecastle, of course I'd be interested in your GA hotel info. We usually stay in Brunswick or Pooler, but I'm not so happy with Pooler anymore so I thought we'd go back to Brunswick. We're taking two days down from now on. We felt like zombies after getting up at 0230 so that we could be there by 5 pm (my brilliant idea). We always drive home in one day which is just fine because we leave at a civilized hour and are much more rested for the drive home.

I'm sorry your back recovery isn't going very well. Are you doing any physical therapy? Hopefully, you'll start to feel better before your August trip

Forgot to answer PT question. Yes, I have been doing PT twice a week since March. I also do my exercises at home and have switched to half days at work. There is a general tendency towards improvement is the only way I can describe it. The setbacks challenge my positive attitude, but I just keep happy thoughts of WDW in my head and that helps!

 

[amykay9377]

I remember having it when we went in 2008...also at allears.net menu it shows it being 5.99 it WAS deliciously good

Great thanks for getting the price for me! It's a great deal for breakfast.

We just got back from VWL about 3 hours ago! I must say I was deliciously surprised how good the croissant sandwich was. I'm not a big breakfast eater, usually just yogurt but That was really tasty.

Twinkles, I'm glad you found it, I think I may have started a trend here....

 

[Alice28]

Thanks KOOK....it's already booked for october.

 

[twinkles]

Twinkles:Thank you so much for all the info! So glad you enjoyed your trip. So, my questions: (I may have more at some point, but right now these are what popped into my head) Sorry there are so many!
1. Are you a DVCer? I am not, so I was wondering how the Mousekeeping was.
2. Did you use the coffeemaker in the ktichen or did you bring your own? How many cups does it make? I am thinking of getting one with a timer so I can have coffee ready every morning for the 4 of us.
3. There is a microwave, right?
4. Supplies provided in the kitchen- bottle opener, wine bottle opener, paper towels? Did you use the dishwasher? I know it's not the best thing for the environment, but I am thinking of using mostly disposables so I don't have to do dishes!
5. Do either (or both) showers have one of those clotheslines to hang up bathing suits?
6. Is there just the one balcony off the living room or do the bedrooms have balconies too?
7. What was your room number/location? Did you like it? How was the hallway noise? The view?
8. Could you hear any of the construction noise from the lodge at the beach or the villas?
9. Does the music play anywhere in the villas?
10. Are there any CMs around to help with questions or do you have to go into the lodge for that? (not that I would mind!)
11. Do the bedrooms have doors? I know that sounds silly, but I just want to make sure that each couple can feel like they will have privacy and time to themselves.
Thanks!! Have fun planning Yellowstone!

Hi Bluecastle

I am happy to answer any and all questions

1. No we are not DVCers. Mousekeeping was on the 4th day, they changed
out sheets and towels only. I know you can pay for additional
mousekeeping, we chose not to do this.

2. Our youngest daughter used the coffee maker once...I believe it makes
6-8 cups. Our group loves coffee (however, not Disney coffee) so we
brought along the Starbucks instant packs.

3. Yup theres a microwave

4. The kitchen is nicely stocked. All that you mentioned are there and then
some. We used the dishwasher a couple times.

5. The bathroom off the King room had a clothesline in the shower...I can't
remember if the queen bathroom did.

6. Balcony is just off the living room. Theres a small table and two chairs.

7. We were in room 2528. We had a woods view. We heard no noise at all!
Even inside the villa our families couldn't hear us in the morning getting
ready.

8. We heard and saw no construction. If it was going on it didn't bother us!

9. Yup music playing all over inside and outside of villas.

10. Theres really not any positioned CMs in the villas but you will see them
around. If you have any concerns or questions you would need to take
a short stroll into the lodge.

11. All bathrooms and bedrooms have doors. There was 8 of us and we had
plenty of privacy and nobody complained of noise or lack of privacy.

I hope I answered everything If you have anything other questions....ask away!! You will love it there....Promise

 

[luvallprincesses]

Although I have booked WL woods view using the FD pin for Nov 2012, I am hoping for a 30%+ room discount instead. DS5 weighs only 33 pounds, eats a huge variety of food but in small amounts throughout the day and does NOT enjoy (or find restful) hour-long meals. DD11 is a rather picky eater and does not eat big meals either. I enjoy a few sitdown meals, but certainly not every day when i would rather be enjoying a park or relaxing. DH loves to eat anywhere anytime and have his evening/dinner beverages regularly, but wants to do what keeps everyone else happy. We are indifferent to paying ahead or as we go for food. I just suddenly considered club level. If we do get a good room discount, does it sound like our family would be good candidates for Club Level? I can rationalize the price if CL is included in the discount categories (is it usually?), also since it is per room pricing and not per guest, for our family of 4. We would grab breakfast there most every morning on the way to rope drops, and we almost always return to our resort in the afternoon for down time and are not late returners. I would appreciate any feedback and/or links to articles/blogs about Club Level, including WL CL food options specifically.

Also...are CL rooms hard to come by? If there is any chance of us deciding to switch to CL for Nov, should I do it now even though we would only do it if a good % discount comes out? I'm worried of not being able to re-book my current woods view with the FD pin if a good % doesn't come out?!

 

[WDWKOOK]

Although I have booked WL woods view using the FD pin for Nov 2012, I am hoping for a 30%+ room discount instead. DS5 weighs only 33 pounds, eats a huge variety of food but in small amounts throughout the day and does NOT enjoy (or find restful) hour-long meals. DD11 is a rather picky eater and does not eat big meals either. I enjoy a few sitdown meals, but certainly not every day when i would rather be enjoying a park or relaxing. DH loves to eat anywhere anytime and have his evening/dinner beverages regularly, but wants to do what keeps everyone else happy. We are indifferent to paying ahead or as we go for food. I just suddenly considered club level. If we do get a good room discount, does it sound like our family would be good candidates for Club Level? I can rationalize the price if CL is included in the discount categories (is it usually?), also since it is per room pricing and not per guest, for our family of 4. We would grab breakfast there most every morning on the way to rope drops, and we almost always return to our resort in the afternoon for down time and are not late returners. I would appreciate any feedback and/or links to articles/blogs about Club Level, including WL CL food options specifically.

Also...are CL rooms hard to come by? If there is any chance of us deciding to switch to CL for Nov, should I do it now even though we would only do it if a good % discount comes out? I'm worried of not being able to re-book my current woods view with the FD pin if a good % doesn't come out?!

Welcome to the thread! Yes, standard CL rooms are included in room discounts. However, Deluxe rooms and suites at WL are not. For your family, I would recommend a bunk bed room since you have two children who are further apart in age and probably don't want to sleep with each other. If you book a CL room, a bunk bed is a request. If you are going in November, all of the WL rooms will have been rehabbed by then. There are photo links to the new rooms on the first page/post #1 of the thread.

You also might find it helpful to read my latest WL/CL review which is hyperlinked in my signature. I also have a WL/CL review posted to AllEars. I think you'll find the reviews and all the CL photos and info. on the first page to be helpful to you.

Yes, you can book a room now with one discount or with none at all (rack rate), and later you can apply a different discount (if applicable) to your booking. CL rooms are not terribly hard to find. In general, the least expensive and middle range rooms at all the resorts tend to sell-out before the most expensive rooms.

I think you and your family would love the OFC. The Old Faithful Club CMs are wonderful and the lounge and seating areas are always neat and clean. The food is always replenished and if you ever need anything, they'll always go out of their way to help you.

While having breakfast, beverages (alcoholic and non-alcoholic), light snacks, tasty appetizers and desserts (the cobbler is DH's favorite) is the main attraction, you will also get other amenities by staying CL such as a private CL floor, concierge assistance before and during your stay, automatic nightly turndown service, and a CM will greet you upon arrival and take you up to the 7th floor to check-in.

I think WL/CL would be a great idea for your family. Since you have multiple eating "personalities" in your family, CL would be nice since it's like a buffet and your family is bound to find something that appeals to them.

Happy planning and feel free to ask more questions if you have them.

 

[luvallprincesses]

Thanks KOOK for the info. A couple more questions on CL. Since the kids don't really mind snoozing together (probably the last year for that), I would imagine that requesting bunkbeds limits the options on balcony views? Are all the CL rooms on the 7th floor? Are there both Wishes and Bay Lake views available CL standard rooms?

For some reason I don't see a hyperlink on your signature...checked a few of your posts. Hmmmm...

 

[WDWKOOK]

Thanks KOOK for the info. A couple more questions on CL. Since the kids don't really mind snoozing together (probably the last year for that), I would imagine that requesting bunkbeds limits the options on balcony views? Are all the CL rooms on the 7th floor? Are there both Wishes and Bay Lake views available CL standard rooms?

For some reason I don't see a hyperlink on your signature...checked a few of your posts. Hmmmm...

Here is the link to my recent WL/CL review:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2909892

The hyperlink is located below my ticker and the hyperlink to this thread. Maybe your screen is too small and it got cut off?

Bunk bed rooms are scattered throughout the resort and 7th floor. All CL rooms, except the 25 Deluxe rooms, are located on the 7th floor. The term "Standard CL room" is a little misleading in that it actually refers to the room and not to the view. There are no standard view CL rooms. While the standard rooms on the 7th floor are identical to all other standard rooms on floors 1-6, there are three possible views:

The WL/inner courtyard featuring Bay Lake and the geyser, the Electric Water Pageant and pool.

The VWL courtyard and pool area.

Or the woods which face toward the CR/MK and from which you can see some of Wishes.

Both bunk beds and views are only a request when staying CL, however, the room assignor and the concierges at WL always do their best to accommodate guests' requests.

 

[Mousemommy1]

Just wanted to say ~ 48 days until we check in for our 1st WL CL stay!!!

I am wondering....does the view matter much?? We did request woods view for a chance at seeing Wishes, but since all of the balconies are the enclosed type, does it really matter???

 

[Cshel85]

I think that is close to when we check in for our first stay at WL CL..I am so excited

 

[Mousemommy1]

I think that is close to when we check in for our first stay at WL CL..I am so excited

Wooooohoooooo!!!!!

 

[nyrebecca]

I am so excited - less than 3 weeks till our first WL CL stay!

My family is trying to tell me it is too early to pack. I don't believe them.

 

[Mousemommy1]

I am so excited - less than 3 weeks till our first WL CL stay!

My family is trying to tell me it is too early to pack. I don't believe them.

Too early????? I was seriously eyeing my suitcases today contemplating starting!!!

The horrible thing is that we have a trip at the end of June to Maryland, two weeks before Disney, and I haven't even thought about packing for that vacation!

 

[GarakDS9]

Beginning July 3rd we had a 10-night stay booked for POR prior to our first DCL Fantasy trip. We have stayed in AKL and POR several times but have always eyed WL. Because of the cruise I tried to keep expenses down but I couldn't get excited about POR. I was concerned that Boatrights is no longer open for breakfast, my favorite meal, and I was concerned about transportation. I have breakfast ADR's at Kona and Wave. So I did it, we changed our stay to WL. DW and my excitement meter has flown through off the chart. DS doesn't know about the change. He is always asking to stay at WL. He'll figure it out at ME at the earliest if not then as we pull up to the resort.

Thank you for this thread. I read the comprehensive info at the beginning and then read most of May. We have a standard room booked. I had a pin used for POR a few months ago and luckily they still allowed me to switch the great discount to WL. Although CL sounds tempting I an afraid to price it out, remember the cruise thing? I think we should be ok with standard view. We'll just walk down to the beach for the parade one night.

 

[GatorEye]

It will be 4 years, but we're finally going home the first week of December this year!!!

We used to go every year when we lived in Florida but since we moved to NC, we haven't been able to make it happen. Every year I made the reservation and every year I had to postpone it to the following year. Well not this year!!

The first year we went, I didn't know anything about WL, just showed up without requesting anything and we were given a Bear Face room. Needless to say we were hooked. Now we've been fortunate enough to stay on the CL, but a discount code sure would be nice!

I've got a bunch of questions since it's been several years since I've been on the boards and the first is... when the heck are they going to post the park hours and parade/fireworks times for December? It's only a week out from my 180 day mark and I can't plan anything until I know the hours/times and which days the special events are. It's frustrating! I want to make reservations for Whispering Canyon, but don't know what night we are going to be at the hotel instead of the parks. We've stayed there several times and we've never actually eaten there. Usually we're either in the parks or eating in the CL lounge, but I thought the kids would enjoy it.

WDWKOOK - EXCELLENT work on this thread, pictures, and your CL review. Questions will be forthcoming - only 120 pages of reading to go before I catch up.

 

[WDWKOOK]

I am so excited - less than 3 weeks till our first WL CL stay!

My family is trying to tell me it is too early to pack. I don't believe them.

Eh, what'd they know?! It's never too early to pack and you'll feel much more relaxed as the trip nears if you've got the bulk of your packing done. It sort of hangs over you if you don't do it so I think you should start packing and mark that off your list

Too early????? I was seriously eyeing my suitcases today contemplating starting!!!

The horrible thing is that we have a trip at the end of June to Maryland, two weeks before Disney, and I haven't even thought about packing for that vacation!

I've done the same thing, too when I've had two trips planned. If it's not WDW, it just seems so much less important. Of course, I also fuss and worry about other trips much less than WDW. I think you should start packing, too!

Beginning July 3rd we had a 10-night stay booked for POR prior to our first DCL Fantasy trip. We have stayed in AKL and POR several times but have always eyed WL. Because of the cruise I tried to keep expenses down but I couldn't get excited about POR. I was concerned that Boatrights is no longer open for breakfast, my favorite meal, and I was concerned about transportation. I have breakfast ADR's at Kona and Wave. So I did it, we changed our stay to WL. DW and my excitement meter has flown through off the chart. DS doesn't know about the change. He is always asking to stay at WL. He'll figure it out at ME at the earliest if not then as we pull up to the resort.

Thank you for this thread. I read the comprehensive info at the beginning and then read most of May. We have a standard room booked. I had a pin used for POR a few months ago and luckily they still allowed me to switch the great discount to WL. Although CL sounds tempting I an afraid to price it out, remember the cruise thing? I think we should be ok with standard view. We'll just walk down to the beach for the parade one night.

I'm glad you've found the thread helpful. Welcome and congratulations on changing to WL! I'd love to see the look on your DS's face when ME makes that turn into WL and when he walks into the lobby.

Boatwrights did have a great breakfast and it's too bad they don't offer it anymore. Have you tried breakfast at WCC? It's served family style and is a big hit with my family who love some gravy on vacation. It'll also be easy to get to Kona and the Wave by boat and then monorail. The Wave has a great breakfast buffet.

If you request a high floor facing the MK (North Wing) for your Std. room reservation, you'll be able to see some of Wishes!

I hope you'll check back in with us and let us know how your first stay and your surprise went. Let us know if you have any questions.

It will be 4 years, but we're finally going home the first week of December this year!!!

We used to go every year when we lived in Florida but since we moved to NC, we haven't been able to make it happen. Every year I made the reservation and every year I had to postpone it to the following year. Well not this year!!

The first year we went, I didn't know anything about WL, just showed up without requesting anything and we were given a Bear Face room. Needless to say we were hooked. Now we've been fortunate enough to stay on the CL, but a discount code sure would be nice!

I've got a bunch of questions since it's been several years since I've been on the boards and the first is... when the heck are they going to post the park hours and parade/fireworks times for December? It's only a week out from my 180 day mark and I can't plan anything until I know the hours/times and which days the special events are. It's frustrating! I want to make reservations for Whispering Canyon, but don't know what night we are going to be at the hotel instead of the parks. We've stayed there several times and we've never actually eaten there. Usually we're either in the parks or eating in the CL lounge, but I thought the kids would enjoy it.

WDWKOOK - EXCELLENT work on this thread, pictures, and your CL review. Questions will be forthcoming - only 120 pages of reading to go before I catch up.

Thank you for your kind words and welcome to the WL/VWL thread!

The park hours for December 1-19 have been posted on the WDW site here:

http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/calendars/

WCC doesn't require a credit card guarantee to book, so feel free to book and make adjustments as needed. You will all enjoy WCC!

Let us know if you have any questions and I hope you have a great vacation. You're going to love the Christmas decorations. Happy planning!

 

[Shazzasmd]

Another thank you to WDWKOOK and others for all the great info in this thread. We're also going in December, and the calendar isn't showing times as far as I can see.

We have a 1Bedroom Villa booked for Dec 11-13, and have recently made an offer for DVC, with VWL as our home resort - and the enthusiasm in this thread helped my decision process ( although all the Club Level talk has me a bit jealous )