Disney's WILDERNESS LODGE Information & Questions

[mcurrence]

Wood Nymph, how would you compare this Club level to YC Club? I know you're a BC/YC expert! We recently stayed at the YC and weren't overly impressed with the Club...

 

[Dave006]

Hi ! Excited to stay one night for the first time at WL before our YC stay and wasn't able to get club level. I saw a vlog where they mentioned if you paid $100 you could get access to the club day of? Does anyone have any experience in upgrading day of? We'll be there 9/26, TIA!

With the reconfiguration of the WL CL space and the reduction of 50% of the available CL space due to the conversion of the south tower into Vacation Club Villas from regular CL rooms on the 7th floor. The Front desk offers CL access for $99 per night for the duration of your stay on a a space available basis. No advanced notice or prearranged reservations are available. Just ask at the Front if $99 Old Faithful Club is available.

You also get access to the 7th Floor Old Faithful Club and it is available from any room that you may be staying and is not restricted to specific rooms. If there is space available then you can book it for $99 per night for the duration of your stay. It can be some distance from some rooms to the 7th floor.

Dave

 

[Wood Nymph]

Wood Nymph, how would you compare this Club level to YC Club? I know you're a BC/YC expert! We recently stayed at the YC and weren't overly impressed with the Club...

We have stayed at BC CL, not YC CL, but I have heard that the two resorts are similar. There were things that I liked a lot more at the WL CL. I thought that the general ambiance at WL was nicer. It was never busy and you had the wonderful lobby view. The Old Faithful cast members were also more available. The BC CM’s mostly sat behind their desks while the WL CM’s really circulated throughout the lounge. The food was tastier at the WL, I thought, but there was much more variety at the BC lounge. The WL had Coke Zero and Dasani water bottles which BC did not have. They were both nice lounges, though.

 

[mcurrence]

We have stayed at BC CL, not YC CL, but I have heard that the two resorts are similar. There were things that I liked a lot more at the WL CL. I thought that the general ambiance at WL was nicer. It was never busy and you had the wonderful lobby view. The Old Faithful cast members were also more available. The BC CM’s mostly sat behind their desks while the WL CM’s really circulated throughout the lounge. The food was tastier at the WL, I thought, but there was much more variety at the BC lounge. The WL had Coke Zero and Dasani water bottles which BC did not have. They were both nice lounges, though.

Thanks! That makes sense. We only have the Contemporary Club level to compare and even though they had more food options at YC, I feel the CM's and service were better at the Contemporary. I'm excited about Wilderness because the lobby view looks so pretty and I love being so close to MK. It'll be a good comparison because we'll be one night here then one night at the YC Club.
and Sorry to be

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Wood Nymph, how would you compare this Club level to YC Club? I know you're a BC/YC expert! We recently stayed at the YC and weren't overly impressed with the Club...

Interesting question. All of the resorts and CLs are so different with so many subtle and not so subtle nuances.

YC CL is among our favorites, but it’s not perfect (none are).

WL CL is also tops as well - they do many things incredibly well. Food is subjective of course, but I’d say it’s among the top 3 for best CL food (in my opinion).

CL CMs there are top notch.

The lounge setting and location definitely wins over YC CL.

If interested, here is a trip report with pics from our March stay: https://www.disboards.com/threads/d...and-questions.3414590/page-1117#post-60481502

Happy to answer any questions!

 

[mcurrence]

Interesting question. All of the resorts and CLs are so different with so many subtle and not so subtle nuances.

YC CL is among our favorites, but it’s not perfect (none are).

WL CL is also tops as well - they do many things incredibly well. Food is subjective of course, but I’d say it’s among the top 3 for best CL food (in my opinion).

CL CMs there are top notch.

The lounge setting and location definitely wins over YC CL.

If interested, here is a trip report with pics from our March stay: https://www.disboards.com/threads/d...and-questions.3414590/page-1117#post-60481502

Happy to answer any questions!

Thank you! Your review was super helpful

 

[goofynut41]

What time can you start buying stuff at Roaring Fork? I know they don't serve Breakfast till 7, but like if I wanted to get Chocolate milk and a muffin and coffee.

 

[RachelTori]

What time can you start buying stuff at Roaring Fork? I know they don't serve Breakfast till 7, but like if I wanted to get Chocolate milk and a muffin and coffee.

It was always open for coffee and grab-and-go items at 6am last month.

 

[Sydney2977]

We are going to see Hoop Dee Doo at FW on a Wed. afternoon during our trip. On average about how long does the boat ride from WL to FW take? How often on average does the boat run? TIA!

 

[FidFam]

We're in the process of planning a trip in November just before Thanksgiving week - there's plenty of availability for our dates across the entire spectrum of resorts at WDW (literally every resort has something in one room category or more) except at WL. Its totally unavailable.

I know last year when we stayed there, there was talk of a room refresh that ended up not happening - did it get put off until this fall and hence the lack of availability? Not sure if anyone "knows anything" but I was just curious if perhaps that the lack of availability or not?

 

[crvetter]

We're in the process of planning a trip in November just before Thanksgiving week - there's plenty of availability for our dates across the entire spectrum of resorts at WDW (literally every resort has something in one room category or more) except at WL. Its totally unavailable.

I know last year when we stayed there, there was talk of a room refresh that ended up not happening - did it get put off until this fall and hence the lack of availability? Not sure if anyone "knows anything" but I was just curious if perhaps that the lack of availability or not?

Well since CCV started construction. The resort only has half the number of rooms it used to have. I would guess this is the major factor along with it being the cheaper deluxe at MK would make it tough to book now during the holidays. Plus WL is very popular with the Christmas crowd so perhaps that’s another demand draw...

As for the renovation I haven’t heard anything of it starting this fall.

 

[FancyNancy]

We are so excited to be staying at the Wilderness Lodge October 6-13 this year. This will be our first time at this resort!

 

[FidFam]

Well since CCV started construction. The resort only has half the number of rooms it used to have. I would guess this is the major factor along with it being the cheaper deluxe at MK would make it tough to book now during the holidays. Plus WL is very popular with the Christmas crowd so perhaps that’s another demand draw...

As for the renovation I haven’t heard anything of it starting this fall.

Thanks, that makes sense, I was just curious. We've booked the last few years around this same time and never had an issue before getting our WL reservation 5 months out. Just figured maybe they pulled rooms out of inventory for some room refreshes or something...

For now we've gone ahead and booked a Deluxe Studio at Boulder Ridge Villas because we are a sucker for WL during the holidays!

 

[goofynut41]

2 weeks !!!!!!!! Been 9 years since I've stayed at the Lodge, So glad to be back....

 

[danikoski]

Also, have a 1BR reservation at BR mid Aug. Have the villas been refurbished lately? In decent shape? May consider switching. I saw the mattress issue posted and am wondering about condition of villa overall. Thanks.

You will probably be fine. The Villa we stayed in was in good shape. All other mattresses in our 2 bedroom were okay...just the one we slept on was not great.

 

[danikoski]

Yikes on the gator! I thought Disney has been trying to get/keep them out of guest areas!

The were patrolling the shore with a light later in the morning and evening. I'm guessing someone reported the gator sighting.

 

[danikoski]

We are going to see Hoop Dee Doo at FW on a Wed. afternoon during our trip. On average about how long does the boat ride from WL to FW take? How often on average does the boat run? TIA!

The boat to Ft Wilderness takes about 10-15 minutes. We gave ourselves 45 min from leaving the villa at BRV to get over to Ft Wilderness by boat, and that was plenty of time.

 

[danikoski]

Although we had a bit of a mattress issue, the rest of our trip, and Boulder Ridge Villas, was awesome! Here are just a few pictures of our time at what feels like our second home

 

[danikoski]

Also, a heads up to those traveling soon. WL (incl. CCV and BRV) is Gate 8 at the new DHS bus loop. It is the first bay on the closest loop to the bathrooms. It shares with the Contemporary Resort (as does the bus to/from AK) and you will most likely share busses after the morning rush. Note, that on the sign for bus locations at DHS, they have Wilderness Resort and Fort Wilderness Resort. We split into 3 groups at DHS, and 2 out of 3 groups struggled to make it back on the appropriate bus. One group got frustrated at finding the right bus and took the bus to MK instead, then boated back to WL. I realized the issue, and guessed we were sharing with CR, so my group got back fine, but it made for some stressful moments for others in my group.

As additional information, the bus to Epcot shared with Ft. Wilderness, even on the 7:30 bus.

Busses were also pretty plentiful and decently on time. I was happily surprised. The phone app with the bus times came in handy a few mornings.

 

[bluecastle]

I have a countdown! Originally, my plan was to not go back until 2022, when my grandchild, who is due next month, would be just about to turn 3. Well, that plan is still going to happen, but recently I have been dealing with some serious health issues and my DH said he wanted to take a trip before that, just the two of us. (like I did with my DD last November) Anyhow, in keeping with our positive outlooks and optimism, I called today and reserved the WL for Jan. 2-7! I am hopeful that this bump in the road will be behind us and we will have something to celebrate! I am hoping the tree will still be up, but even if it isn't, I will be happy just to be there. And there's always the castle lights!
It's amazing how much having a countdown can cheer me up. I was grinning all day!! And that's on top of the grin I already had about becoming a grandma soon!!