Disney's WILDERNESS LODGE Information & Questions

[DizzyDis]

We're kind of bus averse. With small kids, the 10 minute boat ride is why we're there. Didn't want to stay in the villas bc of construction and having to get all services in the main lodge so had to go club level to get a suite there. Expensive boat ride so they better have room for us!

We took the bus a couple of times and found the same thing (our 18mo was not a fan), so LOVED the boats. We waited for a second boat once, leaving MK at a pretty busy time, otherwise it was always a quick trip, on first boat and not too long of a wait. We will have a hard time staying anywhere further away after experiencing the boats and mono (we visited Poly at one point and took the mono to Mk and that was fabulous too!)

We are staying in a standard room. It seems as anytime we get a standard room lately, we get placed by the loading docks and get woken up every night, and or early mornings, by deliveries. Is there a way to request being away from the loading docks-- still by fax to room assigner or at check in or other?

We were actually in a standard view room 2 weeks ago and found the noises from the boats to be the biggest issue for us (horns going off as they come through the narrow part). Although we were right by construction, we didn't have any problems with the noise from that. We were on the 2nd floor, so in hindsight, I would consider asking for a higher floor to be further from the boats coming in right by our window. We were near the end of the hall, if that helps any.

 

[sotoalf]

Don't worry about the boats. The smaller launches are only used for transportation to the Contemporary and Fort Wilderness.

 

[Wood Nymph]

Don't worry about the boats. The smaller launches are only used for transportation to the Contemporary and Fort Wilderness.

They alternate the small launches with the larger launches at the WL for MK. I think we have been on the smaller launches roughly 70% more frequently than on the large launches. It seems like they run the small launches most often in the late morning and early afternoon when the boat crowd is small. I've seen the FW launch make a special stop at WL when there has been an ECV waiting for a boat in the slow periods. I think FW almost always uses the big launches.

 

[mrshams]

We just got back from 5 nights at WL. We had a great time! This was our first stay there and I was hesitant staying at first because of all the construction, but I am so glad I didn't change our plans. We had a Courtyard room and we hardly noticed the construction. We only saw the construction as we were walking around to the boat launch or by the pool bar. We heard a very faint humming noise in the mid morning that we figured was construction machinery, but it would not have woken us up if we were sleeping. The closed off portion of the lobby wasn't even noticed by the rest of my family who weren't aware of the construction -- it wasn't really obvious. The resort was fairly empty -- pool was great, breakfast at Roaring Forks was very quick. The boat launches came regularly, we might have waited at the most 10 minutes for a boat. The buses were even better. It felt like the buses were waiting for us, not the other way around. I'll be posting some of the construction photos I took over in the WL Expansion Thread.

 

[disneyandme]

What time do boats and buses start running? We have an early ADR at MK-- pre park opening and want to arrive at check in and the MK entrance about 7:45am.

 

[Wood Nymph]

What time do boats and buses start running? We have an early ADR at MK-- pre park opening and want to arrive at check in and the MK entrance about 7:45am.

They are supposed to start running at 6:30am.

 

[GrandCalifornian]

What time do boats and buses start running? We have an early ADR at MK-- pre park opening and want to arrive at check in and the MK entrance about 7:45am.

The Early ADR buses start at 6:30, but you might have to wait a little for one to arrive. The good news is that once it does it is a quick ride to the MK. The MK boat times are tied to park opening, while the CR/FW/WL boats start at 6:45. Since the buses start earlier and are quicker, that's what we chose for the early morning MK trip.

What we did for our 8:00 AM Crystal Palace ADR was we got up at 6:30 and were at the bus stop by 7:10. We had a 20 minute wait for a bus, but still made it to the park by 7:35 where we waited in the line and were let into the park about 7:50. It was a great morning, and is something we plan to repeat next trip.

 

[DizzyDis]

What time do boats and buses start running? We have an early ADR at MK-- pre park opening and want to arrive at check in and the MK entrance about 7:45am.

And I will add our opposing experience of having an pre-park reservation and choosing to drive ourselves so we would be sure to make it in time. We greatly regretted that as we forgot about parking, then the tram to TTC, then the monorail to the park, so would absolutely recommend the boat or bus in the future, we certainly saw some arriving before we got in!

 

[jknewberry]

Hello all,

We just booked our trip for next year- Feb 25-March 4, 2017. We will be staying in a 2 bedroom villa with 4 adults, 2 kids and a two year old who turns 3 the following week! We stayed at the WL in two rooms in 2012 (same group, except the little one wasn't born yet!) We had free dining then, but figured we wouldn't get it this time and a standard room with 5 of us in it would be tight- the other 2 adults are my inlaws, so I booked the villa. I am excited to have 2 bathrooms, a kitchen, and laundry!

We debated trying out the Contemporary/ Bay Lake, to try something new and to avoid the construction, but the overall theme of WL won out for us, plus my kids love construction. Thank you to all who have posted their thoughts and pictures of the ongoing activity, it really helped!

 

[ws1995]

Just booked 9-24 through 10-2!!!

 

[Mikeb1892]

For our resort day, I'd like to plan a surprise scavenger hunt for my family. Participating will be my DW, DS9 and DS3. We're staying at Poly so I'd like to keep it within Poly, GF, CR and WL (we'll take the boat over). I would love suggestions with an estimated difficulty rating included so I know who to assign them to (easy for DS3, medium for DS9, and difficult for my wife).

Ideas would be like
At Contemporary:
"Entrance to Chef Mickey" for my DS3 and
"Sign with 'California Grill' on it" for DS9. Etc.

Any suggestions you may have for WL would be most welcomed.

Also, my DW and DS9 love looking for hidden Mickeys so those are welcome also.

Thanks!

 

[Wood Nymph]

Any suggestions you may have for WL would be most welcomed.

I would suggest the totem pole that has Donald Duck on it for your three year old. There are a lot of good artifacts in the WL and in the villas buildings. Look at pictures of the artifacts in the Territory Lounge and the Carolina Pacific Room in the villas building. And then there is the geyser which might be a good one for the nine year old.

You can get some ideas here:
http://www.disboards.com/threads/di...questions-thread.3372315/page-2#post-52944395

There are bear prints embedded in the sidewalk across from the main entrance door. You'll see a picture of them on page 1 of this thread. You'll get a lot of ideas there. Just make sure you don't pick something that is closed for construction.

 

[Mikeb1892]

I would suggest the totem pole that has Donald Duck on it for your three year old. There are a lot of good artifacts in the WL and in the villas buildings. Look at pictures of the artifacts in the Territory Lounge and the Carolina Pacific Room in the villas building. And then there is the geyser which might be a good one for the nine year old.

You can get some ideas here:
http://www.disboards.com/threads/di...questions-thread.3372315/page-2#post-52944395

There are bear prints embedded in the sidewalk across from the main entrance door. You'll see a picture of them on page 1 of this thread. You'll get a lot of ideas there. Just make sure you don't pick something that is closed for construction.

Thanks for your help on this. I'll check out the link, but I love your suggestions.

 

[Ohana2011]

We are staying in a standard room. It seems as anytime we get a standard room lately, we get placed by the loading docks and get woken up every night, and or early mornings, by deliveries. Is there a way to request being away from the loading docks-- still by fax to room assigner or at check in or other?

When my family & I were at WL in Jan, we went to the front desk to ask if we could be moved. They weren't able to accommodate us that night, but promised to move us the next AM for the remainder of our stay.

 

[danc18]

Has anyone gotten any indication that more rooms will open up by fall? People there now are saying its half empty due to the refurb. I have oct reservations but had to pay full price (club level) so hoping they will finish some rooms and then announce more discount availability. Maybe someone there now can squeeze some info from a cm?

 

[Wood Nymph]

Has anyone gotten any indication that more rooms will open up by fall? People there now are saying its half empty due to the refurb. I have oct reservations but had to pay full price (club level) so hoping they will finish some rooms and then announce more discount availability. Maybe someone there now can squeeze some info from a cm?

We asked them in January how long they thought the south wing would be closed. They were told that the remodeling was expected to take about 11 months. They are tearing walls out of those rooms, so it is quite a big construction project.

 

[Shoshana]

I just booked an unexpected trip for the summer July 7 - Jul 16. I saw the construction this past winter when our woods view room overlooked a green construction fence instead of woods. Could someone point me to the threads about the Old Faithful Club being in the VP room ? and half of the hotel being closed? Thank you!

 

[Wood Nymph]

I just booked an unexpected trip for the summer July 7 - Jul 16. I saw the construction this past winter when our woods view room overlooked a green construction fence instead of woods. Could someone point me to the threads about the Old Faithful Club being in the VP room ? and half of the hotel being closed? Thank you!

I think that most of the discussion will be in this thread:

http://www.disboards.com/threads/copper-creek-cabins-wilderness-lodge-dvc-expansion-details.3410778/

 

[bluecastle]

Hello all,

We just booked our trip for next year- Feb 25-March 4, 2017. We will be staying in a 2 bedroom villa with 4 adults, 2 kids and a two year old who turns 3 the following week! We stayed at the WL in two rooms in 2012 (same group, except the little one wasn't born yet!) We had free dining then, but figured we wouldn't get it this time and a standard room with 5 of us in it would be tight- the other 2 adults are my inlaws, so I booked the villa. I am excited to have 2 bathrooms, a kitchen, and laundry!

We debated trying out the Contemporary/ Bay Lake, to try something new and to avoid the construction, but the overall theme of WL won out for us, plus my kids love construction. Thank you to all who have posted their thoughts and pictures of the ongoing activity, it really helped!

Wood Nymph gave you some great ideas. I would add that the WL lobby alone has so much to look at, it could be its own scavenger hunt! There are carved animals everywhere, all at different heights. Some of my favorites are the ones at the check-in counter that are kind of underneath (maybe good for a 3 year-old). It might be a good idea to check out some of the resort photo threads. I know there's one for the WL ( sorry I don't know how to link) but "Please feed my addiction" is in the title Good luck, sounds like fun!!

 

[GrandCalifornian]

It might be a good idea to check out some of the resort photo threads. I know there's one for the WL ( sorry I don't know how to link) but "Please feed my addiction" is in the title Good luck, sounds like fun!!

http://www.disboards.com/threads/wilderness-lodge-photo-thread-please-feed-my-addiction.1717127/