Disney's WILDERNESS LODGE Information & Questions

[GrumpyGal50]

As a further update. I had my agent check into it. The reservations person she spoke to said there were no notes in the system about a remodel or renovation. And would be surprised if there were because of the major renovation they just did. She said standard room was always a bookable option for CL, but there may be some confusion because Disney is re-classifying the descriptions of many rooms. Ie, to make it clear the room is just a standard room but you have access to club level so people dont think the room is larger or more special in some way. I still find it odd that the rooms are booked for two months.

While is very true that WL just went through major renovation it was actually only PART of the resort (one wing overhauled to become DVC, minor updates to Roaring Fork, Geyser Point addition and cabins built). The original wing has not been touched in several years with the rooms dark and somewhat dated. (Don't get me wrong - we ADORE WL, but the old girl needs some love!) The updated CL Lounge is brighter with improved seating options yet the rooms remain unchanged - even the hallways are tired looking in comparison to the newly remodeled areas. The information given to your agent may well be correct that no notes are in the system, however I can only report what the CL cast member told me last week after asking about the website room description change. In fact I just checked the Disney site again and it only shows two options for CL - Standard: CL Access and Deluxe: CL Access.

Perhaps the specifics have not been ironed out, but something is DEFINITELY changing there...hopefully for the better!

 

[GrandCalifornian]

Just got back from a weekend stay in a CCV studio. We lucked out and got room 4115 which was handicap accessible. I looked at the map and all rooms ending in 115 have this same configuration but not all are handicap. It almost felt like a one bedroom. It had a separate living area and separate bedroom area instead of the regular studio layout. If you want a little more room in your studio consider requesting a room ending in 115.

That's great that you had a nice trip. The room you got is referred to as an "alternate studio" and a number of us have been interested in seeing what they are like. Do you have any pictures of the room you could share? We can't find any pictures of them yet online, only the floorplan. Thanks for sharing your experience.

 

[GrumpyGal50]

Does the refurb apply only to CL rooms, or are they doing the whole Lodge?

Purely speculation on my part, based on the CL cast member's comments, but I believe the refurb will be all "lodge" rooms starting with the 7th floor (the cast member said "they will also have to take 6th floor rooms out of inventory because of potential noise on 7th floor"). Perhaps it will be similar to the recently completed YC remodel with CL rooms being first? Again, I am guessing here and certainly don't mean to cause any controversy, but my family & I prefer to stay in a room that is on the same floor as the lounge (we tried but didn't really like SL CL and AKL CL partially for that reason). That is why we will wait a while before going back to the Lodge (which we love as this was our second time to stay WL CL in 2017). Simply looking forward to any updates that may come that way.

 

[mindeola]

Boulder Ridge was added about 2000 and was called The Villas at Wilderness Lodge. They renamed VWL to Boulder Ridge when they started renovations of the one wing of the Lodge into DVC villas which were called Copper Creek Villas. None of the villas have a fireworks view. If you are in BRV, you might now get a lake view instead of just all woods view.

That was what I thought. Thanks for confirming!

 

[Fokus17]

That's great that you had a nice trip. The room you got is referred to as an "alternate studio" and a number of us have been interested in seeing what they are like. Do you have any pictures of the room you could share? We can't find any pictures of them yet online, only the floorplan. Thanks for sharing your experience.

 

[no one]

While is very true that WL just went through major renovation it was actually only PART of the resort (one wing overhauled to become DVC, minor updates to Roaring Fork, Geyser Point addition and cabins built). The original wing has not been touched in several years with the rooms dark and somewhat dated. (Don't get me wrong - we ADORE WL, but the old girl needs some love!) The updated CL Lounge is brighter with improved seating options yet the rooms remain unchanged - even the hallways are tired looking in comparison to the newly remodeled areas. The information given to your agent may well be correct that no notes are in the system, however I can only report what the CL cast member told me last week after asking about the website room description change. In fact I just checked the Disney site again and it only shows two options for CL - Standard: CL Access and Deluxe: CL Access.

Perhaps the specifics have not been ironed out, but something is DEFINITELY changing there...hopefully for the better!

I completely agree with you. They may very well be updating how they describe the rooms on the website. But that is separate from the fact that there is no CL availability for two months, and it is not peak time. Something is up and from what many people have posted the rooms do need a refurb so it makes sense.

 

[hrdcor32]

Are the pools at Wilderness Lodge all heated? We will be going in January so trying to see if we should schedule some pool time.

Thanks!

 

[GrandCalifornian]

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Thank You! That room looks great! I agree that that would be a perfect Copper Creek studio to get. Congratulations and thanks again for sharing.

Are the pools at Wilderness Lodge all heated? We will be going in January so trying to see if we should schedule some pool time.
Thanks!

Yes they are. We want to go in the winter sometime, have a great trip!

 

[Gryhndmom]

We returned last Friday night from a wonderful week at WL CL (exceptional staff, variety of food selections and excellent transportation experience). This was our third time staying here Club Level and it exceeded our expectations from other visits. As a result we decided to switch our February reservation from Yacht Club CL to WL CL. Oddly when I went online to make the change I immediately noticed that rather than "Club Level" the Disney website said "Club Level Access" for standard rooms.....hmm, that's new. I asked one of the CL cast members that evening and he said he would find out for me (he even went on the website while I was at the desk and saw the new notation). The next day I went back to ask and he said upon inquiring he was told that the Lodge rooms would be undergoing refurbishment/construction (the cast members had not been previously told about this so he was glad I had asked). The 7th floor and the 6th floor will be first out of inventory (due to potential noise) for the remodel so guests can book other rooms in the lodge and have access to the newly remodeled club lounge - meaning that a WL CL stay will require you to use the elevator to access club level amenities while work is being done. That was enough to cause us to leave our Feb. stay at Yacht Club CL and we will return to WL after this construction. I don't know how much is being announced or if a timeline has been confirmed, but that is the information I received from CL staff. I'm sure it will be a disappointment to many others like us, but, truth be told, the Lodge rooms do need some TLC so we are hoping for something fresh in the future.

Hmmm...we left on the 14th and didn't think we trashed CL that much ....but maybe we did so that's why the renovations is needed ?!

 

[RPM1214]

Purely speculation on my part, based on the CL cast member's comments, but I believe the refurb will be all "lodge" rooms starting with the 7th floor (the cast member said "they will also have to take 6th floor rooms out of inventory because of potential noise on 7th floor"). Perhaps it will be similar to the recently completed YC remodel with CL rooms being first? Again, I am guessing here and certainly don't mean to cause any controversy, but my family & I prefer to stay in a room that is on the same floor as the lounge (we tried but didn't really like SL CL and AKL CL partially for that reason). That is why we will wait a while before going back to the Lodge (which we love as this was our second time to stay WL CL in 2017). Simply looking forward to any updates that may come that way.

Thanks for your help! We are booked for August at the Lodge in a standard room, not CL and would love for the rooms to be updated, but don't know if we would want to stay if its under renovation.

 

[no one]

Hmmm...we left on the 14th and didn't think we trashed CL that much ....but maybe we did so that's why the renovations is needed ?!

It was your dogs that you snucked in that trashed the place. Sorry couldnt resist, have loved your posts in the dog threads

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Hmmm...we left on the 14th and didn't think we trashed CL that much ....but maybe we did so that's why the renovations is needed ?!

Probably because you snuck your dogs in.

(I KID, I KID, I KID!!!)

 

[GADisneyDad14]

It was your dogs that you snucked in that trashed the place. Sorry couldnt resist, have loved your posts in the dog threads

Dang - you beat me to the joke! Nice one!

 

[Gryhndmom]

It was your dogs that you snucked in that trashed the place. Sorry couldnt resist, have loved your posts in the dog threads

Probably because you snuck your dogs in.

(I KID, I KID, I KID!!!)

LMAOdang it...I just knew someone was watching those security cameras!

Gotta have some fun with this !

 

[no one]

Dang - you beat me to the joke! Nice one!

Sorry I was too quick. And sorry I gave you the dreaded "no one" liked your post, lol. Have a great day!

 

[TheFloatingBear]

As a further update. I had my agent check into it. The reservations person she spoke to said there were no notes in the system about a remodel or renovation. And would be surprised if there were because of the major renovation they just did. She said standard room was always a bookable option for CL, but there may be some confusion because Disney is re-classifying the descriptions of many rooms. Ie, to make it clear the room is just a standard room but you have access to club level so people dont think the room is larger or more special in some way. I still find it odd that the rooms are booked for two months.

So, just to clarify...it may be because they're re-classifying rooms? Or that's something separate? I think the latter but just double checking! Thanks for the info - seems odd to me too! We've wanted to try WL CL since I've heard great things about it, so I've checked it a few times too...just kind of in a holding pattern anyway waiting for late spring discounts! Thanks!

 

[no one]

So, just to clarify...it may be because they're re-classifying rooms? Or that's something separate? I think the latter but just double checking! Thanks for the info - seems odd to me too! We've wanted to try WL CL since I've heard great things about it, so I've checked it a few times too...just kind of in a holding pattern anyway waiting for late spring discounts! Thanks!

I think the posts by Grumpygal50 are on target. Probably two separate things going on, just speculation but Grumpygal50 spoke with a CM at WL about it. Disney is probably trying to clarify the CL rooms on the website, ie stating the rooms have CL access. So you are not confused that the CL room is any larger or different from other rooms. Which honestly when I did our first trip two years ago and did AKL CL at first I thought the rooms would be different, but then researched it and realized that is not the case. Of course the rooms may have better locations and views.
The other separate matter is that it does seem that they are going to do a refurb of the top floors, hence the two months of no availability for CL rooms in April and May. They are probably figuring out which rooms could have CL access while that refurb is going on and then perhaps those rooms will be shown as being available. Hope that helps.

 

[mrsap]

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Thank you so much for sharing your pictures! Would it be ok if I link your pictures to the Copper Creek Villas Thread for reference? Thank you!

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Sorry I was too quick. And sorry I gave you the dreaded "no one" liked your post, lol. Have a great day!

Haha...well I was sitting there debating whether to hit “Post” on mine, because while funny to me, I didn’t want to offend @Gryhndmom if they took it the wrong way. But then when I did hit post and then saw yours... I figured I’d at least have some company in the DOG house.

 

[mrsap]

Haha...well I was sitting there debating whether to hit “Post” on mine, because while funny to me, I didn’t want to offend @Gryhndmom if they took it the wrong way. But then when I did hit post and then saw yours... I figured I’d at least have some company in the DOG house.

Hum... seems like a common problem for you!!!!


You know I’m never letting you live that down!!!