Disney's WILDERNESS LODGE Information & Questions

[GADisneyDad14]

Hi all. I have never stayed at WL. We did a very brief walk around last trip and I liked what I saw with all the new areas and restaurant/ bar. I have a few Qs

Club level- where is the lounge? Good proximity to the pool ( you know for grabbing one or a dozen beers during the day!)? Comparisons to Beach Club, AK and Poly club level, please? Are lounge rooms co- located on same floor as lounge?

Are all the pools re- opened now?

I saw an earlier posts about new DVC pool area with cabanas. Anyone have pics or info? Cabana rental or free?

TIA

You’ve been given great advice above!

One caveat, while historically all the CL rooms (except for the Deluxe Rooms) have been located on the 7th floor (same as lounge), Disney recently switched their description on the website to “CL Access” which seems to imply that they have opened up at least some portion of other floors to be CL-eligible rooms as well (this is how it works at other resorts where “Access” is used in the name). There haven’t been enough real-time reports since this change happened to really know what’s going on, but just something to keep an eye on.

(Side note, the change does make sense to me given the # of CL rooms was cut more than in half with the DVC conversion... as-is it was/is the smallest CL room count by far of any resort)

The pics in these links are over a year old now, but they might be helpful:

WL CL Food - November 2016

WL CL Lounge - November 2016

We loved, loved, loved WL CL. The new lounge is a GREAT space and the food offerings were on point.

As noted by a PP, the lounge is not all that convenient to the pool.

Have fun!

 

[Sue M]

Hi all, will be checking in to WL in May and have a Bunk bed courtyard room.
Anybody have any ideas or pics on room request.

I loved the inner courtyard rooms. They are before the pool area. So you won’t have any pool(party) noise. We had an inner courtyard room on the south side before DVC conversion. We could see the electric water parade from our balcony, and it was close to the elevator to lobby.
We’ve also had a courtyard view on north side, which was close to Roaring Fork elevator. Both locations had its pluses. But I think I’d go with Inner Courtyard to be away from pool noise. High floor.

 

[danikoski]

Hi all. I have never stayed at WL. We did a very brief walk around last trip and I liked what I saw with all the new areas and restaurant/ bar. I have a few Qs

Club level- where is the lounge? Good proximity to the pool ( you know for grabbing one or a dozen beers during the day!)? Comparisons to Beach Club, AK and Poly club level, please? Are lounge rooms co- located on same floor as lounge?

Are all the pools re- opened now?

I saw an earlier posts about new DVC pool area with cabanas. Anyone have pics or info? Cabana rental or free?

TIA

All pools are open. The only pool bar is Geyser Point, which is between the two pools. New pool is for everyone, and as far as I know, the cabanas are free.

The club level lounge is 7th floor by the lobby atrium. It isn't by the pool, but everything at WL is pretty compact, so as someone else said, it's about 5 minutes or less to the pool. It'd be pretty easy to swing by the lounge and take the elevator to the pool.

If you have a Deluxe room at the end of the hallway on floors 1-6, the lounge isn't that easy to swing by. However, there are stairs at the deluxe room end of the hallway that take you straight down to by the pool and walkway to the boat dock.

 

[disneydreamer781]

Okay I really need to stop this. Just switched from AKL to WL with my new AP rate. Just absolutely !

 

[nyy]

We stayed CL in 2015. We had an inner courtyard room and we could definitely hear the pool parties daily. They use a microphone. It echoes right up through. It was actually the only thing we disliked about our entire stay.

 

[disneydreamer781]

We stayed CL in 2015. We had an inner courtyard room and we could definitely hear the pool parties daily. They use a microphone. It echoes right up through. It was actually the only thing we disliked about our entire stay.

Ouch!

 

[Deb & Bill]

We stayed CL in 2015. We had an inner courtyard room and we could definitely hear the pool parties daily. They use a microphone. It echoes right up through. It was actually the only thing we disliked about our entire stay.

Same problem at BLT.

 

[Sue M]

Same problem at BLT.

With balcony door closed we couldn’t hear much at WL or AKL pool/courtyard. But I wonder why they need the mic up so high? Or why they need them at all? The kids are right there.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

With balcony door closed we couldn’t hear much at WL or AKL pool/courtyard. But I wonder why they need the mic up so high? Or why they need them at all? The kids are right there.

With concerns and recognition of hearing issues that come from loud music and such I've always been very surprised too. In December I did notice that pool activities at Jambo house were way toned down from what we've experienced there before. I'm hopeful that all resorts have turned down the volume It's one thing I've never understood and have never liked. We leave the pool area when the shouting starts but I had no issues with Jambo and the volume they were at and the children participating still seemed to be having fun.

 

[nyy]

With balcony door closed we couldn’t hear much at WL or AKL pool/courtyard. But I wonder why they need the mic up so high? Or why they need them at all? The kids are right there.

We complained to the CL desk twice (very politely) and explained about taking naps in the afternoon. I specifically asked them if the microphone could be turned down and explained how the sound echoes up through. No luck. They did offer to move our room, but we loved the sounds of the running water early am and late pm, so we stayed. Our door was shut and you could hear it clear as day.
We were there 10 days and it happened each day. We played some music on our phones, but I would rather not have to.

 

[Meghan4]

Best part of the resort for the fireworks at magic kingdom? Can you see them from the CL rooms?

 

[KrazeeK120]

Best part of the resort for the fireworks at magic kingdom? Can you see them from the CL rooms?

You can see them from the CL rooms that face toward the MK. We had a nice view of them from our room. You wouldn’t be able to see them from the other side of the hall though.

 

[disneydreamer781]

We complained to the CL desk twice (very politely) and explained about taking naps in the afternoon. I specifically asked them if the microphone could be turned down and explained how the sound echoes up through. No luck. They did offer to move our room, but we loved the sounds of the running water early am and late pm, so we stayed. Our door was shut and you could hear it clear as day.
We were there 10 days and it happened each day. We played some music on our phones, but I would rather not have to.

Bring ear plugs. Those have been lifesavers on past WDW trips. We stayed at BWV last October and our room was at the end of the boardwalk right up against Jellyrolls and close to Atlantic Dance. Every night at about 10PM very loud music would start playing right in that area until at least 12-1 AM. I would have gone crazy without those earplugs. Didn't want to complain because I got the area I requested. I mean, the room was great with a wonderful view of the boardwalk and the fireworks pretty much straight ahead! Not sure I would ask for it again though. At least not without my trusty earplugs!

 

[Luv2Run]

Hi all! We are not DVC owners (yet...lol) but we are considering staying in a 1-bedroom at Copper Creek villas when we visit again in 2020. I am active duty military. For non-DVC owners, would you recommend renting from an outside source such as David's, or booking a villa directly with Disney and having them apply the Armed Forces Salute discount? (I checked, and this resort does apply the discount when available, I'll just have to make sure the discount is renewed for 2020.) Thanks!

 

[GrandCalifornian]

Hi all! We are not DVC owners (yet...lol) but we are considering staying in a 1-bedroom at Copper Creek villas when we visit again in 2020. I am active duty military. For non-DVC owners, would you recommend renting from an outside source such as David's, or booking a villa directly with Disney and having them apply the Armed Forces Salute discount? (I checked, and this resort does apply the discount when available, I'll just have to make sure the discount is renewed for 2020.) Thanks!

If you can get the discount, booking with Disney is nice because you will have more a more flexible cancellation policy. It will likely still be a little more expensive than renting points from a third party, but you will be dealing directly with Disney. If you are considering purchasing, there is also a chance that you might even be able to get them to apply some credit for your stay to a DVC purchase, which couldn’t happen with Point rental. There’s no guarantees, but at least with Disney it might be possible.
Either way, have a great time planning your trip, that’s a big part of the fun.

 

[Wood Nymph]

I took some pictures of the women's bathroom at the new villas pool while we were staying at the Wilderness Lodge recently. I wanted to see if it had a shower and discovered a very nice shower room. I looked inside the unisex bathroom, but it did not have a shower. I assume the men's bathroom has a shower, too.


The shower room is on the right as you walk into the bathroom. I didn't look into the room marked handicapped.


There is one shower stall in the room.


There is a bench and a basket for soiled towels. There weren't any towels in the room.






There is a shower seat that folds down.

This is a very nice shower room and a great addition to the resort.

 

[Wood Nymph]

The women's bathroom had a nice diaper changing area, three sinks and three toilets.







We loved the new villas pool. It wasn't crowded when we were there and there were plenty of chairs. The cabanas were always full but there were plenty of tables with umbrellas if you wanted to get out of the sun. The resort pools never seem crowded when most kids are in school. I would think the pool would be a little busier in the summer. The main pool wasn't too crowded either, but we never went there.

We only saw a waiter from Geyser Point at this pool on one day of the three days we were there, though. They didn't come around every day as I thought they should.

 

[Wood Nymph]

We had an absolutely wonderful stay at the Wilderness Lodge. We were there for four nights, - Feb 27th to March 3rd. The weather was great and we loved the new villas pool.

We had booked a standard view room before the nature view category was bookable and we received a free upgrade to a nature view room.

Room 2024
Nature view booking category, second floor, two queen beds, connecting door, overlooking Otter Pond, facing the Contemporary, had a view of the high fireworks from MK

This room was very convenient for getting to the boats, Geyser Point, the pools and Roaring Forks. The only way to access the second floor rooms was to either take the elevator near Roaring Forks or to use the stairs. We mostly used the stairs. This was a very quiet floor because there wasn't any through traffic and only a relatively small number of rooms on this floor. We did see a courtyard view bunk bed room on this floor. We loved this location since it was so close to everything. We couldn't see the castle from this room but we could see all of the high fireworks that go off behind the castle.









I was very impressed with the selection of toiletries. Besides the basic shampoo, conditioner, body wash, bar soap and lotion there was mouthwash, solar relief gel and a vanity kit. This was more than we have received at some other deluxe resorts.



The vanity kit had cotton swabs, a nail file, and cotton pads.



I was pleased to see that they provided two paper coffee cups with the other coffee supplies. I have seen cups like this at POR but none of the other deluxe resorts that we have stayed at included these cups. The Wilderness Lodge has stepped it up a notch and I hope they continue to provide all of these items.

 

[Wood Nymph]

Room 2024 - views

We were located on the second floor and opposite Otter Pond. The Contemporary is straight ahead, behind the trees. The cabin that you see on the far right is the first cabin on this side of the resort. We could hear the boat whistles and the electric water pageant, but it didn't really bother us.


The view slightly to the right and looking at the entrance to the cabin section on that side of the resort.


The balcony had the top of the huge brick pillars that hold up the building. But it didn't take up too much space.



Otter Pond was very close, although this picture makes it look a little farther away then it was.



The bridge on the left leads to the entrance to the building that people would use when staying in the cabins. The monorail was visible in the distance. It was a very nice view.



I couldn't get a good picture of the fireworks with my cell phone. The fireworks looked a lot better in person. You could see the entire explosion over the trees. The only fireworks that you couldn't really see were the shorter ones that happen right around the castle. The castle was totally behind the trees.


This is the same view as the fireworks view in the picture above. As you can see, the castle isn't visible. But if you walk down to the stairwell, you could see the very top of the castle from there.

 

[mrsap]

Room 2024 - views

We were located on the second floor and opposite Otter Pond. The Contemporary is straight ahead, behind the trees. The cabin that you see on the far right is the first cabin on this side of the resort. We could hear the boat whistles and the electric water pageant, but it didn't really bother us.

View attachment 308042
The view slightly to the right and looking at the entrance to the cabin section on that side of the resort.

View attachment 308043
The balcony had the top of the huge brick pillars that hold up the building. But it didn't take up too much space.

View attachment 308044

Otter Pond was very close, although this picture makes it look a little farther away then it was.

View attachment 308045

The bridge on the left leads to the entrance to the building that people would use when staying in the cabins. The monorail was visible in the distance. It was a very nice view.

View attachment 308046

I couldn't get a good picture of the fireworks with my cell phone. The fireworks looked a lot better in person. You could see the entire explosion over the trees. The only fireworks that you couldn't really see were the shorter ones that happen right around the castle. The castle was totally behind the trees.

View attachment 308047
This is the same view as the fireworks view in the picture above. As you can see, the castle isn't visible. But if you walk down to the stairwell, you could see the very top of the castle from there.

Beautiful pictures!!!! Thanks for sharing!!! Can’t wait to get back there. Such a beautiful place!