Just returned from a nice stay at the Lodge. It was a short trip, Dec 6-10, so I didn’t get a lot of chances to just enjoy the resort, but what I did experience was great! I hadn’t stayed at WL in nearly 20 years. I usually follow the discounts, but since there weren’t any anywhere this year, I was happy to book there to enjoy the spectacular Christmas decorations.
The room: Standard View King. Room request sent via Touring Plans — Primary request: a room off the lobby; Secondary request: higher floor if possible. Both requests were met perfectly! I was in room 6084, one floor below club level, which opened directly across from the Christmas tree. It was such a treat to walk out and see the beautiful decorations and hear the music multiple times each day. The room was also convenient via staircase to a nook on the fifth floor with a fireplace and a great view of the tree. The nook was hardly ever occupied, so I spent a fair amount of time there enjoying the ambience. Love the renovated rooms - plenty of storage space and a nice bright bathroom with a great walk-in shower. My balcony view was very standard, and outside was fairly noisy with trucks and a constant droning noise from a facility of some sort behind the trees. It was not really possible to relax out there even though the weather was beautiful. However, from inside the room, the view was all trees and a great view of the Contemporary, which I enjoyed a lot! The best surprise was a decent view of the MK fireworks. I couldn’t see the castle, but the higher fireworks were visible and beautiful

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Dining: Stopped by Geyser Point on arrival day for lunch while waiting for my room to be ready. Really enjoyed this place! Lucked out with a waterfront table with a great view of the boats to keep me occupied. Ordered the Bison Burger medium rare and it was juicy and delicious! I wanted to dine here again but never made it. One afternoon I stopped by Territory Lounge and got a cocktail to go, to enjoy in my fifth floor nook. Service was friendly and courteous and the drink was very well made - perfect for sipping next to the fire. Unfortunately I didn’t get to try any of the other restaurants because this was a very busy trip.
Service: Bell Services was absolutely fantastic - the fastest I’ve ever experienced. Both times I called for bags they were delivered in less than five minutes. Boat service was regular and I never waited more than 10 minutes coming or going, though a lot of that was luck. Buses were hit and miss, with no major issues except for one morning going to Epcot, when the bus took over a half hour longer than what was posted when I arrived at the stop. People were getting testy to say the least. Room freshening on Day 2 was as expected, but it’s past time for full housekeeping to return. One very nice thing was that I never saw the trash in the halls that we experienced at GF or YC.
I spent most of my time at the parks so didn’t make it to the pools or other recreation activities, but it looked like lots of people were enjoying them.
Overall it was a wonderful stay, and I have only good things to say about it. The price was eye-watering though, especially for standard view. I don’t know if I’d book again at that price. Even as great as it was, Disney may have exceeded my price/benefit threshold. Hoping that discounts return in 2022!