Fort Wilderness Cabin or ASM?

[jnkrim]

We have 6 in our family, 2 adults and kids ages 13, 10, 7 and 4. Fort Wilderness seems quieter and would be fairly easy to get to MK. ASM has a family suite with 2 bathrooms and is about $600 cheaper for our stay. I thought transportation would be easier at FW, but we went to HDDR several years ago and it seemed like it took forever to get back and forth. We have a rental car, so we are not completely dependent on Disney transportation. The biggest negative for me about ASM is we stayed at Pop Century for one night a few years ago and it was noisy and I still felt like I was in the crowds I'd been in all day. But our youngest isn't as nap dependent now, so we may spend less time in the resort than in the past.

 

[Disneyhenry]

Plus about FW Cabin - parking right out side your door, lots to do at the resort and a boat ride to MK, petting zoo, bike rental, great food! You will have your own space, that is for sure, anyway just to name a few pluses

Plus about ASMu - 2 bathrooms! $600 cheaper.
IDK when you are going, if it will be crowded or not

Having your own car is a huge plus!

 

[Hopefully]

Our first family of 5 trip was years ago when our children were young. We LOVED it. We have been back since.
I definitetly would prefer FW, especially if you have your own car.
Have Fun

 

[ZeroMyHero]

We stayed at Fort Wilderness last year and the bus situation left a lot to be desired simply because the resort is so big with so many stops. But, we didn't have a car to fall back on and we had a stroller and toddler gear to lug around with us, too. Other than the buses, FW is a great place to stay. Sadly, there is no more petting zoo, but kids can go horseback riding and the Fort offers catch and release fishing. The pool has been upgraded with a slide and a splash area for little ones. Both my girls really enjoyed it. The cabins are more private than a hotel room since they're all individual buildings, and the murphy bed and bunk beds are fun for kids. You'll also have a full kitchen as opposed to the kitchenette at the All-Stars, and when housekeeping comes to clean they'll even put your dirty dishes in the dishwasher for you!

If you want more details, you can visit the Camping at the Fort thread here on the boards. Those people are hardcore Fort lovers and they know a lot. Hope you have a great time no matter where you choose to stay.

 

[MissChris]

We love the fort and stay there every time, our kids are 2 and 6 and it's invaluable to us to have the full kitchen, the separate bedroom area and the easy access to the outdoors to burn off some of that kid energy. If the adults stay on the Murphy bed you can even put the kids to bd, shut the door, and have quiet grown up time in the living room or on the deck, heavenly. The bus system can be annoying, but last time we stays we got a golf cart and it improved our lives immensely. If you go and rent a cart take a peak at the fort wilderness board and get the info for Kenny, he provides great service at a much lower price than the Disney resort carts.

I've never stayed at the other resort you mentioned, but I thought I'd add my two cents

 

[makingplans4WDW]

We love the fort and stay there every time, our kids are 2 and 6 and it's invaluable to us to have the full kitchen, the separate bedroom area and the easy access to the outdoors to burn off some of that kid energy. If the adults stay on the Murphy bed you can even put the kids to bd, shut the door, and have quiet grown up time in the living room or on the deck, heavenly. The bus system can be annoying, but last time we stays we got a golf cart and it improved our lives immensely. If you go and rent a cart take a peak at the fort wilderness board and get the info for Kenny, he provides great service at a much lower price than the Disney resort carts.

I've never stayed at the other resort you mentioned, but I thought I'd add my two cents

Totally agree with your 2 cents! We stayed in Cabins at FW at the end of January because we had 4 adults and 2 little ones. It was really a terrific experience! The kids loved the bunk beds at the cabin, and Nana/Papa said the murphy bed was very comfortable. It was nice to have the separate living area for the kids to nap and the kitchen was invaluable! Plus the kids loved the "campground" setting... We even had a raccoon visit outside the cabin several mornings. But... it was less than ideal to share 1 bathroom and I don't think we would have enjoyed it as much without the ease of a golf cart, which was a lot of fun to ride around in.

Just the 4 of us (me, DH, DD-4, DS-3) going back in mid-November for a long weekend, so we're trying POP for the 1st time. We'll see how it goes!

 

[WDGPCFR]

We stayed at the Fort Wilderness cabins 8 years ago and it was very nice. At the time it was DW, DS5 and DD 6months plus my adult brother. At the time it was perfect for us. My suggestion if you go for this option is to look at the site map and request certain loops. I think you can only request by loop. Our cabin was close to the front and only a couple of doors from a pool. This gave us easy access to an additional bathroom. We were also very close to an internal bus stop. The biggest down side we found was that food was expensive at the campground store but that was expected. Unfortunately we did not have a car. This year we are trying a Value for the first time.

2003 - Fort Widerness Cabins
2007 - Port Orleans Riverside
2012 - Pop Century

 

[pigletto]

We're going to the Fort in 3 weeks to stay in a cabin. We decided against the golf cart rental. It's expensive and we're trying to keep costs reasonable. Sure it would be convenient, but in the end, we have a rental car to drive to 3 of the parks (which we prefer). So we'll use bus/boat for MK and buses to get around the resort. It's not ideal, but all of the other perks far outweighed the drawbacks.
I am looking forward to the space, the quiet, having a deck to sit out on, a full kitchen, the beach to watch fireworks, the campfire singalong.. all of it!

We were booked in two rooms at Pop at one point, but like you, at the end of a long hot crowded day I simply don't want to come back to the resort and still be in a crowded noisy atmosphere. So the Fort it is

 

[Carlyluvsdisney]

We love the Fort Wilderness cabins. It's so quiet and peaceful,you have your own little area and parking right outside the cabin. It's great to be so close to the MK. The pool is better than at the values. We are FL residents now and we've been trying out different resorts and the fort is probably the only one that the entire family loved.

 

[2Pirates2Princesses]

There are definitely a lot of pluses for both choices and both resorts offer their own unique experience. We considered both the cabins and All Star Music family suite for our last WDW trip and we chose the AS Music family suite. The reasons why we chose the suite were: 1) two bathrooms; 2) food court (we had the quick service dining plan); 3) suites are in buildings closest to food court, bus stop, and pools (we didn't have a rental car and did not want added expense of renting a golf cart or having to rely on both an internal and park bus system); 4) the suite was less expensive than cabin; and 5) suite has a queen size bed in the separate bedroom. The family suite also has a nice little kitchenette which is in its own separate area and has a mini fridge, microwave, sink, and coffee maker. I also want to add that we did not think AS Music was "noisy" or "loud" and we had an overall good experience there. Mousekeeping was excellent too

 

[jnkrim]

Thank you everyone!

 

[shallwechat]

We love Fort Wilderness. We will be staying there, again, the week of Sept 10. We have rented a golf cart for $155 for M-F. I find the Fort no comparison to the hotels. It is private and secluded and we like to sit out on the deck in the morning to drink our coffee. We find the bus transit works really well but of course I think that depends on what time of year you go. The pool up front isn't fancy but it is nice and quiet and big.....it serves the purpose. We have the dining plan but always bring cereal/grits so we can eat a little breakfast before we head out. This will be our 7th time staying at Fort Wilderness and wouldn't have it any other way. September 10th isn't coming fast enough.........well worth the 12 hour drive to get there.....even if my son refuses to have bathroom stops when he is driving.

 

[dato63]

We LOVE Fort Wilderness. We use to drive to WDW each year, and even haul our own golf cart.

However, my DH says "no more driving". I don't mind renting a golf cart. But I wonder how ME works w/the luggage.

Those of you who have stayed at FW without a car - was it a pain to get your luggage to your cabin? And then to get it to ME when you checked out?

 

[canadiandisneygirl]

We LOVE Fort Wilderness. We use to drive to WDW each year, and even haul our own golf cart.

However, my DH says "no more driving". I don't mind renting a golf cart. But I wonder how ME works w/the luggage.

Those of you who have stayed at FW without a car - was it a pain to get your luggage to your cabin? And then to get it to ME when you checked out?

There was a van at the front desk that drove us to our cabin and then picked us up again for catching the ME when our trip was done.

I love both FW and ASM for different reasons. I love FW for the relaxing feel it has. It is so nice to have your own cabin, complete with full kitchen and deck. We loved being a boat ride away from the Magic Kingdom because that is the park we visit the most. The nightly campfire/movie is fun too! We did have a golf cart, which made getting to the dock or the stores much easier. It was fun too!!!

All Star Music is big, bright and fun. You are immersed in Disney from the time you arrive until the time you leave. The food court is great, and the pools are fantastic. That being said, it can get noisy if you are in a room by the pool. We were in the Jazz building facing the courtyard and it was perfect. The buses do get crowded because you share a bus with All Star Sports and I think All Star Movies too.

Both are good choices, you just have to decide what your priorities are. We are trying out a family suite at Art of Animation in January. We are excited about that, but a little piece of me wishes it was Fort Wilderness. I love that place.

 

[dato63]

There was a van at the front desk that drove us to our cabin and then picked us up again for catching the ME when our trip was done.

I love both FW and ASM for different reasons. I love FW for the relaxing feel it has. It is so nice to have your own cabin, complete with full kitchen and deck. We loved being a boat ride away from the Magic Kingdom because that is the park we visit the most. The nightly campfire/movie is fun too! We did have a golf cart, which made getting to the dock or the stores much easier. It was fun too!!!

All Star Music is big, bright and fun. You are immersed in Disney from the time you arrive until the time you leave. The food court is great, and the pools are fantastic. That being said, it can get noisy if you are in a room by the pool. We were in the Jazz building facing the courtyard and it was perfect. The buses do get crowded because you share a bus with All Star Sports and I think All Star Movies too.

Both are good choices, you just have to decide what your priorities are. We are trying out a family suite at Art of Animation in January. We are excited about that, but a little piece of me wishes it was Fort Wilderness. I love that place.

Thank you so much! You have helped with our choice!

 

[canadiandisneygirl]

I'm glad!