Fort Wilderness Cabins

[PiperG]

I have been searching the boards looking for some feedback on the Ft. Wilderness cabins. I could not find a thread, so I thought I would post some questions.

We have only been to WDW twice, but stayed at the Poly both times. We are planning a short trip in late Oct, and thought this would be a good opportunity to try something different. Perhaps someone has answers to a couple of questions.

1) Is there a general store where you can by some basics such as milk, cereal and fruit?

2) How do you get around? We had read somewhere that you can rent golf carts to move around the resort. Are those still available.

3) I know you can take a water taxi to the MK. How do you get to the other resorts? Are there busses that take you to the transit center or the other parks?

4) How is the pool in comparison to the other resorts? What other fun amenities are on-site?

5) Can you see any fireworks from the resort? If so, where?

Thanks! :thewave:

 

[CDSTapisRouge]

Well, I have never stayed in the cabins but I can answer some of the questions since they are FW specific questions:

1) There are 2 General Stores on the property. The Meadow Trading Post in the Meadow Complex is open between 8am and 10pm and the Settlement Trading Post is at the Settlement Depot (between Pioneer Hall and the Beach) it is open from 9am-10pm. You can get basic food there as well as some frozen dinners, pizza's, etc.

2 )To get around you can rent a golf cart here is the info on them:
Location: Bike Barn at Disney's Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground
Cost: $44.00 plus tax per night; $12.00 plus tax per hour. Carts are available at 1:00pm and must be returned by 11:00am on the return date.
Reservations:Highly recommended up to a year in advance. Once reservations are filled, remaining carts are rented on a first come, first served basis. Guests may call the Bike Barn reservation line (8:00am - 6:00pm) 407-824-2742.
Requirements: Renters must be 18 years of age or older with a valid driver's license. Drivers must be 16 years of age or older with a valid driver's license. All drivers must carry a valid driver's license while operating a cart.
Features: Electric powered carts with windshields and headlights for night driving.

OR

There is an internal bus that runs from loop to loop within the property that you can take to get where you need to go.

3) There is a water taxi from the beach area (at the Settlement Depot) that will take you to MK... There are Disney buses that pick up within the property to take you to the other parks (Disney does not have direct transportation between hotels... if you want to go to a another hotel (other than Wilderness Lodge who shares the MK boat) you would need to take the FW transportation to another location and then switch to the transportation provided for the hotel you are trying to get to (for example take the boat to MK and then the bus from MK to the Beach Club...just an example)...

4) Don't know about the pools, but there are lots of other fun things onsite at FW... You have the petting farm at the Settlement Depot which is open from 7am until sunset. You could go to the Hoop Dee Doo also at the Settlement depot, which is the dinner show. There is the Campfire Sing-Along that is behind the Meadow Trading Post, it starts at 7pm and it is a campfire sing along with Chip and Dale and marshmellows to roast... and then at 7:40pm they play a different movie on the outdoor movie screen. The Campfire is free of charge and open to everyone, weather permitting of course. You could also go Horseback riding, take a horse drawn carriage ride, rent bikes or the water mice... there is really a lot to do at FW.

5) You can see the MK fireworks from the Settlement Depot area, from the Beach... We have found a nice little spot if you are adventurous. If you go to the Beach and start walking to the right. Keep on going and you will run into what looks like alittle log cabin on the lake. It seems to have been a place for maybe a puppet show or something in the past but they don't use it anymore and no one can seem to tell me what it was ever used for...anyway, there are rocking chairs on the porch and a nice view of the MK fireworks (just remember to bring your bug spray)...

I hope this helps We love FW because it is so peaceful... it is Disney without being the fast paced go go go ... it is really nice to have a full day in the park and then come back to just relax...

 

[BCV23]

We only stayed there twice many years ago but I will try to help. There is another whole forum on camping on the DIS and you can find lots of info there. But...

1)Yes.
2) Yes, you can rent a golf cart. I believe you should reserve early and I think you can still rent from offsite companies as well. There are also buses that circulate within the campgrounds.
3)To get to the other resorts, you must go to a park and transfer. The exception is WL. There is a bus that connects the TTC/Fw and WL. To go to other parks, you must take a bus although to Epcot you could also take the bus to the TTC and then the monorail. We drove to the only other park open during our stays...Epcot!
4) The pools were just pools...no water slides. Don't know if that has changed. HoopDeeDoo is there of course as well as horse and pony rides, a petting zoo (heard that was being discontinues but don't know), carriage rides.
5)Yes, you can see Wishes and the Electrical Water Pageant from the beach.

 

[sgfundis]

We were there last Jan with 3 children between the ages of 6-3. At the time I think I found info on the cabins under the camping board. As with anything there are positives and negatives. We loved having the room. The cabin is set up with a living/kitchen area and then you go down the hall to the bathroom with two sinks and pass that a bedroom. In the living room is a murphy bed(double I think), a couch, few chairs, TV, and two dresser/tables. The kitchen is a full kitchen with reg. size fridge, oven and microwave. There is a bench/table for eating. It has the basics you need to cook simple meals and eat. Housekeeping did basic clean up in the kitchen, (we never left what I would a call a mess). In the bedroom there was a bed (agin I think a double) and bunk beds. There were two dressers/night stands and a closet. There was a cable cord in the room but we didn't have a TV and didn't ask about it. There is a good size deck with picnic table attached to the cabin. We usually eat dinner out, but loved eating breakfast in and having room for snacks and such. I was nice to put the kids to bed and have a separate to sit and have a drink and watch the news.

The down side for was getting around. We chose not rent a golf cart, and that would have made it easier, but more expensive. The busses ran regularly, but we had to walk about a block to get the internal bus to then get to the launch or other bus stop. It was fine in the AM, but coming home late at night when everyone was tired was no fun.

We came back one night and blew off our PS and had a great and relaxing dinner at the little restaurant there. The food was good, it was not crowed and very relaxing. After dinner we headed back down to the beach and watched the water parade. I don't remember if we tried to watch the fireworks or not from the beach.

Now to your questions:


1) Is there a general store where you can by some basics such as milk, cereal and fruit? Yes, but it is cheaper if you can get it off site. You are parking your car right next to your cabin so unloading is not a problem. You are not supposed to take your car back to where the on site little store is, so you are stuck using the golfcart or bus.


2) How do you get around? We had read somewhere that you can rent golf carts to move around the resort. Are those still available. You got the info on the golf carts, like I said the busses ran like clockwork, it just was an extra step. I know there are cabins you can request that will put you closer to the stops. I'd check the camping site for those leads.

3) I know you can take a water taxi to the MK. How do you get to the other resorts? Are there busses that take you to the transit center or the other parks? Bus, some of them you pick up back by the launch, some up by where you check in, I don't remember which is which.

4) How is the pool in comparison to the other resorts? What other fun amenities are on-site? It was cold when we were there so didn't use the pools. They are very basic, with none of the slides and stuff. More like the "quiet pools" you hear about. Once again you have to get to them, so you may have to ride the bus or take golf cart depending on where you are.

5) Can you see any fireworks from the resort? If so, where? I can't remember, so will defer to someone with more knowledge.

We enjoyed our stay, and loved having all the room, but it did make us look at monorail resorts this time around. Hope this helps.

 

[Skroops]

The cabins are very cute, and rustic. It feels like you are in the woods, and it doesn't seem like there are many people around (which there are). The pools are basic, but were closed when we were there 2/6-2/9. If you are planning a visit soon, you may want to see if the work is done (we never thought to ask). The space is very nice. The pull down bed in the living area isn't very comforable, but the double bed in the bedroom is. We didn't use the bunk beds. It was nice to cook meals inside the cabin while our infant was taking an afternoon nap. All in all, it is a great place to stay for a longer visit. Getting to the parks takes up more time, but if you plan on taking your time and relaxing, this is a great place. We didn't rent a golf cart, but we didn't think we really needed to. Some were available to rent while we were there. Debs unofficial disney world site has great photos. There's lots to do at this resort. Enjoy!

 

[AJKMOM]

If you drive, you use your car to get around. Agree about the pools, no special themeing. You could always check the DVC Board here to rent points if there FW thing doesn't work for you.

 

[PiperG]

I appreciate everyone's great feedback.

One of the reasons we wanted to get to another resort was to rent water mice, but it sounds like we can rent them at FW. Great! We also wanted to be able to watch Wishes and the EWP, so thanks again for answering those questions. Those were the things we were most concerned about missing if we didn't stay at the Poly.

It sounds like the cabins are very roomy. There are only three of us (myself, DH and DS8). DS can go to bed while we enjoy the main area of the cabin in the later evening. Very nice. Plus, he loves bunk beds. On our Disney cruises we always get a cabin that has the bed which pulls down from the ceiling.

DH and I will discuss the golf cart. They sound spendy but convenient Plus, DS8 will have a blast. We will see. We would need one for 3 days, and $150 is half of what we are saving by staying at FW over the Poly. That sounds like a lot.

Thanks again! I will check out the camping board.

 

[AllyGirl_79]

Hi!

Just wanted to throw in a couple of thoughts.

There is something really magical about Ft. Wilderness. I've been there on 10 separate trips (last in 2001), and I can say with certainty that it's a great way to go. And if your DS loves it as much as my brother did growing up, you're all set.

There isn't a better breakfast around than the one at Trail's End. Hoop-Dee-Doo is great if you've never seen it. The Trading Posts are fun, and the pools are nice, though other posters are right that there isn't anything unusual there. If you like horses, make sure to schedule a trail ride.

For us, the best part was always the quiet. FW is it's own world within 'the world' -- and relaxing is the perfect word for it. At the same time, it's still Disney, and all the details are there. The cabins have loads of space, too.

As far as transportation, golf carts are kinda fun, but not necessary. The transportation takes a bit longer than at other resorts, but the bus drivers can be really amazing. It's nice to be near the WL for dinners, and it isn't a hassle getting around. It is a valid point that getting back to the room on some late nights can be tiring -- but Disney tired is the best kind of tired, I think. The only time we ever moved the car was to drive to DTD (though it was still just the Marketplace on the early trips), and we go to the parks every day on our vacations.

I'm really biased because FW means 'family vacations' to me, but maybe that's another mark in its favor. Also, keep an eye out for armadillos!

Cheers,
Ally

 

[PiperG]

Thanks for the great feedback. We are leanings towards booking a FW cabin for late October. I think it will be a great experience with lots of things to see and do around the resort. The cabins sound fantastic. It will be nice to have so much room.

Thanks again.

 

[tar heel]

We loved the cabin itself but found Fort Wilderness is not the right resort for us. If our children had been much younger or we were spending significant nonpark time, though, I probably would have liked it better. We are accustomed to Disney resorts being a lot more convenient. We found transportation to be a pain because it involved two steps -- I would upgrade resort instead of spending $44 a night on a golf cart, though. We also like having resort amenities -- pool, store, arcade, even an extra bathroom -- to be nearby and you don't have that at FW. Also, the pool is nonthemed with no slide or jacuzzi. As my teen said, it's just like the one in the neighborhood but without your friends.

I think trying FW on a quick trip is the thing to do, though. Then you will know whether it is the resort for you. We did that on a "bonus" trip we took right before our APs expired a couple years ago.

 

[MajorDaisy]

I am truely biased on this subject, extremely enjoying the cabins the way I do. That being said, I think to much is made of transportation at FW. We loved our short walks back & forth to the bus stops, enjoying the beautiful surroundings & talking about what we couldn't wait to do or what was the best part of the day (or how good the bed was going to feel). We enjoyed watching all the peacocks rooming around the bus stop areas and I think we had the most interesting camcorder (on camera) moments waiting for the buses.

Finally...My son forgot his autograph book & pen at the outpost bus stop one morning...when we got to Epcot I called FW & they not only went & retrieved his book & pen for us, but had it sitting on the dining room table in the cabin when we got back that night...oh, the magic