Fort Wilderness was Awful

[ttintagel]

The 10 person rule is a joke and not enforced by Disney. Not sure how they would do it but then again I dont get paid to run a resort.

I know I harp on this point, but there aren't many problems at WDW right now that couldn't be solved by the company opening up the purse strings and hiring enough adequately-paid staff to keep the parks and resorts running smoothly. This whole bare-bones skeleton crew thing started years before the pandemic, and it's only gotten worse.

 

[mco65]

We are in 400 now (checked in Sunday) and it’s been pretty quiet. No dogs barking but maybe we are lucky. I’m sorry to hear about your issues.

Last night we walked through 600 and there are only 4 rigs in the whole loop. Seemed so empty, closed for maintenance?

Nobody in 600 now. Entrance and exit blocked with pylons. Appears to be closed for maintenance which hasn't started yet.

 

[bigdisneydaddy]

I know I harp on this point, but there aren't many problems at WDW right now that couldn't be solved by the company opening up the purse strings and hiring enough adequately-paid staff to keep the parks and resorts running smoothly. This whole bare-bones skeleton crew thing started years before the pandemic, and it's only gotten worse.

I think it has less to do with the number of CM's than it does with the quality and resources provided.
As an example, around 6 or 7 yrs ago we had a neighbor in the 1700 loop that would allow his small dog to roam. It came down to our site and was aggressive towards our much larger dog. Because the owner was a loud person who was usually drinking (this dog was outside a lot and always off leash) I called the front desk and they sent a ranger. There was no way I was going to confront this man, not that I was afraid of him, I just didnt want to deal with the blow back from someone who acted this way. I told the front desk who I was and what site I was in but explained the situation and stated I did not want to be contacted due to the circumstances. 15 minutes later the ranger pulls up in front of my site (we were sitting outside) and yells across the site "are you the one that called about the dog off leash"
This was precisely what I asked not to happen because the owner heard him and instantly knew it was me that had called. Fortunately they left the next day. This is boilerplate stuff that should be well within the staffs ability to handle, but it wasnt.

 

[bama_ed]

Between this and the TE news, Ed is all fire and brimstone tonight.

Your time away brought you back fired up.

Jack, the Trails End news set me off last night.

Disney has been "declining by degrees" for years. It started as a drip, then a trickle, and now it is a steady stream. While I still enjoy camping at the Fort, we've been paying more and getting less than we used to. Sad thing is that this decline is accelerating. But I am .

I'm hacked about the Trails End news. I was waiting patiently, oh so patiently, for TE to return to a buffet like other buffets on property. But I'll keep the TE rant in its other threads.

Ed

PS - oh and yesterday I got the email that Alabama is raising its prices for season football tickets too.

 

[ttintagel]

I think it has less to do with the number of CM's than it does with the quality and resources provided.
As an example, around 6 or 7 yrs ago we had a neighbor in the 1700 loop that would allow his small dog to roam. It came down to our site and was aggressive towards our much larger dog. Because the owner was a loud person who was usually drinking (this dog was outside a lot and always off leash) I called the front desk and they sent a ranger. There was no way I was going to confront this man, not that I was afraid of him, I just didnt want to deal with the blow back from someone who acted this way. I told the front desk who I was and what site I was in but explained the situation and stated I did not want to be contacted due to the circumstances. 15 minutes later the ranger pulls up in front of my site (we were sitting outside) and yells across the site "are you the one that called about the dog off leash"
This was precisely what I asked not to happen because the owner heard him and instantly knew it was me that had called. Fortunately they left the next day. This is boilerplate stuff that should be well within the staffs ability to handle, but it wasnt.

Yes, that's why I specified "adequately-paid staff." I wouldn't expect the same level of service from an overworked kid making minimum wage that I would from a professional being paid enough to truly care.

 

[Part-Time Paradise]

I did! Didn't want to appear unfriendly.

j

Saw this and reminded me of this discussion...

 

[bigdisneydaddy]

Yes, that's why I specified "adequately-paid staff." I wouldn't expect the same level of service from an overworked kid making minimum wage that I would from a professional being paid enough to truly care.

I dont know what the pay scale is but the people I have had interactions with have all been adults mid 30's and older . The philosophy seems to be that Disney management feels confronting anyone will ruin their vacation, when in fact it serves to embolden them since they know that Disney rules are only for people who follow rules.
Maybe its my Midwest values and my upbringing but I just dont see the flagrant disregard for the rules elsewhere like I do at Disney. I dont let it ruin my time while there but then again I shouldnt have to tell children not to run across my campsite under my awning.

 

[Sjm9911]

I find that it dosen't matter these days, and not just disney. The people when we were thier 2 November's ago, we nice but not knowlagable. That seems on par with the rest of society now a days. This may not just be a fort thing, but a change in the way workers see work after the pandemic. I also dont think its a compensation thing. Its just maybe people take a look around and say life is to short to be bothered by things like details, and that work is now just a thing to make money to pay for stuff. If I can underpreform and they pay me, great. Otherwise I will go somewhere else. Job jumping is way more comenplace then say 10 years ago. Loyalty has gone the same way. Sure their will be some great workers who go above and beyond, but I find that to be the exception rather then the rule. I could be wrong......

 

[Colson39]

It saddens me to say this, but I did not enjoy my most recent visit to Fort Wilderness at all! My family and I have visited fairly regularly for the past 25 years or so. This last visit (Jan. 2023) had a very different "vibe". It felt crowded, loud, and generally unpleasant. In my Loop, many of the sites held very large numbers of people (Multiple families sharing sites/ way over the "10 per" limit, and 2 or 3 cars). The site behind me held 2 or 3 groups of friends/families that included 6 or 7 infants and toddlers who screamed every single night at 3,4, and 5 in the morning! The same group had older children that circled the loop on scooters well past 10pm singing at the TOP of their lungs in Spanish. (That's loads of fun when you're exhausted from the parks and just want to sleep). And then there were the dogs. I saw dogs roaming unleashed. I saw dogs "Tent camping". And worst of all, was the incessant BARKING of lots of different dogs. I went to sleep to the sound of nuisance barking every night; and woke up to the same barking/yipping each morning. None of the dog rules were followed or enforced. And it was mayhem. I did have a discussion with "someone from the Outpost" who is in a position to make changes. However, the situation at the fort has deteriorated to a point now that it will take a long time to correct all of the assorted misbehavior that has become the new norm. Many of the newer campers simply don't seem to understand the concept of following rules and the result of that sort of thinking has ruined the fort for many of us. I'm not going to fly across the country to be aggravated and saddened at Fort Wilderness anymore. It has completely lost its charm. THEY can have it...

I've been to the Fort 13 times in the last 15 or so months and it's the same as it's always been, no different. People have always partied at the Fort. Kids and dogs too (although dogs more recently).

Just more room for me, plus I can't hear anything over my AC in the fifth.

 

[bama_ed]

I've been to the Fort 13 times in the last 15 or so months and it's the same as it's always been, no different. People have always partied at the Fort. Kids and dogs too (although dogs more recently).

Just more room for me, plus I can't hear anything over my AC in the fifth.

Thanks, Chris. Good to know you're still out there. I'm coming back later this year for our 20th camping trip in 20 years (or so). Obviously we're not pseudo-local like yerself.

ED

PS - I've often wondered at how far away people live from the Fort and are willing to visit on a nearly monthly basis like this. Or, stated another way, how far away is too far?

 

[serenitygr]

Thanks, Chris. Good to know you're still out there. I'm coming back later this year for our 20th camping trip in 20 years (or so). Obviously we're not pseudo-local like yerself.

ED

PS - I've often wondered at how far away people live from the Fort and are willing to visit on a nearly monthly basis like this. Or, stated another way, how far away is too far?

Is “willing” (yes I am) the same as “able”? ( sadly not)

 

[bjschil]

Ed, we endure a 22 hour drive, and it is still magical to us. Coming over Christmas in 2023, and I know that it will be fun, crazy, noisy, and everything in between. But we LOVE the Fort.

 

[Colson39]

Thanks, Chris. Good to know you're still out there. I'm coming back later this year for our 20th camping trip in 20 years (or so). Obviously we're not pseudo-local like yerself.

ED

PS - I've often wondered at how far away people live from the Fort and are willing to visit on a nearly monthly basis like this. Or, stated another way, how far away is too far?

Hey Ed and thanks, I come by once in a blue moon. Glad to see you're still here as well. We are about a 4 hour trip away so it's not a big trip for us. We just planned an impromptu trip in a couple week just to get away for the weekend. We bought annual passes last year which is why we went so much, will get back to 4-5 trips like on average.

 

[amcc]

Thanks, Chris. Good to know you're still out there. I'm coming back later this year for our 20th camping trip in 20 years (or so). Obviously we're not pseudo-local like yerself.

ED

PS - I've often wondered at how far away people live from the Fort and are willing to visit on a nearly monthly basis like this. Or, stated another way, how far away is too far?

I'm about 4.5 hours away and that's on the edge of too far for just a weekend. We are down to 2 trips a year - Easter and New Year's from about 4 or 5.

 

[Colson39]

I'm about 4.5 hours away and that's on the edge of too far for just a weekend. We are down to 2 trips a year - Easter and New Year's from about 4 or 5.

We are about 4 hours away when pulling the fifth at 60 mph (when we drove by car it was more of a 3 hour drive). Actually just after my last post we booked a weekend trip for this weekend, we normally leave at 6 am on Friday morning, get there by 10, set up by 11:30, and then have all the rest of Friday and all day Saturday.

We normally try to at least do 4 day trips but the wife and I both work from home now so she can work on the drive up and from the camper for a bit when we get there. We take the kids out from school just once or twice a year to do this and it's just a fun relaxing trip (other trips they are off from school). And God knows I need it after this week at work.

Was able to book Hoop Dee Doo last minute for Friday night so looking forward to that. Got a golf cart so will enjoy looping around. Bought the kids some tickets for Friday so they will do the Magic Kingdom while we work. I just can't wait to get there and I was just there a few months ago. It's my second home and nothing will ever really change that for me.

But I do agree if the Fort was only an hour or so away weekend trips would be much more manageable.

 

[mco65]

8 hours away at 60MPH.
Too far to go once a month but for the foreseeable future we are hoping to go at least twice a year and stay 2 weeks each trip.

We still visit the parks 6 or 7 times, just like we did when we stayed at resorts for a week. The Fort allows us much more down time because there is so much more to do vs a resort. The cost of 2 weeks at the Fort with 6 or 7 park days is the same as 1 week at a resort with 6 or 7 park days. Its a no brainer IMO!

 

[voxparse]

8 hours away at 60MPH.
Too far to go once a month but for the foreseeable future we are hoping to go at least twice a year and stay 2 weeks each trip.

We still visit the parks 6 or 7 times, just like we did when we stayed at resorts for a week. The Fort allows us much more down time because there is so much more to do vs a resort. The cost of 2 weeks at the Fort with 6 or 7 park days is the same as 1 week at a resort with 6 or 7 park days. Its a no brainer IMO!

This is us almost exactly. Probably more like 9 hours away considering our extended Bucc'ees stops though

 

[Titanium]

I have unfortunately noticed the extensive proliferation of discourteous and entitled dog owners throughout society lately, disney included. They flout rules, they dishonestly pass off their dogs as service dogs, and force their way into places where they do not belong, such as restaurants, grocery stores, and offices. They let their dogs bark incessantly, bothering their neighbors and disrupting the peace, let them go to the bathroom in inappropriate places, then make you feel like you're being the unreasonable one when you politely ask them to address the problem.

It's disheartening and frustrating. I have nothing against dogs, but there are some really terrible owners out there. If you have a dog, please consider the courtesy you need to have when taking it out of your house. Please ensure it is leashed and trained adequately. Please understand that not everyone likes them or subscribes to the "fur baby" culture. Please understand that they might be allergic, or that they may fear being bitten, jumped on, slobbered on, or that they don't want to play in grass that's been pooped on, or sit on furniture with dog hair all over it, etc. As the dog owner, you're the one that needs to be patient and accommodating, not the other way around.

Sorry for the soapbox, thanks for coming to my TED talk lol!

The number of outwardly healthy people with little fluffy service animals is, shall we say eye opening. I think of them as Hybrids like a Toyota Prius. There ready to be a service animal when you need them to be!

Camping and RVing with pets adds another layer of complexity to traveling but its against my nature to try calling them service animals.

 

[dawnelda]

I'm a service human for my cats.

 

[Wiltony]

The number of outwardly healthy people with little fluffy service animals is, shall we say eye opening. I think of them as Hybrids like a Toyota Prius. There ready to be a service animal when you need them to be!

Camping and RVing with pets adds another layer of complexity to traveling but its against my nature to try calling them service animals.

Yeah -- I've always wondered -- what about the emotional support/mental health of those who don't like to be around other people's animals? How is that taken into consideration?