RESORTS
Fort Wilderness Resort
1. Take the boat to Fort Wilderness. Many free fun and unique things to do
2. Pony Rides $3
3. There are many miles of trails at Fort Wilderness, through pine and cypress woods. All free. You can hire bikes but to walk costs nothing
4. The petting farm is open 7 am to dusk a. There is free day parking at Ft. Wilderness
5. Each evening a campfire is held at Fort Wilderness (it is free to WDW Resort Guests) near the Meadow Trading Post. Take your own marshmallows to toast. The campfire is followed by a Disney cartoon feature shown on a large outdoor screen.
6. The Stables are amazing. You get to see several of the biggest, most beautiful horses and ponies, many of which are used for special events, parades etc.. Very clean. We got to see them wash the white ponies that had been in a parade we had seen earlier in the week. There is also a fun playground close to the boat dock. You can pick up a pizza to go and drinks reasonably priced right there and relax. Very calm, clean, and peaceful.
7. Tour the Blacksmith shop.
8. Go Fishing
9. Rent paddle boats or canoes $7 for a half hour
10. Wagon ride $8 adult, $4 children.
There is a free Campfire Sing-Along with Chip & Dale at the WDW Fort Wilderness Campground. It generally begins around 7 p.m. during the fall/winter season and 8 p.m. after the time changes in April through the summer. It is held near the Meadow Trading Post in the campfire area. The program begins with a sing-along led by a Disney cast member - if you've seen "Barney", you know these songs - and a marshmallow roast around two campfire rings. You may bring your own marshmallows or buy them at the Chuck wagon Snack Bar (roasting sticks and marshmallows are $2, s'mores kit is around $5). You may also buy pizza, hot dogs, candy, nachos, juice, popcorn, sodas, coffee, beer and other refreshments at the Chuck wagon. While this is going on, Chip and Dale make an appearance to visit with guests and sign autographs. The sing-along lasts about 40 minutes.
Next, a Disney movie is shown on a large outdoor screen. Seating is available in bleachers or on benches. There is also plenty of room to lay out a quilt or blanket. The movie schedule is posted at all comfort stations. In the event of rain, the sing-along is still held on the porch of the Meadow Trading Post.
The campground also has a free petting zoo and pony rides (about $3 each) that close earlier in the afternoon. These are in the "Settlement Trading Post" area - take the Ft. Wilderness internal bus. The "Trail's End Buffeteria" is considered one of WDW's best buffet values. The Trail's End also has a carry-out window called Trails-To-Go 16-inch pizzas and fried chicken meals both individually sized and family sized. If you have a free day (or your arrival day), you can go early and see the petting zoo, have a nice dinner, and then head over to the Sing-Along.
Wilderness Lodge
1. Do the Hidden Mickey Tour at Wilderness Lodge. This is very hard but a lot of fun
2. The slide opens at 10a. We were at the pool earlier than that. The lifeguard asked DS5 is he wanted to be sheriff for the day. They gave him a badge a cowboy hat, photo and certificate. He was allowed to be the first one down the slide "to make sure it was save from the bad guys", then when he lands in the water, give the thumbs up sign, the life guards blow their whistles and say "slide's safe everyone". Then the slide is open for the day. DS was also in charge of making sure no one was running on the deck.
3. Wilderness Lodge has a free tour Wednesdays-Sundays at 9 AM, that tells you how the hotel was built and a little about the architecture. Ranger Stan is a fountain of Disney knowledge!
4. If you're a Walt Disney buff, go to the Iron Spike Room at the Wilderness Lodge villas. There, they have two train cars from Walt's personal backyard railroad.
Polynesian Resort
1. Go to the Polynesian and get a free lei
2. This area is found behind the Tokelau Longhouse. It is marked by a long walkway out to a point surrounded by several palm trees. This is an outstanding location from which to watch the Magic Kingdom fireworks or just to enjoy a quiet moment and watch the ferryboats travel across the seven Seas Lagoon. It's one of the most romantic spots in Walt Disney World.
Animal Kingdom Lodge
1. AKL has night viewing of the animals with night vision. The kids got a kick out of this. They also have lit up paths outside and it makes for a very romantic after dinner walk with a loved one
2. AKL has a childrens story time in the lobby every evening.
3. Animal Kingdom Lodge offers several free programs that are really geared at adults and older children: They give a guided tour of the hotel's African art collection at 2 PM, a Culinary Tour of Africa at 4 (in which you get to meet the chefs at Jiko and Boma, and eat free samples! Great if you want to learn more about the food before you actually eat there), and a Cultural Safari at 9 PM led by an African cast member, who tells you about their homeland.
4. I don't know if this happens every night, but at the AKL they have a parade for the kids through the lobby at 8pm. The kids get to pick out an instrument from the gift shop and they march around playing drums and then get a certificate.
Board Walk Hotel
1. First person down the slide at the Boardwalk pool becomes "clown for the day". They receive a certificate, a clown wig, big clown glasses, and a bag of small trinkets.
Grand Floridian
1. They give the "old" flowers in the arrangements in the GF lobby away on the day they put the fresh out. I think this is on Tuesday morning. All you have to do is be there.