how many people actually tent camp

[Rland8228]

It has been my dream (as you can see from some of my threads) to camp at the fort, my dad has always customized and worked for rv dealers, and it is my dream to own one. But that dream is a long way away lol. So for now its just a tent. I was just curious how many people actually tent camp at the fort? I get so excited when i see trip reports and no offense when i open it up it is most everyone that owns rvs. Just curious!?

 

[Disneypeach]

i have tent camped at the Fort 3 times...loved it, altho the last time i decided to splurge and get a site in the 400 loop...that was a mistake...very noisy being so close to the settlement and marina. Buses rumbling by at around 5am each morning too. the other two times i was in loops on the outer section of the Fort (don't remember which loops) and it was much quieter! I love camping, especially at the Fort!
Peach

 

[cdnmickeyfan5324]

Im not a tent camping person or even a camper for that matter. We used to camp a lot when I was a kid but have never really been able to see he benefits as an adult. I guess I like the conveniences. Have fun at the Fort!!!

 

[North of Mouse]

It has been my dream (as you can see from some of my threads) to camp at the fort, my dad has always customized and worked for rv dealers, and it is my dream to own one. But that dream is a long way away lol. So for now its just a tent. I was just curious how many people actually tent camp at the fort? I get so excited when i see trip reports and no offense when i open it up it is most everyone that owns rvs. Just curious!?

Have been camping all our married life, but mostly in RV's. Camped 4 nights in a tent years ago - no more for me, thanks - I love my conveniences Sorry! Definitely no offense to those that enjoy tenting though

We have a MH now, love it, and would not trade it for *anything*!!

There are lots of tent campers at FW though - maybe they just don't tend to do trip reports as much - don't know

 

[angelmom27]

When we get to go to the fort praying it will be this yr we will be tent camping only. Can't afford a MH big enough for all of us. It would have to be a tour bus like the duggars have. Lol

 

[Readerbug]

I have, and we will do it in Apr.
May have our first pop up by then, but may not bring it.
True, there are not many tent TR's...why?

Is it more work, more dirt, less time? Or is the work with tent camping just psychological? Or, Like feeling like the RVer's poor relative? (and so tenters may secretly feel out of place, cloth in a steel wall civilization).

Not just OP. I used to feel like that sometimes. Tent camping at DW can feel like camping in NYC Central Park. Only to adults. Never to kids But, at the same time, there is this secret bargain hunter's delight, because the tenting folks- especially big families like mine- get all the same great benefits of the Fort and the World, for less! (and with a bit more adventure, depending on the weather!) Love that concept.

Makes me want to go, Now! just to put another "tents, tarps, temperature, cocoa, toast and downpours" post full of photos. I know I'll like re-reading it later

Tenting folks and families, a challenge and a request: Can you please add a TR to the forum this year? How about 25? Photos! We want to read it, (yes, yours.)
We are interested!

Even when I'm bringing grand kids in a long big rig someday, I will want to read all our tent trip reports, and remember !

 

[Readerbug]

And I got to add, (shhhh)
we even have a free dining pin.....or two...
and they are pitifully going to waste this year
because we all-perhaps DH excepted, would MUCH rather be at the Fort!
Even in a tent. Or especially.

 

[North of Mouse]

I have, and we will do it in Apr.
May have our first pop up by then, but may not bring it.
True, there are not many tent TR's...why?

Is it more work, more dirt, less time? Or is the work with tent camping just psychological? Or, Like feeling like the RVer's poor relative? (and so tenters may secretly feel out of place, cloth in a steel wall civilization).

Not just OP. I used to feel like that sometimes. Tent camping at DW can feel like camping in NYC Central Park. Only to adults. Never to kids But, at the same time, there is this secret bargain hunter's delight, because the tenting folks- especially big families like mine- get all the same great benefits of the Fort and the World, for less! (and with a bit more adventure, depending on the weather!) Love that concept.

Makes me want to go, Now! just to put another "tents, tarps, temperature, cocoa, toast and downpours" post full of photos. I know I'll like re-reading it later

Tenting folks and families, a challenge and a request: Can you please add a TR to the forum this year? How about 25? Photos! We want to read it, (yes, yours.)
We are interested!

Even when I'm bringing grand kids in a long big rig someday, I will want to read all our tent trip reports, and remember !

Just to make you feel better, we, in our MH do not look *down* or feel *sorry* for tenters (well, maybe a little *feeling sorry* when it downpours )

Whether you would rather it, or maybe are just starting out, and it's a tent or none, doesn't matter, it's a totally *acceptable* form of camping

If it makes you feel better, we started out *many* years ago in a Volkswagon van camper (granted it was very gently used, but it was also our family vehicle - 0ne infant) And no, we were not hippies

We have camped our whole married lives, and have owned several different types/sizes RV's. But, we are now *empty nesters* and totally love and enjoy camping different places in our MH.

I am totally not being defensive, we have had many good and not so good experiences between *then* and *now*, but we have no qualms sharing sites next to any good folks, no matter what they camp in. (The only thing we have noticed in our travels is that those in tents seem to be (in general) a lot noisier than some) One reason, maybe, is that they tend to stay outside later (and talk louder than they realize) because, let's face it, not too much to do inside a tent

Now, back to those TR's - make them

I love to read them too, but I've never made one - just not my thing

 

[disneystick]

We have stayed at the Beach Club, Animal Kingdom Lodge, Boardwalk and Yes we have tent camp when budget was a little tight... tight meaning, I use the tent as a place to just sleep, since we spend all day at the parks and rather use the $ for dining out for table service lunch and dinners. We eat breakfast at camp...cereal/bagels and the showers are very nice and kept clean. We usually go in mid March or the week after Christmas so the weather is very comfortable. Plus we still get to use all the activities at the fort just like everyone else in the RV or TT.

Do I feel others (RV/TT) look down on us tenters? Nope!! Campers in general IMHO tend to be very friendly folks and just enjoy being out doors more.

And if staying in a tent means more Disney for us....why not?

 

[DisneyFamily7]

We stayed in Fort Wildnerness in our motor home in 2003. It was the nicest campground we have ever stayed in and we had a wonderful trip. We have never stayed there in a tent, but we saw lots of families that were and they seemed to be having a great time.

 

[Willa]

I recently posted a thread about two tent camping trips to the Fort. It's sort of a TR, so in case those of you asking for tent camping TRs missed it, here's a link -
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3042650

 

[Readerbug]

Willa, I enjoyed your TR.
What is amazingly wonderful to me, is that you downsized from your nice trailer, back to a tent!
For simplicity? Economics? Nature? No need to say. But wow! I want to be like that.

There is a stereotype of "too x , x And x to be on the ground" so the tent camping has to stop.
I'm so glad you speak up, otherwise!
It is hopeful that more of us could keep up health and energy to do so, too, when we choose. And I am going to remember your 'visit the next loop' shower strategy.

 

[LadyBeBop]

Never tent camped at the Fort. We almost did...20 years ago. By that time, we were veteran campers, and a couple of years earlier, spent a week tent camping in the Black Hills.

That changed when we won a trip to WDW. Instead of a crowded tent, we stayed at the Contemporary.

The following year, we bought a timeshare. Five years after that, we bought a second week. So all of our major vacations are timeshares. We stayed at Orange Lake twice, and we're staying at Wyndham Bonnet Creek this October.

However, we'll still pitch a tent. There's usually three of us, me, DH and DGD. It's a little harder now...I need the air mattress, and I didn't 20 years ago. I guess I'm getting old.

We usually go camping over the Fourth of July. Two years ago, we went to Cades Cove (Great Smokey Mountain National Park). Last year, we went to Mammoth Cave. We haven't decided where we're going this year, but we already have the time off for it. I'll probably do a mini-trip report within my October PTR.

 

[Willa]

Thanks for the kind words, Readerbug. Downsizing probably isn't for everyone, but we have found it liberating in many ways. We are fairly young for empty nesters, I suppose (in our early 50s), so tenting is still easy enough for us. I can tell you though, from our travels, that there are more tent campers our age, and even 20 years older than us, than you would imagine!

I love tent camping, and I hope to be at it for a long time to come.

Lady BeBop, there is no way I would tent camp without my air mattress!

 

[Aryanna&BiancasMommy]

Our last trip back in 2006, we tent camped at the fort. We will be there again March 30-April 6. Again, we will be tent camping. We had so much fun last time and we are looking forward to camping again. I will try to remember to post a trip report when we get back.

 

[indimom]

We are planning a tent trip for this July at the Ft. I've been lurking for some tenting information (and have come up with bits and pieces) but did notice its a little slim since most posters seem to have campers of some sort.

I will try to post a report and some pictures when we get back. We are not going to have an extravagent setup. It's going to be a pretty 'down and dirty' trip, since we are driving in a car from Indiana and we won't be bringing a ton of supplies.

We are only tent campers and are used to extreme temps and rain. We have camped in Northern Florida (near Destin) in June, and also at Mammoth Cave in July. Both were week long trips and it rained for three days of the MC trip. They were very successful trips and the rain was only a minor issue, so I have high hopes that we can manage an Orlando summer.

We purchased a new and larger tent last fall - the kids have grown. lol. We put it through its paces in October and discovered that the rain fly was not as good as our last one. The screen area of the front room of the tent leaks a bit, but we were able to rig up a large tarp to cover that. So, if we've got a few trees handy, I think we can rig something up to prevent leaks in Orlando.

We probably won't be eating at the tent much since we can't have a campfire and are not planning to drag the cook stove and other supplies. But, I'll provide whatever information I can.

All in all, I have high hopes that this trip will go well and I'll do my best to put some sort of report together afterward. Hope to hear from other tent campers as well!

 

[kjsstar]

I have tent camped twice at the Fort. My family loved it but my dad's back has forced us into a pop up camper. Whether staying in a tent or a camper the Fort is just a great place to be and so worth the value. Tenting it is a great way to save money and enjoy the most magical place I know. Hope you enjoy your stay and remember even the bad days at Disney World are great! http://www.wdwinfo.com/images/smilies/cool1.gif

 

[MattFromPA]

We tent camped at FW this past November, the week before Thanksgiving. First off, we will be doing it again! Our kids are 1 and 3, so any camping trip is going to be a lot of work. We do own a TT, but the kids aren't old enough to handle the drive from PA to FL. We visited FW the first time we went to Disney and knew we would be camping the next trip. We took the Auto Train, which allowed us to bring an SUV and all the gear.

We spent the majority of our time at the parks, and never spent much time hanging out at the campsite. This tended to minimize the hassles of tenting. The main inconvenience is that you don't have your own bathroom/shower. The comfort stations were spaced such that we didn't have far to walk though. If you're going to do it, I would recommend bringing a dining room canopy tent. We had one that covered our picnic table and the camp kitchen we brought (table with built-in sink). It gives a little extra privacy. You get a freshwater connection, cable TV, and 30-amp electric service. Cooking is a must - the restaurant is great but was a 20-minute walk for us. So we brought a mini-fridge and a tiny electric range top. We made one major grocery run at the beginning of the week.

The weather is another factor. I brought (but didn't have to use) a very large tarp to cover the sleeping tent in the event of really heavy rain. What little rain we had was handled by the tent's own rain fly. Sleeping - the week had hot days and cool nights. We brought a ceramic space heater, mainly for the kids' comfort and used it most nights. We may be going back this May and will be bringing a free-standing air conditioner.

Dirt, etc: The tent site pads are mainly crushed sea shells and sand. You're going to track this stuff into your tent. The one thing I didn't bring was a broom. Next time I'll bring that and make a bigger tarp "porch" in front of the tent door to help keep the inside cleaner.

We made a packing checklist months ahead of time, and it paid off. There is some camping gear available at the trading post, and there is a close Wal Mart but we wound up having almost everything we needed. If you get the impression we brought a ton of gear, we did! I can share the packing list with you, just PM me.

 

[JanL]

I've camped at FW several times and always in a tent. That said, our club has reservations for August 2013 and i am splurging by renting an air-conditioned pop-up so I don't have to listen to teenagers complaints!

In cooler months, I would definitely use the tent, though, and save some money. Also, I use a sleep mask and ear plugs as a tent does not block out the sun or noisy campers.

 

[cloudswinger]

We tent camp all the time, and just did our first trip to FW this past Halloween. It was cold for us. But still awesome. We just bought a bigger tent, so we're planning something soon, maybe next week for somewhere near by. We spend a lot of time outside, the current tent is not so big that we want to hang out in it, but that's kind of the whole point. We're inside all too much anyway.

We like the flexibility of tents, sometimes our trips take us down waterways or dirt roads.