Is anyone here a parks junkie?

[MudQueen22]

While reading the threads, I've noticed that most people on this forum tend to visit the Fort because they really like the Fort. Some even say that they don't go to the parks at all.

Are any of you here parks junkies, or really like to be in the parks a lot?

Just curious. We've always gone to WDW to spend a lot of time in the parks. I was curious if others go in their campers/MHs and spend very little time at the campground.

 

[North of Mouse]

While reading the threads, I've noticed that most people on this forum tend to visit the Fort because they really like the Fort. Some even say that they don't go to the parks at all.

Are any of you here parks junkies, or really like to be in the parks a lot?

Just curious. We've always gone to WDW to spend a lot of time in the parks. I was curious if others go in their campers/MHs and spend very little time at the campground.

Seems to be a minority, but yes, we spend most days entirely in the parks. We love the Fort, but would never drive over 600 miles just to stay there. Most of the activities there do not interest us on there own. We have lovely parks closer to home for that.

So, yes, we do enjoy the ambiance, peacefulness, and proximity to MK and other parks transportation, but we mainly go for the parks.

It's all personal decision and what works for each family, there's no right or wrong, just what's right for each.

 

[rajak73]

You could call us park junkies, love going to the parks, like North of Mouse, we drive 1500 miles to Disney, try every 3-5 years to go. We stay long enough that we do take days off for the fort and other activites but yes we love the parks. I know a lot of other people don't like it, but I love planning for the parks, makes the time go faster when we make reservations 490 days out.

 

[Teamubr]

We are definitely park junkies. I made 3 trips to WDW from September 2017 to September 2018. Total of 22 days and we were in, at least, 1 park everyone of the 22 days. Maybe not all day, but definitely a part of it.

We started coming to the Fort because I'm cheap. We had a camper and staying at the Fort is the most cost effective way to be on site and hit the parks everyday. We keep coming back to the Fort because it is amazing. We still do the parks everyday, but try to take time to enjoy what the Fort has too.

As cool as the Fort is, I'm not sure I could tow 1000 miles (each way) and not do the parks.

j

 

[rideswithchrist]

My hubby camped at FW as a kid- I haven't even been yet so the anticipation of camping at Disney is amazing because we love camping.
When we camp, we hike and fish and explore- so we are State Park campers...we are staying at the Fort not because of any amenities, but because
a) we are already campers
b) as a family of 6, it is a budget no brainer
c) we won't stay offsite

We are going to plan on having either a good day off to just hang at the Fort, or at least some half days, but we plan on being in the Parks the majority of the time. I liked you post because I thought the same thing "Am I the weirdo in the camping post that also has a PTR because I am super excited about going to the parks and have been planning and planning for the past few months?!"

 

[MudQueen22]

I liked you post because I thought the same thing "Am I the weirdo in the camping post that also has a PTR because I am super excited about going to the parks and have been planning and planning for the past few months?!"

I was wondering if there were more like us. It looks like we might be the minority, but not alone.
We bought our camper because it helps us save money on travel, and I like for us to sleep in our own beds.
For our next trip, we will be in the parks for six of nine full days (not including arrival and departure, so it's ten nights). We will have three days that we won't be in the parks. We will visit other resorts or swim and play at the Fort on those days, but the other six will be in the parks.

 

[FtW Mike]

Since way back in 1987 when I made my 2nd trip to WDW and 1st staying on property The Fort was choice one for me. My ex and I made near annual trips each Oct or Nov and always to Fort Wilderness. We stayed in the cabins and hit MK or EPCOT every day. I underwent an extended hiatus until 2011 when my DW and I made her 1st trip. Once again to a cabin, She loved it. Again on that trip parks each day was on the agenda. Starting in 2012 my wife wanted more down time. So I started to plan very Disney specific activities for each day but some non park days.
Jump to 2015 and we now had our first RV. This allowed us to bring our furbabies the 2 cats Chubbs and Chester and the GIRLS WookieBear and Maggie. Daily Park time was adjusted to see to their needs but our length of stay also got expanded so it was a break even in my book
This year we hope to finally make it for Christmas and New Years and beyond well into Jan. The Girls are gone but have been replaced with The KIDS Sky and Katie who will be 4 months shy of turning 3. They will need more of our time and more Fort time, As we have a 30 day stay planned we are looking at more down days at The Fort than Park touring days. We will likely tour in some fashion or another ie Typhoon Lagoon, Blizzard Beach, Disney Springs, or Resorts for dining but lots more FORT TIME

 

[tltay2005]

I think it has a lot to do with how often you can visit and how far you have to drive. We are local and Florida resident annual pass holders, so for us, if we stay at the Fort when our passes are good, we go to the parks, if it is a black out time, then we enjoy the Fort, DS, mini golf and resort hop. But we are definitely park junkies and try to go as often as possible.

 

[team bradfield]

we spend all days/nights in the parks, best of both worlds for us, if somebody is having a "bad day" or it gets over crowded, we have the fort to fall back on.

 

[bama_ed]

I am the opposite of a "parks junkie". No way no how......

It's true that I think it's partly related to how often you come. We come just about annually over the prior 15 years so hitting a park is not a priority for us.

There (at the time) were five people in our family so paying roughly $500 to redo the same stuff we did last year, you get into the "value" question pretty quickly. Or otherwise, what else could I do with that $$$?

I had expected my friend NorthOfMouse to chime in with an affirmative answer. The time I met them when at the Fort with my dad (and it's been about five years now) she and DH clearly said they go the parks almost every day, tend to eat at a Table Service restaurant often, and stay at the parks nearly all day. I think it was the last day of my trip when I met them (because they were gone all the time). Love Joy and Robert.

As our kids have grown up, our touring style is changing. Next time I make it to MK (which may be our only park in a 5-7 day Fort stay) I want to book a few FP but also try the (what's-the-word) screens/cards/search around the Kingdom.

So no, not me. Count me out. No way no how.

Bama Ed

PS - I like meeting my camping neighbors and visiting the FWRailroad in the weeds and other Fort stuff.

 

[North of Mouse]

Bless you Ed, , we are totally opposites in our touring, I know, but wouldn't like be dull if we were all alike?? We love the ambiance of the parks, over and over and over - LOL ----and, all our friends like you - would love to meet your wife someday! Don't worry, as we age, we are slowing down ---- slightly!!

 

[rajak73]

I think it has a lot to do with how often you can visit and how far you have to drive.

This^^^^^^^^^^^It's 1500 miles one way from home to the Fort. We try to go about every 4-5 years. Sometimes maybe a little closer, sometimes a little longer. Until this trip with the DS and family last July, 2018, the last time we were at the fort was 2014. A lot of things change at Disney in four years, (including the Prices, LOL) but we usually stay at least 14 days or more at the fort, we have down time, this year we went park open to almost park close most days, did way to much, (I told the DS before we left if he realized that we had 8 days of stuff planned and only 7 day tickets, LOL) but with the DS, DDIL, and grandkiddos, I know they will not be back for many years so have to try to get everything in. Bless you people that are close enough to go often, maybe someday......Looking forward to the meet in October 2020, we will be hitting the parks too for Halloween party and food and wine festival. Have never been so looking forward to that! It makes a big difference when you are only buying 2 tickets or having to buy 5.

 

[mickeyfan0805]

It's funny - we are a balance of many of those here. We have the longer drive (1,300 miles each way), so we are among those who would not travel that far just to camp. At the same time, we are also among those who have gone quite frequently, but we remain park-centric in our trips. The Fort has only become part of our Disney experience in the last year and a half, but we have found that it adds nice ambience and relaxation during breaks from the parks. Still, we tend to use AP's (we set 2-3 trips in the stretch of 1 AP to maximize their value), so we have FP for most every day we are there, and we often hit one park in the morning and another at night.

This is one of the great joys of Disney - to each their own!

 

[KyGirl]

I think there are more park junkies than you expect from reading these boards. I guess many people who bother to post on a campground specific board are going to be more into the camping than some others would. We took our camper to FW for the first time last January and one thing that surprised me was how little interaction we had with other campers. For about half of the campers/RVs in our loop (Loop 200) I NEVER saw a person in or around. We went to the park most of every day so maybe it was us but we aren't Rope Droppers so we left around nine each morning and we usually came back around dinner time. So I just assumed that most of these people were leaving before us and coming home after us.

The big RV that was right next door to us, we never even saw the lights on inside of it, door open, anything. It was like it was deserted for a week. But surely someone would not pay to park an RV at the Fort and not use it for a whole week.

Anyway, maybe I'm wrong and these people were all out doing things around the Fort or just hiding inside their own home on wheels, but the desolation of our loop just made me guess that everybody else was soaking up all the park time that they could.

Anyway, to each their own Disney preferences! We love the Fort and we LOVE the parks!

 

[bama_ed]

For about half of the campers/RVs in our loop (Loop 200) I NEVER saw a person in or around. We went to the park most of every day so maybe it was us but we aren't Rope Droppers so we left around nine each morning and we usually came back around dinner time. So I just assumed that most of these people were leaving before us and coming home after us.

The big RV that was right next door to us, we never even saw the lights on inside of it, door open, anything. It was like it was deserted for a week. But surely someone would not pay to park an RV at the Fort and not use it for a whole week.

Oh but they do. Especially in January when it's snowbird season and the retirees come in for a multi-week or multi-month stay during the winter months. People come and stay for 8 weeks or longer but may leave for a week to visit family or friends, possible vacation/visit somewhere else on the coast or the Keys, or make a quick trip home and don't want to move the RV off site and then pack again with all the setting up/taking down that entails. And they may like the site they currently have and don't want to let it go to someone else. The number of people that do this would probably surprise you. Finally I know personally that some people basically "live" full-time at the Fort on back-to-back reservations and will leave at times for the reasons listed previously and simply pull all the curtains shut and lock the door.

And having been to the Fort several times in January for Marathon week, it can get pretty cold and windy which is not conducive to shagging it outside. But it is there still. I noticed there is a coffee klatch of retirees (old fellas) in the Crockett's Tavern portion of the tables at ground level in the mornings while Trails End is serving breakfast. They bring their own coffee, sit at the tables, don't make a mess, and straighten up when they leave. The TE Manager comes over every morning to say hello. I don't know if it occurs EVERY morning but the two breakfasts I had at TE on that trip, I saw them both times.

As you say, KyGirl, there are different preferences but we all do love the Fort.

Bama Ed

 

[Winchester24]

Me! We go to the parks everyday, we've spent so little time in the Fort while we've been here that I am actually starting to feel guilty. In all honesty, if we had more time I would do a ton of resort days because I love it here, but for the money we spent to get here & stay near the parks we feel like we have to hit them all at least once, some twice. We do love it here though, it was my home away from home as a kid, and this is DH's first time to the Fort & staying on property (we are here on our honeymoon!) so it's a big deal. He was NOT a Disney fan before we got here, but by the end of the first night he asked about DVC. I credit the Fort with that, he loves it!!

 

[FastPasser.]

I've visited the Fort hundreds of times to meet up with friends and the vast majority of them do visit the parks. I wouldn't classify them all as park junkies though, but they do go.

 

[tltay2005]

It's hard to deny you're a junkie when you have been an annual pass holder for 29 years!

 

[FastPasser.]

It's hard to deny you're a junkie when you have been an annual pass holder for 29 years!

I and Disney thank you for that.

 

[StormyCA]

We were 'parks junkies' on our first trip. Arrival day which we spent at DTD (now Disney Springs), then starting the next morning gone at first light and back way after dark five days in a row, then BOOM check out day! I didn't realize how much there was to do at the Fort nor how beautiful it is! I could have kicked myself! Our upcoming trip has 2 full down days built in plus our check in day. Never say I don't learn from my mistakes!