New neighbor construction update w/photos

I have tried to stay optimistic through this. The plans floating around until now were 8 years old. The pic above from Cosmic seems to show the new stables and also the waterfront rooms/cabins that were mentioned in the press release last year. If the cabins to the left (East ) in the pic are accurate, that does indicate Clementine's Beach is gone. The purple buildings are in the right place and general shape for TE, Crockett's and Pioneer Hall. The interesting part is, what are the buildings beyond the Settlement purple buildings. One of them is likely the trading post (beige top, second up on the left.) and the one at the furthest left could be a new boat rental building, but what are the 3 farther south. These would either be all the way up the cart path to the 3 way stop or even encroaching on Loops 100 and 400.

From the stakes and apparent construction lines in Ed's pics, the above pic from Cosmic looks pretty accurate. Time will tell and I still have faith WDW will blend this in well with what exists, but I think the simple proximity and number of additional people will certainly have an impact.

j
 
This may have already been talked about, but I did see what looked like a road being cleared out off of Vista Blvd, so maybe the entrance won't go through Ft. Wilderness Trail.
At least, I think it was off Vista- we were on a bus haha.
 
This may have already been talked about, but I did see what looked like a road being cleared out off of Vista Blvd, so maybe the entrance won't go through Ft. Wilderness Trail.
At least, I think it was off Vista- we were on a bus haha.

Yes the entrance to the new resort won't be through the Fort. When you come up World Drive now and take the exit to the right just before the MK toll booth for the Fort, at the end of that exit you turn right for the Fort. For the new resort you will go <mostly> straight and they are cutting in a more direct road.

So neither Fort Wilderness nor Wilderness Lodge will have to shoulder that traffic load.

Bama Ed
 


I really hope it does not have a giant impact on the Fort. My thought is along the lines of if you are staying in a high class resort, you would not want to share amenities with us "lowly campers" anyway.

MAYYYYYYYBE they will extend the Fort on the other side and create some larger sites for all these big rigs that have a hard time backing in ;)
 
I really hope it does not have a giant impact on the Fort. My thought is along the lines of if you are staying in a high class resort, you would not want to share amenities with us "lowly campers" anyway.;)

My best guess (and hope) is that there will be some, and yet somewhat limited, 'real' impact. I think there is likely to be a little bit more 'wandering' traffic of those who might journey over to take a look, visit the horses, etc. With 900 rooms, however, you are probably talking about an average occupancy in the 2,500-3,000 range. Even if 1% of those people came to the Fort at once, you are only talking about 25-30 people - hardly enough to make a substantial impact on the overall atmosphere.

I think the greater impact will be on the Fort specialties. TE may get a bit more crowded, but that may be balanced, some, depending on the dining options at Reflections and what draw that has for Fort guests. HDDR and MBBBQ (if it gets rebooted) already pretty much ran at capacity. So, while those reservations may become a hotter ticket, I don't think it will make a substantive impact on the Fort camper.

It is my hope that they will handle transportation in a way that people won't cross over for that, and that the beach at Reflections will be sufficient as to not lead to overflow to the Fort. These are areas of potential impact, but I am putting my trust in Disney that they will handle them properly!

Where the greater 'risk' exists, I think, is on things like the campfire and movie, trick or treating, golf cart looping during holiday seasons, etc... I could see these as draws for people that would increase demand without much of any offset. I honestly think the campfire will experience the change more than any other amenity at the Fort.
 
Where the greater 'risk' exists, I think, is on things like the campfire and movie, trick or treating, golf cart looping during holiday seasons, etc... I could see these as draws for people that would increase demand without much of any offset. I honestly think the campfire will experience the change more than any other amenity at the Fort.

That is sorta what I was thinking too, I noticed that other resorts are offering smores along with their movies too, so I assume they would as well (sans Chip and Dale and the sing along)
And they should have at least 2-3 dining options as well.
 


On the bright side, looking forward to new dining/bar options. Hopefully a waterfront open air establishment similar to Geyser Point. This could also be an opportunity for Disney to open a "21 and over" sportsbar/grill and see if that's profitable. Could be good timing to share some "Disney Love" and magic with the adults/parents/grandparents of the princesses and pirates ☺
 
The campfire thing has gained popularity in a lot of the other resorts like Caribbean Beach. My friends and their kids love it! They may have a campfire setting over at the new resort.

It would be really nice if they would make a walking path between the three resorts (FW, WL, and Reflections) along the waterfront. Kinda like the bridge and walkway at POP and AOA. It was quite nice to walk along the water at night when I did stay there.
 
Adamthewoo put up a video on YouTube yesterday. He rented a pontoon boat and has a small part showing demo of River Country if anyone is interested.
 
We where WL for breakfast this morning, then did the monorail around to MK took a bus to Ak then back. Got on the boat at Contemporary and did the loop around to WL. The boat doesn’t get real close to the shore line where RC use to be, but I did manage a picture or two. In hind sight I should have sat on the other side of the boat. There is a big pile of dirt and some of the slide pile that bama_ed took a pic of is gone.

76631D5C-3143-438B-AE6B-12BF73434BE9.jpeg

7CDF4CF9-A175-40B6-B375-DFA4D35147A1.jpeg
 
Couple of things after our trip last week... While taking the boat to MK from FW, one of the mates told us that they are going to move the building for HDDR. Basically pick it up and turn it and you'll access it from the new resort. Something along these lines, he was full of info and not everything sunk in, lol. Not sure if anything was mentioned above about that.

Remember the 200 new campsites rumor I posted about above? Well, the Dog park reopened while we were there. Apparently it's a bit smaller than prior (I really haven't used it much to know). That's where the rumored new sites are going. I guess they left enough space to the right of the park to build a road. There was a discussion about it over in another group I'm in--different from where the 200 site rumor came from. So, maybe they will add more new sites.
 
Last week Disney changed the Bus Routes due to Construction. The Buses no longer use West Wilderness road. There is alot work being done at the Settlement Bus Stop in the woods where the railroad bed is located or use to be located. As far as the new 200 Campsites they may be going in just a bit north of the Creekside Meadow group camping area.

Z
 
As far as the new 200 Campsites they may be going in just a bit north of the Creekside Meadow group camping area.
This is fantastic news (if accurate). Where are you hearing/reading this? There looks to be enough room north of Creekside Meadows, but I thought this would bring it pretty close to the new stables and parking for Reflections. It also seems odd that TDC would finally recognize the cost/benefit of expanding the Fort.

Maybe these new 200 sites are "virtual" campsites to accommodate the "cookie" reservations. :D

j
 
The area that ztbz is referring to is actually the construction on the new road for Reflections, IMHO I don't think we will ever see new campsites as there is now no where to put them with the Fort losing so much land to the new resort. The only place that is not wetlands is Creekside Meadows so if a new loop ever appears it may just be there.
 
I believe it when it's announced. Far too many wild rumors have been flying around lately to take it seriously. It would be nice, don't get me wrong, but I'm not holding my breath.
 
The area that ztbz is referring to is actually the construction on the new road for Reflections, IMHO I don't think we will ever see new campsites as there is now no where to put them with the Fort losing so much land to the new resort. The only place that is not wetlands is Creekside Meadows so if a new loop ever appears it may just be there.

Noticed today land is being cleared in the wooded area across the canal from Creekside, so we shall see
 
Note the green Pond C they are going to have to dig out to catch rain run-off from the pavement around the new barn. The dirt from there will be put behind Creekside Meadow group camping area near the new access road coming in from the STOL area to the road by Creekside and loop 2000 called Frontier Way. You can see the edge of loop 900 on the far right and Creekside would be in the middle.

View attachment 385826

.

In Ed's prior post it noted that area around Creekside was going to be the storage area for the dirt removed for the new barn pond. If that be the case, the trees will need to be removed before they can put the dirt there. I don't think it will be intended for new sites, as the plans clearly label it as a "storage area"
 
Last edited:

GET A DISNEY VACATION QUOTE

Dreams Unlimited Travel is committed to providing you with the very best vacation planning experience possible. Our Vacation Planners are experts and will share their honest advice to help you have a magical vacation.

Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!





Top