NEW Wilderness Lodge FAQ!!

[Nickimouse]

I have enjoyed the info on the Wilderness Lodge! We ( DH, boys, 11 and 8 and myself) are going Aug. 4th through the 10th. This is our first trip to the WL, though not Disney. I've been surprised to see no one else has posted they will also be at WL these dates. I've looked at the official Disney site and the WL is booked solid for July, but Aug. still has all catagories open. Is Aug. not as popular? Never been then! Thanks to all for the info!

 

[Chance's Mom]

Corvair--another ?

My DS really wants to do room service for breakfast (He's watched that Home Alone movie too many times ).

How long did it take to get your food after you ordered? was it good and hot? How much did you tip the person who brought your food? I know there is like an 18% service charge for room service. Thanks!

 

[beb]

i read some of your posts you seemed so excited to go but looking at you trip report you sound a little disappointed
were you
would you go back again
woudl you recommed a lobby room
how was the pool does it get crowded
anything else you can tell me we are going in two weeks
thanks

 

[corvair]

nickimouse....room service was great.... they give you a thing to hang on your door,,,with time to deliver like 7:30 to 8:00. There are things you choose and hang on your door before.3:00am.. there is also a full menu you call, comes from the same place... with all kinds of stuff, full menu, breakfast , lunch, diinner, and drinks.... I saw the guy in the hall, he said if you call, it took about a half n hour... our food was great... we wanted to do it again but ran out of time....I think I tipped another 15%. It was not that expensive...our bill was about 18.00 with all the extra charges.that was for pot of coffee, panckes bacon egggs, bacon hashbrown and toast, Comes ith cool liittle jelly jars....beb,,,,, I was disappointed in the wether. not the resort.... I liked ourlocation, over looking the main pool and courtyard. the lobby is awsome... the pool did get crowded even in the rain at night. People swam untill midnight.... I was in the hottub alot and the kids in the pool. They are right beside each other. So the kids were right there. The water parade is at 9:35. It was cute. You see it great right by the pool. My kids liked the water slide. They also have kids games at the pool in the afternoon, My DD liked that.

 

[josierac]

Originally posted by lucki4
Sorry about the rain, hope it didn't spoil your trip corvair.

Ok, can you tell us more about the transportation? It doesn't seem like yours was so awful, only a 15 min wait for the boat. Would you recommend taking the boat to MK and transferring from there to other parks or just taking the slow buses from WL?

The boat runs every 20 minutes so if you just miss one you will have a wait. I timed when we wanted to take it and never had more than a 5 minute wait. same with the bus.

There are different boats, there is one that just goes to the MK (look for the color flags on the sign to tell you which one it is). The other shares with FW.

 

[Nik's Mom]

Josierac,
That's just how I remember the boats were working. If I remember correctly, the green flag went straght to MK. But I'm a little worried since so many others have said that they had to go to Fort Wilderness first. Did they change something? I hope they didn't do away with the boat that goes straight to MK.

For those of you who just returned, was the boat ever so crowded that you couldn't get on and had to wait for the next boat?

 

[corvair]

I did not see a boat with a green flag but only used the boat one time to and back.. The boat did get very full, but every one got on when I used it. There were alot of people standing and it was pouring and there were alot of people on the front but everyone got on...corvair

 

[dwddad]

Corvair, or anyone:

Over the past four years we have stayed at CBR (3 times) and FR-QR (1 time) We have September reservations for Wilderness Lodge. We have 2 children under 10, and are going this year primarily for non-park activities. (We will probably only go to MK & EPCOT) Our kids really liked FR-QR pool, and I really liked the relaxed atmosphere. We chose Wilderness Lodge for several reasons: nightly water pageant, fireworks show (prob. only 1 night in Sept.), close to evening campfire at Fort Wilderness, and just to try a step-up resort. I am a little nervous because of the lack of food court and comments that WL is more of an adult resort. But, FR-QT doesn't have any nightly shows.

Is the water-slide at WL decent? Is it as long as the FR-QR slide? Is the pool a large enough drawback that we should stay at FR-QT?

Advice is welcome.

 

[aring75]

Houstonmouse, you were asking if anyone had any special experiences with Disney concierge.

My DH and I have never been to WL, but did stay in Poly concierge for three nights last fall.

We wanted PS ressies at Le Cellier in Canada, but CM couldn't find anything open. (Though she looked for all three days and checked every time slot.) We said no big deal, we'll think of something else.

Then, we had a little trouble with our room key. We got in our room the first time, but then went "exploring" around the resort for a little while. When we got back, we couldn't get into our room!

Concierge staff worked very quickly. Maintenance came in 10 minutes, removed the entire lock from the door and replaced it.

The CM who took care of us (Vivian) seemed mortified. She asked us if we still wanted PS at Le Cellier. She told us she was going to get us a table if it was the last thing she did that night.

We got a call at 9:30 that night from Vivian. She finally got us a table at Le Cellier. Not only that. She told us to enjoy it because we had a $100 credit to use however we liked at the restaurant.

Believe me. We definitely enjoyed it.


aring75


P.S. - Our final total was $93.00 (We tipped very generously!)

 

[corvair]

niks mom.....My 9 year old did say she thought it was an adult resort from her first look at the place. After we were there a couple of days she really enjoyed it.. The water slide is longer than the dragon slide. The pool is big enough. It is very warm which was great at night. People were swimming until midnight. The pool also has a duck race which my 9 year old loved. The food court is OK. It has hamburgers, chicken fingers, nachos.and cold stuff. It also has breakfast things until 11:00. MY DH and 12 year old DD loved it alot more than FR-QT.They loved the atmosphere and the service was more than a step above the moderates. The kids will like Whispering Canyons also for fun. They did have an arcade it looked good but we did not go in.

 

[woody5]

For all of you who have recently returned or 999 Ghosts:

Given the current transportation at the WL would you suggest renting a car. Currently we have planned to use Tiffany Town car for getting to and from the resort. With current discounts I could rent a minivan (6 of us) for around $100 more for the week. Is the transportation that much of a problem that would justify the extra $100 to have a vehicle to drive to the parks. We have always used the buses at the moderates and never had any real complaints. Thanks for the input.

 

[Nik's Mom]

999 Ghosts,
Thanks for the update on the boat situation. I have to admit, I'm a little disappointed that the boat doesn't go straight to MK anymore. I guess, another option could be to take the boat that goes to the Contemporary, then monorail to MK
The transportation situation still does not change my mind about WL. It is still breath-taking to look at and I would still stay there.

Woody 5,
Go ahead and rent the car. We rented a car when we stayed at WL. We found it more convenient than the bus.

 

[corvair]

WE just got back and we loved having the car. We used it alot. we stayed at FR-QT and WL and found it was faster than the busses. Some people would rather do the bus.. It did not cost us much more than the mears... We also enjoyed the car because you can go visit other resorts and park anywhere free....corvair

 

[skiwee1]

We drove to WDW last month and stayed at the WL. I was the one that complained about the boats. Thank you 999ghsts for verifying that the boat does indeed go to FW before going to MK. It seems everyone thought I had gotten on the wrong boat or something! LOL! Even though I drive to WDW I do not want to have to drive while there. That is one of the main reasons I stay onsite. I chose WL because it is so close to MK and I thought it would be a breeze to get there via boat. How unfortunate that they have not fixed the transportation there. I have written once to complain and haven't gotten any response. I guess I will write them again.

 

[corvair]

skiwee.. I just got back from there 2 days ago.. that was my only complaint also. other than that I love WL. 999ghts....why don't they just add a bus for those who do not wish to ride the boat.. the bus ride would be very short....corvair

 

[kimmar067]

...sent an e-mail directly to Disney (as of yet, no reply) expressing my concern regarding the transportation situation. Originally, there were to be only 5 of us visiting, but by word-of-mouth, our total has boosted itself up to 20 people! Thinking that a deluxe would have superior services and amenities (transportation being one of them) I opted to make our stay at WDW spent at WL, as opposed to a moderate. I am rather disappointed about this, but I suppose that there is nothing that I can do about it now....I won't let it get me down too much; after all we will be staying at such a lovely place...!!!


Countdown to WDW:
26 days - 16 hours - 47 minutes - Woohoo!!

 

[corvair]

kimmar,,,,good morning.. I can not comment to much on the transportation because we used the car alot.... The bus to epcot like I said we waited 30 minutes... my DH and I both said ..should of used the car,, we would of been there... the busses for the other resorts did come and go... I think it is the luck of the draw.. the boat was slow.. of course it was raining so it made it not as fun.. I did read someone said there was a separated boat to MK.I did not see it... 999ghts did reply that they got rid of that... I think if the weather was nice and you did not care how long it took to get to MK it would be ok... On the trip back we did get dropped off first... WL was great,,our room location was really great... the hottub was the best.... see ya,,,,corvair

 

[jwfla422]

Ok, I have a question, for busy mornings at the boat dock from WL to MK, has anyone tried to take the boat to CR and then walk to MK from there? Any better than waiting for the next boat or not really worth the extra walk?

I'm trying to plan our MK day, we have 9am PS at CRT and I want to get to the MK entrance by 8:30-8:40, I would think if we leave by 8 we should be able to catch a boat to MK and be there by 8:30 but not so sure if the first boat fills up or goes to FW??

Otherwise we'll just drive to TTC (but I'd rather boat to CR, walk to MK and then just take the boat back from MK) since time on the way back won't be an issue.

I don't really think it should be busy when we're there but you never know, seems like MK is always busy regardless of what time of year

It's really too bad that after these past several years WL's tranportation problems haven't been ironed out. I always remember it taking a long time when we tried to go to DD or another resort where we'd have to transfer buses.

We've always liked to park when we get to WDW and not have to drive til it's time to leave but lately driving has just saved so much time and it's such a short distance by car...I'm planning to just valet this trip.

 

[skiwee1]

When we were there last month we tried to take the CR boat and then walk over to the MK hoping to cut our trip short. Didn't matter! The CR boat also went to FW before going to CR. All the boats went to FW before going to CR or the MK.

 

[plutospup]

We also had PS for CRT at 9:15 (May 30th). We took the boat to MK, and got there in plenty of time. In fact we arrived at CRT at 9:00 - enough time for DD4 & I to make a fast dash to BTM for fast passes. Overall, I really enjoyed the boat rides to MK. They were faster than taking the monorail from CR to MK (almost 20 min). We drove to the other parks, so don't know how the bus transportation is.