NEW Wilderness Lodge FAQ!!

[ufalum]

I just found out about a new Military discount on Mousesavers. I can get upgraded to a courtview room for a difference of about $3 per night!! I already have a woodview room booked. Is it worth the upgrade? What can you see from a courtview room? The reservations need to be changed soon so any info would be most appreciated!

 

[dreaming]

ufalum - we stayed in a courtyard view room and I loved it, never stayed in a woods view room so I can't compare. However, a courtyard view room - if you request inner courtyard should give you a great view of the pool, geyser, bay, etc. and imho is well worth it because it has a great "resort" feel too it!

tdelano - you get to go up a "secret" stairway to the roof and help raise the flags. The views are incredible, you can see all the parks, etc. It was a day my family will never forget!

 

[HumphreytheBear]

Shopgirl72... sounds like you are planning to have a great trip As for your room request there is actually only one room on the 6th floor that is a lobby/courtyard room. There are 4 rooms on the 5th floor that are non smoking in this area (the hallways leading to the room tend to smell a little musty as half the 5th floor is smoking, but the rooms do not). The 4th floor has 7 lobby/courtyard rooms/non smoking. All of the rooms in this area have the open balconies.

Ratpack... I am here to stay, and as I posted before, I hope that AskMickey will stick around too...

 

[NJPhyl]

Hi -

Has anyone rented a boat from WL to see the fireworks? How much did it cost and could you pre-book or did you have to do it once you checked in at the WL? Thanks.

 

[GEM]

We have booked a MK fireworks cruse from the Wilderness Lodge for our trip in December. You can book them 90 days out. You have to guarantee with a credit card, but you can pay with cash that night if you want to. The cost is $120, and we usually give the driver a tip. The pontoon boat will hold 10 adults, you can fit a few more if some of them are children. You can call 407-WDW-PLAY for more information or to reserve a cruise.

 

[ufalum]

HumphreytheBear - I have been scouring all of the previous posts and believe that your favorite woodview rooms are on the upper floors over looking the otter pond. Is this correct? Can you see MK fireworks from these rooms? I think that I will not opt for the courtyard view as I have read wonderful things about the woodview rooms and the otter pond. Sorry to be a pest to this thread! My parents have decided to join us at WDW to spend time with the kids before we leave for Japan, so I am trying to cover every angle to make this a very magical vacation for all of us!

(I'm also driving my husband crazy!!)

 

[NJPhyl]

GEM -

How did you know what night to book it for to see the fireworks or did they know that when you called? Also, do you have any room on your boat for 2 adults and 1 child? We could pay our share. What night are you going? It looks like you are going to be there the same time we are. Thanks.

 

[GEM]

I booked it for a Saturday night, because I knew they would be sure to have fireworks that night. The person I spoke with when I booked the cruise couldn't tell me the exact time of the fireworks becasue the schedule wasn't out yet, so she said to call back to confirm the time. I called back after the December hours were released yesterday and was able to confirm our departure time, etc. As for having room on our boat, I'm afraid we don't. We are already sharing with a bunch of other DISers, so our boat is full now. However, if anybody changes their minds about going, I will let you know! Have you tried calling to see if they have any boats available during your trip? If the ones at the WL are all full while you are there, maybe you culd get one leaving from one of the other Magic Kingdom resorts.

 

[NJPhyl]

I have booked a pontoon boat for the FW cruise on Sunday, 12/15/02. There are only three of us so I have room for 7 more people and am looking to see if anyone is interested in sharing the boat with us. The total cost is $120 (plus a driver's tip). If anyone is interested, please let me know via this thread or my home e-mail Greco216@comcast.net. If interested, I will give you all the details when you contact me. THANKS!!

(Thanks GEM for the info)

 

[mivvers]

Good to see you back, and I hope askmickey sticks around too!! Two months from tomorrow we'll be at the WL, and I have one question ...
are there any bunk bed rooms that connect to (or adjoin) a king or queen bed room? If so, what room #s should I request? We're going with our two kids + my parents.
Thanks so much!

 

[jama]

Thanks to everyone for all the great info. I really enjoy reading all posts while planning my first trip.I wondered if anyone has opinion on activities for the first day of arrival?? our plane is scheduled to land at 10:30am. we will take towncar to WL.Where should we get lunch roaring forks or whispering canyon? we do have 2 (very active) kids ages 6&8. i think they will be anxious to see magic kingdom as soon as we arrive. should we try chef mickey for dinner the first night or later. we will be staying 8 nights in jan. any opinions on character meals and priority seating? and what exactly in character storytelling?? sorry for so many questions. thanks!!! also any sample itinararies from you pros?? Thanks!! jama

 

[stephnky]

Jama,

There is tons of dining info on the restaurant boards. Alot of conflicting opinions but it helped me decide where to book. I read alot of posts and it was really hard for me to make PS decisions. We are going in two weeks and plan to do a character dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern in MK and a Character lunch at Hollywood and Vine. I will let you know how they were when we get back.

On our first day we are heading to MK for my son and daughters first haircuts at the barber shop on main and then having our dinner at LTT. MK has to be the first stop for me. To me you aren't really at Disney until you are standing on main looking up at the castle.

Hope this helps a little.

 

[nancyL]

Ok, check out that countdown clock!!
Humphrey or Ask Mickey- we are arriving on Friday around 10am. I do not have access to a fax machine anymore- is there any other way to contact the room assigners? 4 days out would be Tuesday, right? I forget- the best time to contact them is late afternoon right?
Im staying concierge and there are several nights (yay yay yay) where we will be in our room during MK fireworks- if I just ask for rooms facing the MK is that good enough to see fireworks?
About tipping the concierge staff- I know the envelopes for regular mousekeeping go on top of the tv daily, but what about for the nightly turndown service people? Are they considered mousekeeping too? What time do they come to turn down the beds (about)? I tip them separately, right? Or are they same people day to day? Can I request kids robes in the room in addition to the adult robes? Can you purchase them after the vacation? Am I correct that the concierge staff cannot accept cash tips, it has to be in the form of a gift (if anything?) but that the mousekeeping can accept cash?
I know, lots of questions, but I did edit it down alot! (grin).
Thanks!
nancyL

 

[Fridye]

Jama --

What about spending your first day at WL (I've read there are lots of activities there) and taking a bike/surrey or a walk to Fort Wilderness? I've read there's a petting zoo there and a campfire with Chip and Dale in the evening where they sing songs and play a Disney movie on a big screen. The campfire show is free and it's fun! Then you could start fresh the next morning for MK.

I recommend Chef Mickey's and Hoop-de-Doo and either Cinderella's table or the new princess breakfast. I haven't done the new breakfast yet, but if you can't get a ressie for Cinderella's, then you have a backup. We also did the ice cream social at the Garden Grill at Epcot. It wasn't crowded and we were able to interact with the characters. Some people don't feel it's worth the price, but we enjoyed it. You can also do a re-hitching ceremony there. Do a search for "re-hitching" on these boards for other people's info on it.

I bought the "Unofficial Guide to WDW," and it helped a lot. I've also found that these boards gave me just about all the info I needed, but it was nice to have a book.

Have fun!

 

[HumphreytheBear]

ufalum... I definetly like the woods view rooms =over the otter pond the best. I think they are such a peacful getaway. You are at WDW, things are crazy hectic all day long, I like the calm of those rooms better than the hustle and bussle of the courtyard rooms (just my opinion). as for a view of the fireworks. Some of the rooms in that area can see the fireworks, but that depends on the time of year and how full the trees are. They are really hit or miss. I like the 5th floor rooms here simply because they are higher and they have the open balconies (the 6th floor in this area is the dormer balconies)



NancyL... you can call the resort directly at 407-824-1044. That is the phone number for the phones room (which is basically a chairs roll from the room assigner. Who ever answers there should be able to assist you or they will put you directly through to the room assigner. Just so you know the concierge rooms that face MK are the rooms that overlook the service area. They are a GREAT view from in the room, just don't look down when you are on the balcony). As far as tips go, the CM's that do turndown are "lodge"keeping (WL always has to be different ) as well, you can tip them seperatly, but that is totally up to you. The concierge team is also allowed to accept tips. The front desk is not allowed to accept any cash tips, but the CM's that work on concierge are allowed to, so that too would be at your discretion, if they helped you with something special or went out of their way for you...don't feel that you have to tip them because they are there. Not sure about kids bathrobes, can't say that I have ever seen them, but you can purchase the adult robes if you want them, they are in the mercantile. Have fun on your trip....

 

[pattyT]

Jama-
We are going soon

I plan on spending the first day at the lodge swimming, letting the kids do activities, renting mouseboats, walk to petting zoo, etc. and starting fresh at MK the next morning. I made a ps for dinner at Whispering Canyon for 7pm.

We made PS for Hoop-Dee-Doo-Revue the next night too.

I got a PS for Epcot princesss breakfast ( no Cindy's), Restrauntasaurus, and Prime Time Diner. WE'll make more when we get there I'm sure. I hear that the best way to see Fantasmic is with the dinner pkg - I'll have to let you know when we get back!

There are lots of options I wish you luck in planning whats best for your family.

Were Packin'

 

[pattyT]

If I decide to get a porta-crib in the room for ds-23 months do they have blankets for them???

I know silly question!

 

[Christina78]

I just wanted to say that I had a fantastic stay at the Wilderness Lodge 9/16 - 9/21. Thanks to 999ghsts advice we had requested North wing over Otter Pond, highest floor possible with open balcony, best possible view of Cindy's Castle, and we got Rooms 5034 and 5016. I wasn't expecting all of my requests, and I couldn't believe my eyes when I got them! The castle view was amazing. I thought that it would be so far off in the distance that we would only be able to see it at night, but it was the first thing we noticed when we walked in the room! I think 999ghsts must have been spreading pixie dust, I felt so blessed! The trees were taller than the castle, but in both rooms there were spaces in the trees that seemed to frame the castle, almost as if someone had done it on purpose. 5016 was the better room, because 5034 was on the end and if you looked to your left the service area was right there, but no one was complaining in our party! The otter pond was very peaceful, although we never saw a sign of a single otter, and we were always out there looking. We saw ducks and birds and a turtle, and it was a fantastic location nonetheless. Also, we found that if we left the light on in the evening lots of flying insects would land on the door and we would attract 2 frogs that ate the bugs. I was missing my dog a lot at this point so I left the light on every night and named the frogs Kermit and Yoda, and they always came back!

We loved the lodge and the boat ride to MK was great. We stopped at FW, but it was a peaceful, beautiful ride so we didn't mind. Sharing the busses with FW was a little more annoying. When the driver took the service road it was hardly out of the way, but when they went all the way out to the main road and back to FW it was at least 10 - 15 minutes out of the way, and sometimes no one would get on or off. I think this would be a perfect resort for someone with kids who went to MK a lot. For my family, we love Epcot, so next time I think it will be the Beach Club or Boardwalk for us. I'm sorry this post is so long, it's long overdue. I just thought it might be helpful to anyone looking for great woods views.

Oh, and don't forget to leave some time for the watermice, and don't forget to bring your camera on the watermice! It was one of the most fun things DH and I did. The men at the dock kept telling us that we would weigh too much for the boat and it wouldn't go fast enough to be enjoyable (together we weight about 280) but we wanted to be together, and it was plenty fast! We were being smoked by single riders, but it wasn't putting around by any means. We went to the MK section and passed all the monorail resorts twice and zigzagged a little and got back to the WL dock in 1/2 hr. The views of MK and WL and the other resorts from the little boat were amazing! Anyway, I'm so jealous of all of you with your trips ahead of you. Have a great time!

 

[kimmar067]

...you jama. How early will you and your family be up, since your plane lands at 10:30 AM? You will be probably be running out of steam by 8 or 9 that evening, so I'd take it easy. I would either make ressies for Chef Mickey's for that evening (around 7PM) and head back to WL to just enjoy the lodge, or even ressies for WCC so you are right there. Check out the Water Pageant at 9:35 and get to bed early. You will be well rested for the next day. If your little ones are really active (and anxious!) they will be up at the crack of dawn the next day, and there's nothing worse than trying to "do a park" with little or no sleep!!!

If you want another "1st day" idea, check out my posts on the "Trip Report" Board ("DAY ONE ~ THE MARINO'S INVADE...")with links to the other days....

 

[ufalum]

Thank you so much for the advice! I will submit my room request accrodingly. When is the best time of day to fax the request - morning or afternoon? Am still trying to get my parents into a woodview as they are now booked into a courtyard b/c that was all that was left with the discount.

Again, I thank everyone on this thread for the great tips and info. HumphreytheBear - I am so glad that you decided to stick around and continue to help all of us out!

I am so excited to visit the WLfor the first time, especially with all of the Christmas decorations up! Don't know how I am going to wait until December!!