Mainebound
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jul 24, 2002
- Messages
- 1,699
Ok, I have written reports on our restaurants, car rental, Universal parks, and pool home, but I saved this for last because I knew it would be the most controversial.
We stayed at WL Saturday March 5 through Tuesday March 8, and we had a terrible stay. It was our first visit there and we were excited. We wanted to love it. I think a lot of the problem is our own tastes, but some of it lies with WL management.
We were put in connecting rooms on the 5th floor directly above Whispering Canyon Cafe. Our "woods" view was a few skinny trees, then a service road and service buildings. To the left was the parking lot. We could hear delivery trucks every morning. We wouldn't have used the balcony anyway as a woman in the room next to us sat out and smoked 24 hours a day. The pile of butts on that little table every morning was enormous!
The worst thing about the rooms was their location overlooking the lobby. Yes, I know we should have asked to be moved, but we did not because (a) we had just moved from a week in a pool home, my mother (Not a DISer) had accepted our rooms and had our bags moved there while we were at the pool area, and we did not feel like packing up again as we were only staying three days, and (b) we were told we would probably NOT get connecting rooms if we moved. The noise was UNBELIEVABLE in that lobby. The only thing I can compare it to is a train station. You had the water noise, then the music, then tons of people at all hours of the day, then the loud restaurant (WCC) which we called "the screaming place". The noise came right into the room. And it did not end until at least 11:00pm each night. To make matters worse we got a memo which stated that there would be OVERNIGHT rehearsals of a very loud new stage show at MK until March 16. So just when the lobby noise wound down, the MK noise started up. We did not sleep for 72 hours.
Overall, we found the WL to be the most stressful and least relaxing of all the WDW hotels. Lobby was MOBBED at all hours of the day with adults and kids (little girls in princess dresses runnning around on sugar highs at 11:00pm at night, boys playing ball in the lobby at 6:30 am-- we had never seen this at a WDW hotel). The pool area was crazy, with obviously stressed out lifeguards YELLING at the kids. On Saturday there was a wild group of tween boys and a counselor of some kind trying to rein them in -- unsuccessfully. Wet towels everywhere -- even on the floor of the elevator, on the chairs in the lobby, and of course on every single lounge in the pool area.
We found our way to our rooms the first two days by the old food that was left on a tray two doors down from us.
The service was overall adequate but inferior to, and much less friendly, than what we have experienced elsewhere. For example, we rented training wheel bikes for our preschoolers and were not given helmets (we evetually got them, of course). Service at WCC was pretty lame, hostess service at Artist Point was awful, but table service there was excellent. Roaring Forks -- it tooks 20 minutes to get hot food even when it was uncrowded, and cashiers would stand there, not offering to help people who were obviously confused, looking around, not sure where to order, etc. We bought the mugs but the instant coffee was worse than the coffee in our room (I know this is true everywhere at WDW) so we never used them. We saw tons of people with old mugs. Maybe this is allowed at WL?
The mousekeeper, Dina, was great, even making towel animals one day -- a first for us. But she is the only CM who made an impression on us at WL. The boat captains were gruff, the front desk people very efficient but business like. My mother put it best when she said, "they're not rude, but they're just short of Disney."
Our rooms were very clean, although the towels were threadbare and stained. The shower head was worse than the one at our camp! Rusty and weak, it made for a long shower. We asked for extra pillows and were told "we are having trouble finding them" although eventually we got two more. My mother's sink's cold water spigot was broken.
I thought the Lodge itself was beautiful, and could see trying it in January or November -- an off season, maybe midweek. I also think we learned something about our family style. We don't need to take the theme parks home with us at the end of the day. I can see how people love the many activities and noise and such at the WL, but if you don't want it, there is no escaping it. Sure, we could have changed rooms, but the lobby, pool area, and restaurants were busy and loud all the time.
I know the WL is a real favorite on the DIS, for many precisely BECAUSE of all the hububb (or maybe you visit on the offseason? Or midweek?), but I hope this can help other families like us who prefer a calmer, quieter experience make the right decision for them.
We stayed at WL Saturday March 5 through Tuesday March 8, and we had a terrible stay. It was our first visit there and we were excited. We wanted to love it. I think a lot of the problem is our own tastes, but some of it lies with WL management.
We were put in connecting rooms on the 5th floor directly above Whispering Canyon Cafe. Our "woods" view was a few skinny trees, then a service road and service buildings. To the left was the parking lot. We could hear delivery trucks every morning. We wouldn't have used the balcony anyway as a woman in the room next to us sat out and smoked 24 hours a day. The pile of butts on that little table every morning was enormous!
The worst thing about the rooms was their location overlooking the lobby. Yes, I know we should have asked to be moved, but we did not because (a) we had just moved from a week in a pool home, my mother (Not a DISer) had accepted our rooms and had our bags moved there while we were at the pool area, and we did not feel like packing up again as we were only staying three days, and (b) we were told we would probably NOT get connecting rooms if we moved. The noise was UNBELIEVABLE in that lobby. The only thing I can compare it to is a train station. You had the water noise, then the music, then tons of people at all hours of the day, then the loud restaurant (WCC) which we called "the screaming place". The noise came right into the room. And it did not end until at least 11:00pm each night. To make matters worse we got a memo which stated that there would be OVERNIGHT rehearsals of a very loud new stage show at MK until March 16. So just when the lobby noise wound down, the MK noise started up. We did not sleep for 72 hours.
Overall, we found the WL to be the most stressful and least relaxing of all the WDW hotels. Lobby was MOBBED at all hours of the day with adults and kids (little girls in princess dresses runnning around on sugar highs at 11:00pm at night, boys playing ball in the lobby at 6:30 am-- we had never seen this at a WDW hotel). The pool area was crazy, with obviously stressed out lifeguards YELLING at the kids. On Saturday there was a wild group of tween boys and a counselor of some kind trying to rein them in -- unsuccessfully. Wet towels everywhere -- even on the floor of the elevator, on the chairs in the lobby, and of course on every single lounge in the pool area.
We found our way to our rooms the first two days by the old food that was left on a tray two doors down from us.
The service was overall adequate but inferior to, and much less friendly, than what we have experienced elsewhere. For example, we rented training wheel bikes for our preschoolers and were not given helmets (we evetually got them, of course). Service at WCC was pretty lame, hostess service at Artist Point was awful, but table service there was excellent. Roaring Forks -- it tooks 20 minutes to get hot food even when it was uncrowded, and cashiers would stand there, not offering to help people who were obviously confused, looking around, not sure where to order, etc. We bought the mugs but the instant coffee was worse than the coffee in our room (I know this is true everywhere at WDW) so we never used them. We saw tons of people with old mugs. Maybe this is allowed at WL?
The mousekeeper, Dina, was great, even making towel animals one day -- a first for us. But she is the only CM who made an impression on us at WL. The boat captains were gruff, the front desk people very efficient but business like. My mother put it best when she said, "they're not rude, but they're just short of Disney."
Our rooms were very clean, although the towels were threadbare and stained. The shower head was worse than the one at our camp! Rusty and weak, it made for a long shower. We asked for extra pillows and were told "we are having trouble finding them" although eventually we got two more. My mother's sink's cold water spigot was broken.
I thought the Lodge itself was beautiful, and could see trying it in January or November -- an off season, maybe midweek. I also think we learned something about our family style. We don't need to take the theme parks home with us at the end of the day. I can see how people love the many activities and noise and such at the WL, but if you don't want it, there is no escaping it. Sure, we could have changed rooms, but the lobby, pool area, and restaurants were busy and loud all the time.
I know the WL is a real favorite on the DIS, for many precisely BECAUSE of all the hububb (or maybe you visit on the offseason? Or midweek?), but I hope this can help other families like us who prefer a calmer, quieter experience make the right decision for them.
I'm sorry your stay was so unsatisfactory.
) I also hate when I see room service trays in the hall for days. There is NO excuse.
