VWL Groupies & Lovers Thread (Special Collectors Edition 2.5) updated 2 February 2025

[Granny]

Viki...welcome, and thanks for posting that.

I agree this may not be a fun time to view our favorite resort. I have to believe it will be better than we fear...though possibly not as good as we hope.

 

[twinklebug]

Merry Christmas Groupies!
I hope all is merry and bright in your parts of the world. May the new year bring lots of great memories to be made.

Here is a flickr link to one of the pics ottawagreg took. I will post more links as I get better at this. Looks like a moonscape. I am generally in favor of improvement but I don't approve of taking down trees. The worst part to me.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/9769152@N03/23675761930/in/dateposted-public/

Viki

Excellent picture.

On the positive side - I'm glad they've kept the big "butterfly bushes" with the orange flowers that were on the villas side of the stone pillar/fence. If anyone knows what their actual name is please chime in!

 

[rkstocke5609]

Here is a flickr link to one of the pics ottawagreg took. I will post more links as I get better at this. Looks like a moonscape. I am generally in favor of improvement but I don't approve of taking down trees. The worst part to me.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/9769152@N03/23675761930/in/dateposted-public/

Viki

I am going to need to make a trip to the liquor store after viewing this picture. I can see a lake / cabin view coming. And, seeing as I hated the "Bungalow" view at Poly, I know now that I will be requesting Bus side moving forward. Then, of course to see the tree shaded pool gone -- it was the best pool on property for those that really try to avoid too many rays...

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

Then, of course to see the tree shaded pool gone -- it was the best pool on property for those that really try to avoid too many rays...

Me too. Disney definitely has something against trees by the pools and then not enough umbrellas. The Villas pool and Jambo pools were the only one's I never had difficulty getting some shade.

 

[horselover]

Merry day after Christmas groupie friends! Sorry I didn't make it on here sooner. Busy day for us yesterday but we didn't set foot in a park. No thanks. MK did close. Not sure for how long. We had breakfast at Olivias, went to see Force Awakends (loved it!), mini golf, brief trip to AKV for decoration viewing, then ice cream at B&C, ended the evening with some very nice Malbec at TOWL. A good day.

Thanks (I think) for posting the construction pics WD. I tried to get a few by sticking my phone through openings in the foliage tarp around the fence. We took the boat over on Tue. to see what was going on. As soon as the boat from CR rounded the corner I could see the difference. I'm sure a lot of people will be happy to have a lake view now. Once we got to the path & saw what they've done I literally stood there & cried. My worst fears come true. They've leveled it pretty much. Broke my heart. As much as I miss being at VWL for Christmas I'm glad we made the decision to change resorts. I could not have walked by that every day without being upset. I don't know how you were able to stand watching it Diane. I needed a good stiff drink after seeing the "progress" so we stopped at Trout Pass for a drink. Had a very nice conversation with Donnamarie. I don't know why I've never actually sat at that bar before. I usually just get the drink to go. We have a completely free day today. May head over there again. I just won't look at what's behind me.

Enjoy the rest of the weekend and holiday week if you're lucky enough to be off.

 

[ottawaviki]

I am going to need to make a trip to the liquor store after viewing this picture. I can see a lake / cabin view coming. And, seeing as I hated the "Bungalow" view at Poly, I know now that I will be requesting Bus side moving forward. Then, of course to see the tree shaded pool gone -- it was the best pool on property for those that really try to avoid too many rays...

I am one that needs to avoid the sun. I will miss swimming under those trees.

 

[sleepydog25]

Merry day after Christmas groupie friends! Sorry I didn't make it on here sooner. Busy day for us yesterday but we didn't set foot in a park. No thanks. MK did close. Not sure for how long. We had breakfast at Olivias, went to see Force Awakends (loved it!), mini golf, brief trip to AKV for decoration viewing, then ice cream at B&C, ended the evening with some very nice Malbec at TOWL. A good day.

Thanks (I think) for posting the construction pics WD. I tried to get a few by sticking my phone through openings in the foliage tarp around the fence. We took the boat over on Tue. to see what was going on. As soon as the boat from CR rounded the corner I could see the difference. I'm sure a lot of people will be happy to have a lake view now. Once we got to the path & saw what they've done I literally stood there & cried. My worst fears come true. They've leveled it pretty much. Broke my heart. As much as I miss being at VWL for Christmas I'm glad we made the decision to change resorts. I could not have walked by that every day without being upset. I don't know how you were able to stand watching it Diane. I needed a good stiff drink after seeing the "progress" so we stopped at Trout Pass for a drink. Had a very nice conversation with Donnamarie. I don't know why I've never actually sat at that bar before. I usually just get the drink to go. We have a completely free day today. May head over there again. I just won't look at what's behind me.

Enjoy the rest of the weekend and holiday week if you're lucky enough to be off.

Love Malbecs! As for the renovation, as much as I hate seeing the pics and as much as I hate that DVC has deigned to raze everything, I try to tell myself to be a bit more pragmatic. From a construction POV, you gotta start with a clean canvas to build. Sure, building between trees and other items is possible, but it's not practical. IF the trees come back, I can live with the scenery the next few years. However, I'm not optimistic that trees will return as a) they're more expense and b) cleaning the pool and pool areas is easier (i.e., cheaper) without trees hovering nearby. I feel fairly certain that once construction is finished, the area will look lovely--Disney rarely scrimps on attractive facades and prettified walkways. HOWEVER, I'm also quite doubtful that the whole peaceful, serene, quiet ambiance that marked VWL (and WL by extension) will return. Will we see a largely pretty and appealing (in a homogeneous style certain to appeal to a wider, blander audience) cabins and landscaping? I think so. My issue isn't so much that WL/VWL is changing or growing--that much is inevitable. What I will have--should the essence of the Lodge largely disappear (which is my greatest fear and greatest expectation)--is resentment and sadness. Sadness that my second home will not be what I once loved and resentment that those changes could have been mitigated, could have endured with a little less financial exploitation on Disney's part. I hope that I am totally off base and that WL/VWL will return to it's past glory. . .with updates. Having seen what the Disney corporation has largely opted to do the past few years with their builds (look no further than the Never Ending Story: The Story of the PVB Construction or VWL Refurb: Blanded by the Light), I do not hold onto much hope. I pray I am wrong, and if so, I will be the first to say as much.

 

[ottawagreg]

Hello again from VWL. I peered through the fence again today and noticed that the stone pillars remain. I looked at our pics more closely and they confirm my poor eye sight. So that is a bit of good news.

Having been to the pool today I noticed how jammed lounge chairs are and how they are not enough for demand. It's 84 degrees today 12/26. I could not find space to sit. There were a lot of folks using pool but very few actually swimming. In hot summer months that space seems untenable. The fence and refurbished boardwalk took up a lot of real estate. When I noticed survey crew in summer of 2014 working on fence for hidden springs they were a long ways from quiet pool. My guess now is that the plan has been in play to spread out the people, to make more room for a larger pool. Thus the need to fell all those trees. Cabins, pool bar and larger outdoor living space. The middle of the lodge simply not big enough.

We walked thru poly yesterday. New pool there is called oasis. Plan at VWL looks remarkably similar to what they did at poly. This seems to have been in the works for three years. Sleepydog is probably correct. It will be very nice when they finish. But the bridge is burned. No amount of money or landscaping can restore what nature had in that space.

I had a chip in birdie three on tenth hole at LBV this morning. So I got that going for me.

 

[Muushka]

Merry belated Christmas Groupies!

While I have been MIA for a very long time, I always remember my friends at important times.
As I read through the last few pages, I see so many old friends. JT, HL, SlyDog TP, Granny, KAT4 etc... all my old buds.
(I didn't see DizDi or DiDad??)

Mr Muush and I are well and hope that you all are too.
Christmas day was a most unusual day, so I am signing in a day late, so sorry.
We will be there for Thanksgiving 2016 after a 3 year hiatus. It will be good to visit the Mouse once again.

I love you all and wish you all a very Happy New Year for 2017. Be well, Muush.

My goodness, I missed so many of you! I just edited twice!

 

[twokats]

Like Muushka, I have been MIA for a few days. I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas. Ours was a little unusual in that our part of TX has been in the upper 70's and it does not seem like Christmas.
Today there have been major tornadoes in our area and a lot of damage and a few deaths.
Tomorrow night we are supposed to have a front come thru which is supposed to bring us some winter temperatures.

Kati and I really missed our usual trip to WDW this year, but we absolutely plan on December of next year and hopefully May of 2017. Our cruises on the Wonder make up for a little but we still miss coming home.

I hope Santa was extra good to all the groupies.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

Merry belated Christmas Groupies!

While I have been MIA for a very long time, I always remember my friends at important times.
As I read through the last few pages, I see so many old friends. JT, HL, SlyDog TP, Granny, KAT4 etc... all my old buds.
(I didn't see DizDi or DiDad??)

Mr Muush and I are well and hope that you all are too.
Christmas day was a most unusual day, so I am signing in a day late, so sorry.
We will be there for Thanksgiving 2016 after a 3 year hiatus. It will be good to visit the Mouse once again.

I love you all and wish you all a very Happy New Year for 2017. Be well, Muush.

My goodness, I missed so many of you! I just edited twice!

Hi Muushka! Glad to hear you are well!!!

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

I had a chip in birdie three on tenth hole at LBV this morning. So I got that going for me.

Nice! That sure helps to get the putting average down!!

Like Muushka, I have been MIA for a few days. I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas. Ours was a little unusual in that our part of TX has been in the upper 70's and it does not seem like Christmas.
Today there have been major tornadoes in our area and a lot of damage and a few deaths.
Tomorrow night we are supposed to have a front come thru which is supposed to bring us some winter temperatures.

Kati and I really missed our usual trip to WDW this year, but we absolutely plan on December of next year and hopefully May of 2017. Our cruises on the Wonder make up for a little but we still miss coming home.

I hope Santa was extra good to all the groupies.

That's crazy weather twokats!! Glad you made it thru the storms and hope that you've gotten the winter coats out.

 

[jimmytammy]

Muushka, So glad to see you here. We really miss not seeing you around these parts. Please, please come back on a regular basis, you know you are always in our hearts and minds

twokats, stay safe the weather has been crazyfor Christmas all over the country

 

[sleepydog25]

Merry belated Christmas Groupies!

While I have been MIA for a very long time, I always remember my friends at important times.
As I read through the last few pages, I see so many old friends. JT, HL, SlyDog TP, Granny, KAT4 etc... all my old buds.
(I didn't see DizDi or DiDad??)

Mr Muush and I are well and hope that you all are too.
Christmas day was a most unusual day, so I am signing in a day late, so sorry.
We will be there for Thanksgiving 2016 after a 3 year hiatus. It will be good to visit the Mouse once again.

I love you all and wish you all a very Happy New Year for 2017. Be well, Muush.

My goodness, I missed so many of you! I just edited twice!

Hi, Muushka!! Have missed seeing you around here, and so glad you checked in.

Like many others, our weather has been weird--lots of rain and warmer-than-normal temps though thankfully no severe storms--so it hasn't quite felt like Christmas. Perhaps seeing the Osborne Lights one last time in a few days will help.

greg: Way to go on the chip-in! I live on a golf course, and play here every chance I get. I've yet to play at Disney as we fill our days with parks and such. However, I soon see the time when we'll go down for 10 days to 2 weeks, and I can get some golf in then.

 

[Granny]

Just checking back in, and so great to see so many of the Groupie friends are doing well.

A special shout out to Muush! So great to hear from you again, and you know you are always welcome here at any time. Have a wonderful new year!


As for the construction, I guess it is what it is at this point. Sleepy, you make some excellent points and capture the angst that many of us have had regarding this project. I'm thinking that I may be requesting Bayou Side (sounds better than bus side, doesn't it?) for the upcoming trips until the dust settles.

 

[twinklebug]

Just booked Royal Pacific for the first 3 nights of our May trip, had considered adding on to the leading edge of our Jambo trip, but all AKV villas were sold out (just inside that 6 month mark) I'll keep an eye out - but think I got a decent deal for club level. It's an "owie" when one isn't used to paying for the room though

VWL is totally open, but I just can't bring myself to staying there until some landscaping is put back in place.

 

[eliza61]

Merry belated Christmas Groupies!

While I have been MIA for a very long time, I always remember my friends at important times.
As I read through the last few pages, I see so many old friends. JT, HL, SlyDog TP, Granny, KAT4 etc... all my old buds.
(I didn't see DizDi or DiDad??)

Mr Muush and I are well and hope that you all are too.
Christmas day was a most unusual day, so I am signing in a day late, so sorry.
We will be there for Thanksgiving 2016 after a 3 year hiatus. It will be good to visit the Mouse once again.

I love you all and wish you all a very Happy New Year for 2017. Be well, Muush.

My goodness, I missed so many of you! I just edited twice!

What a lovely surprise!! Glad to hear from you Muush

 

[jimmytammy]

Happy Birthday WDWRR_ENGINEER!!!!

 

[Granny]

Happy Birthday WDWRR_ENGINEER !!!

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

Happy Birthday WDWRR_ENGINEER!!!!