Worth it?

[Piperman]

Is it worth camping at WDW?

We have a 20' Class C and are thinking of a vacation to WDW and staying in the RV.. Our kids are the perfect age (6,8,12).. We've always stayed off site (Merrit Island, with relatives)..

I'd really like to come down and stay for 6 or 7 days to have time to do everything there (we've only ever stayed 3 or 4 days before)..

Are there shuttles to take you from the campsite to the parks?

 

[ftwildernessguy]

Is it worth camping at WDW?

No

We have a 20' Class C and are thinking of a vacation to WDW and staying in the RV.. Our kids are the perfect age (6,8,12).. We've always stayed off site (Merrit Island, with relatives)..

I'd really like to come down and stay for 6 or 7 days to have time to do everything there (we've only ever stayed 3 or 4 days before)..

Are there shuttles to take you from the campsite to the parks?

Yes

 

[retired and happy]

Welcome. I can sense you are new here... There are busses to all parks except MK (by boat). There are other internal busses that shuttle around the Fort. You can also walk, bike, or golf cart anywhere in the Fort. There is much to do at the Fort, so that many come to the Fort and never go to the Parks. Search some of the stickies at the top of this forum and other threads herein to see what others say about the amenities at the Fort. Try the Southern Smothered Hot Dog at the Meadows Pool Snack Bar.

 

[bob34787]

easy, yes and yes. you can take the boat over to magic kingdom and hop the monorail to epcot or catch a bus and go anywhere else

 

[DaveInTN]

Is it worth it? That's a decision only you can make. Cause I gotta tell ya...as much as I LOVE the Fort, I just was looking at sites for the week between Christmas and NY, and a premium site was $125/night. I ended up booking Thanksgiving week at around $80/night. Still pricey, but I've paid that before and it's worth that to me for an annual trip. But once it gets up over $100, I start to wonder....Is It Worth It?? I'm not sure of the answer anymore.

 

[ftwildernessguy]

That's why we are going to Tennessee in September and staying at Riveredge.

 

[Piperman]

Seriously? What kind of answer do you expect to get here?


uhhhh... an honest answer?

I guess I should have specified:

Is it worth it compared to:

- staying on site in a hotel
- staying off site in a closeby hotel
- staying off site in a closeby rv park

etc..

We are not retired and can't go to WDW routinely like others (not that there's anything wrong with that).

The economy has hurt us, and we have to carefully calculate 'worth' (or maybe I should say "Best Bang for the Buck")..

We are avid RV/campers, and combining camping and WDW would be a vacation we would never forget!

But if there was a "camping onsite is awesome, but if you are more interested in the parks stay offsite" or "stay offsite for the parks, then go camp onsite for two days just to explore the camping area" type of answers we would have to consider those carefully.. Having never been to Fort Wilderness we just don't know what to expect..

Thanks to DaveInTN for his honesty! We're below you in MS..

 

[ftwildernessguy]

Hey, I was honest. Maybe not what you wanted to hear, but I challenge you to prove I wasn't honest.

 

[5Days]

I, personally, believe that it is worth it. Of course, it will depend on the time of year you want to visit as to how much your site costs, and what kind of site you want to pay for!

You are a family of five which means a "family suite" at a hotel or even a villa...which means way more $$ than camping. If you are at a hotel you will most likely have to eat out for your meals. This is another $ saver with the rv. Breakfast before you go to the park and then either eat lunch or dinner out and come back for the other....or if you're really good....come back to the rv for all meals!

 

[BradyBz12]

...we have to carefully calculate 'worth' (or maybe I should say "Best Bang for the Buck")..

I think it really comes down to what you want out of your vacation and how you calculate the 'worth'

For us it's worth it because camping at FW allows us to stay on property, a mere 12 minute boat ride form MK, for a good chunk of time and bring the mutts with us.

But beyond that, the atmosphere of the Fort in and of itself is very definitely worth it to us and huge perk for us when it comes to going to WDW. We spend a good chunk of every trip just hanging out at the Fort - and if it were up to DH we'd never go to a park.

That said, if our goal was to stay as economically as possible and really "do the parks" for most/all of our trip, I'm not sure the Fort would be worth it.

You can definitely stay more cheaply elsewhere (on or off property), and depending on where you're coming from, driving may not be cheaper than flying.

Certainly checking in/out of a value resort with a suitcase is a heck of a lot easier than packing the RV, driving it (for us 1300+ miles) setting it up, taking it down, driving home...

That said, we wouldn't stay anywhere else at WDW.

 

[beagles7278]

Seriously? What kind of answer do you expect to get here?


uhhhh... an honest answer?

I guess I should have specified:

Is it worth it compared to:

- staying on site in a hotel
- staying off site in a closeby hotel
- staying off site in a closeby rv park

etc..

We are not retired and can't go to WDW routinely like others (not that there's anything wrong with that).

The economy has hurt us, and we have to carefully calculate 'worth' (or maybe I should say "Best Bang for the Buck")..

We are avid RV/campers, and combining camping and WDW would be a vacation we would never forget!

But if there was a "camping onsite is awesome, but if you are more interested in the parks stay offsite" or "stay offsite for the parks, then go camp onsite for two days just to explore the camping area" type of answers we would have to consider those carefully.. Having never been to Fort Wilderness we just don't know what to expect..

Thanks to DaveInTN for his honesty! We're below you in MS..

You had a perfectly good question, many are here to help, others forgot what it was like their first time and just think everybody should know what a great place FW is.

First off, it is worth it. Just to warn you, within minutes of leaving the front gates of FW you will be talking about plans for your next trip.

We have stayed for as many as 17 days and were not ready to leave when it was time to return to reality. My advice would be to read the FAQ section, visit a few of the websites about activities at FW, and then you will have plenty of other more specific questions others will be more than happy to help you with, but plenty of others will be ready with comments, so be ready.

 

[5Days]

Sorry...continuing...

There is so much to do at the Fort that you don't have to go to the parks. Many activities for kids and adults alike. Could spend a whole day just looping or touring all the resort hotels, swimming, playgrounds, etc.

We haven't stayed at any nearby rv resort so can't help you there.

We have a trip planned for June this year. DD#2 is doing the Disney Dance tour with her dance company. She is paid for with her dance team. So we priced a hotel room at All Star Movies, 4 people, with the dining plan for 4 nights and it would be $1100. Fort stay = < $300 for a partial for 4 nights...and I know I can get groceries/meals for a lot less than $800!!

Do some researching/pricing and see what would be the best deal for your family. We keep coming back to the Fort!!

Good luck!!

 

[~Kristina~]

I think it's completely worth it, and you WILL be planning your next trip about 5 minutes after leaving. I would stay at FW even if we weren't going to the parks.

 

[CKCK]

We just made our first visit to FW right before Christmas, and yes, we were already planning our next visit once we left (not only that, but we were discussing purchasing our first TT)!

 

[bsjs0708]

I have to say that as a child we went camping all- the-time...And FW is easily one of the best campgounds I have ever been to. Now for most of us on these forums it is not just that FW is a great campground but also we are die-hard Disney fans...So our love for FW is also part of our love for Disney... That being said look into AAA and see if they still offer discounts,10,20 or30% I know they used to have discounts for members and we took advantage of that our first visit and saved quite a bit...

 

[DaveInTN]

I'll add that if you are planning a Disney trip and debating whether to stay on-site or off-site...the Fort is worth quite a bit more than off-site campgrounds. Why? Well, as others have said you are just a boat ride away from the MK, and you can hop Disney transportation everywhere else on property for no cost. If staying off-site you will likely be paying parking fees at the parks, unless you are annual passholders. Also, you can easily fill several days without even leaving the Fort. There is a ton to do, and much of it does not cost extra or is a minimal charge. The ambience is awesome! So, all of those things to me make it worth $70-80 a night when I could stay off-site for $45/nt. But as I said before...$125/night is too steep for me. Am I saying I'd never pay it? No. If the only time I could get to the Fort was during a week when the rate was $125, I'd probaby suck it up and pay it. But if I have a choice to go during a cheaper time, or if there was a lower level site available for less money, I'd go that route.

 

[graciejane]

My DH asked the same question when I finally talked him into our first trip (he wasn't looking forward to the long haul down and back). He has never ever even suggested anyplace other then FW since.

 

[Kagoguen]

We stayed at the Fort for the first time halloween of 2009, we thoroughly enjoyed it, the kids went trick or treating in the campground, sites all decked out in Halloween garb, it was awesome, some people go all out!! We're planning our next trip to the Fort this Halloween too.

 

[kathybrj]

Is it worth camping at WDW?

We have a 20' Class C and are thinking of a vacation to WDW and staying in the RV.. Our kids are the perfect age (6,8,12).. We've always stayed off site (Merrit Island, with relatives)..

I'd really like to come down and stay for 6 or 7 days to have time to do everything there (we've only ever stayed 3 or 4 days before)..

Are there shuttles to take you from the campsite to the parks?

We too will be first time visitors to FW next month. You asked some good questions and many here have been helpful. Ignore the ones that aren't and garner your information. Amazing how nasty some people can be while still being fans of the "happiest place on earth". The ignore button is a wonderful thing and some people obviously wear it like a badge of honor. Kudos to them for being high on the personal negativity chart- someone has to do it.

We chose to use our camper rather than staying at one of the resort hotels because I like to cook when we camp and it is a HUGE savings over eating in restaurants. We also wanted to be close to the parks so the girls (daughter and friend, both 17 years old) could go out on their own without us having to drive them each day.

I also like knowing I am keeping my own space cleaned to my specifications and being able to bring the dogs along was a huge plus because boarding them for 10 days back home would have cost a small fortune.

We have never spent so much on a campsite before so that was a bit of an eye opener but I believe the activities at FW along with the proximity to the parks makes the price worth it.

Enjoy your stay- we are looking forward to our trip (24 hour drive).

 

[djblu883]

we adore the Fort, tried other resorts and didn't like them! So we are going back...we could stay off property cheaper but its just not the same....YES its worth it to our family!!!