Fort wilderness

OzzieDisneyTragic

OzzieDisneyTragic

Member
Original Poster
Hey guys,
Busy trying to work out a way to get to WDW, looking at maybe adding to a road trip with a campervan type. Has any one stay there as camping? How long does it take to get to MK? And what are the share faculties like
Cheers for any help
 
Schneewittchen

Schneewittchen

Well-Known Member
My family has stayed at Fort Wilderness several times. We have a Class C motorhome and usually bring along our bicycles as in resort transportation.

We have pets as well, so we usually end up in the 300 loop which isn't too far from the Settlement Outpost/water craft/beach area.

So for us it's very easy to get to MK, 3 minute bicycle ride to the beach and then less than 15 minute boat ride (green flag) to the front gates of the park. We've never had to wait more than 20 minutes for this boat. For the other parks, we ride our bikes down to the front entrance and catch a bus. Also, if you're not in a rush, you can do the scenic route to get to Epcot. We ride our bikes to the boat launch, catch a boat to the Contemporary resort and then take the monorail to Epcot.

I love the facilities at Fort Wilderness, it's probably my favorite campground on earth. I've stayed at swankier RV resorts, but WDW is just the tops for charm, cleanliness, privacy, etc.

I find the restrooms clean and spacious. The sites are enormous with tons of greenery and trees for privacy. The hookups are well-maintained with level concrete pads. The only drawback is they are all back-in spots, no pull-thrus. The Meadow swimming pool is very nice with a snack bar and splash area for little kids. I love breakfasts at the Trails End Restaurant, it's a buffet with great options and I've never had to wait more than 5 minutes to be seated. There's a short bicycle path to Wilderness Lodge, it's a pleasant ride on a no park day.

The entertainment is top notch with Mickey's Backyard BBQ and the Hoop Dee Doo Revue. Both are so much fun, but the food is better at the revue.

Any other questions?
 
L

lorreejean

Member
We've been camping at fort wilderness since 2001. As the previous poster said it is the best campground around. Make your reservations early though, they can fill up fast at some times of the year. If you're ever there around the holidays make sure to go and tour some of the loops. The campers put up so many decorations it's almost unbelievable. And on Christmas Eve they have a golf cart parade around the campground where people have decorated their golf carts.
As far as transportation goes, bikes are great if you can do them (I can't, arthritis) but there are also internal busses, three routes, one goes up the middle of the campground, one to the left and one to the right. Given the size of the campground they really are needed. Each loop or pair of loops has a bus stop and you can go to the settlement which is where Trails End, Hoop de Doo, Backyard BBQ are as well as a store, a lounge, and the boat dock, or you can go to the outpost which is where you catch the bus for all the other parks besides MK.
At the boat dock you can go to MK, and there is another pair of boats that go in circles from Ft Wilderness, one to the Contemporary then to Wilderness Lodge and the other one to Wilderness Lodge then to the Contemporary. Makes it east to get to either one for dinner reservations, or just to look around.
Another way to get around the campground is to rent a golf cart (or bring one if you have it) They are pricey, last I looked about $60 per day, but super convenient, and there are plug in parking areas at both the settlement depot and the outpost. We like them so well we bought one and bring it with us.
I have always found the facilities there top notch. Restrooms and showers are clean and well maintained, and in most of the facilities I have seen there is a laundry facility between the women's and men's side. The # of washers/dryers seems to vary but I've never had to wait long.
There are also other things to do at the campground. They have wagon rides as certain times of year, also carriage rides provided weather is okay. There is an archery lesson you can participate in although I have never done it.
The sites themselves are generally well maintained. I've seen staff out after a campsite is vacated checking to make sure things work, picking up any leftover trash, and using a leaf blower to clear the driveway and areas around the table and fire pit.

Anything else I can help you with let me know.
 
OzzieDisneyTragic

OzzieDisneyTragic

Member
Original Poster
Schneewittchen said:
My family has stayed at Fort Wilderness several times. We have a Class C motorhome and usually bring along our bicycles as in resort transportation.

We have pets as well, so we usually end up in the 300 loop which isn't too far from the Settlement Outpost/water craft/beach area.

So for us it's very easy to get to MK, 3 minute bicycle ride to the beach and then less than 15 minute boat ride (green flag) to the front gates of the park. We've never had to wait more than 20 minutes for this boat. For the other parks, we ride our bikes down to the front entrance and catch a bus. Also, if you're not in a rush, you can do the scenic route to get to Epcot. We ride our bikes to the boat launch, catch a boat to the Contemporary resort and then take the monorail to Epcot.

I love the facilities at Fort Wilderness, it's probably my favorite campground on earth. I've stayed at swankier RV resorts, but WDW is just the tops for charm, cleanliness, privacy, etc.

I find the restrooms clean and spacious. The sites are enormous with tons of greenery and trees for privacy. The hookups are well-maintained with level concrete pads. The only drawback is they are all back-in spots, no pull-thrus. The Meadow swimming pool is very nice with a snack bar and splash area for little kids. I love breakfasts at the Trails End Restaurant, it's a buffet with great options and I've never had to wait more than 5 minutes to be seated. There's a short bicycle path to Wilderness Lodge, it's a pleasant ride on a no park day.

The entertainment is top notch with Mickey's Backyard BBQ and the Hoop Dee Doo Revue. Both are so much fun, but the food is better at the revue.

Any other questions?
Click to expand...
Thank you that a lot of great info I don't know what a class c motorhome is but thanks for the rest
 
Schneewittchen

Schneewittchen

Well-Known Member
OzzieDisneyTragic said:
Thank you that a lot of great info I don't know what a class c motorhome is but thanks for the rest
Click to expand...

An RV like this:

class-a-rv-clipart-1.jpg
 
MMFanCipher

MMFanCipher

Well-Known Member
We've camped in the 900 loop and we really like it. It is in the middle of the campground very near Meadows Trading Post, the pool and the Campfire sing-a-long. We walked to Pioneer Hall and the Dock to go to the Hoop-De-Do Review and the Magic Kingdom. To get to the other parks we just drove to the park. We're just too impatient to wait for the buses to go out of the campground, but we do use the internal buses every now and then. The Comfort Stations are very clean and the Laundry rooms are very nice too. In fact there is a web site where you can see which machines are available to use.
 
Weather_Lady

Weather_Lady

Well-Known Member
For all of my childhood WDW visits, we stayed at FW in a little pop-up camper. Because the camper was so small, we only slept in it: our time at the campsite was generally spent around the big picnic table that was provided, eating bologna sandwiches and canned soup (the camper had a pull-out kitchenette with a tiny, dorm-sized fridge and a single gas burner), playing card games before bedtime, and enjoying the beautiful scenery and fresh air. The comfort stations were easy to reach (which was good, as our camper had no toilet), always clean, and the showers never ran out of hot water (at least, not when we were in them). FW was such a lovely, clean, well-maintained campground that it has forever spoiled me for all others. In short, I think your campervan will be great, OP. If you decide you'd rather have one waiting for you, there are some local outfits that rent out campers and trailers of various sizes, who will haul it to FW and have it all set up for you when you arrive. (Just Google "Fort Wilderness Camper Rental".)

Just be aware that you will be surrounded by wildlife, and if you have kids, instruct them to stick to the paths and leave the plants and animals alone -- we saw more than one armadillo meandering by our campsite (which was awesome, as we'd never laid eyes on one in person before), and I once cut through a wooded area en route to the tram station, and encountered a snake that was either a deadly coral snake, or its harmless lookalike, a scarlet kingsnake. Having been instructed by my parents ahead of time to stay away from snakes of any color pattern, I didn't stick around long enough to find out!
 
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MMFanCipher

MMFanCipher

Well-Known Member
OzzieDisneyTragic said:
Awesom thanks how do they know? And do get get any perks like getting into parking earlier? I'm a totall newbie to the idea of having a set of wheels at the parks
Click to expand...

If I remember correctly we got something to keep in our car to show the parking attendant. On certain days you can get in early or stay late if you are staying on site. They publish what days and parks.
 
Kaul5

Kaul5

New Member
MMFanCipher said:
We've camped in the 900 loop and we really like it. It is in the middle of the campground very near Meadows Trading Post, the pool and the Campfire sing-a-long. We walked to Pioneer Hall and the Dock to go to the Hoop-De-Do Review and the Magic Kingdom. To get to the other parks we just drove to the park. We're just too impatient to wait for the buses to go out of the campground, but we do use the internal buses every now and then. The Comfort Stations are very clean and the Laundry rooms are very nice too. In fact there is a web site where you can see which machines are available to use.
Click to expand...
Could you please share the site for the available laundry machines.
 
ChesterKiwi

ChesterKiwi

Well-Known Member
My family throughout all our trips during my childhood always stayed at Fort Wilderness--we own a motorhome bus, the biggin'. The internal bus service from the Settlement near the lake, the loop stops, the Meadows Trading Post, and the Outpost at the front of the campground is mostly consistent in my experience. In terms of buses to parks, I typically found getting to Disney Springs and Typhoon Lagoon the most difficult of any of the destinations.

The only way to get to the Magic Kingdom straight from Fort Wilderness is by the boat service. Generally I've waited most times somewhere between 15-20 minutes for boats to arrive and the journey there is around 15 minutes.

Can't say much about the facilities since pretty much all of that was covered internally in the motorhome for us.
 

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