Wilderness Lodge vs. Cabins???

[mom2redheadgirl]

Hi,
We stayed at the WL Villas in March 2002 and absolutely loved it! We are trying to go a bit cheaper this time and the Cabins at the campgrounds seem like a better deal and we need the space for us and our 3 girls (ages 4, 3 and infant). I guess my question is...is this a kid friendly resort and are the cabins nice? Also how much walking is there from the cabins to the boat dock? We will be at MK a lot and this was our favorite form of transportation. Would anyone not recommend this area, if so why? Thanks for any help you can give.

Steph

 

[tigsmom]

When are you going? A standard room in the WL (2 queen beds) is cheaper at times than a Fort Wilderness cabin.

The 2 older ones can share a bed while the baby gets a crib (no charge). You still have the WL atmosphere and the boat to the MK or a launch to the Contemporary and onto the monorail.

 

[wolf29]

We just returned from the cabins. We LOVED staying there. The bedroom had bunk beds & there is a pack n play crib, while in the living room was a murphy bed. Three kids can stay in the bedroom while you sleep on the murphy, or let two kids share the murphy bed & set up the crib with them or you in the bedroom. Bus service to the Settlement, where the boat launch is located is fine. Cabins come with a full kitchen, deck with a picnic table & grill. We had a rental car and it was nice to be able to pull up to the door after a long day. You can also rent a golf cart($43 per day?). Really felt more like a home than a hotel room. Convenient to drive to any theme park, nearby grocery shopping (all within 10 minutes). We are going back to WDW this October. I had all intentions of trying the WL, but after our stay in the cabin, I think that is where we will wind up. Discount rate for our stay was $178 per night.

 

[charliez]

Ft. Wilderness Cabins

As to whether the cabins are nice and the campgroundis kid-friendly, it's a big YES to both in my book!

The cabins are really nice pre-fabs with great full baths, kitchen facilities (and utensils) and decks with picnic tables. The neat thing in terms of being there with young kids is that the bedroom is just that - a room with a door, so that adults can stay up while the kids go to sleep, and it would also be good for the infant to nap without being disturbed by the older kids. The bedroom has a full-size bed with two twin bunk-beds, and there's a pull-down murphy bed in the living room. We been there twice, each time with a pair of grandparents who took the murphy bed while the four of us took the bedroom, and it worked out great. In short, calling them cabins probably doesn't do them justice.

The cabins are arranged on loops with one-way drives off the main roads (the buses run on these), so they're all fairly quiet and off the beaten track, and it makes for nice strolls in the evening.

As to the kid-friendly question, I don't think there's another WDW resort that is more kid and family friendly. The pools are great and spaced out to generally be within walking distance. there are load of activities for kids, including the campfires and movies every (?) night, bikes to rent and ride on paths, horses, the petting farm, areas to play, etc. In fact, after going to WDW next month as a family, staying at the Villas at WL and the hitting the parks, my wife's folks will be taking the kids to Ft. Wilderness for a couple of days without even going into the parks (while we take some parental time away). Ft. Wilderness can really be its own destination! (If only River Country would re-open, but that's another story and another thread altogether...)

 

[donaldfan]

depends?

It depends on what you are looking for. What did you like about staying at the Wilderness Lodge? If you're willing to forego the beautiful lobby and restaraunts, and replace with the Hoop-Dee-Doo and horses, give it a try! I think your girls will love the idea of staying "in their own log cabin"!

Either way, you can't really go wrong!

One cool thing I like about Ft. Wilderness is the wild peacocks running around!

Have fun!

 

[mom2redheadgirl]

Thanks

Thanks for all the details on the Ft. Wilderness cabins.
We had considered the regular room at WL for 199.00 a night but for 30$ more we could do the Cabins and have more space for all of us and be able to save some $ on food with our own kitchen. I have heard that the WL rooms are quite small. I guess I am a little spoiled after being at the Villas too. It was nice to be able to put the kids to bed the get ready for the next day in order to save time in the morning. I think the Cabins will give us that same luxury as the Villas without the added cost.
As for the question about what I liked about the WL....well I liked the overall Disney magic. I loved the woodsy feel and neat music. It was so peaceful and beautiful that we felt so rested and sad to leave that March. If Ft. Wilderness has the same overall atmosphere then we are going to be pleased. I think we are much closer to a decision on this resort now. Thanks again for your help!

Steph

 

[Journey]

We (myself, husband and kids 3 & 11) are going July 5 - 10 and we are staying in a cabin! I think we made a good decision and I love the woodsy feel! I just hope it is not too hot! I know it will be very hot , so we plan on taking mid day breaks everyday, I dont care how much they whine..LOL

Anyway this is our first trip to WDW and I am so glad to have stumbled on to this site!

Magical Wishes!

 

[cloudboy]

WEll, the Wilderness cabins actually are simple park model trailers. They have wood siding, but they actually make some of the trailers that way now, so in that respect, they are just trailers.

On the other hand, they are trailers. Which means that you don't have an adjacent room, you have your own kitchen and bathroom, and you are in the woods. How impressed you are depends upon what kind of experience you have had camping. I think the wildernewss cabins are a lot more comfortable in that it is your own place and you really feel like you are getting away fromt he crowds and such. Plus you are out in the woods a lot more. Wilderness Lodge is a lot more of a hotel feel - more luxurious, but a lot more hectic. If you camp a lot and either have your own trailer or rent them, you won't be impressed. If you don't, there is no better place to get a feel for it!