Just Back....Cabins at Fort Wilderness (May 27 -June 2)

[elder]

My family of 5 plus my mother stayed in the cabins this week. My family consists of my husband, me, 3 kiddos - 11, 7, and 1 ---plus my mom. My brother and his family (wife, son - 4, father-in-law, mother-in-law, and sister-in law (18)) stayed in the cabin next door.

We stayed in 2218 and 2220. It was a short walk to the internal bus stop. The cabins were nice, and we never had trouble with running out of hot water (all 3 adults took showers in the mornings). The queen bed in the bedroom was very comfortable. The bunk beds and the pull out - not so much.

Transportation was my biggest problem with the cabins. After catching an internal bus you had to go to the outpost to catch a bus that was going to Animal Kingdom, Epcot, or HS. This was not that big of a deal. But, getting to the Magic Kingdom was a problem. You had to catch the internal bus, then head to the settlement, then a good walk to the pier to catch a boat. If you wanted to be at MK early, then you had to take the boat to the Contemporary and then either walk (a long walk) or take the monorail. I wish they would just offer a bus to head to the Magic Kingdom. These long walks don't make for a great return to the cabins at night after walking 8 or more miles during the day. It also took out the option of returning to the cabins for an afternoon break. The traveling just took too much time out of the day.
I will not stay at the cabins again. Feel free to ask any questions!

 

[MomTo3PrincessesInNJ]

When we stay at the Fort a golf cart rental is a MUST! I can't stand the internal busses.

Someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think any MK resorts offer busses to MK. So, it's not just the Fort.

Hopefully next time you find a resort that meets all of your needs#

 

[Southernmiss]

Sorry you didn't enjoy the cabins. We were in loop 2300 May 20th to 25th and very much enjoyed our 2nd stay there, even without a golf cart.

We managed midday breaks and Disney transportation just fine. We did not experience any longer delays in getting to or from a park than any where else. We found busses/boats to be frequent and plentiful. Only one time can I think of where we waited a while. The lines from the parks to value resort nbusses were always a big wait.

Guess we all do Disney differently.

 

[happymommy]

That is a reason I've never wanted to stay there. Although a Disney resort, the transportation doesn't appeal to me. A value resort is better to me.

 

[Babsy]

Aren't there also boats from FW direct to the MK without going to the CR? That would at least cut out that final/first walk on the way to/from the MK. The FW and WL boat dock is very close and convenient to the entrance to the MK.

I do agree however, that the FW cabins do not have the most convenient transportation. We also prefer to travel without connections as much as possible and that is sometimes more difficult at FW.

 

[florep1]

Stayed here on our very first WDW trip back in 98. I felt the same way as the OP. We were all so tired by the end of the night, it was hard going back to the cabins. Never had a desire to go back. We finally went back 10 years later and stayed at the Swan. Totally different experience. We've been going back to Disney every year since trying all of the resorts and sometimes going back to it if we really like it. I guess different strokes for different folks.

 

[tobikaye]

I love staying at FW, but we always rent a golf cart and build it into the cost of staying there, plus we have a car and drive to the parks, except MK. I will say that if I had an early ADR at MK, I would have taken a bus from FW to WL, via the settlement stop, and taken a MK bus from there.

 

[EvilQueenT]

When we stay at the Fort a golf cart rental is a MUST! I can't stand the internal busses.

Someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think any MK resorts offer busses to MK. So, it's not just the Fort.

Hopefully next time you find a resort that meets all of your needs#

Wilderness lodge has an MK bus.

 

[JPDtheJD]

Wilderness lodge has an MK bus.

Yes. If I ever stayed at FW I would take the Epcot bus that goes to WL then get on the MK bus at WL

 

[elder]

Aren't there also boats from FW direct to the MK without going to the CR? That would at least cut out that final/first walk on the way to/from the MK. The FW and WL boat dock is very close and convenient to the entrance to the MK.

I do agree however, that the FW cabins do not have the most convenient transportation. We also prefer to travel without connections as much as possible and that is sometimes more difficult at FW.

The boat that goes straight to MK only leaves 30 minutes prior to MK opening. We did take the direct boat when leaving the parks at night.

 

[elder]

I love staying at FW, but we always rent a golf cart and build it into the cost of staying there, plus we have a car and drive to the parks, except MK. I will say that if I had an early ADR at MK, I would have taken a bus from FW to WL, via the settlement stop, and taken a MK bus from there.

We did not know about a bus to the WL. That would have been helpful.

 

[tobikaye]

Yes, I think a lot of people do not and it could be helpful for many. I know it is on maps, such as the one in the link below, but with many now bypassing the check in desk, I did not know if they still provided the maps.

http://www.wdwinfo.com/resortmaps/fortwilderness.htm

 

[beccasmom]

We enjoy eating at Trail's End, but the trip to get there by bus can be a pain. We stayed at the BLT last summer and via watercraft the trip was much easier. I enjoy the atmosphere at the Fort, but agree that golf carts come in very handy. And we rented a car on our Fort visit (some years back), something we don't always do. It turned out to be a good idea.

 

[sharadoc]

Fort Wilderness is not the place to stay without a car or golf cart if you are on a "schedule." As far as internal buses go, I don't think they are any longer than the circle route that the large resorts (CBR, POR, SSR) take internally before heading out to a park so it doesn't bother us.

For the quiet, scenery, etc. we love the Fort. It's a shame they took out the Murphy bed, I think those are more comfy than the pull out couch.