Questions regarding DVC Fort Wilderness Cabins

[Beesley]

Hello. I am hoping that someone here could help me with questions regarding The Cabins at Fort Wilderness Resort - A Disney Vacation Club Resort. I am not a DVC member.

When I called to book a room-only reservation, I explained that I am not a DVC member, and I was advised that I could still reserve a cabin. Later, when I called Disney with a question, the cast member stated that I was a DVC member, and I explained that I was not a member.

• Are non-DVC members permitted to reserve The Cabins at Fort Wilderness Resort - A Disney Vacation Club Resort? I am concerned that if an error has been made, I will be turned away at check-in since I am not a DVC member.
• Are non-DVC members staying at The Cabins at Fort Wilderness Resort - A Disney Vacation Club Resort required to make theme park reservations in addition to purchasing theme park tickets?
• Are there any specific rules/guidelines/restrictions that I should be aware of when staying at The Cabins at Fort Wilderness Resort - A Disney Vacation Club Resort as a non-DVC member? Is there a "catch" to staying as a non-DVC member?
• And this may seem silly, but will I be required to join DVC upon arrival if I book a DVC Cabin?

If anyone could help me, I would be so grateful. Thank you for reading this long inquiry.

 

[Tatebeck]

Yes, non members can currently book and stay at CFW, if there is availability. They are building and declaring or "putting into DVC inventory" cabins as they go. Any cabins that have been put into DVC inventory are bookable by DVC members with points only. Any cabins that have not been put into DVC inventory can be booked with cash by anyone. It will likely be many years before they are fully declared into DVC, (or they may never be if sales continue to be bad lol)

There are no special rules regarding the parks, reservations are only required for annual passes or certain types of tickets. It depends on the tickets, not the hotel reservation. If you buy date based tickets, there are no reservations required

No special rules if you are staying on cash, everything regarding the resort is the same for members or non members

They may ask to give you a presentation to see if you are interested but they are (generally) low pressure and you are not required to buy into DVC lol

 

[nherbert]

I just wanted to confirm everything by the previous poster. I was a cash person who stayed in the cabins over Xmas. We booked our cabin through the Disney site for cash (not points). There were no issues at all when we arrived. Everything was the same as for DVC members including access to the free laundry near the cabins. Did not get asked once about DVC membership or if we wanted to join.

 

[jmpurdy]

We just booked yesterday on the Disney site for cash just like any other resort. Had to poke around with dates for about a week and finally availability popped up. We are flexible with dates so that helped. It will give you choices of what offer you want, click on all of them to compare prices. We chose the room/passes vacation package and are very pleased with what we got. The package gives you mini golf and Joffrey's discount every time you purchase that we love, in addition to other discounts.

 

[Beesley]

Thank you very much for your replies! I greatly appreciate your help!

 

[DL1WDW2]

Golf Cart Rental is best reason to stay at Fort almost…
Call 407-824-2742 to make your reservation
I think it is $70 per day but worth it !
We also rented Canoes and they have craft sessions daily.
We loved making tie dye t-shirts for souvenirs!

 

[kverdon]

We are at the cabins right now staying on a cash rental. No DVC required (though we are DVC members). Without a golf cart it is up to an hour trip to get to a park as you either have to take 2 busses or a bus and the boat (only option for MK) and the run about every 25-30 mims. Other than that the new cabins are great and we have enjoyed our stay here. A golf cart would cut that down as you would not have to wait for the first bus to the settlement or outpost.

 

[Beesley]

Thank you so much for the advice.

Is it possible to just walk from the cabin to the boat or bus to the parks? I'm not sure of the layout of the resort, so I am wondering if that would be a possibility.

Also, do you think that we would be able to make it for early entry rope drop? We are motivated to arrive early, if possible.

Thank you again for your help!

 

[cruising spud]

Is it possible to just walk from the cabin to the boat or bus to the parks? I'm not sure of the layout of the resort, so I am wondering if that would be a possibility.

Also, do you think that we would be able to make it for early entry rope drop? We are motivated to arrive early, if possible.

Beesley,

We stayed at the fort for years and years. It is very doable to walk from the cabins to the internal bus stops. These stops transfer you to the boats and the external buses. And, yes, we always made it to early rope drop.

If you are driving, you could bring your bikes. If not, walking is fine. A lot of folks rent golf carts. When the kids were younger, we would rent a golf cart for one day of each trip (a down day), so the kids could ride around; otherwise, no cart. A note of caution-if you plan to rent a golf cart, do it early, they well out quickly.

Also, there is a boat to Magic Kingdom. So, I am not sure if there is a bus or not. Don't wait for a bus that might not show up.

If you have more questions, you might want to post on the Camping section of this forum. Those folks know everything there is to know about Fort Wilderness.

Fort Wilderness is a great homebase for visiting Disney.

 

[lanejudy]

Is it possible to just walk from the cabin to the boat or bus to the parks? I'm not sure of the layout of the resort, so I am wondering if that would be a possibility.

It is possible to walk and skip the internal campground buses, however be aware that it's about 1.5 miles from front-to-back, and likely a good mile or so from the cabins to the Settlement area where the MK boat docks. Distance will depend on which cabin loop you are assigned. I believe buses for the other parks depart from the Depot which is closer to the cabin loops.

 

[Mirabell Rose]

Golf Cart Rental is best reason to stay at Fort almost…
Call 407-824-2742 to make your reservation
I think it is $70 per day but worth it !
We also rented Canoes and they have craft sessions daily.
We loved making tie dye t-shirts for souvenirs!

$70 a day???? I have never even paid that much for a rental car. We looked at the cabins our last visit and they mentioned about golf cart rental available, but I didn’t ask the pricing.

 

[Dave006]

$70 a day???? I have never even paid that much for a rental car. We looked at the cabins our last visit and they mentioned about golf cart rental available, but I didn’t ask the pricing.

Yea Disney has a monopoly on on-site golf cart rentals. They used to allow third-party rentals but it got out of hand due to suppliers not meeting safety standards on consistent basis.

Dave

 

[Beesley]

Thank you so much for the replies! And thank you for directing me to the Camping section of the forum. I will check it out.

Thank you again!