Welcome to America’s Great Northwest in Central Florida! Disney’s Wilderness Lodge is a Deluxe Magic Kingdom Area resort that offers a taste of the great outdoors. Disney’s Wilderness Lodge is an homage to National Park Lodges, being modeled after the Old Faithful Inn in Yellowstone National Park. In this overview, I will highlight what our most recent stay looked like at this resort as well as provide insight into the rest of what the resort offers.
This resort was on my bucket list of places to stay on Disney property, and I was able to cross it off that list after spending some time here for my honeymoon. Most of my and my husband’s stay at the Wilderness Lodge was the laid-back part of our trip in that we didn’t have any park plans, but instead wanted to enjoy different dining experiences within the Disney Parks and Resorts. We utilized the pools and spas to maintain that relaxed and chill vibe we were going for. Copper Creek Springs had activities for the kids to participate in during peak mid-day time and a water slide—a short waterslide, but still fun to go on. On another day we decided to try the Boulder Ridge Pool, labeled as a quiet pool because there are no hosted activities or waterslides. There is a zero-depth entry into this pool which is great for any guest who may have motor difficulties using a ladder or wall lifting to get in and out of a pool.
Once we checked out of our previous resort, we headed to Wilderness Lodge to drop our luggage off to be held by guest services until our room was ready. We walked into the lobby hearing “KETCHUP!” being yelled from the Whispering Canyon Café as we made our way to the front desk to check-in. I noticed a jack-o-lantern behind the guest service desk which I found out after asking a cast member was a clue to a scavenger hunt the resort was hosting during the Halloween season. After confirming our itinerary and finding out that our room was ready early we headed up to our room. Our room was in the main building—standard with a double queen bed and had a balcony view of the Copper Creek Springs pool. Dropped our bags and looked at the simply decorated room with Northwestern flair, cute and cozy. We spent a day out at Universal Studios and when we returned, we watched and listened to the Not-So-Spooky Spectacular Halloween fireworks show above Cinderella Castle from the hallway windows on our room floor. For the remainder of our stay, we would start our mornings going downstairs to the Roaring Fork for coffee and breakfast then trek back upstairs to sit on our balcony and people-watch the families head into the parks. After completing the Halloween scavenger hunt which resulted in cute tokens as a prize for completing the scavenger hunt, we spent the rest of the afternoon at Copper Creek Springs pool and ordered lunch for pick up at Roaring Fork through the Disney mobile app. On another pool day, we switched it up and spent time at the Boulder Ridge Cove pool and brought lunch from Geyser Point Bar and Grill. That evening we took a boat ride over to Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground to experience Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Review. After a few more days exploring outside of the Wilderness Lodge, it was time for us to depart, we packed our bags did a mobile check-out using the Walt Disney World app, and got in our Uber to the airport.Usually, when we visit Disney World Parks we are at the parks from open to close and the resort isn’t our priority we just need a place to sleep and shower. However, this trip was special in thatwe wanted to enjoy each other’s company and relax post-wedding. The Wilderness Lodge provided an amazing experience and would stay at this property again, as long as it was within our budget.
A Quick Look
Location
• Distance to Magic Kingdom | 5-minute bus ride or 10 min boat ride
• Distance to Epcot | 10-minute bus ride
• Distance to Animal Kingdom | 10-minute bus ride
• Distance to Hollywood Studios | 11-minute bus ride
• Distance to Disney Springs | 15-minute bus ride
• Distance to Blizzard Beach | 11-minute bus ride
• Distance to Typhoon Lagoon | 13-minute bus ride
Dining
• Roaring Fork
• Whispering Canyon Café
• Geyser Point Bar & Grill
• Territory Lounge
• Artist Point
Entertainment and recreation
• Cooper Creek Springs Pool
• Boulder Ridge Pool
• Sturdy Branches Health Club
• Buttons and Bells Arcade
• Campfires
• Movies under the stars
• Guided fishing excursions
• Electrical Water Pageant
Accommodations
At the Lodge enjoy your stay in various rooms, suites, villas, and cabins. Standard rooms, being the most affordable, have double queen or king beds and can sleep between two or four people. Deluxe rooms have an addition of a sleeper sofa in some rooms being able to accommodate up to six people for your stay. Villas can accommodate up to twelve guests and offer a full kitchen, washer and dryer, and separate bedrooms, making them perfect for large families. There are also accessible rooms available and rooms with walk-in showers. The priceper night varies from $694–$1,200. Depending on what time of the year you book your stay or the room type you desire will affect the cost. Each room has an ice bucket, coffee and tea setup, and a patio or balcony at minimum. Room views vary—you can experience the views of nighttime fireworks over Cinderella’s Castle at Magic Kingdom or even a lake view to see the nighttime water parade. If you don’t plan on spending time in your room other than sleeping off your park days and the view isn’t your concern, there are rooms with a stunning view of the parking areas or into the resort area— perfect for people-watching. If you want a more catered stay, there is an available upon-request club-level service that offers complimentary continental breakfast, snacks, and evening beverages for select rooms.
Dining Review
The quick service restaurants provide something quick and easy that has appeal for any palate— Roaring Fork and Geyser Point Bar & Grill, perfect for a poolside lunch or a casual sit-down. Roaring Fork is available all day while Geyser Point is available for lunch and dinner. A reservation sit-down meal can be had at Whispering Canyon Café. You can’t go wrong with any meal you decide to have here. The food is delicious all day and the atmosphere is entertaining, to say the least. Be brave enough to go into the enchanted forest at Artist Point and you can dine and meet Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. If you are looking for some adult company and seclusion from the kids, The Territory Lounge has small plates and beverages for you to unwind and enjoy. There is of course a small grocery and convenience section in the lobby gift shop, perfect for purchasing any items needed for the parks like snacks or sunscreen. Most quick-service restaurants throughout Walt Disney World Parks and Resorts have your classic choices of burgers and chicken sandwiches or tenders that can always satisfy you. If this is your first time at Disney, be sure to get Mickey Mouse-shaped waffles. If you don’t, did you really go to Disney? From what we ate, these are some items we would recommend. All dining locations can provide insight into any dietary adjustments that need to be considered.
− Roaring Fork – Humphrey’s Bee Hive
− Geyser Point Bar & Grill – Bison Cheeseburger
− Whispering Canyon – Western Style Benedict, Traditional Skillet
Transportation
From the Wilderness Lodge, you can access most everything on Disney property by bus. If you’re feeling sea-worthy you can be transported to Magic Kingdom by boat, there is a bus route that goes to Magic Kingdom as well. I cannot express enough how convenient the Disney Parks app is when traveling between destinations within Disney Property. From the room reservation tab, you can see the bus and boat schedules departing from the resort to any destination. If you don’t have or want the app, at each bus or boat terminal there is a posted schedule for departing and return times.
Sources
https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/resorts/wilderness-lodge-resort
https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/resorts/boulder-ridge-villas-at-wilderness-lodge
https://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2012/08/what-you-might-not-know-about-disneys-
wilderness-lodge-at-walt-disney-world-resort/
The Neverland Nomad 