Disney World

[CaboWabo]

I'm doing Disney World at the end of April and need some Hornfans input. First with regard to accomodations, I have booked the Wilderness Lodge Resort. Anyone have any feedback on this place? Is the location convenient for being able to quickly move to other parts of Disney World by tram, shuttle, or the other methods they have there? I initially wanted to book the Animal Kingdom Lodge with the Savanah view, but I waited too long and they only had pool view rooms available. I may try to transfer into that resort if a Savanah view room opens up. Is this something I should pursue? Is the Animal Kingdom lodge a lot better than the Wilderness lodge?

Finally, with regard to eating, I fully expect to get bent over as I hear the food prices are quite high. Has anyone purchased one of the dining packages and, if so, is it worth it? Can't decide whether to do this or not. Any feedback on these issues would be greatly appreciated.

 

[jimmyjazz]

I haven't stayed at that resort, but I can 100% guarantee that it will be fine. I've stayed at 6 or more of their on-site resorts over the years, and outside of very minor differences in finish-out and proximity to various parks, etc., they have all been terrific.

That having been said, a Savannah view room at the Animal Kingdom Lodge is worth twice the price you pay (which isn't cheap), even if just for one night. It is spectacular, and so is the hotel. (Yes, I realize we aren't talking the Driskill here, but you have to take Disney for what it is.)

 

[foxyhorn]

A Taco Bell and connected McDonalds are off the Disney Property but within a really short drive from all the hotels in case you need a cheap/fast lunch or dinner.

My biggest tip is to wake up EARLY and go to whichever park is having an early opening day right when it opens. The parks get crowded around lunch and you can hit all the major attractions before the lines get ridiculous. In the afternoon got back to the hotel for a swim or nap and go back to the parks in the late afternoon.

 

[texbusdave]

CaboWabo,

I worked at WDW for 2 years in various capacities. If you need any specific advice, PM me, and you can pick my brain.

As for your specific questions, I reply:

1) The Wilderness Lodge is my favorite resort. That being said, it really depends upon personal taste. If you like fancy schmancy, the Grand Floridian is the place to be. I liked the quaintness (at least the Disney version in a massive hotel setting) of the Wilderness Lodge.

2) Wilderness is a Magic Kingdom resort. It is close to the Transportation and Ticket center, which has monorails to both Epcot and the Magic Kingdom. Very convenient. Incidentally, if you get on the monorails at the TTC, take the resort monorail. Usually less crowded and they all go to the same place. The only unfortunate thing is, Wilderness Lodge is not on the MK monorail loop (only the Polynesian, Grand Floridian, and the Contemporary). However, the resort track stops at the TTC, which is near Wilderness.

3)Animal Kingdom Lodge is great also. However, if convenience is your main concern, it (along with the All-Star resorts) are the farthest from the central hub of the parks. AK Lodge has a restaurant called BOMA which has some of the best steaks/meat/ food on property...if that's your thing. My personal opinion is if you want to see animals, do the safari at the Animal Kingdom park. Sure, you won't wake up to possibly see giraffes, but you can see them at the park.

4)Service at the two resorts will be comparable. All the "Premium" resorts (both Wilderness and AK Lodge included) take pride in serving you (they have other incentives as well). The people who stay in these resorts usually are bigger spenders at WDW and Disney wants to keep them happy. The cheaper All-Star resorts also have good service, don't get me wrong, but there is a palpable difference when you've seen/experienced both.

5) Food prices are high. No doubt. Do you have kiddos? What many (smart) families with kids do is pick a meal a day that will be their Disney dining experience for the day. There are character breakfasts which are a lot of fun for the kids (also all-you-can-eat). Then a different day you can do a nice dinner (again PM me, I have had lots of GREAT meals there). I would say a good thing to do (If you want to maximize your in-park time and minimize spending) is plan on eating breakfast before the parks (buy some pop-tarts), eat LUNCH in the parks before the noon rush, carry snacks/water, and do most dinners outside of the park. One poster was correct in saying that just outside of Downtown Disney is a shopping center called Crossroads which has a Taco Bell, McDonalds, Jungle Jim's, Hooter's, and some Applebee's/Cheddar's type place.

Hope you have a magical time...oh and be respectful of the "peons" there and enjoy yourself. The castmembers are working hard to make you happy. It's tough when people on vacation are impatient. You're on vacation...enjoy yourself.

 

[robc]

Cabo,

If you have kids do the Disney Dining plan. It costs ~$10 per day for kids and ~$30 per day for adults. You get 1 small meal--breakfast or lunch and dinner.

** Key: You do not have to use your kids meals credits when you eat. If there are 2 adults and 2 kids, Disney allows you to use the Disney dining cards for the adults and pay the restaurant kids meal rate for kids. So, you can always pay for the kids meals (~$6-10) and use the cards for the adults breakfast, lunch and dinner. And some of the 5 Star hotels have incredible meals for which you get an appetizer, main course and dessert. Hope this makes sense.

Rob

 

[CaboWabo]

Thanks for the info. My son is under three, so (at least as I understand it) I'd only be buying the plan for two adults. Is that 30 per person or 60 a day for two adults? I read the info on Diasney.com and it seems like it would give me a smaller meal (maybe lunch), snack (like a Coke, yipee), and a larger meal (dinner). Looks like I would still have to pay for breakfast (or the third meal out of pocket.) Am I easily going to go over 60 bucks for 2 small meals, 2 larger meals, and 2 cokes per day?

 

[MikeUT00]

You're going to have so much fun. I love that place. Wilderness Lodge is a very good place to stay. Tex had some great advice. My advice would be to first figure out how much you want to spend on food. It can very pretty expensive there, food-wise. If the cost isn't a big deal to you, then I would suggest scrapping the meal plan idea and just hitting some of the nicer restaurants. O'Hana in the Polynesian Resort is excellent. So is Victoria & Albert's in the Grand Floridian. California Grill in the Contemporary is nice. Those are three of my favorites. Also, the Boardwalk area has some great places. And of course the country-themed restaurants in EPCOT are great also. I liked Alfredo's in Italy and San Angel Inn in Mexico. If your meals will be moreso on a budget, the Crossroads is a good suggestion, as well as some of the restaurants in the Downtown Disney area.

Hope you have a blast!

 

[cbs]

If you're just getting one room, you might consider joining AAA and looking for special AAA rates. We usually go with family and get 2-3 rooms and for that, we buy one annual pass and find annual passholder rates. That usually ends up saving hundreds of dollars per trip.

For good tips/tricks on the dining plan, etc, I recommend intercot.com. Very good stuff there.

 

[robc]

Cabo,

The dining plan would cost you ~$70 per day ($30+30+10). That would get you 3 dinner credits per day & 3 other meal credits per day (lunch or breakfast) & 3 snacks per day. Most of the time you can order an adult breakfast or lunch combo that is pretty big and can probably feed 1 of you and your son. The main criteria in deciding I think is if you and your wife enjoy eating out in nice restaurants--you can get $70 worth from that each day alone. Also if you save your extra dinner credit for a couple of days you can use this on a special character breakfast with some of the Disney characters--that might be a lot of fun for your son. And I agree that Epcot has some awesome restaurants.