VWL Groupies & Lovers Thread (Special Collectors Edition 2.0) updated 21 June 2023

[Corinne]

OK, so I just crawled out from the rock I was under....and discovered F & W begins in August!? What the heck? I am not a fan, and assumed our annual September trip was safe. Last year I decided we should experience it (it has always been at the end of our September trip, or we miss it all together). After having experienced it for a week, I decided been there done that. I am not sure why I haven't noticed the dates until now!

 

[wildernessDad]

Hollis, you do realize we groupies are living vicariously through you now? And these kind of posts make me realize how much I hope my dream of at the least becoming a winter bird in FL someday comes true.

Ditto!!!!!

Winters in FL sound good to me too. Just no summers.

I'm sorry for not posting as much, but we are swamped. We settled on the new house on June 29, the movers delivered our household goods on June 30 and we are now unpacking a ton of boxes. A lot of stuff is in the garage until we figure out what to do with it. We haven't slept in the place yet, but we'll do that tonight. Our house is really close to the upper north entrance to WDW, off of Reams Road. I haven't gone in that way yet, but I'll give it a try over this long weekend. Happy July 4th everybody! I still need to cut down the pics so I can post them here.

 

[wildernessDad]

And it is hot, but it rains just about every evening this time of year. We try to avoid the hot sun as much as possible.

 

[wildernessDad]

Family room clutter pic. Note the cat carrier on the table. Kitty is around somewhere and hiding when she sees me as I was the dastardly person who put her in the carrier.

 

[wildernessDad]

Here are the new WL pics I promised. Hopefully.

 

[RellingTwin]

Welcome to the groupies RellingTwin!!!!
I confer to others here, take the boat!! Its peaceful relaxing, and a nice way to approach the Lodge. We are staying at the villas at the Lodge Dec. 4-10 and have great hope of snagging the DVC night at Epcot too.

Thank you for the warm welcome. I assume from your dates that you will be going to the Moonlight Magic on Dec. 4th. Best of luck with getting reservations. I have been doing a bit of research for the last few days and I THINK WE (DVC members with an already confirmed reservation) will get an e-mail from DVC apx 60 days prior to the event. We will have one week to make reservations before the booking window opens to all DVC members. Of course if I receive any communication from DVC about Moonlight Magic, I will post info. here.

 

[wildernessDad]

Here's two more pics of WL outside area.

 

[sleepydog25]

Great pics, Dad! We arrived to the World today after a lo-o-o-n-n-g drive. We left at 4:20 a.m. and made great time the first four hours. After that, it was way too much traffic. Once we hit GA, we had far too many times where we came to a complete stop on I-95. The last 50 miles took an hour and 15 minutes. Doesn't seem like much unless you've been up since 2:30 a.m. First meal was Wolfgang Puck's Dining Room, and it was excellent. More later!

 

[jimmytammy]

WD
We understand you are very busy, but we love you taking time to post as time allows. Again, very excited for a groupie who is living the dream

Sleepy
Glad y'all made it safely! Now that the drive is over, as Lou Mongello says, sit back, relax and enjoy

 

[ArielSRL]

Here's a link to a review of the refurbed Roarking Fork. Looks like there's a spot in the grab and go section for the Wilderness Salad.

http://www.disneyfoodblog.com/2017/...new-roaring-fork-at-disneys-wilderness-lodge/

 

[jimmytammy]

Here's a link to a review of the refurbed Roarking Fork. Looks like there's a spot in the grab and go section for the Wilderness Salad.

http://www.disneyfoodblog.com/2017/...new-roaring-fork-at-disneys-wilderness-lodge/

Those grits look good, but not for breakfast. Don't wont pork BBQ that early

 

[sleepydog25]

Day 1: To repeat Day 1's events, it was a long drive. Checked in for one night at Port Orleans French Quarter, got a very nice garden view room on the third floor, and caught the bus to Disney Springs (the way to go when it's crowded since the buses have their own lanes). We ate at Wolfgang Puck's Dining Room which you may have heard is closing in the next few months and will relocate to a new location in the Springs. According to our most excellent server, Lakeisha, the Levy Restaurant Group will no longer have anything to do with Puck's--it will be opening under the Puck management team as a stand-alone restaurant. Levy will still have Paddlefish and the new Portobello when it reopens which is going to be called something akin to Taverna, perhaps? Lakeisha wasn't quite sure on that aspect. At any rate, we weren't sure how dinner would go at Puck's Dining Room, but we were greeted graciously, had superb bar service waiting for the table to open (we arrived before the dining room even opened), and enjoyed one of the best servers we've had in the past three years or so. The meal? Topnotch. I had tuna tartar appetizer which was $20 but almost a meal by itself, and Luv had the rainbow roll sushi. Both were superb, as was the rosemary bread served with softened butter. For a meal, we shared the rack of lamb with gnocchi, root vegetables, peas, and a wine reduction. It was excellent, as well, though the lamb was just a touch overdone (parts were medium-rare which we wanted and parts were just medium) and the carrots a bit toothsome. Still, those are two small criticisms. We're a bit sad Puck's is going away after such a wonderful meal, but perhaps they'll be great in their new incarnation.

Day 2: We checked out of POFQ after sleeping in until almost 8, and since our first FP wasn't until 11:10 (for 7DMT), we drove over to our home to check out RF. Yvonne was the gate guard, and she is almost always there when we arrive, so we chatted with her for a moment. Sadly, she retires in October, so it was good to see her one last time. We parked and headed in where the lobby welcomed us with open arms and that awesome smell and swelling music. That NEVER gets old. Unfortunately, the new menu at RF won't hold that same distinction for us. First, the ordering procedure is disjointed--order on one side (where the old registers were) and then hand it to someone across the room. A helpful CM explained the process, and we asked about toppings on the Mickey waffles. She said, "Sure! Just tell the woman at the ordering station to mention it when putting in the order. As excited as were were to learn about the toppings, the woman at the order station had. . .no. . .clue. We also ordered a latte, but she couldn't tell us anything that was in them. "What do you want in your latte?"
Well, we want a plain latte.
"Okay, but what do you want in it?"
What is in each of the three on your menu?
"Well, they vary. What do you want in it?"
Just a plain latte.
"Okay, but there are three different ones. . ."
Never mind. Just the kid's waffle basket with the strawberry topping and whipped cream.
"Well, they don't have toppings."
That woman just said you could add it.
"I don't have a way to do that."
Sigh. Okay, just plain then.
As they keep no cash in the order station, we had to pay on the other side. . .but no one knew we had ordered except the person to whom we handed the order slip--the Helpful CM. We could easily have walked away without paying. We told the Helpful CM that the Order CM had no clue about the toppings, so the Helpful CM had it added to the order, although it wound up being the bananas with "rum" sauce not strawberries and whipped cream. After that confusing process, Luv headed over to Geyser Point to get something different. I waited 12 minutes for my to-go, kid's Mickey waffle basket. No kidding. And it wasn't busy! Luv got her food just a couple of minutes after I arrived, and it was freshly made eggs benedict with perfectly cooked eggs on yummy cheddar biscuits. The home style potatoes were also quite tasty. My waffles? Very disappointing. Gone is the crispy exterior and slightly toothsome interior like the waffles used to have. The whole thing is very cake--the center looked, felt, and tasted like sponge cake minus the sugar. It was not tasty at all. The sauce was sweet but not terribly unique and had only a couple of slices of banana. I couldn't eat it all. So, our initial excitement of having our Mickey waffles back with toppings didn't pan out. Perhaps others will have a different experience, but I did not care for them at all. The adult Mickey shaped waffle basket has one big waffle (the kid's have two small ones) and either sausage or bacon: $8.79 (kid's $6.79). Luv's eggs bennie had two eggs, the biscuits, and the potatoes (or fruit), all for $10. Guess which is a far better deal?

I will say the new RF looks nice, and the outdoor seating is more theme-appropriate. But, our first taste of the food was not a good one; at least I can't recommend the waffles anymore. They were sort of like eating a plain cake donut minus the sweetness. Color me very disappointed.

I'll post more about the rest of our time at WL in a bit. . .things did pick up.

 

[twinklebug]

Pat, I'm sorry about your Mickey Waffle experience. It's hard to have a favorite that is changed. I agree, a waffle of any shape needs to be crispy on the outside with substance on the inside. I wonder if this is a change that is happening at all locations. (I hope not!)

Keep on enjoying the trip! Looking forward to your next check-in.

 

[jimmytammy]

Thank you for the warm welcome. I assume from your dates that you will be going to the Moonlight Magic on Dec. 4th. Best of luck with getting reservations. I have been doing a bit of research for the last few days and I THINK WE (DVC members with an already confirmed reservation) will get an e-mail from DVC apx 60 days prior to the event. We will have one week to make reservations before the booking window opens to all DVC members. Of course if I receive any communication from DVC about Moonlight Magic, I will post info. here.

Thanks for the heads up about the Moonlight Magic and how to go about getting the ressies! Hoping we can make it!!

 

[sleepydog25]

Pat, I'm sorry about your Mickey Waffle experience. It's hard to have a favorite that is changed. I agree, a waffle of any shape needs to be crispy on the outside with substance on the inside. I wonder if this is a change that is happening at all locations. (I hope not!)

Keep on enjoying the trip! Looking forward to your next check-in.

Yes, we're bummed. But, life goes on. . .just not the life that envisioned eating Mickey waffles at RF. In a related story, the Territory Lounge coffee shop is now closed since RF has reopened. No more lattes or good coffee from them. The pastries can be found in RF, but for people like us who want a strong latte with 3-4 four shots of espresso, we have no where to go but off site. Also, the coffee bar in the Villas lobby is also kaput. No need to make things special for DVCers now that they have two breakfast spots open, apparently.

On the positive side, the walkways to the cabins on both sides of the Lodge are now open, so you can walk all the way down to the farthest cabins on each end-8001 on the north end and 8026 on the south end. Both parking lots to those cabins are open, as well. I gotta tell you: if you get the cabins on the far end of either side, you've got nearly a quarter mile hike to get back to the main Lodge lobby. I am not kidding. It is a haul. It looks pretty, but if you want to go grab a coffee or pastry or one of those faux waffle baskets, you will have a long walk. Even going to the soda dispenser at GP from cabin 8026 will take you a good 6-7 minute walk. Yowser! There is one grill roughly halfway down the path to the south cabins, but it is a single grill (a big one with gas, though)--it has no tables nearby, however. On the north end, also about halfway down, there are two big, gas grills, and those have two covered picnic tables. But, to use those, you're gonna half to take a hike. The landscaping is very pretty and quite lush looking, so they did a great job there. The nature trail still exists at the far south end after cabin 8026; however, I don't know that their will be a path that cuts off toward the main bike path as in the future since that's where the parking lot sits now, I think. There are no signs announcing the nature trail, either, so I'm guessing that if you walk past cabin 8026 very far (I didn't have time to do that yesterday), you're simply on your own. Finally, the huge road going beside the VWL building is too gaudy for my desires. It's tastefully done, but a road half that big would have sufficed. Now, it looks like the big walks around many of the other resorts, so that's lost wilderness that's not coming back. Still, I will say what landscaping they did along the cabin paths is lovely. But, if you stay in the main VWL building, you now have fewer trees to look at. Perhaps that will be okay for those wanting a lake view.

LATER: We got to go inside a cabin. . .

 

[jimmytammy]

Sleepy
Sorry your RF experience didn't pan out. I am in hopes that once the newness wears off, maybe they will be back on their game, but my doubts override my positive thoughts so far. You know, for all us ol folks who have loved the Lodge and all it encompassed in the past, there will be a new group of folks who will come along, never knowing how it once was, and embrace it all.

I compare it to my lack of knowledge of how Figment once was as compared to now. All I know is the current attraction, since the original had gone away sometime before our 1st visit in 1999. I hear all about it, have read all about it, and wish I could have seen it for myself. But alas, it will never be.

For me personally, I hope I can embrace all the Lodge offers now vs. what I remember it being. So far, GP has been a plus. I miss the beach, I miss turning the corner at the edge of the main lodge as we walked towards the boats, I miss Trout Pass as we shimmy past it on the narrow walkway, plus a few other sort of trivial things we took for granted all those years. But in turn, WL has taken on a new life. Again, for me personally, I have to get on board and ride the train, or watch it pass me by. I hope to ride and not be a bystander! Just hope they get the kinks worked out soon

Looking forward to hearing your further thoughts on your experiences of it all so far...staying tuned in

 

[Roxyfire]

While I figured they would cease the coffee service in the Territory Lounge, I'm still sad to hear of it. We went down there every morning during our visit. I got the wilderness bark latte and my son got breakfast blend tea, over some ice. The gentleman down there had it down perfectly as my son explained how he wanted his tea. It only took one explanation but he knew the boy who wanted the hot tea!
I always thought that was an extra special touch on their part. While I know we can get the lattes at Roaring Fork I will miss using that quiet lounge area in the morning!

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

So what, were back to uncivilized Wilderness with no morning lattes? That doesn't seem to fit the updated CCV theme.

I'm very confused though.....the majority of the timeshare with both VWL and CCV is on the south end and the put the biggest and nicest BBQ grill pavilion what will be. 1/4 or maybe 1/2 mile away on the north end? I guess they figured all we needed was to have our one little remaining charcoal grill replaced to make us happy.

Just thinking now - Are there exit doors down at the south end of VWL that are now useable? I never looked at doors down there before because there was no point to them except fire exits but it seems like they should have been turned into useable exits? And is that service area the same or has it been updated.....still laundry and dumpster views and same old parking are for service vehicles or was that torn up and redone?

 

[sleepydog25]

So what, were back to uncivilized Wilderness with no morning lattes? That doesn't seem to fit the updated CCV theme.

I'm very confused though.....the majority of the timeshare with both VWL and CCV is on the south end and the put the biggest and nicest BBQ grill pavilion what will be. 1/4 or maybe 1/2 mile away on the north end? I guess they figured all we needed was to have our one little remaining charcoal grill replaced to make us happy.

Just thinking now - Are there exit doors down at the south end of VWL that are now useable? I never looked at doors down there before because there was no point to them except fire exits but it seems like they should have been turned into useable exits? And is that service area the same or has it been updated.....still laundry and dumpster views and same old parking are for service vehicles or was that torn up and redone?

I'll have to check out the VWL wing entrances, and it's possible there is a way to enter down near the dumpster view--which doesn't appear to have changed much. I do know they made a nice little walkway over a lagoon of sorts from midpoint of the new cabins on the north side of the building that allows guests to enter somewhere in the north wing. It's at that walkway where the 2-grill cookout area is located. The cabins are numbered 8001 to 8026. 8001 is the farthest out on the north side, and the crosswalk to the main building sits right at cabin 8006. The last cabin on the north side is 8012, and it will be closest to the boat dock. I don't think there is anywhere to cross to the main building there except to walk around as though you're coming from the boat dock. On the south side, the cabins start again with 8013 and go through 8026 with the latter being about 200+ yards from the main building. You think hallways at AKL-Kidani are long? Ha! I'm guessing the reasoning for having only one grill on the south end is because GP is much closer. . .I guess. There's actually plenty of room for a second grill and picnic tables at that location, as well.

Sleepy
Sorry your RF experience didn't pan out. I am in hopes that once the newness wears off, maybe they will be back on their game, but my doubts override my positive thoughts so far. You know, for all us ol folks who have loved the Lodge and all it encompassed in the past, there will be a new group of folks who will come along, never knowing how it once was, and embrace it all.

I compare it to my lack of knowledge of how Figment once was as compared to now. All I know is the current attraction, since the original had gone away sometime before our 1st visit in 1999. I hear all about it, have read all about it, and wish I could have seen it for myself. But alas, it will never be.

For me personally, I hope I can embrace all the Lodge offers now vs. what I remember it being. So far, GP has been a plus. I miss the beach, I miss turning the corner at the edge of the main lodge as we walked towards the boats, I miss Trout Pass as we shimmy past it on the narrow walkway, plus a few other sort of trivial things we took for granted all those years. But in turn, WL has taken on a new life. Again, for me personally, I have to get on board and ride the train, or watch it pass me by. I hope to ride and not be a bystander! Just hope they get the kinks worked out soon

Looking forward to hearing your further thoughts on your experiences of it all so far...staying tuned in

Good point about newbies coming and not realizing how it was. I'm certain you are correct. Still, it looks as though Disney has again chosen reduced cost over substance. I think the waffle mixture may come out of a machine now as the Helpful CM alluded to such. Same with toppings. I've no doubt those who haven't eaten there before or who really just want something in the morning that's within easy reach won't be bothered by the changes. We, on the other hand, will now likely spend our $ at GP in the morning and at lunch. Speaking of, we visited there again today for lunch. Luv had the chicken salad which was good but not great--chicken was a bit dry and she's not a fan of fruit in her salad, and this came with blackberries, blueberries, and apple slices. Overall, it was fine, though. I again had the salmon BLT, and though there was a bit less bacon than last time, there were still three nice slices on the sandwich. The salmon was cooked nicely, and those waffle fries are supremely good. We ordered those from the walk up window so received 20% off with our AP. Total cost for the two with tax came out to under $22. By Disney standards, that's a good deal. We also ordered two drinks and some fried oysters from the bar, no discount, of course. My Huckleberry Punch was a bit too sweet but had a solid amount of alcohol: $12. Luv had the Grand Margarita, $11.50, and it was very good, very lime-y and possessed a perfect proportion of tequila. The oysters? Well, they were $12 for only three, but those suckers were huge! They came with a miso aoli, and they melted in your mouth. Now, $12 is a bit steep for our tastes going forward, but I'm a fried oysters aficionado, and these were excellent. It wasn't crowded at lunch--we easily found a seat under the roof--but I'm thinking when Copper Creek opens, it will get much busier. Service was topnotch still, too. GP has quickly become one of our favorite places. So, that's a plus.

 

[sleepydog25]

So-o-o, now for the cabin peek. Yesterday, after we had breakfast at GP, we sauntered down the now open pathway of the cabins (it used to be the nature trail. . .well, technically, the cabins sit along where the nature trail ran and the pathway sits a bit closer to the VWL wing). As we approached cabin 8014, we decided to peek inside an open window and walk around the side for a view of the back porch. As we did so, a family of about six walked into cabin 8015. As they did, they invited another family who was walking along the path to come take a look inside. . .and we may have asked very, very politely if we, too, could take a look. They were gracious enough to let us do just that! Turns out she was a Disney employee, and Disney has been selecting employees and their families to check out the new cabins, give them a once over and to test out that things work. That explained why we saw so many Mousekeepers in the cabins as we walked. Anyway, they are gorgeous. I'll try to post a video link when we get back next week. The cabins aren't as spacious as they appear on the videos--it feels as though the Poly bungalows are bigger--and even the kitchen isn't as expansive as photos make it seem. That being said, they were still quite lovely and inviting. The bathrooms are gorgeous. They sleep 8 (which we had to explain to the families): three in the living area (sleeper sofa and pull out single chair), two in the master BR, and three in the second BR as it has a trundle bed. Very, very nice. . .but a long walk to the main Lodge. lol The furnishings look well-themed for the cabins, and there is plunge hot tub on the porch overlooking the lake. This side of the main Lodge should also be quieter because all the cabins on the north side will have to deal with boats all morning, day, and night long, including the sea racers (Teton boat and bike rental is back open, btw), fishing expeditions, and of course, the boats to MK and CR. Lots and lots of boats. You might want to watch what you wear inside the cabins. . .just saying'. And if you're a light sleeper? Could be an issue. Okay, that's it for now. Time for Art Smith's Homecoming.