Disney's Wilderness Lodge

We’re currently staying at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, and I just have to share our experience to warn other families about dangerous pocket doors in bathroom. Only an hour after check-in, my daughter — who turns 5 tomorrow — got hurt by the bathroom pocket door. She opened it, and it slammed shut so fast there was no resistance at all, no soft close mechanism, extremely heavy door! The hardware (lock and handle) jammed her little fingers badly. If she hadn’t pulled away quickly, she could have lost them. There was a lot of blood and tears… I immediately called the front desk. A manager, showed up and offered to have maintenance check the door and to call 911 if needed. Since her fingers didn’t seem broken and she was already shaken up, I declined the ambulance. Manager handed me a card to file a claim — but of course, claims are closed over the weekend, so I can’t even start the process until Monday. Maintenance found nothing wrong with the door just agreed that’s poor design Other than sending up a few band-aids, Disney didn’t follow up, didn’t check on us. I had to call to see the maintenance response. Our evening plans were ruined. Later, when I tried to shower my daughter, two heavy bottles (shampoo and conditioner) fell off the wall and onto her feet, causing even more pain and tears. Maintenance came but said they couldn’t fix it without a special tool that only housekeeping had. We waited even longer for very unfriendly housekeeper to show up and finally secure it properly. This is supposed to be a deluxe property — and so far, all we’ve gotten is frustration and injury, with no real effort to make things right. I feel terrible for my child and terrible knowing that Disney likely won’t fix these door issues. I’ve since found many stories of kids getting their fingers hurt by these same doors mechanism. Clearly, nothing has changed. If you’re traveling with little ones, please be careful

The Wilderness Lodge is amazing. My husband said it was his favorite thing about our trip (even though we visited 3 parks)! I love the warm pools and the best Bison burger at the Geyser Restaurant, sitting and looking at the lake. We took the ferry boat out for a ride and it happened to be during the fireworks- perfect timing! The food at the Fork restaurant is one of the best we've had in a resort. AND you could take it to your room to enjoy. We could see the electrical light boat parade from our room. Everything was outstanding including the room itself. Very spacious.

Currently staying at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, or should that be Disney’s Construction Site! Heavy machinery and men outside my balcony door every weekday for the past week, apparently painting the building. Not sure why this needs to happen during peak season but it is. The front desk don’t know how long the building works will take, they’ve offered an alternative room on the third floor but given that the cherry picker is going up and down they don’t think that’ll be any quieter. My balcony was painted the other day rendering that out of use; the workmen just slapped a sticker on the window that morning to say out of use. I’m I was staying in a cheap hotel in Spain I could understand it… But I’m not! I’m paying premium money to stay at a Disney 5 star resort and the experience is very poor!! It’s a rip off and very much spoiling our premium vacation. The staff are very friendly but saying ‘have a nice day’ to me all the time whilst not addressing these issues rings hollow! I won’t be staying here again, I doubt I’ll try a Disney property again, my advice is to spend your premium money elsewhere

Know what you pay for! Things have certainly changed for the worse at Wilderness Lodge. Upon check-in, they tried to give me a standard view room when I paid for fireworks view. When I questioned it, supervisor told me I can “see” the fireworks from room 4020. I had to explain to her I paid an extra $800 for fireworks view category. After refusing room 4020, and firmly asking for what I rightfully paid for, they magically found a room in the correct category. Clearly, they were trying to swindle me with a lower value room. For dinner, I checked into Whispering Canyon at 6:08pm with 6:25pm reservation. We finally got seated at 7pm after I continually asked to be seated. Waiting almost 1hr for subpar food is ridiculous for a deluxe level resort! Once again, if I didn’t push-back, after 40minutes of waiting for a table who knows how much longer it could have been. If castmebers knew it was busy, they could have told me at check-in. Communication is key to valuable customer service. Every time I asked about the table I was told “a few minutes”…. When did a “few” mean “45” minutes? Once again, not something I would expect from a deluxe resort. With so few chairs at the main pool, we never got to enjoy. Each day was jammed packed with nowhere to sit. Thankfully, the quiet pool offered my family an opportunity to enjoy an amenity on this property. It’s pool access but my daughter missed out on poolside activities and slide since they aren’t available at the “quiet” pool. The ONLY decent thing about my stay this week was paying an extra $125 a night for club level access. Cast members were actually caring, helpful, and providing a proper service expected at a deluxe resort. I’ve stayed at WL several times in the past and loved it. It’s certainly going straight down hill in customer service. This week I had to push-back to get any type of decent service (except at Club level). It’s so sad how a great place like Wilderness Lodge has lost a customer forever. After this week, I have no desire to ever stay here again. Disney resorts should be relaxing and enjoyable. If you want this in your stay, choose another property at Disney World because you won’t find it at Wilderness Lodge. Hopefully you all have a better experience. I’ll post pics of Club Level since that was the only saving grace for me this week at this god forsaken resort. Beware, be informed and speak up, or else Wilderness Lodge will railroad you!!

Walking into the Wilderness Lodge for the first time is like walking into the US Capitol or a Cathedral. Your eyes immediately go up. The entrance is a grand room with massive totem poles and theming everywhere. The boat access to HoopDeeDoo and the parks is super easy and convenient and a great way to start and end the time at the parks each day. Finally, the pool area is a blast. There is a main area, a kiddie area and hot tubs that are at body temperature so the kids can also enjoy them. The pool is also open very late so you don't have to worry about missing out while at the parks. The lifeguards were very attentive and professional, which made me feel quite comfortable letting the older kids be on their own while I stayed with the youngest kids. Overall, a terrific experience at this well-themed resort.

We last stayed here in 2018 I believe. We stayed twice because the first time, my daughter fell in the bathroom and dislocated her knee. That was a disaster. We spent the day at the ER and she had to wear a brace and crutches and be in a wheelchair for the rest of the trip. The manager called an ambulance and gave us vouchers for a cab, but we missed our Le Cellier ADR and you would think maybe they would give us a voucher to get some food, but we had to pick up some crappy Chinese food near the hospital. I had to ask for a refund of the dining credits we couldn't use that day. Considering that we could have sued, you would think they would be nicer. Still, we love the hotel. Everything is convenient and the atmosphere is relaxing. We loved the pool.We went back 6 months later so that my daughter could have a good stay there and we would go again.