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The Villas at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, located next to the popular Disney’s Wilderness Lodge,
surrounds guests with the grandeur of the Old West and stories of the people who settled there. Each of the resort’s
studio, one- and two-bedroom vacation villas tells the tale of the pioneers who built and stayed in the
late 19th century railroad hotels in the national parks region of the American West. A unique feature
of the resort is its themed Carolwood Pacific Room which displays railroad memorabilia, including a
special exhibit on loan from the Disney family of two of Walt Disney’s personal scale-model train
cars and a piece of the track.
| | A little about the wilderness lodge | |
A sun-drenched atrium dominated by 60-foot lodgepole pine timbers and a massive
stone fireplace helps recapture the romance of rustic, century-old architecture
with a contemporary flair, bringing the wilderness world of nearly 100 years
ago 2,000 miles to Florida lakes and forest lands.
The Lodge is hidden away on the shores of Bay Lake surrounded by towering pine,
cypress and oak forests. The 728-room hideaway is accessible by boat across the
Seven Seas Lagoon to the Magic Kingdom and by complimentary bus to all the
Disney theme parks, hotels and attractions.
The resort features a volcanic meadow with bubbling color pools, babbling
brooks and geysers spewing misty streams up to 100 feet into the air beside the
swimming pool and white sand beaches.
A soaring, log-framed main lobby is the centerpiece of the complex. Massive
six-story-high bundled log columns help support roof dormers that bathe the
multicolored wood and stone floor below in natural light. Four massive
chandeliers with torch-cut scenes of Indians and buffalo, topped with glowing
teepees, grace the lobby. Two 55-foot handcarved totem poles -- the "eagle" and
"raven" -- were inspired by Northwest Indians.
A majestic, 82-foot-tall, three-sided stone fireplace re-creates a
2-billion-year geological record of the earth with fossilized remains of
prehistoric animal and plant life. Colorful rock strata layers are re-created
in the proportions they occur in the Grand Canyon.
The villas is located right out the right side of the main lobby, just past the bus depot. The accommodations are standard issue for DVC resorts that include
studio, one- and two-bedroom villas. No three-bedroom villas here. In the villa's building is a weight room if you feel the urge. The themeing, as expected, is of the great national parks with an easy walk to boats launches or
an even closer walk to the bus depot. The Wilderness Lodge Villas resort, like the beach club villas, is a single building off to the side of the host resort.
The villas is one of our top 3 resorts to stay at when visiting disney. The lobby is simply a sight to see. I love how the spring starts inside of
the lobby, then goes through the back of the building and out to a large waterfall and then finally in to the swimming pool.
The rooms are standard issue rooms for deluxe resorts with a northwestern feel. The balconies are very small to non-existant. The feature pool is smaller by
other disney resort standards and has the shortest slide even when comparing to moderate level resorts. During spring break times of year, you better get to the pool early
or you may not get in due to the size of the pool. The villas has its own pool just for members but it is more like a quiet pool than the feature pools at other DVC resorts.
You also have access to the marina on bay lake where you can rent the just about anything that floats or has wheels.
We always dine at the Whispering Canyon Cafe during our stay. This is a lot of fun as the kids get to run around in the restaurant WITHOUT getting in trouble. Oh,
and dont ask for the Ketchup! the Roaring Fork Snacks is a great place to get quick service type meals. If you are not on a dining plan, the meals are cheaper here
than in the parks. You have options when traveling to other guest areas. Take the boat if going to the magic kingdom or other bay lake resorts. The other option is
Disney Transport which is suspect at best especially during busier times but they will get you where you want to go...eventually.
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