Category — q. Reviews

Photo Tour of a Standard Room at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge–Jambo House

by Dave

For the first page of this review of Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge, click here

PHOTO TOUR OF A STANDARD ROOM AT DISNEY’S ANIMAL KINGDOM LODGE

Standard rooms at the Animal Kingdom Lodge most commonly come with two queens, but rooms with one king, or one queen and a bunk bed, are available as well. Note that these rooms saw a light refurb in 2019-2020. I’ll post updated images and floor plans shortly.

The images that follow were mostly taken during a visit to a two-queen room at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge in April 2016 after a light refurb but there’s also one lousy shot of a pre-refurb bunk bed room from January 2014 as well.

The entry is similar to that of many deluxe rooms.

On one side you’ll find the door to a connecting room (if present) and a large closet.

Here’s the other half of the closet.

On the other side of the entry is the bath, with two sinks…

…and in its own space, a toilet and tub/shower. Note the decorative tiling.

…and the fun shower curtain.

Further into the room you’ll find on one side the queen beds.

The bed side from the back of the room.

Closer view of a bed. Note the draping at the head…

…and the ornate carving in the headboard.

Between the beds is a small table with storage.

Bunk bed rooms replace the queen nearer the bath with a large bunk bed.

Beds are all that fit on this side of these small rooms. Here’s the other side of the room.

The TV side from the back.

The mini-fridge and coffeemaker are near the bath.

The fridge, open, with scaling objects.

The dresser and TV take up the center of this side. These room are overdue for a refurb that will separate the TV from the dresser, and add a much larger TV on the wall and power points to the dresser.

The two large drawers are enough for the four these rooms sleep, if they also use the large closet at the entry.

Table and chairs fill out the furnishings on this side of the room.

Outside is the full-width balcony. Get a savanna-view room and you will delight in the animals you will see from your balcony!

The table has this spotting guide.

Details (mostly cowrillas) from inside.

AMENITIES AT DISNEY’S ANIMAL KINGDOM LODGE

This review continues here!

TOPICS IN THIS REVIEW OF DISNEY’S ANIMAL KINGDOM LODGE

OTHER KEY PAGES FOR WHERE TO STAY AT DISNEY WORLD

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April 9, 2014 5 Comments

Review: The Afternoon Festival of Fantasy Parade at the Magic Kingdom

by Dave

The Magic Kingdom’s afternoon parade, “Disney’s Festival of Fantasy Parade,” debuted March 9, 2014.

The parade presents “Mickey and his Fantasyland Friends” through a series of new floats, music and dancers.

It begins typically every day at 3p, although two afternoon parades are scheduled on the very busiest days of the year.

The parade presents a mix of both classic Disney characters and those from its most recent films, and, because of its “Fantasyland” theming, a more coherent set of characters than in some past parades.

The new floats are really tall, which means littler kids can see most characters even if they are not right at the very front of the parade viewing areas.

The all-new musical track combines a new parade song with stretches from the classic songs of the films depicted on the floats, and ends with a really big beat.

The more visible floats, more current characters, and a bunch of really nice designs make the Festival of Fantasy Parade the best new parade at Disney World in decades.

Belle and the Beast lead off the parade, as the first part of a three part-float.

At the center of this float is Cinderella…

…and at the rear is a rotating tableau, with Tiana on one side…

…and these hot yet Frozen princesses on the other.

Rapunzel is next…

…then Ariel.

Then we go back to the golden age, with Peter Pan and Captain Hook…

…and some evidence via Tinkerbelle at the rear of the Peter Pan float that this parade is fun for dads, too.

A float themed around Brave is next, presenting Merida.

Following it, the tone shifts for exactly one float to Disney villains, with Maleficent in her dragon form. I love this float, but its presence makes no sense in the order of ideas depicted so far.

The tone shifts immediately back, with another multi-scened float, this one circus-themed. The lead scene is Pinocchio.

Next is Donald and Daisy…

…then Dumbo…

…and Pluto bringing up the rear.

The parade ends with Mickey and Minnie in a very cool hot air balloon float!

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March 9, 2014 35 Comments

Accommodations at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge

by Dave

For the first page of this review of Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, click here.

THE ACCOMMODATIONS AT DISNEY’S WILDERNESS LODGE

All Disney deluxe resorts have standard rooms; concierge rooms, which Disney calls “club” rooms; and suites. (See this for more on suites at Walt Disney World.) The Wilderness Lodge has, in addition to these, club-level “deluxe rooms.”

Rooms in Disney’s Wilderness Lodge are in a connected set of six and seven story high buildings, in a “Y” shape. On the map, the Wilderness Lodge is the green-roofed building at the top center. The nearby Villas at Disney Wilderness Lodge (reviewed separately here) is the red-roofed area below and right.

At Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, standard and club/ concierge rooms sleep four, in two queen beds, or a queen and bunk beds. The floor plan above is for a two-queen standard or club room. There’s a photo tour of one of these rooms here.

(See photo for the bunks, the mattresses of which I measured as 5’9″ long and 39″ wide.)

A few standard rooms with a king, sleeping two, are also available.

Standard rooms are sold with “standard,” “courtyard”, and “woods” views.

Courtyard views look into the center of the open space, woods views into the woods, and standard views–the least expensive–onto something else…e.g. a parking lot.

Though these standard rooms are tied with the Animal Kingdom Lodge’s rooms as the smallest standard deluxe rooms on property, the space rarely feels cramped; it just has no more space than it absolutely needs.

Club rooms–which the rest of the world calls concierge rooms–all on the key-access 7th floor, have the same layout as standard rooms but have various services and amenities added on, as well as a substantial extra cost. The outside balcony half-wall in many of these rooms (as well as other top-floor rooms in other areas of the Lodge) is solid, not railed–limiting views except for standing adults. Some of these rooms also have sloped ceilings.

Club rooms are not worth the extra cost for most first time family visitors. However, they may be well worth it for families intending to spend more time at the Wilderness Lodge than implied by this site’s itineraries. TikimanPages.com has a great discussion of the value of concierge rooms here. Though focused on the Polynesian, it applies to any deluxe resort.

Deluxe rooms (sometimes called “junior suites”) are suite-like club rooms, although they are found on many floors, not just the 7th. They sleep 6–four in two queens in the bedroom, and two in a fold-out couch in the sitting room. (See floor plan at right.) For a review of these rooms, click here.

Suites sleeping 2 to 4 people are available for families seeking a particularly comfortable visit–see this for more on suites at Walt Disney World. The Yosemite Vice Presidential suite, with 885 square feet, sleeps 4–two in the bedroom in a king, and 2 in a queen sleeper sofa in the parlor. The Yellowstone Presidential Suite has the same sleeping arrangements in 1000 square feet.

(To each of the capacity figures above, you can add one more kid under 3 at time of check in who sleeps in a crib.)

The Wilderness Lodge inspires devotion among its fans–of which I am one.

Families who have stayed at it once will have difficulty understanding why they should ever go to a different Walt Disney World resort hotel.

The Wilderness Lodge’s strengths for first time visitors are its unsurpassed kid appeal and its reasonable prices.

The Wilderness Lodge’s principal negatives compared to other deluxes are its small rooms and relative inconvenience for parks other than the Magic Kingdom.

THE THEMING AND HISTORY OF DISNEY’S WILDERNESS LODGE

This review continues here.

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February 17, 2014 15 Comments

The Theming of Disney’s Wilderness Lodge

by Dave

For the first page of this review of Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, click here.

THE THEMING OF DISNEY’S WILDERNESS LODGE

Disney’s Wilderness Lodge opened in 1994, and its last renovation was completed in 2012. It is officially described on Walt Disney World’s website as

“…inspired by the Great American Northwest National Park lodges from the turn of the 20th century…an architecturally grand Disney Deluxe Resort hotel honoring American craftsmanship and artistry, and celebrating the majesty of the unspoiled wilderness.

“The theme of being in harmony with nature winds through the lodge—inside and out. Authentic decor and genuine artifacts pay homage to ancient Native American cultures and the pioneering spirit of early American explorers.

“From its stunning 7-story lobby, built from 85 loads of Lodgepole Pine, to its 82-foot-tall lobby fireplace, the Resort is as beautiful as it is impressive. Its 727 Guest rooms offer themes of wildlife, nature and Native American designs, and include Honeymoon Suites featuring marble whirlpool tubs.

“On the Resort grounds, look for the bubbling spring that flows into a creek, tumbles over a sparkling waterfall and empties into the swimming pool. Catch the eruption of Fire Rock Geyser, fashioned after Yellowstone National Park’s Old Faithful, with its plume of water jetting 120 feet into the air.”

The description of the Wilderness Lodge as being “inspired by the great American Northwest,” though presented by Disney itself, and widely repeated in guidebooks and the internet, is a bit of a crock.

The Wilderness Lodge does have elements from the American Northwest–Washington and Oregon–ranging from the stunning totem poles in the main lobby to the menu provenance of its signature restaurant, Artist Point.

And it also celebrates other remarkable western areas, such as the Grand Canyon in the southwest.

That said, the Wilderness Lodge is in fact largely inspired by, and is in homage to, the Mountain West–the basic architecture, the look of the lobby, and the “Fire Rock Geyser” area are all based on Yellowstone, which is not part of America’s Northwest by a long shot.

Yellowstone is principally in Wyoming, but also in Montana and Idaho. This area is best described as the “Mountain West,” not the Northwest.

The second most significant influence on Wilderness Lodge theming after Yellowstone is the art and artifacts of Native Americans.

Tribes represented in the Lodge cross the country from the southwest (the Navajo and Apache) to the northwest to the great plains to the southeast (Cherokee.)

The third most significant influence is the Grand Canyon in general, and in particular Mary Colter’s masterwork Bright Angel Lodge there, from which the lobby fireplace was adapted and expanded (to 82 feet!!).

(I have always thought that Colter’s work at the Grand Canyon made her the first Imagineer…years before Walt Disney ever thought of the term!)

Additional theme influences include the great vernacular styles associated with westward expansion and its later re-interpretations–ranging from Frank Lloyd Wright to Thomas Molesworth to the Mission style.

The simplest, but still largely accurate, description of the Wilderness Lodge’s theme would be that it honors the mountain west; a longer but more accurate description would be that it is based on the great National Park Lodges of the early 1900s, and honors the Native Americans who first lived in this land, as well as later explorers and their descendants–hunters, trappers, guides, woodsmen, cowboys, etc.

The Lodge greatly repays exploring. In the upper floor spaces around the main lobby, you’ll find wonderful nooks and crannies.

On the part above the entrance, you’ll find several little fireplace nooks…

…and in the area facing the pool courtyard, there’s multiple levels of seating nooks.

There’s also a subtle theming to this courtyard itself, in that it is all unified by a stream that begins at a spring inside the Lodge itself…

…meanders down the center of the courtyard…

…goes over a waterfall down to the pool…

…and continues past the pool to Bay Lake.

Even the light fixtures are worth noting–from the spectacular teepee lights in the main lobby…

…to the darling lights illuminating the hallways that lead to the rooms.

The Wilderness Lodge was designed by Peter Dominick, who also designed the next-most stunning Disney resort, the Animal Kingdom Lodge.

In an obituary of Dominick (he died in 2009), it was noted that Dominick “understood the building traditions of the Rocky Mountain West…his specialty was wonderful buildings that celebrated the landscape he loved.”

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February 4, 2014 No Comments

Amenities at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge

by Dave

For the first page of this review of Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, click here.

AMENITIES AT DISNEY’S WILDERNESS LODGE

Disney’s Wilderness Lodge is one of 8 official Disney-owned deluxe resorts at Walt Disney World.

In the order I recommend them for first time family visitors, they are

(Many of these also offer Disney Vacation Club (“DVC”) studios and villas, all for rent to the general public–see this for more on the Disney Vacation Club resorts. There are two DVC offerings at the Wilderness Lodge: Copper Creek Villas and Cabins, and Boulder Ridge Villas.)

You enter the Wilderness Lodge into its glorious, jaw-dropping lobby–none of my photos do justice to it…

On the right you’ll find the check-in and concierge area. At Disney World, “concierge” means help with tickets, dining reservations and such.

Just down the side and extending around the corner is the gift shop.

More gift shop images:

Back into the lobby, and then outside you’ll find the main Copper Creek Springs pool at the Wilderness Lodge, which nestles between the two main wings of the building–see the map (on it the Lodge is the green-roofed shape at the top). More on the main pool and the great second pool, the Boulder Ridge Cove pool, down and around the corner, is later in this review.

Close to Bay Lake is a depiction of Yellowstone’s Old Faithful, whose local name is “Fire Rock Geyser,” and which goes off on the hour.

At this end of the complex, if you go left, or north, you’ll come to the boat dock.

One set of boats from here takes you to the Magic Kingdom, and another set loops among the three Bay Lake resorts–the Wilderness Lodge, Contemporary Resort, and Fort Wilderness. This makes getting to the kid-pleasing Chef Mickey’s at the Contemporary, and Hoop-Dee-Doo Revue at Fort Wilderness, quite simple.

Boats to the Contemporary always start much earlier in the morning than the Magic Kingdom boats–at 6.45a the day I shot this–so if you are going to the Magic Kingdom early, get the Contemporary boat and walk from the Contemporary to the Magic Kingdom.

The bus stop–where you’ll find shared buses to all the parks–is at the other end of the resort, near the main entrance, between it and the nearby Boulder Ridge Villas at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge.

The bus timing board. Note at the bottom that it also indicates watercraft transport to the Magic Kingdom.

Inside the Boulder Ridge Villas is the gym, Sturdy Branches.

A new spa, Salon by the Springs, took over the old pool bar–Geyser Point is the new pool bar.

Further down towards Bay Lake is the bike and boat barn.

Some more bikes…

…the marina.

What used to be a beach and a kids playground has largely been replaced by the new Cascade Cabins. But there is still a trail to Fort Wilderness, and a pleasant walkway near the shore of Bay Lake outside of the new dining venue Geyser Point. (There’s more on dining at the Wilderness Lodge later in this review.)

The trail takes a different route than it used to (see the map)–the former trail is blocked off at the end of the eastern Cascade Cabins on this side.

But even so you can see plenty of deer behind the fences in this area at the right time of day–these were part of a group of nine deer who greeted us.

Also back here is a grill and sports court.

Back by Geyser Point is an outdoor fireplace for campfires.

And then there’s the main pool.

THE MAIN COPPER CREEK SPRINGS POOL AT DISNEY’S WILDERNESS LODGE

This review continues here!

MATERIAL IN THIS REVIEW OF DISNEY’S WILDERNESS LODGE

OTHER KEY PAGES FOR WHERE TO STAY AT DISNEY WORLD

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February 3, 2014 2 Comments

Photo Tour of a Standard Room at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge

by Dave

For the first page of this review of Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, click here.

PHOTO TOUR OF A STANDARD ROOM AT DISNEY’S WILDERNESS LODGE

Standard rooms at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge–like those at the Animal Kingdom Lodge–are distinctive among Disney’s deluxe resorts for sleeping only four, and for the overall small size of their sleeping area. Rooms here were refurbed in 2021. I’ll have updated photos and floor plans shortly.See the floor plan. Most other Disney World deluxe sleeping spaces are longer and wider, and many have a couch that provides the fifth sleeping spot.

As you enter the room, there’s a bath on one side and the closet, coffee maker and mini-fridge on the other.

The bath is divided into two areas, starting with these double sinks.

A closer, but not all that well-focused, view of the toiletries.

All Disney rooms come with a hair dryer. Here’s the one at the Wilderness Lodge.

Behind a door you’ll find a toilet and tub/shower combo.

Wilderness Lodge rooms abound in charming detail. These little guys are inlaid into the bath surround.

On the other side of the entry hall, there’s a coffee maker and mini-fridge, with a couple of drawers above the mini-fridge…

…that are larger than they first appear.

Here’s the inside of the fridge with a scaling object.

The closet is next, good-sized but unstructured, with two sliding doors. Here’s it open–you can see half of it…

…and the other half. Note the ironing board and luggage rack.

Built into the closet wall is this small safe.

Deeper into the room you’ll find in most Wilderness Lodge standard rooms two queen beds on one side.

Here’s the bed side from the back of the room.

Some of these bedrooms have kings, and–rare among Disney resorts–others have one queen and a pair of bunk beds–if you want these, they are a separately bookable category. The bunk mattresses are about 5′ 9″ so are best for kids.

A closer view of one of the queens.

Between the beds is a bedside table with a shelf below…

…and a storage drawer for your important books..

The other side of the room has the connecting door (if present), TV, dresser, and a table and two chairs.

Here’s the TV side from the back.

The dresser is large. Its looks like it has six drawers…

…but in fact has three. Regardless, here’s plenty of storage in the room for the four people it sleeps.

Between the dresser and balcony is the table and chairs, with a mirror above. There’s a Disney World rule somewhere about in what resorts these tables are round, and in which they are square. I haven’t found it yet.

At the end of the room is the balcony (patio on bottom floors). Here’s the balcony from one of our woods view rooms…

…and here’s one from a courtyard view room.

The conversion of half of the former Wilderness Lodge rooms into Cooper Creek, and the Copper Creek-associated bulldozing of a number of trees on the Bay Lake side, means that many higher Wilderness Lodge woods view rooms now have distant theme park views, including of the evening fireworks.

In the zoomed shot above from my fifth floor room near Bay Lake, you can see the Main Street station directly above the chimney on the cabin. Views are not quite so good once the leaves are back on the trees…