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OVERVIEW: BOULDER RIDGE VILLAS AT DISNEY’S WILDERNESS LODGE FOR FIRST TIME VISITORS

Note: guests in Boulder Ridge Villas are eligible for Disney World’s Early Entry program, and have the ability to pre-book as early as  seven days before check-in Lightning Lane Multi Pass and Lightning Lane Single Pass rides. They are also eligible for its Extended Evening Hours.

Most (but not all…) room options at Boulder Ridge Villas at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge (a Disney Vacation Club resort) are wonderful places for returning visitors to Walt Disney World to stay.

For typical first-time visitors, I don’t recommend the Disney Vacation Club resorts.

That said, these “DVC” resorts can be a great choice for first time visitors with large families, needing extra sleeping spaces, or looking for a more comfortable place to stay.

Among the Disney Vacation Club resorts, the Boulder Ridge Villas at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge ranks third overall for first-time visitors, bested by Studios in the Polynesian and sister Wilderness Lodge Copper Creek Villas  but specifics vary a bit by room type and family size.

THE DISNEY VACATION CLUB RESORTS

You can have a spectacular visit at any Walt Disney World resort. However, this site recommends that typical first time visitors to Walt Disney World avoid the Disney Vacation Club resorts, while noting that these resorts are wonderful for visits after the first. (You can find extensive detail on the DVC resorts here.)

The recommendation comes from the simple fact that the distinguishing feature of these resorts–extra space and full kitchens–will not be of much value to first-time visitors following one of the itineraries on this site, as they won’t be used much.

However, the Disney Vacation Club resorts represent more than 10% of Walt Disney World’s total rooms, and are very appropriate for first time visitors with large families, needing extra sleeping spaces, or looking for a more comfortable place to stay.

Because of this, I’m providing a series of up-to-date reviews. This review is based on my half-dozen stays at the Boulder Ridge Villas at the Wilderness Lodge.

THE BOULDER RIDGE VILLAS AT DISNEY’S WILDERNESS LODGE

Resorts are ranked on this site for first time visitors based first on their kid appeal, and then on their convenience.

On this basis, The Boulder Ridge Villas at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge comes in third overall among the Disney Vacation Club resorts. (See this for resort rankings.)

The two Wilderness Lodge options–Boulder Ridge and Copper Creek–are tied with the Polynesian for have the best overall kid appeal among the DVC options.

Because the glory of the Wilderness Lodge is the architecture of the main building and in particular its lobby, since Copper Creek is in the main building, Copper Creek generally wins out over Boulder Ridge–although the separate building of Boulder Ridge really does have its own unique charm.

However, there’s a little variability among the Wilderness Lodge options here for larger families:

• Studios: pick between the Copper Creek  and Boulder Ridge studios based on your sleeping needs. Copper Creek studios sleep four on a queen and a fold-out bed that’s as wide as a queen but four inches shorter. Boulder Ridge studios sleep five on three beds–those two beds and a third bed that folds down from the wall–and eliminates the room’s table when it does so.
• One Bedroom Villas at Boulder Ridge have seating at the dining table for only two–there’s two more dining chairs at a breakfast bar that can be pulled over to the table, but the table remains small. Copper Creek  one bedroom villas seat six at their dining table, although they have no breakfast bar. So for one bedroom villas,  Copper Creek is the better choice
• Two Bedroom Villas at Boulder Ridge have the same living and dining room space as one bedroom villas, and thus the same dining table problem. In addition, these rooms have seats only for four in their living room–although dining chairs can be pulled around into the living area. As noted, Copper Creek  has a better dining set up, but it does have the same limits to the living room. The better dining table capacity makes Copper Creek the better choice of the two for two bedroom villas. Larger families might find the overall set up at Kidani Village a better choice for two bedrooms villas.
• The Boulder Ridge Villas at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge are one of only three DVC resorts that don’t offer Grand Villas (The Polynesian and Beach Club Villas are the others), so for families seeking such a space–they sleep 12–the Grand Villas at Copper Creek Villas  are the best choice.

This review has six pages

• The overview page you are on now
• Theming and accommodations at Boulder Ridge Villas
• A photo tour of a Studio at Boulder Ridge Villas
• A photo tour of the living/dining/kitchen space of One and Two Bedroom Villas at at Boulder Ridge Villas
• A photo tour of the master bedroom and bath space of One and Two Bedroom Villas at at Boulder Ridge Villas
• The amenities and art of Boulder Ridge Villas

Kid Appeal. The Boulder Ridge Villas at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge share the services, resources and lobby of Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, plus compatible theming. The spectacular kid appeal of the Wilderness Lodge, especially its lobby, makes it tied for number one on the kid appeal list, and the Villas at the Wilderness Lodge share this ranking.  (For more on the Wilderness Lodge, see this.)

Convenience.  Both sets of Villas at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge are the fourth-most convenient of all the Disney resort hotels, and the third most convenient of the DVC resorts–after the Polynesian and Bay Lake Tower. Boulder Ridge is a little more convenient to the bus stop, which serves Animal Kingdom, Epcot, and Hollywood Studios.  Copper Creek is a little more convenient to the boat dock that serves Magic Kingdom.

OTHER DISTINCTIVE FEATURES OF THE BOULDER RIDGE VILLAS AT DISNEY’S WILDERNESS LODGE

The Boulder Ridge Villas at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge has a number of very strong positives.

• The strongest positive is the spectacular theming of it and its partner resort Disney’s Wilderness Lodge
• Other shared positives include the nice variety of dining options in the Lodge, and the theming of the main pool
• On its own, positives include the architecture of its lobby (see photo above), the five person capacity of Studios, and the collection of railroad memorabilia in its first floor Carolwood Room–named after Walt Disney’s outdoor model railroad, the Carolwood Pacific (photo below)

The Boulder Ridge Villas at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge also has some distinctive negatives.

Most significant of these is the layout of the Two Bedroom Villa when used by larger families.

Note in the floor plan the king bedroom on the left, and the  bedroom on the right.

The shared living/dining/kitchen space is in the center.

The shared living space is about a foot too narrow to be fully functional when the sofa bed in it is unfolded. The effect is to make the living area almost unusable when the sofa bed is open, and, given that the connecting door to the room with two queens is on the balcony side of the sofa bed, access to and from this room is somewhat limited as well.

Moreover, the dining table only seats two.

More chairs can be grabbed from elsewhere in the villa, and there’s also a small breakfast bar between the kitchen and living room, but really?

This is awkward enough that I would advise a family so large that is cannot fit into the six sleeping spaces of the two bedrooms to stay in a Two Bedroom at Copper Creek or Kidani Village instead.

BEST AND WORST ROOMS AT THE BOULDER RIDGE VILLAS AT DISNEY’S WILDERNESS LODGE

See the map. The Wilderness Lodge itself is the larger, green-roofed block on the top left–the Copper Creek Villas are in the Lodge, on its right side. The Boulder Ridge Villas are the smaller, reddish-roofed block at the bottom right.

The villas connect to the bus stop and the Wilderness Lodge lobby through a curved covered wooden walkway.

Best places to stay at the Boulder Ridge Villas at the Wilderness Lodge

The most convenient rooms are 1501-1505 and 1507.

• These rooms are the closest to the Wilderness Lodge lobby, and accessible by an entry door that serves only first floor rooms, making for the shortest walk both there and back, and also the shortest walk to the bus stops.
• They are a mix of studios and one bedrooms; the one bedrooms can be combined with a studio into a two bedroom.
• As first floor rooms, they have patios, not balconies. Note: avoid 1509—though well-located for convenience, it abuts the ice machine and guest laundry and may be subject to noise from these.

Rooms with the best view:

• Odd numbered fifth floor rooms 5533 and up have great views of Bay Lake.  The lower numbered of these are more convenient, because they are closer to the elevator.  One of these is a one bedroom; the rest are two bedrooms.
• Fourth floor odd numbered rooms 4531 and higher also have good views, but with more studios and one-bedrooms available.  The lower numbered of these are closer to the elevator.

Best mix of view and convenience:

• 4511, a two bedroom, has a moderately good view of Bay Lake, and is equidistant between the elevators and a stairwell that presents the shortest walk to the lobby of the Lodge and the bus stops.  You can’t use this stairwell coming back, but need to go to the elevator instead.
• 4507, also a two-bedroom, is the next best.

Worst Places to Stay at the Boulder Ridge Villas at the Wilderness Lodge

All first floor rooms have patios, not balconies.

A certain group of even numbered rooms are in the shorter wing of the Villas, and overlook the walkway between it and the Lodge.

This walkway is planked in such a way to in effect create corrugations.  The roar of the wheels of rolling bags over these planks will keep some up at night.

Rooms with such problems include even numbers 1506-1516, 2508-2514, 3506-3514, and 4508 to 4514.

Disney’s room request form for these villas won’t let you get anywhere near this specific…so you’d need to communicate over the phone.

BEST FOR:

Larger families, families seeking a bit of extra privacy or more beds, families looking for a more comfortable place to stay, families looking for particularly kid-appealing DVC space.

WORST FOR:

Especially large families looking for a  two-bedroom villa for 7 or 8 people (with the exceptions noted above), families on a budget.

THEMING AND ACCOMMODATIONS AT THE BOULDER RIDGE VILLAS AT THE WILDERNESS LODGE

This review continues here!

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Update: this deal has been released for the general public.

Disney Visa cardholders were offered two deals today, and these are expected to be released to the general public Thursday.

• One is a “Stay, Play and Dine” package discount. For Disney Visa, it has eligible arrival dates of 12/14-12/20/2014 and 1/5-3/7/2015
• Another is a room rate discount applicable most nights from 1/5-3/28/2015

Room only discounts are expected to be as follows:

Value Resorts:

• Little Mermaid rooms at Art of Animation: excluded
• All Star Sports, All Star Music, Pop Century and Family Suites at Art of Animation: 15% off on weekends, 20% off on weekdays
• All Star Movies: 10% off on weekends, 15% off on weekdays

Moderate Resorts:

• Coronado Springs, Caribbean Beach, Port Orleans Riverside, Cabins at Fort Wilderness: 20% off on weekends, 25% off on weekdays
• Port Orleans French Quarter: 10% off on weekends, 15% off on weekdays

Deluxe Resorts:

• Yacht Club, Beach Club, BoardWalk Inn, Polynesian, Contemporary, Grand Floridian, Wilderness Lodge, Animal Kingdom Lodge (except Savanna view): 30% off all nights
• Animal Kingdom Lodge Savanna View: 20% off all nights

DVC Resorts:

• Excluded: Bay Lake Tower, Villas at Grand Floridian, Polynesian Villas, all Grand Villas
• Saratoga Springs, Old Key West, Beach Club, Boardwalk Villas, Wilderness Lodge Villas: 30% off all nights
• Villas at Animal Kingdom Lodge: 20% off all nights

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(For the first page of this review of Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort, see this.)

AMENITIES AT DISNEY’S CARIBBEAN BEACH RESORT

In early October 2018, Disney’s Caribbean Beach resort (mostly) emerged from an almost 18 month long construction project that has greatly improved the layout and usability of the resort, and added new and/or easier to access to its amenities.

I will have much more to say (and more lousy photos to post) after my November stay at Caribbean Beach, but here’s the basics on most of the amenities (treated separately: the main Caribbean Beach pool is covered here, the minor pools in Caribbean Beach’s villages are covered here, and dining at Caribbean Beach is covered here).

But here’s the basics

• Check-in and concierge services are now located in the Old Port Royal area–the old, distant, and inconvenient check-in facility, Custom House, is no longer being used.
• The same building area also includes the re-imagined gift shop and most of the counter-service dining (one bit of counter-service dining, Spyglass Grill, is in the Trinidad area).
• Just outside this building you’ll find the new table service venue, Sebastian’s Bistro, the bar Banana Cabana, and the main pool–the best among Disney World’s moderates.
• The Island markets in Jamaica and Aruba are still in place–at least for the moment. These means guests in these more distant buildings don’t have to make their way to Old Port Royale for coffee, tea, and simple snacks.

Once you are settled, check the map.  At Aruba and Martinique a different bus stop than “yours” may be closer to your accommodations building–for some Aruba buildings, the Jamaica stop is closer, and for some Martinique buildings, the Old Port Royal stop is closer

There’s fishing holes on Caribbean Cay, just outside Old Port Royale.

On Caribbean Cay is one of the many playgrounds scattered around the resort.

DINING AT DISNEY’S CARIBBEAN BEACH RESORT

This review continues here. 

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DISNEY WORLD NEXT WEEK: OCTOBER 4 TO OCTOBER 12, 2014

The material below details operating hours, Extra Magic Hours, parades, and fireworks.

The same stuff is in the image, but organized by park, not by topic.

For more on October 2014 at Walt Disney World,, click here.

[Read more →]

What I expect to be the last Disney World special offer for 2014, a room rate deal, needs to be booked no later than October 3.

Yesterday I got some really nice rates out of this deal for our upcoming family visit in December for our fourth stay in the Family Suites at Art of Animation and our fifth stay at Old Key West.

Disney World typically releases deals for the first part of the upcoming year in early October. So I expect we’ll see a deal going into March 2015 to come out within the next week or so.

As soon as the next Disney World discount offer drops, I’ll post about it, and also link to it here!!

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(For the first page of this review of Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort, see this.)

PHOTO TOUR OF A QUEEN AND MURPHY BED ROOM AT DISNEY’S CARIBBEAN BEACH RESORT

Most rooms at Caribbean Beach sleep four on two queens, five on two queens and a fold down bed, or, in the Pirate rooms in Trinidad, four on two fulls.

This photo tour is of a five person room with two queens and a fold down bed. (For four person queen rooms, see this, and for four person full bed Pirate rooms, see this.)

Five person rooms at Caribbean Beach have queen beds, and a Murphy Bed as well.

The bed side of the room has the queens and a small bedside table between them.

This side will also have the connecting door (at left) if present, and a coat rack near the door.

The fun light fixtures.

A closer view of a queen.

Further back is the bath. The sink area of the bath is separated from the rest of the room by sliding solid doors–rather than the fabric curtain you will find at Port Orleans Riverside and French Quarter (and in Pirate rooms at Caribbean Beach). The sliding doors improve the trapping of both light and noise from the bathroom, plus make it feel more private.

Here’s the sinks themselves…

…and next to them the clothes hanging area.

In their own separate space you’ll find the toilet and tub/shower combo.

More of the shower curtain.

The other side of the room has a table and chairs and a TV/dresser/bench/Murphy Bed/mini-fridge combining thingy. TVs are larger than the one in my photograph, which is from a couple of years ago.

A closer view of the table and chairs…

…the lamp overhead, styled like the ones at the heads of the beds…

…and the window curtains.

And then there’s the thingy…

The right side has a couple of drawers.

There’s three more drawers underneath the green bench.  These are basically inaccessible when the bed is down, as it is shown here.  Even so, this is a much better design than the Murphy Bed rooms at Port Orleans Riverside, where all the drawers in the room are inaccessible when the bed is down.

The object at the far left that looks like two more drawers is in fact the mini fridge.

And then there’s the Murphy Bed…

…another angle.

I measured the Murphy Bed mattress as 30″ wide by 64″ long.  The way it is positioned on top of the bed frame (rather than inside it) and related to the back framing means that, unlike many such beds, it does not sleep much shorter than this. I’d put a five foot tall kid on this and expect great results. The cushion is 5 inches deep. Note also Mickey and Pluto!

There’s not much in the way of decoration–the textures, lamps and curtains already noted, and just a couple of fruity art things (with, I think, some Hidden Mickeys) on either side of the TV object–see them above and below.

PHOTO TOUR OF A FOUR PERSON FULL BED PIRATE ROOM AT DISNEY’S CARIBBEAN BEACH RESORT

This review continues here.

PAGES IN THIS REVIEW OF DISNEY’S CARIBBEAN BEACH RESORT

• Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort: Overview and Summary
• Theming, accommodations and villages at Caribbean Beach
• Photo tour of a four person queen bed room at Caribbean Beach
• Photo tour of a five person queen and murphy bed room at Caribbean Beach
• Photo tour of a four person full bed Pirate room at Caribbean Beach
• Amenities at Caribbean Beach
• Dining at Caribbean Beach
• The main pool at Caribbean Beach

OTHER KEY PAGES FOR WHERE TO STAY AT DISNEY WORLD

• Where to stay–the Basics
• Where first-timers should stay
• Reviews of all the Disney World resorts, based on my 160+ stays in them

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