For some it might be the call of nature, and for others it might be a budget consideration. No matter what the reason, you might find yourself contemplating a stay at the campground at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort.
Fort Wilderness has many options to fit your idea of roughing it. They offer a cabin that sleep up to 6 adults (though bunk beds are in this equation, so keep that in mind before planning a girls weekend to the cabins!) The campground offers sites from a basic tent pad all the way up to a concrete pad that will accommodate a 60 foot big rig. Pricing ranges from $63 – $207 per night depending on the size, and time of year during 2019.
When Buddy and I set out to do a special mother/son trip, we knew we wanted to do some different things that might be of interest for a “boy-centric” trip to Disney. What could be more perfect than camping?!
That’s right, flying and camping IS possible! First, shout out to Southwest Airlines for having a generous baggage policy. This allowed us 4 suitcases, 2 carry-on rollers, and 2 backpacks. (Now it is all seeming more possible, isn’t it) Second, shout out to some solid, yet compact camping gear that we took along with us:
- 1 Kelty 3 person Backpacking Tent
- 1 roll of 3mil plastic paint drop cloth to lay under the tent – very important in retrospect.
- 2 compact camp High Sierra camp chairs, fold down to the size of a shoe box!
- 2 Vortex portable fans
- 1 USB desk fan that we laid in the gear loft facing straight down on us
- Outdoor extension cord
- Power strip
- 1 light speed air mattress and air pump
- 2 pillows, and sheets
- 1 soft sided Yeti cooler
- Telescoping marshmallow roasters (which we didn’t end up using because we went directly from the campfire to the Villain’s After Party, and I was certain they would be confiscated by park security.)
When we arrived at Fort Wilderness, I had already been altered by the My Disney Experience app of my campsite number. We used our Magic Band to enter the property, and drove right to our campsite, skipping the need to stop at the main desk. Unlike all other Disney Resorts including the Cabins, the campsites allow for one complimentary vehicle parked at your site.
Buddy made quick work of setting up the tent on his own, while I assembled the electrical marvel that would provide us some creature comforts for the week. The campsite came with an electric box, and we came prepared for Florida camping in June by bringing along 3 fans to create air circulation inside our tent, as well as a long outdoor extension cord to hook up to the power box. Along with being able to run the fans, this also allowed us the opportunity to recharge our electronics in the evenings.
As we would find out the hard way, if you are camping in a basic tent, you will want to pay very close attention to the slope or any dips of your tent pad. Though summer in Florida is known for an afternoon shower, this week was particularly special, because each day brought with it a series of severe storms. With the storms came torrential downpours that lasted more than just a couple of minutes. The second night of our stay, we returned to our site after late night Extra Magic Hours, at nearly midnight, only to find our tent physically under water. In retrospect, I am certain if we had gone to the front desk, they probably would have made some sort of magic happen, but it was after midnight, and quite frankly, we were both exhausted. Since we could not get to our tent without wading through water, we opted to sleep in the rental car for the night.
The next morning when the water had receded a little, we repositioned the tent so that it was not sitting in standing water. I made an intentional loop around all of the sites that would accommodate a tent the following morning, and notices that many of them had large puddles as well, so this appears to not be an isolated problem. If you just pay really close attention while you are hopefully setting up your tent on dry ground, you should have better luck than we did.
Fort Wilderness has many great options for filling your belly. I think many guests probably opt to cook their own meals either on their portable grill, or inside the comfort of their RV, we did not have such luxuries considering we had flown with all of our gear. We opted for the Disney Dining Plan which provided us with many options without leaving the property. The first night, we splurged on a 2-credit dinner show at Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue at Pioneer Hall.
Don’t let the descriptor “Vaudeville” scare you off, it was just a funny, sing-songy evening full of comedy and good food mixed in with involuntary audience participation – which we thought was mighty funny, mainly because we were not selected to be the subject of their jokes. It is all in good fun, and I think that young children would enjoy the songs and bright colors and dancing, while Buddy enjoyed the fact that he is just keen enough to catch onto the mostly-clean adult humor that was carefully woven into the evening. It is an all you care to eat dinner, as well as endless refills on your drinks, both sodas, and adult beverages alike. Buddy complained that he was cold half-way through dinner, but if I’m being honest, it was 10:00pm, and we had been up since 4:00am, with a full day of travel, miniature golf, and waterpark before attending dinner. I think the lines between cold, and exhausted might have been blurred.
Trails End is attached to the Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue, and serves the same food, buffet style, without the additional cost of a dinner show. A meal here can be had for just one credit on the Disney Dining Plan. In addition to dinner, breakfast and lunch are also served. If you are in the Pioneer Hall area, but just don’t have the time, or the dining credits for a sit down meal, you can grab a quick bite to eat at P & J’s Southern Takeout. If the dining plan is not of a concern to you, make plans to belly up to the bar at Crockett’s Tavern. They do not accept any of the dining plans, but they do have wings in three different flavors, as well as other bar food delights, in addition to beer and wine.
Rounding out the food choices are the Meadow’s snack bar, conveniently located just outside of the Meadows pool area. This along with P & J’s Southern Takeout are two places where you can fill your resort reusable mugs. You can use your quick service dining credits here, but don’t expect to be wowed by the offerings. This is a pool snack bar. The last food option on Fort Wilderness property is the Chuck Wagon food truck located by the campfire arena. This is where you will purchase your s’mores kits if you did not come prepared with such confections.
Speaking of the campfire, the Chip ‘n Dale’s Campfire Sing-a-Long and movie is a nightly occurrence. (weather and fire danger level permitting) The festivities begin at 7pm in the fall and winter, and 8pm in the spring and summer. You will get to meet either Chip or Dale, depending on which side of the arena you choose to sit on. During Florida School breaks, we have learned that they may not let you into the Fort Wilderness Campground area at all if you do not have a dining reservation. There is no cost for the campfire, other than the optional purchase of the s’mores kits. 
Getting back to the campfire can be a navigational challenge. Though it was nice to have a rental car the night our site flooded, it served no other tactical advantage. In order to get around the Fort Wilderness Campground, you WILL need a golf cart. I always thought this recommendation was because they were fun, or you would feel left out if you didn’t have one…..no, you quite literally cannot park a car anywhere but the main front gate parking lot, or your campsite. If you want to get to Pioneer Hall or the Meadows where the campfire takes place, you will either need to drive your golf cart, where you will find ample cart parking, or take an internal bus to your desired location. 
Transportation to the parks can happen via internal bus to the main bus stop, then off to the parks (except Magic Kingdom until after 4pm), or if you are trying to get to Magic Kingdom, you can head back past Pioneer Hall to the boat dock, and take a magical ride across the Seven Seas Lagoon to the Magic Kingdom or the Contemporary or Wilderness Lodge. Make sure you pay attention to the signs on the boat dock to be sure you are boarding the correct vessel. 
During the 8 days that we stayed on Disney property, we really did try to take it easy in the parks so that we could experience some of the other great things the Walt Disney Resort had to offer, I honestly can see how people come to the Fort Wilderness Campground and stay for a week, never entering the parks at all. There were so many recreational activities, that we had to pick and choose what we would take part in.
At the Meadows, there is a Bike Barn where many of the activities and rentals take shape. Immediately Buddy noticed that you could rent bikes, and he made this a top priority for his stay. Let me be clear right now. The basic non-gear bikes that they rent for adults will put you in your place quicker than anything. “Just like riding a bike” will seem like a massive misnomer if you are not used to riding a bike that brakes by pedaling backwards. Buddy had no problem as we navigated the trails and campground loops for an hour. 
Another activity that he wanted to try out was the archery class. Both of these activities cannot happen if there is lightning within 7 miles of the Bike Barn. The bike rental took us two tries and the archery class took us three consecutive days of trying for the 2:30 class, and even still they ended up running the class in the rain. Buddy didn’t care, he was very excited to have a few minutes of “solo” time.
The Meadows pool has both a great swimming, water slide, and hot tub area for older people, but it also has a super cute splash pad and mini-slides for tiny kids as well. There is also the Wilderness Swimming Pool, which has a hot tub, but no water slide, and I can imagine is a more chill environment if you are looking to avoid the shrieks of the average joy-filled child. 
At Fort Wilderness, you can also bring along your fishing poles, or rent some at the Bike Barn, for a catch and release fishing adventure, rent boats, and take a segway tour. You can check out Tr-Circle-D Ranch to ride ponies, take a wagon or carriage ride, or peek in on Cinderella’s horses when they are not pulling her carriage. 
I am convinced that had we just gone for a week with no plans to go to the parks, we would have still kept ourselves busy at Fort Wilderness alone.
Now, the question you are all wanting to know: Would I do it again? That depends. I loved the property and all it had to offer. I would go and camp there again in a heartbeat. Maybe not in a tent, in June, in severe thunderstorms. I would also make sure to reserve a golf cart far in advance, as this is not a luxury, but more of a necessity. I could see our family going down to camp for a week, and then checking into one of the other amazing Walt Disney World resorts with walls, beds and air conditioning to begin our park tickets and dining plan. Call me spoiled, that’s ok. I’m glad we did it! It really was the perfect mother-son Disney experience!
