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Old 10-26-2011, 12:27 AM   #1
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Disney Camping

Just made the reservations for a week at Frontier Wilderness at Disney World for July 2012. Got the family a premium site through AAA vacations. Anyone else been there and have any pointers? Should we take our bikes to get to the buses or around the park? Kids are looking forward to it, the 20 hour 2 day drive should be splendid. Will be stopping overnight at the KOA in Manchester TN, as our halfway stop.
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Old 10-26-2011, 04:20 AM   #2
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Bikes are nice to have to get around Disney's Fort Wilderness, you do not need them to get to the Bus Transportation. The Campground Loops have Disney Bus Transportation Stops at them.
Be sure to bring LOTS of MONEY, everything is expensive, Mickey loves Money.
There are lots of planned activites in Fort Wilderness, plus the Disney Bus Transportation will take you any where on Disney Property you want to go.
The Preimum sites are a little nicer and a little longer than the standard sites plus they are closer to the trading post's, planned activities and the lake where you can take the a Disney Boat directly from Fort Wilderness to and from the Magic Kingdom and avoid the Bus.
You can also watch the nightly fireworks at the Magic Kingdom from the Campground lake beach.
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Old 10-26-2011, 05:09 PM   #3
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Sounds like you have a tight travel schedule. For the last four years I have been taking the journey from Chicago to Orlando to visit family late July/early August. I do the drive in two days (without trailer), which is exhausting If I may suggest breaking up the travel schedule by visiting one of the tourist attractions in Chattanooga, TN. Lookout Mountain, Incline Railway, Rock City, etc. (stay away from Ruby Falls). This way the kids get to see something and stretches your legs in the morning. I would bring the bikes or see if they have a golf cart to rent at Fort Wilderness.
We did Disney this year and was disappointed in the dining plan. Thought the food quality was worse than previous years and the mandatory tipping of 20% (sit down meals) in addition to the dining plan was wrong, especially for buffet meals.
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Old 10-26-2011, 06:10 PM   #4
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I'll be keeping an eye on this thread since my wife and I are planning a trip to Disney with a TT and a couple of the grandkids in 2013.
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Old 10-27-2011, 04:56 AM   #5
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We loved it, we went on Oct 1st for eight days and also had a premium site. We went with family that brought their own golf cart so we didn't bring bikes. Going without a cart though, bikes will be your friend. You don't want to ride the bus everytime you want to go swimming or go buy marshmallows at the store. Going to the parks or shows, by all means use the bus or boats, but it'd be much more convenient to have a bike there. Golf cart rentals at Ft. Wilderness are crazy expensive!
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Old 10-27-2011, 01:41 PM   #6
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Just made the reservations for a week at Frontier Wilderness at Disney World for July 2012. Got the family a premium site through AAA vacations. Anyone else been there and have any pointers? Should we take our bikes to get to the buses or around the park? Kids are looking forward to it, the 20 hour 2 day drive should be splendid. Will be stopping overnight at the KOA in Manchester TN, as our halfway stop.
When you booked thru AAA, was there a price advantage over booking on the Disney website?
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Old 10-28-2011, 04:00 PM   #7
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we were in the campground there last year. bikes would be a great savings over $60 a day golf cart rental. you may find yourself waiting longer than you'd like for the internal buses. buses come anywhere from 5 to 15 min. the resturant in the campground is very good. its a buffet but well above average. make sure to take advantage of extra magical park hours they will be some of the shortest lines youll see in july. hope you have as fun as we did!!
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Old 10-29-2011, 04:17 PM   #8
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Got room for a stowaway in the camper?:mickey:
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Old 10-30-2011, 05:23 AM   #9
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When you booked thru AAA, was there a price advantage over booking on the Disney website?
I originally thought no, but when I went in to see them I ended up saving a couple of hundred on the trip. I was looking at the preferred site and when AAA ran the numbers for me a Premium site ended up being only $42 more for the week. I belive this was a $120 upgrade on the website at the time. So using AAA was worth it, plus they throw in some added goodies during the trip.
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Old 11-03-2011, 04:34 AM   #10
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Robo,
We live about an hour north of the Rodent, so I would like to add a couple of things not directly related to the Mouse. July's weather here is typically extremely hot, humid, and afternoon thunder storms are common. So be sure to have all ur family members stay hydrated and encourage the wearing of light clothing. You might want to visit a water park during the heat of the day, but remember those storms. And as someone else mentioned bring plenty of money. Even a sandwich is expensive in the Magic Kingdom. Also, Sea World is not far from the Mouse if u'd like something different to do one day. I hope you all have a great trip and throughly enjoy Disney.

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Old 11-03-2011, 01:11 PM   #11
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Thanks for the responses, We purchased the dining plan so food will be covered. We were at Disney in 2006 but stayed in a hotel for a lot more money. I was actually surprised at the prices which I though were reasonable when I compared them to our State Fair prices and food prices at our ballpark. I guess it's all what you compare prices to
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Old 12-23-2011, 09:07 PM   #12
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I just wanted to stop by and let you know that we are camping at the Fort the first two weeks in June.

If there are particular things you would like me to scout out or find information on, please let me know. It will be our first time too.

We are currently booked with a premium site, but I am going to change that to a preferred site soon. We have a 5% discount with Disney's Spring discount offer.
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Old 12-23-2011, 10:21 PM   #13
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I just wanted to stop by and let you know that we are camping at the Fort the first two weeks in June.

If there are particular things you would like me to scout out or find information on, please let me know. It will be our first time too.

We are currently booked with a premium site, but I am going to change that to a preferred site soon. We have a 5% discount with Disney's Spring discount offer.
Enjoy your trip Lady Ann. My wife and I have been to Disney many times with our kids initially and now with our grandkids. We are planning our first RV trip to the Fort in 2013 so I'm look forward to hearing about your experience.
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Old 12-24-2011, 12:47 PM   #14
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Need info about the FORT and WDW check out this web site.
http://www.fortfiends.net
This is a group that camps at the FORT regularly some members are there several times a month.
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Old 12-24-2011, 01:10 PM   #15
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We are headed down to Fort Wilderness in a few weeks, Jan 10th till Jan 30th.
Hope the weather does not get too cold!!!
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Old 12-24-2011, 01:27 PM   #16
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We are headed down to Fort Wilderness in a few weeks, Jan 10th till Jan 30th.
Hope the weather does not get too cold!!!
See you there, we arrive on the 16th!
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Old 12-25-2011, 10:48 AM   #17
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Thank you so much for the link Grumpy. I think I know how I will be spending my spare time today.
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Old 12-25-2011, 01:07 PM   #18
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When we were there we went straight to the back of the park. It was almost empty. Everyone starts in front. By noonish we were near the front and the crowd was thin. We did most in one day. Used second day to redo things we liked. Don't know if they still have nightly light shows on lake by Fort Wilderness. We were there in June years back
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Old 12-25-2011, 01:40 PM   #19
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Don't know if they still have nightly light shows on lake by Fort Wilderness. We were there in June years back
Electric water parade is still around (9:40-9:45 pm). It is the oldest parade at WDW. It was one of Walt's favorites. You can also see most of the Magic Kingdom fireworks from the beach at the Fort.
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Old 12-31-2011, 11:13 AM   #20
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We have always used a tour plan when going to Disney. Not a strict minute by minute, but a general get FastPass here then go there kind of plan. Rope Drop is a must do for us. We always get more done in those first few hours than any other time period of the day.

My biggest challenge this year will be getting to the buses. We've stayed at the Wilderness Lodge the last three trips and buses to all the parks is located in one place. With the Fort, there are two locations for buses to the different parks. One will be close to us if we are in the preferred sites and the other one very far away. I do not think I will be relying on the internal buses for getting me from point A to point B. For my own sanity, we will spring for the golf cart rental.

So right now, the plan is rope drop commando style before lunch and relaxing back at the campsite in the afternoon with maybe a second trip to the parks for dinner or a parade. No late night parks are in my plan so that we will be well rested for the early mornings.
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