Oh how we had waited in anticipation for this day! We had purchased our reservation and tickets for Disney World back in March of 2020. Just days before Covid had hit. We had been in contact with Disney, multiple times, hoping to not need to cancel our reservation. Things ended working in our favor, and we were actually able to stay for a total of 10 days, instead of only 4, due to people canceling!
More on the campground in a moment…
First the parks. We were able to visit each of the parks, despite reduced capacity. We did wear masks all day, and witnessed several cast members kindly requesting masks be worn. Hand sanitizer was before and after every ride, as well as distributed throughout the park. Eating places required food ordering through an app, and no seating without the food in hand. Disney did a great job at making everyone comfortable.
Our experience in the parks was fantastic. We could not see characters up-close this time, but we still were able to grab some photos with them. And parades still occurred, they were just at random. There was no way to plan for when they would come.
The kids learned the art of pin trading this time around. We had never attempted that before, but we all had a lot of fun participating. And of course, we rode plenty of rides. Some multiple times – thanks to the low capacity.
Our last day overlapped with David’s cousin and her family. So we actually had one additional, unplanned, day in the parks. The kids enjoyed some time with cousins!
Needless to say, we were pretty Disney-d out after our final day. It was a lot of great memories!
Now the campground. Fort Wilderness takes the cake for the largest campground we have ever stayed at! There are THREE bus lines in the campground alone. We enjoyed the heated pool, the jacuzzi, biking and walking the miles of paths, seeing the horse stables, and shopping at the general store. Some of the fun activities were cancelled, due to Covid, but there was no shortage of fun!
The campground is also known for the decorations put up at each site. Blow ups, lights, decorations, etc. It’s like a Christmas light display at every campsite! We loved how festive it was.
Was the campground worth it? For us, yes. It made our Disney park experience so fun! We never drove our car once during the stay, except to pick up groceries. Otherwise, we did everything by bus or bike. We also were able to take the buses to and from the parks during the day. We would go back, take our puppy out to potty and walk, as well as take an hour nap. We then felt refreshed for our afternoon/evening park times.
Campground review:
Disney’s Fort Wilderness Campground, Orlando, Florida
Cost: $130-$200/night, specifically the week after Thanksgiving
Site: 1800 block: Back-in site with full hook ups. Wide open spaces and easy to maneuver in and out. Good location for bath houses, laundry and easy access to the pool by bike or walking. Very central, which makes it least desirable for the bus-lines to the parks.
Website: The Campsites at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort | Walt Disney World Resort (go.com)