Allen wrote a few posts about his experience at the Star Wars Half Marathon – The Dark Side, and touched on our awesome stay at the Wilderness Lodge. But I wanted to expound on his perspective and share mine – basically, how we had an amazing time and want to stay there again immediately.
Even though we only planned to stay one night at the resort, we made plans to ensure we’d have plenty of time to explore and take advantage of the resort’s offerings. We made our way over on Saturday morning, with the intention of taking the boat over to the Magic Kingdom for a few hours (one of the resort’s many perks!). It was so cool to approach MK from a different angle.
It was a gray, humid day, and also Dapper Day! We enjoyed seeing everyone all dressed up. Unfortunately, coupled with the race weekend, the park was extra crowded. That was fine with us – we headed back to the Wilderness Lodge to spend some time there.
When we got back to the resort, we were able to get into our room. We had only stayed in Disney resorts with an outside entrance (more of a motel, if you will), so this was a nice change of pace. The only downside was, the resort was doing some significant construction, so our view wasn’t spectacular, but the room was very nice and had some cute details.
Luckily, we had some time before our dinner reservation at Whispering Canyon Café, so we were able to hang out in the resort’s stunning lobby. It actually reminded me of the Old Faithful Inn at Yellowstone National Park. It felt very authentic, like we weren’t even on Disney property (I mean, okay, there’s a Mickey/Goofy/Donald totem pole, but you get the idea).
My favorite part of the resort was the absolute abundance of wildflowers on the property. They were gorgeous, and I couldn’t stop taking pictures of them. Again – it was all very authentically outdoorsy.
Our dinner that night was unbelievable. The special drink was something called Moonshine Lemonade – and it was delicious. We (along with our friends, Chris and Meredith) ordered the All-You-Care-To-Enjoy Skillet, and certainly ate all we cared to enjoy of chicken, ribs, sausage, mashed potatoes, salad (well, Meredith and me), brisket, and pulled pork. And did I mention they have bottomless milkshakes? Sign me up!
While Allen went off to bed (he had such an early morning the next day!), Meredith, Chris, and baby Caroline and I took the boat over to MK – this time at night! It was, once again, beautiful.
I’ll take this moment to say that while Allen’s race morning transportation was not ideal, mine was great – I walked over to catch the bus at 6:30, and it arrived around 6:36. We popped right over to the ESPN Wide World of Sports, and I was able to cheer on Allen at around 12.5 miles. It was very easy!
Luckily, we had a few more hours to take advantage of the resort. Cue taking the boat over to MK once again, and my taking a million more wildflower photos – pure perfection.
We headed home that afternoon, totally jazzed about our stay and the prospect of staying at the Wilderness Lodge sometime in the future. I highly recommend the property and everything it has to offer. I wish we could’ve stayed longer!
Next up on the resort docket: Port Orleans – Riverside!
Whittaker's Wondrous World 