Boulder Ridge Villas at Disney's Wilderness Lodge

I absolutely love this place. The cast is always friendly and go out of their way to make our stay magical. We are DVC and boulder ridge is our home resort. We have stayed here many times and anytime I have needed something they go above and beyond to help me out. From someone who has stayed at most of the Disney resorts I have to say this is the best resort on Disney property.

We rented points through David’s dvc for the first time and got a great deal on the 1 bedroom villa. It was perfect for my husband, daughter and I. My diagnose slept on the pull down Murphy bed in the living area and it was very comfortable! Much better then the pull out coaches at hotels. We had great trip! It was a bit too hot (high 90s) so next time we would go in the cooler months but we loved our stay and the room was perfect!

Once again things only keep going downhill at these villas. We have been coming for 20 years due to the fact it is our “home” resort for the DVC and have enjoyed it much more in the past. The rooms have been refurbished to bare bones. We are in a studio room as it is just my husband and myself this time. Somewhat larger than an average hotel room it feels very plain. No bedside table to charge the phone, place a book or anything. One big long white counter under the TV that hides a child’s pull down bed along with a few drawers. A small fridge and empty cabinets, except for a few paper plates. The water pressure is terrible. And the smell of the water is terrible. I realize it’s built over a swamp and the water in Florida isn’t the best, but couldn’t they use better filters??? The bed is not comfortable so neither my husband nor myself slept well the four nights we were here. The drinks are outrageously expensive (17$ for a margarita in a small Dixie type cup). The last straw was this morning when we were trying to sleep in a little before a long drive. The garbage trucks were right outside our balcony (we were on the third floor) banging the garbage bins and making all kinds of noise at a little before 7. Couldn’t they at least wait until 8? Anyway, the pool area is nice and we do love the relative quiet out by the vacation club pool. We used to love the running trail they had that connected this property to the Fort Wilderness campground but they have done away with that as well to make room for their outrageously expensive cabins. If you have DVC it’s a less “hectic” type place and it is pretty in the lobby and outdoors with all the pine trees. However, if you’re booking it as a hotel room I think you might be disappointed when you see the rooms for the price you have to pay to stay here.

This place is fine. I think if we had stayed in the main part of the hotel, we would have had a somewhat different experience. We were really disappointed with our first Disney experience and didn’t leave wanting to return like we had hoped. -When we checked in, I had some questions about transportation and the hotel in general. The cast member said he was new and that he was unable to answer any of our questions. -The shower was either freezing cold or scalding hot, with no in between. The sheets are paper thin and there is no comforter on the bed. They use the equivalent of a giant towel, which I guess is because they have such high volume they have to be able to rip the bedding off quickly. -We asked for a crib for our 2 year old, and it was never brought to us which completely disrupted their ability to sleep. -There is no room service, so if you find yourself needing food or something simple like a bottle of water at night, you’re out of luck. When we asked about water or anything else, we were simply told about the club level and how they have all of those amenities for those rooms only. This is something you might really take for granted at a Marriott or other hotel chain that gives you free bottled water at the bare minimum. -We decided to valet because we knew we were going to be using our car often. This was the most bizarre valet experience we’ve ever had. It seemed almost like an after thought, or they were just hoping nobody would use the valet service. We had to get a new valet ticket almost every time we came back to the hotel, and continuously had to give our name and other information, even though we saw the same staff over and over. -Another negative part of our experience is that, when we booked our specific hotel room type, we weren’t given the option of what view we wanted. We just paid the price to reserve a 1 bedroom in Boulder Ridge. We had a first floor view of a fence and some grass, which was absolutely not what we wanted. I would have paid more for a better view, but was never given the option. It would be really helpful to have separate categories for some room types based on views that can be booked (like they have for a few of the room types). It doesn’t really make sense to pay the same amount when some people end up with terrible views and some get amazing ones. -One of the most disappointing things is that there really were never any staff to ask how you’re doing or if your stay is going well. Even when I asked the front desk as we were leaving what I needed to do for check out, she just said “nothing, it’s automatic”, with no “how was your stay“ or a simple “thank you for coming”. Disney Parks seem to pride themselves on customer service and experience, but it seems to be more of an illusion than reality in the Hotels/Resorts. There are far too many people for them to genuinely care about everyone’s experience. They also use computers for a majority of what staff persons would typically do at a resort. Th

I stayed at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge-Boulder Ridge Villas in September, 2022. I stayed in a Deluxe Studio. The idea behind the Wilderness Lodge is to make you feel like you are staying at a lodge in a national park. And this is accomplished admirably, from entering the resort area, to the beautiful lobby, to the magnificent grounds. I have stayed at most of the Disney Deluxe Resorts and visited all of them, and in my opinion, Wilderness Lodge is perhaps the most beautiful of all; Animal Kingdom Lodge’s Jambo House lobby might be more impressive, but the grounds around Wilderness Lodge are nicer. I stayed in the Boulder Ridge building, which adjoins the main building. The resort has a beautiful main pool, with a small water slide. There is also a “quiet pool.” There is a daily pool party for the kids at the main pool (some activities are also fun for adults). One of the best amenities is the boat that goes to and from Magic Kingdom—very convenient! Now about my room. Unfortunately, I had the dreaded “Dumpster view” room. Not really Dumpsters, but a view overlooking the towel laundry facility. C’mon Disney—can’t you put an awning over it so people paying so much for a room don’t see it? The Boulder Ridge building is being refurbished, and the rooms completely re-done. So I won’t bother addressing some issues with the room, as hopefully they will be taken care of in the refurbishment. This was my second stay at Wilderness Lodge, and I can honestly say I miss it and eagerly look forward to going back someday.

This is what Disney is supposed to be - I feel like I’ve been taken back to the 80s - the ultimate Disney experience is old Disney! This is it! Everyone, and I do mean everyone from the wait staff to the bartenders, to the cleaning staff through the retail workers, maintenance up to the front desk and back office are top notch and HAPPY! Yes, Happy! Try finding that in Disney in 2023!!! This speaks volumes about the management at this resort! We were lucky enough to get to experience this resort on many occasions and meet some of the wonderful management team stand outs, including Warren and Arlene. This team and their staff are the epitome of customer service and the utmost satisfaction! I truly feel like I’m coming home when I pull up at this building and look for our new found friends!!! Beyond the amazing staff, the resort it immaculate, the food offerings cannot be neat, and the environment is the best relaxation that I’ve found in Disney since I’ve been a kid!