XBoater

+1 for Publix, and if coming from the north it is very convenient on Rt 535.  Drive is less than 10 minutes from the Fort.  No where near the traffic compared to the local Winn-Dixie or Publix in Celebration.

Looks like they are clearing around the Lodge for this project.

Once they finish the lakefront lodges there will be plenty of parking.

Hope "The Mouse" appreciates the sacrifice I am making.  I don't think the sun is even up that early.   :grumpy2:

I don't get up that early so I don't know what time the sun is up.  :o

Thanks !

We have breakfast reservations at Crystal Palace (8:00am) before the park opens.  THe schedule says 9:00am opening.    What time do the Bay Lake loop boats start running?  We planned to ride over to the Toaster and walk.  We wanted to get into the park around 7:30 to get a few minutes to take pictures and enjoy the decorations without the crowds.  Given the time of year I am not sure if they allow you to park at the Contemporary.

Thanks

 

This is not the loop you are looking for.

CLASSIC !!!

Any signs of a private fireworks showing  The one this past July was AWESOME !!!

Verizon, 4G service no problem.  Also you can borrow a cable modem from the Settlement store, bring an AP from home and now you have Wi-fi at your site.

It's about 3/4 of a mile from the bus stop at the the Settlement to the Wilderness Lodge.  To bike the entire campground, every loop (cabins too), is a good 1.5 hour at an enjoyable pace.  I would definitely recommend bikes if you are planning chunks of time at the campground, pool time or kids that like a bit of freedom.  We are not fans of the internal buses and use the bikes to get to to the Outpost bus stop, we usually are in 4, 5 or 600 loop and just walk to the Settlement.

We love to rent a cart for a day or two at the decorating holidays like Halloween or Christmas and tour around.  I think a big factor in cart vs bike is a amount and age of kids.  For pre-teens (>9ish) and up biking is great adventure under 10 though I think there is a lot of car/bus traffic and would not feel safe allowing them to roam away from sight.

To be safe at night lights are a must, the loops are not well lite and you are chastised if not using the sidewalks from loop to loop and they are dark, not to mention the pedestrian traffic.

R. 

Not to worry, with all the money Jose saved the Mouse this year turning off the Christmas decorations at 10pm, they should have plenty of dough for repairing the fleet.

Come on guys be nice to Jose, I am sure the lights are bothering the armadillos or some other important environmental factor like that.

For his next at bat, Jose will be banning campers. Look how bad those guys are on the environment. Always peeing on those helpless trees!!!

What is this about a curfew on Christmas lights  Did I miss something

From the mass exodus this morning I think it is a ghost town again.  We went out for breakfast at 8:00 already some RV's leaving.  Came back at 11:00 and it was stop and go from the 4-way intersection.  We left just before noon and it was still stop and go from the 4-way.  

There were also a bunch (8-10) of checked-in RV's parked on the grass by the hitch/unhitch area waiting for a site.  Never saw that before.

Busy trick o treat night.  We were in the 600 loop.  An accident closed the loop to all for about 30 minutes.  Still gave out 1200 pieces of candy.

Room for 2 more? We will be there 10/15-11/3. Can't wait for the parade and the all the trick o' treaters. Of course we do a fair amount of Food and Wine Festivaling too.

Well more wine than food, but who's counting.

You may want to stop and stock up 20-30 minutes away. Depending on the time and day you arrive, the local traffic is just stupid. If you come in from the north off the Florida Turnpike to Rt 429 to Rt 535 there is a new Publix about 5 miles north of the Fort.

We were checking in last Christmas Eve about noontime, the rv next us was making quite a stink. They arrived a day early and there were no sites and Disney would not allow them to stay overnight in the parking lot. The guy really did not take it well, guest he dropped his Disney spirit at the last fill-up. As we were finishing our check-in the Disney Po-Po were escorting the Rv to the exit.

I don't think a travel agent has specials not available through the WDW reservation line. That said a travel agent generally gives better advice, is more likely to find and know about discounts and specials available and of course help schedule travel plans.

That said there is no savings going direct and a knowledgeable agent helping can really make sure you have a great vacation.

As a planner make sure to get your dinner reservations at 180 day mark if interested in the more popular restaurants. Definately plan, but be flexible. Personally, I like an midday break. I find the parks more magical and less crowded first thing in the morning and at night, especially if the days are warm.

Thanks for the great pics!!!

It is going to be a very long six weeks.

We walked back from a great late night at the Magic Kingdom last night.  This is our third Halloween at the fort and the last 2 years when we use the path from the settlement into the 100 loop both sides of the path were decorated to the hilt.  This year we walked back in the dark, a disappointing end to a great night.

I am not sure if those past campers were Fiends but if you were, I for one really appreciated your hard work and effort and you are definitely missed by this Fiend !!!

There are some other great displays though throughout the Fort to enjoy, thanks to all that partake in the festivities.

Armadillos, really? They are armoured rats and will probably survive the nuclear holicoust. There is more EM energy floating around from all the cellphone hotspots than if Disney offered it. At one point last vacation i could pick up 10 wi-fi signals.

Make sure to try the Sunday brunch at the Reef across the street.

42 Days so far in 2012.

:jumpforjoy :jumpforjoy :jumpforjoy :jumpforjoy :jumpforjoy

Just made reservations for 16 more in October for Food & Wine Festival and Halloween...

:wave1:

We got season passes this year so we went into the parks many more days than not.

It is the most gluten friendly place on the planet as far as DW is concerned... Where else does the chef come to your table to discuss what he can personally do for you !!! This time of year they claim to enjoy a the challenge of going off menu, unlike the busy times.

I am surprised no votes for breakfast buffet at Trail's End. While not a direct answer to the OP question, I have to give them a big shout out and High Five !!! My DW is a Celiac (Gluten intolerant) and TE Chef made her some awesome Eggs Benedict w/ BBQ Pork on Udi's Bagels... For a Celiac this is just heaven.

Also not a direct answer, but we had dinner at Artist's Point at WL. Another big HighFive to Chef Russ there, he made the best meal for her since having to go GF... The mushroom soup, to die for !!!