The Wandering Disciple

The Walt Disney World resort in Central Florida is known for its world class theme park and attractions. But did you know there is plenty of things to do outside the theme parks? You can enjoy a beach day along the shores of Bay Lake at Fort Wilderness. Catch a tan, take a boat out on the lake, go fishing or just relax and watch the day go by right here on the beach.  Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground is a full service campground at Walt Disney World. They feature sites that can host anything from tents to RV's as well as cabins to accommodate your camping trip at Disney.  Taken: February 11, 2013 at Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground at Walt Disney World (Lake Buena Vista, FL)

Did you know that the Walt Disney World Resort has a working horse farm? The horses of Walt Disney World reside at the Tri-Circle-D Ranch located at Fort Wilderness. Here you can get up close to the horses, learn about the history of horses at the park and even take a horseback or carriage ride through the resort.  The Tri-Circle-D Ranch is located in the heart of the Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground. The sprawling campground located along the banks of Bay Lake is home to campsites, cabins, recreation and Pioneer Hall where you can enjoy a southern buffet at the Trails End or take in a country musical dinner show with the Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue.  Taken: January 4, 2008 at Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground at Walt Disney World (Lake Buena Vista, FL)

There is no better way to end a day of exploration than by sitting by the fire. As the fire crackles at your feet the stress of the day melt away and get you ready for a good night sleep.  This is the campfire program at Disney's Fort Wilderness. The nightly camp fire allows campers to cook hot dog, make S'mores and even watch a Disney classic under the stars of the Walt Disney World Resort.  Taken: November 18, 2007 at Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground at Walt Disney World (Lake Buena Vista, FL)

 The workhorses at the Walt Disney World Resort come in all breeds and sizes.  From the big and strong horses that pull the carriages down Main Street USA to the little ponies giving kids rides at Fort Wilderness, they all have an important role.  You can get up closed to the program by visiting the Tri-Circle-D Ranch at the Fort Wilderness resort or see photos of the famous big screen horses at the Saratoga Springs Resort.  (Photo: April 7, 2018)

I wouldn't exactly call camping at Walt Disney World roughing it. Combining camping in the great outdoors with the thrill of a Walt Disney World vacation, Fort Wilderness is your place to rough it Disney style. Enjoy the parks by day and then retire to the campground for a campfire before sleeping under the stars. You can't get that from any resort hotel room. (Photo: February 11, 2013)

C'mon everybody, lets gather round the campfire. Join Chip and Dale for a nightly campfire at the Fort Wilderness Resort and Campfire.  Those fun little chipmunks lead a campfire sing-along before turning the party over to a Disney movie under the stars.  And don't forget the S'mores, you can enjoy making S'mores over the campfire as you enjoy the movie.  (Photo: November 18, 2007)

The Walt Disney World resort has no shortages of options for accommodations for your Disney vacation.  But for those of you who like to bring your home with you, the campsites at Fort Wilderness should meet your needs.  Situated along Bay Lake, Fort Wilderness features campsites for tents and RV's as well as fully outfitted cabins.  (Photo: February 12, 2013)

A pair of horses get a drink at a trough at Fort Wilderness Resort at Walt Disney World.  The Fort Wilderness Resort has a working stable called Tri-Circle-D Ranch.  This stable provides the horses used within the resort for the horse drawn carriages as well as horseback riding on the property. (Photo: September 29, 2012)

The clear waters of the Meadows Swimming Pool provide a great place to unwind from a busy day at Walt Disney World. The Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground features two pools for guests to enjoy while camping at the resort. (Photo: February 12, 2013)

Take a break from the heat with a dip in the swimming hole at Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground.  The Meadows Swimming Pool is one of two pools at the resort.  (Photo: February 12, 2013)

Lake Buena Vista, Florida: An early morning awaited us as we decided to try and cram a visit to Epcot into our busy schedule. We woke up early and quickly broke down camp so we could take advantage of the Morning Magic Hours at Epcot. Since we didn’t have a lot of extra time, we opted to drive over to Epcot. What a great decision. We secured a great parking spot in the first row. As we headed to the gates, we hit a mass of resort guests also taking advantage of the early opening for resort guests. This was the first time we tried to use the magic hours, we typically avoid them to avoid crowds. In the future, I’m sure we will continue to avoid them because other than us working on a tight schedule it wasn’t worth the crowds. We headed straight to Test Track as soon as the park opened. It had already accumulated a 20 minute wait by the time we got through the turnstile. The ride was completely renovated from the last time we visited the park. While the ride track remaine...

Lake Buena Vista, Florida: A new year means a new Walt Disney World adventure. This time we decided to take advantage of my wife’s Scentsy convention and make a short vacation out of it by camping at Fort Wilderness. This will be our first camping adventure at Disney’s campground. We arrived at Fort Wilderness right as the parks were getting ready to open, so we checked in and headed straight to the park. We decided to go to the Magic Kingdom to check out the new Fantasyland rides and attractions that opened last year By the time we rode the boat from the campground to the park, the park was open and much of the crowd had dispersed into the park. I was worried that that would mean long lines in the new section but amazingly it wasn’t so bad. The line for the new Little Mermaid ride was just five minute. Now the line for the princesses was another story, but luckily we weren’t there to see them. We rode the Little Mermaid first and it was mixed reviews. My wife thought i...

Lake Buena Vista, Florida: After several failed attempts, we finally made it back to Disney World to renew our passes and visit the parks. This is our first trip back to Disney since my wife fell and injured herself at Hollywood Studios in January. We decided to go to the Magic Kingdom for the day. We originally planned on renewing our passes back during the January trip, but after having to depart early due to the fall, we did not get it done. But the staff of Disney worked with us on getting the renewal accomplished and honored our original passes. They reinstated our passes, gave us the renewal rate and transferred over our credit from the previous account. They truly showed that they are there to serve their guests. The day trip to Disney is a rarity for us. Because of the three hour one way drive, we typically make a weekend out of it. But finances and scheduling prevented that from happening at this time. So I had forgotten how inconvenient it is to go to the Magi...

Howdy partner, step inside the rustic Trails End Restaurant for a big meal to satisfy your hunger from the parks. The Trails End Restaurant located in the Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground features an all-you-can-eat buffet of southern style comfort foods to help refuel you after a long day in the park. Afterwards take a break to digest the food at the comfortable rocking chairs on the porch or take time to enjoy the amenities of the resort. (Photo: November 19, 2007)

Lake Buena Vista, Florida: The time finally came for us to head to Walt Disney World to go camping. We have been to Fort Wilderness on several occasions but never to go camping. But that was going to change today as we booked a campsite at Fort Wilderness. This time we decided to bring the dogs with us. Typically, we board our dogs at our local vet during our trips. However this time we packed up the lab and cockapoo and brought them with us to Disney. We made reservations for the dogs at Best Friends Pet Resort. They are located on the Disney property across the street from Port Orleans Resort. The check-in process was very quick and easy and the facility was spectacular. We were able to board the dogs together and they were close enough to visit to avoid getting homesick. Then we headed over to Fort Wilderness. Since check-in wasn’t until 11:00, we were not expecting our campsite to be ready. We just wanted to get the paperwork process out of the way so that when we...

Lake Buena Vista, Florida: Trails End Restaurant is a full-service restaurant located at the Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground at Walt Disney World. This eatery serves breakfast lunch and dinner with a buffet meal available for breakfast and dinner. The breakfast menu consist of a buffet which includes: fruit, cereal, oatmeal, sausage, bacon, eggs, omelets, grits, hash, biscuits and gravy, waffles, pasties and more. For lunch, the menu changes to a traditional table service menu that consists of: Salads Cheeseburgers Chicken and Waffles Fried Green Tomatoes Pork Chops Catfish Desserts The menu returns to buffet style for dinner starting at 4:30. The dinner buffet contains all-you-can-ear: soups, chili, shrimp, salad, smoked rib, fried chicken, carved meats, fish, pizza, pasta, veggies and more. There is even a dessert and ice cream bar included in the meal. The Trails End also has a dinner to-go menu that contains salads, chicken strips, pizza and more to take out and eat at your ...

Lake Buena Vista, Florida: It has been almost three years since our last trip to Disney and now that our son is old enough to ride most of the attractions, we figured it was time to go again. We began planning the trip a few weeks ago, nothing fancy, just a long weekend trip. We booked a room at the Caribbean Beach Resort and invited my parents to join us. They agreed and booked a room at the All-Star Movies Resort. The more thought we put into the trip, the more things changed and the more complicated the planning got. By one week out, we had dinner reservations and tickets picked out. Then two days before we left, I changed the hotel and really put a spin on things, moving our stay to the Wilderness Lodge, a resort my wife had always wanted to stay at. So with the car packed and everyone ready, we hit the highway and headed north to Walt Disney World. We arrived at the Wilderness Lodge just before seven. The resort sat on top of a hill and with the brisk weather, made you f...

Lake Buena Vista, Florida: Today marked our final day of this trip. The theme park of the day today was Disney Hollywood Studios. We grabbed breakfast this morning at the McDonald’s by the hotel then hopped aboard the WDW bus to the park. We arrived at the park before opening and found ourselves close to the front of the line for entry into the park. Once the gates opened we began our tour through the studios. The first stop was The Great Movie Ride. It has been several years since I rode this ride and since most of the time it has a large line, we took advantage of being near the front of the crowd to hop aboard with no wait. The focus of the visit to the studios was to try and hit some of the shows and attractions we normally skip in an effort to get to our favorites. Since we have an annual pass, we rarely do everything in the park, rather mingle new attraction in each time we go in an attempt to experience everything that Disney has to offer. With this in mind, today we ...

Lake Buena Vista, Florida: Nestle among the thrills of the theme parks and the luxury of the resort hotels is a place where guests can pitch a tent and take a break from the hustle and bustle of a Disney vacation. The campsites and cabins of Fort Wilderness brings the joys of camping to the magical world of Walt Disney World Resort. Opened in 1971, the Fort Wilderness Resort features 800 campsites and over 400 fully equipped cabins spread out over 700 acres. The campsites vary from tent only sites to sites large enough for an RV. The cabins sleep up to six guests and feature a kitchen, double bed, bunk bed, Murphy bed and more. The resort features a wide variety of activities for everyone in the family to enjoy. There are two swimming pools, marina with boat rentals, fishing, petting zoo, stable with pony and horse riding, arcades and much more. In the evening, there is a campfire program in which guests can watch a movie under the stars and roast marshmallows on the campfire....

Lake Buena Vista, Florida: We woke up early and hit the cafeteria in the hotel for breakfast. It was early enough that it was not crowded yet. The food was average, nothing spectacular but it hit the spot. Afterwards we hopped on the bus to the Magic Kingdom. Once the park opened, we headed straight for Fantasyland. Fantasyland has the largest collection of rides that our son could ride. We hit every ride in Fantasyland before heading to Mickey’s Toontown Fair to ride Barnstormer. We continued our tour of the park through Tomorrowland where we rode the Tomorrowland Speedway, Tomorrowland Transit Authority and Carousel of Progress. We tried to stick to the rides that were appropriate for a two year old so the whole family can enjoy, however it was tough passing by Space Mountain and not going for a ride. As we crossed across the central hub to hit attractions on the other side of the park, we stopped for lunch at the Columbia Harbour House. The Columbia Harbour House in Liberty ...