Just back from WL

[Metallicat]

Hi everyone. We just got back from a stay at the WL. I can't remember our room number but it was on 3rd floor facing the otter pond. we could see some of the fireworks but the woods blocked out most of it. The boat ride to the MK was very quick and the resort was really pretty. we stayed there a couple of nights before moving on to stay at our timeshare so we only had a couple of meals at the resort which was B'fast at roaring forks carried up to our room. it was a small food court type place but they had good B'fast choices. I would recommend the WL highly to anyone but keep in mind that the rooms are very noisey.

I have a comment to make that I hope doesn't offend parents of small children so bear with me while I say this. please. if you have children, tell them to be respectfull of other guests staying in the hotel. there are people trying to sleep and if they yell, slam the door over and over, and run up and down the hall it (sounds like someone is beating a rug. thumpidy, thump thump) it is very loud and some of us in those rooms cannot sleep with all the noise your kids are making. if there is a water parade or fireworks going on at 10 oclock at night, please don't let them scream and yell out on the balcony. there is probably someone in the room next to you tired and trying to sleep. please don't let them press every number on the elevator. it is aggrivating to the rest of us who are in a hurry to have to stop on each and every floor because they pushed all the buttons. teach your kids to cover their mouths when they cough. and if you have a double decker stroller, kindly move over to the side just a little so some of us can get past you in the hallways. but most of all and I can't stress this enough, please teach them to try and be respectfull of guests in nearby rooms who may be sleeping. I had to buy earplugs and still overheard loud children even after midnight. I know kids will be kids and it IS Disney, but we would all be much more happier at the happiest place on earth if people would take into consideration other peoples feelings sometimes and remember the golden rule of "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you" well, just had to get that off my chest! Linda

 

[ohMom]

did you ride the buses at all?? i've seen some pretty negative reports on the buses at WL??

sorry to hear your experience with loud children, sounds like you were at the wrong room at the wrong time. hope this is not the norm at WL.

another question? does this resort feel "old"? compared to others??

TIA

 

[soccer mom]

Metallicat,

I agree with you 100%. And this from a mother of four who doesn't want to put up with it from other people's kids when I don't allow my own children to be inconsiderate and disrespectful.

About WL...I have read in more than a couple of threads about the noisy rooms at WL. We are going in November for the first time and I am kind of hesitate because of this. We too hit the sack on the early side and when we are relaxing in our room or on the balcony don't appreciate it sounding like we are in the middle of MK.

We have never had a noise problem at any of the other resorts.
Does any one have any idea why WL would have a noise problem and other resorts don't? Was it built in a way that lends to the noise?

 

[vbfamily]

Soccer Mom:

If noise is a problem, don't go to WL. We enjoyed our stay there very much but it was very noisy. You can hear every toilet flush in rooms around you. You constantly can hear this awful scraping noise from people sliding their chairs across their balconies-even when they move it only slightly-I don't think this is anyone's individual fault. Disney should have insulated better and worked out something different for the balconies.

WL is a great resort. It is really unbelievable when you walk in to the lobby for the first time.

You may want to request a room at the end of a hallway-then you'll have less people next to you. If you are staying concierge, you'll be on the top floor so that would cut down on much of the noise. Maybe even a room on the first floor with a patio would be less noisy than being surrounded on all sides.

Yes, the noise was a problem for us but not enough to make us switch rooms or not enjoy our vacation. The lodge is spectacular-just figure out what would be the best room for you and request it-you might get it.

 

[peachgirl]

It's funny how everyone's experiences are so different! We stayed at the WL for 2 weeks during this past Christmas through New Year's Eve, one of the busiest times at WDW.

I had heard the reports of noisy rooms, but we never experienced it. Our room, 5071, was a courtyard view overlooking the lobby. You could hear noise from the restaurant at certain times, but never late in the evening. As far as noise from other rooms, balconies or toilets..not a peep. I was expecting terrible noise problems and never had any.

As far as the bus service, I had read the reports about slow service as well. The bus service was excellent. We never waited more than 10 minutes for a bus, a vast majority of the time the wait was under 5 minutes.

The resort looked very nice and the rooms were in excellent condition. The mousekeepers did a wonderful job, even going so far as to stop by every now and then just to check that we were satisfied.
I had no complaints whatsoever and I'm not all that easy to please.

 

[vbfamily]

I agree with the above poster, everyone does have different experiences-I think it probably helped that they were on the 5th floor-there may have been noone above them.


You may not experience any noise but I wouldn't stay on a second floor room with people on all sides again. If you stay on the 5th floor, you're much more likely to have it be quiet.

 

[crisi]

We were on the third floor overlooking the otter pond (sounds about like where the OP was), and close to the elevators. We didn't notice other toilets flushing or showers running - or at least no more than any other hotel I've been in. Never noticed our neighbors, or other balcony sounds (the chairs on concrete do kind of remind you of fingernails on a blackboard) We did notice that there were lots of families with very excitied children going to and coming from the elevator. If we would have slept late (we didn't) we got the going to the park noise. If we went to bed early (which was our habit) we got the returning from the park noise. Noise included the herd of moose sound (think of it as themeatic) accompanied by the war whoops of excited children.

My guess - staying near the elevators was convienent, but does increase the noise. Also, because of the size of the resort (huge long halls) and the fact that it is close to the MK and relatively cheap for a Deluxe, there are LOTS of families staying there. We've found the Poly and GF to have a greater percentage of people with no kids or older kids. And most of the moderates are set up with the several rooms in a building model and no inside halls - which keeps kid noise down. Also, with so many people coming from different time zones, what seems like the middle of the night to East Coasters is coming back from dinner time from someone who just flew in from San Diego.

I'm not sure that much can be done. I know that when my children get loud - I don't help things by yelling at them to be quieter. And they don't come with a volume switch. We've tried our best to teach them to be courteous, but it only goes so far when you are a preschooler at Disney.

 

[Blondie]

Sorry you had a problem with noise from other guests.

We returned from the WL on January 25th, and we had no problem with noise from anyone or anything!

We were in room 6201. This room isn't near the main lodge, it's down a corridor on one of the wings, so we heard no lobby noise at all!

We didn't hear any flushing toilets, and slept quite comfortably the entire time. We also turn in early, especially at this time of year when the parks close early!

If you are hesitant about staying here based on what others of said about noise, please rethink it! The WL is a wonderfully themed resort, and you'll be missing out!

Regarding the bus issue, we did have one at one time when we were trying to return to Epcot to watch Illuminations. It was approx. 6PM and we waited, and waited...and waited...and waited for a bus to Epcot! We finally got so tired of waiting that we hopped a TTC bus, and then took the monorail from there. Not sure what the problem was that particular night, but that was the only time in 6 nights that we had a delay.



*edited for typos!*

 

[CrzyforPiglet]

We were lucky too! We were in a deluxe room so our "living area" bordered another room but our "sleeping" room was only bordered by the outside so we didn't hear anything when we were trying to sleep but if we were in our "living area" we heard our neighbors 3 small children more often. It never reached a level of being really annoying - THANK YOU NEIGHBORS!! But I could see how a different situation could have been a lot worse.

Being considerate of others is a good lesson for everyone!!

 

[vbfamily]

I shouldn't have said "If noise is a problem, don't go to WL". Chances are, you are going to experience one type of noise or another no matter what hotel you stay at.

Yes, we had a lot of it, but it did NOT ruin our trip and we talk about how much fun we had at WL all the time. The resort is truly breathtaking and should not be missed.

My husband had to get up at 4 a.m. for a triathlon and I think this may have factored into how much noise bothered us. He couldn't get any sleep. Whatever sleep schedules our kids have, they went out the window at WDW-most everyone's does.

Have fun and if you are concerned just request a quiet room-the people who assign rooms should have a pretty good insight into which ones are quiet.

 

[Metallicat]

Thanks for the replies everyone.

OhMom, we didn't use the buses so I can't comment on that one.
I had a car and knew from past experience (in staying in other WDW resorts) that I could get where I was going quicker by driving myself. I did love the boat ride to the MK. it was quick and and I loved being out on the water. the boats were covered so it wasn't cold but myself and a few others rode outside on the bow of the boat (to enjoy the scenery) and that was a little chilly. not bad though.
I loved the WL. it was really nice and lovely but the noise was pretty bad. I did hear toilets flushing all around me. I cannot say everybody all around was noisey, just the people right next door they were loud and slamming the door (over and over like 15 times within a two minute period) and the children screaming on their balcony when we were trying to sleep. but, it could have been worse... In October we stayed at Hard Rock Hotel and I found half a joint (marijuana) in the hallway (of course I called security) and in the room nextdoor,the two women fighting and cussing each other out saying every bad word in the book. I suppose there is noise in every hotel. some worse than others. btw, WL rooms were very clean and not at all dark. I did see more elderly folks staying there than at any other hotel. I love seeing older couples holding hands and in love after so many years. I wouldn't hessitate to stay at WL again with pack of earplugs of course! oh, and I didn't see one cheerleader/dancer at WL

 

[Misti]

Thanks for the review and welcome home.

Sorry to hear about the noise. We had the same problem in the main building at the GF last year (it was a "connecting" room). Through the connecting door, we could hear every single word, yell, scream, you name it. I felt badly for the kids actually. It was the mother who was constantly yelling.

 

[Mickymark]

We've stayed at the WL twice before and we have never experienced a noise problem. Both times we had a courtyard view overlooking the pool. The bus transportation wasn't a problem either.

 

[Ratpack]

I have to agree with other posters, I have been to Wl twice and not one time did noise become an issue. As long as I can afford it, this is the only place I care to stay when I go to WDW. We were on the 4th floor and never heard toilets, showers or anything. An occasional door closing but like someone else said, it is a hotel and that is to be expected.

 

[Metallicat]

I forgot to mention that I did request "The quietest room/area that you have because we are light sleepers and the view does not matter". The CM (bless her heart) scanned the computer, made some calls and did her very best to accomodate me. It was not her fault, or the hotels fault at all, but the fault was with the stupid parents who let their kids make all kinds of noise. I don't even blame the kids, just the parents who are responsible for teaching their own children MANNERS. (If kids are big enough to talk, they are big enough to learn how to behave).
I'm not dissing the WL at all. I said I loved the resort. it's beautifull. but am pleading for the sake of other guests in the resort to TEACH YOUR CHILDREN (OR YOUR ADULT PARTNER WHO SCREAMS, YELLS ETC..) TO BE MINDFULL OF OTHERS WHO MAY BE SLEEPING IN THE OTHER ROOMS!
this has nothing to do with the resort. it could have been the Gator Inn for all that matters.

 

[MinnieGi]

Metallicat - have your tried AKL yet?

Just wondering b/c if you liked the WL, but found it noisy, you should be very pleased with AKL.

We also found the WL on the noisy side. But just came back from the AKL and found it very peaceful and quiet. There were lots of kids there too, but I'm not really sure what it was, but the hotel was just much more serene and quiet than our WL stay. We were on the pool view side for both hotels too. Just a thought.

Glad you enjoyed the hotel anyway.

Gi

 

[Metallicat]

Gi, No, we haven't stayed at AKL yet. it sounds really nice though.
We got a really good rate at WL through mouse savers with our AP's and it was so close to the MK that I couldn't resist booking there. The WL was lovely but I doubt if we will stay there again unless it is a super good deal. I just didn't care for the woodsy log cabin feel to it. I prefer a more tropical feeling resort with palm trees and pastel colors and peace and quite of course
p.s maybe the kids were quieter at AKL because they didn't want to shoo away the animals? just a thought.. Linda

 

[#1MMFan]

Have to say I've never had any problems with noise at WL or any other resort for that matter. Perhaps I've been lucky?

#1MMFan

 

[PamNC]

Metallicat, I couldn't have said it better myself. I'm glad you vented. I've always wanted to say all of that but never had the nerve. I vented along with you as I read it.

PamNC

 

[beautybelle]

metallicat: Just a thought: If I didnt like animals I seriously doubt I'd go to the zoo.