Hey-howdy-hey, Melissa! Welcome back to planDisney! We always love it when our pals come around to sit a spell with us!
Disney's Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground is one of my favorite places in the whole wide World. My family stays in a cozy cabin there as often as we can, and I'm so excited to head back in December! You don't need a reservation to visit, but parking is generally restricted to Guests who are staying on the grounds or have a dining reservation. With that in mind, your best bet for visiting "the Fort" for a look-see is to arrive by boat. You'll want to park at the Transportation and Ticket Center (TTC) near the Magic Kingdom Park, where you can board the monorail. From there, travel to either the Magic Kingdom Park entrance or Disney's Contemporary Resort and
hop aboard the launch to Fort Wilderness. Your floating chariot will drop you off at the Marina, and you'll be just steps from Pioneer Hall, home to
Trail's End Restaurant,
Crockett's Tavern, and
P&J's Southern Takeout. You'll also find the shop at the Settlement Trading Post nearby.
Just past Pioneer Hall is
Tri-Circle-D Ranch, where many of the horses you see in the theme parks spend their days munching on hay and being looked after by their Cast Member friends.
If you'd like to venture beyond the Marina area, you can catch an internal bus that will take you around the campgrounds. Hop off at the Meadow to do a little shopping (there's some great Fort Wilderness gear there!) and check out the
Meadow Swimmin' Pool.
And speaking of shopping, if you plan to peruse the wares at
Disney's Wilderness Lodge, you're in luck! You can easily get there by boarding a boat from the Fort Wilderness Marina. Then, when your adventure in the wilderness has come to an end, take the boat to Disney's Contemporary Resort or the Magic Kingdom Park, where your monorail awaits to whisk you back to the TTC.
Melissa, the Fort may have changed a bit since the last time you were there, but you're sure to feel the same rustic charm. I hope you have an amazing time exploring, and thank you so much for stopping by to see us here at planDisney!
Keep Disney Dreaming,
Kathy K.