A Look at the Refurbished Fort Wilderness Cabins
The cabins at Fort Wilderness went through a refurbishment that began in fall of 2015 and was completed in early 2016. To learn all the great things about the cabins you can read my blog post from last year. In this post I will give you a glimpse of the changes that have been made to the cabins.
The most dramatic upgrade is in the kitchen, which has been completely replaced. The stove is gone with a two burner stovetop and a microwave/convection oven combination as the new cooking area. At the end of this post, I will share my experience cooking in the oven.
The bathroom got new cabinets and countertops. The bathtub is fiberglass.
The bench at the dining table now has a back cushion. The murphy bed was replaced with a large TV and a six drawer dresser. The sofa has been replaced with a larger double size sleeper sofa. The child’s table and chairs are gone. The window coverings have also been updated.
With the refurbishment, the pantry and a small TV were removed from the side of the kitchen. The new space seems to be missing something, like maybe a side table was supposed to be there.
The bunk beds remain, but the full size bed has been replaced with a queen size bed. The bed is elevated and there is enough space so you can store your luggage beneath it. The linens were updated to a more modern neutral palette with crisp white sheets.
The deck has been rebuilt and metal handrails were added. Our cabin had three rocking chairs.
The carpet in the bedroom has been removed and replaced with a wood-like laminate that is in the rest of the cabin. The coat hooks across from the front door are a nice touch.
In October when I got my first glimpse of the new cabins, I was surprised to see the oven was removed. Later I found out that the microwave was actually a microwave convection oven combo. Disney did not skimp on the oven, it is a Kenmore Elite 80373 that retails for $850. I went to Trader Joes and bought several items that required baking — we cooked stuffed mushrooms, battered fish, frozen pizza, croissants, and cinnamon rolls. Everything cooked as it would in a standard oven, although cooking time was slightly longer than the directions suggested.
A Facebook user suggested baking a birthday cake. Originally I was going to bake brownies, but what the heck, cake it is. My wife reminded me that we have a Mickey cake pan from my parent’s house. I searched and found the 1970’s directions and went to a craft store and bought the needed supplies. My daughter and I recreated my 1975 birthday cake:
Yes, you can bake a cake in the convection oven, although I would not recommend spending three hours of your vacation decorating it; Publix makes very nice birthday cakes. If you are going to do any baking or cooking be aware that the kitchen tools that Disney provides are limited. The sharpest knife is a steak knife and they are not very sharp. There are no baking sheets or measuring spoons.
We really enjoy staying in the cabins. I have to say that while there were many changes made to the cabin, the refurbishment didn’t have as big an impact on the overall feel of the space as I would have expected.
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Can you put an aluminum pan in the convection oven?
Yes. We used an aluminum cake pan, and everything worked fine.
What cooking supplies does Disney provide? We’re grilling steaks one night. Need plates, forks, and knives. I know you indicated that the knives aren’t very sharpz
A collection of pots, pans, plates, glasses and silverware are provided. They do not provide proper grilling utensils. My prior trip to the cabins I took metal tongs and spatula to grill with. I do believe the cabins have a plastic spatula.
Found this list…might be helpful…on the AllEars.net site:
Kitchen includes:
full-size refrigerator with ice maker
Two burner cooktop
large convection/microwave unit.
dishwasher
1 10 cup coffee maker (stored in cupboard)
toaster
tea kettle
flatware for 6: forks, salad forks, teaspoons, soups spoons, knives and steak knives
dinnerware for 6: mugs, cereal bowls, dinner plates, dessert plates
6 handled mason jar glasses
1 serving spoon
1 glass measuring cup
1 2 qt. pitcher
1 2 qt. casserole with lid
1 glass baking dish
1 oval platter
manual can opener
bottle opener
cutting board
bread knife
ladle
spatula
1 12″ skillet
1 1 qt. saucepan with lid
1 2 qt. saucepan with lid
metal colander
spoon rest
2 potholders
2 sponges
4 cloth dish towels
fire extinguisher (under sink)
packets of dishwasher soap
liquid dish soap
paper towels (under sink)
trash bags (under sink)
NOT INCLUDED are salt, pepper, sugar (or sweetener), coffee filters, or small drinking glasses for the bathroom.
http://allears.net/acc/faq_fw.htm
Really appreciate the side-by-side comparison pictures!
“If you are going to do any baking or cooking be aware that the kitchen tools that Disney provides are limited. The sharpest knife is a steak knife and they are not very sharp. There are no baking sheets or measuring spoons.”
Here is my question…does anybody know the answer?
Can you call the front desk/housekeeping and request cooking utensils or measuring spoons or…?
How does it work for Fort Wilderness Cabins?
In recent years we’ve called for a tea kettle or measuring spoons or dish towels or…at both Beach Club DVC and Boardwalk DVC.
(things that ARE on the inventory list in the Villa kitchen that are supposed to be there)
Back in 1982, staying at the now long gone Vacation Villas (now Saratoga Springs) we called for a soup ladle and soup pot, and they were delivered by Mousekeeping who drove up in a golf cart.
Back in the 80’s and 90’s when I basically traveled for business 80% of the time, I always chose the cabins for my vacation. They were the “least like a hotel room” option then available. I’m really glad to see the full-sized replaced with a queen-sized bed! The 6 inches extra width and 5 inches extra length have always made more of a positive impact on sleeping compared to the negative impact of taking more floor space.
So, is the Murphy Bed replaced with a sleeper sofa? I never felt guilty asking my mom or an adult cousin to sleep on the Murphy Bed. I cannot ask an adult to sleep on a sleeper sofa. It matters less to me now that we are DVC members and I only travel about 20% of the time. The next generation of my extended family are now adults, and they love to go on golf trips and girl trips and general group getaways to Disney. The cabins at Ft. Wilderness were always a good choice because of the extended, comfortable sleeping options provided by the bunks and the Murphy bed. This will be a big change for them.
This looks great! I’ve recommended the cabins to several families looking for more space, but some were skeptical of the accommodations. This updates are likely to assuage those concerns.
Are these updates present in ALL their cabins?
Yes, all cabins have been updated.
Most of this looks nice, but I can’t say I’m a fan of the change to ‘modern’ looking linens. Kinda of takes away from the homey, log cabin look in my opinion.
I agree…the flat colors and ‘modern’ look is exactly the opposite theme of a “FT Wilderness Cabin”.
Excellent update. I had seen the new version of the kitchen last year, but the rest was new to me. Disney did a great job.
Now… what’s up with the ‘cabins’ sitting out in the lot by the entry road to the MK? Have they reduced the total number of cabins available?
Yes. The 2100 loop of cabins is being changed back to camping or motorhomes
Loop 2100 is being converted from cabins to campsites. There is a rumor that those cabins will be relocated to Wilderness Lodge DVC.
Here are some images from loop 2100:
The new cabins at the Wilderness Lodge appear to be built from scrath rather than being pre-fab, so I don’t expect the old Fort cabins to be used https://www.facebook.com/Unofficialwildernesslodgepages/photos/p.663384827145423/663384827145423/
Looks great! Though I’m wondering if the bedroom feels more crowded with a queen vs a full? Side note, I had that exact cake for my birthday in 1976 and had my mom recreate it for my 20th birthday in the ’90s.
The gap between the bunk beds and queen bed is smaller, but it did not feel crowded.