Our recent stay at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge was heartbreaking. For families like ours who save for years to create a once-in-a-lifetime Disney trip, please read this before you book.
We paid over $8,000 USD just for the room, plus thousands more for tickets, dining, and Lightning Lanes. We expected the Deluxe Resort experience Disney advertises — peace, comfort, and service worth the price. What we got was chaos, broken promises, and sleepless nights.
They say “Welcome Home” when you arrive, but when things go wrong, you quickly learn you’re just a number.
At check-in, we were given the wrong villa, told it was a “new design,” and only later admitted to be an error. We had to unpack, repack, and move everything after already settling in ..,wasting our first day and creating unnecessary stress. When we tried to explain that this wasn’t acceptable, we were met with pushback and defensiveness, as if we were the problem for expecting the room we actually booked. It was an argument we never should’ve had to have at a Deluxe Resort.
Our Storybook Dining reservation ran over an hour late with two small kids, the fireworks dessert party was overcrowded, and basic dining options shut down early each night.
The main pool slide — the biggest draw for families — was closed all week for sanding and painting, despite Disney’s website promising “all amenities will remain available.” Dust and paint fumes filled the pool area.
Then came the worst part: overnight construction noise between 12:30 a.m. and 2 a.m. for multiple nights. Concrete saws, trucks, grinding metal — right outside guest rooms. Security confirmed other guests complained, but it still continued. Managers apologized, even offered a three-night stay for the disruption, but the work resumed again. This isn’t just inconvenient... it’s unbelievable at a Deluxe Resort.
Lightning Lanes failed, rides broke down, shows were canceled. We sent Disney videos, photos, receipts, and detailed notes. The issue was escalated to their Executive Correspondence Team, who refused to communicate in writing. When they finally called, they said there was “nothing more they could do.”
That was the moment the magic disappeared.
This isn’t just our story.. it’s for every family who spends years saving to give their kids a dream trip, only to be met with corporate indifference.
What Disney promises: Deluxe comfort, care, and magic.
What we got: mistakes, noise, exhaustion, and disappointment.
Disney, please remember: for you it’s one of thousands of reservations — for families like ours, it was our once-in-a-lifetime vacation.
