Disney's Boulder Ridge Resort

We rented points through David’s dvc for the first time and got a great deal on the 1 bedroom villa. It was perfect for my husband, daughter and I. My diagnose slept on the pull down Murphy bed in the living area and it was very comfortable! Much better then the pull out coaches at hotels. We had great trip! It was a bit too hot (high 90s) so next time we would go in the cooler months but we loved our stay and the room was perfect! Read less

My family of 5 stayed in a deluxe room at Boulder Ridge. The room was extremely clean, spacious and beautifully decorated. We had enough space for all of us and our luggage and never felt crammed. We also had a small kitchenette with a mini fridge (no freezer). The beds are so comfortable and the rooms are very sound proof. The resort grounds are gorgeous. We would definitely return! Read less

Once again things only keep going downhill at these villas. We have been coming for 20 years due to the fact it is our “home” resort for the DVC and have enjoyed it much more in the past. The rooms have been refurbished to bare bones. We are in a studio room as it is just my husband and myself this time. Somewhat larger than an average hotel room it feels very plain. No bedside table to charge the phone, place a book or anything. One big long white counter under the TV that hides a child’s pull down bed along with a few drawers. A small fridge and empty cabinets, except for a few paper plates. The water pressure is terrible. And the smell of the water is terrible. I realize it’s built over a swamp and the water in Florida isn’t the best, but couldn’t they use better filters??? The bed is not comfortable so neither my husband nor myself slept well the four nights we were here. The drinks are outrageously expensive (17$ for a margarita in a small Dixie type cup). The last straw was this morning when we were trying to sleep in a little before a long drive. The garbage trucks were right outside our balcony (we were on the third floor) banging the garbage bins and making all kinds of noise at a little before 7. Couldn’t they at least wait until 8? Anyway, the pool area is nice and we do love the relative quiet out by the vacation club pool. We used to love the running trail they had that connected this property to the Fort Wilderness campground but they have done away with that as well to make room for their outrageously expensive cabins. If you have DVC it’s a less “hectic” type place and it is pretty in the lobby and outdoors with all the pine trees. However, if you’re booking it as a hotel room I think you might be disappointed when you see the rooms for the price you have to pay to stay here. Read less

This place is fine. I think if we had stayed in the main part of the hotel, we would have had a somewhat different experience. We were really disappointed with our first Disney experience and didn’t leave wanting to return like we had hoped. -When we checked in, I had some questions about transportation and the hotel in general. The cast member said he was new and that he was unable to answer any of our questions. -The shower was either freezing cold or scalding hot, with no in between. The sheets are paper thin and there is no comforter on the bed. They use the equivalent of a giant towel, which I guess is because they have such high volume they have to be able to rip the bedding off quickly. -We asked for a crib for our 2 year old, and it was never brought to us which completely disrupted their ability to sleep. -There is no room service, so if you find yourself needing food or something simple like a bottle of water at night, you’re out of luck. When we asked about water or anything else, we were simply told about the club level and how they have all of those amenities for those rooms only. This is something you might really take for granted at a Marriott or other hotel chain that gives you free bottled water at the bare minimum. -We decided to valet because we knew we were going to be using our car often. This was the most bizarre valet experience we’ve ever had. It seemed almost like an after thought, or they were just hoping nobody would use the valet service. We had to get a new valet ticket almost every time we came back to the hotel, and continuously had to give our name and other information, even though we saw the same staff over and over. -Another negative part of our experience is that, when we booked our specific hotel room type, we weren’t given the option of what view we wanted. We just paid the price to reserve a 1 bedroom in Boulder Ridge. We had a first floor view of a fence and some grass, which was absolutely not what we wanted. I would have paid more for a better view, but was never given the option. It would be really helpful to have separate categories for some room types based on views that can be booked (like they have for a few of the room types). It doesn’t really make sense to pay the same amount when some people end up with terrible views and some get amazing ones. -One of the most disappointing things is that there really were never any staff to ask how you’re doing or if your stay is going well. Even when I asked the front desk as we were leaving what I needed to do for check out, she just said “nothing, it’s automatic”, with no “how was your stay“ or a simple “thank you for coming”. Disney Parks seem to pride themselves on customer service and experience, but it seems to be more of an illusion than reality in the Hotels/Resorts. There are far too many people for them to genuinely care about everyone’s experience. They also use computers for a majority of what staff persons would typically do at a resort. There is no way to call the hotel directly ahead of time to ask questions or make sure you feel comfortable before paying a lot of money before your stay. I tried to contact someone via the main Disney customer service number and could never get through to anyone. We went to the Four Seasons for breakfast and within five minutes were being called by name and the hospitality was incredible. The Wilderness Lodge in comparison seemed like an airport hotel or the most basic resort one could possibly book. Overall, I think if you want to pay a lot of money to be able to stay on Disney property and take a boat to Magic Kingdom, but you want more of an Airbnb experience and you don’t care about hospitality or comfort, this is a great choice!! Read less

The Wilderness Lodge, and its adjacent Boulder Ridge Villas are nicely themed to the idea of the national parks, with lots of theming with wood and trees and nature. The Boulder Ridge Villas is a Disney Vacation Club property, primarily intended for stays by DVC members, but also available to their guests, and frequently rooms not reserved for that purposes are available to rent from Disney just like a regular hotel room in the main lodge building, to which it's connected by a covered walkway. Like other DVC properties, the Boulder Ridge Villas (and the Copper Creek DVC property with is also at the Wilderness Lodge) offer studio, 1-bedroom and 2-bedroom offerings. All the common services like dining, shopping and transportation are in the main Wilderness Lodge building. Dining varies fancier character experiences with Snow White at the Artist Point, to the purposely-boisterous "Whispering" Canyon Cafe, a bar, the Roaring Fork quick-service offering (with mug-filling), and the Geyser Point open-air Bar and Grill down by the shores of Bay Lake (also offers mug-filling). The price for any of the lodging offerings at the Wilderness Lodge and its two DVC properties can get expensive, but can be so worth it for a nice, relaxing environment. Complimentary boat service to the Magic Kingdom and busses to all other resort destinations are included. The Electrical Water Pageant stops here for a fun show - you can get great views down in the area of the Geyser Point Bar and Grill. The Boulder Ridge Villas include a ground-floor sitting room themed after the Carolwood Pacific Railroad the Walt Disney had built in his yard - for fans and Walt, history, and railroading, it's an awesome room with cars and lots of photos. Read less