The Wilderness Princess

Fort Wilderness: Increase the Chances of Getting the Loop and Site that You Want

Published on April 25, 2019April 25, 2019 by thewildernessprincess

Unlike many campgrounds, visitors to Disney’s Fort Wilderness are unable to pre-select their sites or loops. The campground is getting more and more popular, and tends to be at or near capacity for many weeks of the year. In addition, there is a tremendous variety of size types, sizes, and convenience in this 800-site, very large campground. However, by following a series of steps, you can greatly increase your odds of getting a loop or site that best suits your needs. Continue reading “Fort Wilderness: Increase the Chances of Getting the Loop and Site that You Want “ →

Walking and Biking Your Way Through the Soul of Savannah: Georgia’s World Showcase

Published on April 22, 2019August 9, 2019 by thewildernessprincess

At first glance, a brief description of Savannah, Georgia sounds a little like Epcot. We’ll spend the day walking cobblestone streets, exploring nuanced cultures in romantic nooks, watching the evening lights on the water, and drinking magical concoctions and eating everything along the way. But Savannah is the real deal. In near Walt Disney fashion, it’s an idyllic planned city with every detail having a purpose. But these plans date back to the early 1700s, when James Oglethorpe persuaded the Yamacraw Indian tribe to move a little further north. Continue reading “Walking and Biking Your Way Through the Soul of Savannah: Georgia’s World Showcase” →

Tiki Tiki Dole Whip Pie

Published on April 18, 2019April 19, 2019 by thewildernessprincess

One of the first things that we did on my first trip to Walt Disney World in 1973 was to visit the Enchanted Tiki Room. As a place where “all the birds sing words and the flowers croon,” I believe this may be the happiest place in the happiest place in the world. Of course, nearby is the legendary Dole Whip, the tropical pineapple delight fairly unknown in its early pre-instagram years. Continue reading “Tiki Tiki Dole Whip Pie” →

Fort Wilderness Vocabulary: 10 More Useful & Useless Words to Know (Part 2)

Published on April 17, 2019 by thewildernessprincess

This is Part II of our Disney Fort Wilderness Dictionary. Whether it’s your first time or 40th time to Disney’s Fort Wilderness, you’re bound to have a more successful trip if you know the native language. Some of these are well-known by Fort old-timers, and other are just beginning to emerge into the daily Bay Lake dialogue. Continue reading “Fort Wilderness Vocabulary: 10 More Useful & Useless Words to Know (Part 2)” →

Master’s Pimiento Cheese (Recipe) and the Fairytale Redemption of Tiger Woods

Published on April 14, 2019April 14, 2019 by thewildernessprincess

Even more magical than a fairy tale where good triumphs over evil is the redemption of one’s own weakest and darkest times. Unlike Tiger Woods, whose transgressions and physical ailments became an open book upon which we could all gawk and judge, most of ours are safely locked away, occasionally appearing on those nights when sleep eludes us. Today’s win by Tiger Wood is a win for anyone who has ever faced deep regret caused by one’s own shadow – or despair resulting from mortal limitations. As I become older, I learn that there is a Tiger is just about every one of us. Yet some give up, succumb to self-torment, never understanding that within the battle with oneself lies the very purpose of life itself. Continue reading “Master’s Pimiento Cheese (Recipe) and the Fairytale Redemption of Tiger Woods” →

Princess Guide to Masters Golf Tournament: 7 Things to Know

Published on April 10, 2019January 5, 2020 by thewildernessprincess1 Comment

If there’s something that compares to that feeling of being a child and taking that first step into the Magic Kingdom, it is being an adult and walking into Augusta National during that legendary week in April. I dare to say, it may be even better. My first visit was at the final round in April 1995, where Ben Crenshaw won his second Master’s, and Tiger Woods played his first match as a professional. Walking through the gates past the clubhouse and over the hill at hole number one is a sight like none other. Continue reading “Princess Guide to Masters Golf Tournament: 7 Things to Know” →

10 of the Very Best Sites at Disney’s Fort Wilderness (and They Play Hard-to-Get)

Published on April 8, 2019September 24, 2019 by thewildernessprincess1 Comment

Many people contend that any site at Fort Wilderness is perfectly sublime, just by virtue of its location in one of America’s largest and most magical campgrounds. But with 21 camping loops and more than 600 sites spread out over more than a mile, there are astonishing differences in size, location to amenities, shade, and desirability – kind of like ex-boyfriends. Continue reading “10 of the Very Best Sites at Disney’s Fort Wilderness (and They Play Hard-to-Get)” →

Folklore of Disney’s Fort Wilderness and Bay Lake: Myth or Reality?

Published on April 3, 2019April 4, 2019 by thewildernessprincess2 Comments

Since November 1971, Disney’s Fort Wilderness Campground and Resort has been a mystical place that sits in sharp contrast to the glitz and crowds of the rest of Walt Disney World. It holds a place of peculiar fascination and obsession for the thousands who spent so many of their best childhood vacations there. Along with Bay Lake, the Fort’s younger sister Wilderness Lodge, Continue reading “Folklore of Disney’s Fort Wilderness and Bay Lake: Myth or Reality?” →

Methodist Version of Art Smith’s Church Lady Deviled Eggs

Published on March 31, 2019May 14, 2019 by thewildernessprincess

As a child, I had a friend who wouldn’t eat deviled eggs because she was certain they would make her go to hell. She went to a tiny Baptist church as far out in the country as one could get without crossing the border into Alabama. I went to Easter services with her one year, but nearly ran out during the third verse of Standing on the Promises. My panic was prompted by Pastor Darnell, who pointed directly at us several times while shouting about 50 various behaviors that would lead to eternal damnation. Unfortunately, I had done about 20 of those in the past two days, and I was only 11 years old. This was quite a contrast to the Methodist church that I attended. Continue reading “Methodist Version of Art Smith’s Church Lady Deviled Eggs” →

Up in Smoke: 10 More Things that Disney Parks Should Ban

Published on March 28, 2019March 29, 2019 by thewildernessprincess

This morning, The Disney Company surprised its fans when it completely eliminated smoking, including vaping, in all of its parks in the United States. Previously, there had been designated smoking areas in each park, typically in out-of-the-way places. The news came early – even before people on the West Coast had even had their morning smokes. It appeared to delight the majority of people on social media, who recited the dangers Continue reading “Up in Smoke: 10 More Things that Disney Parks Should Ban” →