Back from Aug 29 - Sept 6 trip

[staceyatdisney]

Just back - had a WONDERFUL time. Here is a run down of what we did to make the trip memorable and easy (as can be).

Hotel: Stayed at the Contemporary for the first time. Very, very nice. We were in the towers, 11th floor with a bay view which was stunning. The towers seem to be a lot nicer than the wing. (I will say that the rooms on the 5th, 6th, and 7th floor, towards the chef mickey's area are probably not so good. When Chef Mickey's starts up in the morning around 7:30 it is probably super loud in those rooms. While it didn't wake us up, when we were up that early we could hear it in our room at the other end of the hall on the 11th floor.)
Room was clean, staff was super, and the food at the Contempo Cafe (for counter service) was pretty good. Our favorite was the BLT turkey club and the beef flatbread. Also had breakfast at Chef Mickey's which was really excellent. The buffet was really good and the characters outstanding. Nicely done.

The pool at the hotel was a true highlight. It is big and during our week not crowded at all. We all loved the slide. The new splash area for the kids is a treat - the kids really enjoyed this.

A huge plus to the hotel is the ability to walk to/from the Magic Kingdom. A huge saver at the end of the night when tons of people are waiting for the monorail. Downside - I felt the room was a bit dark, my husband didn't think so.

The biggest issue was there wasn't a "table". We like to order room service and we really didn't have a place the two of us could sit and eat together. The bathroom, while it doesn't have a lot of counter space as others have noted, the dollar store shoe rack worked like a charm for all the tolietries.

On our one rainy night we went to the hotel arcade - the kids had a blast, thankful they had this to do.

August weather: Totally manageable. Of course we were smart - most days we started out in the mid-morning was back by mid afternoon for a nap and then back out at dinner till the parks closed. On the days we were out all day there was just one that was super hot. We loved our spray bottles with fans. The nights were extremely pleasant - cool and enjoyable.

Food: Had a romantic dinner at the California Grill (kids were at Neverland, more on that in a minute). It was one of our top 10 meals (and we eat out, a lot). Service was excellent and the food just outstanding. I had a lobster risotto that even if I only got to smell it, I would have been happy it smelled that good. And the food was down right pretty. And the view - too good for words. Aside from the "good" places (calif grill, the wave, etc.) - counter service is mostly blah. Fair at best. The highlights were the BLT turkey club at Contempo and burritos and nachos in Mexico. Our best find was a "snack" in France. The pastry shop has awesome crossiants and other goodies - I used snack credits for all. Also, not on the plan, but LOVED the slushies that I think were outside of Morocco. Also liked dinner at the Wave in the hotel. Did NOT like the food at the Hollywood and Vine character lunch. GROSS.

Neverland: Highly recommend it. It is a beautiful place - crafts, dress up, video games, a movie screen, toys galore, etc. The kids loved it. Felt extremely safe.

Misc. tips/info: Once again used the Garden Grocer. They are super - never a problem. Got two cases of water and used almost all of it in the 8 days.

Loved buying the stroller for the week and not having to stand in a line each and every day (plus it saves money). Speaking of strollers - my kids are 4 and just turned 7 - we got a stroller every day in every park. So much easier than trying to herd them through the streets and sometimes crowds

Bibbety -boppety was great - my daughter (who turned 7 on the trip) looked beautiful with her princess hair and make up (we skipped the dress). Really worth the money - hair, makeup, nails and a sash was $58 - she got to keep the make up, comb, 2 bottles of nail polish and crystal "stickies".

Loved the tip about bringing dollar store tablecloths for covering the stroller in rain. Worked like a charm.

Found the restrooms to be clean, no issues.

Loved all the rides except Honey I Shrunk the Audience. First of all, we HATED the 30 minute kodak commercial you have to stand through and then the show was nothing special. Our least favorite. We did love Mickey's Philharmagic, Monsters inc, Nemo show at AK, Presdients, Toy Story Mania (prob our fave ride, so well done, worth the wait), kali rapids, thunder mountain, splash mountain, tower of terror and my husband's favorite - the Aerosmith coaster.

Oh, another super find, at Hollywood Studios, on extra magic hours, they do a dance party in Disney Playhouse. The characters came out and danced with the kids the whole time. Bubbles come from the ceiling, there were balloon artists, and fun music. Def a highlight of the trip.

For Mom's with little girls, at Epcot, France - there is a little shop (attached to a wine shop) that had the most amazing dresses. We got one for the first day of school and it is just so pretty.

Magical express - excellent as usual.

(Flying out of Philly we used PreFlight parking, they were excellent. Drop off and pick up was a breeze. Very nice people. I recommend them.)


Crowds: Were excellent. We walked on most rides - Toy Story Mania, Soarin and Test Track needed fast pass (but not at all times, test track, more than once, had 10 min waits.) We rode Buzz lightyear countless times. And at Animal Kingdom my son and I went on Kali Rapids 2 times in a row while my husband and daughter rode everest 4 times in a row. On Saturday it got a bit more crowded - no doubt due to the holiday. Will go again during this time in August just for the crowd levels.

Cast members - all we encountered and spoke with were friendly and nice. Zero problems.


I think that is it for now. I'm wiped. Happy to answer any questions. Will let you know if I think of anything else.

PS - Special thank you to the Contemporary Monorail staff on Saturday evening when my daughter had to jump off the monorail to be sick. They were super helpful and kind. (Also to the nice woman who was going to get off the monorail to give us a towel - THANKS!!!)

[tjknitz]

Did you end up doing any morning EMH's? If so ...were the crowd levels unbearable by mid afternoon that you had to move to a different park? Did you utilize the park hopper?

Glad you had such a great vacation...I'm anxious to go myself...I leave this Friday I can't wait!

[staceyatdisney]

We did no EMH in the morning - we never see rope drop we rather do the evening EMH and close the parks. From what I saw this past week, even with the mornings we were out earlier, I think you will be fine. The crowds were really light. We got there on Saturday the 29th, spent the evening in MK and walked on all the rides. Sunday had evening EMH in MK and again, at dinner time until closed we walked on almost everything. We did have park hopper - we did hop a few times but at our whim not due to crowds. During the day at both AK and HS (aside from Toy Story Mania) we walked on everything including bugs life, nemo show, tower of terror, aerosmith (had 10 mins), etc. Even if the rides post 10 or 15 - I bet you find you go right on. I think you'll be really happy with what you find. Have an excellent time!!!

[my2disneyboys]

Thanks for the great review! We are heading to the Contemporary in January and plan on eating at the Cali Grill, and Wave. My little guy is too small for Neverland Club- do you think it is appropriate to bring a 2 year old to Cali Grill? What did you mean about the stroller? Did you bring one or rent one? It sounds like you all had a great vacation!!

[MinnieGirl33]

We were there at the same time! (CR for 3 nights then over to BLT).

DH loved the Turkey Club from Contempo as well.

If you thought the CR rooms were dark, I suggest avoiding the Poly. Stayed there for 2 nights before our SSR visit in May. I was shocked at how dark the rooms felt (combination of decor & low lighting).

I'm glad you had a good experience at CM. Ours was awful.

Another vote for PreFlight Parking. We've been using them for a few years now & highly recommend them.

Glad you had a great trip.

[CanadianPaco]

I couldn't agree more about that pre-show to Honey I Shrunk the Audience! Oh that was simply awful! I think it bugged me so much that when we got to see the show itself, I was in no mood to sit through it.
Sounds like you had a wonderful time!

[bouncycat]

really glad to hear about your trip, I leave in 8 days, and was HOPING for low crowds!! My sister and mom don't like crowds too much, which is why we chose september to go! Thanks for the info!!

[SLM]

Glad you had such a nice trip! We had to work around the crowds earlier in the month-doable, but what a difference a couple weeks make!

Originally Posted by my2disneyboys

Thanks for the great review! We are
heading to the Contemporary in January and plan on eating at the Cali Grill, and Wave. My little guy is too small for Neverland Club- do you think it is appropriate to bring a 2 year old to Cali Grill? What did you mean about the stroller? Did you bring one or rent one? It sounds like you all had a great vacation!!

Dinner at the CG can be at least 2 hours-a long time for a little person to sit. You see children there, but it's such a nice couples kind of place-I think there's a service that sends sitters to your room (through Disney).

[staceyatdisney]

Thanks for the great review! We are heading to the Contemporary in January and plan on eating at the Cali Grill, and Wave. My little guy is too small for Neverland Club- do you think it is appropriate to bring a 2 year old to Cali Grill? What did you mean about the stroller? Did you bring one or rent one? It sounds like you all had a great vacation!!
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We did see quite a few kids at the Calif Grill - we commented to each other on how well behaved they were. Personally, while my 7 and 4 year old probably would have been fine, if I'm spending that much money on food, I really want to enjoy it and not have to answer 50 million questions, cut food, stop eating for a potty visit, tell them to quiet voices, etc. 8-)

We rented the strollers. On our first day we paid for the whole week which is a time and money saver. You keep the voucher with you and each day they stamp it. Also, if you park hop, you just show your voucher and you get a stroller. Super easy.

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

Thanks for posting that wonderfull and detailed trip report.

[Pooh&OurHunny]

Glad you and your family had a great time. Thanks for review on California Grill, we are trying it for our trip on Dec. Thanks

[niasmom]

Sounds like you had a great trip. Thanks for some of the extra "ideas" and tips.

[OB1]

Great trip report - sounds like you had a 'magical trip'. Really good to hear the CMs were nice, the bathrooms and general areas were clean, and the food was excellent. I guess it just depends when you hit a certain area as to what shape it will be in. I do know that people litter a lot more than they use to.