Disney's CONTEMPORARY RESORT Information & Questions

[WDWKOOK]

What about Sea Racers? Can you go to Seven Seas Lagoon on that? I figure that its really small and shouldn't get in the way of the ferries like a pontoon boat. But then of course, my way of thinking maybe totally different than Disney's way of thinking. LOL.

I know for sure that you can take the Sea Raycers back and forth from Bay Lake to 7SL. DD and I love doing that.

We are planning our first WDW visit next February, and have booked a 1-bedroom Lake View villa at BLT for Feb. 13-20! We have been to DLR many times, but before my kids (DS 17 and DD 15) head off to University and begin their own lives, I really, really want to get them to WDW! I'm super excited, and have been gathering so much excellent information on the boards!

One of my biggest "fears" about WDW is the transportation issue (non-existent at DLR). Reading above about the bus problems, would we be better off taking a taxi to DHS and AK for pre-opening breakfast ADRs?

Congratulations on booking BLT - I'll log your dates. The one-bedroom LV is wonderful and it's so easy to walk right to the MK. A taxi will always get you anywhere faster than taking the bus, but for a price. All of the resorts offer "Early ADR" buses that start at 0630. Just tell the driver where you want to go.

SO VERY EXCITED - Just scored a Summer Rate on the CR Theme Park view so changed reservation from WL to here! So much to research, figure if we are going to do deluxe, let's do deluxe! Can't believe the special rate that wasn't there earlier was there today!!! Add to that the FP+ ease this morning and it has been one magical day. Now if July 27th would just get here!

Your persistence paid off so now it's time to plan ADRs

Just a quick pop in to say we loved our CR TPV room last week (Wed to Sat).

I had requested odd room/upper floor. We got that, and an early check in.
We'd arrived late the night before so spent 1 night at AoA. Left our bags for Bell Services, hopped on a MK bus and walked over to check in.

I guess we got to CR at about 10:00 and by 11:30 I had my room notice, 11th floor, room number 4747. I couldn't have asked for a better location. We made a point to be in the room to enjoy the fireworks on 2 of our 3 nights there. The 3rd night we were in MK to enjoy them.
We never waited for more than a few minutes for an elevator and didn't hear any noise from the lobby areas.

We took advantage of the walk to MK several times and spent time in the pool. If they were to add a zero entry to the pool, and maybe another Mickey touch in the rooms and it would be my perfect location. Those are the only 2 things I missed during our stay there. Oh, that and some counter space in the bathroom. We just opted to use 1 sink as a counter.

We only used the bus 1 day, to AK and it was there when we walked out but full and we let it go as there was another right behind it (and 2 more behind that one). No one quite knew why they'd sent 4 AK buses in a row. Same when we left AK, bus to CR was there right away. The rest of the time we used the monorail or our feet.
I'd love to stay there again one day

Oh, and my only complaint, Mousekeeping didn't replace the coffee on our 2nd morning. Which just so happened to be the morning of the 24 hour day, when I was up at 4:00 am and really needed coffee

I hope you get to book another stay soon

home tonight from four nights tower TPV room 4729 (11th floor, odd number = view of the castle from the beds). A little too close to Chef Mickey's in the mornings if not for our white noise machine but other than that room was fine. Elevators are the pits though, especially in the evenings.

You comments seem very familiar to me

Wishes was on channel 105. I wish they also pipped in Celebrate the Magic show on the castle. We could see it, while not clearly, we could tell what was being shown. We could hear the music from the park but it was a strain and we had to be very quiet.

We did have a clear view of the floats. To see the park you look off the right end of the balcony but if you look straight out you see Bay Lake, GF and Poly off towards the left. If that makes sense. I thought I'd gotten a picture of the lake from my phone but they must be on the camera

Thanks for posting the Wishes channel.

You can't see Bay Lake from Tower TPV rooms, but you can see Seven Seas Lagoon and the "back" of the EWP as it sits in front of the GF/Poly, but it is a ways away.

 

[Ewoks]

My husband and I will be staying at CR October 25-31 for Food & Wine! We'll be on the 14th floor Tower Club TPV celebrating a belated 2nd anniversary! I'm new to the boards, although I'm a long-time lurker who never got around to making an account until now.

I've stayed at CR once before when I was 3 (back in 1987, so it's been a while) and my husband has always wanted to stay there since his first trip as a 3-year-old as well (in 1980). Needless to say, this is a much-anticipated trip for us! I just love the CR. I know a lot of folks seem to think it doesn't have much character or "Disney magic," is ugly, needs to be significantly changed, etc., but I respectfully disagree. To me, it's the most "Disney" of any resort on property!

 

[mommyrosa2]

Upon advice of the members here I requested an odd number room because they have the bed placed so that you can lay in bed and watch Wishes from the window. The even number rooms have the bed across the room so you would sit on the fold out couch to watch Wishes.

Does anyone know if this holds true for TPV rooms on the Atrium CL floor as well? If so, I would so want to request an odd numbered room as I think my girls would love watching the fireworks from bed.

 

[BuzzinDownToDisney]

The answer may be right in front of my face and is just alluding me, but I know when I planned my trip last year at BLT there was a thread that showed pics of the views from a ton of the rooms, it's how I ended up on the Bay Lake side with a great theme park view. Can someone direct me to that thread, and are there any similarly advantageous rooms staying in the Garden Rooms of CR?

 

[AngiTN]

You can't see Bay Lake from Tower TPV rooms, but you can see Seven Seas Lagoon and the "back" of the EWP as it sits in front of the GF/Poly, but it is a ways away.

Ah, ok. Well, what we saw from our room was the same exact show we saw from WL so I didn't know it was different. It actually goes by twice, with music each time. Or it did last week at least. Maybe one time was for GF/Poly and again for CR? All I know is we did see EWP in it's same presentation as we saw at WL.

 

[AngiTN]

Staying at the Contemporary for 7 nights in mid-June with two under two(And others of various age sizes and temperment) and wanted to know details on the elevator issues I have read many times on this board.
1.) Is it a delay all day, every day?
2.) How long of a delay?
3.) What is the issue? I ask that because I have stayed in older hotels with as many or more rooms with four elevators but no issues like listed. I just do not get why they could not reprogram the elevators.

I had been worried about the elevator too, based on reports here. We just stayed 11th floor of the tower, Wed morn to Sat morn, and at no time did we ever wait more than a minute or 2 for the elevator. I'm not sure what issues other encountered but in my experience, getting on at either 1, 4 or 11, it was always empty. We rode at various times of day too, night, morning, mid day, each day and no problems. I'd say we got lucky but surely we couldn't have gotten lucky on 3-4 trips on the elevator on 3 days.

 

[rcraw45425]

Elevators on more than one occasion would open on the 4th floor and we would wait for a scooter to exit, then before anyone could board the door would close and not reopen. Actually saw a man almost have his arm closed in one trying to hold it open. Had people jump in one time when we were going all the way down to 1 and they said that the had waited for 10 minutes as the elevators would sometimes not stop but continue going either up or down regardless of a call button being pressed. At least one elevator was taken out of service during the evenings just to accommodate traffic to California Grill too.

 

[WDWKOOK]

My husband and I will be staying at CR October 25-31 for Food & Wine! We'll be on the 14th floor Tower Club TPV celebrating a belated 2nd anniversary! I'm new to the boards, although I'm a long-time lurker who never got around to making an account until now.

I've stayed at CR once before when I was 3 (back in 1987, so it's been a while) and my husband has always wanted to stay there since his first trip as a 3-year-old as well (in 1980). Needless to say, this is a much-anticipated trip for us! I just love the CR. I know a lot of folks seem to think it doesn't have much character or "Disney magic," is ugly, needs to be significantly changed, etc., but I respectfully disagree. To me, it's the most "Disney" of any resort on property!

to the DIS and the CR/BLT thread! The Tower Club should be a fantastic way to celebrate your anniversary and I'll log your dates. It's usually very quiet and not crowded up there.

ITA with you on CR being very "Disney." Because it isn't overtly themed, like the Values and some Mods., I think people may miss the subtle touches. Of course, the monorail running through the resort isn't subtle, and it makes the resort iconic. I know they are missing in some rooms, but there are (supposed to be) pillows on the beds with Mickey and the fabric on the sleeper also has Mickey all over it. And, the sheer curtain has shapes of CR's monorail entrance/exit all over it.

Does anyone know if this holds true for TPV rooms on the Atrium CL floor as well? If so, I would so want to request an odd numbered room as I think my girls would love watching the fireworks from bed.

Yes, all of the odd-numbered standard rooms on the TPV side of the Tower have the bed facing toward MK.

The answer may be right in front of my face and is just alluding me, but I know when I planned my trip last year at BLT there was a thread that showed pics of the views from a ton of the rooms, it's how I ended up on the Bay Lake side with a great theme park view. Can someone direct me to that thread, and are there any similarly advantageous rooms staying in the Garden Rooms of CR?

Not quite in front of your face, but at the beginning of the BLT chapter in the thread. The thread you're looking for is the BLT Rooms and Views thread located HERE.

Elevators on more than one occasion would open on the 4th floor and we would wait for a scooter to exit, then before anyone could board the door would close and not reopen. Actually saw a man almost have his arm closed in one trying to hold it open. Had people jump in one time when we were going all the way down to 1 and they said that the had waited for 10 minutes as the elevators would sometimes not stop but continue going either up or down regardless of a call button being pressed. At least one elevator was taken out of service during the evenings just to accommodate traffic to California Grill too.

This was our exact same experience during our one week stay March/April. I already posted about our experience so I won't rehash it, but it made the Garden Wing mighty appealing.

 

[Disney_Fanatic]

We are going to stay at CR Oct 19-25 for our honeymoon! The plan for now is to stay at GF from Oct 17-19 then move to CR for the rest of the trip, but if the AP discounts open up for our entire trip then we'll just stay at CR!

We stayed at CR in 2012 and had a great time. Can't wait till October!

 

[CJLove79]

I know for sure that you can take the Sea Raycers back and forth from Bay Lake to 7SL. DD and I love doing that.



Congratulations on booking BLT - I'll log your dates. The one-bedroom LV is wonderful and it's so easy to walk right to the MK. A taxi will always get you anywhere faster than taking the bus, but for a price. All of the resorts offer "Early ADR" buses that start at 0630. Just tell the driver where you want to go.



Your persistence paid off so now it's time to plan ADRs



I hope you get to book another stay soon




You comments seem very familiar to me



Thanks for posting the Wishes channel.

You can't see Bay Lake from Tower TPV rooms, but you can see Seven Seas Lagoon and the "back" of the EWP as it sits in front of the GF/Poly, but it is a ways away.

Thanks for the info Miss KOOK!!!!! Me and my girl will use the Sea Raycers instead of the Pontoon Boats cause we want to sail into the 7 Seas Lagoon and take pics of the MK from a very different perspective. Maybe its for the best anyways, Sea Raycers are a little cheaper than the Pontoons, just a little. LOL.

 

[rcraw45425]

This was our exact same experience during our one week stay March/April. I already posted about our experience so I won't rehash it, but it made the Garden Wing mighty appealing.

I'm sensing the need for either another GF stay or a thrifty Swolphin one after this visit. Had breakfast at Chef Mickey's yesterday before heading home, wow, $160 +tip is truly steep for breakfast, didn't it used to be less pricey at lunch than dinner? In and out in 40 minutes too.

 

[sb127]

We will be at BLT in less than 48 hours!! I really need this vacation.

 

[psac]

I'm sensing the need for either another GF stay or a thrifty Swolphin one after this visit. Had breakfast at Chef Mickey's yesterday before heading home, wow, $160 +tip is truly steep for breakfast, didn't it used to be less pricey at lunch than dinner? In and out in 40 minutes too.

Yeah Chef Mickey's is really getting outrageous in the breakfast pricing. For the same characters, Tusker House is so much better of a deal, with much better food!

 

[BuzzinDownToDisney]

Thanks Kook! So that link helps with my December BLT trip! However is there a similar one for CR? Just curious if there are any highly sought Garden rooms, or if the only request I should be submitting is close to elevators/transportation.

 

[rcraw45425]

Yeah Chef Mickey's is really getting outrageous in the breakfast pricing. For the same characters, Tusker House is so much better of a deal, with much better food!

we were pretty much a captive audience, as it was our check out day. I like the breakfast offerings at 1900 Park Faire better

 

[maryandtyson]

I see some familiar names on this thread! A TA friend has some good deals for a January stay at CR. We love Beach Club, Wilderness and Animal Kingdom Lodge. For the price, we thought we might try CR for something different we wouldn't otherwise.

We have APs this year and have done WL in April, going to BC in September.

Do you think we will like CR? It's me, DH and DD13 and DD11.

 

[mickeynut1]

My husband and I will be staying at CR October 25-31 for Food & Wine! We'll be on the 14th floor Tower Club TPV celebrating a belated 2nd anniversary! I'm new to the boards, although I'm a long-time lurker who never got around to making an account until now.

I think that's a great way to spend your anniversary .

We are going to stay at CR Oct 19-25 for our honeymoon! The plan for now is to stay at GF from Oct 17-19 then move to CR for the rest of the trip, but if the AP discounts open up for our entire trip then we'll just stay at CR!

We stayed at CR in 2012 and had a great time. Can't wait till October!

Sounds like a great honeymoon trip .

Had breakfast at Chef Mickey's yesterday before heading home, wow, $160 +tip is truly steep for breakfast, didn't it used to be less pricey at lunch than dinner? In and out in 40 minutes too.

I agree, character meals are getting up there in price .

We will be at BLT in less than 48 hours!! I really need this vacation.

Have a great time .

I see some familiar names on this thread! A TA friend has some good deals for a January stay at CR. We love Beach Club, Wilderness and Animal Kingdom Lodge. For the price, we thought we might try CR for something different we wouldn't otherwise.

We have APs this year and have done WL in April, going to BC in September.

Do you think we will like CR? It's me, DH and DD13 and DD11.

I think it's a good idea for something new, especially if you can get a great deal . We've never stayed at the CR, but are hoping to try it sometime this year.

 

[sjb95u]

Touring Plans request...no go. Just got my Rooms Ready text and it's nowhere near our request. No big deal I'm not complaining just FYI.

 

[wdhinn89]

I had requested a room far away from Chef Mickeys. When we checked in (not on-line) our room was not ready but I wanted to make sure the room was far away from Chef Mickey. 2 CM's discussed where the room was and they mentioned the room number 20 leaving out the first 2 numbers which tells the floor and then we were told the we had gotten our request. We checked and saw that rooms ending in 20 were near the end and far away and we were happy. While at the park we received our text that our room was ready and the room number we had been given ended in 10 (right near Chef Mickey) . I was pissed. We googled the main number to the Contemporary and I called complaining and asked for the room to be switched. It was no problem but good thing we checked in and called early or we would have just been moved around again. This was one of the reasons why we stayed at the Hyatt Airport Hotel vs having a late (1am) check-in at the Contemporary. I did not want to get what was left over.

 

[Happyjen27]

Hopping aboard!!

Last night I booked our room at the CR, TPV for the last week in Feb 2016!!

I'm so excited to be returning to the Contemporary. Our last stay couldn't have been more magical. We were booked in the Bay Lake View, and got upgraded to the Theme Park view in a beautiful pixie-ful surprise!

Well, their upgrade worked, because now I am booking that room, and MIL/FIL is booking one, and SIL/BIL is booking one. 3 rooms booked for 1 upgrade, not too bad Disney, not too bad.

Are there connecting rooms in the Tower? I requested connecting rooms so MIL/FIL could babysit one night, so the big kids can go out and have some Magical Fun!!

So, hello everyone!