Contemporary Resort Questions

[Oscar5933]

Thank you all for your comments, I am just going to keep a positive frams of mind and hope for the best. We aren't going to be in the room very much anyways, this trip is to enjoy the time we have with my sister. This is her first year way from home at college.

 

[D&R love Disney]

We've usually encountered the love bug problem early September. They are a pain but not gross bugs like roaches. They only last a few days. We didn't have them at CR this year but in the past have had them at BWI and BC.

Our room at CR was in the tower, not renovated and in good shape. The view and convenience is worth it.

 

[Pooh Crew]

We just returned from the CR on Saturday. I had been so worried after reading bad reports here and on other sites. I had booked two standard wing rooms and recieved a complimentary upgrade to garden view wing rooms. The rooms are a bit dated, but the service was wonderful, the rooms were clean, there was no damage in either of our rooms, there was no noise at all from the renovations, and we did not see any bugs other than the ones hovering around the lights outside at night. The front desk service and mousekeeping service at the hotel were also good.

Honestly, we were in our rooms awake for about 45 minutes in the morning and probably less than 30 minutes at night...the beds were wonderful and some members of our party said they were the most comfotable beds they had ever slept in. To me, the convenience of staying there far outweighed the dated room decor.

 

[lyncruiser]

We loved our stay in a North Garden Wing room. We wouldn't hesitate to return. I agree some updating is in order of the rooms and the hallways. But, the room was huge, with a big bathroom. Given the size and comfort of the room, we couldn't care less that the lamp was rather ugly. We loved the big table in the room for breakfast. We didn't bother with the food court except for morning coffee. We prefer to have cereal and muffins in our room in our pj's! We did buy sandwiches and pizza at the food court since we were going to be holed up for Hurricane Charley for a night. The food was fine -- typical Disney fast food -- fair to middling and extremely overpriced.

We didn't find the walk to the tower to be an issue at all. We thought the room decor was ugly, but forgot it within 5 minutes given the comfort and convenience of its location. We had a standard view room but ended up with a pretty view of a pond and trees. We loved the first floor patio.

Our only bug problem was the no see ums. We were eaten alive if we tried to sit on the patio at dusk or after, so we just didn't do that. This was in August.

If the bug problem was love bugs, Floridians can speak to that better than I can. We were at WDW once during an infestation. It's pretty gross. But, it's not the fault of any particular hotel. We were stepping on them at the airport. Smashed ones filled the windshield of our rental car, etc. It happens. Nothing to be done about it really other than avoiding the usual infestation times. We were there in late September when this happened.

 

[jrogers345]

Just got back on Saturday. We stayed in South Wing.... Everything was OK. My biggest complaint were the bugs. They come out at night and it is impossible to swim after 8 pm.... They were attracted to anything bright and white... They were NOT in our rooms just in the walkway to the main building and by the pool... Very annoying.

Well, you are in Florida, gotta expect bugs, lizards, etc.

 

[jrogers345]

I got the information from this review. It scared me so bad that I didn't book the resort just because of it. It looks like they have taken off the information about the bugs but a lot of readers of this site listed a ton of problems. I am glad to hear that it didn't affect a lot of you.

http://www.allearsnet.com/acc/faq_con1.htm

I haven't read Tons of problems there??? I read more good reviews than bad, I'd say.

 

[PolyAddict]

We just returned from an 8 night trip -- had booked a standard room but got upgraded to a garden view. We were in the North Garden Wing (not yet renovated) and LOVED the room! It was very clean and in very good shape (in fact my husband thought that it had been renovated!) and we could see the fireworks at the MK from our patio. It was a 10 minute walk to the MK, and about a 6 minute walk to the tower, but all but 50 feet or so is inside so you can stay cool if it is hot outside.

Our last visit was in Jan and we stayed at the Polynesian (garden view) and everyone like the CR much better.

Have fun!!!

44disney, Where were you in relation to the tower in the wing? Just wondering b/c you said it was a 6 minute walk and we have a garden view room booked.

Thanks

 

[44disney]

Polyaddict--we were about as far away from the tower as you can get, close to a small, sandy beach and about 250 feet or so from the tennis courts. Our room was #8126. One other thing that I forgot to mention is that even though the hotel was fully booked, it was very quiet in our section.

 

[PolyAddict]

Polyaddict--we were about as far away from the tower as you can get, close to a small, sandy beach and about 250 feet or so from the tennis courts. Our room was #8126. One other thing that I forgot to mention is that even though the hotel was fully booked, it was very quiet in our section.

Thanks, a 6 minute walk from the end of the wing is not bad.

 

[Jynohn]

We stayed in the North Garden Wing two years ago through Shades of Green and were really disappointed in the lack of upkeep in our room. The whole wing seemed rather run down to us, and we had some (minor) repair issues in our room. We only paid $70 a night so for what we spent we did not feel justified in complaining, but had we been paying rack rates we would have been really upset. I'm glad that Disney recognizes that the Garden wings are in dire need of rehab and they are finally doing something about it.

That being said, we didn't have any problems with bugs or cleanliness, just an overall shoddy appearance. If you got a good rate and being close to the Magic Kingdom is a priority for you, then you probably will be ok with the Garden wings.

Enjoy your trip wherever you decide to stay!

 

[polixeny]

We were there Dec of 04 and had 4 north wing rooms. Other than them being dated everything was fine.

We just went back 9/27 - 10/5. The problems started right at check-in. We were assigned a room first floor north tower. When we got there, we found that the room was dirty... things on the floor, towels and food scraps on the bed etc... Then they moved us to the 3rd fl north tower and yup you guessed it sticky furniture stuff on the floor (food particles and a toy football) at this point it was 11:30 PM and my kids didn't want to move again. They cleaned our room while we were there and said they would VIP clean the room the next day. In the am we headed to the parks and at night I wanted to unpack. Well I opened the draws and found crumbs and stuff in them. So much for the VIP cleaning. I went to the front desk and talked to a CM that I had talked to on our last trip. She was very nice and told me (after speaking to housekeeping) that I room wasn't VIP cleaned because it was noted on the wrong system. But they did it the next day.

As far as the bugs they were in the lighted areas outside the tower and the wings.

 

[pandamom]

Just got back 10/1 - 10/9. Had requested a north wing ground but was put in south wing 2nd floor (no problem). Room was large, clean and and maid service good. Was a little annoyed that the "garden View" we paid for became a "crane view" after the first few days. The crane remained parked outside our balcony for the remainder of our stay.

 

[ngtotd_dtrt]

We just got back from CR. Rooms were fine...clean and fun (we love the soon-to-be-old look and colors). I apologize in advance for the long post, but here's how it went down for us...
Booked standard room, North Wing, and upon check-in at 7am on Sunday, 9/25/05, CM tried to put us in South Wing. We said..nicely...'absolutely not' and she moved us to NW. We didn't want the extra walk to MK, or the cranes, and I'd heard that parts of the SW was the smoking section. We're upgraded to 3rd-floor, bay/garden view (#7352 (kids/parents) and #7351 (grandparents)). Room wasn't ready until about 3:15pm, so that left us at the park a little longer than hoped. Unpacked, swam, showers, dinner (Cap May). I noticed the shower only had very warm and hot. Not a big deal to DW and DKids, but after sticky, hot days, I like a cool shower. On Monday, they had someone come in at 3pm and work on it. He left at shift-change (4pm) and promised the next guy would fix it. We left for the MK. At 9:30pm, we stopped by the desk to check on the resolution of the problem, but no notes were new on our room. When we get to the room (10pm), someone is working on it and announces that the water is 115 degrees and now warm enough. Oh well. We tell him that warm wasn't the issue, but that it wouldn't get cool/cold. He tried it and announced we were correct. To make a short-story-long, 20 minutes later, 4 guys are banging on the shower-pipes. I give them a 10-minute-warning, saying that fixed or not, the kids (ages 9, 7, 5) need to sleep. I call the desk to get access to another room near us so we could shower...manager was paged. 15 minutes later, loud banging, so I kick them out ('thanks, guys, really appreciated, but you'll have to come back'). Still no call back, but I get another manager on the phone (Tiffany! Efficient and helpful!) and she sends a key to the next room, and offers a comp night and a room move down the hall. I ask if instead of a comp night and since we're packing up anyway, could we be bumped to the Tower. She says 'of course'. So we move the next day. Wonderful rooms on 12th floor, bay-view (#4809 & 4810), and a surprise $50 comp! Rooms there were very nice, and were clean, but opening the connecting doors spread some old dust/crumbs around the floor near the doors. Cleaned the next day.
10th floor is currently the concierge-lite floor (forgot the official name). Rooms there renovated. They were working on the 9th floor at that time, and we requested to see the new rooms. CM said they can't do that but said they had a book with lots of photos. He couldn't find the book, and smiled as he pulled out his card-key and we followed him to the new room. I'll be glad to give thoughts on that if anyone is interested...and as a bonus, I'll even be concise in that post !

 

[frazzled one]

I'm interested - please share! The CR is tied for my favorite (with WL) and I can't wait to go back. Unfortunately, every room will be re-done and then some by the time we can afford it ...

 

[krbq]

Definitely interested . . .

 

[ngtotd_dtrt]

CR’s my favorite too. We LOVE the current/old room décor. Very kid-friendly and whimsical…like the lamps too (and the tables…I should have thought to offer some $ for a table and a lamp..mirror too…since they’re going away). Anyway, from the picts of the new room I’d seen on allearsnet, I wasn’t expecting to like the new rooms…too beige. But we did. The hallway carpet had some design, ‘contemporary’ ovals with black/beige color scheme…nicely done! The rooms are pretty and sleek. Asian-modern. Great for adults, but I fear not that exciting for young kids. Yes, gold/beige/black, but less boring than the pictures had led me to believe. But, as someone on one of the other threads mentioned, it seem to be form over function. With the 5 of us, we really live in our room for the week, so space, counter-tops, and drawers are very much needed/used. I THINK the room we saw was completely finished…if not, then this next statement may be misleading…but we saw little to no drawer space. The old rooms had tons of space in the dresser where the TV sat...big, wide, deep drawers. Now the TV is flat-panel built into the wall. I don’t even recall a dresser in the new room, but DW asked and the CM said that there were now drawers in the closet. We checked and there were (I think) 3 small, not too deep, drawers..may have been 6, 2-sets of 3, but we don’t remember. The new room had a desk-top setup against the inner wall beside the bed closest to the bathroom, and a nice table which rolled and fit just under the desk. The bathrooms are nice, but not very functional for families. Sinks side-by-side (in the Tower, they used to have one beside the shower with lots of counter space, and one in the potty-room, with lots of counter space...the wings had both beside the shower, and a big counter in the potty-room (can you tell we've been raising kids..potty-room ), big and flat, so all sink and no counter-space around the sinks (there’s still that mini-shelf above the sinks). In the potty-room, no counter! Just space. Fine if you’re bringing a large fridge with you, I suppose . Someone on the other thread mentioned how the large, flat-bottomed sinks didn’t wash hair/toothpaste/etc. down the drain easily.

Bottom-line, couples and business/convention folk will think it’s great...beautiful interior design…but those with 2 or 3 kids with them will have to live more out of a suitcase than before.

They did mention that the renovation was delayed somewhat due to the hurricanes. A different CM at the desk said they had a lot of their furniture in Texas, and with the roads and evacuees coming home after Rita and Katrina, they had delays in shipments from that area. Maybe the room wasn’t quite finished, but the CM indicated it was.

Balconies getting new (thick brown) railing…looks good. We saw some big rust spots on the old railing…nothing dangerous, just might be if left a few more years.

The old rooms did need renovation as they were well-worn, but we ‘raised’ our kids on those rooms and we’ll miss them. There’s still nothing like the Tower…monorail moving quietly thru, good shops…just a great place to be.

A couple of other notes… they took the character voices out of the elevators. They used to have Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, etc. telling you what floor you were on as the doors opened. The kids loved that in ’03 and were disappointed it was gone. Seems to be part of the overall change of making the Contemporary more adult-friendly by making it less kid-friendly .

The CM also said the purple jackets they wear are on the outs…replaced by the new colors. I guess the entire lobby/resort will de-purple/teal itself.

Oh, and the bugs. The bugs were outside…little pale green bugs (size of mosquitoes) and there were lots of them at night. One or two got inside if you opened the balcony door or as you came in from outside, but they don't bite. Walking down the hall in the wing, the big hall-windows there looked like they were moving at night...thousands on certain windows...they seemed to congregate on specific windows. Either it was follow-the-leader, or certain windows did it for them . We all thought that was pretty cool, actually. As the other person here said, it’s not as if they only descend upon the poor Contemporary…I’m sure they are equal-opportunity bugs and visit all the Disney properties.

Sorry...I guess I lied about 'concise'.

 

[frazzled one]

Thanks for the detailed report! So sorry about the change in the talking elevators. (Why is it that every change Disney makes is to something my family really,really likes?) I think you make some good points about the CR becoming more adult-centered. Now that my 3 girls are just about adults, maybe they won't mind ...

 

[liveforthemagic]

Jynohn--how did you get a room at the CR for $70 night? I know you said it was two years ago, but still.

anybody--what's the secret? I am desperate to surprise DD with an upgrade from Value to Deluxe!

 

[ngtotd_dtrt]

it was probably an upgrade from Shades of Green when SoG was being renovated and they were moving people to the Contemp.

Cheapest I've seen Contemporary standard in the last couple of years is $149 with the annual pass, and haven't seen that since the spring.

 

[KristineN]

We stayed at the Contemporary 9-26-10-4. Here's my thoughts:

First of all we originally booked a Garden wing room...when we checked in several CM's appeared applauding informing us we were chosen as "family of the day" Kids got some special stuff...the best part was being upgraded to a 12th floor tower room with an MK view.

The view was fantastic!! The room was nice...but not great. The vent in the shower was absolutey filthy...crumbs on the floor...just not in tip top shape. We have 3 kids..so with 5 people we basically lived out of out suitcases the whole time...there isn't a lot of drawer space etc.

The bugs people refer to are indeed outside...all around the pool & marina. We tried to do some night swimming...but were greeted by 5 ducks swimming in the pool. And they were there every night we were.

Our trip was WONDERFUL..we greatly appreciated the upgrade. However, for our family of 5...we might try 2 rooms at a value resort next year. I just can't decide if the extra $$$ is worth it.