Disney's CONTEMPORARY RESORT Information & Questions

[FidFam]

So we're excited to be staying at the Contemporary over an extended Memorial Day weekend as a "end-of-school" trip for our kids, 4 and 7.

This will be our first time staying at the Contemporary <we're usually at the Beach Club> - we've booked a Garden Wing - Garden View room and are thrilled about the prospect of the walk to/from <we love BC for the walkability to Epcot and HS> the Magic Kingdom during our five-night stay. This will be the first time we've ever stayed on the monorail loop. I've read thru the thread as best as I can but any further tips/hints/suggestions for a first-time stay at the Contemporary would be appreciated.

 

[rosie49ers80]

Has anyone stayed in a Garden Wing - King room? When we called to change a bounce back offer, they told us it's not the Garden Wing - Deluxe Room that has a king, it's a regular Garden Wing room but has a king bed. They can't tell us if it's a standard view or garden view. Just curious if anyone has experience booking in the Garden Wing - King room category and where the room was located within the Garden wing rooms. I don't even see it on Disney's site when I look at options, so I was confused when they offered it to me. Thanks for any insight.

We stayed in the Garden Wing Deluxe room last August and I can tell you without a doubt that there is a king bed in that room. Its a king bed and there is a pull out couch. There was so much room that my daughter also used a blow up mattress.That room is my absolute favorite I have ever stayed in on Disney property.

 

[travelgirl77]

So we're excited to be staying at the Contemporary over an extended Memorial Day weekend as a "end-of-school" trip for our kids, 4 and 7.

This will be our first time staying at the Contemporary <we're usually at the Beach Club> - we've booked a Garden Wing - Garden View room and are thrilled about the prospect of the walk to/from <we love BC for the walkability to Epcot and HS> the Magic Kingdom during our five-night stay. This will be the first time we've ever stayed on the monorail loop. I've read thru the thread as best as I can but any further tips/hints/suggestions for a first-time stay at the Contemporary would be appreciated.

We stayed at the CR last summer and absolutely loved it! My kids were the age of your kids at the time. This summer we are doing a split stay between BC and CR. The walk to and from MK is priceless, as is being the first stop on the monorail when you leave MK. The rooms are bigger and we had some of our favorite dining here at The Wave and even Contempo Cafe. Also, I believe you can watch the fireworks somewhere on the 4th floor. Finally, I know a lot of people begrudge the pool here, but my kids, knowing no different, absolutely loved it. They went down that slide so many times, it was never crowded, it was small enough where I could see them at all times, and they have a little splash area that they adored. I hope you have a wonderful time!

 

[PghDisneyDarling]

Just booked my first stay at CR for Wine and Dine race weekend! I had thought I was going to be booking a value, but now we've decided to upgrade! Any tips on room requests for a tower bay lake view room? Thanks!

 

[FidFam]

We stayed at the CR last summer and absolutely loved it! My kids were the age of your kids at the time. This summer we are doing a split stay between BC and CR. The walk to and from MK is priceless, as is being the first stop on the monorail when you leave MK. The rooms are bigger and we had some of our favorite dining here at The Wave and even Contempo Cafe. Also, I believe you can watch the fireworks somewhere on the 4th floor. Finally, I know a lot of people begrudge the pool here, but my kids, knowing no different, absolutely loved it. They went down that slide so many times, it was never crowded, it was small enough where I could see them at all times, and they have a little splash area that they adored. I hope you have a wonderful time!

This is great. Thanks so much! We are really looking forward to trying something new...

Since we're not used to staying on the Monorail loop I'm wondering if there are any other must "hits" you'd have in mind for dining since our kids were the same age - aside from trying The Wave and/or Contempo Cafe? Since we typically stay at Beach Club - we just hope over to Epcot in the back entrance all the time to find something to eat - or we'd end up at the Crew's Cup Lounge (before they renovating YC) for late dinner drinks/snacks. So we're not used to be around the MK area for dining...

 

[DisneyCowgirl]

Fireworks music on TV question—will this work for the July 3rd fireworks?

 

[Manda_Lizabeth]

With the new summer deal, we decided to bite the bullet and booked a Garden Wing Room with a Garden View instead of staying at WL. We have stayed twice at the lodge and love it, but decided to try out a monorail hotel. Wish we could stay in the main building for the experience but seems like the Garden Wing isn't so bad. We asked our travel agent to put a request in to be closest to the main building. Guess we will find out this July!

 

[travelgirl77]

This is great. Thanks so much! We are really looking forward to trying something new...

Since we're not used to staying on the Monorail loop I'm wondering if there are any other must "hits" you'd have in mind for dining since our kids were the same age - aside from trying The Wave and/or Contempo Cafe? Since we typically stay at Beach Club - we just hope over to Epcot in the back entrance all the time to find something to eat - or we'd end up at the Crew's Cup Lounge (before they renovating YC) for late dinner drinks/snacks. So we're not used to be around the MK area for dining...

You are close to a lot of fun resort restaurants, being on the monorail loop. You are two stops away from the Poly, which has Kona Cafe (where I have never had anything bad) and Capt Cooks for some quick eats. I left out O'hana since I figured you already knew about this. We did not eat at GF, so maybe someone else can pipe in about this. I do suggest, however, that you take the boat over to wilderness lodge for eats at Roaring Fork, Whispering Canyon, or over to Ft Wilderness for Trail's End. WL has some great, kid friendly restaurants with good food. The boat is also a plus! You are steps away from the entrance of MK if you want to dine there, but I find the food and atmosphere better in those resorts. I hope you have a great time!

 

[travelgirl77]

This is great. Thanks so much! We are really looking forward to trying something new...

Since we're not used to staying on the Monorail loop I'm wondering if there are any other must "hits" you'd have in mind for dining since our kids were the same age - aside from trying The Wave and/or Contempo Cafe? Since we typically stay at Beach Club - we just hope over to Epcot in the back entrance all the time to find something to eat - or we'd end up at the Crew's Cup Lounge (before they renovating YC) for late dinner drinks/snacks. So we're not used to be around the MK area for dining...

I just wanted to let you know that Tim Tracker just did a resort walk through of the Contemporary on YouTube and it has me so excited to return this summer! You should take a look to get a nice preview.

 

[DLo]

I just wanted to let you know that Tim Tracker just did a resort walk through of the Contemporary on YouTube and it has me so excited to return this summer! You should take a look to get a nice preview.

Thanks for letting us know. I am going to go watch it now. This is my first stay at CR and very excited. (in fact I searched his you tube channel last week for this exact video - looks like I was just a little early)

 

[AaronInWI]

Just booked my first stay at CR for Wine and Dine race weekend! I had thought I was going to be booking a value, but now we've decided to upgrade! Any tips on room requests for a tower bay lake view room? Thanks!

My favorite! TBH, I think the view is pretty much the same regardless of room on that side of the tower. The one thing to consider is noise coming from the 4th floor Grand Canyon Concourse. I've personally never been bothered by it, because we are typically out of our room before it really ramps up. However, if you plan on sleeping in, you might want to request a room on the south side of the tower, which would be farther away from Chef Mickey's, which can get a little loud during breakfast. I always request a higher floor regardless of where we are staying, so this would be another way to limit the noise. Enjoy!!!

 

[B. Shoe]

I'm hoping some CR veterans can help me out with a reasonably large decision. Our current reservation is a 4-day, 3-night trip (Tuesday-Friday) at the CR, with a Theme Park View, and Park Hopper tickets. The more I've mulled over it, I wonder if DD and I would be better suited to transfer our reservation out of the TPV room and into a Garden Wing, and extend our reservation out by a full day. The proximity to Magic Kingdom is a massive draw for us to stay at CR and I don't want to lose that. But my gut feeling is that one more day would allow us a lot more flexibility in our planning (three of our four nights are MNSSHP dates at MK), more time to just relax, and/or take midday breaks and explore. Shifting to a Garden Room would allow us that, with the extra day and at essentially the same cost we're at now (barring some extra for meals).

Those that have been, what are the pros and cons of moving? Am I really missing out on not having the TPV and shifting to the Garden Wing? I just want to give DD the best and most enjoyable experience we can. It feels like an extra day would allow us that.

Thanks in advance to anyone that can offer some sage advice. It is sincerely appreciated!

 

[crazy4wdw]

However, if you plan on sleeping in, you might want to request a room on the south side of the tower, which would be farther away from Chef Mickey's, which can get a little loud during breakfast.

It's actually the north end of the tower that overlooks the shops. The south end would be over Chef Mickey's, Contempo Cafe, and the Outer Rim.

 

[DisneyCowgirl]

I'm hoping some CR veterans can help me out with a reasonably large decision. Our current reservation is a 4-day, 3-night trip (Tuesday-Friday) at the CR, with a Theme Park View, and Park Hopper tickets. The more I've mulled over it, I wonder if DD and I would be better suited to transfer our reservation out of the TPV room and into a Garden Wing, and extend our reservation out by a full day. The proximity to Magic Kingdom is a massive draw for us to stay at CR and I don't want to lose that. But my gut feeling is that one more day would allow us a lot more flexibility in our planning (three of our four nights are MNSSHP dates at MK), more time to just relax, and/or take midday breaks and explore. Shifting to a Garden Room would allow us that, with the extra day and at essentially the same cost we're at now (barring some extra for meals).

Those that have been, what are the pros and cons of moving? Am I really missing out on not having the TPV and shifting to the Garden Wing? I just want to give DD the best and most enjoyable experience we can. It feels like an extra day would allow us that.

Thanks in advance to anyone that can offer some sage advice. It is sincerely appreciated!

I would definitely move to the garden wing and stay another night! I think the view room is only worth it if watching the fireworks from your room is an important part of your plans. Having one more day so you can spread out your plans and take it easy a little bit will make everything more fun.

 

[Superchikk]

I'm hoping some CR veterans can help me out with a reasonably large decision. Our current reservation is a 4-day, 3-night trip (Tuesday-Friday) at the CR, with a Theme Park View, and Park Hopper tickets. The more I've mulled over it, I wonder if DD and I would be better suited to transfer our reservation out of the TPV room and into a Garden Wing, and extend our reservation out by a full day. The proximity to Magic Kingdom is a massive draw for us to stay at CR and I don't want to lose that. But my gut feeling is that one more day would allow us a lot more flexibility in our planning (three of our four nights are MNSSHP dates at MK), more time to just relax, and/or take midday breaks and explore. Shifting to a Garden Room would allow us that, with the extra day and at essentially the same cost we're at now (barring some extra for meals).

Those that have been, what are the pros and cons of moving? Am I really missing out on not having the TPV and shifting to the Garden Wing? I just want to give DD the best and most enjoyable experience we can. It feels like an extra day would allow us that.

Thanks in advance to anyone that can offer some sage advice. It is sincerely appreciated!

We're staying at CR for the first time in September. That being said, if I had a choice to move within the resort and stay an extra day, I'd take the extra day!

 

[ErinF]

I'm hoping some CR veterans can help me out with a reasonably large decision. Our current reservation is a 4-day, 3-night trip (Tuesday-Friday) at the CR, with a Theme Park View, and Park Hopper tickets. The more I've mulled over it, I wonder if DD and I would be better suited to transfer our reservation out of the TPV room and into a Garden Wing, and extend our reservation out by a full day. The proximity to Magic Kingdom is a massive draw for us to stay at CR and I don't want to lose that. But my gut feeling is that one more day would allow us a lot more flexibility in our planning (three of our four nights are MNSSHP dates at MK), more time to just relax, and/or take midday breaks and explore. Shifting to a Garden Room would allow us that, with the extra day and at essentially the same cost we're at now (barring some extra for meals).

Those that have been, what are the pros and cons of moving? Am I really missing out on not having the TPV and shifting to the Garden Wing? I just want to give DD the best and most enjoyable experience we can. It feels like an extra day would allow us that.

Thanks in advance to anyone that can offer some sage advice. It is sincerely appreciated!

As someone who has stayed in both the tower (though admittedly not TPV) and the garden wing, I'd choose to move to the garden wing and extend your reservation to get an extra day. The garden wing is still very nice, it's peaceful and quiet, and it's still very close to the tower and MK. It doesn't feel removed or much farther from the tower at all.

 

[B. Shoe]

Thank you all for your quick replies, it's greatly appreciated. I genuinely don't think at age 10 she's too concerned where we'll stay. But I'd like still like to be able to provide a roomy spot for us to relax (or sleep in, most likely the morning after our MNSSHP), or take a midday break, and still be close to the monorail and MK. As long as we're not losing any real amenities from transferring out of the tower, I'd say moving will be in our plans! Thank you all, again, so very much!

 

[Cluelyss]

Thank you all for your quick replies, it's greatly appreciated. I genuinely don't think at age 10 she's too concerned where we'll stay. But I'd like still like to be able to provide a roomy spot for us to relax (or sleep in, most likely the morning after our MNSSHP), or take a midday break, and still be close to the monorail and MK. As long as we're not losing any real amenities from transferring out of the tower, I'd say moving will be in our plans! Thank you all, again, so very much!

Your room will be exactly the same on the inside. Stay the extra day!

 

[Boilermaker8710]

Can anyone speak to how the pullout beds are in the BLT villas? If we decide to stay there, there would be 2 adults sleeping on it for a week. Thanks.

 

[rteetz]

Can anyone speak to how the pullout beds are in the BLT villas? If we decide to stay there, there would be 2 adults sleeping on it for a week. Thanks.

We were in a one bedroom in January with 5 adults. We all felt the pullouts were fine. I was on the pullout chair and it was comfortable.