I'm here too.....
Where in the world have you been hiding?! Welcome back to the DIS.
We'll be there 7/18-7/21. 14th Floor but we'll probably pop in to the Atrium Club too!
Your trip is coming up soon. I hope you'll post a little TR here.
We stayed in a garden wing/ garden view at the CR in July 2008 and LOVED the room. We had a king and they'd just renovated the rooms. We were in the back, and could walk out our room and see the water.
They also have limited corner garden view rooms which are larger. They don't have many, and they book up quickly.
I have had several CM's tell me from reservations that the CR books up a year to more in advance!
The GV corner rooms are Deluxe rooms that only have a king and a sleeper. Sounds like you had a great room! CR does fill-up fast mostly due to conventions that block out many rooms. Sometimes those rooms are released and often people cancel or change, so to those having trouble, don't give-up trying to get a room at CR - availability changes quickly there.
Anyone experienced the new transportation with the monorail changes? Are there busses AND a ferry to MK from CR and BLT?
I only took the monorail from CR this visit. The monorail and walkway are still the only modes of transportation to the MK from CR as far as I know. They said that "additional" buses/boats would be provided, but I don't know if that means they added them when the monorail isn't operational. When I took the boats from CR, it was during monorail operating hours so they only had the FW and WL boats running. Perhaps guests who stayed after 6/21 received notices of boats/buses running early and late when the monorail isn't?
Our flight leaves in 36 hours...heading back to WDW. First time at the Contemporary. We are staying 12th floor club. Can't wait..
Hope you're having a magical time!
We are checking into Contemporary Hotel, theme park view and were hoping to order room service breakfast the next morning. We would want it delivered by 6:30am so we can eat, get ready and head to MK for their 8am opening. Can I call the night before and give the order and just tell them a delivery time?? Anyone have any experience with this??
Yes, you can pre-arrange delivery the day before. The best method is to call In-Room Dining.
I haven't ordered room service in quite some time, so I am not sure, but I assume they still have the paper menus/order forms that hang on your door. Just fill it out and put it on your door before you go to bed and you should have your breakfast there by 6:30
Good luck!
At least at YC and WL, this visit they did not have the order forms you hang on your door. I don't think I saw them at Christmas either. It may have been last summer the last time they had those.
We have just returned from a 7 Night, Club Level stay at the Contemporary. It was a great vacation, from beginning to end. Just thought I'd share some observations:
Room: The overall effect was lovely, and reminded me very much of a European hotel where they have modernized an aging building with boutique decor. I loved all of the marble in the bath area, and even the often dissed flat sinks. Our room was clean for the most part, though there were visible fingerprint smudges on some of the woodwork, and a couple of missing glass tiles on the "fireplace." The fingerprint smudges finally got to me enough that I tried to wipe them away with a damp washcloth, but it didn't do much good, so maybe the result of long term buildup??? There were also long drips of something on the glass doors to the bathroom, but I can see how this is missed as they were not noticeable unless the doors were pulled closed. Turndown service did not always happen, and one night we just received chocolates on the bed with no turndown. I did not complain about any of these things, as I considered them so minor as not to warrant the hassle. We booked a Bay Lake view, and that is what we received. Sitting on the balcony and watching the Electric Water Pageant was probably one of my favorite memories this trip.
Club Lounge-Cast members were attentive and polite, though I never had a magical moment that caused me to remember any of them by name. Food was good, though it seemed less variety than in other CL lounges. Maybe this was just due to the stacked presentation. No boiled eggs at breakfast, and I had to ask for tomato juice and ginger ale to be brought from the back. As these are staples for our family, it might have been a nice touch if they had either stocked them in the fridge while we were there, or noticed us an gotten them before we asked. I loved the view of the MK and the fact that there were multiple family sized seating areas (unlike at say the BWI where we sat 2 and 2 at breakfast more than we did not.) Furnishings were pretty, and the room has an allover happy vibe.
Pool-No complaints here. We rented a cabana on our break day, which will be a must do on our next trip. My only (very slight) annoyance is that we were initially quoted a price that was 2/3 of what we were charged. We had apparently been given the off season rate when booking. The cabana came with a fruit plate and twelve beverages, and the hostess was kind enough to make swaps when we decided that we needed more water bottles and less soda.
Concourse-A plus in terms of variety. I think this is the largest shopping area that I have experienced at a Disney resort. Our only on-property meal was at Chef Mickey's for breakfast, and that was good enough. (Box check on the bucket list, but probably not good enough to warrant a return.) Loved being able to access the monorail with just a few steps up the escalator, and only found it crowded around the dinner hour.
All in all, we had a great time. My son has been asking to stay here for years, and he loved every minute. He would hang out outside our room and watch the monorail come and go. Hubby thought it was a little to busy and crowded, and I confess that I like the frou-frou resorts a bit more. I kept thinking this would be the perfect resort for a family with teens (for all of the recreational offerings) or all boys. It is not my favorite Disney resort, but I would come back if an opportunity presented itself. Having stayed at BWI (CL), BC (CL), AKL, WL, SOG, my favorite remains the BWI.
Thank you for posting your TR. I enjoyed reading it. We may have been there around the same time and I thought it was really crowded, too. In the summer, we usually go in August, and June seems much more crowded and all the Deluxe resorts were at or near 100% occupancy.
Our turn-down when staying in a Deluxe room on the 5th floor at WL was very different than when staying on the 7th floor in a Standard CL room. We were either skipped or only received chocolates, too. I did mention this to a CL CM who phoned to request full turn-down, which includes removal of dirty towels and trash emptying. I guess you would have had to mention it to a CM so they would be aware of the problems.
As far as smears on surfaces, I've noticed that when they use furniture polish too liberally, this can create the affect of a dirt surface. It smears everything and if not buffed off can look unsightly on everything it comes in contact with. Not sure if this is what you experienced, but may be the cause, in addition to not-so-great cleaning.
Only the Epcot resorts have boiled eggs and possibly RPC? WL stocks tomato juice, but I didn't see it at YC, but they did have Ginger Ale and WL doesn't. Lots of minor differences amongst the CLs. Glad you were at least able to get it upon request.
What are your suggestions for last day things to do?
We like to take it easy and have a leisurely day. We usually go to the MK our last day and then I usually head back to pack everything up while DH and DD spend a little longer there. I prefer an empty room when I pack
. We usually go to Tokyo Dining for an early dinner since we like to end on a high note and it's one of our favorite restaurants. Some like to squeeze everything out of their last day, but we prefer to take it easy.
You're welcome
Wanted to bump up this great thread.
Just about 35 more days until I am back at CR
Here's a pic from last June. (We had been shopping at the Polynesian, and took the boat over to MK.)
Lovely! I can't wait to hear all about your vacation
I hope this is the right place to ask this .... We will be having dinner at Chef Mickey's and should be finished right around the time Wishes will be starting. Is there a good place at the Contemporary to watch the fireworks? Thanks!
The 4th floor has an Observation deck. It's right past Fantasia and next to the bridge to BLT. There are photos and more Wishes viewing information
HERE in the RECREATION section of the thread.
Checked in @CR yesterday morning. Our room wasn't ready, so we headed out to the parks. Never got a text, but decided to stop at CR on our way to MK from DHS. We were in our room for maybe 5 minutes, and just as one of the girls said "hey look, we have a balcony" and went outside, the water pageant started. What a fun way to start our stay here
Very cool! Although the lack of text is concerning.
When we were at BLT, we heard this music from our room and then realized that is was the water pageant. Although not super exciting, it's a cool thing to see.
Regarding the lack of text: Upon check-in, you'll be asked if you want to receive a text. You will soon receive a text asking you to reply YES if you want to in fact receive the text. If you don't receive this and/or you don't reply YES, then you won't receive the text. Even if you already did Online Check-In and you designated that you want to receive texts, you will have to do it again at check-in. IDK why the system works this way and there might be other factors that can affect receiving the text.
That concerned me too! They said they were only in their room 5 mins when they heard the EWP music, which means they didn't get in their room until like 9???
The EWP is at 10:10 at CR.
Last summer it was Channel 1-something. (Can't see the second number in my photo but you should easily be able to find it once you're there
)
Sounds great. Have fun!
Thank you for posting that!
Checking in on Friday for one night Tower-BL view after we spend 2 at CSR (business class) and 3 at DVB Resort! My parent's haven't stayed at CR since their Disneymoon in 1981 so I'm excited to share the tower experience with them as I have only stayed for one night a few years ago! I think it will be perfect since we are going to Epcot on Friday night and MK on Saturday before their flight…
How long do you allow to get to Epcot from CR via monorail. We have a dinner reservation at 5:20pm Garden Grill…thanks!
Welcome! The actual monorail ride to the TTC is only a few minutes. Once there, you have to walk up to the Epcot monorail, the ride takes about 10 minutes from there. You need to factor wait time at CR and TTC, getting into Epcot and walking to GG. For a 5:20 ADR, I would be at the CR monorail station at about 4:00.
Hi WDWKook,
Thank you so much for having such and amazing thread over here. I think I would be a bit lost without it.
We have transplanted from WL to BTL because of the concern we had over the construction. Sad, but this just gives us a reason to come back sooner than expected. We will want to come back and try the WL!! Not to say we aren't thrilled or excited about our move to the BTL. (also very grateful to Jante for finding the space for us) I do have a few questions and when you have a moment and happen to know the answers, any help would be appreciated.
1. The WL had these lovely pails that could be purchased through room service. Do you know if BTL offers the same or a similar thing?
2. With the monorail schedule, has it been confirmed that boats have been added for early morning dinings at other resorts?
3. Any special tips, hints ideas for us? We gathered and were prepared to do many of your WL ones. I just wondered if you had any for the BTL?
4. Is there a cost for packages if you have a parcel sent to the hotel? I don't remember seeing any costs to hold packages at the WL, but I am seeing a few things for BTL. This might change a few of our shipping plans if this is the case.
5. Is the walk to MK fairly easy and direct? Or is there a secret squirrel path you need to follow?
Thank you so much in advance. It really has been a pleasure reading all of your info and I am always grateful for it.
Thank you for your kind comments about the CR/BLT thread.
1. I don't have the most current CR/BLT private dining menu. AllEars doesn't include the specialty orders in their CR menu. I would think they would have it, but hopefully someone else will know.
2. There are already early ADR buses, but there aren't buses or boats to the MK from CR because there is a walkway. The early ADR schedule is in the
TRANSPORTATION section of the thread.
3. CR has four cabanas that you could rent. There is more information on this in the RECREATION section of the thread. And, since you are staying at BLT, you have access to the CR pool area and the BLT Community Hall. You could still easily boat over to WL to do the activities you can't do at BLT such as bike riding and walking to FW. The same water recreation is available at BLT/CR.
4.
HERE is shipping information from the first page.
5. The path starts after the CR bus stop. There is a video of the walk
HERE on the first page.
Ok, so where is the best place to watch. We will be in the tower, but on Bay Lake side. And is the fireworks viewing spot for California Grill any better. We will be having dinner there one night. Thanks.
CA Grill is the best viewing area for Wishes. You can view them indoors or outside. The CL lounges also have balconies and the music is piped in, if you're staying CL. The 4th floor observation deck is open to all.
I don't feel I've seen those menus in forever but was hoping they were hidden somewhere in the room.
