Help me build the perfect Monorail Crawl...

[JenB]

We are coming down next week for a lacrosse tournament and staying at our home resort, Saratoga Springs. We have tickets for MVMCP Thursday night but some of the adults in our group aren't really interested (whhhaaaatttt???) so we are going to send the girls to the party and do a Monorail Crawl while we wait for them. My thought is to see them to the gate and then walk to the Contemporary. However, we could catch the boat to Wilderness Lodge from the MK dock and start there. I would like to end up at the Poly beach for fireworks
Could you all please suggest the best lounges and your favorite appetizers and drinks for the monorail resorts?

Thanks in advance!!

 

[JZCubed]

The Wave @ Contemporary is the weak link. Other than alcohol, not a destination spot.

Poly is next resort stop from Contemporary.

Territory Lounge @ Wilderness is notorious for being delightful and with lesser crowds.

You can boat from Wilderness to any of the Monorail places.

But a case could be made for Mizner's at Grand Floridian - live jazz playing out the entrance to the lounge.

Poly has two places: Trader Sam's (good luck getting inside) & Tambu Lounge.

You can walk from Grand Floridian to Poly.

The question is how much do you want to rely on transportation.

If it were me - I'd start at Mizner's, stroll the shops at Grand Floridian. Then walk over to Poly for either Trader Sam's (if I could get a spot), or Tambu Lounge. But I'll admit that I'm not familiar with viewing fireworks from Poly, so one of these lounges may make more sense than the other.

 

[Jestocost]

The Wave @ Contemporary is the weak link. Other than alcohol, not a destination spot.

Poly is next resort stop from Contemporary.

Territory Lounge @ Wilderness is notorious for being delightful and with lesser crowds.

You can boat from Wilderness to any of the Monorail places.

But a case could be made for Mizner's at Grand Floridian - live jazz playing out the entrance to the lounge.

Poly has two places: Trader Sam's (good luck getting inside) & Tambu Lounge.

You can walk from Grand Floridian to Poly.

The question is how much do you want to rely on transportation.

If it were me - I'd start at Mizner's, stroll the shops at Grand Floridian. Then walk over to Poly for either Trader Sam's (if I could get a spot), or Tambu Lounge. But I'll admit that I'm not familiar with viewing fireworks from Poly, so one of these lounges may make more sense than the other.

The Wave actually has one of the best beer selections on property, so if beer is going to be a focal point of the crawl I definitely wouldn't miss it.

Territory Lounge is very nice but the problem is that you only can get to WL directly from the CR and the MK, there is no boat service between WL and the other monorail resorts. If you have 3+ hours to kill then I'd definitely include it.

Here's one possible itinerary:

MK to WL via boat. Hit up Territory Lounge for drinks and apps.

WL to CR via boat. Go to the Wave.

Monorail to GF. Drinks and apps at Mizners.

Walk to Poly. Do Trader Sam's (if the wait isn't too bad and you are willing to pay ridiculous prices for drinks) or Tambu Lounge. Sushi with drinks at the counter by Kona Cafe is another option if that floats your boat and there are seats available.

 

[nedidajohn]

Sounds fun!

 

[Stefecatzz]

As far as drinks go, I love taking a midday break at the Poly on my MK day & having a Lapu Lapu (or 2..) or a Backscratcher. They tend to have strong drinks & a strong pour at the Tambu Lounge so pace yourself there. I've also made a meal out of the pork sliders & wings split between my friend & which worked out well. I have been to Trader Sam's once & honestly was not too impressed with the drink & food I got there. I had the Pearl drink & the sushi & would definitely try other things on the menu in the future.

I also do enjoy the Territory Lounge but have not eaten there yet (I ordered one of their craft beers but do not remember which one). I've heard that at least a partial menu is available at the lounge from Artist's Point next door but have not been there to confirm that yet. I'd love to try the mushroom soup I keep reading about if I could order it at the lounge in the future.

 

[TeresaWen]

If you can get in, the lounge at the California grill is awesome. 80 wines by the glass I think. On a crawl we did two years ago we started there (very lucky to get up the elevator) ordered wine and an appetizer. They were so good and our table was by the window. We stayed for dinner, desert, and after dinner drinks. And got to see wishes. No crawl that day but what an experience.

 

[ZebraDomeCrazy]

You are DVC member?? You can go to the Top of the World lounge at Bay Lake Tower! I would try to end your tour there, and watch wishes from their private, members only balcony. Really awesome views! They even pipe in the music for your enjoyment.

 

[Skywise]

Trader Sams at the Polynesian will now stay open until 2am Fri-Sat (1am other times) - I'd start at the Polynesian and:
Tambu Lounge - Lapu Lapu/Back Scratcher
Mizner's Lounge at the GF
get off at MK and take the boat to
WL - Territory Lounge
Boat from WL back to Contempoary
Wave lounge (I like it)
Monorail back to the Polynesian and Trader Sams to watch the fireworks from the patio (or pick up drinks at Tambu Lounge and take them to the beach then go to Trader Sams)

 

[JenB]

You are DVC member?? You can go to the Top of the World lounge at Bay Lake Tower! I would try to end your tour there, and watch wishes from their private, members only balcony. Really awesome views! They even pipe in the music for your enjoyment.

We are DVC...I think that's a fantastic idea!

 

[JenB]

If you can get in, the lounge at the California grill is awesome. 80 wines by the glass I think. On a crawl we did two years ago we started there (very lucky to get up the elevator) ordered wine and an appetizer. They were so good and our table was by the window. We stayed for dinner, desert, and after dinner drinks. And got to see wishes. No crawl that day but what an experience.

Lol you're right...fail at the crawl part but sounds fabulous!

 

[JenB]

As far as drinks go, I love taking a midday break at the Poly on my MK day & having a Lapu Lapu (or 2..) or a Backscratcher. They tend to have strong drinks & a strong pour at the Tambu Lounge so pace yourself there. I've also made a meal out of the pork sliders & wings split between my friend & which worked out well. I have been to Trader Sam's once & honestly was not too impressed with the drink & food I got there. I had the Pearl drink & the sushi & would definitely try other things on the menu in the future.

I also do enjoy the Territory Lounge but have not eaten there yet (I ordered one of their craft beers but do not remember which one). I've heard that at least a partial menu is available at the lounge from Artist's Point next door but have not been there to confirm that yet. I'd love to try the mushroom soup I keep reading about if I could order it at the lounge in the future.

Excellent suggestions! We love sushi. My husband is a craft beer junkie so we will definitely try that.

 

[JenB]

The Wave actually has one of the best beer selections on property, so if beer is going to be a focal point of the crawl I definitely wouldn't miss it.

Territory Lounge is very nice but the problem is that you only can get to WL directly from the CR and the MK, there is no boat service between WL and the other monorail resorts. If you have 3+ hours to kill then I'd definitely include it.

Here's one possible itinerary:

MK to WL via boat. Hit up Territory Lounge for drinks and apps.

WL to CR via boat. Go to the Wave.

Monorail to GF. Drinks and apps at Mizners.

Walk to Poly. Do Trader Sam's (if the wait isn't too bad and you are willing to pay ridiculous prices for drinks) or Tambu Lounge. Sushi with drinks at the counter by Kona Cafe is another option if that floats your boat and there are seats available.

Thanks for all that! I do believe this is going to be exactly what we do. My husband is all about the craft beers so I'll keep The Wave on the itinerary.

 

[JenB]

The Wave @ Contemporary is the weak link. Other than alcohol, not a destination spot.

Poly is next resort stop from Contemporary.

Territory Lounge @ Wilderness is notorious for being delightful and with lesser crowds.

You can boat from Wilderness to any of the Monorail places.

But a case could be made for Mizner's at Grand Floridian - live jazz playing out the entrance to the lounge.

Poly has two places: Trader Sam's (good luck getting inside) & Tambu Lounge.

You can walk from Grand Floridian to Poly.

The question is how much do you want to rely on transportation.

If it were me - I'd start at Mizner's, stroll the shops at Grand Floridian. Then walk over to Poly for either Trader Sam's (if I could get a spot), or Tambu Lounge. But I'll admit that I'm not familiar with viewing fireworks from Poly, so one of these lounges may make more sense than the other.

Thank you so much! I've never actually stepped foot in the Grand Floridian so I'm excited about that.

 

[Tigger's ally]

Also, if the weather is nice, don't forget about the pool bars. I have saddled up to Trout pass bar at WL for a few and love the view of the pool and geyser.

 

[JenB]

Also, if the weather is nice, don't forget about the pool bars. I have saddled up to Trout pass bar at WL for a few and love the view of the pool and geyser.

Excellent idea! I'm thinking we might need to do this over two nights to get 'er done. But don't worry, we will absolutely do our best