The ALL NEW Disney's Contemporary Resort FAQ with PICTURES! (APR 2009)

[SoScary'09]

We avoided laundry at WDW altogether. Since we were driving we did laundry at our on-road hotel on the way down, then again on the way back. If you're driving this is a great thing to do, as we were the only ones doing laundry and didn't have to fight with anyone for washers or dryers. lf you're flying though you might be stuck doing them at the CR.

 

[f15robyn]

I apologize if this has been asked in the 211 pages. Although I read the entire thread before my December trip, I need to get a request added to my reservation quickly (we arrive in 10 days).

We just updraded to the Atrium club floor - MK view last night. Does anyone know how many of those rooms have king beds? We were going to put in the usual DIS request for an odd-numbered room so that we can see MK from the beds. But we also prefer a king bed (2 adults only who sleep in a king at home).

Trying to decide whether to put in both requests or just go with the odd numbered room for the view. Thoughts from previous guests?

Thanks in advance.

 

[BABY_EINSTEIN'S_MOM]

For those who were inquiring about safety locks on sliding glass doors at BLT and also a while back asked about what the castle construction looked like, here is a link to a BLT page that has both safety lock info. (Posts 611 & 612) and a picture taken on 1-13-10 of the castle construction as seen from BLT (Post 613):

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2257082&page=41

Hmmm...from reading that it looks like there is no definitive answer yet on the locks. Apparently one door has a lock up higher(MB door), but the other door(the one coming from the living area) doesn't?

 

[WDWKOOK]

I apologize if this has been asked in the 211 pages. Although I read the entire thread before my December trip, I need to get a request added to my reservation quickly (we arrive in 10 days).

We just updraded to the Atrium club floor - MK view last night. Does anyone know how many of those rooms have king beds? We were going to put in the usual DIS request for an odd-numbered room so that we can see MK from the beds. But we also prefer a king bed (2 adults only who sleep in a king at home).

Trying to decide whether to put in both requests or just go with the odd numbered room for the view. Thoughts from previous guests?

Thanks in advance.

csaribay (I think they were/are a CM) posted this last year about the king beds:

"You'll also want to take into consideration that the availability of king beds is very limited, and not guaranteed except in the garden wing, where there is a separate category that can be book that specifies a guaranteed king bed.

The tower on any given side has about five king beds out of 150 rooms. They aren't guaranteed and cannot be guaranteed for any reason..."

Since they are so limited, I would decide which request is more important to you. Personally, if I were you, I wouldn't worry about which way the bed faces since you already have a MK view. I would request the king bed. If at check-in they tell you that a king is not available, then I would kindly ask for an odd numbered room.

Congrats. on upgrading!

 

[Jcricket Fan]

Just a laundry note: We were just at CR 1/6-1/13 2010. There are 6 washers & 6 dryers.

The whole time we were there 3 of the washers were broken (it appears the signs on them saying they were broken had been on a while they were dirty & torn)
This was just not ok with me. This is a deluxe hotel fix the washers! I did notify management about my displeasure with the laundry situation.

The dryers do take more then one cycle to get the clothes dry.

You need to swipe your room card as stated previously to use the washers & dryers and buy soap (3 of the soap dispensers were empty as well!) The machines will not take change.

A women was trying to do laundry but did not have charging privileges on the room card so after she loaded 2 of the washers she couldn't run them.

She needed to go back over to the front desk and have them issue a different card with a cash deposit on it so she could use the machines.

I don't mind doing laundry on vacation but for goodness sake have the laundry room ready for guests!

 

[f15robyn]

Personally, if I were you, I wouldn't worry about which way the bed faces since you already have a MK view. I would request the king bed. If at check-in they tell you that a king is not available, then I would kindly ask for an odd numbered room.

Congrats. on upgrading!

Thanks for the advice. You're probably right that we wouldn't spend that much time laying in the bed looking out the windows. We had a king bed with an MK view in December (Room 4912) and although it did happen to face the right way, I usually just went out on the balcony when I wanted to see the Kingdom .

 

[arcticdisneylovers]

I was told life jackets were available. Are there pool noodles available, if not can we bring our own?

 

[BABY_EINSTEIN'S_MOM]

Since we have been on the subject of door locks..lol...what kind(how high) are the locks on the CR's doors? Are they sliding doors?

 

[kmgt]

Hi everyone. What a great thread! I'm fairly new to the site and sort of a Disney newbie too. DH and I both have been a couple times throughout our lives, but not in the last 10 year. AND this will be our first time as a family.

We are staying at the CR in March in a Tower MK view room.

I have LOTS of questions after reading through about 30 pages of this thread. If some of it's been covered, I apologize. I just can't read through 211 pages.

I'm just gonna list my questions if that's ok.

1. Can you get bed rails for the beds. Our kids are 3 & 5 and we might need a bedrail for the daybed.

2. Speaking of the daybed... It does fold down flat, right?

3. I know the walk to MK is easy on the path, but is the monorail any faster? I'm wondering with a 3&5 year old (we haven't decided on a stoller yet) if it'd be better to ride.

4. Is there some sort of a free breakfast? I keep seeing pics of this food spread. Is that only for guests on certain floors?

5. Can you charge stuff to your room pretty much anywhere. In the parks and at the resort?

6. Can an adult go down the water slide with a child?

And these aren't necessarily CR specific

7. Can you take any sort of drinks/snacks into the park with you? What about the refillable mug?

8. We have tickets for 3 days but are only sure we want to go to MK and AK. Would you suggest Epcot or HS for kids 3&5. Or, maybe just another day at MK?

Oh and we have the DDP. Will be get the refillable mug? And if we don't, can we buy one? Can it only be refilled at CR?


Thank you so much! I know I'll have more questions.

 

[kmgt]

Oh and one more. When your in the Contempo Cafe, is everything you get going to count for a Counter Service Credit?

What kinds of things can you get for a snack credit?

 

[WDWKOOK]

I was told life jackets were available. Are there pool noodles available, if not can we bring our own?

Yes, life jackets are available at the marina. I have never seen the noodles, but I'm sure you could bring your own.

 

[mdrob214]

Hi everyone. What a great thread! I'm fairly new to the site and sort of a Disney newbie too. DH and I both have been a couple times throughout our lives, but not in the last 10 year. AND this will be our first time as a family.

We are staying at the CR in March in a Tower MK view room.

I have LOTS of questions after reading through about 30 pages of this thread. If some of it's been covered, I apologize. I just can't read through 211 pages.

I'm just gonna list my questions if that's ok.

1. Can you get bed rails for the beds. Our kids are 3 & 5 and we might need a bedrail for the daybed. I believe so--haven't ever needed them.

2. Speaking of the daybed... It does fold down flat, right? Yes

3. I know the walk to MK is easy on the path, but is the monorail any faster? I'm wondering with a 3&5 year old (we haven't decided on a stoller yet) if it'd be better to ride. Returning from MK, it's easier/faster to ride as CR is the first stop. Going to MK, you'll stop at TTC, Poly and GF so walking is faster for us, although with little ones, you may enjoy the ride.

4. Is there some sort of a free breakfast? I keep seeing pics of this food spread. Is that only for guests on certain floors? Nope--only for those who are in Club Level rooms on certain floors

5. Can you charge stuff to your room pretty much anywhere. In the parks and at the resort?
Pretty much. Some carts don't allow you to use your room key--funnel cakes, for instance. I always carry $20, but rarely use it.

6. Can an adult go down the water slide with a child? No--one at a time. But life jackets are available at the pool free of charge.

And these aren't necessarily CR specific

7. Can you take any sort of drinks/snacks into the park with you? What about the refillable mug? Sure--but your mug is only refiillable at the resort. We carry in water and sometimes a granola bar or something.

8. We have tickets for 3 days but are only sure we want to go to MK and AK. Would you suggest Epcot or HS for kids 3&5. Or, maybe just another day at MK?
I'd do 2 at MK, but HS has the Playhouse Disney, Little Mermaid and other younger kids' things. others have other opinions, I'm sure.
Oh and we have the DDP. Will be get the refillable mug? And if we don't, can we buy one? Can it only be refilled at CR?
You can buy a mug fr $12.99. It's refillable at the resort. It comes with Quick service DDP and I believe Deluxe DDP.




Thank you so much! I know I'll have more questions.

My answers in red above--Hope that helps!

 

[WDWKOOK]

Hi everyone. What a great thread! I'm fairly new to the site and sort of a Disney newbie too. DH and I both have been a couple times throughout our lives, but not in the last 10 year. AND this will be our first time as a family.

We are staying at the CR in March in a Tower MK view room.

I have LOTS of questions after reading through about 30 pages of this thread. If some of it's been covered, I apologize. I just can't read through 211 pages.

I'm just gonna list my questions if that's ok.

1. Can you get bed rails for the beds. Our kids are 3 & 5 and we might need a bedrail for the daybed.

I have read that you can't attach bed rails to the daybed.

2. Speaking of the daybed... It does fold down flat, right?

Here is a link to a photo of the daybed made-up as a bed.


3. I know the walk to MK is easy on the path, but is the monorail any faster? I'm wondering with a 3&5 year old (we haven't decided on a stoller yet) if it'd be better to ride.

The walkway is faster, especially when returning from the MK near/at park closing. On the way back from the MK the CR is the first stop and is a short ride when not crowded. The monorail would take probably 20 mins. to get to the MK and the walkway about 10 mins. I'd highly recommend at least bringing an umbrella stroller. They're very cheap and so convenient to/from the MK and on the monorail.

4. Is there some sort of a free breakfast? I keep seeing pics of this food spread. Is that only for guests on certain floors?

The breakfast you're seeing is on the Atrium Club level which is on the 12th floor. There is also a Club level on the 14th floor. Access is restricted to club-level guests only who pay more to stay club level.

5. Can you charge stuff to your room pretty much anywhere. In the parks and at the resort?

Yes. You simply present a credit card at check-in and use your "Key to the World" card (your room key) to charge just about anything. You'll receive a bill at check-out showing all of your charges and they will be billed directly to your credit card.

6. Can an adult go down the water slide with a child?

No. Only one person at a time can go down. But, you can wait near the end of the slide for your little one.

And these aren't necessarily CR specific

7. Can you take any sort of drinks/snacks into the park with you? What about the refillable mug?

Yes, but you can only use your refillable mug at your resort.

8. We have tickets for 3 days but are only sure we want to go to MK and AK. Would you suggest Epcot or HS for kids 3&5. Or, maybe just another day at MK?

For ages 3 & 5, personally I would do another day at the MK. It's the most toddler-friendly park and you could just stroll right over from the CR.

Oh and we have the DDP. Will be get the refillable mug? And if we don't, can we buy one? Can it only be refilled at CR?

The DxDP and QSDP come with the refillable mug. You can buy one at the Contempo Cafe for around $15, but you can only refill it at the CR.


Thank you so much! I know I'll have more questions.

You're welcome and feel free to ask more questions. Everyone is very friendly and helpful on the CR/BLT thread.

Oh and one more. When your in the Contempo Cafe, is everything you get going to count for a Counter Service Credit?

Yes, it is a counter service credit.

What kinds of things can you get for a snack credit?

Generally, anything under $4: Piece of fruit, cookie, danish/doughnut, bagel, toast, yogurt, drink, you get the picture.

Here is the link to the 2010 DP thread:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2353648

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

Since they are so limited, I would decide which request is more important to you. Personally, if I were you, I wouldn't worry about which way the bed faces since you already have a MK view. I would request the king bed. If at check-in they tell you that a king is not available, then I would kindly ask for an odd numbered room.

Agreed.

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

Just a laundry note: We were just at CR 1/6-1/13 2010. There are 6 washers & 6 dryers.

The whole time we were there 3 of the washers were broken (it appears the signs on them saying they were broken had been on a while they were dirty & torn)
This was just not ok with me. This is a deluxe hotel fix the washers! I did notify management about my displeasure with the laundry situation.

The dryers do take more then one cycle to get the clothes dry.

You need to swipe your room card as stated previously to use the washers & dryers and buy soap (3 of the soap dispensers were empty as well!) The machines will not take change.

A women was trying to do laundry but did not have charging privileges on the room card so after she loaded 2 of the washers she couldn't run them.

She needed to go back over to the front desk and have them issue a different card with a cash deposit on it so she could use the machines.

I don't mind doing laundry on vacation but for goodness sake have the laundry room ready for guests!

Thanks for posting that update.

 

[tinkerbell60]

Just an opinion on the walk to MK. It may be shorter than taking the monorail, but you do a LOT of walking at Disney World. It is still a healthy walk. Sometimes, I do not want to start the day with a long walk, I would rather save my energy for the parks. Also, if it is hot and humid, you also start your day off a little more hot and humid by walking.

Something to consider, the extra time on the monorail may be worth it. But, it is also worth trying it once and seeing what works best for you and your family.

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

Just an opinion on the walk to MK. It may be shorter than taking the monorail, but you do a LOT of walking at Disney World. It is still a healthy walk. Sometimes, I do not want to start the day with a long walk, I would rather save my energy for the parks. Also, if it is hot and humid, you also start your day off a little more hot and humid by walking.

Something to consider, the extra time on the monorail may be worth it. But, it is also worth trying it once and seeing what works best for you and your family.

That's a good point and I can see why you would think that, although time wise it's still faster walking to the Magic Kingdom if you needed to be there as fast as possible.

 

[tinkerbell60]

That's a good point and I can see why you would think that, although time wise it's still faster walking to the Magic Kingdom if you needed to be there as fast as possible.

Yes, it is faster, especially in the mornings when there may be more monorails backed up because they have a lot of people coming in. Sometimes, you can get slowed down at the GF, when there is traffic in the stations.

 

[WDWKOOK]

From today's AllEars newsletter:

"Award-winning pastry chef Jeff Barnes has joined the culinary team at Disney's Contemporary Resort. With 30 years experience as a pastry chef, he most recently was executive pastry chef at Amelia Island Plantation in Amelia Island. He also has worked at other Florida resorts including the Ritz-Carlton Palm Beach and Hyatt Regency Tampa. Barnes has a bachelor's degree in business administration in management from West Georgia College and completed culinary and pastry apprenticeship training."

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

From today's AllEars newsletter:

"Award-winning pastry chef Jeff Barnes has joined the culinary team at Disney's Contemporary Resort. With 30 years experience as a pastry chef, he most recently was executive pastry chef at Amelia Island Plantation in Amelia Island. He also has worked at other Florida resorts including the Ritz-Carlton Palm Beach and Hyatt Regency Tampa. Barnes has a bachelor's degree in business administration in management from West Georgia College and completed culinary and pastry apprenticeship training."

Thanks for posting that article and he sounds like a great addition to the Contemporary.