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

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

What kind of bath products (shampoo, shower gel etc) do they have? Are they a certain brand name?

They have those H20 bath products.

 

[oasispaul]

Denise at Mousesteps has some new pics up of the Bay Lake Tower, construction at the pool area, and of the not yet opened Fantasia Market.

http://www.mousesteps.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=277&Itemid=65

Wow - apparently they ARE doing some major work to the "pool area". Looks like the rumor of entirely new landscaping may come to fruition after all. Whatever they're doing, it's definitely more than just a pool cleaning and paint job. Remember that rumor about how the new landscaping would include palm trees? Did you notice the pic of the new palm tree in front of Bay Lake Tower? Something tells me we might see a few palms sprout up next to the pool before too long.

CRFan - that cast member you spoke to might not have exaggerated after all - when it's all said and done, the Contemporary pool might rival the Poly pool after all!

So, my question for anyone who keeps tabs on these type of Disney Refurbs (or anyone in the landscaping business who knows how long these projects tend to take) - how long do you think it will take before the new pool area landscaping is completed? We leave in 3 weeks and booked a Bay Lake view hoping to have a pretty view of the Lake AND pool. Any chance we'll be gazing down at lush foliage - or are we more than likely going to be looking at construction fences and dirt? Either way, at least the pool is open and operating (knocks on wood)...

 

[finallygoingtoWDW]

They have those H20 bath products.

Thanks! Is there shower gel or bar soap only? Is there lotion, mouthwash, a shower cap?

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

CRFan - that cast member you spoke to might not have exaggerated after all - when it's all said and done, the Contemporary pool might rival the Poly pool after all!

That's why I belived him because he told me all this at an event in the Contemporary called Mickey's Pin Trading Night (were both pin collectors/traders) and I have seen him there before, so we have become good friends and he would be my source when I need to find out any information possible.

Thanks! Is there shower gel or bar soap only? Is there lotion, mouthwash, a shower cap?

There was shampo, shower gel and a bar of soap. I don't remember seeing mouthwash or a shower cap, however I might be wrong about that.

 

[brergnat]

Thanks! Is there shower gel or bar soap only? Is there lotion, mouthwash, a shower cap?

Shower gel and bar soap are both provided. Lotion as well. No mouthwash or shower cap.

 

[birmantaz]

Sorry if I missed it but does anyone know when the splash pool area will be completed? The other pool area is open now though? Thanks!

 

[DavidandDenise]

Just wanted to post that I returned a few days ago from my first stay in a TOWER MK VIEW ROOM!

IT WAS AWESOME! We were in room 4637, 10th floor, practically dead center, first room you see when you get off the elevators. I thought this would be problematic (noise issues), but once you go in the room and close the door, you hear NOTHING. It was glorious. The soundproofing is awesome there.

!

Amazing. We just got back on the 4th and had room 4633 all last week. You may have even seen our little guy running up and down the hallway. He loved the resort almost as much as his parents did. As for us, we actually had a garden wing garden view room booked and were surprised with the upgrade of a lifetime. We were upgraded to the tower Magic Kingdom view. I'm sure having a child there for the first time got us some extra pixie dust. The resort is beautiful and can't be beat for anyone with kids who will be spending a lot of time at the MK. We walked every time and loved being able to hop on monorails with the stroller to get to EPCOT. Contempo Cafe was excellent. It was our first deluxe, and we are officially ruined for any other resort. Once you have a room that looks out onto the castle, nothing else will do.

 

[staceymarie]

We just spent the best week-april 1-8- at the CR!!!

It was FABULOUS!! We were upgraded from a garden wing-garden view room to a tower MK VIEW!
We stayed in room 4226. It was on the 6th floor-right in front of Chef Mickey's and I have to say that all of the hype about Chef Mickey's being noisy escapes me. We never really even heard it.
For the monorail service and the quick access to the MK-you cannot beat the CR! My DD wanted a Minnie Mouse souvenier to take home and just informed me of this last night. No problem!! We just hopped onto the monorial at 9:30pm and took a little trip over to the Grand Floridian! We found Minnie and also a Mickey and even a miniature Minnie for my DD's American Girl Doll "Ruthie Smithens".

The fireworks were fabulous and the Contempo Cafe was so perfectly convenient.

My DD cried this morning when we were leaving--to be honest-My DH and I both jerked a tear too!
What a great time!!

We are bumming big time tonight. I keep thinking that I hear the monrail!
But, it's just the furnace-lol!

Will post pics when I get them all ready!!

Editing to add:I didn't know anything about others having issues with bed bugs and there were none in our room. We had a spectacularly clean room and I didn't see or get bitten by one bug of any kind the whole time!!

 

[TJM1976]

 

[pixie921]

TJM1976 -- GREAT photo!!

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

We just spent the best week-april 1-8- at the CR!!!

It was FABULOUS!! We were upgraded from a garden wing-garden view room to a tower MK VIEW!
We stayed in room 4226. It was on the 6th floor-right in front of Chef Mickey's and I have to say that all of the hype about Chef Mickey's being noisy escapes me. We never really even heard it.
For the monorail service and the quick access to the MK-you cannot beat the CR! My DD wanted a Minnie Mouse souvenier to take home and just informed me of this last night. No problem!! We just hopped onto the monorial at 9:30pm and took a little trip over to the Grand Floridian! We found Minnie and also a Mickey and even a miniature Minnie for my DD's American Girl Doll "Ruthie Smithens".

The fireworks were fabulous and the Contempo Cafe was so perfectly convenient.

My DD cried this morning when we were leaving--to be honest-My DH and I both jerked a tear too!
What a great time!!

We are bumming big time tonight. I keep thinking that I hear the monrail!
But, it's just the furnace-lol!

Will post pics when I get them all ready!!

Editing to add:I didn't know anything about others having issues with bed bugs and there were none in our room. We had a spectacularly clean room and I didn't see or get bitten by one bug of any kind the whole time!!

Thanks for posting that great review and I can't wait to see your pictures.

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

TJM1976,
That's a very nice picture so thanks for posting it.

 

[TJM1976]

TJM1976,
That's a very nice picture so thanks for posting it.

You are welcome! I took it 2 weeks ago on the boat from the Poly to MK.

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

You are welcome! I took it 2 weeks ago on the boat from the Poly to MK.

I was thinking that you might have taken the picture on that boat.

 

[ShelsGoingToDisney]

We just spent the best week-april 1-8- at the CR!!!

It was FABULOUS!! We were upgraded from a garden wing-garden view room to a tower MK VIEW!
We stayed in room 4226. It was on the 6th floor-right in front of Chef Mickey's and I have to say that all of the hype about Chef Mickey's being noisy escapes me. We never really even heard it.
For the monorail service and the quick access to the MK-you cannot beat the CR! My DD wanted a Minnie Mouse souvenier to take home and just informed me of this last night. No problem!! We just hopped onto the monorial at 9:30pm and took a little trip over to the Grand Floridian! We found Minnie and also a Mickey and even a miniature Minnie for my DD's American Girl Doll "Ruthie Smithens".

The fireworks were fabulous and the Contempo Cafe was so perfectly convenient.

My DD cried this morning when we were leaving--to be honest-My DH and I both jerked a tear too!
What a great time!!

We are bumming big time tonight. I keep thinking that I hear the monrail!
But, it's just the furnace-lol!

Will post pics when I get them all ready!!

Editing to add:I didn't know anything about others having issues with bed bugs and there were none in our room. We had a spectacularly clean room and I didn't see or get bitten by one bug of any kind the whole time!!

I am very happy you had a such a great experience. You are so lucky to get upgraded. I was hoping for an upgrade because we had 2 birthday and a 1st time visit on our reservation (4th B-day & 1st visit & 60th B-day). I figured if I was ever lucky enough to get upgraded this might be my chance. No such luck though.

One thing I am noticing about others that went to the CR at around the same time as me is the people that have had exceptional housekeeping are staying in the tower whereas I got crappy housekeeping in the wing room as well as bed bugs! I am wondering if with all of Disney's lay offs if they are focusing their resources on the more expensive rooms and leaving us poor saps out? If that's the case I'd be scared to see what happens in the moderates or value resorts!

Don't get me wrong I am happy for everyone who had great service and upgrades etc. I am just a little disenheartened with my experience. In all my Disney stays this is the first time my stay wasn't perfect.

I haven't heard any response yet from Disney. Of course I sent the letter/pictures through snail mail so I'm sure it will take some time. I did send a copy of the letter and pictures in a fax to the Contemporary last Friday but no response from them either. I just hope they are taking care of that room!

On another note the bed bug is still very much alive in my ziploc (14 days now) and has laid several eggs. It has become my science experiment now to see how long this sucker will last! LOL!

 

[brergnat]

One thing I am noticing about others that went to the CR at around the same time as me is the people that have had exceptional housekeeping are staying in the tower whereas I got crappy housekeeping in the wing room as well as bed bugs! I am wondering if with all of Disney's lay offs if they are focusing their resources on the more expensive rooms and leaving us poor saps out? If that's the case I'd be scared to see what happens in the moderates or value resorts!

Don't get me wrong I am happy for everyone who had great service and upgrades etc. I am just a little disenheartened with my experience. In all my Disney stays this is the first time my stay wasn't perfect.

I'm really sorry your stay was not perfect. Unfortunately, that seems to be the biggest problem with Disney's housekeeping. Lack of consistency, even within ONE resort.

I can say, NUMEROUS times during our week, I saw Housekeeping managers overseeing the staff on our floor. One day while I was sick in my room, a manager came in to do a "random spot check" in the middle of the day, after the housekeeper had been in there. And, another manager came on a different day to do a "caulking check" on the bathtub. So, I know that they are at least TRYING to stay on top of things, at least in the Tower. They shouldn't be slacking off in the wings, though. I sure hope that's not the case.

As for bed bugs, THAT is something that, like lice, comes from PEOPLE, not the hotels. Someone brought it to that room, most likely in their luggage. It is Disney's responsibility to get rid of it, but the way those things multiply and infest an area, it is a huge problem.

Did you bring it up while you were AT the hotel? I can't recall from your earlier post, but if I had found a bed bug during my stay, you can bet that I'd have marched myself (AND THE BUG) up to the front desk, slapped that sucker on the counter, and insisted on being moved to another room, a.s.a.p. That's the only way to make them aware of the situation at the time, so they can take care of it before it becomes the next guest's problem as well.

Hopefully your next stay will be better.

 

[ShelsGoingToDisney]

I'm really sorry your stay was not perfect. Unfortunately, that seems to be the biggest problem with Disney's housekeeping. Lack of consistency, even within ONE resort.

I can say, NUMEROUS times during our week, I saw Housekeeping managers overseeing the staff on our floor. One day while I was sick in my room, a manager came in to do a "random spot check" in the middle of the day, after the housekeeper had been in there. And, another manager came on a different day to do a "caulking check" on the bathtub. So, I know that they are at least TRYING to stay on top of things, at least in the Tower. They shouldn't be slacking off in the wings, though. I sure hope that's not the case.

As for bed bugs, THAT is something that, like lice, comes from PEOPLE, not the hotels. Someone brought it to that room, most likely in their luggage. It is Disney's responsibility to get rid of it, but the way those things multiply and infest an area, it is a huge problem.

Did you bring it up while you were AT the hotel? I can't recall from your earlier post, but if I had found a bed bug during my stay, you can bet that I'd have marched myself (AND THE BUG) up to the front desk, slapped that sucker on the counter, and insisted on being moved to another room, a.s.a.p. That's the only way to make them aware of the situation at the time, so they can take care of it before it becomes the next guest's problem as well.

Hopefully your next stay will be better.

I totally agree with you about the bug not being Disney's fault. I don't blame them at all. Only thing I wonder is if the housekeeping had been better maybe they might have spotted the bugs instead of me.

As for reporting to them while there. No I didn't and I am mad at myself now. When we found the bug I really didn't know much about bed bugs and I honestly thought they were too small to see. This bug looked more like a tick to me except different coloring from the ticks we have in NE. I put the bug in a ziploc and looked all through the sheets and didn't see any more bugs. I thought maybe it was a tick we brought in on the stroller or something. At the time none of us were itching. It was also about 1 AM and 2 of my 3 kids were sound asleep. I didn't want to make the long walk to the front desk. It was my Mom and I traveling with the 3 kids and she was kind of crabby and didn't want to have to change rooms at 1 AM over what we figured was a tick. I am also hearing impaired and not confrontational so I admit I was a little scared of looking like a fool if it was just a tick. Hindsight is 20/20 though and I admit I was wrong and should have done something about it right then. I did keep the bug and brought it home to look it up on google just in case so I didn't contaminate my house. Once I googled there is no question that it is a bed bug. I have also learned that you need to inspect the mattress seams and headboards, not the sheets as I did while there. Also I learned that bed bugs are indeed about the size of an apple seed, not so small you can't see them as I thought. Also I learned that bites can take up to 9 days to appear. All of my children have developed bites as well as myself. My 4 yr old had his well check at the Dr on Wed and the Dr confirmed that they indeed looked like bed bug bites all over his arm, neck and back.

As I said I did send the letter and pictures to Disney. I would email if I didn't have to do it through the website because I can't send pictures that way. I did fax it to Contemporary right away so they can get into the room and save others from getting bit.

As I said I DO NOT blame Disney for the bugs and I don't expect anything from them. I know it was brought in by another guest. I do blame Disney for the very poor housekeeping we had though. Our room was not very clean and replacing towels was ridiculous. Unlike you I never saw a housekeeping cart or anything around the halls during our entire stay! We often left our room at 10-11 AM too and never anyone around. This is why I am wondering why the big difference between the towers and the wing? That irks me.

I really wanted to like the CR as we love the monorail and always wanted to try it. The bug/housekeeping issues have turned me off though. Unless I got an unbelievable deal in the tower I would not choose CR again.

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

ShelsGoingToDisney,
I am just wondering was your room on the 1st floor because that's the only way I can see the bugs getting in there.

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

One of the things I kept reading about was the "unfriendly CM's" and let me tell you, I think the CM's at the CR were among the MOST FRIENDLY we encountered anywhere at WDW the entire week we were there! Several went out of their way for us in different ways, and they were more gracious and personable than, I would say, 75% of the CM's in the parks. Just my 2 cents, but I think the CM's at the Contemporary get a bad rap for nothing.

I just wanted to share a great story about the Cast Members at the Contemporary and how one of them really helped us out when we were there last August.

As my family and I were heading out and got into my dad's Jeep it would not start so there was something wrong with it. Well one of the Cast Members working at the bell stand inside the lobby was able to get one of the managers who happened to have a laptop and looked up locations for a Chrysler/Jeep dealerships in the Orlando area. He highly recommened a specific location because their employees are very friendly and it's where he got his car. Anyway we had my dad's Jeep towed to that location and this manager was right, because they knew right away what the problem was, they were very friendly and we got the Jeep back the very next day. Anyway this Cast Member happened to see us again and asked if everything was ok and we told him yes, then thanked him over and over for helping us. Finally when we arrived back at the Contemporary this past December one of the Cast Members from the Atrium Club floor was waiting for us to arrive and standing next to her was the Cast Member who helped us with back in August with the Jeep. When we asked if he remembered who we were he said yes I do. So that's what makes the Contemporary Cast Members some of the best in all of WDW.

 

[ShelsGoingToDisney]

ShelsGoingToDisney,
I am just wondering was your room on the 1st floor because that's the only way I can see the bugs getting in there.

Yes we were on the first floor. Wing room 6128 last building out by the beach. Bed bugs don't come in from outside though so I don't think that was the problem. At the time I had thought of the fact that we were on the 1st floor in thinking maybe it was a tick. However there is no question that this is a bed bug. I took some pictures but I don't have the best camera and taking it through the ziploc blurred it. Here is a link to a bed bug picture and the one I have looks EXACTLY like the one in the top right corner. He is getting more and more see through though because he hasn't eaten in at least 14 days.

http://bedbugger.files.wordpress.com/2006/10/common_bed_bug_lifecycle.jpg

My best advice is to anyone is to educate yourself about bed bugs before traveling anywhere so that you don't make the same mistakes as I did!

As for friendly CM's at the CR I have to agree with CR Fan. EVERY CM I had contact with in the restaurants, shops, desk, bell services, front entrance, etc. were all super, super friendly and helpful. Only one that was a little on the rude side, and still not bad, was at the Sand Bar by the pool. He was just kind of quick and didn't smile much, but not mean or bad.