The Asian.
Oh, you mean resorts that were
built
.
I've now stayed at all of the deluxe hotels, and of them all, my favorite is the Contemporary Tower. It has the largest rooms on property and each one features a balcony. They are spacious enough for 5 adults with two queen beds and an adult size day bed. They feature large balconies with either stunning lake views with nightly views of the EWP, illuminations and PI fireworks or the MK and weekend FIS fireworks. The bathrooms are huge with a sink and tub in one room and a separate water closet with vanity. The tower rooms look out onto a large atrium with, the crown jewel IMHO, the monorail gliding through.
On one side of the concourse you'll find several shops that feature men's and women's apparel, as well as jewelry and character merchandise and sundries. Opposite the shops on the concourse are two very different, but equally appealing restaurants in their own way. Chef Mickey's is low on quality as far as food goes, but high on fun with the best character interaction of any character meal at WDW. The Concourse Steakhouse is a little gem (one that you could once call a hidden gem, but alas, has since been discovered) that serves good steaks at a much better price than all of the other steak house at WDW. The Outer Rim cocktail lounge would be a great spot for a drink with good lake views, but it is too noisy and gets crowded from people waiting to go to Chef Mickey's. That's o.k. though because the best lounge at WDW is found a few floors up at the top of the hotel in the California Grill Lounge. This lounge boasts beautiful views of the MK and FITS fireworks. And it also serves some of the sushi that is featured next door in the California Grill restaurant.
This restaurant has won numerous awards, including one for best restaurant in central Florida. The view is topped only by the food. It is casual contemporary cuisine. It is expensive, but IMHO, worth the price of admission. I think this place is better than Victoria and Albert's, better than Wolfgang Puck's and
way better than Emeril's.
The Contemporary also features some of the best recreational options at WDW. We all know about the 10 minute walk to the MK and all of the activities there, and Epcot is only a monorail transfer away, but apart from the theme parks there is a plethora of activities as well. Immediately at the resort are two pools and two hot tubs. The large, free-form theme pool has a large (maybe too intense for very small children) and fun water slide, a childrens wading pool and spraying fountains. The round adult pool is directly on the lake and gets deeper toward the center of the pool. It is right next to the beach and the beach volleyball court. Across the way is the marina. The Contemporary has the most extensive marina on WDW property. You can rent, of course, water mice, pontoons and canopy boats, or you can use Sammy Duvals Water Sports to go on a Skiing or Parasailing trip. Back on shore is the Tennis Club, which boasts lighted clay Tennis Courts, a pro shop with tennis pros who offer lessons and rental services for rackets. Inside the ground floor of the Contemporary is the Food and Fun center which offers a snack bar and refillable mugs for the adults and a large arcade for the
kids. Yeah, the kids
Only a short Wonka boat ride away is Fort Wilderness. From here you can catch a dinner show, participate in a sing-a-long, watch a free nightly Disney movie, rent a golf cart or bicycle, rent a paddle boat or canoe, ride horse, visit a petting zoo or catch a nightly hay ride. There is no place at WDW more convenient to Fort Wilderness than the Contemporary Resort.
If youd prefer something more upscale or tropical, the Polynesian and Grand Floridian are just a couple of Monorail stops away. At the Poly, you can catch another dinner show. At the Grand Floridian, you can sip afternoon tea and listen to a band play in the main building. Get a massage from the spa and spend learn what it
reallymeans to vacation. Then each day you can return home to Walts flagship resort.
If you can swing it, stay in the premier concierge level at WDW on the 14th floor of the Contemporary. The lounge has a great view of the MK, and has the best food of any lounge Ive experienced (it all comes from the California Grill). The rooms are large with oversized balconies. The rooms on the concierge level have a more subdued décor, and the whole floor just feels more elegant. The Concierge staff is there to serve, and they do an excellent job. Both before and during your stay, the staff does everything to make your stay as magical as it should be.
O.k., maybe its apparent that Im a bit of a fan of this place. But honestly, I think the admiration I have for this resort is well deserved. The Poly, my second favorite, certainly has her charms. The Beauty of the Grand Floridian is unsurpassed. Its hard to beat staying on the Boardwalk, though staying across from it, with a great pool, a marina and a beautiful panorama comes pretty close. And a stay at the Animal Kingdom Lodge (though truly, a name like that must have been given by the unimagineer of the year) truly transports you. But for me, nothing says Disney like gliding into the atrium of the Contemporary Resort after a long day at the parks. I love hearing Mickey welcome me to my floor, and the hustle and bustle of the Grand Canyon Concourse in the morning as I step outside my room. I like looking at the now abandoned remnants of a southwestern theme in the tile mosaic, and looking for the five-legged goat. I love the approach via motor launch at night from Fort Wilderness. Nothing is more Disney to me than this hotel. It is the Flagship that he envisioned, and its still the WDW flagship in my mind.
They all have there fans. I have stayed at GF, Polynesian, WL, YC, AKL and Dolphin. I will porbably never stay att he Contemporary because I find it bland and unexciting while others have it as their favorite. I have a hard time picking my next resort because they are all so fun. I loved the AKL very much. It was very relaxing and the decore was perfect for me. The GF was very nice but I kept feeling like it was to expensive for what you got and now with the remodel of the rooms they are a bit to frilly for me. The YC was a great place. Talk about being in the center of the action. In general people recommend one of the MK resorts if you have kids because you will be spending more time at that park and the Monorail makes it easier. I haven;t taken any kids so don't know. The YC, BC and BWI are more convienient to two parks. The BWI is probably my coice on the next trip. The AKL has bus service to all parks so it is not quite as special in that way but it makes up for it in atmosphere. Just be prepared to want to leave the parks early so you can go back to the hotel and sit on your balcony. 
They are renovating though so who knows?) We liked having the monorail right there. Nice pool, cool to have the beach and be able to watch the water parade. Nice tropical feel.
