How is the Contemporary

[Catzle]

Looking at prices for next year and the Poly prices are starting to get out of our price range. We are thinking about the Contemporary, and thoughts or opinions?

[RBrooksC]

We just stayed there in May in the Tower with a MK view. The rooms were very large and very nice.

We were on the 11th floor and it was very quiet up there.

My in-laws stayed in the Garden Wing. While it is rather far removed from the tower, the rooms were exactly the same for a lot less.

We loved the convenience of staying there. Chef Mickey's and the Contempo Cafe were just an elevator ride down to the 4th floor.

My son, who is five, loved the monorail going through the resort. That was his favorite part.

I liked that I could walk to and from the MK with ease.

I also like being able to enjoy a beer while sitting on my balcony and looking at the Magic Kingdom all lit up at night.

[mariak]

We have stayed in at the Polynesian a couple of times and fell in love with it. However, our DDs have really wanted to stay at the Contemporary for quite some time. Last December, we did. While we REALLY liked the convenience of being able to walk to MK faster than we could take the monorail over, we are heading back to the Poly for our Sept. trip.

For us, the Poly was a little more convenient because we like to stay in the Tahiti building which is so close to the Transportation Center. Our favorite parks are MK and Epcot. So that location is best for us, for what we like to do.

Our room at the Contemporary was on the 5th floor directly overlooking Chef Mickey’s. It got very loud every morning with Christmas music blaring. It was nice some days, but not so much on others. Also, we were on the same level as the monorail but could not get directly over to it. We had to go down and then back up. This was especially aggravating because the elevators were so dang slow! It wouldn’t have been so frustrating if we had been farther away. We were just “so close, yet so far”. If there had been stairs that we could have taken, we gladly would have! But that was not an option.

To make matters even more frustrating, we were the very last room at that end and were right next to an EXIT stairwell which we found out that we were not allowed to use. The ONLY sign on that door was one that read something to the effect of “Exit only” or “No Return Entrance” or something that lead us to believe that we could, at least, get to the ground level without having to take the elevator. There was NOTHING that said that we couldn’t use that exit to leave the tower. So, one night, we were headed back over to MK on foot and decided to take the exit. As we started down the stairs, in the concrete stairwell, a cast member came out of a door and told us that we were not allowed to use that exit and escorted us through Chef Mickey’s to exit. When we went to the front desk with our “comment/concern” none of the CMs offered any other solutions (such as other stairwells that guests could use) so if there is another option, other than the elevators, we sure were not made aware of it.

So, basically, my chief complaint with that property is the slow elevators and no options for stairs. However, there are definitely good things about the Contemporary too. As I mentioned, being able to walk the Magic Kingdom was WONDERFUL! And having restaurants and shops in the same building is very nice too. I get a little paranoid when I travel and don’t really like venturing over to another building in the dark by myself. So I did like that everything was right there in the tower. I was able to do some shopping by myself as my family got some rest in our room.

Bottom line: It is a very nice resort! I would definitely give it another try (requesting a different location).

Convincing my DH, that would be another story…..

[mariak]

My in-laws stayed in the Garden Wing. While it is rather far removed from the tower, the rooms were exactly the same for a lot less.

In the past, I have read reviews which indicated that the Garden Wing rooms had not been renovated and were not as nice. Does this mean that all have been now? Or have some been updated, but not all?

[Goofy4TheWorld]

Catzle, what is important to you when selecting a resort (theme, transportation, etc)? If price drove you away from the Poly I don't think the Contemporary is any better.

I stayed 8 nights at the CR last summer and sooooo regret the extra money I spent to stay there over Pop, but what features of a resort are important to you? How many and how old are your family members?

[Goofy4TheWorld]

...If there had been stairs that we could have taken, we gladly would have! But that was not an option.

To make matters even more frustrating, we were the very last room at that end and were right next to an EXIT stairwell which we found out that we were not allowed to use. The ONLY sign on that door was one that read something to the effect of “Exit only” or “No Return Entrance” or something that lead us to believe that we could, at least, get to the ground level without having to take the elevator. There was NOTHING that said that we couldn't’t use that exit to leave the tower. So, one night, we were headed back over to MK on foot and decided to take the exit. As we started down the stairs, in the concrete stairwell, a cast member came out of a door and told us that we were not allowed to use that exit and escorted us through Chef Mickey’s to exit. When we went to the front desk with our “comment/concern” none of the CMs offered any other solutions (such as other stairwells that guests could use) so if there is another option, other than the elevators, we sure were not made aware of it...

Thank goodness I am not the only one that was driven crazy by the lack of usable stairs.

On our arrival night I was in a mad sprint to get to the laundry room to wash my two-year-old's blankie after he threw up on it 45 minutes into a 13 hour drive. I wanted to start the washer then run back up to the 8th floor to watch Wishes from the balcony (this was the last night of Wishes before they switched to Summer Nightastic fireworks). Frustrated with the slow elevators I spot the stairwell in the Bay Lake/Chef Mickey's corner of the building and run down to the ground floor only to find I have exited into a nasty maintenance area with no apparent exit and no re-entry allowed back into the main building. I was borderline panicked and wondered around like a newly caged animal for several minutes before I spotted a CM to ask for help. He said
"push that button and the gate will open" and then just walked away. I waited another few minutes for a second CM to actually push the button for me because Disney had hidden both the gate and the door opener button so well I was oblivious as to where I needed to look.

I remained so frustrated that the CR has NO stairs to use instead of the elevator. If you don't know what you are doing and try to go watch Wishes from the stairwell you will get pinned in and have to walk all the way down to the outside of the building to get back in. Even worse, if the fire is on the 1st floor and you get into the stairwell as it is filling with smoke you can't get back out of the stairwell without going to the engulfed-in-flames 1st floor. While the CR is not the only building in the world to be built this way, it was just such a terrible, terrible design flaw IMHO.

[whitney37354]

We loved it. Easy walk to MK, monorail to TTC to transfer to EPCOT monorail. We had MK view & watched fireworks every night from our room. Good gift shops. Easy to get to all the character meals in CR, GF, Poly & MK. Our only complaint was that we had late mousekeeping a couple of days, keeping DD from napping in the room.

[RBrooksC]

In the past, I have read reviews which indicated that the Garden Wing rooms had not been renovated and were not as nice. Does this mean that all have been now? Or have some been updated, but not all?

I was only in their room once but the size was the same as the tower room we had. The sinks were the same as was the flat screen TV. They didn't have a balcony.

Whether or not they have been updated, I cannot say since this was my first stay in the CR, however, my in-laws said they thought the rooms were exactly the same except in different areas of the resort.

[MizMissy]

In the past, I have read reviews which indicated that the Garden Wing rooms had not been renovated and were not as nice. Does this mean that all have been now? Or have some been updated, but not all?

We stayed in a Garden Wing room last May and it was very nice and newly renovated.

We loved CR. I hate using Disney transportation so walking to MK was key for me. I also found the Garden Wing to be very relaxing. It wasn't too far away from the main tower, easy access under covered walkways and wonderful to be away from the hustle and bustle of the main tower. We had a first floor, water view room, and were able to enjoy a nice grassy patio area from our room.

[GrmGrninGost]

We avoided the Contemporary for years. Just didn't look like "us". After we finally decided to give it a try, it was like "WOW!". I liked it at least as well as the Poly (which is saying a lot). I loved being able to walk back to the resort after a busy day at MK. All in all, it is one of my very favorite resorts.

[Mickey91]

We were worried CR wouldn't be "Disney enough" for us. It always looked so sterile and boring. We finally gave it a try and have been dying to go back ever since!! It was incredible!! And although the water slide doesn't look like much, so far it is my absolute favorite!!

[Disney-4-Me]

We love the Contemporary! The view overlooking the Magic Kingdom from the tower can't be beat.

[JenniferS.]

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the Contemporary. Easy monorail access. 5 min walk to MK. Nothing beats it. We booked a standard room there a couple of years ago. We had a super late night check in and they upgraded us for free to a tower bay lake view room.

[alaMode]

We stayed on the ground floor in a renovated garden wing room right by the main pool. Our room had a little patio that faced the pool, which was nice! It was also great to just walk out of room and be on our way-no elevators, stairs, etc. We loved the convenience of walking to MK or taking the monorail to Epcot. Chef Mickey's is a must-do every trip, so it was great to be right there. The concourse/mezzanine level is very lively, with shops, CM, and various activities going on. DS thought it was the coolest thing to ride the monorail through the building!
I'm sure we'll stay there again, but we're currently having a love affair with the Wilderness Lodge!