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

[BlueSkies]

Originally Posted by allseas1586

That's what I thought, the wording in his post made me wonder, though. I haven't stayed on the 12th floor since they renovated, back then there was no lounge anyways.

allseas The new Atrium Club lounge is very nice...I think they took out 3 rooms to make it ...it is very spacious but is set up in a way that it has a cozy feel to it...much nicer that the 14th floor lounge IMO... It has a nice kids area with a TV and child sized tables and chairs and 3 balconies that have some small benches on them for viewing Wishes or for simply enjoying that incredible view!! Also as has been said on here before you can hear the music outside on the balconies for Wishes...sooo nice...

[WDWKOOK]

Originally Posted by BlueSkies

allseas The new Atrium Club lounge is very nice...I think they took out 3 rooms to make it ...it is very spacious but is set up in a way that it has a cozy feel to it...much nicer that the 14th floor lounge IMO... It has a nice kids area with a TV and child sized tables and chairs and 3 balconies that have some small benches on them for viewing Wishes or for simply enjoying that incredible view!! Also as has been said on here before you can hear the music outside on the balconies for Wishes...sooo nice...

*Allseas1586*

Here's a link to some great CR club photos:

http://www.baylaketower.net/

From the drop-down menu choose: "CR Main Gallery-Atrium Club and/or Tower Club"

Enjoy!

[BlueSkies]

WDWKOOK Thanks for that link... those are great photos...I think that is a great site for good photos of the CR in general...

[angboys3]

Originally Posted by spaceace510

No. There are much easier and quicker ways. I don't know if they come to Epcot. They just might because it shares a bus with Animal Kingdom? (I know it shares a bus with something). So you could get on that bus. Or you could walk out of the international gateway exit in World Showcase, make the quick trek to the closest Epcot resort, and take the appropriate bus from there

The only thing is that we are going to be at Epcot Future World that morning, we are too lazy to walk all the back to the gateway.

We are talking about getting to Typhoon lagoon from Epcot for those you missed the earlier post.

[kpmdjm]

Originally Posted by CR Resort Fan 4 Life

Do you mean a Bay Lake View or Bay Lake Tower, because there are some differences. A Bay Lake View is a room inside the Contemporary Tower, where as Bay Lake Tower is the brand new Disney Vacation Club building and it will have a walkway to the 4th floor of the Contemporary Tower. With the exception of their rooms and their own pool area all the shops, restaurants and transportation will be at the Contemporary. So you should find out exactly what type of room your husband got a reservation for. Also despite it being a different building Bay Lake Tower guests will still need to check-in at the Contemporary lobby and from there walk over to Bay Lake Tower.

yes it was a bay lake view. I have 2 more ? since we do not have club level is there any place to see the fireworks form the hotel? Aslo what is the best time to get a reservation at the california grill to view the fireworks? is there any chance to get suprised with a room upgrade in check in?
thanks so much for all your help.

[PopArtGal]

Does anyone have info on the chocolate monorail or cakes that can be delivered to the room?

[kpmdjm]

I would love this info also anyone have a picture?

[WDWKOOK]

Originally Posted by PopArtGal

Does anyone have info on the chocolate monorail or cakes that can be delivered to the room?

You can use this link for cakes, etc...

http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/cel...ustomizations/

The chocolate monorail is listed in the in-room dining menu here:

http://allears.net/menu/men_conrs.htm

[WDWKOOK]

Originally Posted by kpmdjm

yes it was a bay lake view. I have 2 more ? since we do not have club level is there any place to see the fireworks form the hotel? Aslo what is the best time to get a reservation at the california grill to view the fireworks? is there any chance to get suprised with a room upgrade in check in?
thanks so much for all your help.

You can see Wishes from the CA Grill. They start at park closing and you can consult the park hours guide on the Disney website. If your dinner is done before Wishes, you can use your receipt to come back later that night.
You can also view them from the beach and there is a 4th floor viewing area on the BLT side of the CR.

Room assignments (and upgrades) are made by the room assigner about 3-5 days prior to arrival. If you ask for a room upgrade upon arrival, most of the time the CM will check availability and then quote you the full rack rate price of the upgraded room. Always book the room view/type you want ahead of time and pay for that room type. There is never a guarantee of a free upgrade at any resort nor should it be expected.

Have a great vacation.

[WDWKOOK]

Originally Posted by BlueSkies

WDWKOOK Thanks for that link... those are great photos...I think that is a great site for good photos of the CR in general...

You're welcome, and I agree about Craig's website. He recently joined the DIS and it has been great having his contributions here as well as on he and his wife's website.

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

Originally Posted by kpmdjm

yes it was a bay lake view. I have 2 more ? since we do not have club level is there any place to see the fireworks form the hotel? Aslo what is the best time to get a reservation at the california grill to view the fireworks? is there any chance to get suprised with a room upgrade in check in?
thanks so much for all your help.

The one public location where anyone can watch the fireworks is from the 4th floor observation deck. As for the California Grill my family and I have not been there, so I don't think it's right for me to suggest a good time to make an ADR to watch the fireworks from up there. Finally when it comes to a room upgrade the best thing to change your reservation if there is a specific view or room type that you would like. The chances of getting one at check-in are very low and even though you might read of some people on here getting them, your not reading about all the other non Disboards members who never got upgrades and had a chance to post that.

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

Originally Posted by angboys3

The only thing is that we are going to be at Epcot Future World that morning, we are too lazy to walk all the back to the gateway.

We are talking about getting to Typhoon lagoon from Epcot for those you missed the earlier post.

Have you thought about taking one of buses from Epcot to any WDW Resort and then from there waiting for the Downtown Disney/Typhoon Lagoon bus since they both share that same route. If your not planning on walking to World Showcase and since you will already be in Future World it's not a long walk from there to the Epcot bus station. Plus I think it would be faster then taking the Monorail to the TTC and then going back to the Contemporary and getting the bus from there.

[Chapter 11]

Just got back from a week's stay at the Contemporary. This thread was very useful in our planning, so thanks for all the great information. This was our first time staying at the CR (we've always stayed in the Epcot area on previous visits), and we would definitely stay at the CR again. Staying at a monorail hotel was great -- you don't know what you're missing until you do. Plus, the ability to stroll to the MK was just too darn convenient.

We stayed in the Garden Wing, Garden View, and requested a room nearer to the Tower. We got room 5211, which was directly across from the laundry room (which was very nice for the one time we did laundry, as I could just pop back and forth between my room and the laundry facility, rather than waiting there). I will say that although we were hoping for an upgrade to the Tower, we had no complaints about the Garden Wing, and by the end of our stay, we were actually glad we didn't get upgraded. Obviously, there are plusses to staying in the Tower, but there are plusses to staying in the Garden Wing too -- easy access to the pool and marina (about a 2 minute walk), no waiting for elevators, very quiet, and all the same amenities. Also, we drove down, and the separate (and very close) parking area for the Garden Wing was a major benefit when we needed the car (which wasn't that often).

Room was lovely. The beds were very comfortable, and the daybed was much nicer than a pull-out couch. AC worked fine (a necessity given the mid-90s temps we experienced during our stay). The pull out desk was very useful as well for the mornings when we ordered room service. Mousekeeping was wonderful -- we followed the advice elsewhere on this thread of leaving a couple of dollars tip every morning before we left, and would leave a note with it if we needed anything special (usually, extra bath towels). All requests were fulfilled (to the point where we usually had way more towels than we needed). Also, in terms of extra hangers, you have but to ask -- they gave us all the extra hangers we wanted.

Appreciated the tip about storing luggage in the toilet area -- plenty of room in there for all the bags. Loved the bathroom, although the one quibble there was the lack of counter space for toilitries. However, given that the sinks are huge and flat, we simply co-opted one sink as auxilliary counter space -- worked great (and really -- how often do you need two sinks?)

We didn't eat at the Contempo or the Wave or Chef Mickey's, but we did eat at the California Grill. Can't say enough good things about that restaurant -- simply wonderful. We had a 6:00 p.m. reservation there our last night, but we really wanted a table by the window so we could watch the fireworks. So we told them we were willing to wait, and sat in the lounge area and had a drink while we waited, while the kids checked out the observation platforms. About 50 minutes later, we were ushered to a fantastic table and had a nice, leisurely dinner, capped off by dessert and fireworks. The kids raved about the food (as did we).

The pool area was very nice, and we appreciated the various activities they have going on there during the afternoon, as it kept the kids entertained so the adults could enjoy a little down time. One tip -- pack everything you can think of in your bag if you go in the afternoon (baseball cap, non-resort beach towel, Ipod, 700 page book, sunglasses, SPF 50 sunblock, pool toys, etc.). They sometimes play a game called "What's in your beach bag?", and you can win some neat prizes if you have the most stuff (we fell one item short -- forgot to bring an Ipod). The also do Disney trivia games (remember -- Jane's (from Tarzan) last name is Porter, the python in Honey I Shrunk the Kids is named Gigabyte, and Lilo wanted a pet lobster before she found Stitch), pool volleyball and there's always the slide.

All in all, a magical trip.

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

Chapter 11,
Thanks for posting that wonderfull and detailed trip report. It's also great to read that you enjoyed the Contemporary and that the information on this thread was able to help you.

[of the seas]

We'll be there 3 weeks from today! Can't wait! CL Atrium.

We decided to add on to our Boardwalk stay since Disney came out with such great discounts. Since this will be our last trip to Disney(apparently there is a whole other world out there that dh wants to explore) and this is the only monorail resort we have not stayed at, we're gonna try it out.

I like the fact that everything is under 1 roof. When we stayed at the WL last year, we were in the main building and I loved hearing everyone downstairs having fun in the Whispering Canyon and such.(not that it was loud or anything) So if I hear any noise from Chef Mickey's, that's great to me!