Disney's Contemporary Resort — Hotel in Bay Lake

I recently spent three nights at the Contemporary with my wife, daughter, and father, and we had a disappointing experience. While I’ve always wanted to stay in the main tower of this iconic Disney resort, it was a total letdown. The hotel felt bland and disjointed, and poor service certainly didn't help. This was especially frustrating because we had paid extra to upgrade to a room on the Atrium Club Level and had expected an elevated experience.||||As background, we visit Walt Disney World somewhat frequently, and we almost always stay at one of the Deluxe Resorts. We keep returning because we enjoy the benefits, such as themed hotels in close proximity to the theme parks, theme park transportation, and extra hours in the parks. However, we stay at true luxury hotels on non-Disney trips, such as Four Seasons hotels and their competitors. The Deluxe Disney resorts can be similar in price to those hotels, but are nowhere close service-wise. We usually find that the Disney resorts still offer a nice enough experience to be worth it on balance, but that was not the case on this trip.||||Pre-Arrival Experience:||||Prior to our stay, I completed online check-in using the My Disney Experience app, so we could get a text message notification as soon as our room was ready and go directly there using the app or a MagicBand as a room key.||||Two days before our arrival, I also received a phone call from the Atrium Club to welcome us, ask if we had any questions, and inquire about any dietary restrictions. They said that when we arrived, someone from the club level would try to be in the main lobby to welcome us and escort us directly upstairs, but if not, we could go directly up to the club level.||||Arrival Experience:||||We had an early flight into Orlando, so we made it to the hotel by 10:15 am. We didn’t expect our rooms to be ready at that point, but we planned to drop our things off and get our infant daughter quickly changed before an afternoon in one of the theme parks.||||When we arrived at the hotel and entered the lobby, I was pleasantly surprised to see that it looked nicer than I recalled in the past when we had visited, and has been renovated with a mid-century modern look that works well with the 1970s version of “contemporary” that this original Disney World hotel embodies. ||||There was an older gentleman in the lobby as a greeter, and he pointed us toward the front desk and kept saying we had to stop there. He didn’t seem to understand or hear when I explained that we were going to the Atrium Club and had already done online check-in. He was not welcoming or helpful, and he started things on a negative foot. We ended up going to the front desk as instructed, which was a waste of time. The front desk clerk was very nice, but he didn’t seem to be sure of himself, and had us repeat the entire check-in process all over again. He then directed us toward the elevators to go up to the 12th Floor Atrium Club to drop off our luggage. ||||When we arrived at the Atrium Club, it was during a lull between food services, so the lounge area was pretty dead. Right off of the elevator, there is a podium where the club concierge staff stand. I much prefer the set-up in some of the other Disney resorts’ club levels, where the concierge staff have their own separate seated desks. This was set up more like a restaurant host stand, making it harder to interact in a personal manner.||||We waited for a minute or two until a cast member came out, and she wasn’t warm or helpful. Once she took my name, she was just intent on asking about food allergies (which were already covered on the pre-arrival phone call). My wife has an allergy that we mentioned both times, but it was never specified how that information was used or that anything special was being done related to it, so I didn’t see the point of the hyper-focus.||||After that, when I explained that we wanted to store our luggage before going to the park, the cast member told us we couldn’t do that on the club level and would have to go all the way back down to ground level to do that. It was very frustrating to have trekked all the way upstairs with all of our luggage and an infant, just to have to take it back down. I realize that it was the front desk cast member who had given us bad information in that regard, but the club level cast member was unsympathetic and could have been much more helpful. For example, she could have offered to hold everything and have a member of the bell staff come up to retrieve the items, rather than putting it on us to deal with the confusion.||||I then asked if she could point us in the direction of the closest bathroom so we could get our daughter changed and ready for the park. However, it turns out there is no public bathroom on the club level. We were told we’d have to go 10 floors down to find one. The other club levels we’ve visited at Disney World did have at least one individual bathroom, which is necessary for early arrivals or late departures that still want to use the club amenities.||||The cast member just seemed totally indifferent, and could have done simple things to make the arrival experience better. Beyond just being more understanding in general, she could have offered us a glass of sparkling wine as a welcome (I later saw they have an ice bucket with sparkling wine and champagne flutes by their podium at all times, which I assume is for that purpose). Once we said we were on our way to a theme park, she could have offered water bottles to take. There was such a lack of basic care or anticipation of needs, making the service worse than I’m used to at Disney resorts.||||Once we left and went back downstairs, we went to the desk marked for Bell Services next to the front desk, assuming that would be the logical place to drop our bags. Instead, we were barked at again that we were at the wrong place, and were sent to a separate desk outside for luggage storage, where we finally dropped off our things and went on our way.||||Our rooms were ready early, and we received texts saying one was ready around 11:30 am and the other around 1:00 pm, which was nice. When we returned to the 12th floor later that afternoon, a new cast member was there and welcomed us in. I found him to be a little much, and he had a lot of questions that felt more intrusive than a normal welcome. He also saw that it noted that we had been up there earlier and asked about how everything had gone. I said that it was a poor experience, and the response was just “sorry to hear that,” with no interest in hearing why or doing anything to make up for it. ||||We also never received an overview of the club level at any point, which we saw other arriving guests did receive. There was a letter in the room that gave more details on the timing of food offerings throughout the day, but it felt like we fell through the cracks.||||Hotel Generally:||||The Contemporary Resort as a whole is just not that nice, especially for how expensive it is. While the updated rooms are pretty nice and the lobby has been renovated, it’s clear that much of the rest of the resort has been ignored, and it’s all a hodge-podge. Even in the renovated parts, it was unclear whether they’re going for futuristic/Incredibles, or a vintage mid-century modern. There were so many times we walked through a section of the hotel that had a hideous carpet or décor that clashes with the rest and just doesn’t feel “contemporary” at all, and the 4th floor concourse area looks like a mall from the 1990s. Even things like the overuse of concrete and pavers outside in dated colors could use a refresh and should be converted into more green space (the pool area along the lake is basic, but pleasant, but not much else is). It’s very clear that Disney has not put any real thought or money into updating this property, so it falls flat and feels tired.||||Room:||||When booking a room at the Contemporary, it’s important to book a room in the building you want to be in, as there is the more expensive main tower with the monorail running through, and then the cheaper South Garden Wing, which is a detached three-story building that isn’t as interesting, but seems to have a calm, peaceful setting. In our case, we had booked two theme park view rooms in the main tower, each of which comes with either one king or two queen beds. We requested one king bed in both rooms, but we ended up with two queens in both.||||When we entered our room (4835), I was generally happy with what I saw. The rooms were renovated a little over three years ago in 2021 and they still look pretty fresh, although ours did have some noticeable wear and tear, such as multiple gouges in the furniture. When renovating the rooms, I think Disney did a good job in balancing a Disney theme in adding Incredibles touches, while keeping the rooms looking somewhat upscale. They aren’t the most luxurious Disney rooms, but we liked them.||||While the room didn’t feel huge, especially once we added a crib, it was pretty well designed. The beds were tall enough to easily store all of our suitcases underneath, and there were two closets. We appreciated that there were lots of outlets with both USB and standard plugs, and convenient little shelves on the sides of each bed with more outlets. The sofa unit that converts into an extra child-sized bed was a good spot to sit, and the beverage cooler was helpful to have as well.||||While we usually always sleep well after long days at Disney World, I’m not a fan of the bedding in any Disney resort. There’s not much more than a sheet on the bed and low-quality pillows. The mattresses aren’t very plush either. For the price point, more substantial and upscale bedding should be offered, especially at the Deluxe Resorts.||||The bathroom was well appointed and bright, in gray and tan tones with double sinks and a good amount of storage space under the vanity. The toilet was in a separate water closet with heavy sliding doors, and there was a tub/shower combo that was large (our second room had a walk-in shower). Unfortunately, the tub wasn’t all that functional. The sliding glass doors on the tub didn’t stay shut, so it was impossible to take a shower without the doors being half open and water escaping onto the floor. In addition, the lever to switch the water from a bath to a shower didn’t work well, so we couldn’t get full water pressure for a shower. The little inset shelf in the shower was on an angle, so even that was unusable and anything put on it would fall right off.||||We were nervous about noise in the room, since the atrium that the hallways in the tower overlook is often very loud, especially when Chef Mickey’s is open. However, we were pleasantly surprised to find that the room was well insulated. We were also nervous because our room was the very first room next to the club lounge, so our door was directly next to the prep kitchen. While I would have preferred a room further down the hallway, the staff did a good job of not making excessive noise outside our door. We’d sometimes hear clanging plates and silverware when they were cleaning up, but it was relatively minor.||||Housekeeping did a fine job, and their timing always happened to work well for us. When we asked the club level staff if our room could be cleaned at a particular time one day, it was done as requested. I do wish turndown service was offered, as I recall having it when we stayed on the Grand Floridian club level, but it wasn’t offered here.||||The best part of our room was the theme park view. The balcony had two chairs and a little side table, along with a great view of the Magic Kingdom and the other resorts and boat traffic along Seven Seas Lagoon. We watched fireworks from our balcony multiple times, and loved that there was a TV channel to play the accompanying music. The only negative is that the Contemporary parking lots and convention center roof were in the foreground, which currently also featured a large crane being used for some sort of construction. Regardless, we still really loved the view and felt that the upgrade to a theme park view was worth it.||||If you get a theme park view, I would recommend requesting a room that ends in an odd number. Both of our rooms were odd numbered, and it means the beds will face toward Magic Kingdom, where you can see Cinderella Castle from bed. Just in general with that orientation, you’ll more frequently be looking toward the Magic Kingdom than away from it.||||Club Lounge:||||We had access to the Atrium Club Lounge on the 12th floor, which we used frequently for food throughout the day. There is also a second club level called the Tower Club on the 14th floor, which is only for rooms on that floor, which are mostly suites. From what I’ve read, the offerings themselves are basically the same, but you only have access to the lounge on the same floor as your room. We were disappointed that the Atrium Club wasn’t as good as the club floors we’ve tried at other Disney resorts. The lounge was basically just the size of two hotel rooms, with limited seating, reminiscent of a club lounge at a basic Marriott. Other Disney club lounges like those at Grand Floridian and Wilderness Lodge are much larger, and more conducive for sitting and relaxing. Although this lounge had a nice theme park view like we had from our room (you can go to the lounge to see fireworks at night if your room is on the other side of the building), the general vibe was boring and sterile. Every morning when we went for breakfast, we also got stuck sitting at tables that are in a bland overflow area by the elevator bank, not actually in the lounge. ||||The daily food offerings start with breakfast from 7:00-10:30 am (coffee is available at 6:30), which featured basic hot and cold staples (pastries, fruit, scrambled eggs, bacon or sausage), and then some other rotating items, such as very good nutella-stuffed crepes one morning. There is a nice machine to make espresso drinks, but most guests (myself included) couldn’t really figure it out, so cast members constantly had to help with it. There was also always a bottle of Cava out at breakfast that you could use to make mimosas, but the juices were inconveniently set up in separate carafes on the other side of the lounge.||||The food switches to snacks from 11:30 am-4:00 pm, which includes things like potato chips, cookies, and crudité, followed by the evening offering from 5:00-7:00 each night. This included things like cheese and charcuterie, sushi, and a few hot items in very small hors d’oeuvre portions. There was also a kids’ section that included basic pasta with red sauce, meatballs, and green beans the night we visited. Everything tasted pretty good, and while we treated it as our dinner one night, we didn’t find it as interesting or substantial as the food offered in other Disney club levels.||||Each evening finished with desserts and cordials from 8:00-10:00, which we enjoyed. This consisted of various mini desserts, as well as a selection of cookies. There is also a freezer with Mickey premium bars and Mickey ice cream sandwiches available at any time of day, which is great.||||A variety of wines were always out in the evening (or by request any other time), while beers were always available in a fridge along with sodas and juices. A bottle of Cava was also usually out throughout the day. I wasn’t expecting anything amazing, but all of the wine options were almost insultingly cheap and basic.||||We also found it frustrating that the plates that are offered for the club lounge food are tiny. They’re basically saucers, so we had to use tons of plates to get a normal amount of food. Finally, I don’t understand why there was a fridge full of beer and sodas freely available at all times, but there were never any water bottles in there. There was a machine for still or sparkling water to put into a glass, but mini bottles of Dasani, which are useful when on the go, were only available upon request as if they need to be kept under lock and key.||||Dining:||||The Contemporary has several dining options, including the higher-end California Grill at the top of the tower, Steakhouse 71 on the ground floor, and Chef Mickey’s character buffet on the 4th floor concourse. There is also a quick-service cafeteria-style location next to Chef Mickey’s called Contempo Café, plus a small coffee shop in the lobby, Contemporary Grounds. California Grill and Steakhouse 71 have bars, plus there is a pool bar and a dated-looking standalone bar next to Chef Mickey’s called Outer Rim.||||Beyond the club lounge, the only dining we tried at the Contemporary on this trip was Chef Mickey’s for breakfast, which I would not recommend. Despite having a relatively early morning reservation, our table wasn’t ready until 35 minutes past our reservation time. When we checked on the table about 20 minutes into the wait, we were told that tables are pre-allocated so we just had to wait for the people before us to leave. The restaurant is huge and always had open tables, so it was ridiculous that they refused to move us to another table to alleviate the delay. ||||The food at Chef Mickey’s was fine, with a wide array of breakfast options on the buffet, most tending to be sweet or starchy. We actually liked most of what we had, but the food alone isn’t worth a return visit. A big negative was that the restaurant itself is just ugly and dated, with lots of chaos. When the characters came by, it was nice that our daughter had a chance to interact, but we were also really disappointed at how quickly they moved on, especially since we have an infant who needs a little time to get situated. ||||Transportation:||||We used Disney transportation, and it was generally fine. Buses came frequently enough the one time we used them to get to/from Animal Kingdom. On the way back from Animal Kingdom, the bus was shared with Wilderness Lodge (stopping there first), so the ride felt a bit long in that direction.||||For the Magic Kingdom, the walk is just so easy, taking about 10 minutes from leaving the hotel to being in the park, with a dedicated security checkpoint along the way that is easier and calmer than the main ones. ||||We took the monorail to get to Epcot and the other Magic Kingdom resorts, and found it to be inefficient. While it was so great to have the monorail station right there on the 4th floor, it was very slow moving. It would often stop and sit for a while between stations. Having to make the transfer to Epcot was particularly painful, so we wished there had been a bus to Epcot.||||Service:||||One of the key things that I struggle with at Disney resorts is the staff service. It’s very clear that cast members aren’t given leeway to do much to problem-solve and that they aren’t trained to provide exceptional service. For example, while many of the club level staff members were nice, some were rude, including the one we met during our arrival, and another who made it very clear I was a nuisance when I approached her to ask two minor questions. She was standing at the staff podium on the club level when I asked if they had a ‘First Visit’ pin for our daughter, which she gave us, and then when I also asked for bottles of water to take to the park, she snapped at me, saying I had too many requests, and that she couldn’t help us right now because she was helping another guest (which was not clear at all and could have been stated much more nicely). Cast members in other parts of the hotel were also unremarkable or indifferent, so we just never felt particularly valued at this hotel.||||Overall:||||Our stay at the Contemporary was mediocre. We mostly loved the great theme park view and convenient access to the Magic Kingdom on foot. However, we were really disappointed in the disjointed and dated hotel, as well as the poor service. While staying here allowed me to live a childhood dream of staying in the Disney hotel with the monorail running through, the actual reality of the visit was quite...

From the moment I thought about booking my family’s “once in a lifetime” trip to WDW I saw this hotel and wanted to stay here but the price tag did initially put me off even though I knew that it came with convenience of the location to MK, the monorail (which I was so intrigued by) and it being a deluxe resort. I wimped out and initially booked to stay at POR which looked so nice and I’m sure would have been a great experience too. Eventually I reevaluated and said this is “once in a lifetime” so let’s do it the way I really wanted to and I didn’t look back!|As soon as we arrived at the front door of the resort I couldn’t believe it as I had watched YouTube videos the past year and a half leading up to our trip. We were welcomed by security and the bellboys who took our luggage and was greeted by a lovely lady (sorry forgot her name) at reception who sorted out our magic bands that we had previously ordered to be delivered at the hotel and provided us with all the information we needed for our stay. |We stayed in the main tower with a theme park view. I had requested to be placed high up to ensure we would get a great view of the fireworks and the staff did not disappoint as we were placed on the 11th floor. |As soon as we opened the door to our room the magic hit us all. We loved the room, we were in awe of the bathroom and how big it was and as soon as we went to the balcony and saw the view of the theme park we were overjoyed to the point my wife and twin daughters came up hugged me tightly and with so much joy thanked me. |Our stay here was absolutely brilliant! We had refillable mugs that we filled up (frequently) at Contempo Cafe. Speaking of Contempo Cafe, I would become a regular at night as I filled up all my family’s mugs with their chosen hot bedtime drink that I made friends with a few of the staff but a special shout out to Karson who was always so helpful and friendly and always had a smile on her face.|We ate at all the restaurants apart from California Grill. Steakhouse 71 food was a god send when we arrived. The food was delicious especially the stacker burger. Contempo Cafe was good for our small snacks or if we didn’t want to eat anything too heavy. Chef Mickey’s was awesome, the food was great and the character meet was probably our favourite of our trip and we had many. |I even used the laundry room during our stay which is located in the Garden Wing (which looked lovely) not too far away. |We walked to MK once and that was a nice less than 10min walk. We used the monorail more as we’re lazy and really enjoyed it, plus we wasn’t really in a rush as we used premier pass for the parks. |Watching the fireworks from our room on the balcony with the music tuned in from the TV is a memory that will live with me forever! I just remember seeing my family’s face of joy with each flash and thought this is what it is all about.|We only used the pool briefly one afternoon as within 10mins of getting in there was a weather warning so everyone had to get out. |The only flaw which was minimum we encountered during our stay was with the shower. There wasn’t much pressure and for some reason it would sporadically have water running from the tap in the tub no matter how hard you pull/push the knob to make it only run from the shower outlets.|I’m so glad I decided to go with my gut and book The Contemporary as it has provided me with great memories that will...

I just got back from our stay at the Contemp and it was awesome, with some problems that didn't detract from our enjoyment. |The best thing about the Contemp is the short walk to Magic Kingdom. That makes the hotel feel so special and privileged! I can just pop in Magic Kingdom any time I wanted.|I requested an earlier room check in, and was sent my room number at 12pm, which is fantastic because 2 of my kids were sick. So we arrived at the room, and I let the kids rest in the hotel while I took off to MK for a quick hour, then got back and took my healthy kid to the pool. For other Disney hotels, it takes at least half hour just to reach Magic Kingdom. We got take out food from the food court as well as Steakhouse 71 and ate in the room (very nice with sick kids). Apparently, you have to stay at the Contemp to be allowed to order takeout from Steakhouse 71, so we enjoyed the privilege, though not the food (terrible, tastes like stuff I make, I will never eat there again.) The food court's food is far better, not to mention cheaper.|The room looks OK, probably the ugliest deluxe Disney hotel room there is with its Incredibles theming. I am OK with the Incredibles movie but don't feel that it needs to be slapped onto the Contemporary. It wasn't even that popular of a movie. It does provide a sofa that turns into a bed, which I appreciate. The old room decor looked far better and I loved it, but for some reason Disney decided to change it. The glowing closet door does look very good, I must admit. If I ever need to buy closet doors I'll be sure to get such glowing ones. Another thing that's neat is the indirect ceiling light, looks awesome. |What's really odd is that the two bed frames are joined together as a single piece. I can't imagine what the purpose is. As a result, when my kids move on their bed, it shakes my bed! I've never seen that before.|The shower looks very beautiful has very weak water pressure even though it is brand new from the remodeling. |The heater didn't work very well, so I was cold all night (46 out) and didn't sleep well enough.|At night, the toilet stopped working and won't flush. So I took the lid off and fixed it! Wow, I've never fixed a toilet before, and it was different from my home toilet, but I saw what the problem was, and I fixed it!|The hallway in the Garden Wing was narrow and bland, even after the Incredibles refurbishment, unlike other deluxe hotels such as Animal Kingdom Lodge, which is cheaper than the Contemp but has much fancier hallways. But you can't walk to a park from there!|We booked the Garden Wing, though the main building is nicer with better hallways. We were upgraded to there once, and we appreciated the upgrade, but I don't want to ever stay there again because I'm impatient, and the elevators there is a pain during busy hours. It took me 9 minutes to go from my room to the ground floor amidst large crowds of people all fighting for the elevator, many of them aren't hotel guests but merely eating at Chef Mickey's.|After dinner, I walked to the Grand Floridian and back during fireworks time, and it was such a beautiful and magical walk.|At 9 pm, we went to Magic Kingdom again and took advantage of the low crowds after fireworks. We didn't have to worry about getting back too late or the bus being too crowded! It was...