TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

We stayed at Disney’s Contemporary Resort last week, and unfortunately it didn’t live up to our expectations given the price. Unless we found an exceptional discount, we probably would not choose to stay there again. The biggest advantage of this resort is its proximity to Magic Kingdom and access to the monorail. Being able to walk to Magic Kingdom is incredibly convenient and was definitely the highlight of our stay. One helpful tip for future guests: while the monorail is a major selling point of the Contemporary, it isn’t the fastest option for getting to Magic Kingdom. You need to ride the entire resort loop before arriving. In many cases, walking to Magic Kingdom is actually quicker. This was our first trip to Disney, so I didn’t know how to choose a hotel. We stayed in the Garden Wing and felt like it was a completely different experience from the main tower. The hallways had a musty smell, and if your room is farther from the front of the building, it can be quite a long walk. We requested a 1st floor room, but we were given a room on the 2nd floor. The Garden Wing only has two very small elevators, which made traveling with luggage and strollers difficult. We are a family of 5 who had two (small) strollers and often found ourselves squeezing into the elevator just to fit everyone. We ended up just carrying the strollers down the stairs. For a resort that costs around $700 per night, the amenities were also disappointing. We expected a more premium experience, but there wasn’t much that felt different from Disney’s less expensive resorts. In fact, friends of ours stayed at one of the value resorts and felt they had better pools and family-friendly amenities than we did. Another frustration was our initial room assignment. We were placed on the second floor with active construction directly above us from approximately 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. While those aren’t typical sleeping hours, many families return to their rooms midday for naps and breaks from the parks. Having constant hammering overhead made it difficult to rest. We ultimately requested and received a room change, but they made it seem like I was complaining about something stupid. Check-in was also slower than expected. When we arrived, there was a very long line with only one or two Cast Members assisting guests, which made the process take much longer than anticipated. Waiting in line for over 30 minutes with 3 young children was a pain. Overall, the location is fantastic, but we felt the overall experience and amenities did not justify the premium price tag. And the people at the resort didn’t seem to care about our experience.

Overall, we enjoyed our stay, but it didn’t quite live up to our expectations given the price. The Contemporary’s biggest strength is its location for Magic Kingdom, but there are some drawbacks depending on how you plan to spend your time at Walt Disney World. Positives * Our Garden Wing room was excellent—spacious, spotlessly clean and, from what we could tell, recently refurbished with a subtle Incredibles theme. It was one of the best hotel rooms we’ve stayed in. * The location for Magic Kingdom is excellent, with the option to walk to the park or return on the resort monorail at the end of the day. * Complimentary parking for Disney Resort guests at both the hotel and the theme parks is a great benefit. We drove to Animal Kingdom and found it quick and easy. * The standout Cast Member was Nando from the valet/bell team. He gave us a warm welcome, arranged birthday badges for my wife’s “21st” birthday, which really added to the occasion and made her feel special. He was a real credit to the resort. Negatives * We chose to stay in the Garden Wing, and the room itself was excellent. At check-in we asked if there were any paid upgrades available to the main building, but unfortunately there weren’t. If it’s within your budget, I’d recommend considering the main building, as the walk to the main facilities became noticeable during our stay. This was particularly true with the Disney Resort refillable mugs included on the dining plan, as we regularly had to walk back to the main building for drinks. The Sand Bar was a useful alternative while at the pool, although there was often a queue and staff would only fill standard cups, meaning we had to pour the drinks into our resort mugs ourselves. * While the location is fantastic for Magic Kingdom, it’s much less convenient for the other parks. Getting back from EPCOT after the evening fireworks took much longer than expected, requiring two monorail journeys and making for a long trip back to the resort. * Housekeeping was usually completed in the afternoon. As we often returned to the room for an afternoon rest, it was frequently still waiting to be serviced. * We had an issue with one of our MagicBands at check-in and found the Cast Member fairly uninterested in helping. Having read about other guests receiving excellent service with similar issues, this was disappointing. * Apart from Nando, most of our interactions with Cast Members were polite but largely unmemorable, which wasn’t what we expected from a Disney deluxe resort. Overall, the Contemporary has a lot going for it. The room was excellent, the Magic Kingdom location is hard to beat, and free parking makes driving to the other parks a practical option. However, the Garden Wing is worth thinking carefully about if convenience is important to you, and the inconsistent housekeeping and generally average service meant it didn’t quite deliver the premium experience we’d expected for the price. Whether we’d stay here again would largely depend on our plans. If Magic Kingdom was going to be our main park, we’d certainly consider it, but if we were planning to split our time more evenly across all four parks, we’d probably look at other Disney resorts first.

This was my first visit - WOW! A hotel with a monorail through it, you got me! Ok, arrival, easy! My bus dropped me off, no waiting at the desk, checked in, visited my room (I asked for a lakeside) WOW. Room was modern I couldn't have asked for more. I had a room on level 4 (but you press "5" on the lift to get to level four (?) I didn't hear the monorail at all, but saw it come and go. There are great selections of food right at the resort from fine dinning to cafe and bar. Some great gift shopping too. The cafe has a great selection of salads for meals which was important to me. Room has USB and USBc recharge availablity and I asked for standard card to access my room (I saw some people using their phone etc). The only thing that caught me out (my fault) was that after a day in the park, staying late (cause you can as a Disney hotel guest), I assumed something would be open back at the hotel for a night cap. Nada. So plan ahead if you like a drink after the park!

We are a family of 5 and stayed the in garden section of the hotel (not the main hotel not the villas). The garden section has it own parking lot which is very convenient. We loved our room and enjoyed the Incredibles theming. We walked to Magic Kingdom (maybe 7 minutes) and did the monorail for Epcot. No issues at all. We ate in the Contempo Cafe and that was really good, plenty of seating. Pool was great and they provide the pool towels. Bar drinks are good but pricey. Enjoyed our stay and we definitely will return to the Contemporary in the future!

Unfortunately we had a bad experience at Contemporary that I have to share just as a warning to others. Let me start by saying we have been coming to this hotel for years. We have always loved the location and the atmosphere. But on our current visit we have had a lot of complaints. First, of all we booked a lake view room way in advance and upon arriving they had none available. Then we go to our room and it was dirty and run down.it was also by the elevator on the 6th floor. If anyone is familiar with this resort you know this floor is directly above the monorail and is loud. When we told them we were unhappy with the location and state of the room the service team and admin team couldn’t be bothered. Through numerous attempts to speak with them there was no resolution or accountability for their mistakes and misplacement of our reservation. We will never go back!