Resort Review: The Contemporary

Hello again! It's Gabe here, and this week I have a resort review featuring Disney's Contemporary Resort.

The Main Tower, as seen from Bay Lake Tower. On the right-hand side of the photo, you can see the walking bridge that connects the two towers.

Resort Overview

As one of the two original Walt Disney World resorts, the Contemporary has become one of the most popular and famous Disney resorts. The Contemporary was groundbreaking at the time of its construction, due to the unique A-frame building, and how rooms were essentially slid into place. Another unique aspect at this resorts that continues to marvel guests, is the fact that the monorail lines between the Transportation and Ticket Center and the Magic Kingdom go directly through the main building! One of the newer additions to the Contemporary resort is Bay Lake Tower, which houses the DVC villas at the Contemporary.

Guest Rooms

The Contemporary Resort features a wide variety of guest rooms, ranging from standard rooms in the garden wing, which is a low-rise structure adjacent to the main building, as well as standard rooms in the main tower that have a lake view, or a park view. The garden wing also features a couple of different suite options, and both buildings have a few options that include club level benefits. The Bay Lake Tower features the usual spectrum of DVC Villas, I have found the 1-bedroom villas to be particularly comfortable. The Contemporary resort features a wide variety of guest rooms, that are all very comfortable and are appointed to Disney standards.

Resort Amenities

This photo shows the marina and beach areas, as well as one of the pools. The Garden wing building is also visible.

The Contemporary features several resort-style amenities, including two feature pools, one located right near the main tower, and another situated in the middle of the Bay Lake Tower complex. The Contemporary is also home to some of the more popular table service restaurants at all of Walt Disney World, one being The Wave... of American flavors, another is California Grill, while there is also Chef Mickey's. The Wave is particularly popular for their brunch service, while the California Grill is popular for their upscale menu, and unique location at the very top of the main tower, with wonderful panoramic views of the Magic Kingdom and Bay Lake, and Chef Mickey's is popular for being a traditional Disney World character dining location that almost everyone remembers visiting on a previous trip years ago. In terms of quick-service locations there is the Contempo Cafe which is the main quick service option for the whole resort, it is located in main tower right near Chef Mickey's. There are also a couple of other options including a poolside snack window at Bay Lake Tower and a coffee stand in the main tower. Shopping at the Contemporary is actually quite fun, with three different stores all located in the main tower. Being one of the resorts located right on the shores of Seven Seas Lagoon and Bay Lake, the Contemporary is one of the prime viewing locations for the nightly electrical water pageant, which is quite a treat!

Resort Transportation

 Transportation from the Contemporary resort is quite unique, as the monorail station is located right inside the main tower, the monorail service from the Contemporary is convenient if continuing to Epcot, as the Transportation and Ticket Center, where you transfer monorails, is the very next stop. Taking the monorail to the Magic Kingdom from the Contemporary is slightly less convenient, as you would have to monorail around the Seven Seas Lagoon, making several stops along the way, however there is a convenient and (fairly) short walking path direct to the Magic Kingdom entrance from the Contemporary. Bus service is available to Disney Springs, Animal Kingdom, and Hollywood Studios.

Thanks for reading along! As always, leave a comment below if you have stayed at the Contemporary, or if you are now planning to!