Contemorary Resort, Wilderness Lodge or Animal Kingdom Resort

[Rooster]

Ok, help me out folks.

I am going to WDW in June for 8 days and 7 nights. I am bringing a small army with me. My wife, myself, my daughter, my inlaws, my mother and my aunt. So grand total 3 rooms 6 adults 1 child. For reasons that would take too much time to explain, I have, narrowed our resort choices to either the Comtemporary, Animal Kingdom, or Wilderness Lodge Resorts. This trip is for my daughter's 4th birthday which falls during the trip. So which resort would you recomend or what is your order of preference. I would love to here people's thoughts.

PS I have visited most of the resorts but have never actually stayed at one.

 

[MouseMadness]

Wow! This is certainly a difficult one to answer! I suppose you have to rank your own list of priorities. For atmosphere, for example, I'd rank WL first, followed by AKL then Contemporary. Convenience, depending on who you'd ask, would probly put contemporary first followed by WL then AKL. (because of monorail access) I suppose you should be polling the family and seeing what ranks highest on their list of things that matter. At any rate, happy planning! Oh, and if it were up to me, I'd stay at WL given the choice of those three. :wave: Have fun!

 

[MouseMadness]

Just saw you're in Delware! :wave: :sohappy: Go Bucks! (next weekend. :lookaroun)

 

[Rooster]

Originally posted by MouseMadness
Just saw you're in Delware! :wave: :sohappy: Go Bucks! (next weekend. :lookaroun)

Thanks for the info. I have polled everyone and thats part of how we came to the final three choices. I'm just looking for personal experiences or highlights people have taken away from their stays. Your information was very helpful.

Now on a different note. I'm a Universiry of Wisconsin Graduate so I'm going to have to reply Go Badgers!

 

[CTXRover]

This is a toughie. But I'll help a little and say to narrow your choices to The Contemporary or the AKL. Wilderness Lodge is very nice, but AKL is similar in style (well, really only to the extent that they are both lodges designed by the same person) and is, imo, much more amazing. Who wouldn't be amazed by their first step into the grand lobby with its 4 (?) story window overlooking a savanna of giraffes, zebra, wildebeasts, etc. that walk right up to the resort's boundary. That isn't to say the WL doesn't have a lot of atmosphere. I just think they went over and beyond the WL with AKL. However, transportation is a little bit of a for both.

Contemporary though has what I like to think is its main draw, the monorail running right through it. It makes it very easy to get to Epcot and MK, and is easily the best for transportation. I would definetly choose this one if you could get rooms overlooking the MK. This is the ultimate resort for great views of the MK and well worth the price. The rooms are also more spacious than AKL or WL, if I recall right, and decorated quite nicely.

So here is my choice: if you can be guarenteed a view of the MK, do the Contemporary. If not, choose a savannah room at the AKL. Trust me, AKL is probably the neatest resort on property due to its surrounding African savannah. Its really cool to wake up and see a giraffe eating out of your window

 

[reblue]

My parents have stayed at all 3 of those resorts at varying times, and I got to experience each one. The Contemporary is awesome because of its location and the MONORAIL. The wilderness lodge has an AMAZING atmosphere. And, words cannot simply describe the BEAUTIFUL Animal Kingdom Lodge.

That being said, I would choose the AKL. I have never had such an amazing resort experience. From the staff to the room to the savannahs - this place is 1st class. And, there is something to be said for its age. It is only a couple of years old, so everything is still very fresh. I can say that this is the only resort that I have visited regularly just to relax or get a Mickey bar.

The contemporary is old, before the golden age of Disney resorts. The rooms are big, but expensive. Not to say that AKL is inexpensive - but it is much cheaper than the tower at contemp.

The wilderness lodge is also very magical - and I especially enjoyed this stay because we purchased an upgrade to concierge at check in. Concierge is amazing, and the view (contemporary, monorail, Space Mountain, PERFECT fireworks) was incredible. But if it was a toss up between AKL and WL - I would have to take AKL.

If you have any ?'s feel free to ask.

 

[FIGBOAT]

RESORTS

AFTER READING THE COMMENTS ABOVE I WILL AGREE WITH THE MOST OF THEM ...ALL 3 RESORTS ARE WOUNDERFUL IN THEIR OWN WAY.. YOU NEED TO DECIDE WHAT IS IMPORTANT TO YOUR FAMILY AND THEN CHOSE WHICH ONE FITS YOUR NEEDS BEST..mY WIFE AND I HAVE STAYED AT ALL 3 OF THEM. YOU WILL NOT GO WRONG WITH ANY OF THEM.....iF YOU WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THE RESORTS JUST ASK. wE HAVE BEEN MORE THEN 50 TIMES IN THE PAST 10 YEARSº0º

 

[DisneyPhD]

Ok here is my advice. If you are thinking about WL with such a large group consider renting some DVC points and getting a 2 bedroom (I think you can do this with 6 adults and 1 child, depending on how young the child is, otherwise you might need a 2 bedroom and a stuido or 3 studios. Either way it will be much more comfortable for groups. With the 2 bedroom you will have a full kicthen, VCR, washer and dryer. In June for 7 nights it would be 270 points (only 252 if you go June 1-11) Points rent for around 10$ a point. www.disboards.com can tell you more how to rent them (I have never rented, since I am a DVC owner at VWL). I haven't stayed at VWL yet, our 1st trip there is Jan 1-7 2004, so I will know more about it later, but I am really looking forward to it.


Last trip we spent 1 speical night at AKL. I was really impressed with it. I also thought the room was a great deal for the price. While it is kinda "out there" the busses were wonderful. It really is nice that you only go to AKL and don't share busses with any other resort or make lots of stops like a mod or value resort. That takes 5 to 10 min off your ride. Also if you don't get a savana view you are likely to get a pool view that is really nice. You can view the savanna from many places besides rooms also. ( I think they upgrade you when avilable.) I didn't think I would be as impressed by it as I was. There also was nice hot tubs and a great playground for the kids.

Contemp is a great location and the rooms are nice and big. I find the monrail can be a pain getting to MK because everyone gets on at MK and then rides it to TTC, making it back up getting on at Con because it is full when it gets there. However the walk is short. (I haven't stayed at Con before, just an observation on many visists, and we have walked before.) Also the Monorail gives you easy acces to visiting and eating at Poly and GF.

Have a magical trip. Make sure to get something from your group for the "magical gathering" promotions coming up for groups.

 

[Scooter]

Contemporary.

Why you ask?

1) You have a 4 year old with you.
2)Contemporary has a playground.
3) " has a huge Game room for kids.
4) " has a Monorail running through it.
5) " is a 10 minute walk to The Magic Kindom
6) " has Chef Mickeys Character Meals

Some people say that the theming at Contemporary is bad. I however think it's great. If you could have seen the look on my 4 year olds face as the monorail went through the 4th floor Grand Canyon Concourse you would understand why it's my favorite when I take my kids. Talk about theming!!

All the resorts you are choosing from are wonderful, but with kids, I'll take the Contemporary every time.

 

[AkiraRaptor]

I've stayed at AKL and the Contemporary, only visited WL for dinners at Artist's Point.

I'd say AKL would be the best, first choice. It is my favorite, and it offers such a different experiance than any of the other resorts.

Second choice would be WL, because it is a very nice place. But make sure you get rooms away from the lobby, it get quite loud in their.

The last for me would be the Contemporary, but that's because I just don't care for the place. I've been turned off from the place from a bad experiance and poor service in the past, and I refuse to suport the place again, so if yuo're looking for a monorail resort might I suggest the Poly instead. Much better place, and I'd say it's the second best place to stay...behind AKL of course. :lol:

 

[Worldphile]

I guess one consideration is which park do you think you will spend most of your time? With a 4 year old, I could see you spending a lot of time at MK, so the Contemporary might be most convenient (there are rooms at the Contemporary where it is shorter to walk to the MK than to walk back into the hotel and catch the monorail).

If some of the older members of your group think that they will spend a fair amount of time back at the resort just hanging out, then I would recommend WL or AKL since they have way more "atmosphere" than Contemporary.

 

[Rooster]

Great insights everyone. Thank you for all of your input. This really helps.

 

[TURKEY]

I would have to say AKL. I haven't stayed at the other two, but I don't even a fraction of the feeling from walking into Contemporary and WL as I do walking into AKL.

The buses at AKL are usually great.

Something about it, but I would rather stay there or at the Polynesian for every trip I make.

 

[Kingdom Konsultant]

The Wilderness Lodge and the AKL are both beautifully themed Resorts. The adults would love either of them. If you want to cater more to your daughter and her birthday, I would suggest the Contemporary. You will probably be in the MK more than the others and you have chef Mickeys right there. I have stayed in most of the resorts and if my girls were given a choice of which was better suited for kids, the contmeporary would win hands down.

We had a tower room there in Dec. one year and the balcony overlooked the MK. We sat on the balcony and watched the fireworks every night that they had MVMCP going on. It was wonderful. You get up in the morning and the first thing that you see when you look out the window is the MK.

If you want to go more for the adults, I would suggest one of the other 2. Both are beautiful and in my own opinion would suite adults better. My favorite of the 2 is WL. I like the going there at Christmas time with all the little white lights all over the trees in the courtyard. It's really beautiful.

Good Luck!

Pam

(if you need any help, please feel free to e-mail or PM me)