Is the price of staying on the monorail loop worth it?

[rnese]

The family and I are heading to the World in late June. We've already reserved a room in the Contemporary Tower (Lake view). We have two boys, ages 9 and 6. We stayed in the Contemporary (Garden Wing) two years ago and absolutely LOVED that we could walk to and from the MK and take the monorail to EPCOT and to the Poly for dinner at O'Hana. Now, money is tight so recently the wife and I have been thinking about downgrading to Riverside in an effort to cut cost. We don't spend much time at the resort, which would make the move easy. HOWEVER, we have heard horror stories about having to take buses, especially back to the resort at the end of the day. If we do make the switch from the Contemporary to Riverside, we'll be saving about $2000!

My fear is that I'll be standing at the bus stop outside the MK after the fireworks, waiting for a bus, and just staring at the Contemporary, kicking myself. QUESTION, is the price of staying on the monorail loop worth it for my family? Your input is greatly appreciated.

 

[englanddg]

Depends. While there are certainly times the busses can be frustrating, overall the service is quite good. The crowds are more dispersed and frankly the queue are more comfortable than the monorail at MK during peak, at least to me.

2 grand buys a lot of souvenirs!

Me, personally, I don't think it is worth it unless you are DVC or got an excellent rate.

Port Orleans is a very nice resort, and while it is neat to be next to the Magic Kingdom, I think you'll find you appreciate the quiet and isolation of the resort staying a tad further away.

 

[Tinkerbell397]

I love the CR but our last 2 trips, we stayed at The WL and every time we saw the CR, I had the "I want to stay there" feeling. But the WL is lovely and less $$ than the CR...check it out. I think your boys would love the grounds...nature trails etc. There is a boat to take you to the MK and Fort Wilderness. Another boat takes you to the CR so you can access the monorail and the other monorail resorts for restaurants etc. There are busses to all parks but that is the same at the CR....busses to AK and DS. If the WL is still too costly, Riverside is a great choice. The grounds are lovely and the rooms have plenty of space. We stayed there years ago when it was Dixie Landing and it is a boat ride to Downtown Disney. You can also rent bike, boats etc so there are lots of options. The only issue I have with moderates and it's only my issue......the rooms have doors to the outside like a motel. In the deluxe resorts (with the exception of the POLY) , you are inside with all the amenities....restaurants, store, front desk. Have a great time planning and a great trip.

 

[ParentsOf4]

If we do make the switch from the Contemporary to Riverside, we'll be saving about $2000!

"Worth" is relative. It all depends on how much you value your time and money.

For MK, staying at BLT probably will save you 1/2 hour in the morning and 1 hour at night if you stay for fireworks, or 1/2 hour if you leave before the fireworks. For the other parks, it's pretty much a wash.

How many times are you going to the Magic Kingdom? How many times are you going to stay until after the fireworks?

Divide $2000 by the number of hours you think you'll waste waiting for and riding the bus back to POR.

What's your time worth?

BTW, DW and I have stayed at BLT, the Contemporary, and POR. No question in our minds that POR has the better pool and food court.

 

[m3owbox]

I say go for POR. Ive never stayed there myself but I've heard only good things about that resort. I don't think you will spend much time waiting for buses at all. Not much more than you would waiting for a bus from the Contemporary to HS for example. Unless you only plan on going to the MK then I say go for POR. 2000$ is a lot of money to save.

 

[Disneykidder]

We stayed at BLT in August. The location was incredible...amazing. Maybe you could split stay with POR and visit MK and Epcot when you are staying at CR...just an option to cut costs.

 

[Betsyboo]

I'll preface this with my last three stays were in January and February so it definitely wasn't peak season, but, we've never, ever, had trouble with the bus system. You may have to wait for a bus, or two, if you leave immediately after the fireworks at MK. In no way have we waited more than 1/2 hour, I'd say at most 15 minutes. Disney knows everyone wants to leave and they accommodate that with extra buses at those times. We stayed at PORS last January and had no problems. I understand this could be different in June but the buses really aren't that bad. If I had an abundance of money, sure, I'd stay at the CR but you just can't beat PORS for the beauty of the grounds, the food court and the overall ambience. Happy travels.

 

[Jessica Meier]

Yes.

 

[DisneyJoe]

When you stayed at the Contemporary Garden View 2 years ago, didn't' you take the buses to Studios and AK? or haven't you used the Disney buses at all yet?

 

[MissingDisney]

$2000 saved now is $2000 towards a next trip. Sure everyone would love to stay in monorail resorts but to us, we'd rather get 2 great trips at a mod instead of one at a deluxe. Just not worth it to us.

 

[Marijil]

Just stayed xmas week at Riverside...buses were great...are they as fun as monorail, no....but 2000?? we took resort monorail from mk to lunch at Poly....we were good

 

[kittybubbles]

If the bus really bothers you, I imagine you can take a cab for far less than 2K.

My family can handle the bus. Pretty sure the last time I stayed at PORS, from the MK, the run a separate bus to POFQ, one night the line was long for the Riverside bus, the FQ bus showed up and there was no one in line, so we took the FQ bus and walked over to Riverside. The walk there might be further than the walk from MK to the Contemporary...but we enjoy the grounds at PO and enjoyed the walk as a nice wind down for the night.

 

[LucyK]

As long as I can stay at POFQ and they offer the amazing bus service I've always had, then no.

 

[Skibum1970]

Another resort that is supposed to have good bus service is Coronado. Buzz's Unofficial Coronado Springs website has a lot of information about that resort, including bus times. I haven't had trouble with the bus service at Port Orleans but have waited no more than 10 minutes for a bus.

With that said, I loved staying at the Contemporary and the Wilderness Lodge. I always regret not being able to stay there (due to budget) but it isn't a deal breaker. Plus, when I save a couple thousand dollars, I feel much better.

 

[HouCuseChickie]

As much as I love the Contemporary, that's a big savings to move to a moderate. You also have to consider that you'll likely be using the bus at the Contemporary for places like DAK and DHS. While we've found the bus service for the Contemporary to be great, the reality is that bus service at all of the resorts can vary for any number of reasons. Case in point, we stayed at WL back in 2010 and had poor bus service on a number of days, but you could talk to any number of people who've stayed at WL and had no issues. Ultimately, so many people love POR. I also think the vacation planning (and the vacation itself) might be more fun if the budget weren't strained over lodging. You might even consider reading a few trip reports of people who have stayed at POR.

 

[polynesiangirl]

I love, love, love being on the loop. The past couple of years it has been even nicer since we had a small child so it added another convenient way to get around with a small stroller.

It's a personal choice, but I am the type of person who generally likes to spend a little extra on accommodations. We don't buy a lot of souvenirs or spend a ton on food so this is a splurge area for us.

 

[talking2u]

We are staying at the Contemporary this March for the first time. Our favorite resort until now, is the Port Orleans FRENCH Quarter. It is smaller and the waterfront rooms are overlooking the river. We love taking the riverboat to downtown disney...... The bussing from this resort is Excellent! It is the first stop when heading out ...on its way to Riverside to pick up the rest of the guests....so there is always a seat We have visited many disney resorts over the years, having visited since our son was 5. Despite turning 15 this year....as a teen, he stills thinks he will enjoy going to his favourite childhood vacation spot. We decided to go retro, and try the Contemporary.....however, I would still strongly recommend the Port Orleans French Quarter.

 

[jlsHouston]

If you are not the type who likes to try new resorts and you have the money stick with CONT. I don't find the buses at WDW that tedious or slow but then I know to give myself at least 1 hour travel time when riding the bus.
I have never stayed at PORS or PORFQ but have visited both food courts and the resorts are lovely. I could hang there for a week. Boats into DtD too, carriage rides in the evening.

My preference in terms of location is an EPCOT resort as close to the IG at EPCOT.

I LOVED LOVED LOVED WL this past November and found their buses adequate and the boats fun to ride. Under $ 300 a night for a deluxe at Disney is a deal in my mind.

 

[MaryJaneP]

As others have mentioned, is your time waiting for a bus (which seems to be a brief wait) worth $2000? If not, then change. We have enjoyed CR, Poly, and BC, so we have a deluxe preference. With that stated, we had no problems getting to other parks using Disney transportation. Either way, please let us know your choice and how it worked out.

 

[BigTxEars]

As stated POR is nice Great resort.

Not sure but for $2000 you could rent a car or use taxis and still come out way way ahead. Also the money you save you could book that bounce back offer that will be waiting in your room when you are there