POFQ vs Contemporary: thinking of making a switch?

[Mary Mastria]

Hello all,

My family & I are headed to Disney first week of November for 4 nights. We have a 13 & 8 y.o. We booked the Contemporary but now have an opportunity to stay at POFQ for $1k less!!! whoa! I would re-book in a second b/c POFQ sounds great but very concerned about transportation. How long does it take to get to MK, EP, AK, HS via bus transportation? We are only there for 4 nights so initially booked Contemporary b/c of location but our kids are older and thought it may be worth the switch. How easy or difficult did you find bus transportation to the parks from POFQ? Is the transportation difficult if you plan to go to parks twice a day (eg, morning, back to hotel for break, parks again at night)? Any feedback or input in general would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you so much,

Mary

 

[englanddg]

Hello all,

My family & I are headed to Disney first week of November for 4 nights. We have a 13 & 8 y.o. We booked the Contemporary but now have an opportunity to stay at POFQ for $1k less!!! whoa! I would re-book in a second b/c POFQ sounds great but very concerned about transportation. How long does it take to get to MK, EP, AK, HS via bus transportation? We are only there for 4 nights so initially booked Contemporary b/c of location but our kids are older and thought it may be worth the switch. How easy or difficult did you find bus transportation to the parks from POFQ? Is the transportation difficult if you plan to go to parks twice a day (eg, morning, back to hotel for break, parks again at night)? Any feedback or input in general would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you so much,

Mary

I wouldn't do it, personally...but...I should clarify...

Both are good resorts, but POFQ had the worst bus service of any resort I've ever stayed at (for various reasons, mostly having to do with it randomly sharing with PORS during non-peak times). Plan a good 45 mins to an hour each way...not due to the busses, but due to the waits for the busses. Once ON a bus, the actual bus transit times aren't bad at all (and are comparable, with the exception of MK, to Contemporary).

Mind you, I went in August 2013, and actually stayed at both resorts (Contemporary and POFQ) during that trip. I also didn't have a very good experience at POFQ, so that colors my opinion (and should be taken as a disclaimer). If you want specifics, Trip Report link is in my signature.

That said, $250 a night is a lot of spending change, without changing your budget at all...so, from that perspective (purely financial), yes, it's a great deal.

 

[Tuvalu]

Having stayed at POFQ numerous times, I can say the bus transportation is good. It is about a 12 minute ride to MK and 15 to AK. Epcot and DHS are closer and around a 10 minute ride. On slower times of day POFQ may share a bus with POR (they are adjacent resorts) but usually POFQ has its own buses to the parks. And it has a boat to Disney Springs (Downtown Disney) which is a wonderful, relaxing way to travel!

The food court has more selections than you will find at the Contemporary quick-serve (fresh beignets if you are a fan). The rooms are smaller than Contemporary and have exterior doors, but we haven't found it to be noisy. It is a quiet resort, whereas Contemporary has a more hustle-bustle feel. And if you are booked in a garden room (rather than the main tower) you will have a hike to get to food/transportation. POFQ is very compact and you can be anywhere in the resort in 5 minutes or less.

We used to stay at the Contemporary years ago, but the price point today is not worth the value for us. We would save the money and make the switch...after all, you can always visit the Contemporary while you're on vacation.

 

[Nemo14]

I totally agree! I've never been a fan of the contemporary anyway, but POFQ is a delightful resort!

 

[Tuvalu]

I wouldn't do it, personally...but...I should clarify...

Both are good resorts, but POFQ had the worst bus service of any resort I've ever stayed at (for various reasons, mostly having to do with it randomly sharing with PORS during non-peak times). Plan a good 45 mins to an hour each way...not due to the busses, but due to the waits for the busses. Once ON a bus, the actual bus transit times aren't bad at all (and are comparable, with the exception of MK, to Contemporary).

Mind you, I went in August 2013, and actually stayed at both resorts (Contemporary and POFQ) during that trip. I also didn't have a very good experience at POFQ, so that colors my opinion (and should be taken as a disclaimer). If you want specifics, Trip Report link is in my signature.

That said, $250 a night is a lot of spending change, without changing your budget at all...so, from that perspective (purely financial), yes, it's a great deal.

Funny how our perspectives differ! Have you stayed at POFQ more than once? Maybe you had bad luck in 2013. We stay at least once a year and have only had a few bus wait issues, like you get at any other resort.

 

[englanddg]

Funny how our perspectives differ! Have you stayed at POFQ more than once? Maybe you had bad luck in 2013. We stay at least once a year and have only had a few bus wait issues, like you get at any other resort.

That's why I put that in as a Disclaimer. I'm wholly open to the idea that I just hit a rough spot in 2013...but, I was there 10 days, and the whole stay was rather consistent. Most people seem to have the opposite experience.

That said, busses as a whole seemed out of whack that year for some reason. So much so that I kept my rental car that I got about 2/3rds of the way through the trip to go to Legoland for the last few days because it was so frustrating...

 

[Lucky]

Funny how our perspectives differ! Have you stayed at POFQ more than once? Maybe you had bad luck in 2013. We stay at least once a year and have only had a few bus wait issues, like you get at any other resort.

I stayed there twice and those were my two best experiences in terms of bus transport. We never shared MK buses with POR so it was just our one bus stop. Even when you share buses it's fewer stops than at the other mods.

 

[englanddg]

I stayed there twice and those were my two best experiences in terms of bus transport. We never shared MK buses with POR so it was just our one bus stop. Even when you share buses it's fewer stops than at the other mods.

I never shared a returning bus, and it wasn't always an MK bus. Rather, every time we departed (after waiting 15 - 30 minutes for the right bus), I'd have to bite my nails and hoped we turned left instead of right. Left means we are headed straight to the park, smooth sailing after that. Right means we are going to do the PORS circuit.

It went right more often than left, which really threw off my 30 - 45 minute times, and I found I had to give it more like an hour to 1:15...

Return service was an issue due to frequency. There was one night in particular at DTD that we waited nearly 45 minutes (not an exaggeration, I watched my clock) for a return bus.

That said, my experience was so far out of whack from EVERY other experience I've read about POFQ, that I'm wholly open to the fact I just hit a fluke time (as @Tuvalu pointed out)...I've never heard anyone have quite the bus issues I had there, nor have I experienced it elsewhere (with the exception of trying to hop through Yacht Club once to HS when the boats were down due to rain, which was incredibly frustrating, cause they didn't have the busses ready to go and we sortof got "stuck" until the squall passed and could take the boats again)

 

[aw14]

I have stayed at both, and really like both. However, if it were me...I would stay with CR. I absolutely love that hotel. However, it truly comes down to the financial side of the issue for you and what the need is.

We never had a bus issue at POFQ, and we stayed there for a New Years trip. So it was crowded to say the least.

 

[Mary Mastria]

Thank you everyone for your valuable feedback. It really helped in making my decision. I decided to make the switch to POFQ. It's Disney - we will be happy anywhere we stay! I will let you know how it goes and appreciate you all taking the time to help me.

Mary

 

[Ariel1986]

I never shared a returning bus, and it wasn't always an MK bus. Rather, every time we departed (after waiting 15 - 30 minutes for the right bus), I'd have to bite my nails and hoped we turned left instead of right. Left means we are headed straight to the park, smooth sailing after that. Right means we are going to do the PORS circuit.

It went right more often than left, which really threw off my 30 - 45 minute times, and I found I had to give it more like an hour to 1:15...

Return service was an issue due to frequency. There was one night in particular at DTD that we waited nearly 45 minutes (not an exaggeration, I watched my clock) for a return bus.

That said, my experience was so far out of whack from EVERY other experience I've read about POFQ, that I'm wholly open to the fact I just hit a fluke time (as @Tuvalu pointed out)...I've never heard anyone have quite the bus issues I had there, nor have I experienced it elsewhere (with the exception of trying to hop through Yacht Club once to HS when the boats were down due to rain, which was incredibly frustrating, cause they didn't have the busses ready to go and we sortof got "stuck" until the squall passed and could take the boats again)

I had the exact same experience as you with the buses at POFQ! I know the exact "turn left/turn right" nail biting you are talking about!
It was so frustrating- especially after hearing beforehand so many people's great reviews.

Maybe it was just a down time for POFQ in 2013 as we were there in May of that year. It has put us off going back there anytime soon though (for other reasons, but the bus experiences added to it). As you say though, many other people seem to love it. We may give it a try one day in the future- but there are so many other resorts to try and favorites to return to first!

 

[P_Radden]

We just got back from POFQ last week and really enjoyed our time there. The scent of the lobby and grounds is amazing and unforgettable and the staff are very welcoming.

Regarding the buses: POFQ has its own dedicated MK bus, so no stops at PORS just board the bus and off to MK you go. However, Epcot, HS and AK buses all go to PORS before heading to the parks. To get to MK was less than 15 min, but the other bus rides were at least 20-25 min due to having to make all the stops at River Side.

I hope you have a great trip!!

 

[englanddg]

I had the exact same experience as you with the buses at POFQ! I know the exact "turn left/turn right" nail biting you are talking about!
It was so frustrating- especially after hearing beforehand so many people's great reviews.

Maybe it was just a down time for POFQ in 2013 as we were there in May of that year. It has put us off going back there anytime soon though (for other reasons, but the bus experiences added to it). As you say though, many other people seem to love it. We may give it a try one day in the future- but there are so many other resorts to try and favorites to return to first!

From the worn down room, missing knobs on the dresser that didn't get fixed even after I reported it, broken fridge (this was during the "great fridge shortage" when they had to swap out all the fridges due to a misorder/fire hazard), constantly dirty food court (roaches on the floor and dirty tables that sat all day), disinterested staff (aside from a few wonderful CMs, but Mousekeeping, food court staff and the front desk in particular were meh)...

Combine that with the busses, yeah, POFQ was hands down my worst experience at a Disney resort ever. It was further magnified because I had just come off the Disney Fantasy.

But, again, I wholly concede, perhaps 2013 was just a bad year for them.

 

[Ariel1986]

From the worn down room, missing knobs on the dresser that didn't get fixed even after I reported it, broken fridge (this was during the "great fridge shortage" when they had to swap out all the fridges due to a misorder/fire hazard), constantly dirty food court (roaches on the floor and dirty tables that sat all day), disinterested staff (aside from a few wonderful CMs, but Mousekeeping, food court staff and the front desk in particular were meh)...

Combine that with the busses, yeah, POFQ was hands down my worst experience at a Disney resort ever. It was further magnified because I had just come off the Disney Fantasy.

But, again, I wholly concede, perhaps 2013 was just a bad year for them.

Sounds like we had very similar experiences at POFQ!

 

[rob0519]

Tough choice. We're fortunate to have been able to stay at CR multiple times and POFQ once. If we wanted to save money on lodging, POFQ would be our first choice of moderates. We end most if not all days in the MK so the Contemporary is convenient for that. Do you have a Park View Room or a Bay Lake View? I know this may sound silly, but waking up or going to sleep looking at the Castle and hearing the Ferry and Train whistles just might be worth the $1k to me. The Bay Lake side to us, is not all that special.

 

[JIMINYCR]

We havent had the bad experiences others have have posted, thats why we continue going back. The bus situation has gotten better, I havent had a very long wait, sometimes the route is extended when they include POR stops in, but that still isnt terrible. Its pretty much central to the parks so the rides are around 20 min. There is a relaxing boat ride available to DTD. And a nice walking path over to POR. They both have evening entertainment thats enjoyable. The money you would save by switching from the Contemp I think makes it worth doing. See you there in November.

 

[JasonDeyoung]

I love FQ and stay there around a hand full of times a year. I've never had any is issues, nothing that every other resort doesn't deal with. I stayed at Contemporary a few times and it is a great resort. But when it comes to price, I'll take FQ every time. Also keep in mind, FQ is located right across from Epcot and a short ride to HS & AK where as Contemporary is right next to MK which is quite a bus ride to the other parks besides MK. Yes there is the monorail but having to switch at TTC that can be hit n miss time wise. I'd say a lot depends on what parks you plan to visit the most. Plus, if you're not spending a lot of time at the actual resort, paying what Contemporary price are could be a bad expense. I stayed at Poly in April and was hardly in my room or the resort. Was such a waste to me I thought. Why I love the moderates. Nice resorts, pretty much same amentities and still great experiences. You'll love FQ it's a great resort.