[jonesee3]

Ok...I made reservations at Shades of Green for Jan 2004, I just received a letter in the mail stating they are moving me :( to the Contemporary Resort because the construction on SOG is being delayed. Ok, with that said....I have heard bad things about the Contemporary Wings and not excited about it. I have decided to tell SOG just to cancel my resv all together. But then I remembered hearing something about if you call SOG and let them book your reservation for any Disney resort you get 40% off all the resorts....does this sounds crazy?....is this correct?...can't remember where I heard this. Please help me.

Also---even though we are coming from Hawaii, we are FL residents WITH FL Driver's License, so do you think it would be cheaper to go with the FL Resident discount.....do you think there will be a FL Discount in Jan?

:madmad OY OY OY! What a mess I feel like we are in now.

On top of all this, I need your best suggestions for another resort. There will be 4 adults. I don't know if I want to do 2 rooms or just one and be a little cramped. Any of your suggestions are appreciated. Do all the rooms come with queen beds....we need atleast queen size beds! My top picks, I think are:
Animal Kingdom Lodge
Wilderness Lodge

I know a lot of people like the Polynesian---but coming from Hawaii, I don't think I need that, LOL :laugh

Any and all your suggestions are helpful, the only resorts I have stayed in on WDW is All Star Sports & SOG.

THANKS SO SO SO VERY MUCH!
Heather

[tinkerbell]

Just IMHO I would suggest you try an upgrade to AkL, or to WL
I know that several here had upgrades to WL recently. We stayed at AKL last year and DH and the girls just loved it. I liked it .. but my heart belongs to the CBR :)

[LRTJS]

Check out the Shades of Green thread further down the page of WDW Resorts. Maybe some experiences of others who have been moved will help.

[mmouse67l]

Yes you do get discounts at other resorts through SOG, but I'm not sure it's a flat 40%. I would call and find out. We are staying at Coronado Springs for $89/ night through SOG for example.

Of course AKL and WL are superior resorts, but we stayed at the Contemporary north wing through SOG last October and thought it was worth the SOG price. Being on the Monorail line was a big bonus and we were able to watch the water parade from our room every night.

Good Luck! Let me know how it turns out.

[jonesee3]

After a little research this afternoon....

The 40% off is only valid thru Dec 19 (my luck we are going to be there 1 month later).

I did call and talk to them at WDW Reservations and they said they run FL Resident specials all the time....they don't have their Jan 04 rates out yet! :dazed

Decisions Decisions :cry:

I am really considering the Contemporary.....I have just heard the Wing rooms smell and they are drab and outdated, not to mentions the hike to the monorail.....blah :nervous

I just want this trip to be perfect....this is our first vacation in 2 years. CANT WAIT! :) :D

[mmouse67l]

Originally posted by jonesee3


I am really considering the Contemporary.....I have just heard the Wing rooms smell and they are drab and outdated, not to mentions the hike to the monorail.....blah :nervous

You know it's a little scary giving an opinion on something as important as this. If you play a part in somebody deciding to stay at a resort and then they don't like it...:cry:

All I can say is, yes the rooms are not very "Disney like" and we did not care for the food court that much, but I did not think the walk to the monorail was that bad and I did not notice any funny smells.

I guess the bottom line is I would stay there again (at the SOG price) in a heartbeat.


One more thing. Where did you get the info about the 40%? I checked our rate at Coronado Springs and we are only saving about 33%. Thanks!

[jonesee3]

One more thing. Where did you get the info about the 40%? I checked our rate at Coronado Springs and we are only saving about 33%. Thanks! [/b][/quote]

I called the WDW Reservations line. They are also giving AD military Free 5 day passes + family members get 5 day passes for $99! But those prices are only good through Dec 19.



Well thanks for all your input....the more I think about it, I really think we will end up staying at the Contemporary. Is there a wing that I should request that is closer to the tower than another?

[jmouse]

SOG has taken over the Contemporary's North Wing so you really don't have a choice. It is also the closest wing to the MK walkway.

[lopo]

Hi, Heather.

First, let me say that I can truly empathize with you since I have also been displaced due to the construction delays at SOG. (We have been offered ressies at Port Orleans Riverside.)

However, I want to tell you that I stayed in the North Wing of the Contemporary last January (via SOG ressies) and, although I would never stay there at rack rate or even discounted rates not related to SOG, I would certainly stay there again using a SOG rate. I would agree that the rooms are outdated and somewhat drab (despite the crazy colors). Also, although my room didn't smell, the hallway sure did! In fact, I considered asking to be moved when we initially checked in, but the odor did not permeate the room and it lessened each day.

I loved being able to hop on the monorail with little effort. Also, it was an easy walk to the Magic Kingdom from our building.

Good luck!

[Navywife]

Another idea is that you can split resorts. You can do the Contemporary for a few days then switch to another resort. That is what we have done for our November trip. We are spending the first three days at the Contemporary and then moving to the Wilderness Lodge for the last three. This saved us $150 and we get to enjoy the best of both worlds.

[jonesee3]

WOW! I really appreciate all your thoughts and ideas!

I CAN'T WAIT!!!!!!!!!!!

:) :) :) :) :) :) :) :) :)

Navywife-I was really thinking of splitting resorts.....I think I have decided on Animal Kingdom Lodge. Now the decision of which one to do first, I think the Contemporary...just for the fact, if we are dissapointed, we have something to look forward to! :D

Once again, thanks for all your help!

Heather

[lopo]

Heather, I definitely think that you should do the Cont. first. AKL is a "dream come true" place and you will have it to look forward to even if you aren't disappointed in the Contemporary. BTW< I do not think that you will be disappointed. Look at the good things about the place!

[Navywife]

I havent been to Disney yet, I know hard to believe but I would say that I would do the Contemporary first then move to what ever resort you which next. I think that SOG gave us a rate of $130 ish for the AKL. But that way you can take advantage of the monorail and the conveniences there then move to a different style hotel. It is like two seperate vacations at once.

[mmouse67l]

Originally posted by jonesee3
I called the WDW Reservations line. They are also giving AD military Free 5 day passes + family members get 5 day passes for $99! But those prices are only good through Dec 19.

Oh, that must be why they did not tell us about it. We are DOD civilian employees, not active duty. Thanks!

[khawk]

I was in WDW in May. I booked through SOG while they were under construction and CR was full so they put us offsite at Best western Lake Buena Vista. I had my heart set on a disney resort so I called SOG back and after being told that POR wouldnt let 5 people stay in a room I finally convinced them that they would, SOG put us in POR. I dont remember the price but it was very expensive. So then I called WDW and was able to get POR through disney for 79 a night, plus 15 for extra person and 15 for trundle bed. But it was still cheaper then what SOG was going to give it to me for. So I booked our hotel through disney but still went to SOG temp office at CR to buy our stars and stripes passes which saved us a ton of money. I would try both SOG and WDW and comparison shop for a decent price and then go with the cheaper one. My party consisted of me, my 2 DD's and my parents. My dad had never been to disney before and mom hadnt been there in 30 yrs. But now my dad is hooked and all he talks about is going back to disney. He wants to go back next year. I am a single mom and told him I couldnt afford to go back next year "unless he pays for my trip" LOL.... he wants to go back so bad he might just do it. My family loved POR, it is beautiful and peaceful and I would stay there again in a second. Please dont cancel your trip just because you think you might not like the hotel. Its just a place to sleep. I didnt see much of CR as we were only there to get our park passes but I thought the lobby was very nice. My kids got a pic in front of the statue of walt disney. good luck.
Kim