I wrote this blog back in February, and forgot to add photos and publish! I think I was also at a loss for how to explain why we just scrapped all our plans. If you follow me on socials, you know I've started to be more open about our "neurospiciness," and this was a classic example. There are PLENTY of bloggers/creators out there telling you how to maximize your time in the Parks. I've come to realize that I am here to be the voice for folks who love Disney but may not love theme parks, or find them exhausting, overwhelming, or too expensive. You CAN just treat your resort like a resort and have a magical escape from reality! It's a whole city (42 square miles) and the theme parks, while incredible, are not a MUST if it's not your thing.
So, here's a little trip recap from that perspective. Back in February, Lil and I took a short trip to Walt Disney World for Festival of the Arts at Epcot. We do 2-3 day trips a few times a year to pick up fresh maps, see what's new at our favorite Park (Epcot), and to see if we can catch the vets at Rafiki's Planet Watch at Animal Kingdom. We love Magic of Disney's Animal Kingdom on Disney+ and those vets and keepers are our new celebrities! For this trip, I booked a standard Club Level room at Contemporary Resort, which we had not stayed at before. I was able to tour the new Incredibles themed rooms last year, and I just love them! So spacious and modern, with fun details. I choose Club Level as much as possible, because we do need to take breaks at the resort, and it just makes sense with a selective eater who likes to graze. I'd rather just let Lilly pick out some snacks than throw away 2/3 of a chicken strip meal in the Parks. For the grown-ups and more adventurous eaters, Club Level is usually a selection of small bites from the on site restaurants, charcuterie & fruit, as well as beer/wine in the evening, and a nice selection of desserts.
The Contemporary actually has 2 Club Level Lounges, Atrium Club Level on the 12th floor, and Tower Club Level on the 14th floor (there is no 13th floor). The 12th floor is the bigger lounge, and Tower Club is smaller because most of the rooms on that floor are suites. Imagine our shock when our room was assigned, and we discovered we were "pixie dusted" with a 1 bedroom suite on the 14th floor! We were walking down the hallway past all the big double doors of suites and I'm thinking "no way, no way, no way, there must be a standard room at the end of the hall....OH MY GOSH IT'S A SUITE."
Once Lilly saw this room, most of our plans were chucked out the window. Neither of us really likes being out in the sun, but we do really love a spacious balcony for reading, and this suite had THREE balconies. And it was a Bay Lake View, so it was like our bedroom had a front row seat to the Electrical Water Pageant.
Also, can we talk about this tub? We went straight to Basin White at the Grand Floridian for bath bombs. She also got a haircut at the Grand Floridian Spa while we were there, which is another great resort experience that doesn't require park tickets.
We did still go into the Parks on this trip, we just prioritized relaxing. I would 100% do this again, with or without park tickets! (Full disclosure, we are a military family, so our Park Hoppers are discounted.) Maybe you have kids with support needs, maybe you (like us!) don't really like being in the hot sun, maybe you hate crowds. Think about a suite like this where you can relax, bring snacks back to your room from the lounge for movie night, go to the pool or arcade, do a resort scavenger hunt, paint your own castle, watch the fireworks or water pageant from your private balcony, dine with characters at Chef Mickey's, ride the monorail, go over to Fort Wilderness for pony rides or a trail ride.... Honestly, I could go on forever with all the activities available OUTSIDE the Parks. Your dream Disney trip doesn't have to look like your neighbor's dream Disney trip!