Disney’s Contemporary Resort Transportation Guide

This article discusses transportation options at Disney’s Contemporary Resort.

Many of the resorts at Disney World offer more than one mode of transportation. However, depending on where you’re staying, those options vary.

In this guide, we’ll go over the different transportation options at Disney’s Contemporary Resort. You might be surprised to find there are several ways of traveling to and from the resort.

Unfortunately, one of those options, the resort boat service, is still unavailable. If and when the boat service returns, I’ll add it to our guide.

In the meantime, we’ll look at where you can go from the Contemporary and how you can get there. So climb aboard as we figure out the best routes for your stay at Disney’s Contemporary.

Transportation Options at Disney’s Contemporary

For the time being, the following transportation options are available to guests of Disney’s Contemporary Resort:

Monorail
Disney Buses
Walking

Below, we’ll go over which of these forms of transportation you should use depending on where you are going.

*All the information provided is based on my travel experiences to and from the resort.

Using the Monorail at the Contemporary

Disney’s Contemporary is one of three monorail resorts. To access the monorail at the Contemporary, you’ll need to head up (or possibly down) to the fourth floor, commonly known as the Grand Concourse.

If you’re coming in from the lobby or the Garden Wing, you can take the stairs, escalator, or elevator up to the monorail.

Once you arrive at the top, you’ll go through a security area. Here you’ll have to walk through a metal detector. Security always says to hold any significant metal objects out in front of me when I walk through.

I try to have my camera and umbrella in my hands before I get to the area. Then I hold them out as far as possible when I walk through the metal detector.

While I still make the machine go off, the guards can see from their screens that the metal object was held out in front of my body. Most days, I get the thumbs-up signal to continue.

If you cause the machine to go off and security can’t identify what caused it, you’re getting pulled over to the side. Security will then go through your personal belongings and possibly wand you.

So if you don’t know, you don’t know. But if you know what’s causing your bag to go off, it’s much easier for everyone to have it held out in front of you.

Security is there for a reason, not to give you a hard time. I always see people say, “Yeah, it’s my so and so that keeps causing it.”

Why would you subject yourself to having someone go through your bags every time you go through a security checkpoint? If you’re half paying attention, security always warns guests to hold any metal objects in front of them.

Sorry. You’re probably here to learn about Disney. You’ll see what I mean soon enough.

Oh, and from my experience, cell phones and car keys typically don’t alert the detectors. Nor do I take photos of the security areas because it’s against Disney’s rules.

Anyway, after going through the security checkpoint at the Contemporary, you’ll head up one more escalator to the next level. An elevator is available for those who need it.

There you’ll join the line for the resort monorail. Two monorails go through the Contemporary. Below is a picture showing where the Express Monorail comes through the resort.

The Express Monorail only stops at Magic Kingdom and the Transportation and Ticket Center.

Related: Disney World Monorail Guide

And here is where the resort monorail comes through on the opposite side. Guests stand in that gated area while waiting for the monorail to arrive.

From the Contemporary, you’ll travel to the following locations in this order:

Transportation and Ticket Center
Disney’s Polynesian Resort
Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort
Magic Kingdom
Back to the Contemporary Resort

So if you’re going to Magic Kingdom, you’ll have to sit through three stops before disembarking at the fourth stop. This route takes approximately 15 minutes when things are operating smoothly.

Now, if you’re on your way to Epcot from the Contemporary, you’ll need to take the monorail. The only time buses run between the Contemporary and Epcot is when the monorail is experiencing downtime.

First, you would take the monorail from the Contemporary to the Transportation and Ticket Center. When you exit, there are two ramps. One ramp goes to the exit and the other to the Epcot monorail platform.

If you remember to follow the signs, the ramp to Epcot will save you a couple of extra steps. However, if you are in a mass of people and aren’t paying attention, you’ll want to join the line for the Epcot monorail once you reach the bottom. It happens to all of us.

From the Transportation and Ticket Center to Epcot, the ride is approximately 11 minutes. It’s a pleasant ride that offers a glimpse inside Epcot before arriving back outside the park’s gates.

One good thing about this route is that you only have to go through security at the Contemporary. During the entirety of your travels, you’ll remain inside a secure area.

So when you arrive at Epcot, you’ll exit the platform and head straight to the ticket turnstiles.

Upon leaving Epcot, you’ll reboard the monorail to the Transportation and Ticket Center. Then, you’ll exit at the Transportation and Ticket Center.

From there, you’ll have to take the exit and rejoin the line for the resort monorail. Unfortunately, there’s no separate ramp from the Epcot monorail to the resort monorail.

Disney Buses at the Contemporary

Bus service is also available from Disney’s Contemporary to the following locations:

Disney’s Hollywood Studios
Disney’s Animal Kingdom
Disney Springs
Typhoon Lagoon
Blizzard Beach

*When the monorail is down, bus service is provided to Epcot.

Contemporary’s bus service is relatively easy to locate. You’ll walk out of the resort’s main entrance and turn to the right. The bus stop is only a few steps away.

Walking to and From Disney’s Contemporary

Lastly and possibly the most significant advantage of staying at Disney’s Contemporary is the walkability to Magic Kingdom. I can’t stress enough how convenient walking between the resort and the theme park is.

How long a walk is it? During a recent visit, I tracked the distance from the exit of Magic Kingdom to the Contemporary’s lobby.

The results? It took 10 minutes and 19 seconds for a 0.42-mile walk. Not bad.

Whether you’re headed to the theme park first thing in the morning or coming back last thing at night, this perk will save you so much time. Additionally, there’s a security screening on the walkway to Magic Kingdom.

So when you arrive at the park, you’ll head straight to the turnstiles instead of going through another security checkpoint.

You will cross over a portion of the Contemporary’s parking lot along the way. You’ll also encounter one crosswalk. Therefore, the walkway isn’t a great place for letting your kids run loose.

However, the walk is simple, and escaping the other transportation lines makes walking a win every time.

Other Contemporary Resort Transportation Tips

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve walked out to the Contemporary’s boat dock to see if the boat service has returned over the past few years. In the past, a boat traveled in a triangular pattern from the Contemporary to Fort Wilderness and then Disney’s Wilderness Lodge.

This boat service was a huge benefit because you could hop on a boat and visit Fort Wilderness in the evening for dining reservations at Hoop Dee Doo Revue.

Or you could take the boat to Wilderness Lodge for breakfast at Whispering Canyon Cafe in the morning. That sounds like a good idea, doesn’t it?

Related: Whispering Canyon Cafe Review

Technically, you could take the boat to the other resorts for a variety of reasons. Those are just some of the more popular things.

However, now, if you want to get to Fort Wilderness or Wilderness Lodge, you’ll need to walk or monorail to Magic Kingdom. At Magic Kingdom, you’ll catch a boat to the resort of your choice.

If you’re headed from the Contemporary to one of the Epcot Resorts (Beach Club, Yacht Club, or Boardwalk), you’ll want to visit Magic Kingdom’s bus stop and then take a bus to whichever resort you’re headed.

Or you could take a bus from the Contemporary to Hollywood Studios. Then, when you arrive at Hollywood Studios, you can take the walkway or a Friendship Boat to the resort of your choice.

Lastly, if you’re headed to Animal Kingdom Lodge, I would take a bus to Animal Kingdom from the Contemporary. Then I would stay at the bus stop and catch a bus to Animal Kingdom Lodge.

Of course, for any of these options, you’ll want to make sure you’re traveling during hours of operations at the theme parks. If you are ever out semi-late, you can usually take a bus to Disney Springs and then catch a bus back to the resort.

Final Thoughts on Transportation at Disney’s Contemporary

Hopefully, this article gave you an idea of how to get around Walt Disney World when staying at the Contemporary. We love this resort for many reasons, but most of all, for its convenience.

If you would like to learn more about the resort, try our complete guide:

Disney’s Contemporary Resort

Or you might like these individual articles:

In the Comments

What is your favorite mode of transportation at the Contemporary? Do you have any questions about getting to and from other destinations from the Contemporary?

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