We had a great day enjoying the resorts located around Disney's Magic Kingdom. We did start out at Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge where we went for lunch then hopped on a bus to the Magic Kingdom. Once we got to the Magic Kingdom we walked over to The Contemporary Resort and Convention Center, simply known as the Contemporary. It opened in Oct. 1971 and was one of two on-site resorts at the Magic Kingdom. It was originally suppose to be called Tempo Bay Hotel. It is adjacent to the Magic Kingdom and Bay Lake. The Contemporary tower was built in an A Frame shape constructed of steel frames built on-site with pre constructed rooms brought to the site and lifted into place by cranes. The Contemporary was Disney's flagship resort until Disney's Grand Floridian Resort and Spa was built. The Contemporary has the Monorail run through the inside of the resort. There are five restaurants at the Contemporary. The California Grill, The Wave, Chef Mickey's, Contempo Cafe and the Sand Bar. One interesting side note, President Richard Nixon delivered his famous "I am not a crook" speech in a ballroom at the Contemporary on Nov. 17, 1973 in front of reporters. In August 2009 Bay Lake Tower was opened adjacent to the Contemporary as a Disney Vacation Club hotel.
We then got on a boat and road it over to Fort Wilderness Campgrounds. Ft. Wilderness is located in a Cypress-Pine forest. It opened in Nov. 1971 with only 232 campsites. Today it has 1788 campsites and 400 cabins. The campsites are for tents, trailers, fifth wheels and recreation vehicles and the sites ranch from 25' to 65' long. There are two gift shops, three restaurants, several pools, several outdoor activities, stables and the Chip & Dale campfire singalong and outdoor movie theater. The restaurants are The Trails End - a buffet style family dining, Mickey's Backyard BBQ, and the Hoop dee Doo Revue - a musical dinner show. Every night a Disney movie is shown outdoors for the guests staying at Fort Wilderness.
We then got on another boat and took it over to the Wilderness Lodge. The Wilderness Lodge was opened in May 1994 and is themed with an atmosphere of the Pacific Northwest and features both natural and Native American elements. The Main building was modeled after the Old Faithful Inn in Yellowstone National Park with an artificial geyser and hot springs. There are five restaurants at the Wilderness Lodge. Artist Point - serves American North West style food. Whispering Canyon Cafe and Food courts - Roaring Fork Snacks, Territory Lodge and Trout Pass. Disney Vacation Club opened the Villas in Nov 2000 adjacent to the Wilderness Lodge.
We then hopped on another boat and took it back to the Contemporary where we got on the Monorail and rode it over to The Polynesian Resort. The Polynesian Resort was the second resort to open in Oct 1971 in the Magic Kingdom. The resort has a South Seas theme and the hotels rooms were built the same way as the Contemporary. It is located on the southern shores of the man made Seven Seas Lagoon south of the Magic Kingdom on the Monorail loop. The resort has a central building "The Great Ceremonial House" that features a large tropical rain forest atrium and several lodges and long houses that surround the House. There are six restaurants at the Polynesian. Ohana - which serves an Ohana feast family style with several varieties of grilled skewered meats. The Kona Cafe which serves Asian style foods and has a sushi bar. Disney's Spirit of Aloha Dinner Show - a musical dinner show with Polynesian style food and entertainment (a Luau). Captain Cooks Snack Company, Tambu Lounge and Barefoot Bar.
We got back on the Monorail and took it to the Magic Kingdom where we got on a bus headed back to the Animal Kingdom Lodge. The Animal Kingdom Lodge is an African themed deluxe resort that opened in April 2001. It is adjacent to Disney's Animal Kingdom and gives it guests the opportunity to view grazing wildlife outside their rooms and public areas conveying the feeling of being in an African Savannah. In May 2009 Disney's Vacation Club opened a lodge adjacent to the Animal Kingdom Lodge. The main lodge was renamed Jambo House and the vacation club was named Kidani Village. There are three restaurants at Jambo house. The Jiko and the Boona both feature African style food. The Mara is a food court. At Kidani Village is the restaurant Sanaa that also specializes in African style food with Indian flavors.
It was a nice day, 87 degrees and sunny and we enjoyed visiting each resort. We shopped at the Contemporary, had Ice Cream at Fort Wilderness, enjoyed a drink poolside at the Wilderness Lodge and at the Polynesian we sat on the beach and received texted pictures from Jenny of her new Hawaiian home. We thought it was pretty cool sitting at the Polynesian looking at pictures from Hawaii and feeling like we were in her backyard. It was a good day!
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