Gran Destino and Contemporary Resort are two of Walt Disney World’s tower hotels. They’re very different, but also have a lot in common and suit some similar vacation goals. This post compares & contrasts the accommodations, crowning a champion in categories including theme/decor, rooms, dining, transportation, pools, and cost. (Updated October 5, 2024.)
Gran Destino Tower is technically part of Coronado Springs, which further muddies the comparison. Then again, Contemporary Resort also has Bay Lake Tower and the Garden Wing, and those are also very different from the A-frame in terms of costs and guest demographics. It’s not an apples to apples or even comprehensive comparison, but offers a look at each resort’s tower plus some shared amenities.
While we will draw our own conclusions as to which is better, along the way we will explain our reasoning, so you can form your own conclusions. Since so much of this is a matter of subjective, personal preference, we feel that’s the best way to approach these comparisons. Plus, it would be a pretty short blog post if we didn’t offer explanatory text along with the winner of each element…
This continues our Walt Disney World Hotel Comparison Series, and actually isn’t the first time Gran Destino has squared off against another tower. It emerged as the (spoiler alert) victor in our Gran Destino Tower vs. Disney’s Riviera Resort showdown, so now it takes its title to compete against the OG tower at Walt Disney World. For its part, the Contemporary has never battled it out before–probably because we don’t view it as a top pick along the monorail loop, even if it is often cheaper than the Poly or Grand Floridian.
You nevertheless might be wondering how a Moderate Resort can compete with one along the monorail loop. It might surprise you, but these two fall very close to one another in our Rankings of ALL Walt Disney World Hotels from Worst to Best, which takes value-for-money (that’s your answer) and a variety of other variables into account. If you’d prefer to read that for a rundown of how all resorts rank, take a look at that.
Theme/Decor: Gran Destino – Neither of these resorts are themed in the traditional sense of the term. The designs are not all-encompassing, and they do not transport you to another time or place. Both are more about architecture and interior design, without the pretenses.
Contemporary Resort debuted in 1971 as an exemplar of utopian and modern design. It was noteworthy in several ways, particularly the monorail breezing through its atrium, which imbued it with a sense of futurism. The resort was and is serious architecture, worthy of criticism and scholarly debate about its merits.
While its core architecture remains intact, the interior has become a hodgepodge of disparate styles, that are the result of Disney’s Contemporary Resort having visual clutter added over the decades. More and more stuff has been added over the years without any coherent vision. It’s ironic that the atrium is called the Grand Canyon Concourse, because the layers of clutter are like the sedimentary rock layers in the Grand Canyon. Except ugly instead of awe-inspiring.
Being newer, Gran Destino has a fresher and more finely-tuned artistic sensibility. It’s architecturally and culturally insignificant, but in the here and now, it simply looks and feels nicer. The lobby pays homage to the Catalan Modernism style, and there are flashes of famed Spanish architect Gaudí in the lounge and rooftop restaurant.
The tower doesn’t go all-in on this, but it’s nevertheless pretty good. Specific pieces of art reference the collaboration between Walt Disney and Salvador Dali that resulted in the short film Destino, which is quite the deep cut. In general, the lobby is grandiose, pretty, and uses an array of complementary colors, patterns, glass, and textures. This is significant as compared to the Contemporary, where essentially all of the design decisions clash with rather than complement one another.
Honestly, it’s unfortunate that Gran Destino Tower wins this category and speaks to the decades-long overdue need to reimagine–or better yet, restore–the Contemporary’s Grand Canyon Concourse. It should be one of the crown jewels of Walt Disney World, a timeless testament to the engineering and imagination of Walt Disney World. Instead, it has dead mall vibes and only flashes of brilliance. Gran Destino is a dime-a-dozen Las Vegas tower, but at least it’s coherent and current.
Rooms: Contemporary Resort – Gran Destino has large, modern rooms that can work well for a solo traveler or a couple, with enhancements aimed at functionality for business travelers. Gran Destino Tower was designed in large part for conventioneers who aren’t particularly interested in Disney and the design is thus very muted.
The bathrooms are nice, but the design is perplexing in that the shower and sink cannot be used simultaneously except by those who are intimately familiar with one another. In addition to that, none of the rooms have balconies, which is a big loss.
On the other hand, the standard rooms at Contemporary Resort were recently redone with the Incredibles injected into a modern style. While the rooms are lighter and brighter with a crisp look and mid-century modern aesthetic, they also look cheap. From the flooring to the furniture to the surfaces, these rooms simply feel and look lower end with character details affixed via stickers and other superficial flourishes.
With that said, these rooms are significantly larger, the bathrooms are nice and upscale, and all rooms have balconies. Most families are going to far prefer the Contemporary Resort rooms as a result, and some non-families might prefer them due to the size, as well. The style isn’t great, but it’s more fun and perfectly functional. The only travelers likely to prefer Gran Destino’s rooms are those who really think the cartoonish style of the Contemporary is too tacky, or those who really favor function over form–and don’t care about balconies.
Neither of these rooms are really anything special, and Gran Destino punches above its weight whereas Contemporary underwhelms among its class. Nevertheless, Contemporary doesn’t quite manage to fumble the bag here.
Dining: Toss Up – Both of these resorts are exemplars of Walt Disney World’s dining scene. Contemporary Resort has a strong lineup with California Grill, Steakhouse 71, Chef Mickey’s, and Contempo Cafe. The main standout is California Grill, which features a 3-course prix fixe dinner menu.
We also are huge fans of Steakhouse 71, which is the resort’s mid-tier lobby restaurant that serves great options for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It’s solid and fairly priced. This is one of the restaurants at which we dine most–I especially love the lounge for solo meals, and it’s very easy to leave Magic Kingdom (a food desert) and do a quick meal here.
Then there’s Chef Mickey’s and Contempo Cafe. Both are historically hit & miss, but we’ve had some great meals lately at counter service Contempo Cafe, which is seeing a bit of a renaissance. A concise verdict on Chef Mickey’s is impossible. It’s a complicated character meal; suffice to say, there’s a reason it’s a rite-of-passage meal for generations of Walt Disney World fans. All of this completes a very well-rounded culinary lineup at Disney’s Contemporary Resort.
At Gran Destino, Toledo is top notch, Dahlia Lounge is delightful, and Barcelona Lounge is beautiful. The only “problem” here is that Gran Destino has no counter service restaurant, with the (reasonable) expectation being that guests will walk over to El Centro, which used to be the main lobby and is only ~5 minutes away from Gran Destino Tower.
In this building you’ll find the El Mercadero de Coronado food court, plus Maya Grill, Rix Cafe, and more. In the middle of the sprawling complex is Three Bridges Bar & Grill, the over-the-water table service restaurant that’s one of our Walt Disney World hidden dining gems.
Which of these resorts is superior depends on your priorities. On the bar and lounge front, Gran Destino wins out. It has has a number of high quality and great value restaurants that we could revisit again and again. By contrast, Contemporary Resort has two of Walt Disney World’s most iconic restaurants in Chef Mickey’s and California Grill. Personally, we’d take the lesser known (and less expensive) options at Gran Destino, but we’re guessing most Walt Disney World fans would not.
Transportation: Contemporary Resort – This is an easy one, as the Contemporary is the closest resort to Magic Kingdom, easily accessible via the sidewalk. It’s also on the monorail loop with direct access to Magic Kingdom and connecting service to Epcot. Both parks can be reached in under 15 minutes, which is far more efficient than any bus service at either resort will ever be.
Accessing Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom from Contemporary Resort requires taking buses, but we’ve found the bus service to be reasonably efficient. At the very least, it’s not making multiple stops.
By contrast, the bus service at Coronado Springs has been hit or miss since Gran Destino opened. In addition to there being multiple stops around Coronado Springs, it seems that Walt Disney World did not increase the frequency of buses once the tower opened to account for all of the added guests.
Consequently, buses can be crowded, especially at popular hours or during peak season. It gets better when Coronado Springs is hosting a convention, as those guests are less likely to utilize buses. It’s also not nearly as bad during the off-season or even when the parks are only somewhat busy. (I’ve stayed at Coronado Springs a few times in 2024 and haven’t had any issues with transportation, so hopefully this is a thing of the past. Knock on wood.)
Transportation is definitely the biggest weakness of Gran Destino, which otherwise comes very close to being the perfect Deluxe-caliber tower resort at Moderate prices. Even if the buses aren’t busy, it still has a large internal loop that can be tedious for transit. No big deal if you plan on renting a car or using Uber/Lyft…and the money you save staying here could be put towards that to ease commutes.
Pools: Gran Destino (With An Asterisk) – This is a tough one. Technically, it’s “Gran Destino Tower at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort.” That at is the operative word here, and it means guests of Gran Destino can use the Dig Site Pool. That’s imperative to Gran Destino having any shot here, since it otherwise doesn’t have a pool.
Whereas transportation is Gran Destino’s achilles heel, pools are for Disney’s Contemporary Resort. The hotel has two pools, both of which are among the weakest at Walt Disney World. The Feature Pool (that’s both a descriptive title and its proper name), sits between the A-frame tower and the Garden Wing. This area is mostly unthemed, and offers a hot tub, kiddie pool, and water player area. There’s also the nearby Bay Lake quiet pool. Neither of these are anything special, but do offer great views of Bay Lake and are surrounded by serene white sand beaches.
An easy win for Gran Destino, despite the tower being technically pool-less.
Cost: Gran Destino – Another easy one. Before discount, Value Season nightly room rates at Gran Destino Tower are ~$275 and Regular Season is just over $309 per night. These are for a regular room with a standard view. On top of that, there tend to be pretty good deals, especially outside of convention and special events season.
By contrast, rooms at Disney’s Contemporary Resort with standard views start at over $500 per night in Value Season and only increase from there with busier seasons and as you improve the view category. Theme park view rooms are frequently $800 to $1000 per night, and are less likely to be discounted.
Cost is a big part of the reason we book Coronado Springs so frequently. It’s a near-Deluxe that’s often the cheapest Moderate after discount. Gran Destino is a tad more expensive, but still extremely cost-effective. We’ll even sometimes splurge on Chronos Club Level at Gran Destino Tower, which is far and away the cheapest concierge option–and arguably the best. It costs about one-quarter what Atrium Club at Contemporary costs!
Verdict: It Depends – For us, it’s Gran Destino without hesitation. We love the vibe, sophisticated style, more laid back and adult atmosphere. We’re also huge fans of the dining scene at Gran Destino, which offers exceptional value for money since it caters to conventioneers and cannot coast on its longstanding reputation. The superior pool and everything else is just icing. The biggest drawbacks for us are the lack of balconies and inefficient transportation, but we tend not to take midday breaks when staying at Coronado Springs, and avoid booking it at all during peak season.
However, we recognize that not everyone is us, and that’s okay. If we were Walt Disney World first-timers or taking small children on a rite-of-passage trip focused around Magic Kingdom, all of this category-by-category analysis would go out the window. Contemporary Resort would be the hands-down winner solely based on its proximity to Magic Kingdom. Even taking into account the significantly higher price and other on-paper weaknesses, we’d book the Contemporary. Location is the first three rules of real estate, and being a stone’s throw from Magic Kingdom makes it easy to overlook a lot.
Even as Walt Disney World regulars who like to think of ourselves as rational and objective, the location of Contemporary has a strong pull. We’re able to resist the temptation when we see the price, but there’s certainly something to be said for power walking to the park in the morning ~15 minutes after waking up. Ditto being able to bypass long waits at the bus stop with that same short walk at the end of the night, quickly being able to leave the park during a midday meltdown rather than dealing with a frustrating, lengthy, and unpredictable commute. Then there’s watching the fireworks from the hotel with our daughter or seeing the look in her eyes as the monorail whizzes through the middle of the hotel. It’s hard to put a price on all of that, hence the “it depends” verdict.
Ultimately, this comparison ends up coming down to two things: price and location/transportation. If these two resorts cost the same amount or close to it, we’d almost certainly choose Disney’s Contemporary Resort. Although it is difficult to ascribe a value on a balcony with a view of Bay Lake or Cinderella Castle, but “less than $400 per night” (commonly the cost differential between the two hotels) would probably be it for us.
However, the other big difference comes with the location. Gran Destino Tower is out in no man’s land, not really in any resort ‘district’ and requiring bus transportation to access every theme park at Walt Disney World. It’s also hard to put a price on efficient monorail transportation and being able to walk to Magic Kingdom, but it becomes slightly easier once you’ve dealt with a few headaches of the bus system at the other resorts. In that case, the premium pricing of Contemporary becomes easier to justify, especially if you’re not on a tight budget or money is no object. If you don’t cringe at the cost differential, Contemporary is the easy pick here.
While we hope this post is helpful in offering a head-to-head comparison of the most crucial elements of each Walt Disney World resort experience, we know it’s not definitive or the final word for every guest. In addition to reading the comments before making your own decision, we suggest supplementing this with our full review of Disney’s Contemporary Resort and our Gran Destino Tower at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort Review.
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
Your Thoughts
Is money the deciding factor for you, or is location/transportation? Do the monorail or being within walking distance of Magic Kingdom provide enough value for you to help bridge the price gap? What about the rooms, dining, or anything else that the Contemporary boasts? Is there another variable you can think of to make Disney’s Contemporary Resort the better pick? Are we missing a key variable that could, potentially tilt the scales in the Gran Destino’s favor? Do you agree or disagree with our picks? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
