Review: Atrium Club Level at Contemporary Resort

Atrium Club is the concierge lounge at Walt Disney World’s Contemporary Resort, the closest hotel to Magic Kingdom. We’ll review whether this Club Level is worth the money, what’s included, photos of the food served & inside the lounge, the view, plus how Atrium Club compares to other Club Levels at WDW.

Note that this review focuses only on the Contemporary’s Club Level experience. if you’re looking for our thoughts on the hotel as a whole, check out our Disney’s Contemporary Resort Review. Admittedly, that review is a bit harsh and was based upon staying in the Garden Wing. (We far prefer the main, A-frame building.)

We’ll also mostly gloss over the various perks and benefits of staying Club Level, instead focusing on what’s unique to the Atrium Club. If you’re looking for general info, our Guide to Club Level & Concierge Lounges at Disney World offers overarching thoughts on what you can expect in terms of service, the various resort tiers, and an index of other specific Club Level lounge reviews from around Walt Disney World…

Upon arrival at Disney’s Contemporary Resort, you should be greeted by a Cast Member who takes you up to the Atrium Club for check-in. Should is the operative word here, as we’ve found this happens about half the time when checking into Club Level at Walt Disney World.

These Cast Members will whisk you up to the twelfth floor for check-in with at the concierge desks, which is located between the elevator bank and the Atrium Club lounge.

These desks are staffed by two concierge Cast Members from 7 am until 10 pm; in addition to helping while you’re at the hotel, they can be contacted while you’re in the parks should you need any assistance.

At this desk or in your room, depending upon how/where/when you check-in, you’ll receive a welcome letter and various info about Atrium Club, plus a box of chocolates. Nice touches.

The Atrium Club lounge is one large space with a dividing wall between the food line and half the seating area, plus three balconies overlooking Seven Seas Lagoon and Magic Kingdom, with the resort’s parking lot in the foreground. See our Best Theme Park View Rooms at Walt Disney World post for more on this topic.

The lounge itself has a sleek, modern style that mirrors the current guest rooms at Disney’s Contemporary Resort. The design fairly humdrum, with the coolest part being that some of the lounge’s lines evoke those of the Contemporary’s A-frame.

The biggest downside, from my perspective, is that the lounge offers no views into the Grand Canyon Concourse. This might seem like a minor thing, but that lobby/atrium is one of the defining features of the Contemporary.

It’d a delight to watch the monorails gliding through the hotel below while sipping on an espresso or beer. That’s especially true on hot or rainy days (so, over half the year) when sitting outside on the balconies is simply not a viable option for more than a few minutes or in the evening.

As for the balconies, there was plenty of space out here to accommodate all guests throughout the day during our stay, save for during fireworks. At that time, the balcony does become crowded–to the point that I would actively not recommend booking Atrium Club if you’re doing so primarily for the fireworks.

Otherwise, we could’ve enjoyed the balconies pretty much all to ourselves for much of our stay. (I’m sure this is very weather-dependent, though.)

Throughout the day, the Atrium Club lounge serves the following:

• Coffee: 6:30-7 a.m.
• Continental breakfast: 7-10:30 a.m.
• Afternoon refreshments: 12-4 p.m.
• Contemporary Flavors: 5-7 p.m.
• Desserts & cordials: 8-10 p.m.

Consistent with other Club Level lounges around Walt Disney World, we found “Contemporary Flavors” (which we’ll simply call dinner here, since that’s pretty much what it is) to be best of these spreads.

Also as is typical, breakfast was the time when the lounge was busiest, followed closely by fireworks/dessert time and dinner.

With that said, we even found dinner disappointing. Options here alternated between extremes: uninspired Asian-fusion cuisine and uninspired standard comfort fare. Noodle salad on the one hand, chicken fingers on the other.

There were a couple of decent items mixed in there, but most of it was a far cry from the delicious cuisine we enjoyed at Old Faithful Club Level in Disney’s Wilderness Lodge or Chronos Club Level in Gran Destino Tower at Coronado Springs Resort.

In terms of cost, you’re looking at rack rates ranging from around $850 to $1,400 night for standard Club Level rooms, depending upon your view.

Suites or multi-bedroom units cost even more. Even with a good Annual Pass or Florida Resident discount, you’re likely looking at $600 per night to stay Atrium Club Level, at the absolute minimum.

Most of the time, we give a cop out “it depends” answer when it comes to questions of value for money. While we enjoyed Atrium Club, I just cannot say there’s a scenario where I think it’s worth it.

Other Club Levels beat Atrium Club in every regard except “closest view of Cinderella Castle.” For us, that’s not enough given what they’re charging.

If that up-close theme park view is important…there are cheaper or better ways to get it. For one, you could simply book a Main Tower – Theme Park View room (not Club Level) for ~$100/night less than the standard Club Level room. That way, you’d also be guaranteed a private balcony. That room will set you back around $750 per night.

If you’re dead-set on doing a stay at Atrium Club, our biggest recommendation would be to book a standard view room rather than a theme park view. This isn’t just to save money (although that’s a big motivation!), but rather, so you’ll have access to both views: a lake view from your room and a theme park view from the lounge.

This means watching Electrical Water Pageant from your balcony and Magic Kingdom’s fireworks from the lounge. It also means waking up to a quiet sunrise over Bay Lake from your room, which is lovely.

That Cinderella Castle view is nearly irresistible, but this is the best of both worlds. If there’s only one thing you take away from this review, that room recommendation should be it.

Overall, we enjoyed our stay at Atrium Club. The lounge itself is small but nice, while the balconies offer what’s arguably the best view of Magic Kingdom. With that said, we aren’t nearly as high on this lounge as a lot of other Walt Disney World fans. Personally, I’ll take the more distant view (but centered and better-framed) view from King Kamehameha Club, as well as the physical spaces and food at several other Club Level lounges.

Just like the Contemporary itself, something feels wanting about Atrium Club–it doesn’t have that X factor that really elevates some of the other lounges. Aside from the balcony view (which isn’t unique to Club Level), there’s nothing distinct or special about Atrium Club. Of course, others are likely to disagree; the good thing about Walt Disney World is that there’s something for everyone–Atrium Club simply isn’t the right fit for us. Your mileage may vary.

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

What do you think of Atrium Club Level at Disney’s Contemporary Resort? Are you a fan of this, or do you prefer other concierge lounges at Walt Disney World? Do you agree or disagree with our review? 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!