Did I make the wrong decision choosing CBR?

[Ember]

We got a pin code about a month ago and were planning on using it for our first stay at a deluxe (BC), but then found out that BC is undergoing major renovations and decided to opt for a mod instead. We were going to go with POR, which we have stayed at two years in a row and adore, but wanted to try something a little different. We realized if we stayed at CBR we would have stayed at all the mods and then would stay deluxe next year. With the pin code our stay at CBR is only about 120/night, so we figured it would be worth the risk. Silly me should have come to this site first instead of relying on travel sites. The other site ratings were positive, but when I looked up the resort on here, I'm hard-pressed to find any that praise it. Is it better over there now that they are renovating? Should I call and ask to switch to POR?

 

[Kevin Kuhl]

Not a bad resort, but totally spread out. It take a whilllee to get to the park if you're relying on the bus. Food court is ehh, but scenery and atmosphere is awesome.

 

[CheshireCat12]

I would chance it. When are you going? I also plan to stay at CBR next, I know there will be lots of walking! I think the pool looks good and there are interesting options in the food court.

 

[NYwdwfan]

Everyone has their own opinion of the resorts, both good and bad. There are people that could find fault ANYWHERE. CBR happens to be my cousin's favorite resort - and she has stayed at BC - she sees the amenities you get for the money at CBR to be a better bang for the buck. If it's somewhere you've wanted to try, then give it a try - and enjoy your trip!

 

[R W B]

Never stayed there yet but I do plan on it. I have visited the resort before and it is pretty spread out but doable I think.

 

[englanddg]

Stayed at CBR twice. POFQ once, and walked PORS three times (including during the stay at POFQ)...

I like CBR and think it gets a bum rap. However, I will say there are a few things you may want to ask for in your reservation / take into account:

1) You want a room in Aruba and/or Jamaica "near the bridge". Tell them you want that, they'll know what you mean. Aruba 51 and Jamaica 45 are the best, but a Garden view in Aruba 52/53 or Jamaice 46/44 is also just fine. This will put you within easy striking distance of the main pool / shopping / food court, and an easy stroll to snag breakfast (I like to grab it and bring it back to the room to eat).

2) If not those, look for Martinique 25 or 26, or Trinidad North (any part of it).

3) Not worth paying more for a lake view unless you really want it. But, do ask for a garden (not parking lot) view. The whole resort is ringed with (rather ugly) parking lots. But, the gardens / area pools are great to look at.

4) If you have time, the TS restaurant there (Shutters) is actually pretty darned tasty, but it has odd hours. Opens late, closes early.

5) The food court is ok. I'd put it on par, frankly, with Pop. It wasn't as good as POFQ. But, like POFQ, it is cramped and doesn't handle crowds well. Try to eat off schedule.

6) The lake is a wonderful stroll at night, and the beaches are lots of fun for smaller kids. The kids meals at the food courts include a pail and shovel so they can play in the sand (or, they did as of 2011).

7) The busses aren't as bad as they are made out to be. I had more frustrations with bus transportation at POFQ then I ever had at CBR. They don't run as frequently as Pop (from my general impression), but aren't significantly slower or more tedious than PORS, and certainly not POFQ. Like PORS, they have to "run the circuit" around the resort with multiple stops. Off the top of my head, I believe there are more stops at CBR, but that doesn't slow things down too much. One nice thing about Aruba / Jamaica is that, returning at night, you are normally (not always, but very often) one of the first two stops, and leaving for a Park, you are normally (not always) one of the last 3 stops. This is due to how the busses cycle through the property, and to me, a plus to staying in those two areas.

8) Avoid Trinidad South like the plague. Worst placement on the bus lines, furthest from everything. Just...avoid it.

Overall, I adore CBR, and would gladly stay there again in the future. Hope that helps!

 

[ImagineerDude]

It's a beautiful resort to just walk around, though the rooms are nothing special unless you get a refurbished one. We stayed there in May and while the busses were annoying late at night when all we wanted to do was crawl in bed, we never had to wait more than 15 minutes for a bus. Same as the other resorts. CBR is more than big...more like than enormous even...but if you have any runners in your family it would be perfect!

 

[disney4life2008]

I absolutely love CBR - you can not beat the entire tropical atmosphere. As others have said - it is A LOT of walking but you will be walking anyway

 

[Ember]

Thank you guys! You are making me feel so much better! @CheshireCat12 - We are going in late April, after the Easter and Spring Break madness. We are going to have a rental car (It was somehow cheaper to rent it for the whole week than just the few days we needed it to go visit family), so I hope that will help ease the burden of the resort size. We found CSR to be a little too big for our liking, but we did not have a car that time around. The grounds and especially the pool look so wonderful

 

[Anotherfaceinthecrowd]

We were planning on staying at CBR next year but I really wasn't fancying it so I have talked DW into Old Key West instead

 

[DisneyDelirious]

We have stayed at CBR for every trip except a quick MVMCP trip. Location is important to most folks if you armed a big walker. We always get a preferred room at Martinique and its a short stroll to the bus stop and a short stroll to Old Port Royale and the pool. The QS offerings aren't too bad if you have kids and/ or just want a quick bite or snack. Shutters is just not a place we want to sit down and eat at. We can go to a park or another resort and get a much better meal. That being said, we like the theme, the hammocks, and the walks along the waterfront.

 

[MissingDisney]

We really enjoyed CBR. We had a room in Jamaica just over the bridge so the walk wasn't bad at all to the pool, food, etc. We love the scenery, atmosphere, music...so relaxing. Give it a try! If it's not awesome, just book another trip to make up for it!

 

[englanddg]

We really enjoyed CBR. We had a room in Jamaica just over the bridge so the walk wasn't bad at all to the pool, food, etc. We love the scenery, atmosphere, music...so relaxing. Give it a try! If it's not awesome, just book another trip to make up for it!

I'm a big fan of staying in Aruba / Jamaica. I like being far enough away from the hubbub of the main pool and the rest of Old Port Royale, but it's just a quick walk across the bridge / island. And, I love that little island (the hidden nooks are a great place to sit down and read a book, and my kiddo adored the playground.

 

[JohnD]

Loved the theming at CBR. Felt so away from everything. The only negative for me was the numerous bus depots but that's a common complaint.

Staying at POR next week then will have stayed at all moderates.

 

[Mia22]

I am a huge fan of cbr. Just returned from there a week and a half ago. I love the tropical planting, pretty buildings particularly Jamaica where we stayed. The renovated rooms are awesome, and I enjoyed lying in a hammock on the beach feeling that I was the only one there. Although it is a very large spread out resort, the numerous quiet pools and villages makes it feel very quiet and peaceful. As mentioned before though, the drawback is numerous bus stops, and I think the food court needs to be larger to accommodate for breakfast crowds. The only other mod resort I have not tried yet but am trying next year is Coronado springs. CBR is my favourite mod resort with POR second.

 

[rt06]

CBR turned me off from the moderate experience. The pirate room "upgrade" was below standard. Deluxe or bust for me.

 

[LAKid53]

It's a nice resort, lovely grounds, but spread out. We've not stayed in over a year and the rooms were getting a little tired, but the renovations will improve that. However, there are no elevators in the buildings, which may be a issue for guests with strollers. I like the themed food court area and gift shop and we've enjoyed our meals at Shutters. Now that the rooms are getting updated, we might return to CBR for one of our future visits.

Enjoy your trip.

 

[Ember]

If it's not awesome, just book another trip to make up for it!

Great plan!! Lol! We're absolutely staying deluxe next time. Beach Club has been our goal for a long time, but I really want to wait until they are done renovations before I spend that kind of money.

Staying at POR next week then will have stayed at all moderates.

POR is our "home" resort. We adore it there. It's very relaxed and peaceful and we love wandering about at night. The only downside to POR is that we did not have luck with the buses there last time- too many people and not enough buses made for really long waits.

It's a nice resort, lovely grounds, but spread out. We've not stayed in over a year and the rooms were getting a little tired, but the renovations will improve that. However, there are no elevators in the buildings, which may be a issue for guests with strollers. I like the themed food court area and gift shop and we've enjoyed our meals at Shutters. Now that the rooms are getting updated, we might return to CBR for one of our future visits.

Enjoy your trip.

Thank you! No strollers for us this time, so that won't be a problem. We were looking at the menu for Shutters and it looks so good. Do you think we should make an ADR or could we just pop in there for dinner one night?

 

[Ember]

I am a huge fan of cbr. Just returned from there a week and a half ago. I love the tropical planting, pretty buildings particularly Jamaica where we stayed. The renovated rooms are awesome, and I enjoyed lying in a hammock on the beach feeling that I was the only one there. Although it is a very large spread out resort, the numerous quiet pools and villages makes it feel very quiet and peaceful. As mentioned before though, the drawback is numerous bus stops, and I think the food court needs to be larger to accommodate for breakfast crowds. The only other mod resort I have not tried yet but am trying next year is Coronado springs. CBR is my favourite mod resort with POR second.
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That pic is beautiful! Thank you for sharing! We've been on several cruises to the Caribbean so I think we will really enjoy the vibe.

 

[LAKid53]

Great plan!! Lol! We're absolutely staying deluxe next time. Beach Club has been our goal for a long time, but I really want to wait until they are done renovations before I spend that kind of money.


POR is our "home" resort. We adore it there. It's very relaxed and peaceful and we love wandering about at night. The only downside to POR is that we did not have luck with the buses there last time- too many people and not enough buses made for really long waits.


Thank you! No strollers for us this time, so that won't be a problem. We were looking at the menu for Shutters and it looks so good. Do you think we should make an ADR or could we just pop in there for dinner one night?

That's good about the strollers. We didn't realize no elevators at CBR until we got to our building with a 2nd floor room. Surprised a resort with 3 story buildings didn't have elevators...

Shutters isn't a very large restaurant, so I would make an ADR or you might have a long wait. Another suggestion - request a corner room. The room size is the same, but the additional window makes the room appear larger.

We too love POR and switched back to it mainly because the rooms were getting a tad tired at CBR and the beds in POR are queen size, not double like CBR. However, I understand the renovated rooms will now have queen size beds. Each group of buildings at CBR have their own pool and little beach with a hammock. Plus, there are plenty of water activities available, unlike POR. If Disney could take the best of both resorts - CBR & POR - that would be one awesome resort.