Caribbean Beach or Port Orleans Riverside- January 2020

[TuffyH]

Just started planning my family’s trip to Disney for the end of January 2020! I’ve been and stayed on property several times, but this will be the first time to go with my husband and our 3 young children (5 years, 3 years, and 6/7 months at the time of travel). We are planning on staying on property and have it limited down to Caribbean Beach or Port Orleans Riverside. I’ve stayed at CBR back in 2012 and my sister has been to POR several times. I’m planning on booking a preferred room at either resort, but my question is, which resort you feel is best for a young family? Or is there another resort I should be looking at?

I am mostly concerned about transportation as we plan on using buses, boats, etc. I’ve read that POR buses can get crowded and you may have to wait for an empty one to show up (not really what I would like to do with an infant). Also, with CBR I am concerned that it may be very crowded with the Skyliner just opening up. Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

 

[KAY823]

We used to stay at Caribbean Beach frequently. That was until our first stay at Port Orleans French Quarter which is now our favorite mod. The resort is beautiful, smaller than Riverside and you can use amenities at both resorts. The boats to Disney Springs are a nice trip. No matter where you decide will work best for your family you are at Disney! One resort I would not recommend in the mod category is Coronado Springs. It was one of our worst resort experiences. I will never stay there again.....

 

[BASS]

I've stayed at both. I prefer Port Orleans. It was much smaller. We got to the bus much quicker. I had no issues like you described about crowded buses. Someone can correct me if I am wrong, but doesn't Caribbean Beach have an internal bus system too? That invariably slows things down.

 

[Patrick_Ears]

Me and my lovely queen for our 25th Anniversary just came back and we had stay at Caribbean Resort. Not bad but very a huge resort we stayed in the Aruba area. Well that’s the last stop for the bus so careful on that. We did not like the food at the main food court. The pools were very nice.

 

[Herdman]

I would take POR as the choice for those two, but I would look again at POFQ. It's a small resort with 1 bus stop so it might be easier to navigate with 3 young children. No sit down restaurant though, but you can bus over to POR if you choose.

 

[Raeskul]

Having stayed at all three I would say French Quarter was my least favourite for one main reason, the pool. Theres only 1 pool in french quarter and its always packed. Its difficult to find seating at. With only one bus stop it can be a bit of a walk back to ur room depending where it is. I would definitly book a preferred room with young kids at either resort. With that in mind that puts both resorts fairly equal. Cbr has the better pool and lots of quite pools for the kids to enjoy. It also has a new resturant and pool bar. Riverside has the boat to disaney springs. Both have good sides, depends whether u like carribean look or the southern charm. Personally I’m Cbr all the way can’t wait to see the resort when all the construction is finished.

 

[Club Cooloholic]

Having stayed at all three I would say French Quarter was my least favourite for one main reason, the pool. Theres only 1 pool in french quarter and its always packed. Its difficult to find seating at. With only one bus stop it can be a bit of a walk back to ur room depending where it is. I would definitly book a preferred room with young kids at either resort. With that in mind that puts both resorts fairly equal. Cbr has the better pool and lots of quite pools for the kids to enjoy. It also has a new resturant and pool bar. Riverside has the boat to disaney springs. Both have good sides, depends whether u like carribean look or the southern charm. Personally I’m Cbr all the way can’t wait to see the resort when all the construction is finished.

I really never found much charm to CBR, its huge, just driving around it you see it, but your'e right they did renovate it. FQ while only one pool, i never found it super busy and it is the most walkable of the bunch no matter where your room is. I would say to RS and compromise, great pools and a little more managable than CBR in my opinion.

 

[Raeskul]

I really never found much charm to CBR, its huge, just driving around it you see it, but your'e right they did renovate it. FQ while only one pool, i never found it super busy and it is the most walkable of the bunch no matter where your room is. I would say to RS and compromise, great pools and a little more managable than CBR in my opinion.

Like I said it comes down to personal choice. Look at some utube videos and see which appeals to u most .

 

[donnylambb]

port Orleans would be my choice. Very beautiful resort and has a very good vibe. It also has one of the best food courts in the World.

 

[LeighM]

PO Riverside will always be my #1 choice. I love the atmosphere and how relaxing it can be - plus it's my favorite food court and I like the boat ride to Disney Springs. The buses can have a very long wait at the parks especially at the end of the day. I actually don't like the preferred rooms at Riverside though because it's close to the South Depot, which is actually the last stop in the theme park bus loop. I like the Alligator Bayou rooms near the West Depot, which is the first theme park bus stop. We go to the parks early in the morning and, since it's the first stop, we always get a seat. And at the end of the day, it's the first stop off the bus. However, we stayed at Coronado Springs last year and thought those buses were a lot less crowded than Riverside. I guess the crowds were lower because of the people there for conventions. I don't know how things will change once the new tower there opens and it has more people. But we had a great stay there and the refurbished rooms were really nice! I also preferred the pool at CSR over Riverside. Every time I was there, crowds were less than the main pool at Riverside's Ole Man Island. I wasn't a fan of the food court at all but we didn't eat there that often. And maybe it was just me, but the bus rides seemed a lot shorter at CSR. We're going back to WDW in a few months and I'm excited to try Caribbean Beach for the first time! After I try all the moderates, I'm going back to Riverside

 

[JillC LI]

We loved both and you can't go wrong at either. If you stay at POR, ask for one of the buildings near the main building with the food court and the River Roost Lounge with Yehaa Bob - he's a blast for the whole family. If you stay at CBR, ask for a room in either Jamaica or Aruba "near the footbridge." Unless the construction has changed things, those rooms were the closest to the main pool and the food court. POFQ is another great option, especially with those beignets!

 

[Skibum1970]

While I haven't stayed at Caribbean, we love the Port Orleans resorts. Both French Quarter and Riverside. While the Riverside report is large, we never had trouble with buses. Also, the Riverside quick-service restaurant has a large selection of foods and we always enjoyed what we bought there. Trips to Magic Kingdom are about 15 minutes and Epcot is around 10 minutes. Animal Kingdom takes the longest, obviously, but I'm not sure which parks you are planning on visiting the most. We stayed in Magnolia, which is now where the princess rooms were located. The walk is pretty easy and very pretty. The rooms are nice and I think that preferred rooms face the "river", which is peaceful. Plus, you can take the boat to Disney Springs which is also enjoyable.

 

[Pluto89]

We loved both and you can't go wrong at either. If you stay at POR, ask for one of the buildings near the main building with the food court and the River Roost Lounge with Yehaa Bob - he's a blast for the whole family. If you stay at CBR, ask for a room in either Jamaica or Aruba "near the footbridge." Unless the construction has changed things, those rooms were the closest to the main pool and the food court. POFQ is another great option, especially with those beignets!

I do believe that Martinique and Barbados are actually the buildings that are the closest to Old Port Royal and the Main Pool. Jamaica and Aruba are on the other side of the water. They also are the last two bus stops.

 

[JillC LI]

I do believe that Martinique and Barbados are actually the buildings that are the closest to Old Port Royal and the Main Pool. Jamaica and Aruba are on the other side of the water. They also are the last two bus stops.

Yes, I should have clarified. Jamaica and Aruba are the closest non-preferred rooms if you don't want to pay for the upgrade. It's a lovely short walk across the footbridge with a great view of the whole resort.

 

[ninjaprincesst]

By January 2020 the Gondolas will be running, so that is a consideration, much easier with 2 little one to just push the stroller on to the gondola than to fold it up and wrangle it and the 2 little ones on a bus.

 

[disneyfireman]

I would take POR as the choice for those two, but I would look again at POFQ. It's a small resort with 1 bus stop so it might be easier to navigate with 3 young children. No sit down restaurant though, but you can bus over to POR if you choose.

Yep POFQ definitely

 

[bunnyman]

Stayed in both within the last 5 months, with CBR most recently a couple of weeks ago. Preferred POR (I have a soft spot for POR as Dixie Landings was the first Disney resort I stayed in back in the early 1990's), mainly as I like their main building set-up better with the food court, restaurant, and lounge/main bar all being in one building. Not a fan of the CBR main bar being an outside venue (the day we attempted to eat/drink there was pouring and windy).

 

[daisyduckie]

I prefer POR over CBR. I like the ambiance more, and find POR more relaxing.

However, you comment about your infant concerns me a bit. You need to plan for waiting, and for what you will do if you have to stand on a bus, because that is very likely to happen. The Disney buses are designed to hold more people standing than sitting.

Will you be using a sling or a stroller? Either of those will keep the little one comfortable and contained while waiting for a bus. But how will you handle having to stand? If it doesn't sound like standing will work, then maybe rent a car for your stay?

 

[Pluto008]

Something to think about if your going to all 4 parks it's the most centralized of any moderate resort. If you pull up distance from resorts to theme park it will show you

 

[Pluto008]

Something to think about if your going to all 4 parks it's the most centralized of any moderate resort. If you pull up distance from resorts to theme park it will show you

Sorry was talking about cbr