Caribbean Beach Resort experiences....

[Medic77]

So we are just in the preparation stages to leave for our WDW vacation on Sept 19. After reading more and more about the Caribbean Beach Resort (which is where we will be), I am totally stressing :lookaroun out over cleanliness, courtesy and the potential for creepy crawly creatures like beg bugs :fork: or the infamous palmetto bugs (aka. cockroaches in NY!!). After spending a hefty amount of money for a 11 day/10 night trip, I might have a stroke . Has anyone been there RECENTLY (2011), and if you have or know someone who has, please give me the skinny both good and bad (if bad, how was it resolved??)? I have done my homework researched other hotels in preparation for any problems...... Thanks!! :lookaroun

 

[wilkeliza]

I know you wanted recent trips from 2011 but we stayed in summer 2010 and wanted to give some insight to our experience.

We stayed for 5 nights and it was an enjoyable trip. The only issue we had was our room was not ready when we checked in. We checked in at 10am and was told they would express our room and it would be ready by 2. We completely understood because we were there early. We drop off our stuff at concierge and headed over to Hollywood studios. We hit up tower of terror and a few other quick rides then headed back to the hotel around 1:45. However 2 comes and no call about our room being ready. 3 pm comes and at that point we were upset. We called the front desk and were told our room would be clean soon. We go to the pool at that point and next thing we know it is 4 and we still hadn't received the call that our room had been cleaned. We went at complained to the front desk and would told it would be asap. We didn't actually get into the room until 5 o'clock that night. We were wet and irritated at that experience and as it was my first WDW trip I was pretty upset.

As for bugs I can see how occasionally a bug could get into a room from one of the bushes or something. Sadly with a lot of traffic through the Disney Hotels bed bugs are potentially a problem at any hotel. The first thing you should do upon entering any hotel (Disney or not frankly) is check the mattress for any signs of bed bugs. Some people claim they had bed bugs with out really ever seeing them. If you don't see the bug the itching could easily be mosquito bites, reaction to the laundry detergent used by Disney, or many other things. If you see any brown/black/or reddish dirt looking stuff on the seams of the mattress or you see small bugs (size of apply seed or smaller) then take your stuff and go directly to front desk. I usually leave my stuff outside while I do this check just in case.

We also had problems with loud kids. There was a family a few doors down (maybe around the corners) that just let their kids run around the sidewalk upstairs. We had a corner room so we could hear these kids every time they would run through. We finally had the open the door one day and be like where are your parents? I typically just let kids be kids but I draw the line when everyday of a trip the same 2 kids run around the hotel like its a playground with no parents in sight.

The only other complaint I had was the buses. At this resort you have to stop at every building and if you end up being the last in the rotation (we were sadly) then the buses are always full in the am and evening. They either just don't stop due to safety reasons or you have to jam in like sardines. Even arriving early to your stop isn't much help.

I hope I didn't scare you off from the resort. The pools and dinning there are great and I did have fun lounging at the beaches. I just wanted to give you my personal experience with the resort. We just recently stayed for 3 days at Pop! and honestly I was happier at Pop! (surprisingly quitter that Caribbean beach was) and not to mention it was cheaper.

 

[JillC LI]

We were there in October 2009 and loved it. Ask for a room in Jamaica or Aruba near the footbridge. It was very clean, the staff was very courteous, and we didn't see any bugs in the room when we were there.

 

[Master Yoda]

I have stayed at CBE several times and have had numerous clients stay there as well with zero instances of any of the items you are concerned about. That being said it is Florida. Bugs are just as possible in the Presidential suite of AKL as they are in one of the value resorts but Disney does an incredible job at keeping them at bay.

 

[disneyfankev]

have stayed there twice and enjoyed both times. it is a big resort so i would try to get a room close to food court and transportation.

 

[DisneyDebNJ]

In 2006, we did a spontaneous 2nd trip that year to Disney. We normally always stay in a Deluxe resort, but given 3 weeks to plan our trip, we wound up at CBR. As in every Disney hotel we stayed at, the room was impecably clean, not one bug in site, however we did see several salimanders, (outside the room!! LOL) and thought it was kinda cool! As another poster stated, this IS Florida, occassionally if a bug happens to cross your path, it happens, but I am sure, you will enjoy your stay. The best advice I could give you, is, if, (and a big if at that) you are not satisfied with the accomodations, go to the front desk and see if you can be changed to another resort. Sadly I had to do this one time, during my many trips to Disney. (There were Malaluca trees nearby and I was highly allergic) Enjoy your vacation :sohappy:

 

[Communicore]

I haven't been to Carribean Beach since the 80's. I guess it has been drastically renovated since then.

 

[erstwo]

We stayed at CBR in April 2011 and loved it! No bed bugs, such a NICE resort. Loved the atmosphere, loved the 'big' pool. We were in a Pirate Room (free upgrade.) Loved the food court and having a sit down restaurant (Shutters?) right there.

It felt very resort like and was a nice step up from all the time we've spent at the Values. That being said, if you don't care a hoot about the time you will be spending in your room/ at your resort and want a nice clean room and to save money - switch to a Value. Pop and All Star Music are our favorites.

If you like relaxing by the pool and a hotel with an 'atmosphere' CBR has all of that, plus the clean rooms.

 

[Rose99]

Just came back from a split stay from there and AK Kidani Village and I loved it !! Clean as a whistle friendly CM's ( exept for that one baggage lady) and the pool can't be beat ! I asked for Jamaica and it was the perfect area ! No bugs that I saw ! You'll love it ! We did !

 

[beanbunny]

We just returned this past Saturday & loved it at Caribbean Beach - we had a pirate room. yayy! Everything was spotless, staff was friendly & efficient, grounds were immaculate. As far as I'm concerned, you have nothing to worry about. Have a wonderful trip!

 

[coachwnh]

stayed over thanksgiving. no problems there and would stay again. just have fun and don't stress!!

 

[GrumpyFannyPack]

We were there in Sept. of 2010 and it was a wonderful stay. We were in Aruba right by the foot bridge and it was perfect. Quiet at night, beautiful in the mornings, short little walk to Old Port Royale with Jimmy Buffet songs to entertain us along the way, and great service. And we thought the entire resort was very clean and very well maintained. The only bugs we had a problem with were the love bugs and they are pretty easy to corral and scoot out the door.

 

[Michael Hall]

We were there in June 2011 and loved it. No problems of any kind. Just as clean as any other Disney Resort ,awesome.

 

[Medic77]

Thank you!!

I feel MUCH better after hearing some positive feedback at the resort. I'm a pretty reasonable person, and we're a pretty patient family. We are in a pirate room too!:sohappy:

 

[gnuts0306]

I feel MUCH better after hearing some positive feedback at the resort. I'm a pretty reasonable person, and we're a pretty patient family. We are in a pirate room too!:sohappy:

Im glad you feel better....as do I.....we used to stay at CBR every trip when we were kids. We have spent the last few years at Values, and on Sept 29th we are returning to CBR and I am beyond excited....i LOVE the food court area with the cobble stone walks! We always asked for Martinique building 26 near OPR! Enjoy your trip!!! P.S....the other buildings nearest to OPR are (in order) Martinique 26,25,24 and Trinidad North 31,32,33....that is if you prefer being closer to the food court!