Disney's Caribbean Beach Resort

[Pluto16]

Hi all,

I am new to the forum and was wondering if anyone had any advice for DCB. I have booked up and really excited. Any advice on what village would be preferred and how others have found the resort?

Thanks

 

[daisyduckie]

Did you book a preferred room or a standard room?

 

[suburbianj]

I'll join this convo as I'm in the same boat as Pluto16,we are staying in this resort in September too in a standard room so any tips would be appreciated

 

[Bluewaves]

Just request to be in a village near Port Royale and you'll be fine the one across the lake by the bridge is convient too. You'll have a quiet pool in each village and the main pool at Port Royale. Rent a bike and take the trip around the resort along the lake and just relax and don't be in a rush.

 

[Worldlover71]

I very much enjoyed the CBR when I stayed there several years ago. It is big but I didn't mind it at all. You can easily walk to Old Port Royale where you find the food court, main pool and shops from any of the "Islands" or you can take the shuttle bus. Some people complain about the buses making lots of internal stops before going to the parks but that means you don't have far to walk to or from the bus stops. The architecture is lovely and tropical and the pool is fun-just prepare for it to be busy and noisy but you can always use the quiet pools which are rarely busy or noisy. The food court has lots of options plus there is a sit down restaurant which I didn't try. Have a great trip!

 

[daisyduckie]

I'm afraid I'm not a fan of the standard rooms at CBR. I find them to be too far away from the resort amenities--the pool, food, and gift shop. Walking miles and miles at the parks is enough for me, I don't want a long walk to buy a snack too.

Make a request for Jamaica, near the bridge. That will be as close as you can get to all the amenities staying in a standard room.

 

[surfsupdon]

I have stayed here dozens (yes) of times.

If you can afford the upgrade to the water view, DO IT, and request a LAKE VIEW room, as opposed to a pool view. I do not feel you get to appreciate the beauty of the Resort, its atmosphere, and tranquility when you book a preferred room. My vote is that you avoid them at all costs.

I suggest rooms in Aruba or Jamaica, closer to the footbridge the better. This allows you to traverse the bridges and go through the Island, where "island life" really thrives. Much better vibes walking this way.

Enjoy

 

[NonnaT]

We always stay in a standard room at CBR and request Aruba 51 or 52, or Jamaica 45. From those villages it's about a 6 minute walk across the bridge to OPR.
We absolutely adore CBR. It's very quiet and tranquil, and the new mattresses are devine!
So comfy!

 

[ScarletBegonias]

I second Jamaica 45. We stayed in 42 and it was quite far from the bridge. We had a 7-10 minute walk to the bridge (toddler) and then another 7-10 to get to port royale. One day we were in the main bldg. and it poured. The only time I minded being so darn far away!

Also, Jamaica seems to USUALLY (one time in our 7 day stay we didn't stop at Jamaica first) be the first stop for the buses when they come in. Our bus was always empty, and we were the first people on every single day. I loved that we didn't have to fight for seats and never minded making the other "village stops" because we were sitting down.

 

[YozhikRoth]

Hi all,

I am new to the forum and was wondering if anyone had any advice for DCB. I have booked up and really excited. Any advice on what village would be preferred and how others have found the resort?

Thanks

It was a change, after spending the last couple of trips in the value resorts. For one, it takes some getting used to the size of the place. We had a room in Aruba, and had about a 10 minute walk to OPR, which is not bad, but still more than the 2-3 min walk to the food courts at the value resorts. Second, once you check in, you need to take the internal bus to your village, an act that may be repeated your last day onsite. Third, I felt that Disney badly under-served the CBR with bus service, each night the line to get to the buses was a couple of hunded long, with it seemed like the value resorts getting far more buses (including the double buses). I liked the resort because of the bigger room and the better pool, just be prepared for the size.

 

[JohnByers]

I have stayed twice in Martinique building 23 standard room and its literally a 3 min walk and its our building of choice.

CBR is beautiful and is my fav moderate resort

 

[JillC LI]

We've stayed here twice and loved it both times. Each time we requested a room "in Jamaica or Aruba near the footbridge" which, as others have said, is just a few minutes walk over the footbridge to the food court and main pool. You get a lovely view of the whole resort from the footbridge, overlooking the "beaches." We also loved the hammocks on the beach and the steel drum music throughout. We usually rent a car so I can't comment on bus waits.

 

[Worldlover71]

Second, once you check in, you need to take the internal bus to your village, an act that may be repeated your last day onsite.

Barbados, which is not a preferred village, is directly across the street from check in, so you do not need to take the internal bus, you can just walk to your room. When I pointed this out to the desk clerk who was giving me bus directions, she laughed and said that I was right and that walking would be much quicker and easier.

 

[Tylerb08]

I've stay there and very much enjoyed the stay. Loved the scenery and the walk to the food court and shops. Will definitely stay again.

 

[YozhikRoth]

A couple of areas at the CBR I was pleasantly surprised with:

1. Our location in Aruba (right on the water adjacent to the footpath to OPR) was serene. At the All-Star resorts, there is constant noise and traffic.
2. Despite it being President's week, OPR never seemed like a madhouse, even at breakfast. While the food was clearly in the food-court level of quality, the lines to order and checkout were seldom long, and there was never an issue getting a table.
3. The morning of our departure, bell service picked up our bags and drove us back to checkout.

 

[mcurtiss]

Barbados, which is not a preferred village, is directly across the street from check in, so you do not need to take the internal bus, you can just walk to your room. When I pointed this out to the desk clerk who was giving me bus directions, she laughed and said that I was right and that walking would be much quicker and easier.

we stayed in Barbados and liked it for this very reason. This was before some of the new online check-in features so perhaps the ease of being across the street is now moot.

That being said, the walk to OPR was about 10-15 minutes so we ended up only doing breakfast there 1 morning out of the 5 we were there.

 

[Weather_Lady]

It all depends on what you're looking for, and how often (if at all) you want to visit Old Port Royale. We're staying at CBR for the first time in November, so I've been researching it awhile. Some of this is a repeat from above, but the advice I've gleaned is:

FOR STANDARD ROOMS (which rules out the preferred rooms that comprise all of Trinidad North, and half of Martinique):

- Avoid Trinidad South (where the Pirate Rooms are located -- although they are not "standard" rooms, you might be offered an "upgrade" to one, as they are unpopular), if you prefer Queen beds (Pirate Rooms have doubles), or if a particularly remote, far-flung location is not desirable to you.

- If you want close proximity to Old Port Royale (where the food court, shop and feature pool are located), request a room in Jamaica (esp. Bldg.45) or Aruba (esp. Bldg.51), both of which are a fairly quick walk across the bridge. Alternatively, ask for one of the non-preferred buildings in Martinique.

- If you would like to be able to walk (rather than take the internal shuttle) to or from your room for check-in/check-out at the Custom House, and don't mind being more distantly located from Old Port Royale, ask for a room in Barbados (esp. Bldgs. 11-13).

- There are no elevators, so if stair-climbing is an issue, request a ground-floor room.

All of the villages offer their own bus stops, quiet pools and laundry facilities.

 

[BobsMom]

You didn't mention (unless I missed it) what your travel party consists of. We no longer have young children in our group. The youngest is my niece who is 27. We love Caribbean Beach and don't mind the walk to Old Port Royale. Our last trip we staying in Jamaica 55 and were lucky enough to get a corner room over looking the water. We had 2 large windows which made the room brighter and it seemed larger. We did not request water view it was just one of those Disney Magic moments. If we had smaller children it would have been nice to be closer to OPR but it wasn't necessary with our group. We usually walk to the Customs House when checking in/out. It is our way of saying Hello/Goodbye to the resort.

 

[Johnguelff]

Martinique and only Martinique. Twenty SECOND walk to OPR. Though the leisure pool is currently down

 

[rob0519]

We stayed there in maybe 2001. I don't remember what building we were in, but it seemed like the farthest one from the food court, so watch out for that. Since we always rent a car, I can't comment on bus service.