First Time At Caribbean Beach - Questions

[WorldKey]

I realize this is a Moderate Resort so I'm not looking for comparisons to Poly or Grand Floridian but just wanted an up to date on a couple of things from people who have stayed there (it's probably important to know that we are going in September and also getting a pretty cheap rate of $130 per night):

Pros
Cons
Best building (s)
Bus wait times
Food/Drinks (Adult)

And also - if using Dis Magical Express, how does one get back and forth from your room to the 'Custom House' where you check in? It seems like the rooms can be a long way to drag luggage!

We have stayed at Port Orleans Riverside and loved it every time....hope we won't be too disappointed! Thanks for your help!!

 

[bethymouse]

They should take care of everything for you in terms of luggage. Just ask.
Pros: Nice pool. Pretty grounds. Decent Price. Rooms fairly nice ( pirate rooms are great, but FAR away!).
Cons: Large resort. Shutters restaurant just OK.
Best Building: Aruba is pretty close- just across the bridge.
Bus wait times: Can be long, but no more than about 15 minutes, but it does go around to all building areas, so it takes longer.
Food: Just OK. Didn't experience the pool bar, but I'm sure it's just about the same as other resorts.
Not sure about DME. We didn't experience that.

 

[Master Gracey 5]

Stayed there a few years ago and enjoyed it. Rooms have been redone since I was there but were still nice at the time and had plenty of space. Here are a few of my thoughts:

Pros:
Good location in the world - pretty central with short drives to Epcot and DHS, slightly longer to MK and AK but not bad.
Great pool with pirate theme, waterslide and kids play area.
Rooms have been redone since I was there, but they have good "Nemo" theme standard rooms (not over the top) as well as Pirate theme which is great.

Cons:
Large resort so expect to walk a bit to Customs House or Centertown (food courts and main pool can be 15 min walk from some points) or take resort bus around.
Buses can get packed if you are later in the pick up route.
Didn't eat there except food court once as restaurant wasn't particularly appealing.

Best buildings IMO were Barbados (where we stayed) or Martinique. Both are close to Customs/Centertown and early in the bus pickup route. Pirate rooms are in Trinidad and further along. Can't remember wait times for buses in particular but its a gamble no matter what.

Magical Express drops off bags and we were close to Customs so we just dragged them across the road when we had to leave.

Didn't eat so can't help on adult drinks/food. Overall a good moderate resort and the location in WDW is a huge plus. Nicely themed and as its one of the older resorts the rooms are fairly large and have two sinks in bathroom area which is nice. I'd recommend it but will say that I haven't tried Coronado or Port Orleans.

 

[ShookieJones]

Not a fan of this resort. I've got more than a few posts out there about the pro and cons of CBR.mostly cons in my opinion.
Our family is huge fans of both the PO resorts and CBR just does not compare.
The one pro I will say is the pool nice theme.

I would pay upwards of 50 bucks extra a night to stay at ANY one of the other moderates before spending a week there.

WITH THAT BEING SAID -

I wouldn't NOT go to Disney if this was my only resort I could stay at.
Let's not get crazy..... .you're in the World..you're going to be happy no matter what.

Enjoy.

 

[WellFedDave]

Pros: Bright, tropical theming. Can see Epcot from a number of locations. Central to rest of the world. Good pool.
Cons: Needs some refinement in terms of bus service. Massive layout.
Best building (s): Martinique. We traveled with a large group when we stayed at CBR (our only time) and were placed in Martinque while part of our group was placed in Trinidad South. Massive distance between the two.
Bus wait times: Poor to Awful...good luck if youre going during peak season...
Food/Drinks (Adult): meh.

 

[PUSH]

Pros: Colorful, pretty, nice pools, white sand beaches, good location
Cons: Rooms aren't as nice as other moderates, beds are still full-size, huge resort (can be a lot of walking if far away from main building)
Best Building: Martinique, IMO
Buses: Can be bad if you're at the end of the bus stop route
Food: Food court is slow, but has a decent selection, feels cramped in the sitting area, restaurant (Shutters) is just okay
Drinks: not really sure, there is a pool bar, I believe

 

[Lord_Vader]

Pros: beaches, great resort to relax if you choose. Best pool in the moderates, IMHO.
Cons: It is VERY spread out, bus stops can be interesting, I highly recommend Martinique and walking to the Old Port Royale bus stop depending on which building you are in, it may be closer.
Best Building: Martinique
Buses: If you are in Martinique the buses are generally not too bad, you are one of the first stops and can get of at Old Port Royale as well.
Food: Shutters is not very good, IMHO. The food court area is nicely themed with a decent variety of quick items.
Drinks: Pool bar is nice, right next to the hot tub!
Other Items: You can "watch" Illuminations from the patio at night, last NYE we sat and watched the midnight fireworks at EPCOT from the patio.
The beaches are very relaxing, especially in the mid-day sun, kids can play in the sand, but not the water.

 

[tsaintc]

Pros: decent theming; pirate rooms were nice, but not sure they justified the premium price
Cons: very large resort (largest in WDW based on acreage) - plan on walking.....a lot
bus service was awful (worst out of 25+ trips)
food options are just OK

Not sure I want to mention this, but, in my humble opinion, CBR does not compare well against POR. But, with that being said, your discount sounds great.

 

[WorldKey]

Thanks so much for the advice everybody - a lot of great info!! I agree with one poster, if you haven't stayed at POR it is fantastic IMO so I have a bar set pretty high.....we may not be AS happy but, as one poster put it, we are at WDW so how bad can it get! Thanks Again!

 

[PUSH]

Thanks so much for the advice everybody - a lot of great info!! I agree with one poster, if you haven't stayed at POR it is fantastic IMO so I have a bar set pretty high.....we may not be AS happy but, as one poster put it, we are at WDW so how bad can it get! Thanks Again!

No Disney resort is going to be bad, and you'll enjoy yourself no matter where you stay. Plus that deal is pretty great! More money to spend on food, souvenirs, etc!

 

[RonAnnArbor]

Another vote for either of the PO resorts before CBR, but that is the resort I will stay at if the other two are booked up and I do a last minute trip -- very pretty resort.
VERY VERY spread out -- you have to take the busses everywhere, and in my experience the busses are the worst of any resort I have stayed in at WDW...crowded, take a really long time to make the trip all the way around the resort, don't seem to come as often at the parks.
Luggage: when you arrive they will actually drive you to your resort -- and they will pick you up and drive you back to the Customs House when it is time to leave...it's a neat perk you don't get at any of the other moderate resorts, but Disney is awful in letting you know this up front - you see lots of folks waiting for the shuttle bus at the custom house with their luggage to go to their building because nobody bothered to tell them that the folks in front of the building will drive them to their resort room.
Its a very "secluded" resort -- I don't like how you feel completely in the tropics without anything to see/do without taking a bus to the food court area (or anywhere else its that spread out)...but it Sure is Pretty...and I think that people who are particularly looking for peace and quiet will really like it.

 

[luv]

If CBR would get rid of all the Nemo in the rooms and put in new stuff (carpet, closet bars...whatever is too old), CBR would be my favorite mod again. I just love it there.

Pros - brightly colored buildings, adorable little patio/smoking areas, decent water view, okay gift shop, fairly decent food court grab-n-go and hot food, lovely landscaping, very well kept-up. It's just such a happy, pretty place. You can see a bit of the Epcot fireworks from certain areas. S'mores over a small fire in the evenings, limbo, nice (but small) beaches with a few hammocks. Great place to walk if you feel like walking, which you probably won't. Island music! Woot!

Cons - check-in is in a different building than the food court, looooong waits in the food court (whether it is busy or not), frequently dried, hard bread on grab-n-go sandwiches, rooms need updating and are too full of Nemo cartoons. No elevators, so if you're on the second floor and aren't strong enough to pick the suitcase up to carry it, you have to bang-bang-bang it up the stairs, which is kind of rude and embarrassing.

Best building (s) - depends on whether you like to be as close to the hustle/bustle as you can be...or as far from it as possible. Check the map to see what you might like to request (but remember that you might not get what you ask for!)

Bus wait times - this is the only place I ever took the bus. They played Caribbean music on the way back to the hotel. We waited 5-30 minutes for busses, but waited over an hour for a bus back to the resort after the MK closed. Over an hour!! Everyone is hot, tired and miserable at the end of the day and you all stand there forever, waiting. Horrid! (IMO). If you can afford one, rent a car.

Food/Drinks (Adult) - the food is okay. I don't care for the spaghetti sauce at all. Average food court food at a high price. Breakfast eggs seem like powdered eggs to me, but I'm not sure. I don't drink much booze and can't help there.

 

[dvcnut]

I've never stayed at CBR, but my husband and in-law's always stayed there until we bought into the DVC. According to my MIL, the rooms at CBR are slightly larger than other moderate hotel rooms on-site.

 

[WorldKey]

I love the Forums on WDWMagic - everyone is so generous to give information that makes planning your trip so much easier (and helping others to avoid mistakes!). Thanks again everyone!

 

[WorldKey]

Another vote for either of the PO resorts before CBR, but that is the resort I will stay at if the other two are booked up and I do a last minute trip -- very pretty resort.
VERY VERY spread out -- you have to take the busses everywhere, and in my experience the busses are the worst of any resort I have stayed in at WDW...crowded, take a really long time to make the trip all the way around the resort, don't seem to come as often at the parks.
Luggage: when you arrive they will actually drive you to your resort -- and they will pick you up and drive you back to the Customs House when it is time to leave...it's a neat perk you don't get at any of the other moderate resorts, but Disney is awful in letting you know this up front - you see lots of folks waiting for the shuttle bus at the custom house with their luggage to go to their building because nobody bothered to tell them that the folks in front of the building will drive them to their resort room.
Its a very "secluded" resort -- I don't like how you feel completely in the tropics without anything to see/do without taking a bus to the food court area (or anywhere else its that spread out)...but it Sure is Pretty...and I think that people who are particularly looking for peace and quiet will really like it.

As I said earlier, we love POR.....we're creatures of habit and we like POR so much that we have stayed there 6 times in a row....now a little apprehensive to try something else but, hey, we'll still have fun at WDW and find we either like or don't like CB for future stays! Thanks for the info!

 

[PUSH]

I've never stayed at CBR, but my husband and in-law's always stayed there until we bought into the DVC. According to my MIL, the rooms at CBR are slightly larger than other moderate hotel rooms on-site.

Not to disrespect your MIL, but I believe it's the opposite. According to http://www.dreamsunlimitedtravel.com, the rooms at POFQ have an average room size of 315 sq ft, and the rooms at CBR have an average room size of 314 sq ft. It doesn't state the room size for other moderates for some reason, though.

 

[JillC LI]

Just stayed there in December for the second time. We love it. We always request a standard room in Jamaica or Aruba "near the footbrigdge" because it's a quick walk to the food court in the morning, and you get a great view of the whole resort from that bridge over the lake. We like the hammocks on the "beach" and the steel drum music that plays. Food court and main pool are nice, but so is hanging out on the "beach." We always rent a car so I can't comment on buses.

 

[dvcnut]

Not to disrespect your MIL, but I believe it's the opposite. According to http://www.dreamsunlimitedtravel.com, the rooms at POFQ have an average room size of 315 sq ft, and the rooms at CBR have an average room size of 314 sq ft. It doesn't state the room size for other moderates for some reason, though.

No disrespect taken. I did some research as well and found that most websites indicate that CBR rooms are 340 sq. ft. and the other moderates are 314 sq. ft. Not worth arguing about for sure, but I just wanted to be sure that the most accurate info was on here.

http://www.examiner.com/article/disney-world-moderate-resorts-offer-travelers-affordable-lodging
http://www.mousesavers.com/best-values-at-the-walt-disney-world-resort-hotels/#moderate
http://allears.net/acc/faq_cbr.htm
http://allears.net/acc/faq_po.htm
http://www.mouseplanet.com/9186/Where_to_Stay_Part_One_The_Value_and_Moderate_Resorts

 

[EvilQueen-T]

We're getting ready to stay there this next week as well. I stayed there back in 2004 and didn't have a big problem and we had a single night stay in the pirate rooms while doing a weekend at food and wine right after they opened. They are really spread out and still have double beds not queens like the other mods. We love love love the port orleans resorts and really liked csr but for us a savings of almost $400 compared to the other mods for our dates was worth it for this particular trip and the people i'm traveling with saved $500 off their package. sometimes you give a little to get a little when needed. For us it's still on property and it's still disney...so it's all good.

 

[Shere_Khan]

As I said earlier, we love POR.....we're creatures of habit and we like POR so much that we have stayed there 6 times in a row....now a little apprehensive to try something else but, hey, we'll still have fun at WDW and find we either like or don't like CB for future stays! Thanks for the info!

Have you considered Coronado Springs? We also stayed at PO several years in a row and absolutely love it there. But last year we decided to go to CS and I was pleasantly surprised! I don't love the Mexican theme quite at much as PO but the resort was beautiful, clean, awesome rooms and nice queen sized beds, and it seemed the least crowded and secluded of any resort I've been to.
Just a suggestion.
I really don't love Caribbean Beach unfortunately. The pros of the brightly colored buildings that some posters are talking about actually seem kind of tacky to me. And I will agree on the busses being the worst.
However, if it was my only choice of corse I would still go. It is clean and in WDW, everything else is gravy IMO.

Oh and make sure you come back on here and update us on what you thought when you get back!