Thinking of switching moderate resorts...

[minnie mum]

there is only a difference in 40 bucks over the 8 days, so not an issue between CSR and POFQ.

We are booked for Coronado Springs, however, my husband just spent the last hour reading online reviews and they are quite terrible. While there were many things that are concerning (ie., dingy rooms, small eating areas, very far walk to main building) the main concerning point is the buses. Long waits and not enough (many times reading about the 75 minute wait times). Anyway, now I think we will switch over to Caribbean Beach. How does this one fare in everyone's opinion here. I do realize we go down to smaller beds in the rooms, but I am more interested in the walk to buses, the distance to main building, and if wait times are as horrible as I am thinking the CSR is. I really need suggestions of what to do. The PORiverside and French Quarter are higher in price for our dates, so that's why I am ruling those out. I am also considering going back to a value resort. Oh what to do?????

In your other poll thread started today you said that the $40 difference between POFQ and CSR was not an issue. But in this poll you say that the difference was enough to rule it out??????????????????? As many other PPs have mentioned, on both threads, if you want to minimize walking at the resort, POFQ is the smallest resort onsite.

The wait for buses has nothing to do with what resort you are at and everything to do with resort occupancy levels, hour of the day, demand for buses to particular parks and the whim of the central dispatch center that controls the buses. In other words (amongst the resorts you are looking at) none has an advantage over another. And lets face it- you are planning to go to WDW during the hottest and (one of the) busiest times of the year. No matter what, you WILL be spending considerable time waiting in the heat either at a bus stop or queue at the resorts and parks. You are also going to be spending most of your park days walking from place to place. If you have a problem walking at your resort, how are you going to manage walking in the parks?

Ask your DH to stop reading reviews. Let me guess- he was on TripAdvisor? It takes a very large grain of salt and a certain degree of discernment to get a clear picture of a place from that site. Especially when dealing with WDW resorts. I never rely on that site for WDW info, although I do for other locations. Instead, have him read the reviews either here or on one of the other WDW fan sites. Just because we're fans of WDW doesn't mean we can't give a critical review when it's called for. But WDW vets may have an advantage in knowing the ins and outs of the resorts better.

I think this is the 16th or 17th thread that you have posted since February about accommodations for this trip. I hope you will be able to come to a final resolution soon. Something tells me that you are over thinking this.

 

[dminnie]

In your other poll thread started today you said that the $40 difference between POFQ and CSR was not an issue. But in this poll you say that the difference was enough to rule it out??????????????????? As many other PPs have mentioned, on both threads, if you want to minimize walking at the resort, POFQ is the smallest resort onsite.

The wait for buses has nothing to do with what resort you are at and everything to do with resort occupancy levels, hour of the day, demand for buses to particular parks and the whim of the central dispatch center that controls the buses. In other words (amongst the resorts you are looking at) none has an advantage over another. And lets face it- you are planning to go to WDW during the hottest and (one of the) busiest times of the year. No matter what, you WILL be spending considerable time waiting in the heat either at a bus stop or queue at the resorts and parks. You are also going to be spending most of your park days walking from place to place. If you have a problem walking at your resort, how are you going to manage walking in the parks?

Ask your DH to stop reading reviews. Let me guess- he was on TripAdvisor? It takes a very large grain of salt and a certain degree of discernment to get a clear picture of a place from that site. Especially when dealing with WDW resorts. I never rely on that site for WDW info, although I do for other locations. Instead, have him read the reviews either here or on one of the other WDW fan sites. Just because we're fans of WDW doesn't mean we can't give a critical review when it's called for. But WDW vets may have an advantage in knowing the ins and outs of the resorts better.

I think this is the 16th or 17th thread that you have posted since February about accommodations for this trip. I hope you will be able to come to a final resolution soon. Something tells me that you are over thinking this.

to all the points in this reply.

If you catch yourself over thinking where to stay, just remember you're not BUYING the place. It's just a home away from home for a few days. Relax and have fun!

 

[Indy Denise]

I also agree that you are "over thinking " it.

There will be great reviews, bad reviews, so so reviews of any place. You could have a great stay in CSR and revisit the same resort next year and your experience could vary. Your experience WILL vary from the guest next door to you..and the one in the next building over.

What is important to you? If you want to have the shortest walk from a bus/foor court/pool to your room then book POFQ..or book a perferred room location elsewhere and pay the price.

Personally I would love to try CSR but am staying in POR because originally I was booked 5 in one room. Then when the summer sale came out we added another room and I looked into CSR but rest of our group vetoed it. They wanted the boat to DTD ( can't say I blame them ).

I hope you are happy with whatever you decide to to ..this is Disney after all and it shouldn't be this stressful to have fun.

 

[ginnygi]

The bus service was the best part of CS. First of all, CS is the most centrally located hotel on Disney property. The bus rides from hotel to parks were the shortest we ever experiences. I have stayed at POR and CBR. As for the long walk to main building, that is the same for ALL the moderate resorts. They are all built basically the same way and are all spread out, except PFQ, which is smaller than the other moderates. We just stayed at CSR in Feb/March. The rooms were very nice and perfectly clean. (we had two rooms) The only complaint I have about CS is the food court. It did kind of suck a little, but that is not the most important factor in our vacation. We were a little annoyed with the waits we experienced in Pepper Market, but nothing more extreme than a mild annoyance. Manageable, you know? BTW, the hotel pool was super awesome. We would not hesitate to stay there again. Although we may want to stay somewhere else just to experience something different, there was nothing that turned us off the hotel.

 

[maxiesmom]

I would not switch CSR for CBR. No way! CBR is much much larger, and has 3 more internal bus stops than CSR. Plus smaller beds. Plus CBR has yet to be redone, and CSR has been. Between those 2 resorts, you should stick with CSR. To me, it isn't even a hard decision.

I actually found the bus service at CSR to be better than that at CBR. But that mostly has to do with luck. Each resort can have bad or good service. However CSR does have an edge as many people staying there are going to conventions during the day. That means fewer people on the buses at CSR.

I agree though, you are waaaaay over-analyzing. Stop! Which resort appeals TO YOU? Stop reading on-line reviews. Which resort do YOU like? No Disney resort is horrible. You will be fine wherever you stay. Pick based on your likes. And stop reading reviews.

 

[paintnolish]

CSR is our home away from home! Just booked our June trip. When I gave the kids the option of staying at AKL or WL, they still chose CSR! We've stayed all over the resort, with Cabanas being our favorite section and Ranchos being our least favorite. The busses at the mods are far superior to the values, too.

 

[cjsm&d]

CSR is a big step above the others listed in my personal opinion, and I don't think it's close.

 

[goofy4tink]

We are booked for Coronado Springs, however, my husband just spent the last hour reading online reviews and they are quite terrible. While there were many things that are concerning (ie., dingy rooms, small eating areas, very far walk to main building) the main concerning point is the buses. Long waits and not enough (many times reading about the 75 minute wait times). Anyway, now I think we will switch over to Caribbean Beach. How does this one fare in everyone's opinion here. I do realize we go down to smaller beds in the rooms, but I am more interested in the walk to buses, the distance to main building, and if wait times are as horrible as I am thinking the CSR is. I really need suggestions of what to do. The PORiverside and French Quarter are higher in price for our dates, so that's why I am ruling those out. I am also considering going back to a value resort. Oh what to do?????

You are going to see a lot of negative reviews for any resort at WDW!! It's a fact of life. I have friends that didn't stay anywhere other than CSR!!! They loved it there and always had good experiences. Now they own DVC and are sad that they don't get to stay at CSR.
Every single resort is going to have long bus waits for your time period. And a wait of 75 mins at any resort is far from normal!!! There can be long walks at any moderate resort other than possibly POFQ!!! They are large spread out resorts.
I would recommend staying with what you have. If you can find a good rate at a value, then fine, go for it. But you need to realize that no matter where you are, June 25-July 3 is a busy time at WDW and there will be longer than normal waits for buses everywhere!!!!

 

[Sue M]

Take the reviews with a grain of salt! Mostly its unhappy people that post reviews. The people that didn't have any problems and had a great stay rarely post a review.
Glitches can happen at any resort, at any level. We've had many stays at different WDW resorts, and I can tell you that in my experience 99% of the time the WDW transportation works well. At any resort.

My first WDW resort stay was CBR, and it had terrible reviews from mouldy rooms, to dirty rooms with horrible housekeeping. Nothing could have been further from the truth. Our room was very clean, no musty bad smells, and our housekeeper was wonderful. I no longer read reviews for WDW resorts.

I would do your research, look at the CSR map, and make a room request with what area or building you'd like to be in, and phone reservations to have it attached to your res.

 

[MrsBoyer428]

I can't speak for the other resorts, but DH and I stayed at CBR for our honeymoon last year and loved it. We were in Jamaica, which was right across the lake from the food court and main pool. All it took was a walk over the bridge and through the tropical woods and to the food court we go. Disney will charge you an upgrade fee if you want to be what they consider to be "close" to these places, so I'd request to be in Jamaica that way you're still close, but don't have to pay more for it.

The room was clean, the staff was amazing (Duh, it's Disney, the staff is always amazing) and we got to see lizards and turtles and all sorts of little animal friends on our walks from our room to the "mainland"

Some posters have complained about the bus system in the fact that at CBR you have to stop at every "island." While this is true, I think it works out better because you have multiple stops at ONE resort, as opposed to having to go to multiple resorts. That's JMO though.

It's really up to you. Unless every single review is terrible, I usually take them with a grain of salt. Go with your gut.

 

[KELLY]

We really cannot stay at French Quarter because of price. We are at the top of out budget with CSR, but seriously thinking of going back to ASM because of the bussing situation and size or resort.

If you feel more comfortable with a value. I say go with that. I have stayed at CSR and didn't find it big. But the values are more compact and just are set up that really no room is that far. Plus you mentioned budget and if you are at the top then maybe a value would be better for this trip.

 

[jess20k]

We love Coronado Springs so much! We are returning again in a few weeks. I like to now book a preferred room since they started offering them. It is a little more money, but worth it to us. We love the Casitas Section, especially Casitas 3! It is near El Centro. The resort is absolutely gorgeous! The pool is amazing too! We have always had a wonderful experience here. Great Cast Members and clean rooms! CSR is definitely our favorite mod.

 

[maryj11]

We stayed there a few years ago. I thought the buses were the fastest I have been on and we have stayed at WL,POP,POR,ASM,and POLY. We were at CSR during labor day week and I really thought they were super quick but then again it was off season. I thought the food area's were fine, they also an outdoor area to eat at. The only thing that kind of bothered me was the walk to the main building. But you can get a preferred room and be closer. My grand daughter really enjoyed the pool and slide, while I enjoyed the huge hot tub. I did not think the room was dingy at all, dont know where that came from ? CSR is way better than POP or ASM in my opinion.

 

[maxiesmom]

OP--If you are looking on Trip Adviser, CSR actually has a better rating that CBR. And POFQ is miles ahead of either of them.

 

[Jetta8300]

I'm pretty sure CBR is actually BIGGER than CSR... So if you are looking for a shorter walk, switching to CBR will not help you at all.

We stayed at Coronado last trip and absolutely LOVED it, much more than the deluxe Contemporary resort. It is absolutely beautiful, and we didn't think the walk was very long at all to the main building. We stayed in the Cabanas section, but it was a bit further out and right next to the Ranchos. The rooms were great in every way, and abolutely loved the food offered there in both the Maya Grill and Pepper Market, again much better than the Contemporary in our opinion.

We are probably going to do POR next trip because we like variety, but the CSR will be tough to beat. Don't pay attention to trip advisor reviews either, I can't believe the nitpicking people do at some of the wonderful places we have stayed in WORLDWIDE.

 

[msjprincess]

Out of your choices I'd pick CSR. It's my second favorite mod after POR. And like others have mentioned already CBR is more more spread out than CSR.

 

[tinkerbellmagic]

We have stayed at 3 of the mods, CSR, CBR, and POR, and really like them all very much. All are very pretty. We didn't find the walks too bad at all at any of them, unless it was during the hottest time of day. I would not book a value instead of a mod. A mod makes me feel like I'm really on vacation with it's lush grounds and views. The values are too much concrete, imo. I want something more tranquil, especially after a long day in the parks.