a 1st timers review of CSR

[abminer]

Well, we got home a week ago so it's time for my resort review. DP and I celebrated our first anniversary with 4 days at CSR 10/29-11/1.

Check in: Our flight landed at MCO at 9:10 and we took DME to CSR. Despite the sign at the DME area saying we were the first stop, we boarded a bus headed to Pop, then CBR, then we arrived at CSR at about 10:30am. There was no line anywhere at check in, but we were greeted by a nice CM and led to the special online check-in desk (I checked in 5 days ahead). The CM was professional and gave us our packet with "Happily Ever After" buttons (which I later determined were likely wrong since we were celebrating an anniversary and these didn't look like the anniversary buttons anyone else had on). Our room was ready!







Sections and rooms: We didn't make any room requests before arriving. Our room was in Casitas 3, top floor, corner room with fountain/courtyard view (#3490).





Here's the view out our door:





We had no pixie dust-inspired free upgrade (in 7 trips I never have), but we found it to be a nice location and room. We actually had trouble finding the room, but a groundskeeper CM helped us. It took us 24 hours to get our bearings and we'd still struggle for the rest of our trip to get around within the Casitas section. I didn't realize how big each section is, but the Casitas are the most maze-like.

It was a nice sized room and honestly it seemed the same size as WL's standard rooms to me. The door in front of the sinks is nice and it leaves a good amount of space in there. The decor is nice, but not very Disney themed (I would have liked more hidden Mickeys). It was quiet. We never heard any neighbors, just a couple voices walking by in the morning rush before rope drop times. You've all seen room pics, but here are a couple including one that shows what the corner room windows are like:





Also, the whole time we were there most of the Casitas fountains were not lit up at night. The one outside our room was only illuminated at our end. Could that be an economy issue?

I also took pics of the other sections. Surprisingly, I liked the look of the Ranchos best. I know people don't like this section, but I can't see why. It's really cool looking, and is near the Dig Site and bus stop 3, which gets picked up second. Also, it's not a long walk all the way around the lake. Compared to CBR this is not a big resort. Being is Casitas 5 is just as far from El Centro as the furthest Ranchos building and you can always use the buses within the resort. Here's the Ranchos:



The Cabanas do have a nice location and beach, but we didn't like the look of them much. It's looks a lot like CBR and I've stayed there before . Here they are:



Mousekeeping: We left a tip daily, but never got any towel animals (I've only gotten them at WL so far). We found mousekeeping fine, except that one day they didn't replace our coffee. We left a note the next day and got double. BTW, the room coffee wasn't bad, but we used two packets for one brew. Here's the machine for you guys that like to bring your own:



I also thought I left my camera in the room after we checked out so I called mousekeeping and they went to look for it right away and called me right back. It ended up being in a Mears cab we took to Boma and I owe CSR's head of bell services and the great people at Mears a ton for finding it. BTW it cost $8.80 before tip for the cab from CSR to AKL, it took less than ten minutes.

While we had good mousekeepers, the poor McCormick family of Atlantic City, NJ didn't. We got all their DME docs twice (including boarding passes) mixed in with ours on our door. I brought their documents to the front desk immediately both times. McCormicks, if you're out there, I hope you made it home ok!

Buses: We thought the CSR buses were great. Our room was very close to bus stop two, which was great as it's the first picked up and dropped off. We had about a ten min wait for Epcot bus on our first day, but that was by far the longest wait we ever had leaving CSR for the parks (we did have two long waits leaving the parks in the afternoon to head back to CSR, once from DHS and once from AK). The buses were always close to empty. We also used bus stop 1 near El Centro a few times and still we never stood once in either direction the whole trip. That has never happened to me before. CSR is also the first or second stop when you exit the park at MK, MGM, and Epcot, which was awesome.

Pools: It was a short trip so we only got to visit the dig site once, but we really liked it. It has a long, fast slide (which adults were using). The water was the perfect temp.



The only time we weren't happy with our room location was once at about 11pm when we returned from DTD and wanted to swim. The Casitas quiet pool was next to our building, but it closed at 9pm and the Dig Site seemed too far to walk to at that hour especially knowing it closed at midnight. We went out to the quiet pool, but some folks had just been kicked out by security so we headed back to the room. It's the biggest of the quiet pools though:



Gift shop: we only used Panchitos twice-for postcards and batteries. Both were very reasonably priced and the CMs were very friendly.



Dining: We ate 2 breakfasts at Cafe Rix. Rix is tiny, with separate counters for coffee, pastries, and hot foods with two check out registers at the end. It's basically a grab n’ go area with a couple hot selections. DP got the regular coffee which he dubbed "fine" (this was his first time to WDW so he knows nothing of Nescafe). The prices were typical for WDW CS. Both times enjoyed it.



We had received a free champagne toast coupon for our anniversary at check in to use at the Laguna Bar, not the one by the pool, the one near El Centro. The staff was sooo nice. Marc and a lady bartender immediately asked us if we even liked champagne. DP does, but when I said no they told me I could have whatever I wanted and asked what I liked normally. I don't drink so I just asked for a diet coke, but they said "we can do better than that!" and offered me a virgin pina coloada, or strawberry or mango daquiri. The mango was yum and we enjoyed sitting out there on the cushion couches.



We saw birds and then the alligator and turtle in the lake there:







So what isn't so great about CSR? Pepper Market!!! PM is simultaneously loved and hated on the Dis, but I was hoping to love it. I prefer TS meals in general so having a place to use CS credits with real plates and more sophisticated menu choices sounded good to me, but...we didn't enjoy it. Ok, it is really as confusing as people say and I was prepared. We ate there twice. Neither time we ate there was the place more than 1/3 full. The first time we had breakfast and it was ok. The staff was friendly enough. A hostess took us to a table, another server came and gave us two tickets to take to the food area, but neither explained the set up well. We were on the free DDP so for you others on the plan know that there are no smoothies or special coffees that come with a CS credit at PM. We shared a CS credit so we ordered an OJ and a coffee which the server brought in to go cups while we walked around the food area to get our food. There were no CMs in the food prep area doing any explaining. We got an adult platter to split and a kids' mickey waffle meal. The waffles were very fresh, but the rest was just fine. I've had better and bigger platters at other resort CS, but we were full. We then got a second server and no one told they were switching. We never figured out if we were each supposed to use our own paper ticket at the food areas or put everything on one. We used one and it made sense at the check out register so that's what we always did. Our second trip to PM didn't go so well. We had dinner there around 7 at the next night. This time our server was attentive, but hovered over us and wasn't friendly. We both ordered from the grill station. My pulled pork meal was just ok (decent sides, but tasteless meat), however DP got the chef's special, stir-fried chicken with rice and an egg roll and it was horrible. We should have sent it back and refused to use a second credit or gotten something else. We were both still feeling the cupcakes we'd had at Starring Rolls earlier so we each opted for ice cream for dessert. At PM you aren't allowed to serve yourself anything, no picking up your own pastries or even toasting a bagel. A CM needs to do everything and sometimes there'd be no one behind the counter so we waited a while. The only ice cream options (at $3.50 for a dish) are hard scooped chocolate and vanilla(which weren’t fresh). The toppings are sprinkles, choco chips, hershey's syrup…, but a CM has to put them on for you. Very annoying. Then we had a disaster at check out. First my card wouldn't go thru, then the register CM said my entree didn't count, then she tried to charge me a service charge and I refused because the breakfast CM told me it was included on the DDP. She gave in and then said I'd used my last cs credit, which I hadn't. A manager finally came and fixed our ticket. This took over 10 min. If we hadn't been on the DDP it would have cost $44! We wished we'd used those two credits at WPE. So in the end we hated PM.



Other: We were there on Halloween. There were Happy Halloween signs, jack o lanterns, activities for kids in El Centro, CMs were passing out candy to everyone, and they showed "Return to Witch Mountain" at the Dig Site (which we didn't stick around for). We didn't expect anything so this was cool.

Conclusion: I hadn't been to a mod in 15 years! I do prefer the way the deluxes feel. I prefer the indoor hallways. I think the main thing is that the exterior corridors mean the windows are right on the walkway so there's no privacy. We kept the shades pulled. I missed having a balcony for this reason too. I also thought the dining options were subpar. I like having multiple (and good) TS options at my resort, which deluxes have. I prefer the values' food courts and deluxes' CS places to PM. However, with the exception of PM, the CMs were very friendly at CSR and I had read otherwise. The landscaping is gorgeous, the rooms are a nice size, and it has an adult feel that we enjoyed. I love trying new resorts each trip, so I doubt we'll be back soon, but overall CSR is a really nice resort (just plan to eat elsewhere or stick to Rix!).

[Echo queen]

Thanks for your review. Being on the 3rd floor where there elevators? Where they timely, were there stairs close by. I tend to have knee issues after a long day, just thinking maybe I should request a ground level room.

[shopn24seven]

First of all Congrats...
Second of all: AWESOME pics.

I am so tempted to stay at CSR, but have not yet.
Nice to nice PM was not that great. e stayed at AKL last trip, and I just HATED their food court area.

[aubriee]

Thanks for the wonderful report. Did you book a waterview room or a standard room? If standard then you did get an upgrade, as that fountain counts as a waterview.

I was there Sept 25th-Oct 4th and loved the resort also. In fact, I'll be back Dec 12th-20th. Can't wait!

[Pixiedust34]

Thanks for the review and photos!

We're trying CSR for the first time in Sept. Pepper Market is one of my concerns. I'd like to be able to get our own refillable drinks in our own mugs. Is it possible to do that?

I loved the gator photo! We're always on the lookout for gators at WDW but haven't seen one yet.

[WDWisOurHappyPlace]

Thanks for the report, nice pictures!

[Disney Ella]

We just got back from CSR yesterday and agree with you about the Pepper Market. It wasn't clear to me if we paid the cashier immediately after we got the food or after we were finished eating. I did ask the server, but I don't think he understood my question. It was a long wait to get our food and some food stations were unstaffed. We decided that once at the Pepper Market was enough. I prefer the traditional food court arrangement. When I go to a food court, I want to get my food quickly and leave, but the PM system doesn't allow that.

[gogo]

Thanks for the excellent trip report. I loved having the pictures following each section of the report. I've been to CSR twice and I think your report is very similar to the views have. Although last year we didn't get a rehabbed room

I agree about the Ranchos section. I really liked the atmosphere but it was inconvenient to run for a quick coffee or drink in the a.m. when we were there. But, great location to the Dig site and bus stop.

Last visit we were in Casitas 2 and I couldn't agree more about the distance to the Dig site being far. We walked to the pool at night and we were so cold walking back. It was last January. We did use the Casitas quiet pool which I thought was lovely.

Again, thanks for posting the great TR.

[jb01]

Great review and pics. I agree with you on PM. Not the best dining experience.

[Micca]

Thanks for the pics and the report. Nice job.

[abminer]

Thanks for such nice feedback everyone

Originally Posted by Echo queen

Thanks for your review. Being on the 3rd floor where there elevators? Where they timely, were there stairs close by. I tend to have knee issues after a long day, just thinking maybe I should request a ground level room.

The only building with no elevator is Casitas 2. Our exact room was right near a stairwell, but a bit of a walk to the elevators for our area.

Since you do have knee problems I would fax in a room request about 4 days before arrival requesting a first floor room (the fax # and sample request are in the CSR faq thread). They may not honor it, but it's worth a try. Even if you do online check in you can also request a room change when you arrive and check in.

Originally Posted by shopn24seven

First of all Congrats...
Second of all: AWESOME pics.

I am so tempted to stay at CSR, but have not yet.
Nice to nice PM was not that great. e stayed at AKL last trip, and I just HATED their food court area.

Thanks for the congrats.

I haven't stayed at AKL since '05 (it's still my fave resort), but we found the Mara to be ok back then. I certainly prefer it to PM assuming it's the same.

Originally Posted by aubriee

Thanks for the wonderful report. Did you book a waterview room or a standard room? If standard then you did get an upgrade, as that fountain counts as a waterview.

We booked a standard room, which have lots of different views, it's the luck of the draw. I *think* a waterview is a view of the lake or one of the quiet pools. The fountain and courtyard views are standard. That was one thing we liked about the Casitas - there were far more courtyard/fountain views than parking lot views which you find more in the Ranchos and Cabanas.

[KatMark]

Thanks for the great and thorough review. I'm glad you enjoyed your stay, depsite the Pepper Market (they really need to consider doing something with it as it is getting more and more bad reviews lately).

Actually, a water view is the lake, a quiet pool or a fountain at the CSR.

Love your pictures as well. Can we use some of them when we update the FAQ Thread?

[abminer]

Originally Posted by Pixiedust34

We're trying CSR for the first time in Sept. Pepper Market is one of my concerns. I'd like to be able to get our own refillable drinks in our own mugs. Is it possible to do that?

Oops, forgot to answer this. There is a big drink refill station at Rix, right next to Pepper Market that you can bring your mugs too. You can do so at the pool bar too.

Originally Posted by KatMark

Love your pictures as well. Can we use some of them when we update the FAQ Thread?

use the pics all you want

[Schmoodle]

Originally Posted by Echo queen

Thanks for your review. Being on the 3rd floor where there elevators? Where they timely, were there stairs close by. I tend to have knee issues after a long day, just thinking maybe I should request a ground level room.

I stayed there in Ranchos 7 in September. I never did find the elevators in our building! One night I set out determined to find them, and after following the little arrows for about 5 minutes, never did locate them. So if being near elevators is an issue, definitely ask about that when you check in. For us it wasn't an issue, as we were right near the stairs and the bus stop was just behind the building.

OP, thanks for the review! I agree with your assessment, except for the PM. We were so far away from El Centro, we never did make it up there except for check in and check out, so we never ate at PM. It is a lovely resort and the rooms are very nice.

[knieriem]

We stayed at Casitas 4 this weekend on the top floor with a view of the quiet pool. I really liked the feel of CSR. The only other Disney hotel I had stayed at was the Contemporary. Unfortunately I spent a ton of time in the room since I came down with bronchitis. My husband walked the grounds and really seemed to like it. I want to stay there again the next time we go back (well the next time in Dec. we're staying off site) so i can experience everything. I was really upset I didn't get to go see the big pool.

I will have to agree that PM isn't the greatest. I didn't get to go in there myself but my husband went to get me breakfast there. It was ok. Not the greatest. I did like that they had Earl Grey hot tea though. I had my fare share of that while I was there.