Coronado Springs Resort - New Unofficial FAQ Thread - November 2012

[Welovedisney!]

Just booked a surprise trip for Sept 7-14. First time staying at CSR. What is the fastest way to get to the PR from CSR using Disney transportation? We have ADR's for Spirit of Aloha at 5:15. We have only used transportation one time and typically just drive ourselves. Thanks!

 

[Shelli_5]

Thank you, capegirl & nedac!

 

[joanne312]

Just booked a surprise trip for Sept 7-14. First time staying at CSR. What is the fastest way to get to the PR from CSR using Disney transportation? We have ADR's for Spirit of Aloha at 5:15. We have only used transportation one time and typically just drive ourselves. Thanks!

Take the bus to MK, then either the monorail or boat from MK to the Poly.

 

[Shelli_5]

I don't have anything booked right now, which makes me nervous. I think I'm going to make a room-only reservation (hopefully with at least a AAA discount) at CSR. Then I can safely wait until later this summer to make a final decision when public discounts come out. If CSR ends up being within $200 of WBC, I will definitely go with Disney. But I want to know the exact price difference before I book something that can't be cancelled!

Shelli

I'm planning a solo trip during the 2nd half of October 2013 & I'm having such a hard time deciding where to stay! First of all, let me say that my dream would be to rent points from a DVC owner & stay in an AKL studio. Unfortunately, my dates aren't flexible & there are no DVC studios available during my length of stay thanks to the F&W Festival. Bummer.

So now I'm trying to decide between Coronado Springs (CSR) & Wyndham Bonnet Creek (WBC). I've never stayed at - or even seen - either resort. Currently, CSR would cost me about $1400, but there will probably discounts offered later this summer. Pros of staying at CSR: Disney theme, hammocks, confident about room quality (furnishings, wear & tear), convenience of using Disney transportation (including Magical Express), access to EMH, ability to pay for everything with room key & send purchases to room from parks. Cons: Very expensive for what you're getting, Disney buses take *forever* to get from Point A to Point B, no sofa in room, may not be able to get a microwave, expensive to purchase breakfast items for room, & room may be far from central area or main pool.

WBC would cost me $600 for a 1 bedroom deluxe. I would rent a car, which would add about $200 for the car itself & $120 for Disney parking fees, so the total would be about $920. Pros of staying there: more space in room, feels more like "home" than a hotel room, balcony (hopefully with a nice view), kitchen & sofa in room, less walking at resort, can prepare inexpensive breakfasts, easy access to pools, can explore other parts of Orlando if I choose, & quick driving time from resort to parks. Cons: Dealing with parking pass/time share sales people, no Disney theme, worried about quality of room (furnishings, wear & tear, etc), not sure if I'll want to drive myself everywhere, need to carry cash/credit cards, & can't send purchases back to room.

What are your thoughts? Am I missing anything on my pros & cons lists? I would love to get some feedback from folks who've stayed at CSR.

Thank you,
Shelli

 

[wdwmom0f3]

I'm not sure how many of you are staying here the week of Thanksgiving, but UCA and UDA are having their cheerleaders and dancers stay here from Monday- Friday that week. They will not be the competition style groups that you normally think of when you hear cheerleaders, they are just here for the Thanksgiving day parade. They will be practicing inside the big building there. My daughter will be one of them, but we have decided to stay at Riverside.

For those who have teenage sons, they will love it!!

 

[JulieT3]

Hi, CSR experts We have always stayed at the one of the deluxes or Shades of Green with our little ones because, among other reasons, the room layout works for us as we like to put the pack & play in the bathroom sink area (I know, I know, who makes their small child sleep in the bathroom?!?!?). We like having the wall to separate us so that our littlest won't be distracted by our older daughter when we're trying to get him to sleep. We still have plenty of room to access one of the sinks, and the tub/shower and toilet are in a separate room, so it is not as bad as it sounds. We booked a bounce back for BC for 10/20-10/24, but the dates prior to that are blacked out. Disney is really pushing the limit for me on how much I'm willing to pay for a deluxe, so we booked CSR for 10/16-10/20. The resort looks really nice, but I'm wondering if there will be space in the sink area to put the pack & play in a way that we can still access the sink.

 

[vnuzz]

Just booked a surprise trip for Sept 7-14. First time staying at CSR. What is the fastest way to get to the PR from CSR using Disney transportation? We have ADR's for Spirit of Aloha at 5:15. We have only used transportation one time and typically just drive ourselves. Thanks!

I don't have an answer to your question but just wanted to say we'll be at CSR Sept 8-15 Night bump into you

 

[Claire&TheBoys]

Hi, CSR experts We have always stayed at the one of the deluxes or Shades of Green with our little ones because, among other reasons, the room layout works for us as we like to put the pack & play in the bathroom sink area (I know, I know, who makes their small child sleep in the bathroom?!?!?). We like having the wall to separate us so that our littlest won't be distracted by our older daughter when we're trying to get him to sleep. We still have plenty of room to access one of the sinks, and the tub/shower and toilet are in a separate room, so it is not as bad as it sounds. We booked a bounce back for BC for 10/20-10/24, but the dates prior to that are blacked out. Disney is really pushing the limit for me on how much I'm willing to pay for a deluxe, so we booked CSR for 10/16-10/20. The resort looks really nice, but I'm wondering if there will be space in the sink area to put the pack & play in a way that we can still access the sink.

Yes, when our kids were in PNP, we could put it in the vanity area length-wise under the clothes rod, between the wall and the counter. We still had room to access the sink and get in/out of the bathroom. When we did this, our toddler would stand up and play with the curtain, but now with the sliding doors, I would think it would be nice and dark for a baby to fall asleep.

 

[MassFamily]

Just booked our second family trip, two girls who will be 9 and 8. Trying Coronado Springs this time, please tell us what you like and/or dislike about this resort1

 

[Hoosier Mom]

Just booked our second family trip, two girls who will be 9 and 8. Trying Coronado Springs this time, please tell us what you like and/or dislike about this resort1

We tried CSR for the first time on our last trip (January 2012). We had our 6 year old with us. He loved it. They had a nice playground. He won a macarena contest at the pool. My husband said the pool was warmer than the one at Wilderness Lodge.

We were in Casitas 5 and enjoyed Casitas very much. We are going to get a preferred room for next time so we can be in Casitas again. We mostly used the bus stop #2 at Casitas. But sometimes after breakfast at Pepper Market, we would just hit the restroom outside the restaurant and then go to bus stop #1. We didn't have any trouble with the buses being full, but our trip was in January so off-peak.

There are some pictures of our CSR trip below. It's only 2 pages of pictures. There's a couple pics of CSR on page 1 and I think the rest of them are on page 2. I know I took some photos of the playground area. We had a rollaway in our room for our son to use.

We are going again. I'm sad that Pepper Market's no longer a buffet. That was such a great deal. I thought the breakfast offerings were every bit as good as Crystal Palace, but it is a counter service credit instead of a table service credit. Can't wait to have a Mickey Waffle again.

I visited the laundry room and it was clean and nice inside, but it took me 2 hours to do laundry while my husband and son played in the main pool. I probably won't do that again. I missed all the fun.

Have fun planning your trip.

 

[Claire&TheBoys]

Just booked our second family trip, two girls who will be 9 and 8. Trying Coronado Springs this time, please tell us what you like and/or dislike about this resort1

We like just about everything!

The pool is awesome - the slide is so fun, even for us big kids.

Overall, we've had decent food at Pepper Market, some meals better than others. Cafe Rix is also a good place for grab-n-go fare.

I love the gift shop there, Panchito's. They seem to have a good assortment of souvenirs.

We've had good luck with the bus service there. Usually once or twice per trip we have an unusually long wait, but overall we have had good luck with it. With the exception of going to/from DTD - those buses seem to take forever no matter what resort you are staying at.

I like that CSR is on the "main drag" through the South end of property. It's only a few minutes to AK, EP and DHS, and MK isn't bad either, maybe 10-12 minutes once you leave CSR. It's also very convenient to the route we use to get to Disney, so that's a plus, too.

Hope you like CSR as much as we do!

 

[j67bubba]

We leave in 3 hours for our 1300 mile adventure to CSR!

 

[buzznina]

Just got word on my conference dates at CSR, so will be heading back to CSR at the end of October. Halloween at Disney World and will also do MNSSHP one of the nights

 

[capegirl]

We leave in 3 hours for our 1300 mile adventure to CSR!

Have a safe journey, and a wonderful vacation!!!

Please keep us all posted on your CSR experience...we can't wait till we get there!

 

[hill6]

We leave in 3 hours for our 1300 mile adventure to CSR!

Safe travels


22 days and a wake up till we are there.

 

[EpcotBill]

I'll be staying at CSR for the first time in October. I've been doing a lot of research but I have a few questions and some things I'm not quite sure about. I'm sure some of the CSR fans here will know the answers.

I understand if you have items shipped by FedEx or UPS that CSR charges a fee. What if you use a delivery service like GardenGrocer or WeGoShop. Does CSR charge a fee for that.

Mug refill locations; Pepper Market inside and outer window, Cafe Rix and Siesta's. Is that right?

Is Rix Lounge where Francisco's Lounge used to be or are they two different entities?

Have any of you runners used the path around Lago Dorado for an early morning run? I imagine it's a beautiful, peaceful, although short run. I think I read it's about 3/4 mile once around. There is a path, right?

 

[Sundancer UK]

Every time someone replies to this thread I get excited butterflies in my belly all over again - I'M GONNA GO STAY THERE!!

I'm interested in epcotbill's questions too, especially about the refills.
I was looking at maps a while ago and am pretty sure I saw one with two jogging trails; one around the main lake and one that stretched a little further... I may be wrong! I'm just getting back in to running and have never managed much more than 5k, but I've put it on my bucket list to go for a good run while at Disney some day

 

[Buddy18]

I understand if you have items shipped by FedEx or UPS that CSR charges a fee. What if you use a delivery service like GardenGrocer or WeGoShop. Does CSR charge a fee for that.

No

Mug refill locations; Pepper Market inside and outer window, Cafe Rix and Siesta's. Is that right?

Cafe Rix is the only spot you can fill yourself. All other spots refill for you including Laguna Lounge.

Is Rix Lounge where Francisco's Lounge used to be or are they two different entities?

yes and then some. Rix Lounge is much larger.

Have any of you runners used the path around Lago Dorado for an early morning run? I imagine it's a beautiful, peaceful, although short run. I think I read it's about 3/4 mile once around. There is a path, right?

The inner loop is .75, the whole loop (through the ranchos) is much larger.

 

[saskdw]

I'll be staying at CSR for the first time in October. I've been doing a lot of research but I have a few questions and some things I'm not quite sure about. I'm sure some of the CSR fans here will know the answers.

I understand if you have items shipped by FedEx or UPS that CSR charges a fee. What if you use a delivery service like GardenGrocer or WeGoShop. Does CSR charge a fee for that.

Mug refill locations; Pepper Market inside and outer window, Cafe Rix and Siesta's. Is that right?

Is Rix Lounge where Francisco's Lounge used to be or are they two different entities?

Have any of you runners used the path around Lago Dorado for an early morning run? I imagine it's a beautiful, peaceful, although short run. I think I read it's about 3/4 mile once around. There is a path, right?

We use Garden Grocer every trip there's no charge. Our order is always waiting for us in bell services when we get there. They have a big cooler to keep stuff cool and will gladly deliver to your room with your luggage.

Rix lounge is a large night club style lounge inside by Pepper Market. There is also an outdoor lounge outside the main building by the lagoon. As well you can get alcoholic beverages at Siestas buy the pool as well.

The jogging path would be ok very early in the morning, but too many people around later in the day. I used the tread mills and bikes in the fitness center. It was all brand new as of 2011.

 

[Mommy2PrincessAbby]

I think the whole idea of jogging or working out during your wdw or DL vacay sounds insane!! We walk 10 miles a day when we do DL...I assume we'll do just as much in wdw... You guys can have the jogging trails lol!!