First time staying at CBR

[Disneys kid at heart]

Hey everyone this up coming trip to Disney world in 39 days we will be staying at CBR I'm a little nervous as I've heard mixed reviews we normally stay at all star resorts because the kids love them but we thought we would change it up a bit this year so what are your pros and cons about this resort????

 

[loves to dive]

You really didn't give too much information as to why you are nervous or what you think might be bad. I've stayed at all the moderate resorts except POFQ and two of the value resorts, Pop and ASSp and we loved CBR. I suppose one complaint you hear it that it's big but I really didn't find it any bigger than CSR or POR or the long hallways in the deluxe resorts for that matter. You can certainly get a room in one of the villages that are close to all the amenities without paying for preferred and the walk isn't more than 10 min. max. There are bus stops in every village so you are never far from a bus stop. Yes, the buses go around the whole resort, I'm told they send two buses, one for each side but I wouldn't swear to that as the times we took the bus it did stop at all the villages. It's a beautiful resort, loads to do there and the rooms are certainly bigger and brighter than the value resorts. The pool looked good, we didn't use it since we are two adults but we did take advantage of the hot tub and the bar. The villages also have a quiet pool in them, which is nice.

 

[Disneys kid at heart]

I'm worried about the walk to the main building with 3 young children in the mornings for breakfast or even just to refill our drinks although I have requested one of the close buildings but they can't always guarantee that you will get it also I'm hoping the bus rides don't take forever considering they may fill up fast with the size of the resort

 

[mi*vida*loca]

I've stayed there twice and loved it. We never had long waits for the buses. 5-10 minutes was the norm with once waiting more than that. Lots of people complain that it's too big and the buses have 7 stops. On our way to the parks there were about 3-4 stops. The pick ups were really quick. It's not like staying at some of the deluxes where you share bus stops to the parks with other resorts. We were around Aruba 51 with the walk to OPR being short. Aruba 51 and Jamaica 45 are the closest rooms to the bridge to OPR (other than preferred). You can certainly request them and hope for the best. The pool is really great. My kids are big pool people and they really enjoyed the splash pad and pool slide. The QS food is pretty good.

 

[mi*vida*loca]

I'm worried about the walk to the main building with 3 young children in the mornings for breakfast or even just to refill our drinks although I have requested one of the close buildings but they can't always guarantee that you will get it also I'm hoping the bus rides don't take forever considering they may fill up fast with the size of the resort

We never had to wait for another bus or stand while going to the parks and we are RD people. On the way back we stood once.

 

[VACamm]

Pros: Beautiful landscaping, clean rooms with cute pull down bed
Cons: long walks if you aren't in Preferred rooms, main pool is super crowded

 

[Disneys kid at heart]

I've stayed there twice and loved it. We never had long waits for the buses. 5-10 minutes was the norm with once waiting more than that. Lots of people complain that it's too big and the buses have 7 stops. On our way to the parks there were about 3-4 stops. The pick ups were really quick. It's not like staying at some of the deluxes where you share bus stops to the parks with other resorts. We were around Aruba 51 with the walk to OPR being short. Aruba 51 and Jamaica 45 are the closest rooms to the bridge to OPR (other than preferred). You can certainly request them and hope for the best. The pool is really great. My kids are big pool people and they really enjoyed the splash pad and pool slide. The QS food is pretty good.

I have requested both of those buildings so hoping for the best

 

[mickeynut1]

We never had long waits for the buses. 5-10 minutes was the norm with once waiting more than that. Lots of people complain that it's too big and the buses have 7 stops. On our way to the parks there were about 3-4 stops. The pick ups were really quick. It's not like staying at some of the deluxes where you share bus stops to the parks with other resorts. We were around Aruba 51 with the walk to OPR being short. Aruba 51 and Jamaica 45 are the closest rooms to the bridge to OPR (other than preferred). You can certainly request them and hope for the best. The pool is really great. My kids are big pool people and they really enjoyed the splash pad and pool slide. The QS food is pretty good.

This was our experience as well. We loved everything about CBR. While the resort is large, the grounds are beautiful, the pool is great with a fun pirate theme (and each "village" has its own quiet pool), the food court has a lot of variety, and the transportation is quick and efficient. With that said, if CBR appeals to you, I think it's worth a try. Good luck!

 

[Hopefully]

I know that I am in the minority - someone always is - but I hated CBR. I didn't like the theme, the landscaping, anything. I will never stay there again
Hope you like it better than we did. Everyone's tastes are different.

 

[Mickeycrocs]

I know that I am in the minority - someone always is - but I hated CBR. I didn't like the theme, the landscaping, anything. I will never stay there again
Hope you like it better than we did. Everyone's tastes are different.

I'm in the same boat with you. I brought my two year old and the walk to the food court was almost unbearable. We too requested those rooms but didn't get them and it was a very long walk I can't imagine with three kids. Bus system was awful as well. Stopped at every island made the mornings extremely long just to get to the parks.

 

[KrazeeK120]

I didn't love CBR either. I had some bad experiences that kind of tainted my view though, I think. The first room we were in had mold in it. We got in late (like probably close to midnight) and the room smelled kind of funny and seemed damp, but we brushed it off because we were tired. Fast forward to the next morning...I woke up with watery eyes and unable to breathe through my nose. We headed out to a park and I felt better within 15 minutes, so I knew it was an allergy rather than illness. I'm highly allergic to mold and my husband did a thorough search of the room - found mold in the A/C unit. I wasn't taking medication at the time because I was pregnant. I will say that they moved us immediately upon request, and our second room was fine.

The other issue we had was the buses. MK opened at 6 AM the day we went. We got to the bus stop at 5:40 and there were a ton of people there. No bus had come AT ALL that morning. We decided to just drive. We passed another bus stop on our way out and there was a large crowd of people at that one too. After our afternoon break, we gave the bus another try. We waited a few minutes, and a bus came, but it would only drop people off - wouldn't let anyone on. Again, we just opted for the car, not knowing how long it would take to get another bus. We used a car for the rest of the trip.

It's a pretty long walk from some of the rooms to the main building. I wouldn't even bother trying to get everyone up and over there for breakfast unless you're in a preferred room. You'll lose too much time. I'd just pack some non-perishables (dry cereal, granola bars, cereal bars, or even pop tarts) and eat in the room.

It's not like I had a truly awful experience, but I've liked all of the other resorts I've stayed at better. I doubt I'll ever go back to CBR.

 

[roliepolieoliefan]

Just stayed there for the first time this past week
Never again
Long walks to food court and pool
Crowded buses
Lots of stops
Huge huge resort
And it was just DH and myself
I couldn't imagine dragging young kids around

 

[mickeygirl78]

I love CBR. It's a beautiful resort and the walk to the food court depends on what location your room is in. When you check in, if you do not like your room ask if there is anything closer. We were in Jamaica 44 last month and I loved it. It was a short 5 minute walk to the food court / main pool. We were right next to the quiet pool and right near the bus stop. The busses typically come in near the Jamaica entrance (except Disney springs) so we got to be the first on a lot. Mornings they will do busses for each side of the resort, so you don't hit all the stops. It's a much nicer resort than the values.