Why not CSR instead of POR? Are the pictures misleading? Help me please!

[kymom79]

We are going to Disney this fall and trying to decide on a resort -- but here's our dilemma: It seems like just about everyone, everywhere loves Port Orleans (especially Riverside) and considers this by far the best Moderate. However, based on the hotel website and pictures found elsewhere on the Web, Coronado Springs (and to a lesser degree, CBR) look absolutely enchanting to us. POR looks fine but nothing special, so we're wondering: is CSR completely underwhelming in person? Does POR have a magic about it when you're there that pictures can't capture? Or are we just the rare people who will truly prefer CSR or CBR?

In case it helps to answer this, we stayed at the Swan 3 years ago and found the "entertainment architecture" escapist and delightful. We didn't find the presence of convention capabilities at all rendered the hotel sterile or uninteresting. Also, we'll be driving our own car when we go, so distance from a bus stop shouldn't be a big deal.

Would you recommend a split stay in a indecisive case like this? In which case, which two? Or just one (which)? Helllllp! I'm driving myself crazy overthinking this!

 

[saskdw]

CSR is a great resort. IMO it is the best bang for your buck on WDW property. It has Deluxe type amenities that the other Mods don't have and is almost Deluxe at the Mod price.

DIS board has a very strong POR following. I call them the POR army! They invade every thread on the board. I don't personally care for the look of the POR resort's. But I'm sure they are fine. CSR is an easy choice for us because I actually use the fitness club and none of the other Mods have one. Further more I find the "look" more relaxing and appealing. I won't bother getting into all the details other than to say it is a great resort and don't be afraid to try it.

The POR Army will be along shortly to refute everything I've just said!!

 

[heidia]

I think CSR is actually much, MUCH prettier in person. It was lush and tropical. We absolutely loved it and would be going back there this October if we hadn't decided to splurge on the Poly.

 

[minnie mum]

Definitely not one of the POR army, although we do like the resort. But I have to agree with saskw- POR has a large and vocal fan base.

Here's the thing, though- everyone has a favourite. Sometimes it's just a gut reaction to the photos. Sometimes it is personal experience from a previous visit. Who knows. Who cares. Don't pick a resort because somebody else likes it. Pick a resort because it feels right to YOU!

If CSR feels right, looks right, then go for it! There are lots of people who love it. I also wouldn't do a spit stay unless there were 2 resorts that I really, really, really wanted to stay at. I wouldn't do it for a resort that I kinda thought maybe I should want to stay at.

 

[grimley1968]

I don't recommend a split stay if you can avoid it. I hate packing/unpacking in the middle of a vacation.

As for CRS versus POR: I prefer POFQ to both of them! But mainly that is because POFQ is the most compact resort of the moderates. Cutting down the walking at the resort after all the walking in the parks is a big priority for us.

CSR was okay, but nothing special, IMHO. The CSR feature pool may be the best pool in all of WDW, including deluxes. But it can be a LONG walk from a CSR room to the pool, to the food court, to a bus stop, etc. CSR is extremely spread out with a lake in the middle of it to isolate areas even more. It can take 10-15 minutes to walk from some rooms to the pool. Great pool, but that's too much walking for our tastes. Also, CSR is a convention resort. A convention may not directly impact your vacation, but we stayed there during a convention once and were simply unable to use the food court there, it was so packed with conventioneers.

POR is also spread out, but not nearly so much as CSR. It also surrounds a creek that leads to DtD, rather than a lake like at CSR. Further, POR has more bridges crossing the waterway, making for less circuitous walks to get from A to B. The boat that goes to POFQ and DtD is a nice feature, too. POR and POFQ's feature pools aren't quite as spectacular as CSR's, but they both have slides and kids love them, especially with less walking to get there.

The rooms between the resorts are pretty similar. Aside from that, the differences mostly are in theming.

 

[wdw4rfam]

I have never stayed there, but it would be my first choice if the rooms slept five. We stay at POR because it is the only mod that sleeps 5. I am not willing to pay deluxe prices, or family suites that are basically deluxe prices, so its our only option. Now dont get me wrong, POR is a wonderful resort and beautiful, a great foodcourt, and boat to DTD, but would try another in a second if I could.

 

[daannzzz]

I have stayed at Coronado Springs, Port Orleans Riverside and Caribbean Beach 3 times each. We had one stay at French Quarter.

I like Riverside slightly more than Coronado and Caribbean Beach.
Coronado Springs is really Beautiful. I find the Ranchos the best themed with the Cabanas second. The Casitas are pretty from far away and in some specific locations but seem a bit cheaply built. Some of the architectual details look like plywood with a bit of stucco texture on them. Still it was nice when we stayed in that section. Walking around the resort is really relaxing and so varied as you pass from one themed area to another.
If, based on the photos and video you have seen you find it to be more appealing, go for it. Loads of people LOVE Port Orleans French Quarter and it is my least favorite so we don't stay there. Don't let others opinions overwhelm your own intuition.

 

[Lynne M]

It's really a matter of personal taste. Each of the moderates - actually, every Disney resort - has fans who'd never stay anywhere else, and guests for whom one visit was enough.

There's an ebb and flow in the message traffic on this board for every resort. Some weeks it seems like POR is all we talk about, and then the next week it's the Wilderness Lodge. It's coincidence, more or less.

Each of the resorts has their own kind of magic. If CSR is calling you, go for it.

 

[ldnoggle]

Ill chime in here too- it does all come down to personal taste, but we've stayed at CSR twice and absolutely loved it and thought it was beautiful!

 

[minnienmickey]

Beautiful photos!

Each resort has their own special touch, that's what makes it so difficult to decide. One of my favorite disney memories was playing twister with my brothers at Pop Century. I have stayed at POFQ and used the amenities at POR during our stay. It was nice, but not overly spectacular. One thing we really enjoyed was watching the jazz musicians' performance by the pool.

I was thinking of staying at CBR our next trip, but CSR is looking pretty awesome. It would be fun to watch a movie about Coronado's quest to set the mood. Oh and do a scavenger hunt based on the seven cities of cibola.

 

[elaw]

It's really a matter of personal taste.

I personally like all of the moderates. POR is my favorite. I really enjoyed CSR last year but ... the theming is not very appealing/special to me since the southwest theming is very common where I'm from.

 

[jpessa]

I've stayed at CSR, it's a beautiful resort. The pool area is fabulous, with a great playground for the kids. We were in the "far" rooms, apparently! Obviously, this was no bother. We were only 1 minute from our car, which is the most important to me! We were half way between the pool and food court, and neither was more than a 5 minute walk. I love POR and prefer that theming, but CSR is equally beautiful just different theming. Go for it, you'll love it!

 

[geckodani]

I've stayed at CSR and POFQ. While I prefer the size of FQ, CSR has a lot going for it as well! The theming is lovely, and the beds are extremely comfy. If it looks more appealing than POR, go for CSR! As others have mentioned, each resort has a bit of a cult following.

Split stay... I wouldn't, personally. Having to pack up and move in the middle of the trip just doesn't appeal to me.

 

[MagicalMawMaw]

We stayed at POR several times. We loved the resort & the mansions area. I love the rooms in the mansions, but I dislike the rooms in the bayou area. They are just too rustic for my taste. I also love the boat to DTD.
You have no way of knowing if you'll get to be in the mansion rooms & we were put into the bayou rooms on 2 trips. We were switched the next day by request.

POFQ is just not us. Pretty resort but I prefer others.

Since we had problems being in the area we liked we decided to try another moderate.

So we picked CSR. Wow! We loved it!! Love the theming, love the rooms & everything about the resort. I enjoy walking around the lake in the morning or late afternoon... is so peaceful! I also like knowing we will get the type room we like everytime also. I do prefer the Casitas or Cabanas over the Ranchos areas.

CSR is now our resort of choice. We've stayed there several times & are booked again in December.

 

[mommyrosa2]

Like everyone else is saying, it really comes down to personal choice. We were in the same boat as you for this summer's vacation. We couldn't do another deluxe so it was down to CSR or POR. While I've never stayed at POR, we have visited several times and the decor does nothing for me and my oldest DD. We stayed at CSR back in '09 and really liked it - we consider CSR a "deluxe light". Now that CSR offers a business class booking, it was a no brainer for us. We will back this August for 8 days!!

 

[VACamm]

I have stayed at CBR... POR... and POFQ.... out of all of those I liked POFQ the best. We are staying at CSR this June because my sons chose the resort this year.

 

[Masonmj84]

Our first on-property stay was at CSR and it definately wasn't underwheliming in person. For example, after checking in at CSR and exploring the resort, we went to the Poly for dinner. From a first impression standpoint, we found the general ambiance and resort-like "feel" of CSR to be nearly on par with the Poly (and I love the Poly).

Along those lines, I agree with a PP that CSR is the best bang for your buck on property. From both a theming and amenities standpoint, it's my favorite moderate.

It's also regarded as having above average bus service. In that regard, it's pretty centrally located between all four parks (we're not big DTD people, so the boat to DTD from the Port Orleans resorts doesn't do much for us).

To me, the biggest downside of CSR is the size of the resort (HUGE). Others don't like the fact that it hosts a lot of conventioners visiting on business (I agree that this does somehwat detract from the Disney magic but the flip side is that a lower percentage of the resort's guests are using the busses).

 

[grimley1968]

To me, the biggest downside of CSR is the size of the resort (HUGE). Others don't like the fact that it hosts a lot of conventioners visiting on business (I agree that this does somehwat detract from the Disney magic but the flip side is that a lower percentage of the resort's guests are using the busses).

I agree with this, and it did affect our stay. However, I would add that, from what I've read, it's not always packed with conventioneers. We just caught a bad break in that there was some HUGE convention while we were there. They were all polite to us when we encountered them; it's just that the number of them was overwhelming when using services common to conventioneers and vacationers, such as the food court. I'd bet most conventions don't have that many people, and that there might not be one at all for a lot of vacationers. If that particular convention had simply had their meals catered instead of using the food court, I might never have noticed a convention was going on.

 

[Sandi]

Stay where you think you'd like to stay. Then, next time try another resort. We've stayed at all of the moderate resorts and had good times at all. CSR is my least favorite (my ordering is POFQ, POR, CBR, CSR), but I'd go back again. There was a huge convention there when we stayed at CSR and the sidewalks and pool deck were HOT -- right through your shoes hot. POR's landscaping seems to do a better job of dealing with the hot sun. CSR certainly evoked the feel of the southwest!

I think people need to try different resorts so they can then add to the debate!

 

[Shaden]

Going to POR in May, but absolutely LOVE CSR.

Its beautiful, and super convenient, especially the Cabanas section.