$45 more for a preferred room at CBR?

[Megara5115]

I would only stay at CBR again with a preferred room. It is just so large. That extra will put you that much closer to the feature pool and food court. Well worth it, imho.

I totally agree- stayed there in December with preferred and loved it! I did an early morning walk around the resort with the baby and it is a bit of a walk from the further rooms. I am not saying it's a huge hike but it's just a pain to me to have to go back and forth- especially if the weather is bad or I just want to grab something quick later at night.

Being close to the QS, main pool etc. is important to me so it would be worth it. I like to have the guarantee of being close since room requests unfortunately can't always be accommodated.

 

[Dis703]

I stayed in both Jamaica 46 and Aruba 52. Both were a 6 minute walk across the bridge to OPR. And it's a beautiful relaxing walk so we never minded it at all. 46 was very close to the bus while Aruba 52 was half way between 2 stops so it felt just a tad far when you are eager to get to the parks in the morning.

In regards to paying for preferred I can't see it worth another $45 a day. Our standard rooms were great.

 

[jvz82]

We stayed in Jamaica 45 and it was a super quick walk and we were the first ones to get picked up by the bus and the first ones dropped off (usually). Our family is too big to stay in a pirate room so it wasn't an option, but I was really happy with our room and even with a family of 6 I felt like we had enough space. 45$ a night is quite a bit.

 

[JungleCruiseFan]

I will say that a 6 minute walk isn't bad, but if your like my family and like to spend a lot of time at the resort and frequently go to fill up a drink, grab a snack go to the arcade, etc. it really adds up because you still have to walk back! 6 minutes away from the food court means a "quick trip" to fill up drink mugs will be 12 minutes of walking plus another 2-3 inside the food court so about 15 minutes.
If your staying in the summer being 6 minutes away (12 round trip) or being 2 minutes away (4 round trip) could be the difference between an enjoyable walk or having to change your shirt when you get back because you sweated though it!

 

[Dug720]

I am looking to rebook a room only reservation and I checked Undercover Tourist. They have $165 for my dates for a standard and $210 for a preferred. We are staying 7 days. I normally don't get preferred but this time I did because 1. The size of the resort and 2. I know there will be a lot of sports kids down there (one of them will be mine and her team) and I know they always book standard rates. This is just a small guarantee of avoiding them

But $45 more a night for 7 days? I was already looking to pay $221 on the Disney site so $210 is still a great deal for preferred. But $165 is a great deal and I hate to pass that up and just ask for a certain area semi-close. I think anything but South Trinidad is doable.

Thoughts?

Not sure how that "guarantees avoiding" the sports kids. They'll still be in the same food court, the same pool, the same grounds...

 

[maxiesmom]

I will say that a 6 minute walk isn't bad, but if your like my family and like to spend a lot of time at the resort and frequently go to fill up a drink, grab a snack go to the arcade, etc. it really adds up because you still have to walk back! 6 minutes away from the food court means a "quick trip" to fill up drink mugs will be 12 minutes of walking plus another 2-3 inside the food court so about 15 minutes.
If your staying in the summer being 6 minutes away (12 round trip) or being 2 minutes away (4 round trip) could be the difference between an enjoyable walk or having to change your shirt when you get back because you sweated though it!

Exactly. If like me you frequently go to the food court or gift shop the walk can become a giant pain in the rear. For me walking leisurely it was 20 minutes round trip to get my mug refilled. And the mug would be empty by the time I made it back to my room. I did that twice at night after a long day in the parks. Then I ended up buying pop from the machine near my room.

I can honestly say that is the one time I listened to the majority on the Dis (don't pay for preferred it is a waste!) and regretted it. Which is why I am so vocal about it. People really need to think it thru and be honest. Yes, saving that money adds up quickly. But will it irritate you the whole time to have to walk up front?

 

[Dis703]

I will say that a 6 minute walk isn't bad, but if your like my family and like to spend a lot of time at the resort and frequently go to fill up a drink, grab a snack go to the arcade, etc. it really adds up because you still have to walk back! 6 minutes away from the food court means a "quick trip" to fill up drink mugs will be 12 minutes of walking plus another 2-3 inside the food court so about 15 minutes.
If your staying in the summer being 6 minutes away (12 round trip) or being 2 minutes away (4 round trip) could be the difference between an enjoyable walk or having to change your shirt when you get back because you sweated though it!

If you are grabbing a snack or a drink on your way to or from a park though you won't have to walk back. There is a bus stop right at OPR (the food court) so you can grab your drink and head right to the park or hop off at OPR on your return trip and grab food before heading back to your room.

As for the summer, I can't walk outside at all without being drenched from head to toe so I would think it probably matters even less, lol. But if your resort time is a break from the rest of the park heat and running around I guess it could add up.

 

[Suzanne74]

Not sure how that "guarantees avoiding" the sports kids. They'll still be in the same food court, the same pool, the same grounds...

I realize that. I know multiple teams that will be down there. I am only avoiding them for sleep. I wouldn't have booked there if I wanted to avoid them completely.

 

[Suzanne74]

Exactly. If like me you frequently go to the food court or gift shop the walk can become a giant pain in the rear. For me walking leisurely it was 20 minutes round trip to get my mug refilled. And the mug would be empty by the time I made it back to my room. I did that twice at night after a long day in the parks. Then I ended up buying pop from the machine near my room.

I can honestly say that is the one time I listened to the majority on the Dis (don't pay for preferred it is a waste!) and regretted it. Which is why I am so vocal about it. People really need to think it thru and be honest. Yes, saving that money adds up quickly. But will it irritate you the whole time to have to walk up front?

And I think this is what I need to decide. We stayed at CSR and SSR before but we stayed near the pool/bar/soda refill so we rarely went to main building. Since CBR is set up so different, I thought preferred would work because we will take mid day breaks occasionally, will be going to WW of Sports here and there, and utilizing the pool a lot. I think my 7yr old would want the main pool because she loves water slides. Normally I would never pick preferred, especially $45, but it is a tough decision. If we were staying at the parks all day, I would not care but for the dynamic of this stay, I am torn.

 

[Dis703]

And I think this is what I need to decide. We stayed at CSR and SSR before but we stayed near the pool/bar/soda refill so we rarely went to main building. Since CBR is set up so different, I thought preferred would work because we will take mid day breaks occasionally, will be going to WW of Sports here and there, and utilizing the pool a lot. I think my 7yr old would want the main pool because she loves water slides. Normally I would never pick preferred, especially $45, but it is a tough decision. If we were staying at the parks all day, I would not care but for the dynamic of this stay, I am torn.

My worry over booking preferred and spending the money, when I've considered it, is what if I get the furthest preferred room. Then I'm walking as much or possibly more than the closest standard rooms but I still spent the extra money. Being I'm always trying to keep to a tight budget anymore it's not a chance I've taken.

 

[buzznina]

We have only did the mugs a couple of times and we spend a good amount of time at the resorts we stay at. But when we are there we do not just sit in our room, so rarely did we need to go back and forth from our room to refill our mugs. Most of the time we were by the pool or arcade etc. so we were always close to a refill station. Plus; if I am just hanging at the resort I am in hurry, so no need to get back to my room 3-5 minutes quicker.
The most common arguement I hear for preferred, seems to be to refill their mugs. If you are mainly doing it because of your free refills, then in reality you are now paying $45 a night for that mug. For $45 a night you could buy over 20 bottles of soda per day from your buildings vending machine and that is the shortest walk.

 

[maxiesmom]

We have only did the mugs a couple of times and we spend a good amount of time at the resorts we stay at. But when we are there we do not just sit in our room, so rarely did we need to go back and forth from our room to refill our mugs. Most of the time we were by the pool or arcade etc. so we were always close to a refill station. Plus; if I am just hanging at the resort I am in hurry, so no need to get back to my room 3-5 minutes quicker.
The most common arguement I hear for preferred, seems to be to refill their mugs. If you are mainly doing it because of your free refills, then in reality you are now paying $45 a night for that mug. For $45 a night you could buy over 20 bottles of soda per day from your buildings vending machine and that is the shortest walk.

Convenience usually had a cost. I'd rather pay the money and save my time.

 

[Suzanne74]

My worry over booking preferred and spending the money, when I've considered it, is what if I get the furthest preferred room. Then I'm walking as much or possibly more than the closest standard rooms but I still spent the extra money. Being in always trying to keep to a tight budget anymore it's not a chance I've taken.

That is exactly what my main fear is. And then I will be evil eyeing my neighbors across the way in their $45 cheaper room the whole week