We were there 11/17-24. Stayed in Casitas 3. Room was standard view. Thanks to Buzz and so many others who gave such detailed and glowing reviews. Our overall impression of CSR was very favorable, and we enjoyed our stay there more than we did at POR 2 years ago. Sorry for long report but for those who want some details...
The good: Casitas 3 was a short walk to both El Centro and Bus Stop 2. We only waited on one single occasion for more than 10 minutes for any bus--99% of the time the bus we were expecting would magically appear on cue so there was no wait! We were close to a quiet pool and laundry, and the one day we went to the dig site, we drove over. Buses were always at the ready at the parks, and at MK, the CSR bus stop is one of the first in line! So convenient!
Grounds are amazingly kept up and well manicured. Landscaping is lush and the fountains and pools are also amazing. The poolside grill is fabulous and had great CMs staffed there. Hot tub was wonderful. I'm typically a little squeamish about hot tubs given all you read these days, but a few minutes in that tub quickly erased 3 days of pain from walking all over the World.
Parking was very convenient for going out and about with our rental.
Gift shop at El Centro has a large variety/stock of merchandise. Service was always great. One day I had about 2 minutes to rush in, grab a package we had purchased at MGM, and run back to the bus. A store CM took care of everything for me in less than 30 seconds! Other CMs were very helpful also throughout our stay.
Mousekeeping: average, not Mr Clean-Clean, more like "good enough" clean, but it wasn't scary or anything. Plus we did receive a very nice thank you note from one CM for the tips we had left.
One day, DH left the KEY IN THE SAFE with all the valuables in it! All the while at the park, I'm thinking, good bye credit cards, good bye cash. Nope. Couldn't have been more wrong. Everything was left as is, safe and sound. Wouldn't try that again, but hey, it's nice to know there are still honest people in the [W]orld.
When we needed extra towels, a call to them yielded 2 visits with handfuls of towels. Service with a smile, too.
Roomy, clean armoire that housed over a week's worth of clothes for myself and my 2 kids. DH kept his in the suitcase. I thought the noise level (both from the exterior walkways and from the upstairs and adjacent rooms) was extremely low. Barely heard much at all even with people right next door.
Wake up calls always on time. Always. Perhaps this is not surprising to others, but I'm just gonna say, I have stayed in posh 5-star hotels in the ritziest part of London that just could not get the calls done right. In this electronic age, you would think this is a no brainer. DH nearly missed a flight back to the US once because of a missing call!
Guests around us were mostly families. Maybe because it was a holiday week. I noticed no business travelers. My mother did use the business center and said they were extremely helpful and allowed her use of it free of charge for more than 30 minutes.
Could be improved:
As I said, not the cleanest. I just feel like the bathrooms and sink areas at both CSR and POR could really use a good bleach scrub, and I am by no means a neat freak. But with such a small space and so many people using the bathrooms, I wish that Disney would work harder on this. The bathroom really gave me a Cell Block H feeling overall. Lighting was weak, tiles were depressing.
Need to know, but can't be changed:
Typical of all moderates, you're pressed for room when you have 2 kids plus a spouse in the room. And double beds are not queens but that comes with the territory. That's not unique to CSR, of course. Want a deluxe...gotta pay up.
Layout of the resort buildings can be confusing even internally. Took me a couple of days to get the hang of where was what, and admittedly I need extra GPS but I'm just saying, it's a little mazelike. Also, be ready to do some walking if you stay in the Casitas. Elevators and stairways are rather spread out so to get ice or vending or go to the laundry area means tacking on extra time.
We had requested connecting rooms with my parents and they checked in shortly after 3 but we didn't until after 7 or 8. Parents got 1st floor while we were up on 2nd. It's not guaranteed, I know, but it would have made the trip a little nicer.
Biggest disappointment:
No flames--I know others have different opinions and experiences, but we realllllly didn't like Pepper Market. And we really tried to, honestly. We are not picky folks--we ate breakfast there a few times (both there and to go), and also tried dinner. Just wasn't very tasty and not good value. Even grits! They have an asian station but that was NOT Chinese food, try as they might. I seriously felt like college dorm food was better tasting. Out of all the service areas at CSR, I felt Pepper Mkt could have improved service in terms of greeters/hosts, station workers, and cashiers. The 2 servers we had were decent and friendly. But there's an issue with the queuing at the check out line, which I think could be improved if they had an express check out for "to go" folks and didn't set it up so the lines go back so far into the dining room, creating a nightmare when diners in that area get up to order more food and bump into those waiting in line. All I could think about while waiting in a long line to check out was TGM and his "grains of sand" in the hourglass. We skipped breakfast at PM after day 2. It's not that big of a deal if you're not planning to eat onsite much. In contrast, the poolside cafe was perfectly fine--food was way better.
The more time we spent at CSR, the more details we observed that made us feel we would return for another stay there. We'll just plan on buying more items at a grocery store so as not to depend on PM. It's a gorgeous place with a very upscale tropical resort feel that I didn't get when we stayed at POR. Theming is very well executed.
The good: Casitas 3 was a short walk to both El Centro and Bus Stop 2. We only waited on one single occasion for more than 10 minutes for any bus--99% of the time the bus we were expecting would magically appear on cue so there was no wait! We were close to a quiet pool and laundry, and the one day we went to the dig site, we drove over. Buses were always at the ready at the parks, and at MK, the CSR bus stop is one of the first in line! So convenient!
Grounds are amazingly kept up and well manicured. Landscaping is lush and the fountains and pools are also amazing. The poolside grill is fabulous and had great CMs staffed there. Hot tub was wonderful. I'm typically a little squeamish about hot tubs given all you read these days, but a few minutes in that tub quickly erased 3 days of pain from walking all over the World.
Parking was very convenient for going out and about with our rental.
Gift shop at El Centro has a large variety/stock of merchandise. Service was always great. One day I had about 2 minutes to rush in, grab a package we had purchased at MGM, and run back to the bus. A store CM took care of everything for me in less than 30 seconds! Other CMs were very helpful also throughout our stay.
Mousekeeping: average, not Mr Clean-Clean, more like "good enough" clean, but it wasn't scary or anything. Plus we did receive a very nice thank you note from one CM for the tips we had left.
One day, DH left the KEY IN THE SAFE with all the valuables in it! All the while at the park, I'm thinking, good bye credit cards, good bye cash. Nope. Couldn't have been more wrong. Everything was left as is, safe and sound. Wouldn't try that again, but hey, it's nice to know there are still honest people in the [W]orld.
When we needed extra towels, a call to them yielded 2 visits with handfuls of towels. Service with a smile, too.
Roomy, clean armoire that housed over a week's worth of clothes for myself and my 2 kids. DH kept his in the suitcase. I thought the noise level (both from the exterior walkways and from the upstairs and adjacent rooms) was extremely low. Barely heard much at all even with people right next door.
Wake up calls always on time. Always. Perhaps this is not surprising to others, but I'm just gonna say, I have stayed in posh 5-star hotels in the ritziest part of London that just could not get the calls done right. In this electronic age, you would think this is a no brainer. DH nearly missed a flight back to the US once because of a missing call!
Guests around us were mostly families. Maybe because it was a holiday week. I noticed no business travelers. My mother did use the business center and said they were extremely helpful and allowed her use of it free of charge for more than 30 minutes.
Could be improved:
As I said, not the cleanest. I just feel like the bathrooms and sink areas at both CSR and POR could really use a good bleach scrub, and I am by no means a neat freak. But with such a small space and so many people using the bathrooms, I wish that Disney would work harder on this. The bathroom really gave me a Cell Block H feeling overall. Lighting was weak, tiles were depressing.
Need to know, but can't be changed:
Typical of all moderates, you're pressed for room when you have 2 kids plus a spouse in the room. And double beds are not queens but that comes with the territory. That's not unique to CSR, of course. Want a deluxe...gotta pay up.
Layout of the resort buildings can be confusing even internally. Took me a couple of days to get the hang of where was what, and admittedly I need extra GPS but I'm just saying, it's a little mazelike. Also, be ready to do some walking if you stay in the Casitas. Elevators and stairways are rather spread out so to get ice or vending or go to the laundry area means tacking on extra time.
We had requested connecting rooms with my parents and they checked in shortly after 3 but we didn't until after 7 or 8. Parents got 1st floor while we were up on 2nd. It's not guaranteed, I know, but it would have made the trip a little nicer.
Biggest disappointment:
No flames--I know others have different opinions and experiences, but we realllllly didn't like Pepper Market. And we really tried to, honestly. We are not picky folks--we ate breakfast there a few times (both there and to go), and also tried dinner. Just wasn't very tasty and not good value. Even grits! They have an asian station but that was NOT Chinese food, try as they might. I seriously felt like college dorm food was better tasting. Out of all the service areas at CSR, I felt Pepper Mkt could have improved service in terms of greeters/hosts, station workers, and cashiers. The 2 servers we had were decent and friendly. But there's an issue with the queuing at the check out line, which I think could be improved if they had an express check out for "to go" folks and didn't set it up so the lines go back so far into the dining room, creating a nightmare when diners in that area get up to order more food and bump into those waiting in line. All I could think about while waiting in a long line to check out was TGM and his "grains of sand" in the hourglass. We skipped breakfast at PM after day 2. It's not that big of a deal if you're not planning to eat onsite much. In contrast, the poolside cafe was perfectly fine--food was way better.
The more time we spent at CSR, the more details we observed that made us feel we would return for another stay there. We'll just plan on buying more items at a grocery store so as not to depend on PM. It's a gorgeous place with a very upscale tropical resort feel that I didn't get when we stayed at POR. Theming is very well executed.
) for December 13-18. This is our first trip in a very long time away from Pop Century where we have only ever stayed in one of two rooms - we have always been very lucky about having our room request honored exactly.
