Best time to avoid conventions at CS?

[JAMIESMITH]

What is the best time of year to avoid all the conventions at Coronado Springs? The resort is beautiful, but we really hate crowds. We've been considering going in September of 2012.

 

[KatMark]

There really is no way to determine this. We have gone in September every year for the last five years and will do so again this year and have stayed at the CSR each of those times. There has always been one small or large convention going on, but you would never know it as the pools are empty (and I'm told the buses generally are too). Most of the conventioneers are in their meetings and you don't see them throughout the day. The most I see them is in the morning as I'm going for coffee and they are going to their meetings or at the bar at night when DH and I stop for a drink at the outside bar.

There are some dates posted for 2012 in the "unofficial" thread which is linked in my signature.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

Do you think the Polynesian would be worth $1000 more for a week? I really like the look and feel in the pictures of both resorts. Have you ever had to wait very long for a bus?

 

[lovewdwdvc]

Poly is wonderful but only you can decide if it is worth it. WE do not know your financial situation. If the $$ is not a huge factor, you will love Poly.

 

[KatMark]

Do you think the Polynesian would be worth $1000 more for a week? I really like the look and feel in the pictures of both resorts. Have you ever had to wait very long for a bus?

The Poly and the CSR are our two favorite Disney resorts. However, whether or not it is worth $1000 more to stay at the Poly is a personal judgment/preference. When the rates were a lot lower than they are today, we had no hesitation staying at the Poly. However, as our boys got older and went to high school and college and all of those expenses appeared, it was more feasible for us to go to a moderate. We have never looked back, only staying at the Poly once in the last 11 trips and that was for our oldest son's high school graduation (youngest son chose a cruise instead). We are staying at the AKL this year because we got a great deal on a one-bedroom villa through a friend I work with. And even that is only for a couple of nights before we go to the CSR for the remainder of our trip.

As for the buses, I can't really compare because we rent a car and drive everywhere. The only thing I can tell you is that the MK is the furthest park from the CSR, and it is a 10-minute bus ride.

I don't think you can go wrong with either resort. It's just up to you how much you want to spend.

 

[StitchandPooh'sMom]

I don't think you can go wrong with either resort. It's just up to you how much you want to spend.

I totally agree with this. We have stayed several times at CSR and twice at Poly, and I love them both. I'm not sure I love Poly twice as much as CSR, though, although it offers some nice perks. Both are great resorts.

 

[whacked]

I'm not sure why you wouldn't want to be at CSR during a convention. That typically means that the guests will not be using much of anything during the day, as food is often catered. They won't be on the bus or in the pool as they will be doing whatever it is people do at a convention.

What I would want to avoid is Pop Warner and cheerleader at the Allstar Sports.

 

[dragonfly57005]

Do you think the Polynesian would be worth $1000 more for a week? I really like the look and feel in the pictures of both resorts. Have you ever had to wait very long for a bus?

I would scout out the Poly thread. I have to warn you...the Poly fans can be quite crazy in love with their resort.

I didn't like the Poly, but loved the GF atmosphere better. I found the rooms light and airy. They were larger in size than the Poly. My kids found more hidden Mickey's at GF than the Poly. I thought the food options were better at GF. We all enjoyed the pool better at GF.

It is nice to see the boat parade and fireworks from your room or beach from the poly or GF.

There are great transportation options too with being able to ride the boat or use the monorail to get to MK.

How much time do you plan on being in your room? Do you spend all day in the park?

 

[Claire&TheBoys]

I'll tell you honestly that we love CSR and have stayed there 4 times. This last time was probably the most crowded. We went to the main pool on our arrival day and it was quite full. However, we were right next to the Ranchos' quiet pool and it never had more than about a dozen people in it. Our last few days there was some sort of convention there (Elks, maybe?) and we didn't notice them at all, except that the parking lots near the Casitas seemed very full (which didn't affect us).

What I like most about CSR is that the buses do not share with any other resort. That really turns me off most of the Deluxe resorts; we stayed at WL once and while we liked it, we did not like having to detour to Fort Wilderness before heading to a park. When we're waiting for buses at the parks and I see buses that say "Grand Floridian & Polynesian & Contemporary" it really makes me *not* want to stay there. That's a lot of people! We drive to WDW so we certainly have the option of driving to the parks, but prefer to let Disney do the driving for us.

Monetarily, I would not spend an extra $1000 for Poly over CSR. That's almost another vacation for us to WDW (with our resident APs and resident room rates).

 

[vettegirl]

I have stayed at both the Poly and CSR. Love them both, but for CSR wins everytime. The bus service is great, the price is fanstastic, the dig site is one of the best pools I have ever been to, and the ground are just a beautiful and lush as the Poly. The bus service at the Poly stinks IMO as you are sharing with other resorts.

 

[MisWal]

We stayed at the Poly in May and although everyone's bus experience is different, we waited a lot for a bus to non-monorail parks. Especially to DTD. And I agree on sharing a bus. DS is now requesting to stay at the Contemporary/Bay Lake Towers because that's where the bus and monorail always stopped first.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

I'm not sure why you wouldn't want to be at CSR during a convention. That typically means that the guests will not be using much of anything during the day, as food is often catered. They won't be on the bus or in the pool as they will be doing whatever it is people do at a convention.
rotfl2:

I had heard that the Pepper Market gets crazy crowded during conventions. Is this not true? I've also heard that a lot of convention goers get loud at night. Any truth to that one?

There are great transportation options too with being able to ride the boat or use the monorail to get to MK.

How much time do you plan on being in your room? Do you spend all day in the park?

The main reason I'm still considering the Poly is that my daughter will only be four and access to the monorail would be nice. We do plan to spend one day mostly at the resort, but otherwise we'll be at the parks while they're open.

We can definitley afford to spend the extra money for the Poly, but if it's not really worth the money, there are other things we could do with the savings

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

Do you think the Polynesian would be worth $1000 more for a week? I really like the look and feel in the pictures of both resorts. Have you ever had to wait very long for a bus?

I would say it's worth it because their varuous Longhouses are less spread out then the buildings at Corondo Springs, you will have bigger rooms, more transportation options and restaurants to choose from.

 

[KatMark]

I had heard that the Pepper Market gets crazy crowded during conventions. Is this not true? I've also heard that a lot of convention goers get loud at night. Any truth to that one?

The Pepper Market can get crowded at breakfast time and lunch...during their breaks if they do not have a catered lunch. As for convention guests getting loud at night, this can be said of ANY guest staying at a resort (just ask those who stay with the Pop Warner people). We've stayed nine times and have never had an issue with a convention group being overly loud (we had more loudness at the Contemporary).

The main reason I'm still considering the Poly is that my daughter will only be four and access to the monorail would be nice. We do plan to spend one day mostly at the resort, but otherwise we'll be at the parks while they're open.

We can definitley afford to spend the extra money for the Poly, but if it's not really worth the money, there are other things we could do with the savings

As I said earlier, we've stayed at both, and just don't think the prices for deluxe are worth it in the long run. And, if I were to stay at the Poly again in the future, we would still drive to the parks as opposed to relying on buses or the monorail.

Perhaps since the money is not a big issue to you, go with the Poly and you can then try the CSR when funds might be a little tighter and you can't do the deluxe.

I would say it's worth it because their varuous Longhouses are less spread out then the buildings at Corondo Springs, you will have bigger rooms, more transportation options and restaurants to choose from.

You might be right about more restaurant options, but the monorail can be hit or miss and you can have a far room at the Poly just as you can at the CSR (trust me, I've stayed at both!).

 

[Dizneefamily+4]

I had heard that the Pepper Market gets crazy crowded during conventions. Is this not true? I've also heard that a lot of convention goers get loud at night. Any truth to that one?



We've only stayed at CSR once and it was during a convention. Pepper Market was crazy crowded all the time and to us, it was a very confusing food court. We still enjoyed CSR and yes, the pool was also crazy busy because many convention-goers bring their families. I still don't think it was any busier than the pools at other resorts (at least in the height of summer when we go.)

 

[snykymom]

Do you think the Polynesian would be worth $1000 more for a week? I really like the look and feel in the pictures of both resorts. Have you ever had to wait very long for a bus?

I've never stayed at the Poly, but have at CSR. We never had to wait more than 10 minutes for a bus at CSR. The bus navigates the 4 CSR stops quickly and then heads right to a park.

I didn't like the Poly, but loved the GF atmosphere better. I found the rooms light and airy. They were larger in size than the Poly. My kids found more hidden Mickey's at GF than the Poly. I thought the food options were better at GF. We all enjoyed the pool better at GF.

The GF is also a convention hotel. Interesting that no one seems to mind it there!