BRAND NEW CORONADO SPRINGS FAQ THREAD w/ PHOTOS (PART IV)

[KatMark]

Just felt the need to make you all look at my ticker........

Have a great trip!!!!

 

[RocketCityMama]

So here is my review of CSR. We just returned last night.

I highly suggest online check in.... we breezed right past the normal check in line when we arrived. We were given our room assignment. Cabanas 8B 8580 to be exact (parking lot view) in the back of the building. The CMs gave us some "1st Visit" buttons and we were on our way. We made the trek to our building. The room was clean and freshly renovated. The view wasn't great, but we could keep track of the busses going by from our window. The beds were absolute HEAVEN. So comfortable. We slept great. The sliding doors between the bathroom and the beds were a major plus, it allowed me to get dressed and ready without waking up the kids. I will say that the toilet flushing was a nuisance. I heard EVERY toilet in the whole building flush all night long. I think 8B was a fairly packed buidling.. most of the rooms were full, either that or I was in in the room with all the pipes. It was driving me CRAZY!!! My little one thought the toilets flushing was my husband's stomach. She would say, "Is that your tummy? Are you HUNGRY?" She said it everytime. It was pretty funny.

The busses were ok, this was our first visit so I have nothing to compare it to. They were hit or miss, sometimes we would hop right on, sometimes we would wait 20 mintues. We couldn't buy a bus to Epcot. We were at bus stop four (usually the 3rd stop) coming home from the parks so I always had sleeping children by the time we got to our stop.

The Pepper Market was the best counter service food we had during the whole trip. The fajitas and quesedillas were wonderful. I don't get the tipping the waitress thing for simply seating us and bringing us soda in a disposable cup. But the food was great so I guess it was worth it. We had no problems figuring out the system.

The pool was the highlight of the resort for my kids. They LOVED the slide. I happened to LOVE the mojitos at the pool bar. There were a fair number of families at the pool, but also alot of adults around the pool bar. Overall a nice mix. The pool has life jackets for the kids, so my 3 year old was loving floating in the pool all by herself.

One thing I didn't love... the resort was HOT. Now, were in Orlando during record breaking heat in May... but the paths were not shady and walking around the resort in the blistering heat was brutal. My husband did not like the walk to the main building for coffee in the morning, but I guess that is part of the territory with the moderates.

So that is my update. Let me know if you have any questions.

Sounds like overall you had a great trip! We are so excited to try out the pool this time. Both of my dds can't swim so I am glad they have life vest available. It will make me breathe a little easier while visiting. Did your kids wear them on the slide no problem?

We love the PM too, I kinda understand about the tip them overall. I do appreciate them seating us, and doing refills and answering any questions. I kinda look at it this way (not meaning towards you, just generally speaking) we go to several buffets around town, the servers all do the same basic deal, seat you, give you silverware and drinks. We always tip them, granted not as much as we would probably PM but still tip.

We leave in 8 days so excited!!!! HOpe you'lll share some pics too!

 

[banabobana]

Anyone have any idea how far in advance you can check in online?

 

[eag119]

Anyone have any idea how far in advance you can check in online?

I believe it is 10 days. The people in the regular line were so peeved when we finished the check in process in less than 5 minutes with NO LINE.

 

[eag119]

Sounds like overall you had a great trip! We are so excited to try out the pool this time. Both of my dds can't swim so I am glad they have life vest available. It will make me breathe a little easier while visiting. Did your kids wear them on the slide no problem?

We love the PM too, I kinda understand about the tip them overall. I do appreciate them seating us, and doing refills and answering any questions. I kinda look at it this way (not meaning towards you, just generally speaking) we go to several buffets around town, the servers all do the same basic deal, seat you, give you silverware and drinks. We always tip them, granted not as much as we would probably PM but still tip.

We leave in 8 days so excited!!!! HOpe you'lll share some pics too!

My 3 year old went down the slide in a life vest and my husband caught her at the bottom. There is a "Net of Dads" at the bottom of the slide catching non swimmers. LOL. The pool deck is HOT HOT HOT. Make sure your kids have flip flops or crocs.

 

[banabobana]

Okay, one more question--HOW do you check in on line? More specifically--where?

 

[KatMark]

So here is my review of CSR. We just returned last night.

I highly suggest online check in.... we breezed right past the normal check in line when we arrived. We were given our room assignment. Cabanas 8B 8580 to be exact (parking lot view) in the back of the building. The CMs gave us some "1st Visit" buttons and we were on our way. We made the trek to our building. The room was clean and freshly renovated. The view wasn't great, but we could keep track of the busses going by from our window. The beds were absolute HEAVEN. So comfortable. We slept great. The sliding doors between the bathroom and the beds were a major plus, it allowed me to get dressed and ready without waking up the kids. I will say that the toilet flushing was a nuisance. I heard EVERY toilet in the whole building flush all night long. I think 8B was a fairly packed buidling.. most of the rooms were full, either that or I was in in the room with all the pipes. It was driving me CRAZY!!! My little one thought the toilets flushing was my husband's stomach. She would say, "Is that your tummy? Are you HUNGRY?" She said it everytime. It was pretty funny.

The busses were ok, this was our first visit so I have nothing to compare it to. They were hit or miss, sometimes we would hop right on, sometimes we would wait 20 mintues. We couldn't buy a bus to Epcot. We were at bus stop four (usually the 3rd stop) coming home from the parks so I always had sleeping children by the time we got to our stop.

The Pepper Market was the best counter service food we had during the whole trip. The fajitas and quesedillas were wonderful. I don't get the tipping the waitress thing for simply seating us and bringing us soda in a disposable cup. But the food was great so I guess it was worth it. We had no problems figuring out the system.

The pool was the highlight of the resort for my kids. They LOVED the slide. I happened to LOVE the mojitos at the pool bar. There were a fair number of families at the pool, but also alot of adults around the pool bar. Overall a nice mix. The pool has life jackets for the kids, so my 3 year old was loving floating in the pool all by herself.

One thing I didn't love... the resort was HOT. Now, were in Orlando during record breaking heat in May... but the paths were not shady and walking around the resort in the blistering heat was brutal. My husband did not like the walk to the main building for coffee in the morning, but I guess that is part of the territory with the moderates.

So that is my update. Let me know if you have any questions.

Overall, it sounds like you had a good trip. I'm glad you found the beds comfy.
I hope you'll post some pictures when you have time.

I have to say I am going to miss the resort being HOT! With our having to cancel our trip, I'm going to miss those long walks around the lake.

 

[StitchandPooh'sMom]

Arriving in two days! But I haven't been able to check in online - I keep getting an error message.

Edited to add: I was finally able to check in online. All I had to do was remember my phone number from 5 years and two houses ago!

Kathy, I'm sorry you had to cancel.

 

[eag119]

Okay, one more question--HOW do you check in on line? More specifically--where?

On the disney website, there should be a place for "MY DISNEY VACATION". Enter your confirmation number. And there should be a spot for Online check-in.

I also sent a fax with my room request a few days before I checked in.

 

[eag119]

Overall, it sounds like you had a good trip. I'm glad you found the beds comfy.
I hope you'll post some pictures when you have time.

I have to say I am going to miss the resort being HOT! With our having to cancel our trip, I'm going to miss those long walks around the lake.

I'm sorry you had to cancel Kat... that is a bummer. Hopefully your 2010 trip will be the best ever.

 

[DisneyPolve]

With our trip less then 2 months away now, I love hearing/reading peoples trip reports from CRS. So keep them coming! This is our first stay at CRS and I am extremely excited, especially with them having newly renovated rooms with queen beds!!! When I made the reservation I did request 8A, what is the number to fax the request? I want to send in a fax request a few days out. Thanks!

 

[ciera321]

what is the number to fax the request? I want to send in a fax request a few days out. Thanks!

Coronado Springs Resort
Fax: (407) 939-1001 Have a great trip!!!

 

[Claire&TheBoys]

Kathy - Sorry you had to cancel your trip. Hope things look up for you so you can make your next trip even better.

 

[MouseketeerMommy]

Woo hoo! We finally made our reservation at CSR for October! These pictures really sold us!

Now a question - we reserved via a TA - how do we know where our rooms are? Will she know?

Thanks!!

 

[KatMark]

Woo hoo! We finally made our reservation at CSR for October! These pictures really sold us!

Now a question - we reserved via a TA - how do we know where our rooms are? Will she know?

Thanks!!

You will not know your room until you check in. Your TA can put in a "REQUEST" for a certain section, but your room will not be known until you are physically standing there checking in.

 

[katiejo]

Because we were out of town for my grandfather's funeral, I missed my single digit dance, so here it is!


We can't wait! CSR here we come! It looks like we will see some of you there!

 

[SoloFriendly]

Just got back from my 1st trip to CSR. I LOVE this resort! On my last trip, I stayed at POFQ, and I didn't care for the room there at all. But I totally fell in love with CSR. You've all seen pictures of the grounds, I'm sure, and they're just as lovely in person.

I tried to check in online ahead of time, but kept getting an error message, so gave up on that. Luckily, I was at the front of the line from the bus that arrived, so I didn't wait long. I had faxed in my room request a few days early, and got almost everything I wanted--a renovated room in Casitas 4 with a water view. Unfortunately, it was on ground floor and it was pool view of the "quiet" pool (which wasn't so quiet). I had room 4111, right around the corner from the health club. It was also a connecting room, and I was very nervous about the noise. I was able to hear my neighbors as if they were in the same room with me. But fortunately, I learned a long time ago that the most valuable item to bring on any trip is earplugs. As soon as I got the earplugs in, I couldn't hear anything outside my room. I slept really well here. The beds are super comfy. I don't know if they are double or queen, because I have a king at home, and everything else is smaller. The decor of the renovated rooms is fabulous. I really felt like I was staying in a deluxe every time I was in my room. The water pressure in my room was great, there was always plenty of hot water, the room safe and fridge worked fine.

I didn't eat at the resort, except for some quick food like yogurt and bananas that I bought at Rix Cafe. I just thought the prices were too high, and I wasn't on the dining plan. For instance, on day 1, I bought a small fruit salad and a banana (for breakfast the next day) and the price was $9. Ridiculous. For breakfast, I just made oatmeal in my room and had a small yogurt and banana I bought at Rix Cafe and that was plenty for me. (The gelato at Rix, though, was totally worth it. For $2 something, I got a big scoop of it in a cup.)

I ordered a case of water delivered from Costco and it was there when I arrived. I had to go sign for it at the business center, which is down in the direction of the conference center. In addition to the cost of the water and shipping ($7 something) I had to pay CSR a $10 handling fee. But they delivered it to my room for me. It was still totally worth it--24 bottles would have cost me $60 in the parks. It lasted almost my entire stay. I only had to buy a couple of bottles in the park on the last day.

Bus stop #2 was right behind my building, which was very convenient. I only had 20 minute waits a couple of times, and only had to stand a couple of times. Usually, there was plenty of room. The big problem with the buses was that oftentimes, the signs were wrong! The bus sign would say Epcot, when it was really Animal Kingdom, or it would just say CSR and you'd have to ask where it was going. A couple of the drivers seemed frustrated by this, too; I take it it's a technical problem they have no control over. I recommend you always ask when you get on the bus to make sure it's the right bus.

All the staff members at CSR that I came into contact with were very friendly and helpful, with the exception of one young woman working at Rix Cafe; either she was having a bad day or really hated her job. But she was the exception. Because I had plenty of everything in the room for just me, and I'm neat and tidy, I only had housekeeping come into my room twice during my stay. Once while I was there, to take out the trash and give me fresh towels and once when I wasn't there. When I got back to my room, they had been there and left the door ajar. That was NOT cool with me. Nothing was missing, but anybody could have walked into my room. Also, when I first went to use the coffee pot in the room, I found an old soggy packet of coffee in there already. Yuck. I really liked the valet staff. I tried to tip one of the valets one night for calling me a cab--he refused the money, saying it was his job, and I should just go and enjoy myself. I was flabbergasted. I'm used to going to Vegas where everyone has their hand out for a tip.

The quiet pool was almost always very busy. Probably because it was too hot to walk all the way over to the Dig Site, plus the water was colder in the quiet pool than the Dig Site pool. One night, some kids were out at the pool at 10:30 screaming their heads off (playing marco polo). I was seconds away from calling security to complain when some guy leaned out of his room and yelled "Shut up!" It was quiet after that. (If you're reading this, dude, THANK YOU.)

I didn't mind seeing conventioneers because I was traveling alone and prefer being around other adults rather than kids anyway, but I was also lucky and had the nursing convention going on while I was there. They were all cool, not rowdy at all, and it was mostly women. Some of them brought their husbands. The only time it would have been a problem was at meal time (had I wanted to eat there). Every eating establishment was jam-packed during traditional lunch and dinner hours.

I really must put a plug in here for Rix Lounge. I stopped there one night for a drink and to check it out. If you're an adult at WDW, there are precious few adult-only nightspots on property. This is a good one. It totally reminded me of a Vegas-style lounge. Great decor, comfortable seating areas and a nice long bar, great drinks (try the chocolate mintini--it is YUMMY and goes down really easy before it kicks your butt about 10 minutes later), great music playing in the background, and even a couple of tvs to keep an eye on whatever big game happens to be playing. It was really dead the night I was there (just 5 of us), so I chatted up the staff about why. They said most of their business comes from the conventions at CSR, and the nursing convention just wasn't the bar crowd, I guess. LOL. I suggested they should beef up their marketing to other guests, but they said Disney doesn't allow them to market alcohol, and because they don't really have a theme (the way Jellyrolls has the pianos), it's difficult. Too bad, because I really loved it and would have spent more time there if there had been more people hanging there.

 

[Maybelle]

I have a question/concern about CSR.

We will be staying for 9 nights in August, so already wretchedly HOT!!! Now, after reading a recent trip report here I am a little concerned about walking around on the pathways in the sun. Granted, we'll be walking around in the sun quite a bit while there, but...We have stayed at POFQ 2X (loved it) and many of the walkways were shaded and there were plenty of trees around to get out of the sun.

I do really try to stay out of the sun as much as possible, which was one of the decideing factors in us not staying at a value...no shade at the bus stop. I have very fair skin, and react badly to the sun...but...I am also just concerned about the "hot factor."

Should I be worried about this at CSR??

 

[eag119]

I have a question/concern about CSR.

We will be staying for 9 nights in August, so already wretchedly HOT!!! Now, after reading a recent trip report here I am a little concerned about walking around on the pathways in the sun. Granted, we'll be walking around in the sun quite a bit while there, but...We have stayed at POFQ 2X (loved it) and many of the walkways were shaded and there were plenty of trees around to get out of the sun.

I do really try to stay out of the sun as much as possible, which was one of the decideing factors in us not staying at a value...no shade at the bus stop. I have very fair skin, and react badly to the sun...but...I am also just concerned about the "hot factor."

Should I be worried about this at CSR??

The bus stops were under cover so there was plenty of shade... and I really only walked two directions from my Cabana building 8B..to El Centro and to the Dig Site. We were too tired to do any exploring around the resort. Maybe the Casitas are shady. But the walk from Cabanas was HOT. Really hot for this girl from cold Western Pa.
~Emily

 

[SoloFriendly]

There was definitely shade at the bus stops. No worry there.

The walk between Casitas 4 and El Centro was very, very hot. You could duck into some shade along the way, but there were still what felt like very long stretches with no shade. It's not a long walk, but when it's 90 degrees out, even 30 seconds in the hot sun feels like forever.

If you're concerned about that, and you think you'll be going back and forth to El Centro a lot, you might want to request the Casitas which is closest to El Centro. Or a building near a bus stop, and then catch the bus back and forth to El Centro. If you are concerned about heat walking to and from a pool area, then request a building close to a pool.

This is definitely not the shadiest resort out there. If that's important to you, you might want to reconsider. The Port Orleans resorts, if I recall correctly, are shadier. That being said, I'm a very fair-skinned redhead who burns easily, and while I did get a minor sunburn out at the pool one day, I survived my stay here and will gladly stay here again. For what it's worth.