Caribbean Beach FAQ Part IV

[MinnieNurse]

My first stay at CBR is only 87 more days!!!! I know that seems like a long time. But I am so excited I cant wait to get there.

 

[Aubie881]

My report with a few additions as requested by safeymom.

Just got back from CBR Wednesday. Everything went well. A few issues with bus service, but overall not bad. Checked in at 11am no one in line at all, and room was ready. Weather was great and crowds were not as bad as people on the DIS were freaking about. Did the quick service meal plan, was more than enough food for our family, cashed in 12 snacks on our departure date to take with us. New pool is great, and the orange drink at the banana cabana was still as good as i remembered. CBR again May 2010, cannot wait.

The bus issue was wait times to and from Downtown Disney. On both trips there our wait time was more than 30 minutes, coming back one trip was 45 minutes, the other 20 which is reasonable. Bad luck maybe, but we were not the only one. On our trip to AK the was a women on the phone to bus services complaining of her wait of over 30minutes to DTD. Our wait times for everywhere else on average, less than 10minutes.

As for wait times at the parks, the wait was never as long as the posted time. What is up with PeterPan EMH evening wait time at 12:30am was 40minutes, everything else was walk on or 5 or 10minute wait. Longest wait I seen was for TSM, 80 min, which was about 30 minutes after park opening.

 

[dtripli]

Hi,

I am getting excited about my upcoming trip to CBR June 13-20. I just made an order with Garden Grocer. Can you get disposable bowls and spoons from the food court? I wanted to make oatmeal in the room.

Thanks,
Terri

That sounds like a good idea for our family as well. How will you get the boiling water in the room though? Are you using instant?

 

[disneydreamin247]

That sounds like a good idea for our family as well. How will you get the boiling water in the room though? Are you using instant?

I would imagine you could run it through the coffee pot couldn't you?

 

[tinkerbell60]

My report with a few additions as requested by safeymom.

The bus issue was wait times to and from Downtown Disney. On both trips there our wait time was more than 30 minutes, coming back one trip was 45 minutes, the other 20 which is reasonable. Bad luck maybe, but we were not the only one. On our trip to AK the was a women on the phone to bus services complaining of her wait of over 30minutes to DTD. Our wait times for everywhere else on average, less than 10minutes.

As for wait times at the parks, the wait was never as long as the posted time. What is up with PeterPan EMH evening wait time at 12:30am was 40minutes, everything else was walk on or 5 or 10minute wait. Longest wait I seen was for TSM, 80 min, which was about 30 minutes after park opening.

It does not seem to matter which resort you are at, the wait times at DTD are always long! We have traveled from the Contemporary, Wilderness Lodge, Pop Century and the Yacht Club - with long waits every single trip!

Peter Pan always has a long wait time posted (yes, even at 1am) but the wait is usually less - especially during EMH.

 

[bolgers love wdw]

Hello all!! We just got back from the CBR a couple of hours ago!!! We LOVED the resort! (we were there May2-8)
We were a little worried since we were originally supposed to be staying at the WL (our favorite resort) It was very quiet and relaxing and we thought the food court was great!!! I will do a longer report in the morning....trying to get everything unpacked!
If anybody has specific questions...feel free to ask and I will try and answer!!!

 

[mom2taylorandemily]

Hello all!! We just got back from the CBR a couple of hours ago!!! We LOVED the resort! (we were there May2-8)
We were a little worried since we were originally supposed to be staying at the WL (our favorite resort) It was very quiet and relaxing and we thought the food court was great!!! I will do a longer report in the morning....trying to get everything unpacked!
If anybody has specific questions...feel free to ask and I will try and answer!!!

I'm glad you had a good time!

 

[cinderlexa's mom]

Just back this last Monday.

We enjoyed our time overall--but don't think we'll be back to a moderate--we really enjoy the "disney luxury" of a deluxe after a long day at the park.

That being said, if you must stay in a moderate, CBR is very lush, well taken care of, and inviting.

Pro's:
Pirate room very well themed--my kids LOVED it!
room looked brand new in building 37
large shower with bench, loved it for shaving
awesome pool, very much a "resort" feel
little guy loved pirate ship water playground
main pool feels less crowded because of millions of quiet pools
Lots of lush landscaping
bright and colorful
parking lots close to rooms
nearly sound-proof rooms
many corner rooms
beautiful water views--worth the $$$
centrally located resort
flat screen high def tv's
upscale fixtures in pirate rooms
fridge worked great
big rooms
double sinks
beds very comfortable
lots of storage space
nice alarm clock
awesome fru-fru drinks at pool bar, try the pina-colava

Con's:
outside entrances to rooms
smoking areas in the courtyard of each building, had to walk through cloud of smoke to get to room
check-in isn't located near food court/pool area/gift shop
not the best CM's
not the best mousekeeping
toilet was wonky
air conditioner only worked 1/2 the time--ancient loud unit
4 people & 2 double beds = need I say more?
long walk from South Trinadad would get really annoying if you didn't have a rental car
LOTS of smokers when we were there, smoking everywhere
really felt like a super-themed Motel 6!

Just my .02. If you have any questions, I'd be happy to try and answer them!

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

Hello all!! We just got back from the CBR a couple of hours ago!!! We LOVED the resort! (we were there May2-8)
We were a little worried since we were originally supposed to be staying at the WL (our favorite resort) It was very quiet and relaxing and we thought the food court was great!!! I will do a longer report in the morning....trying to get everything unpacked!
If anybody has specific questions...feel free to ask and I will try and answer!!!

Welcome back!! Glad to hear you had a great time at CBR, can't wait to hear more!!

 

[bolgers love wdw]

Ok everybody...we have time for a bit of a trip report now....
We arrived around 11:15 am last Saturday and check-in was quick even thought the line was out the door(maybe took 10 minutes to get to check-in window) Our room was ready!! YAY! We had booked standard room, but were upgraded to Preferred Builing Martinique 26 which was GREAT!!! Only a couple of minutes to walk to Old Port Royale!!! And the bus stop for OPR was very close to our room.

The room was very clean and we enjoyed the Nemo theme alot!! We requested early mosekeeping and it was honored every day and they did a great job!! The rooms are very quiet and we never heard any noises throughout the week we were there. This was one thing we were worried about, since it does have the outdoor corridors. (We are used to staying in the deluxe resorts.)

The buses were very good, EXCEPT for on Saturday night!! We wanted to head to MK for a couple of hours early evening and waited from 4pm till 4:40pm for a bus.(I even got on the phone at the Martinique bus stop to tell them we had been waiting so long for an empty bus!!) Now, a MK bus would come, but they were full from people heading back to the resort and no one was getting off, so we couldn't get on. We thought..."oh boy....not a good start!!" But overall, we never really waited more than 10 minutes for a bus from that point on.

We ate at Old Port Royale several times and thought it was great!! The food variety offered was better than expected!! We ate everything from sandwiches,salads and a yummy turkey dinner from Bridgetown Broiler!!!

We also loved Calypso Trading Post and came home with several CBR souvenirs!

We tried out the main pool a couple of times and we loved it!! Our DS loved "Captain Jack's" pool!! But we spent most of our time in the quiet pool because there was never really that many people in it. We were usually there every day between noon and 2pm.

We spent some time walking along the promenade taking pictures of the resort and different villages.

Overall, we really loved CBR!!! We are definitely adding it in to our list of favorites to stay at!!!

Any questions...feel free to ask away!!!

 

[dtripli]

Just back this last Monday.

We enjoyed our time overall--but don't think we'll be back to a moderate--we really enjoy the "disney luxury" of a deluxe after a long day at the park.

That being said, if you must stay in a moderate, CBR is very lush, well taken care of, and inviting.

Pro's:
Pirate room very well themed--my kids LOVED it!
room looked brand new in building 37
large shower with bench, loved it for shaving
awesome pool, very much a "resort" feel
little guy loved pirate ship water playground
main pool feels less crowded because of millions of quiet pools
Lots of lush landscaping
bright and colorful
parking lots close to rooms
nearly sound-proof rooms
many corner rooms
beautiful water views--worth the $$$
centrally located resort
flat screen high def tv's
upscale fixtures in pirate rooms
fridge worked great
big rooms
double sinks
beds very comfortable
lots of storage space
nice alarm clock
awesome fru-fru drinks at pool bar, try the pina-colava

Con's:
outside entrances to rooms
smoking areas in the courtyard of each building, had to walk through cloud of smoke to get to room
check-in isn't located near food court/pool area/gift shop
not the best CM's
not the best mousekeeping
toilet was wonky
air conditioner only worked 1/2 the time--ancient loud unit
4 people & 2 double beds = need I say more?
long walk from South Trinadad would get really annoying if you didn't have a rental car
LOTS of smokers when we were there, smoking everywhere
really felt like a super-themed Motel 6!

Just my .02. If you have any questions, I'd be happy to try and answer them!

Hi - We are leaving 2nd week of June for our stay at CBR. It is our first stay in a mod as well. We've always done deluxe (and lovem!) but there are 6 of us now and eventhough they would let the baby stay in one room we tried it at GF in September and it just was too cramped. Needless to say I am also a little concerned. I loved your pro's list (hee hee) - The con's make me nervous. My question was about the smoking situation. I can see dodging the puffs if you have to, but were there cigarette butts on the ground and such? Our youngest will be 16 months old and that just grosses me out!! Also is smoking alound in the pool areas? I thought it was prohibited - maybe that's just the main pool? Well either way we leave in 4 weeks - not much I can do now but keep my expectations low so Im not disappointed. Motel 6 - ick!!!

 

[kimnvbva]

Thanks for the CBR info. I feel better knowing that you had a great time. It is our first time at WDW and we picked CBR based on the whole "pirate theme." I was torn between there and WL. I feel like I made a good choice. I have a quick question, did your room feel cramped? We have a family of 4 and I don't want to feel like we are on top of each other! Thanks!

Kim

 

[MinnieNurse]

Do either of you that just returned have any pictures you can share. Did you eat at Shutter's and if so how was it?

 

[disneydreamin247]

Thanks for the CBR info. I feel better knowing that you had a great time. It is our first time at WDW and we picked CBR based on the whole "pirate theme." I was torn between there and WL. I feel like I made a good choice. I have a quick question, did your room feel cramped? We have a family of 4 and I don't want to feel like we are on top of each other! Thanks!

Kim

I believe that the rooms at CBR are the same size or pretty close to the same size as WL. We stayed at WL last year and a friend joined us for the night making it 2 adults and a child in the room and we weren't cramped at all. HTH.

 

[bolgers love wdw]

MinnieNurse Do either of you that just returned have any pictures you can share. Did you eat at Shutter's and if so how was it?

We have tons of photos. If we can figure out how to load pictures, we will share.

We didn't eat at Shutters, but we looked at the menu and it smelled great from what we could smell....

 

[cmason]

I am planning an adult only trip in October. Just wondering if CBR has King bed's located in Aruba on the first floor near a DSA.

 

[CleveRocks]

I am planning an adult only trip in October. Just wondering if CBR has King bed's located in Aruba on the first floor near a DSA.

King size beds are sprinkled throughout the resort ... they aren't gathered in any specific area, and they are not absent from any specific area (except for the Pirate rooms in Trinidad South ... no kings there). Your best bet is to book a king size bed room, and then request "Aruba, first floor, near DSA."

 

[jagwebb1]

I don’t post often but I do get so much information from these boards so I wanted to share our recent trip experience to CBR. We stayed at Beach Club last year and loved it so keep that in mind as you read my review. I was a little apprehensive about staying at a moderate too but we had a good time. Traveling were me (32), my husband (35), and DD (2.5).

We checked in around 9 am on 5/6. The line was very short and we were checked in within 10 minutes. The CM checking us in was not very friendly but she was polite enough. I had requested ground floor, Jamaica 45 and we were placed on ground floor, Aruba 51 – which was just as nice and I was fine with this location. Our room, of course, was not ready at that time so we headed over to OPR for some breakfast. To say that the food court was packed is a slight understatement. There were people everywhere. It was a little bit of an ordeal to get our food and get situated but not terrible. We then went to the main pool until our room was ready, which was about 12 pm.

The main pool is very nice but stays very crowded – day and night. We never went when it wasn’t packed to capacity and we went at least two times per day. My daughter loved the main pool though because it was zero entry and she also liked the slide at the main pool. The pirate pool (kid’s area) is very nice as well. My daughter liked that area too but some of the older kids in that area are too rough for the little ones and she would get tired of getting slammed into on the slide or pushed under by one of the older kids. When I say older – I mean, 8 – 10 years old…old enough to know better. We also used the quiet pool in Jamaica a few times and liked that as well. It was much less crowded.

Our room was as I expected based on the pictures. It was clean and mousekeeping did a great job keeping it clean all week. The beds were very comfortable but way too small. Now I did know that there would be double beds but I guess I have not slept in or seen a double bed in a very long time. It was ok though as the little one slept in her pack and play and my husband took a bed and I took the other one. The walk from Aruba 51 over to OPR really was not bad at all. It took maybe 5 minutes at the most and that was with a 2 year old. I would definitely stay in that location again.

The resort itself is actually quite nice and beautifully landscaped. I do have to say though that I was quite surprised at how some (a lot) of the guests behaved. At the main pool – there were towels left everywhere, food trays, drink containers, just trash – all left around the chairs and in the bushes. Why would people not throw away their trash or take their towels to the towel bin?? This isn’t a reflection on the resort itself because every day – the items were picked up and the staff seemed to keep it as clean as they could. It was just surprising to me that people would not clean up after themselves.

Also, on our last night there – a lady stood about 2 feet from our front door talking on her cell phone at about 12:30 am. I waited about 15 minutes and then opened the door and asked her to either be quieter or talk somewhere else. She was apologetic and I guess moved because I didn’t hear her again. We also heard kids running up and down the stairs and sidewalks at night. It wasn’t overbearingly loud but enough to be annoying at 1 or 2 in the morning.

We only ate at the Food Court two times - once for breakfast and once for lunch. Both times were just ok. Typical food court fare. It was always really crowded as well. We did eat at Shutter’s one night and will never go there again. The service was terrible. We waited a long time for everything. The food was not good either. I was sick for two days after eating there.

All in all – I enjoyed this resort and thought it was nice. I would stay here again but it wouldn’t be my first choice. It really was just crowded and the kids were overwhelming. I have a child of my own so I have nothing against kids but most of the kids were not well supervised. The BC had a lot of kids as well but most of them were younger (pre-schoolish) like my daughter. The kids at CBR seemed to be more elementary/middle school aged. I had originally wanted to stay at CSR but the friends we were traveling with preferred CBR. We did go over to CSR and eat at the Pepper Market one night and I liked that resort as well. It seemed much less crowded and was a little nicer than CBR. Although, the pool area is not as nice as the one at CBR. But given the choice – I would try CSR before staying at CBR again. But in all honesty – we really prefer the deluxes and will probably try the Poly next time or go back to the BC. If you are on the fence about CBR – do try it. The resort itself is beautiful and it is a good value.

 

[cinderlexa's mom]

The smoking was a problem only because we had to walk through clouds of smoke in the courtyard to get to our room. The only other place we saw guests smoking was the parking lot--a lot of smokers in the parking lot. Not sure if it was allowed.

If you stay away from the courtyard of each building--I'm sure the smoke won't be a problem.

We didn't see cigerettes on the ground. We did see a fair amount of trash--but the CM's were trying to keep up with it.

It's weird--in all our deluxe stays--I don't remember seeing trash laying around...Why wouldn't peeps just find a trash can?

Also, at the pool there were used towels laying EVERYWHERE--not at deluxes--it's not hard to pick up dirty towels! URGH!

Really tough, if $$$ is tight or you don't need to come back to a relaxing more luxurious resort type accomodation, CBR is fine. Not great, but I don't think many would be "sorry" to stay there.

 

[jngwright]

Do either of you that just returned have any pictures you can share. Did you eat at Shutter's and if so how was it?

I'm not either of the people you were asking, but here are some from our 4/25-5/4 trip.
We loved CBR, BTW!!

Quiet pool at TS