Caribbean Beach FAQ part V

[claryche]

Hi. Thank you for such a detailed review. Here are my questions for you:

1) Now that you've been there, if you had to do it over again, would you have requested differently on the room location?

2) Can you tell me why you like ASMovies the best? And why you prefer it over the other value resorts? My only experience with Value was Pop and we loved it. But I like variety and have thought about switching to one of the All-Stars on our next budget trip.

3) And, in all the times you stayed at the All-Stars, did you see many big groups there? From all the reading I've done, it seems that is where they are booked. I've never heard anyone complain about big groups staying at Pop. What are your thoughts?

Thanks in advance!
Stephanie

I loved our room placement at CBR. It was like 2 minutes to the bus stop if that. 5 minutes to the village pool if that and like 10 minutes to the food court and large pool. And again we are slow walkers.

We just had great experiences at All Star Movies. They gave my DS tons of Mickey Stickers, which when we stayed at Pop that didn't have any at all. My DS was 2 and a half so the stickers were a big deal and we had to stop by the desk every morning to get some and they were always so nice to give us some more. They didn't seem that busy, we went two years ago for the 2nd week in November. We didn't see any big groups, but we had a preferred location, so we didn't walk around that much and didn't eat there that much. But still no big groups that we noticed. Our mousekeeper was awesome, arranging my DS' stuffed animals, leaving towel animals and more. One day she had gotten busy and wasn't able to do anything but clean the room, which we weren't expecting anything more when we went into the room and she was leaving. But she apologized and said tomorrow I'll do something special. Which she did do.

So I guess it was just the people that made the real difference. Except that we also didn't like how at Pop that the food they offered in the shop was so limited. We typically buy a box of donuts for breakfast, my DS still calls them Mickey donuts at the grocery store. And Pop didn't carry those donuts, because of their limited food in the store. When we stayed at Pop, we actually drove to ASMovies to buy some donuts and get my DS some stickers. Silly I know. And also I like Movies over Music and Sports, for the icons. Hope this helps.

 

[FindingFigment]

Except that we also didn't like how at Pop that the food they offered in the shop was so limited. We typically buy a box of donuts for breakfast, my DS still calls them Mickey donuts at the grocery store. And Pop didn't carry those donuts, because of their limited food in the store.

Yes, that does help! Thank you!

By the way, about the shop at Pop, I noticed the same thing. The food court had great choices but the grab-n-go was limited. How does the shop at CBR compare?

 

[claryche]

Yes, that does help! Thank you!

By the way, about the shop at Pop, I noticed the same thing. The food court had great choices but the grab-n-go was limited. How does the shop at CBR compare?

The shop at CBR was great. They had our donuts. I was told that Pop was that way because the store is connected to the food court. But at CBR the store is connected to the food court, and I thought there was plenty of selection, so who knows.

 

[lilandvisma]

Which building is best to request for a family with small children? I have bad knees and hips so I would like to request a ground room but which buildings are closest to the food area/pool?

TIA. It came down to CBR and POFQ for our March 2011 visit and the kids have chosen CBR...I'm pretty sure they will enjoy the theme there more anyway.

 

[claryche]

Which building is best to request for a family with small children? I have bad knees and hips so I would like to request a ground room but which buildings are closest to the food area/pool?

TIA. It came down to CBR and POFQ for our March 2011 visit and the kids have chosen CBR...I'm pretty sure they will enjoy the theme there more anyway.

The closest ones to the pool and food are the preferred locations, which you have to pay more for them. Which are Trinidad North and Martinique 24,25,26. That is why I picked Martinique 22 and 23. I have also heard that Aruba 51 and Jamaica 45 are good choices. However, with a bad knee and hips, you might want to pay the extra money for a preferred location. The walk for us from Martinique 23 to the food court was about 10 minutes, slow walker. I can't tell you the actual mileage, but I do know that when you get off the bus after a full day at a park and all you want is to get to your room and then to get some food, then the food court is a hike. Now of course you can always stop off at the food court first, there is a bus stop there. And you would only have the one walk back to your room, which after sitting and eating might not be too hard to do. But I know that I try to save money, and I think if we stay at CBR again I will pay for the preferred locations. I would have loved to have been just 2 or 3 minutes from that hot tub on many of nights. Hope this helps.

 

[lilandvisma]

The closest ones to the pool and food are the preferred locations, which you have to pay more for them. Which are Trinidad North and Martinique 24,25,26. That is why I picked Martinique 22 and 23. I have also heard that Aruba 51 and Jamaica 45 are good choices. However, with a bad knee and hips, you might want to pay the extra money for a preferred location. The walk for us from Martinique 23 to the food court was about 10 minutes, slow walker. I can't tell you the actual mileage, but I do know that when you get off the bus after a full day at a park and all you want is to get to your room and then to get some food, then the food court is a hike. Now of course you can always stop off at the food court first, there is a bus stop there. And you would only have the one walk back to your room, which after sitting and eating might not be too hard to do. But I know that I try to save money, and I think if we stay at CBR again I will pay for the preferred locations. I would have loved to have been just 2 or 3 minutes from that hot tub on many of nights. Hope this helps.

Thanks and yes, it does help. I have a retired dancers body lol, so sometimes a lot of issues esp. after those long days at the parks w/ 3 littles !


Are Aruba/Jamaica more $$? We will also have our own vehicle, if that makes a difference so I'm not really concerned with bus service much...but the main pool is by Trinidad and Martinique?

 

[mickeyboat]

Aruba and Jamaica are not extra money - at least if you don't request a water view room.

If you have your own car, you can drive and park at the pool area and not need to worry about the distance away.

 

[jenseib]

This is her job, taking out the trash that is placed in the can. I'm sorry, but they do not need to pick up everything behind you.

I have to agree too. In fact I wouldn't want them to pick up that stuff. Maybe I was saving the wrapper for a phone number on it or something.

I believe it was a direct line to the resort. I don't remember where I got the phone number though. It might have been in the Unofficial Guide...


ETA. I just saw jenseib's post that it goes to a call center. Possible. I wouldn't be able to tell. As for putting it on the reservation, I don't know how you do that???

Yes the number on the first page goes to a call center

I booked through Disney, so I called the regular Disney Travel number and put my request on my reservation. Then about 5 days before our arrival, I called the resort directly. I used the number posted at the beginning of this thread. I asked that I was just verifying that they had my request and they did have it. Now I assumed that I was calling the resort directly, but I might not have been. But I got my request and when I mentioned it at check in that I got my request, the lady said well yes you did, looking at something. So it wasn't like I got my request by accident, they did actually have it on file.

That number goes to the call center.

I loved our room placement at CBR. It was like 2 minutes to the bus stop if that. 5 minutes to the village pool if that and like 10 minutes to the food court and large pool. And again we are slow walkers.

We just had great experiences at All Star Movies.So I guess it was just the people that made the real difference. Except that we also didn't like how at Pop that the food they offered in the shop was so limited. We typically buy a box of donuts for breakfast, my DS still calls them Mickey donuts at the grocery store. And Pop didn't carry those donuts, because of their limited food in the store. When we stayed at Pop, we actually drove to ASMovies to buy some donuts and get my DS some stickers. Silly I know. And also I like Movies over Music and Sports, for the icons. Hope this helps.

They do have the donuts at Pop. I have seen them in the food court on all 3 stays. Back in the grab and go section, or near there.

 

[drakes]

This will be our first stay at CBR. Previous trips were ASMovies, WL, AKL Jambo House. All trips were great for their own reasons.
I do not mind the values at all and ASMovies was great. We were located in the Mighty Ducks area (first we were upset) but realized it was great for getting to ASMusic. We actually were closer to ASMusics food court, bus stop, and we had to use their pool as AS Movies was in refurb. We enjoyed being able to do this at the All Stars. The buses for AStars were also no worse that that for WL or AKL, possibly the morning buses were less full at WL and AKL, but nighttime they were all packed, made no difference where you stayed.

I requested ground floor for medical reasons, we have booked Water View and DH asked for Aruba and Jamaica, close to the Cay bridge. This is noted on our reservation that was emailed to us. I know they won't guarantee this, however I am sure Disney will provide us a great room. So far they have fullfilled all our room requests and more (free upgrade at AKL)

My only concern with CBR is the bus system. I am not sure I will enjoy stopping around the resort internally. However guess this is the same as some deluxes sharing bus routes (example, we stopped at Poly in the morning when we stayed at WL).

Anyhow - don't question the All Stars, I think they are great.

 

[TarzansKat]

Thanks to everyone for the answers! I did put in a room request with our reservation, realizing of course that I might not get it.

 

[lilandvisma]

We are booked as of this morning!!! I am super excited now and feel confident in my decision. Though POFQ looked good too, I feel that CBR will surpass mine and my children's expectations (better theming for the kids here as well!)

Put in a request for either Jamaica 45 or Aruba 51, ground level please for my "issues" so here's to hoping we get one or the other right?! It's noted on my ressie that its our 10 year anni & bday celebrations for the kids sooooo I'll be crossing my fingers for some Disney magic

Thanks for the informative thread!

March!! Hurry up and get here!

 

[utkscvol1]

It's finally starting to settle in. We are checking in in 2 weeks for our first trip to CBR. upon booking I did 2 requests, ground floor and in either martinque. we have booked a standard room. Is this sufficient or should I call as well. If I need to call what number do I call and what specific building in Martinque is the best for standard rooms?

 

[h2oophelia]

This is a great thread!

We just switched our reservations from POFQ to CBR today mostly due to lack of food choices at POFQ. After reading this post I feel great about the decision! We'll be there Jan. 28th - Feb. 7th. This vacation can't come soon enough!

 

[Tarheel girl 1975]

We'll be heading to the World in 34 days and will be staying at CBR for the first time. I'm a little worried about the food court court though. I was looking at the menu at allears.net and I was little surpised by the lack of options there. I wasn't expecting it to have as many options as Pop Century, but I was hoping for a few more choices. Is the menu on allears correct? Should I plan on eating most of our meals in the parks?

 

[catbertdave99]

We'll be heading to the World in 34 days and will be staying at CBR for the first time. I'm a little worried about the food court court though. I was looking at the menu at allears.net and I was little surpised by the lack of options there. I wasn't expecting it to have as many options as Pop Century, but I was hoping for a few more choices. Is the menu on allears correct? Should I plan on eating most of our meals in the parks?

I don't know if their menu is incorrect, but it sure does appear to be missing some items -- problem is, I can't recall what they might be. Try out wdwinfo.com as well - menu is available there as well.

Having said that, we ate MOST of our meals at the Old Port Royale food court all week during our last trip and never felt like we were running out of options. Keep your options open if you can, and see what you think when you get there.

CBR is our favorite resort, and the food court is one of the reasons!

 

[mcd2745]

We'll be heading to the World in 34 days and will be staying at CBR for the first time. I'm a little worried about the food court court though. I was looking at the menu at allears.net and I was little surpised by the lack of options there. I wasn't expecting it to have as many options as Pop Century, but I was hoping for a few more choices. Is the menu on allears correct? Should I plan on eating most of our meals in the parks?

It's correct, for the most part. Those are all the "standard" items they have. In addition though, usually each station will have a daily special or two adding to their choices. I will say, when we were there a few months ago, the roast pork and turkey platters were very good.

 

[mickeystoontown]

We'll be heading to the World in 34 days and will be staying at CBR for the first time. I'm a little worried about the food court court though. I was looking at the menu at allears.net and I was little surpised by the lack of options there. I wasn't expecting it to have as many options as Pop Century, but I was hoping for a few more choices. Is the menu on allears correct? Should I plan on eating most of our meals in the parks?

I know that the pasta and pizza station served a huge sandwich with fresh made chips and baked ziti when we were there in May. And, there were chicken strips for adults at the burger station too. There were also a few items that were served that weren't on the menu but, for the life of me, I can't remember what they were.

 

[ssipdavis]

Good information. We are staying for the first time in December.

 

[splashmtnfan]

Just wondering if anyone has ever stayed in one and if you remember how close you were to everything?

 

[nessz79]

Just wondering if anyone has ever stayed in one and if you remember how close you were to everything?

I haven't stayed in one, but I know it's the farthest area from everything!