Caribbean Beach - Preferred

[scanne]

Hi. I just booked the free dining at Caribbean Beach in a preferred room. Which buildings are considered preferred? Is there any particular section that is favorable? I think I may request a corner room - don't those rooms have two windows?

Also, how is the transportation at this resort? Are there internal shuttles? My travel agent said that the main pool may be closed when we're there, but that doesn't really bother me. Is there anything fun to do at the lake like rent boats or go fishing?

Thanks.

 

[safetymom]

I suggest taking a look at the first post of the CBR FAQ thread. The main pool will be closed until the middle of Sept.

 

[EnnEss]

There are boats to rent at the lake, there are 6 other pools you can use as well. Preffered means you will be VERY close to the food area, which is nice.

 

[superbird]

I like it but the lake is small and after the first couple of baot rides you may get bored

 

[mbanks21]

Preferred rooms are located in Martinique and Trinidad North offering closer proximity to Old Port Royale.

 

[NikkiLovesWDW!]

We stayed in a preferred room last summer, which was the first time we stayed at CBR and it was FANTASTIC! We were in Trinidad North and it was so convenient to be so close to the food court, gift shop and pool bar!! Everytime we were on the bus that went to all the other stops around the resort, I could not imagine staying in any other building. They are so far!! Totally worth the extra money, in my opinion!

 

[scanne]

Nikki,

Thanks for your input! I stayed at the CBR in 1992 and I remember being SO far from everything which is why I booked the preferred location. I have two young kids (ages 6 and 4) and I don't think we're bringing strollers this time, so the shorter the walk from the bus and food court, the better.

Thank you again!

 

[catbertdave99]

We've stayed in Martinique 2549 (2005 CBR link below) and Trinidad North 3128 (2007 CBR link below) -- both were preferred. In '05 we had a second floor room that overlooked the lake when you went out the door, and in '07 we had a first floor room that just about walked out into a courtyard patio. I think we preferred that best!

The whole resort is beautiful -- feel free to check out the photos in the links below if you want -- lots of others in the FAQ thread have great photos -- especially Safetymom!

Enjoy CBR!!!!

 

[DisneyJen0504]

Stayed in Martinique, great location, close to the bus, food etc.

 

[NikkiLovesWDW!]

Oh AND....because we were on the second floor, one night around 9:00 when we had an early night and were watching some tv in bed we heard this loud banging and ran out of room and around the corner and what do we see????

Illuminations! It was a wonderful surprise! I really think CBR will be my mod of choice from now on.

 

[mmstjohn]

You have stayed in so many different resorts - that is awesome. I'm not great about trying new things. We've only stayed at WL, but I'd like to go more often and save money by staying at a Value or Moderate. DH is skeptical about quality of time, he suspects that getting around from resort to parks, etc, will be a headache from any lower-priced resort. I'd like to try CBR this winter (early December). How is getting to and from MK at CBR vs. WL, for example?

 

[NikkiLovesWDW!]

You have stayed in so many different resorts - that is awesome. I'm not great about trying new things. We've only stayed at WL, but I'd like to go more often and save money by staying at a Value or Moderate. DH is skeptical about quality of time, he suspects that getting around from resort to parks, etc, will be a headache from any lower-priced resort. I'd like to try CBR this winter (early December). How is getting to and from MK at CBR vs. WL, for example?

Well clearly it is quicker to get to the MK from WL because of proximity and the fact that you can hop on the boat from WL. I have stayed at many different resorts too from as deluxe as the Poly to POP. To be honest, I think no matter where you stay, there will be at least one time during your trip where the buses get you frustrated. But I also think that you're going to have to wait for a bus no matter where you are and I feel like once I'm on a bus going to my destination, I don't really pay attention to how long it takes to get there. I don't really mind an extra few minutes once I'm on the bus, it's the waiting for the bus to come that gets me, and you're going to do that no matter what resort you are at....although I gotta say, there was a little more waiting than desired at POP....

Try CBR preferred, you'll love it!

 

[mmstjohn]

We've decided to shorten the trip and stay at the Polynesian Resort instead. DH likes that the monorail and boat are right there, minimizing bus contact. I will take DS6 and DS3 next year and we'll try out one of the Values; we're much more patient with bus travel than my DH. I like all of the child-friendly amenities and activities at the Poly. Now I've got almost eight months to plan...

 

[EnnEss]

We've decided to shorten the trip and stay at the Polynesian Resort instead. DH likes that the monorail and boat are right there, minimizing bus contact. I will take DS6 and DS3 next year and we'll try out one of the Values; we're much more patient with bus travel than my DH. I like all of the child-friendly amenities and activities at the Poly. Now I've got almost eight months to plan...

You will love the poly Im sure. Just a note on some of your DHs worries about travel times, they aren't what you'd expect and don't correlate to money paid. Poly is on average a longer travel time to most places, other than MK, than mods. I think Epcot is a lot longer to get to from Poly than any mod, this according to passporter and UG. Of course, any monorail resort is great for MK though.

 

[mmstjohn]

Where do you find travel time estimates by resort? That would sure be a useful chart! Although I'm sure it varies; I know the boats from MK to WL seemed somewhat arbitrary. We spend the least amount of time at Epcot, and the most at MK, so that should be okay...

 

[plucky]

We stayed in a preferred room, Christmas week, 2004. We love this resort! The rooms are huge, and our longest wait for a bus was five minutes. We stayed at the Poly this past February, and I've gotta tell you, the next time we go, we'll be staying at CBR! The price is right, the location is great, the transportation was wonderful, and we had a blast!

 

[mmstjohn]

Okay - my mind is changed again. Seriously, the kids are FINE, it's DH who gets testy with the bus rides and that can spoil the whole thing. If it's MUCH quicker getting to and fro from Poly than CBR, I'd pay the extra $$, but if it's a toss up, I'll save the money and stay at CBR, which everyone seems to love. I have two little boys, either resort has pools and beach - any more input? I'm befuddled.

 

[BamaFan121s]

Non of the locations at CBR are really bad--EXCEPT Trinidad South. It's very far away from the main area and is the last bus stop of 7--as you can imagine, in the mornings it's near impossible to get a bus to any of the parks because they are generally full by the time they get there and don't even stop.

Other than that, I have no complaints about the bus service there. From my experience, it's actually been much better there than at the values we've stayed at.