Caribbean Beach Resort FAQ Part 3

[kkjd]

We'll be staying CBR for the first time. This post makes me nervous. Which building should I request when I get there? I made my hotel reservation at Disney on-line for standard room. Can I upgrade to preferred room when I get there or should I call and do it now???

Thanks.

Just got back from 12 days at the CBR and well, we hated it.

Sorry if you love it and it is your favorite resort. We were so looking forward to it, though.

What we liked:

It was quiet like last year.
I liked Shutters.
The bell service desk people were nice as were housekeeping.
The cast members at the shop were very nice as was the service people.

What we disliked:

The new pool area is lit like an airport. Way too bright and no trees. It is great if you like concrete. The new pool is boring and we miss the waterfall. The walkway to the pool is just dumb in how it is set up. The black fence doesn't fit in with the caribbean theme at all. The pool's heater was broken the first 6 days of our trip.

The nemo room. Looks like it was done by a blind person. I hate when my room is so loud the noise from all the colors clashing keeps me up.

The food court food was awful. Don't get the pizza and just eat elsewhere. Yuck and bland.

We were stuck in Aruba. I hate Aruba.

Oh, and someone broke into our room and security was less than stellar.
So yeah, I'm a little soured on Disney vacations for now. They burglars took our camera, a watch, money, an iPod, and a cell phone. Whatever you do, don't leave your room for a minute to watch IllumiNations. (We usually DO USE THE SAFE, but we had just emptied pockets from returning from the MK and stepped outside for a second. And yes, we locked the door.)

 

[Handbag Lady]

Wow. That really stinks about the theft, and of course the stuff you dodn't like isn't good, either.

Your comment about the "loudness" of the Nemo room made me laugh. I haven't seen one myself. And I totally agree with your view of the pizza ... actually, I never had the pizza during my latest CBR stay, but I have general disdain for the pizza anywhere in WDW.

If you were the type of person who otherwise would have returned to WDW in the future, I hope this trip didn't totally sour that ... hopefully time will allow you a different perspective.

We go to WDW once a year. We had planned half-way through our trip to book at WL or the Poly for next year for sure since CBR is no longer suitable for us, but now, well, we will probably go someplace else. I don't like having to spend money for a trip, look forward to it for a year, and then have it soured by something unavoidable, but not having Disney security take it seriously was the cherry on top.

They said they'd call within a day for a follow-up, and we're still waiting.

 

[Handbag Lady]

We'll be staying CBR for the first time. This post makes me nervous. Which building should I request when I get there? I made my hotel reservation at Disney on-line for standard room. Can I upgrade to preferred room when I get there or should I call and do it now???

Thanks.

You want to be in Jamaica closest to the bridge or in one of the two buildings nearest the Old Port Royal. I forget what they were called. I'd book NOW for preferred and when you check in, don't let them assign you to a room or building you don't want. This was our first mistake of our trip. I should have just insisted since I knew where I wanted to stay.

I feel like a cad. We even had our friends stay at CBR since we were there too. They were so sweet, but said nicely they wouldn't stay there again (this was before we were robbed).

My sister cancelled her reservation for CBR this morning and switched it elsewhere. She's single with a child and I can't have her staying there after our experience. Security was just too lax.

 

[MariaEllerºoº]

Well, the van is loaded and ready to roll! We're taking off at 4am in the morning for the long drive! WooooHoooo!!!! Can't wait to get back to our favorite Moderate Resort!!!

 

[ct123192]

I hate to say this and cause a panic but our room.....in Aruba.... was also robbed during the evening of 11/2.

 

[Gitts2008]

I hate to say this and cause a panic but our room.....in Aruba.... was also robbed during the evening of 11/2.

I am so sorry That is just aweful!

I am not panicing but would like to know how you were robbed, if you do not mind.

 

[mom2taylorandemily]

I am so sorry That is just aweful!

I am not panicing but would like to know how you were robbed, if you do not mind.

Me too!

 

[Mckys#1Fan]

I am very sorry that your rooms were gone through and your things are missing.

We were at CBR Nov. 1-8. Our room was in Jamaica. I noticed that the Aruba buildings were be refurbished during this time. Do you think maybe one of the construction workers could have lost a master room key and someone found it in your building and took advantage with it and went into the rooms?

For those that had things taken.... What building were you in? Just wondering if it was the same one.

 

[Minniekins]

We go to WDW once a year. We had planned half-way through our trip to book at WL or the Poly for next year for sure since CBR is no longer suitable for us, but now, well, we will probably go someplace else. I don't like having to spend money for a trip, look forward to it for a year, and then have it soured by something unavoidable, but not having Disney security take it seriously was the cherry on top.

They said they'd call within a day for a follow-up, and we're still waiting.

I hate to say this and cause a panic but our room.....in Aruba.... was also robbed during the evening of 11/2.

First off, I'm sorry this happened to both of you to spoil your vacations.

Was wondering a few things? Did you both call security when it happened? Were your rooms close together? I wonder if this happened to anyone else? I can't believe they didn't help you at all! Did either of you call the police outside of cbr security or disney? That's be my first call, not CBR security, I guess I wouldn't have thought of that. We'll go there in 3 days and I've always felt very safe there, but I guess that's an illusion, and we should be extra careful!

 

[Minniekins]

Okay, on a different topic now, we are going to CBR in 3 days, this Friday!

I had some room requests and such that they did note on my ressies. I want to call and verify our ressie and requests. Wondering when the best time to do this is and should I call the resort directly? I just need to find that number again, know I had it somewhere. Was thinking Wednesday would be good, within 48 hours of our arrival. What do you think? Thanks!

 

[CleveRocks]

Okay, on a different topic now, we are going to CBR in 3 days, this Friday!

I had some room requests and such that they did note on my ressies. I want to call and verify our ressie and requests. Wondering when the best time to do this is and should I call the resort directly? I just need to find that number again, know I had it somewhere. Was thinking Wednesday would be good, within 48 hours of our arrival. What do you think? Thanks!

Your only chance to contact the resort directly is by fax (and even that might not work ... there's incomplete info on whether resorts actually pay attention to faxes versus trash them).

I know that Disney publishes resort phone numbers, but those calls DO NOT go to the resort, but rather to a call center. They're very slick ... they answer with the name of the resort, but they are not there. They are trained to be gate-keepers, to transfer calls to the resort only as a last resort (so to speak), if they can't handle the question. They'd feel very capable of telling you they see the request on your reservation, and that would be that.

It's the same even when you're in your resort room. WHen you call the "front desk" or "housekeeping" for a wake up call or extra towels, those calls are answered at a remote call center, also!

 

[ahecht]

It's the same even when you're in your resort room. WHen you call the "front desk" or "housekeeping" for a wake up call or extra towels, those calls are answered at a remote call center, also!

I learned that the hard way when I called the front desk to ask how late the food court was open ad they had to ask me "which food court?"

 

[stmize]

In just 9 days I'll be there--this is me doing the sigle digit dance

 

[Handbag Lady]

First off, I'm sorry this happened to both of you to spoil your vacations.

Was wondering a few things? Did you both call security when it happened? Were your rooms close together? I wonder if this happened to anyone else? I can't believe they didn't help you at all! Did either of you call the police outside of cbr security or disney? That's be my first call, not CBR security, I guess I wouldn't have thought of that. We'll go there in 3 days and I've always felt very safe there, but I guess that's an illusion, and we should be extra careful!

Thank you. Security was called the second my husband discovered cash missing from his wallet. Then he noticed the camera bag was gone (too big to fit in the safe). When security arrived, they said they called the police for us and just started taking a report nonchalantly and didn't even look around. He infuriated me so I took off and started looking around for suspicious people and I alerted those near our room to see if they saw anything. I also checked the trash cans around Aruba, since the camera bag was empty assuming they'd toss it. I also checked the shrubbery and such.

Security man just stayed at our door talking to my husband. When I got back I asked him if he found them yet or if he looked. He said no to both. The police came and we filled out a detailed police report. So, yes, we had to fill out TWO reports, answer all sorts of grilling questions, and then of course we just felt like we were wasting time as the crime had just happened.

We were in Aruba room 5516.

 

[Handbag Lady]

I hate to say this and cause a panic but our room.....in Aruba.... was also robbed during the evening of 11/2.

Oh, we are not causing a panic. Maybe by telling what happened to us we can help someone else not become a victim. Use the room safe, hide things that are too big for the safe. I always lock up my jewelry and other valuables. It was just so fast, and we had just returned from the MK and had just emptied pockets and left for a second to view Illuminations.

I am so sorry you were burglarized, too. What did they take and how did they do it? Did the manager-type person come out and perform a "lock integrity" inspection on your door too? I tried to not laugh when their device failed. What good is that going to do to catch the thief or thieves?

We were there from 10/29 to 11/9, so we there in Aruba at the same time you were. What was your room number? We could have been neighbors!

 

[Susiesnowflake]

This makes me a bit nervous, since I will be solo for part of an up-coming trip.

 

[CleveRocks]

This makes me a bit nervous, since I will be solo for part of an up-coming trip.

I'm not trying to be heartless or sarcastic, just trying to be real, in hopes of helping you not feel so nervous ...

There's no place that is 100% safe. Crime can happen anywhere.

The other thing to keep in mind is that in both of these cases it was theft, not any sort of attack or intimidation.

 

[Susiesnowflake]

If ever there was a realist, it is me. I certainly realize that crime can happen anywhere, but I also don't live in fear or expectation of it happening to me. At the same time, it is of concern that 2 guests staying in the same village at the CBR during the same time frame had their room burglarized. As a female who will be spending part of her CBR stay alone, this does cause me some concern. Will I change resorts because of this? No, but it is still something I find concerning.

 

[nateryan]

I was there the same time while the other posters were there - we stayed in Martinique. The only thing I'm missing is one flip flop but I think that is due to a certain 2 year old. If you are concerned, maybe make sure that you aren't staying in Aruba. If you are given Aruba, tell them your concerns and switch buildings. Stay safe and have fun!

 

[rosiep]

I just returned from a visit and stayed at the Coronado Springs Resort (beautiful). I noticed early on that sometimes when my door shut it did not lock. I advise people to double check the security of the doors everytime you leave the room.
I'm returning to WDW and staying at the CBR this January for my 25th ( ) Wedding Anniversary! I will be diligent here as always.