Caribbean Beach Resort FAQ Part 3

[pumpkinfish]

I just wanted to post my "hello" to everyone over here at the CBR thread. I booked me and DH for a quickie/last minute trip next month. We had AKL booked but then he got into the fire dept so is going through his schooling and asked me to cancel because he wouldnt have the time off. Well, he found out yesterday he has a weekend open and we are grabbing it Didnt want to give up AKL for CBR but at least we get to go

So this is our first CBR stay and I'm excited! We wont have much time planned at the resort, but I was hoping some regulars could fill me in on things that stand out that you enjoy. Also, for those Obsessive/Complusive planners that stay here, how should I plan my time...bus time, food court time for breeakfast, walking time, waiting in line at parks to come back to resort time, ect. Any info will be appreciated! I have us requested for Aruba 51 or Jamaica 45 (anyone else always want to say "Jamaica me crazy!" when you say Jamaica? LOL). I know there is an internal shuttle, but is this a waste of time? How late is the food court opened until? We should be arriving at the resort around 10:30pm, will it still be open? I'm not sure if we will have time to hop over to DTD that night.

I know, lots of mini questions but you know how us planners can get...even for a 2 night stay

 

[Momof2Disneyboys]

So this is our first CBR stay and I'm excited! We wont have much time planned at the resort, but I was hoping some regulars could fill me in on things that stand out that you enjoy. Also, for those Obsessive/Complusive planners that stay here, how should I plan my time...bus time, food court time for breeakfast, walking time, waiting in line at parks to come back to resort time, ect. Any info will be appreciated! I have us requested for Aruba 51 or Jamaica 45 (anyone else always want to say "Jamaica me crazy!" when you say Jamaica? LOL). I know there is an internal shuttle, but is this a waste of time? How late is the food court opened until? We should be arriving at the resort around 10:30pm, will it still be open? I'm not sure if we will have time to hop over to DTD that night.

I know, lots of mini questions but you know how us planners can get...even for a 2 night stay

Yes, and everytime the bus driver pulls up to the bus stop and says - Jamaica!!

CBR is great! We never had any issues when we stayed there or any long waits! We didn't use the internal shuttle because it is only a 5 minute walk from Jamaica to OPR.

ENJOY!!

 

[safetymom]

The new pool is much larger than the old one. It is also larger in the sense that the hot tub isn't stuck in the middle. There is also a separate slide area.

 

[ahecht]

I know there is an internal shuttle, but is this a waste of time?

There is an internal shuttle, but since it only comes by every 20 minutes it can be much faster to use the Theme Park buses instead. The buses travel around the resort in the following order:

DHS, AK, and EPCOT Buses: Jamaca, Aruba, Barbados, Martinique, Old Port Royale, Trinidad North, Trinidad South, Exit

MK and DTD Buses: Martinique, Old Port Royale, Trinidad North, Trinidad South, Jamaca, Aruba, Barbados, Exit

Therefore, to get from Jamaca/Aruba to the Food court take a DHS, AK, EPCOT, or Internal bus. To get back, take a MK, DTD, or Internal bus. It never hurts to check with the Bus driver that they are going where you want to go, just in case. The Custom House is directly across the street from the Barbados bus stop, so you may be able to use the other buses to get there or get back from there depending on where you are staying.

All said, however, you may find that your walk to Old Port Royale is shorter than taking the bus, but it depends on your walking speed and tolerance as well as your room location.

How late is the food court opened until? We should be arriving at the resort around 10:30pm, will it still be open? I'm not sure if we will have time to hop over to DTD that night?

I think it depends on the night, and you may have to call and ask. When we were there late the food court was open until 11pm but the Broiler station closed at 10pm. I think the grab-and-go may have been open until midnight.

 

[wpxc]

But is there still a coloring table? Or any sort of play area in the food court will do....

No, unfortunately they removed the coloring tables, sorry that is what I meant by "children's tables".

I read earlier in this thread that there are 2 slides at the main pool. Looking at the great pictures, I can only see one. I can see the slides in the kids area. Where is the other one? We were at CBR in 2006 and are going back in July of 2009.

The second slide is in the exact same location as the old slide, in the smaller fort type thing. The reason there are no pictures is because the construction fence is blocking every perspective on that part of the pool for some reason, but it is there.

The new pool is bigger than the old one, isn't it?

Someone is stating on another thread that the new pool is still "very small" for the resort size. . . . .

The pool is bigger, it's not HUGE by any means but definitely bigger. There is also a very significant increase in deck space as everything is a bit less confined than before.

 

[motofox4]

does anyone know if it's the same size or smaller/bigger then the pool at CSR?? we've stayed at CSR in the past so i know how big that pool is and can use that to compare the size between the 2...

 

[TJA]

No, unfortunately they removed the coloring tables, sorry that is what I meant by "children's tables".

Oh no.....I wish they could make room for just a small area for the kids. It is such a big hit at POR.

 

[wpxc]

does anyone know if it's the same size or smaller/bigger then the pool at CSR?? we've stayed at CSR in the past so i know how big that pool is and can use that to compare the size between the 2...

I would venture to say it's slightly larger than CSR now.

 

[McKelly]

Just curious about the new pirate rooms.........looking at the new artist rendering of the rooms, it looks like they are going to have hardwood floors. Is this true, or do you think they will be carpeted? I don't know if I would like not having the floors carpeted, I think it would be loud and uncomfortable from a feet perspective.

 

[Trissy]

Is all of Martinique preferred? We usually request Aruba (and love it), but were considering staying in Martinique or Barbados if Marts preferred.

 

[pumpkinfish]

Thanks for your input! I'm excited about this upcoming trip and venturing to a new resort for a change

 

[TxRabbit]

I just wanted to say hello!

I'm fixin to book a pirate room for July 2009, just trying to finalize my plans. But the info gathering starts now! LOL!

I'll be working my way through the thread as we have never stayed at CBR but we are totally looking forward to it!

Hope everyone is having a magical day regardless of location!

 

[mickeystoontown]

Is all of Martinique preferred? We usually request Aruba (and love it), but were considering staying in Martinique or Barbados if Marts preferred.

Some of the Martinique buildings are preferred locations and some are not.

 

[LuvsTinker]

Is all of Martinique preferred? We usually request Aruba (and love it), but were considering staying in Martinique or Barbados if Marts preferred.

We've stayed in Martininque - non-preferred, a couple of times, and were fortunate to get a nice corner, garden view room. The walk to OPR is not bad from there.

 

[cheekpatch]

We check in on 9/20. I can hardly stand the wait...we have everything crossed in hopes that the pool is open by time we get there! Oh please, oh please....

We're checking in the same day. Keeping my fingers crossed too for the pool opening and for avoiding any tropical storms

 

[JohnH]

The coffee pot is a 4 cup, and there is complimentary coffee in filter packs. I carried my own regular filters, and my own coffee. It was much better than the freebies. You can get half and half at the food court (free) to take back to the room for your coffee.

The prices at the grab it n go were about average for a resort, I think. A bit pricey, but if you are traveling without a car, it is not too bad.

My wife and I packed our clothes and such in one suitcase, and the other was filled with food. We checked both on the plane, and saved a lot of money. That being said, I did not know I could buy a loaf of bread, jar of PB, a jar of jelly and a half gallon of milk at the Calypso Trading Post. They had other foods there, also. Matter of fact, I would have probably just carried garden fresh tomatoes and some lunch meat, and bought the chips and bread there.

 

[catbertdave99]

Is all of Martinique preferred? We usually request Aruba (and love it), but were considering staying in Martinique or Barbados if Marts preferred.

The PP's are correct about Martinique. If you look at the map (Safetymom has one on her site, plus a link to it on page 1 of this thread) buildings 21-23 are standard, and buildings 24-26 are preferred in Martinique.

 

[tpholland]

We're checking in the same day. Keeping my fingers crossed too for the pool opening and for avoiding any tropical storms

We're also checking in on the same day!!

REALLY getting excited about it now. We wake up every day now & say "Happy __th Day til Disney

 

[relcx4]

We're also checking in on the same day!!

REALLY getting excited about it now. We wake up every day now & say "Happy __th Day til Disney

Maybe if we all keep our fingers crossed...the pool will be opened and there won't be any more tropical storms.

 

[daginch]

We are checking in on the 20th too!!
We can't wait!!!!!
This will be our first "real" Disney vacation with our DD.

Hoping for an open pool and great weather!!