Caribbean Beach Resort FAQ's Part II

[want2bamommy]

Safetymom is right, and your TA who calls herself a Disney specialist is wrong -- king bed rooms are sprinkled throughout CBR and are certainly NOT only in the 6 preferred location buildings.

QUOTE]

Thank you for clarifiying that for me. I think we would prefer the King Bed over a preferred room location so we'll just stick with what we have.

As for the TA she is a Disney College of Knowledge Grad and solely books Disney travel and has been doing this for quite awhile. I assume that she isn't as familiar with CBR as the other resorts.

Thanks again!

Missie

 

[KSoda]

DISNEY'S CARIBBEAN BEACH RESORT

RUMOR-There is a rumor that the main pool will be closed the summer of 2007, I don't have details on this yet.

FACT- The main pool will be closed Jan- June 2008 I would suggest confirming with WDW about the pool closures if you are staying at CBR during these times. As I receive any information I will update the information..


I confirmed with Disney this morning (4/28/07) also that the main pool at CBR will be closed in 2008, not 2007.

 

[imatoad]

Great news, thanks for the update, I'd like to try it out at least once or twice while we're there this May.

 

[shaun&miranda]

Do rooms at CBR have balconies you can sit out on? Some photos look like there are balconies, and some don't.

Do I need to stay in a certain village to have one?

Thanks everyone!

Miranda

 

[ThinkTink75]

Ok, I need some help please. We have down graded from AKL to Pop due to some medical bills and I'm very sad about that but.... I'm thinking there isn't that much of a difference between value to mod so I'm scoping some out. I'm intrigued by CBR. I've stayed at CSR and I loved it. But heres my dillema. At pop we will have preferred rooms but if I go up to mod I wouldn't want to splurge on that. And my concern is that we will have a very long walk at the end of a tiring day. Is this resort worth that? Or is there locations that we could request that wouldn't be charged for preferred? Then of cource hope that we get those request.

How's the transportation? If you are far from the food court should you get on a bus and get off at a closer stop? Is there a table service restaurant on site?

Thanks in advance.

Im only halfway through this thread so I am sure people answered your questions but just to let you know- we started with a reservation at Pop and upgraded to CBR and have not regretted the price difference in any way! We are suuuuper pysched!

 

[safetymom]

No private balconies at CBR. The doors all open to a common walkway

 

[shaun&miranda]

Thanks Safetymom! I love the DIS boards, everyone is SO helpful!

Miranda

 

[ThinkTink75]

Yeah!!!! I finally made it through the entire thread! And I must say- I am not sure I can wait until July 22nd to get to CBR!!! That being said I do have a few questions that I did not see answered here and a couple of opinions that I would like to ask you for.....

First- do they only leave towel animals at mod resorts and higher? We did not get a single one on our first trip to WDW, and we stayed at ASMo... and our best friends stayed at Pop 3 times and never got any either so I thought maybe it was just another added bonus of the mod. Interested to know if we just lucked out before.

Second, this is about pools. I take it from all the posts that it is offical that the main pool is open this summer and only closed for refurb Jan-June of next year. That being said, what is a quiet pool exactly? I have heard people talk about them and I know that my boyfriend would love the idea of a quiet pool location for our request.

Third, speaking of request, is preferred in general a louder area? We have already paid in full and it would only cost us roughly $100 to upgrade to preferred. But we would like to be in an area where its close proximity to the marketplace area. My DBF eats breakfast in the food court everyday and is looking forward to his week of breakfast platters, so we will be heading over there everyday. Not that we don't think the walk from Aruba or Jamaica would be fun, its just that its not guarnateed. The only catch is that we do not want to be in an area where there will be loud and screaming people out at the pool to midnight or the loudness that I hear on trip reports all the time. We def plan to sleep in somedays on our vacation. So, what do you think? Is the preferred cost worth it for the closeness and also generally quiet in the summer OR would it be better to save our money and hope for our request because the walk is no big deal?

Fourth, I was a little bummed when I found out that the mugs were general YOAMD mugs this summer because at All Stars the only resort merch was pins and mugs. How about CBR? Is there more? I was hoping for something that says CBR on it. Please tell me there is?

And the last couple questions I have pertain to checkout. We are staying for 6 nights, but will be using 7 days of park tickets. Our flight from Orlando to NY is at like 8:00pm. So, our plan was to check out early in the morning, go to our ADR for breakfast, then spend the day in the parks, come back to the resort to get our luggage and on magical express, the leave. When we check out we will be leaving our luggage at the resort. Our travel agent made sure this was okay. But how do we get our lugagge to customs from our room? I read earlier in the post that we can't bring it on a bus. Can I make arrangements for someone at CBR to pick it up at our room now? I was not sure how it would work and were it would be kept either. Can anyone shed some light on this for me? Also, we were planning for a quick dinner before we pick up our luggage and leave for good... should we pay out of pocket for the ADR at Shutters or stick with the food court area? Is it worth the price? What would an average dinner cost for two?

And last, thank you soooooooooo much to anyone on here! These questions, answers, and updates have made me more excited and much more informed! I love these boards!!

 

[want2bamommy]

I just read all 98 pages in one sitting and I am exhausted, lol. I wish it was December already!!!

DH is in Afghanistan and nearing the end of a 16 month deployment. I am trying to get in touch with him via email but haven't had any luck yet.

If you had to choose between a Preferred location OR a King bed what would you do? I assume 99% of you will say Preferred location? When I first talked with my TA I told her I wanted a King Bed in a Preferred location and she booked the King Bed without telling me that I would get one or the other (guaranteed with an extra cost per night). I was aware that it was $15 more per night but after reading the entire thread I am leaning toward the Preferred Location over the King Bed.

Our ressies aren't until 12/22/07 so if DH wants to go with the preferred location do you think it will be available this far out? I feel like I will be a pain in the butt to my TA if I ask her to change it but still want the change.

I told DH that we booked the POP and went with the CBR as a surprise. I also am telling him that we have an ADR for lunch on our arrival day so that he doesn't get suspicious as we enter the CBR.

I just want to make this vacation special for him after being deployed for 16 months, you know? We only spent 2 weeks together during this deployment too so this will be a great chance for us to reconnect.

I know I am all over the place and I am sorry about that. I don't feel very well today and I've been on this thread non-stop for 6 hours now.

Thanks for listening.

Missie

 

[catbertdave99]

Yeah!!!! I finally made it through the entire thread! And I must say- I am not sure I can wait until July 22nd to get to CBR!!! That being said I do have a few questions that I did not see answered here and a couple of opinions that I would like to ask you for.....

Congrats on all the reading! Always gets me excited about returning to CBR!

(1) We have received towel animals at CBR. My 2005 CBR photos in the link below have a few photos....
(2) Quiet pools are awesome! No slides, no lifeguards, but very few other people also! Safetymom has photos of the quiet pools, and I have some of the Trinidad North quiet pool in my 2007 CBR link below. My kids and I prefer the quiet pools, to be honest. EVERY village has its own quiet pool, so you'll be close to one regardless.
(3) I don't think any area at CBR is noisy or loud -- it's all quiet. All the areas are designed in a similar way -- preferred just means closer to the food court and main pool (Old Port Royale). For what it's worth, we've had preferred locations both times and it's been great, but I wouldn't mind Jamaica or Aruba either.
(4) Can't really answer the mug question -- as of last month, we still got CBR mugs there... but that WAS last month....
(5) For your last day, call Bell Services the day before, and they'll schedule a time to pick up your luggage and get it to the Customs House --they brought a van to get the 4 of us -- don't know if you'll have to accompany it there or not -- we did. Anyway, Bell Services will hold the luggage for you at the Customs House until you return to the resort to get on the Magical Express bus. Just call them once you're there and they'll tell you how it will work out -- everyone is very helpful and friendly! Don't know about Shutters -- haven't eaten there.

Have a great trip!

 

[pperfectmom]

I just read all 98 pages in one sitting and I am exhausted, lol. I wish it was December already!!!

DH is in Afghanistan and nearing the end of a 16 month deployment. I am trying to get in touch with him via email but haven't had any luck yet.

If you had to choose between a Preferred location OR a King bed what would you do? I assume 99% of you will say Preferred location? When I first talked with my TA I told her I wanted a King Bed in a Preferred location and she booked the King Bed without telling me that I would get one or the other (guaranteed with an extra cost per night). I was aware that it was $15 more per night but after reading the entire thread I am leaning toward the Preferred Location over the King Bed.

Our ressies aren't until 12/22/07 so if DH wants to go with the preferred location do you think it will be available this far out? I feel like I will be a pain in the butt to my TA if I ask her to change it but still want the change.

I told DH that we booked the POP and went with the CBR as a surprise. I also am telling him that we have an ADR for lunch on our arrival day so that he doesn't get suspicious as we enter the CBR.

I just want to make this vacation special for him after being deployed for 16 months, you know? We only spent 2 weeks together during this deployment too so this will be a great chance for us to reconnect.

I know I am all over the place and I am sorry about that. I don't feel very well today and I've been on this thread non-stop for 6 hours now.

Thanks for listening.

Missie

If I was planning a trip after not seeing my DH in so long, I would go for the king bed! You need some romance girl. You can request the king and then add on a request for Jamaica. That way you would just be a short romantic walk away from OPR. Don't worry about bugging your TA-that's why she's getting paid. I have like 5 requests on my ressie for CBR-non-smoking, 1st floor, Jamaica, courtyard, etc...You may not get everything you want, just list in order of preference. You can pay for the king and then ask for a preferred location also on your request and again at check-in too. And any other questions you have can be answered by safetymom and others on here who know far more than me. Also, look at safetymom's pics and catbertdaves. They are awesome and will definately get you in the mood for CBR. Whatever you decide I'm sure you'll have a great time. Thank your DH for his service to our country.

 

[ThinkTink75]

I feel like I will be a pain in the butt to my TA if I ask her to change it but still want the change.

Ok, let me just say that it is your TAs job to get you the best vacation at the best price and make you the happiest. Do not feel bad about changing things on your vacation. (S)he is getting paid afterall! My boyfriend feels the same way about our TA and the truth is we could book fully ourselves no problem but she gets us good deals! lol! This vacation alone- we booked Pop, then added preferred, then changed to CBR, and will probably be adding either a room request or preferred within the next week, plus the flight schedule changed so instead of just leaving 12 hours early I made her switch our flights to a different airport with the same carrier so that we could be there the same amount of time. So, hopefully that will make you feel better about bothering your TA! lol! I am a nut! Also, I think you are better off paying for preferred. I thought about it as well, but when we stayed at ASMo we could only request a king bed and we did not get one and had no problems at all. The rooms their, which were smaller, were just fine and the bed was plenty big for the both of us. Hope that helps!

Also, catbertdave99, thanks for all the help with my questions! I need all the help I can get! lol!

 

[want2bamommy]

If I was planning a trip after not seeing my DH in so long, I would go for the king bed! You need some romance girl. You can request the king and then add on a request for Jamaica. That way you would just be a short romantic walk away from OPR. Don't worry about bugging your TA-that's why she's getting paid. I have like 5 requests on my ressie for CBR-non-smoking, 1st floor, Jamaica, courtyard, etc...You may not get everything you want, just list in order of preference. You can pay for the king and then ask for a preferred location also on your request and again at check-in too. And any other questions you have can be answered by safetymom and others on here who know far more than me. Also, look at safetymom's pics and catbertdaves. They are awesome and will definately get you in the mood for CBR. Whatever you decide I'm sure you'll have a great time. Thank your DH for his service to our country.

Thank you! I did speak with DH this morning on the phone and he too prefers the king size bed over a preferred location. So we will keep our reservation as is and then upon check in we will see if there is anything available in Jamaica. I appreciate your response and did pass along your message to DH, thanking him for his service!

Missie

 

[want2bamommy]

Ok, let me just say that it is your TAs job to get you the best vacation at the best price and make you the happiest. Do not feel bad about changing things on your vacation. (S)he is getting paid afterall! My boyfriend feels the same way about our TA and the truth is we could book fully ourselves no problem but she gets us good deals! lol! This vacation alone- we booked Pop, then added preferred, then changed to CBR, and will probably be adding either a room request or preferred within the next week, plus the flight schedule changed so instead of just leaving 12 hours early I made her switch our flights to a different airport with the same carrier so that we could be there the same amount of time. So, hopefully that will make you feel better about bothering your TA! lol! I am a nut! Also, I think you are better off paying for preferred. I thought about it as well, but when we stayed at ASMo we could only request a king bed and we did not get one and had no problems at all. The rooms their, which were smaller, were just fine and the bed was plenty big for the both of us. Hope that helps!

Also, catbertdave99, thanks for all the help with my questions! I need all the help I can get! lol!

Thanks ThinkTink! I finally got to speak with DH and he too wants the king bed so we are going to keep our reservation as is.

Thanks again!

Missie

 

[lonelydreamer]

... should we pay out of pocket for the ADR at Shutters or stick with the food court area? Is it worth the price? What would an average dinner cost for two?

I would just grab dinner at the food court. I think we paid about $40 for two at Shutter's and it was kind of disappointing. It wasn't bad - just nothing exciting. The food court has a great variety, and this year they had several upgraded entrees.

 

[Hoosier Mom]

Not sure if this will answer your question or not . . . but we had hoped for something close to the food court also. However, we got something close to a busstop. Boy, were we glad. We only walked to the food court once every morning for breakfast, but we walked to that dang busstop a zillion times.

The quiet pool was really nice. We were at Barbados 12.

Have fun on your trip. Wish we were going back soon. Looks like it may be 2009 before we get back there.

 

[tsd1202]

A couple of questions-

I see Martinque is a good beach to see fireworks but what about Aruba or Jamica- can you see from there?

Where are the internal bus stops- is it the same place as the ones that take you to the parks??? How often do the internal buses run, are they big buses like the ones that go from resorts to parks? Can they accomodate scooters and strollers?

If you pay for a King bed, does that mean you are also going to get a preferred room or is it a choice- King Bed or Preferred room- not both & what if you wanted both???

Thanks.

 

[safetymom]

You can probably see them from Aruba but Martinique is more in line with Spaceship Earth. The internal bus stops are the same as the one for the parks. They use a large bus like for the parks.

If you have a King bed that doesn't mean you will be in a preferred location. Kings are scattered around the resort.

 

[CleveRocks]

If you pay for a King bed, does that mean you are also going to get a preferred room or is it a choice- King Bed or Preferred room- not both & what if you wanted both???

Just to add to what safetymom said ....

Disney won't let you pay for two separate upgrades, believe it or not. CBR has 3 possible upgrades from a standard room: preferred location (meaning in one of the six buildings closest to Old Port Royale), water view, and king-size bed. If you want any of these, you must pick the one you want the most, and then reserve and pay for that, thus guaranteeing you will get it.

So in other words, you can guarantee yourself a room with a king-size bed by reserving and paying for it (if it's available and not already sold out). But there is ABSOLUTELY NO WAY to pay for and guarantee, for example, a king-size bed in a preferred location room, OR a preferred location room with a water view, etc.

There ARE rooms that have such combinations, but the people who have those rooms were simply lucky, as there was no way they could have guaranteed it.

 

[Nancyg56]

Is friendliest a word ? We are thinking of a quick trip in October and are looking at CBR or POFQ. I liked the size of POFQ and thought that the pool was nice for a 5 YO. Do you think that if we get a preferred room that the size of CBR would not be a detriment for us?

I was also trying to picture the theme and then determine if the main pool would be attractive for a little girl. She loves a slide, but not a "tunnel" slide like the POLY has.

Any advice you have would be appreciated.