CBR or BWV - with a 17, 16 and 4 year old

[manhattan]

I currently have a reservation for CBR and keep thinking I might change resort. We are going for four days, but only doing two parks - AK and HS - rest of time will be at pool, Disney Springs, etc. I like the idea of walking from BW to HS since I keep reading about long lines on the skyline and I know the teens want to do ROTR, so getting into the park before 10 needs to happen. But, I like CBR for the kiddie pool and the food court (mickey waffles!). I also like the BWV for the microwave, toaster, walking proximity to HS and of course the balcony, just to sit and have coffee. Thoughts?

 

[Dave006]

Is the bedding options important to you?

BWV Studio - 1 QB, 1 Q sleeper sofa, and 1 fold down (slightly smaller than a twin). Location is great as you can control how early you arrive at HS using the walkway. Very easy to be in the park by 9:15 - 9:20 every morning.

Dave

 

[hedberg1661]

I agree with PP. If you are prioritizing getting in to DHS for ROTR then BWV is a great choice. The pool area is also nice.

 

[manhattan]

Is the bedding options important to you?

BWV Studio - 1 QB, 1 Q sleeper sofa, and 1 fold down (slightly smaller than a twin). Location is great as you can control how early you arrive at HS using the walkway. Very easy to be in the park by 9:15 - 9:20 every morning.

Dave

I would probably end up on the sofa - hope that it is comfortable. I want to make sure that the 4 year old has fun too and it seems like CBR has a better kiddie pool for him - but BW has a better pool for the teens...decisions, decisions! LOL!

 

[Sunnywho]

Is your four-year-old scared of clowns or do you want him to be?
Is there much of a price difference? Would it cover the cost of travelling to Hollywood studios by uber once or twice to avoid the skyliner wait? My then 9-year-old loved the Caribbean Beach pool. He has asked to go back. The beds would also be more comfortable.

 

[mister morrow]

i'm a teenager and i personally prefer BWV over CBR! my siblings and i love the atmosphere of BWV (the boardwalk itself, proximity to epcot & hs, and the overall vibe of the resort)! the resort also reminds us of the jersey shore- where we go during the summer!

have fun!

 

[manhattan]

Is your four-year-old scared of clowns or do you want him to be?
Is there much of a price difference? Would it cover the cost of travelling to Hollywood studios by uber once or twice to avoid the skyliner wait? My then 9-year-old loved the Caribbean Beach pool. He has asked to go back. The beds would also be more comfortable.

Not that I know of! LOL! But not a huge price difference - hmmmm never thought of Ubering over there.

 

[andy_dangg]

Not that I know of! LOL! But not a huge price difference - hmmmm never thought of Ubering over there.

I'd be careful with Ubering in, if you get to the park too early, you won't be allowed into the parking lot and they'll have to drive around. If you get there too late, you'll be stuck in a long and slow car line.

I agree with the other posters and would recommend BWV in your case, we stayed there recently and loved it. Ironically we didn't use the walking path to DHS, we took the Skyliner instead.

But to be fair, if you're staying at CBR and get to the Caribbean Beach Skyliner station before 9a, you'll be able to ride the Skyliner as soon as it opens. It's only a 5 minute ride to DHS, so I feel like a lot would have to go wrong for you to not be in the park at 10.

 

[Sunnywho]

Take an Uber to Boardwalk, then walk from there? Lol. I agree that as a teenager, I would have preferred the Boardwalk.

 

[manhattan]

Take an Uber to Boardwalk, then walk from there? Lol. I agree that as a teenager, I would have preferred the Boardwalk.

They probably won’t let me in without a reservation...

 

[manhattan]

I'd be careful with Ubering in, if you get to the park too early, you won't be allowed into the parking lot and they'll have to drive around. If you get there too late, you'll be stuck in a long and slow car line.

I agree with the other posters and would recommend BWV in your case, we stayed there recently and loved it. Ironically we didn't use the walking path to DHS, we took the Skyliner instead.

But to be fair, if you're staying at CBR and get to the Caribbean Beach Skyliner station before 9a, you'll be able to ride the Skyliner as soon as it opens. It's only a 5 minute ride to DHS, so I feel like a lot would have to go wrong for you to not be in the park at 10.

I read about the car lines...I could probably go to the skyline early and wait for the girls to join me. I mean they only allow one family per skyline car, so if they join me shortly afterwards and other guests shouldn’t get too upset, right?

 

[nkereina]

I've not heard reports that waits for the Skyliner are any worse than they were in "normal" times. The Skyliner is essentially the same as a continuously loading ride in the park, where the line just moves consistently. In the few instances we experienced lines there last Fall, it took no longer than 5-7 minutes to get on. If you're at CBR, you also would not need to change lines to get to DHS. You can board at CBR and then the Skyliner ride to DHS is maybe 7-8 minutes, if that. If you're there when the Skyliner opens at 9am, there's no reason why you wouldn't be in the park by 10am, barring unforeseen circumstances.

All of that said, a BWV room gives you slightly more space and I just like the look/feel of the Boardwalk area better. You'd also have the flexibility to walk to surrounding resorts for meals or whatever else. If the added cost of a BWV room does not give you pause, then I would go for that.

 

[Deb & Bill]

Is the bedding options important to you?

BWV Studio - 1 QB, 1 Q sleeper sofa, and 1 fold down (slightly smaller than a twin). Location is great as you can control how early you arrive at HS using the walkway. Very easy to be in the park by 9:15 - 9:20 every morning.

Dave

The sleeper sofa is double sized, not queen sized at BWV. The murphy bed is bunk sized, 29" x 67", much smaller than a twin, 38"x75". The sleeper sofa isn't comfortable for an adult. Kids can put up with it, but adults find it hard for sleeping.

 

[Shellyred8]

At BWV, there is also a playground area just next to the pool that your 4 yo might like. When I was there with twin 2 year olds, they loved that space. It was actually probably a little big for their ages, but they were little dare-devils and had to try everything!

Also, don't forget about the leisure pool and Community Center at BWV.

My vote would be for BWV.

 

[manhattan]

At BWV, there is also a playground area just next to the pool that your 4 yo might like. When I was there with twin 2 year olds, they loved that space. It was actually probably a little big for their ages, but they were little dare-devils and had to try everything!

Also, don't forget about the leisure pool and Community Center at BWV.

My vote would be for BWV.

I thought all playgrounds were closed? Am I wrong?

 

[Shellyred8]

I thought all playgrounds were closed? Am I wrong?

I have not heard about this one way or the other.

 

[Sandiz08]

Save the money, the sleeper sofas are uncomfortable. If you like the splash pad, and want a good food court. The skyliner can take you to Hollywood studios. The walk to HS from BWV is actually not a short walk.

 

[manhattan]

Save the money, the sleeper sofas are uncomfortable. If you like the splash pad, and want a good food court. The skyliner can take you to Hollywood studios. The walk to HS from BWV is actually not a short walk.

That is what I have decided to do. Walking doesn't bother me, but I just think having actual beds is best for us. Thank you!

 

[manhattan]

Just wanted to share that we ended up at CBR and it worked out fine. While we were able to get to HS before 10 (long lines at Skyliner, temperature check, bag check) we made it in the gates with about 2 minutes to spare. I opened my app and added my group and the BGs were gone in less than 30 seconds - people all around me were screaming that they got it, except us. Long lines at the blue umbrella, so we just went on with our day. 2:00 pm I found myself waiting for our food and someone saying - less than a minute for another chance - I opened and it just kept crashing on me, but I checked the BG and there was our assigned BG 81. Can you believe we were called at 6:35! I was back at the resort with the 4 year old, but the girls got in! They were so excited.

I was able to get a microwave (housekeeping said they don't offer to Mods, but I told them front desk said they would - which they did) we were in Aruba building 51 - resort seemed pretty full. We had to wait at the pool for about 15 minutes because it was at capacity.

I took the Skyliner to Boardwalk and shortly after they shut it down due to the lighting (which apparently hit ROTR), so we had to take a bus back to the resort. It was such a disaster - people did not want to wait in line, being rude to the dispatcher, no social distancing. Next time I will take an uber back - just not worth waiting for the bus and the mayhem that was at the bus stop.