Okay, I think I am now an expert on the Moderate Resorts at WDW!
We stayed at the CBR in 2002.
The CSR in 2003.
And now we've been to POR just two weeks ago in 2005.
I love them all. I would have a hard time deciding which one to go back to when we return to WDW.
They all have the same sort of layout and the rooms are almost identical. The only differences are the theming. If you really like the islands of the Caribbean or your home is decorated in southwest or you love the Americana of the Mississippi, then that should make your choice easy.
The advantages of each seem to be:
CBR: White sand beaches, a lake you can put your feet in (but you're not supposed to swim in) and hammocks to lounge around in. Parrot Cay island is pretty neat for watching fireworks.
CSR: Still has hammocks but not the beaches. Your mugs can be re-filled poolside and the pool has the Jaguar slide which is the best (just a bit longer with another turn and the Jaguar spitting water on you). The Pepper Market is very unique with the styles of food and the tableside service. Just one sink in the room, the other mods have two.
POR: Two main pools you can use (Riverside and French Quarter) and they are both very nice. The fishin' hole is a ton of fun for kids under 10 and very cheap to catch a few bluegills for fun. The boat ride to DownTown Disney is very convenient, relaxing and unique.
The resorts all have the usual rentals of Surrey bikes and watercraft. They all have a bunch (5) of quiet pools spread out around the resort.
The food courts are pretty much the same with a nice sit down restaurant in addition. We never seemed to eat more than once at the resort though. We always eat lunch and dinner at the parks or another restaurant.
I really like the way you can park your car near the check in and leave it there to go to a park after check in gives you a parking paper for your dash. Then you can get your car, find your room building, park close and just load your luggage yourself into your room.
If you fly, this doesn't matter.
Some complain that the moderates are too spread out. I don't feel that at all. I really like the fact that they are pretty much just 2 story buildings (or maybe 3 in some places) and have more of a "resort" feel than a "hotel" feel.
We also stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge and I didn't like that I couldn't leave our minivan in front. I was hussled away to a temporary parking lot (30 minutes) while we checked in. Then the walk to our room from the entrance was unbelievable. There is just one bus stop at AKL and the walk each day to our room was exhausting. The 5-7 bus stops at the moderate resorts mean a lot less walking.
And there really is no way you can bring your own luggage to your room at AKL. It would take us 5 trips and they would be long trips. I had no choice but to have Bell services take our luggage up and down and to tip (pretty well) each time. Hey, that's $20 I coulda spent at the parks if I stayed at a moderate!
Like I said, it would be a tough choice when going again to pick another moderate.
We have always paid just the little bit extra for a "water view" room which gave us gorgeous views of lakes at the CBR and the CSR. But our water view was a pool at POR so I don't know if I would do that again.
We used the French Quarter pool and walked around it a bit. The theming of FQ seems to be a bit more New Orleans with the iron gating on the balconies being a bit more intricate. I have not stayed in the rooms at FQ though.
The Riverside rooms were gorgeous. We loved the log style beds and the wood accents everywhere. We used to have a family log cabin in Wisconsin so the outdoors is our style.
I can see someone who only stays at luxury hotels balking at this room though. If you're a bit hoity-toity, stay away from Riverside. But we loved it.
There is a lot to be said for re-filling your resort mugs at the poolside at CSR. I think we used that mugh 5 times more there than at any other resort.
If you're thinking of a moderate, you'll find it a small step down from the luxury resorts and a huge step up from the Value resorts.
Give 'em a try! I hope this helps anyone who was trying to choose!
Our latest June 2005 trip report with lots of pics is at:
http://community.webtv.net/sktracy
We stayed at the CBR in 2002.
The CSR in 2003.
And now we've been to POR just two weeks ago in 2005.
I love them all. I would have a hard time deciding which one to go back to when we return to WDW.
They all have the same sort of layout and the rooms are almost identical. The only differences are the theming. If you really like the islands of the Caribbean or your home is decorated in southwest or you love the Americana of the Mississippi, then that should make your choice easy.
The advantages of each seem to be:
CBR: White sand beaches, a lake you can put your feet in (but you're not supposed to swim in) and hammocks to lounge around in. Parrot Cay island is pretty neat for watching fireworks.
CSR: Still has hammocks but not the beaches. Your mugs can be re-filled poolside and the pool has the Jaguar slide which is the best (just a bit longer with another turn and the Jaguar spitting water on you). The Pepper Market is very unique with the styles of food and the tableside service. Just one sink in the room, the other mods have two.
POR: Two main pools you can use (Riverside and French Quarter) and they are both very nice. The fishin' hole is a ton of fun for kids under 10 and very cheap to catch a few bluegills for fun. The boat ride to DownTown Disney is very convenient, relaxing and unique.
The resorts all have the usual rentals of Surrey bikes and watercraft. They all have a bunch (5) of quiet pools spread out around the resort.
The food courts are pretty much the same with a nice sit down restaurant in addition. We never seemed to eat more than once at the resort though. We always eat lunch and dinner at the parks or another restaurant.
I really like the way you can park your car near the check in and leave it there to go to a park after check in gives you a parking paper for your dash. Then you can get your car, find your room building, park close and just load your luggage yourself into your room.
If you fly, this doesn't matter.
Some complain that the moderates are too spread out. I don't feel that at all. I really like the fact that they are pretty much just 2 story buildings (or maybe 3 in some places) and have more of a "resort" feel than a "hotel" feel.
We also stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge and I didn't like that I couldn't leave our minivan in front. I was hussled away to a temporary parking lot (30 minutes) while we checked in. Then the walk to our room from the entrance was unbelievable. There is just one bus stop at AKL and the walk each day to our room was exhausting. The 5-7 bus stops at the moderate resorts mean a lot less walking.
And there really is no way you can bring your own luggage to your room at AKL. It would take us 5 trips and they would be long trips. I had no choice but to have Bell services take our luggage up and down and to tip (pretty well) each time. Hey, that's $20 I coulda spent at the parks if I stayed at a moderate!
Like I said, it would be a tough choice when going again to pick another moderate.
We have always paid just the little bit extra for a "water view" room which gave us gorgeous views of lakes at the CBR and the CSR. But our water view was a pool at POR so I don't know if I would do that again.
We used the French Quarter pool and walked around it a bit. The theming of FQ seems to be a bit more New Orleans with the iron gating on the balconies being a bit more intricate. I have not stayed in the rooms at FQ though.
The Riverside rooms were gorgeous. We loved the log style beds and the wood accents everywhere. We used to have a family log cabin in Wisconsin so the outdoors is our style.
I can see someone who only stays at luxury hotels balking at this room though. If you're a bit hoity-toity, stay away from Riverside. But we loved it.
There is a lot to be said for re-filling your resort mugs at the poolside at CSR. I think we used that mugh 5 times more there than at any other resort.
If you're thinking of a moderate, you'll find it a small step down from the luxury resorts and a huge step up from the Value resorts.
Give 'em a try! I hope this helps anyone who was trying to choose!
Our latest June 2005 trip report with lots of pics is at:
http://community.webtv.net/sktracy
