Coronado Springs Resort -- New Unofficial FAQ Thread -- November 2009

[SaskDisNut]

Hi! After several days and many sessions - I have read the whole board lol. WOW what alot of great information! We (me, dh, dds 14 & 10) have booked CSR on your good reviews for December 10-17 and can not wait!!

When we went to POFQ a few years ago, DH enjoyed spending the evening after the parks in the hot tub with a beverage under the guise of doing laundry lol. My pre-ramble is up to this question - is the Dig Site the only spot at CSR with a hot tub? It doesn't look like the quite pools have one but I don't want to assume.

We plan on renting a car for most of the trip so the other location considerations probably don't apply as much for us. Oh - another question is ME - we had originally just planned to cath it to the resort and use the rental for the return to the airport. WWYD? Is ME super realiable and will get us and our luggage to the airport without any snags? Or if you had a rental, would you keep it and drive yourself to the airport? (our flights are domestic although we are from Canada - we fly from Detroit)

We are hoping for fall free dining for our time there as we had planned to stay at POP but upgraded on the hope of free dining.

On a seperate not - do you find that the Disney trip planner in your family tends to be WAY more excited about the trip than the rest of the family? Or is it just me who has immersed herself in all things Disney while my family lives in the 'real' world of knowing we're 7 months from our trip?

Thanks for this great board and all your tips and advice!

Hi briabbysmom, first off to the Disboards and the CSR thread! To answer your first question, yes the Dig Site is the only place at the resort with a hot tub. It is quite large and very nice to sit in after a long day at the parks.

On all of our trips, we've only used DME from and to the airport. Returning to the airport is reliable from our experience. The day before you checkout you receive your DME departure information with your pickup time. Be at the DME area 15 minutes before your scheduled departure time and the bus will usually arrive very near the time it was scheduled. You will be picked up approximately 3 hours before your flight. And depending on your airline you can check your luggage at RAC (Resort Airline Check in) before you leave the resort. We've never used this as we are also Canadian and our final destination is a Canadian airport so we have to check our luggage at the airport.

I'm the Disney planner in our house and yes I am way more into it than the rest of my family. But they benefit from all my good planning and all the great advice from the boards!

 

[briabbysmom]

Thank you!! I agree - they do benefit from all our planning (and I feel like it extends the Disney magic for months in advance for me!)

So, the dig site is pretty big, which building would be on the hot tub side of things?

 

[trennr]

Thank you!! I agree - they do benefit from all our planning (and I feel like it extends the Disney magic for months in advance for me!)

So, the dig site is pretty big, which building would be on the hot tub side of things?

You'll want Cabanas 8A. this is the closet to the Dig site...and therefore the Hot Tub.

Though the Hotub is not pictured on the map...look at mya arrow for a genreal idea of its location.

 

[KatMark]

Okay....I'm going to try to answer all of these before my boss comes in.

I need to get caught up on this thread. I just returned late Sunday night (May 9th) from a split stay at AKL and CSR. I had a great room at both resorts (first floor pool view room, just two doors down from the health club, and maybe a minute from the hot tub and pool at AKL and first floor Cabanas 9B facing the lake at CSR). I had paid for a standard view so got some wonderful pixie dust with a great upgrade at CSR. I shared the room with a friend here on the DIS and surprisingly we both preferred CSR over AKL. I have always said CSR has the best bus transportation of any resort at WDW. The bus transportation this trip was no where near as good as previous trips though. We had to stand several times, which I have never had to do at CSR before. However the bus service was still much better than the bus service at AKL, which was really bad.

The beds at CSR were much more comfortable than the ones at AKL and the rooms much more brighter and cheerful. I know the AKL rooms are supposed to be just a tad bigger, but I could tell no difference at all in the size of the rooms. Both pools were equally nice. AKL has two hot tubs, but the one at CSR is bigger.

Housekeeping at both resorts was fine. Funny thing happened though: It seemed like housekeepers only took their tips every other day. The envelopes were preprinted with "Thanks Mousekeeping" printed on them and I placed them in the exact same place on the vanity every day.

CMs were very friendly at both resorts.

I did the Wanyana Sunset safari at AKL and highly recommend it. It was worth every penny and Jiko was wonderful. Didn't eat at either Boma or Mara this trip though. I ate breakfast at the Pepper Market my last day at CSR and was not impressed. My french toast was very dry and almost burnt and the fruit that was listed as coming with it was just two small strawberries. Something odd I noticed was that the people on either side of me had their refillable mugs and the CM's told them that since they did so, that they got to fill them, but did not get another drink, even though they were on the DDP.

Both resorts were lovely and I loved the theming at both. We got to see Glen's cousin one morning hanging around in the lake outside the Pepper Market.

We did online check in for both resorts. Our room at AKL was ready at check in, but we had to wait for the one at CSR. The wait was worth it though, due to the great location we got. We had a hammock right outside our room, was facing the lake, and was less than five minutes from the main pool and the main building.

Even though our rooms at both resorts were on the first floor and along the main throughfare, both were very quiet. We never heard a single person walking past our rooms.

One thing we did notice was that several nights our bus stop was right next to the CBR bus stop. The CBR bus stop always had many more people waiting than the other bus stops. My Oct trip is currently scheduled at CBR, but I am thinking about switching it to CSR, just for the better bus service. My only hesitation is a fear of being stuck out in the Ranchos. I love AKL, but for the price difference can't see staying there again. I'd rather stay at a moderate and make more frequent trips.

Aubriee, welcome home; I've missed you. I'm so glad that you had another great stay at the CSR! You lucky dog you...getting Cabanas 9B. Sounds like you received a little bit of pixie dust on your trip.

Hi everyone. I am new to this CSR thread. We just booked a VERY unexpected trip to Disney and we are staying at CSR. We go next week The opportunity came up and we are grabbing it. Needless to say I am in total disarray because I am a super planner. Good thing I am always on the dis and reading up on stuff so I'm not totally in the dark. I do have a few ques. for all you nice people if you don't mind.

- We check in late - prob. after 11 pm. Will there be any food options?
- Pool Hours? Can we swim late?
- Do you have the hours for the gift shop? I know my kids want autograph books and I thought I could get them when we check in if its open?
- We are flying Southwest. My travel agent said 24 hrs. before we head home we need to do online check in. Is this something I can do at CSR? She said to not wait until we get to the airport.

I know there were a few other ques. but now I am drawing a blank

Katmark - thanks for all of your input on this thread. I read thru it very quickly yesterday and tried to soak it all up. I told the travel agent I was glad to have queen beds and she said no CSR has double But I told my DH she was wrong.

Well since I'm still drawing a blank I'll pop in back later. Thanks so much everyone. I am so looking forward to staying at CSR.

Welcome to our "goofy" family here. Seriously, there are a lot of wonderful people here on the CSR thread and we are glad you have joined us. Ask any questions you may have....someone will answer; it may not be immediately, but one of us will get back to you.

Okay, now to try to answer the questions you have asked:

1. No, I'm afraid there will not be any food options; everything closes by 10 or 11;

2. The quiet pools sometimes close at 9 p.m., but the main pool is open...just no lifeguard (and the slide closes when the lifeguards go off duty)

3. I believe that you can print your boarding passes at the CSR (someone who has tried this in the past will be better off answering this one as we leave the CSR and go to Marco Island so we've not had to do this)

You are most welcome. I'm glad the thread has been someone helpful to you. Please come back and ask away.

Forgot your question re Gift Shop. I'm not sure when it closes, but probably before you get there. You can get autograph books as soon as you enter the parks (the MK you can get them at the shop right outside of the park after you've passed through the turnstiles).

Hi! After several days and many sessions - I have read the whole board lol. WOW what alot of great information! We (me, dh, dds 14 & 10) have booked CSR on your good reviews for December 10-17 and can not wait!!

When we went to POFQ a few years ago, DH enjoyed spending the evening after the parks in the hot tub with a beverage under the guise of doing laundry lol. My pre-ramble is up to this question - is the Dig Site the only spot at CSR with a hot tub? It doesn't look like the quite pools have one but I don't want to assume.

We plan on renting a car for most of the trip so the other location considerations probably don't apply as much for us. Oh - another question is ME - we had originally just planned to cath it to the resort and use the rental for the return to the airport. WWYD? Is ME super realiable and will get us and our luggage to the airport without any snags? Or if you had a rental, would you keep it and drive yourself to the airport? (our flights are domestic although we are from Canada - we fly from Detroit)

We are hoping for fall free dining for our time there as we had planned to stay at POP but upgraded on the hope of free dining.

On a seperate not - do you find that the Disney trip planner in your family tends to be WAY more excited about the trip than the rest of the family? Or is it just me who has immersed herself in all things Disney while my family lives in the 'real' world of knowing we're 7 months from our trip?

Thanks for this great board and all your tips and advice!

The hot tub at the CSR is the LARGEST of all of the hot tubs at the moderates. It holds 22 people; DH and I often use it after we've come back at night from the parks and we've usually had it to ourselves or with one other couple (two at the most). He can get a drink at the Laguna Bar and bring it over with him. There are no hot tubs at the quiet pools.

We never use ME as we always rent a car (again, we drive to Marco Island or Daytona Beach after our time at Disney). We drive to all of the parks, including the MK, and to DTD and to the airport. The signs within Disney are very clear and easy to follow.

Yes, I do all the planning in my house...although DH is just as excited about our trips as I am. But he tends to MESS things up so I am in charge.

Will Cafe Rix fill these mugs with lattes or cappacinos? I don't drink soda and would only buy these mugs if I could get my latte fix before heading to the parks.

Good question. The official answer is NO, it is only for coffee, juice, pop. However, when I've gone to the Pepper Market they have allowed me to use a snack credit for my cappucino in the morning. Now, I don't know if this is always the case or because the woman (and I'm embarrassed I can't remember her name) knows me from all of our trips, but she has allowed me to use a snack credit the last three years.

 

[matthew_hull]

Hi. Quick question for you. We just booked a trip yest. and going next week. We are flying Southwest for the first time. Can you tell me what "Airport Bag check with Southwest" means? I'm really not sure how that all works. Thanks so much.

You can visit the Transportation discussion-forum to find LOTS of threads on Southwest Airlines and the numerous tips to using them wisely. However, briefly, the Airport bag check service allows you to bring your heavy luggage to the front desk area (we had a rental car so this wasn't terribly difficult) and they will weigh it ($50 fee for over-weight bags -- I got hit coming and going on this one) and truck it to the airport and make sure it gets on your return flight home. This can be very convenient depending upon your specific circumstances. SWA only very recently agreed to participate in this service. We did it and experienced no problems, other than the $50 overweight fee. Bags must be 50 pounds or less. I need to buy a scale

We are flying Southwest. My travel agent said 24 hrs. before we head home we need to do online check in. Is this something I can do at CSR? She said to not wait until we get to the airport.

If you are willing to give SWA an extra $10 per seat, they will take care of the check-in for you via their Early-Bird Check-in service. This way you do not have to worry about the 24-hour mark. Again, see the Transportation board for lots of discussion regarding the merits of this service.

 

[Disney Dancin']

What a great read...proud to say I just finished up the entire thread, took a few days and a couple late nights... it was addictive and fun, just what I needed to keep feeding my excitement for our trip
Especially when we have taken a huge step backwards weather-wise here in Iowa for the last several days...lows in the 30's, highs in the 50's and lots of rain, wind and clouds. We had been enjoying 70's for the last half of April, got spoiled, I guess. But makes Florida Disney Dreaming that much more wishful Must remember this when we sweat our tushies off in July

 

[KatMark]

What a great read...proud to say I just finished up the entire thread, took a few days and a couple late nights... it was addictive and fun, just what I needed to keep feeding my excitement for our trip
Especially when we have taken a huge step backwards weather-wise here in Iowa for the last several days...lows in the 30's, highs in the 50's and lots of rain, wind and clouds. We had been enjoying 70's for the last half of April, got spoiled, I guess. But makes Florida Disney Dreaming that much more wishful Must remember this when we sweat our tushies off in July

Congratulations! If it had been me, I would have been caught skimming on more than one page.

I know what you mean about the weather. We're having the same thing here in Chicago and I am really sick of it. We were actually in Iowa on May 2nd and it wasn't too bad that day, but it was cooler by the time we left that night.

 

[DisneyMommy1022]

Especially when we have taken a huge step backwards weather-wise here in Iowa for the last several days...lows in the 30's, highs in the 50's and lots of rain, wind and clouds. We had been enjoying 70's for the last half of April, got spoiled, I guess. But makes Florida Disney Dreaming that much more wishful Must remember this when we sweat our tushies off in July

Trust me I feel you!!! We are having the same weather here in Michigan and I hate it!!! I wish I was on my trip NOW!!!!

 

[taximomfor4]

I don't know if you all want this added into your calendar, but the North American Irish Dance Championships is overflowed into CSR. It is July 1-6. HTH

 

[KatMark]

I don't know if you all want this added into your calendar, but the North American Irish Dance Championships is overflowed into CSR. It is July 1-6. HTH

Thank you...I will include.

 

[briabbysmom]

What a great read...proud to say I just finished up the entire thread, took a few days and a couple late nights... it was addictive and fun, just what I needed to keep feeding my excitement for our trip
Especially when we have taken a huge step backwards weather-wise here in Iowa for the last several days...lows in the 30's, highs in the 50's and lots of rain, wind and clouds. We had been enjoying 70's for the last half of April, got spoiled, I guess. But makes Florida Disney Dreaming that much more wishful Must remember this when we sweat our tushies off in July

I'm right there with you! It's a huge amount of information to take in - but feeds the addiction quite nicely lol!

It's fabulous to have a board dedicated to CSR to ask and answer all of those questions and get answers from folks so enthusiastic about the property!

And I have another question! I don't see anything on the list - any conventions I should know about for Dec 10-17?

 

[The Original~Mad4mky]

On a seperate not - do you find that the Disney trip planner in your family tends to be WAY more excited about the trip than the rest of the family? Or is it just me who has immersed herself in all things Disney while my family lives in the 'real' world of knowing we're 7 months from our trip?

I am the 'chief' vacation planner for our household (even though 2 of my adult daughters are out of the house, they still rely on me to do a lot of the planning).
On our trips to---Disneyland (which we go ALL the TIME--because we live in Nor California) Disneyland Paris, WDW, The Disney Cruise, and our big trip to Tokyo Disney Resort last year---I plan everything---airlines, hotels, most eating establishments, etc.

I am by FAR the most excited one of our family. I drive the family wacky with my planning and excitement. I beg them to look at the fun links I send them (all the Tokyo Disney Sea ones were amazing).

Since only two of us are headed out to WDW in July for a conference--I don't get to bug as many people with my enthusiasm. BUT---Inside...I am just going crazy (even though I'll be at my beloved Disneyland again in a week...)

 

[Jetta8300]

Hello! I am going to WDW for the first time ever in October, and have just switched my reservations from POFQ to CSR. I am SO excited, and I have a few questions about the resort. It is just my husband and I, and we probably won't be spending too much time at the resort, no swimming or anything. Maybe just a snack in the morning, then off to the parks!

The last 3 vacations of mine were spend in Cancun, and I am kinda tired of the mexican "beachy" theaming. The Ranchos section seems really neat! But it seems like after reading this thread nobody requests this or stays there. Is there a reason?

Cafe Rix seems neat for a morning capuccino or croissant, so any of these things count for a snack credit on the DDP?

Anyone who has stayed in the Ranchos section, wha is the best building?

Thanks a lot!

 

[KatMark]

Hello! I am going to WDW for the first time ever in October, and have just switched my reservations from POFQ to CSR. I am SO excited, and I have a few questions about the resort. It is just my husband and I, and we probably won't be spending too much time at the resort, no swimming or anything. Maybe just a snack in the morning, then off to the parks!

The last 3 vacations of mine were spend in Cancun, and I am kinda tired of the mexican "beachy" theaming. The Ranchos section seems really neat! But it seems like after reading this thread nobody requests this or stays there. Is there a reason?

Cafe Rix seems neat for a morning capuccino or croissant, so any of these things count for a snack credit on the DDP?

Anyone who has stayed in the Ranchos section, wha is the best building?

Thanks a lot!

Hi; and welcome to our fun filled "unofficial thread."

Ranchos are not requested often because they are furthest from the main building and a lot of people don't like to walk that distance for meals, refills, etc. We've never stayed in the Ranchos but hope to in September (we've stayed seven times in the Casitas and once in the Cabanas) because we don't mind walking.

Cappucinos are not on the dining plan (although I have on occasion gotten them as a snack credit at the Pepper Market window). Some of the items on the dining plan for a snack credit are: Biscuits, muffins, banana bread, cookies, potato chips, pop tarts, bananas, apples, oranges, assorted cookies, yogurt, etc.

 

[that's nice]

Hi

Just a quick question...

When I hit the lotto, will I be able to rent out every room at CSR for all my close friends?

Thanks in advance!

 

[KatMark]

Hi

Just a quick question...

When I hit the lotto, will I be able to rent out every room at CSR for all my close friends?

Thanks in advance!

Absolutely....BUT ONLY IF I GET FIRST CHOICE OF THE ROOM!

 

[that's nice]

Absolutely....BUT ONLY IF I GET FIRST CHOICE OF THE ROOM!

Of course!!!!!!! You also get the 1st choice of hammock too!

Just stopping by for my monthly post on this thread!

 

[KatMark]

Of course!!!!!!! You also get the 1st choice of hammock too!

Just stopping by for my monthly post on this thread!

Don't mind Tim everyone...he's just a friend that I let out to play once a month (although if I looked back on this thread, I think it's been more than a month since you've been here).

Tim is the father of Juliana who we have dubbed our "CSR Child" -- she is a precious 4-year old and cancer survivor and we just adore her.

 

[SnoopyB]

What are the chances of them upgrading 2adults to a king bed if we book the standard? The king is about $138extra, so thinking about saving that little bit of extra money. However I don't want extra space being taken up by a bed that we won't be using.

 

[KatMark]

What are the chances of them upgrading 2adults to a king bed if we book the standard? The king is about $138extra, so thinking about saving that little bit of extra money. However I don't want extra space being taken up by a bed that we won't be using.

We booked a standard last year and were upgraded to a king.