Coronado Springs - Tell me the good and Bad!

[Disneymaddness]

I thought the food court was terrible. 10% gratuity to get drinks? come on. You have to wait to be seated. Then wait to get food. Then wait to pay. (at POR and POFQ you just wait for food and wait to pay). I found the staff there to not be that friendly. The food court is also extremely busy. Every night we went, there was a huge line just to get in to be seated. The whole El Centro area is packed in the evenings (which I find to be the opposite at POR and POFQ).

ITA. We have never stayed there but we wanted to check it out on our trip last week (we were staying at POR). We ate at the food court. Big mistake!! There were 8 of us so we were at different stations. The service was horrible, the kids were skipped over and the woman who brought us our drinks was very rude, like we were bothering her because some of us asked for water! When we spoke to the manager her reply was that there are 9000 people there for 3 conventions. All 9000 were not eating at that time! No thanks, never again.

 

[lpandorf]

We stayed there for a week in June. I was one of the conventioneers but was done at 1pm each day so took the family. We loved it and had no issues with any of the conventioneers.

What I liked:
1. Beautiful landscaping, felt like we were on another vacation when we left the parks.
2. Great pool and best playground! Playground are very big with my DS3 and this one was great (much better then one at POR and WL where we've also stayed). There were swings, climbers, big sand area to play in.
3. Nice table in gift shop with toy Cinderella's castle and figures for kids to play with. My DS3 would sit happily at that table and play while DD7 and I looked around. May not seem like a big thing but just a neat extra.
4. Esplanade outsite Pepper market very nice to sit and relax in evenings. There was a baby alligator in the lake that captivated the kids so I could sit and enjoy the view while they watched the gator.
5. Efficient luggage pick-up. Arrived right on time and took the luggage and us back to check-out area and driver super nice.
6. Good bus service (except to DTD never waited more then 15 minutes)

What I did not like:
1. Put in former smoking building in Cabanas. When I stepped in the room realized it still smelled awful and called front desk and asked to be changed. The CM really hastled me. Said she could not help it and someone must have smoked in the room right before we arrived. I just hung up and tried another one and she was much more helpful and moved me. The new room was great.
2. Pepper Market. 10% gratuity added for bad service.
Food very average for price

All in all, really like resort, kids loved it, esp DS3. Would stay again, but like to try new things so staying at SSR next trip.

 

[lilyv]

Oh, you're right! But the pedastal sinks have a shelf above which could serve as your counter space - I don't know, it's been a long time since I've stayed at a moderate with my family (we're a family of 5).

I stayed at both this month. In actual use, there's very little difference in counter space, surprisingly. In CSR, you share a large space with the ice bucket, glasses, coffee maker and mugs. At POR, you have a (very long) empty shelf that's deep enough (about 7"or so?) to use for your makeup, toothbrush, and so on. I just left my stuff there the whole stay.

Both worked fine.

 

[Praying Colonel]

We're staying at Pop as a money-saving measure for our upcoming trip. Whenever I see CSR threads like this, it makes me sad that we're not doing CSR this time.

Pros:

--Beautiful architecture
--Beautiful landscaping
--Love the southwest/beach theming
--Dig Site pool is wonderful--and morning soaks in the hot tub to start my day saved my injured back!
--Love the pool bar
--Quiet pools and laundries were convenient and very nice
--Shuttle transportation around the resort
--CM's who went the extra mile for us on several occasions
--Mousekeeping did a great job of keeping our room tidy

Cons:

--Pepper Market staff could be friendlier and more helpful, especially with the 10% service charge
--Resort is spread out, so if you have problems walking it could be problematic for you
--Buses weren't consistent in hitting bus stops on return--we came to call Bus Stop 1 "The Ironically-Named Bus Stop 1" because some drivers would drop off there first, but some would drop off there last--hard to blame this on CSR, though--more a Disney transportation gripe than anything.

 

[Mayl]

The sink issue is well a non issue

The shelf on top in say POR holds as much as CSR. Plus two sinks are just a god send when getting ready in the mornings..

Little touches like 2 sinks and the privacy curtain are good touchs at say POR over CSR

 

[Lilolvr]

The sink issue is well a non issue

The shelf on top in say POR holds as much as CSR. Plus two sinks are just a god send when getting ready in the mornings..

Little touches like 2 sinks and the privacy curtain are good touchs at say POR over CSR

If you stayed there you would know that CSR also has a privacy curtain.

 

[Buzz2001]

Praying Colonel,

Just an FYI...

The bus stops are designed to go in different order depending on the bus. Park buses begin at bus stop #2, then #3, then #4 and finish up with bus stop #1. DtD and Park Exit buses begin at bus stop #1, then #2, then #3 and finish with #4. It was set up this way to allow guests in the ranchos to use the bus like an internal shuttle to get from the back of the resort to the front without walking. There are signs that explain this at each bus stop.

 

[Mayl]

sorry when we went they did not have the curtains up..

But then, you know, things never ever change at resorts, so how could that have happened??

 

[Lilolvr]

sorry when we went they did not have the curtains up..

But then, you know, things never ever change at resorts, so how could that have happened??

They were up last year, sorry to be a non-believer. They have been up for the past few trips we took to CSR. I believe they went up three years ago during the rehab of CSR.

 

[diznyfanatic]

Interestingly, we stayed at both CSR & POR during Christmas 2005 and had never stayed at either (we have stayed at POFQ when it was Port Orleans and Dixie Landings) until that time.

As I posted in my trip report then (can't find in now as Search won't work but it probably didn't make Buzz's list as it was a few months before the first one listed in April), we loved CSR and to this day, my DGD still talks about it and says she wants to stay there. We had a lovely room in Cabana 9B. The room was beautiful, the grounds were lovely, and the staff couldn't have been nicer. I'm pretty certain that we had a privacy curtain then too.

We had absolutely no issues with any convention guests, and still think that CSR's bus service is the best on property. We traveled during the busiest season at WDW (Christmas) and CSR never felt crowded.

As in most things in life, the Pepper Market probably isn't for everyone, but we loved the variety. We were so used to standard food court fare that the PM was a very welcome change. We felt it was the best Counter Service option on the Dining Plan. Since we were on the DDP, we weren't bothered by the 10% gratuity.

We will definitely return and look forward to staying at CSR again.

On the other hand, we did not enjoy POR at all. Everything that could have gone wrong, did. Starting with the nearly hour long wait in the check in line (that we had to do twice due to a CM error) to the wait for luggage that never came and we finally retrieved ourselves, to the very understaffed and exceedingly slow service in the food court. The POR bus service, after having just stayed at CSR, was overwhemingly negative.

While POR will never be our first choice to stay again, it's definitely preferable than staying offsite or staying home and it's a nice that Disney offers so many options to suit different tastes and needs.

 

[Praying Colonel]

Praying Colonel, Just an FYI...
The buses stops are designed to go in different order depending on the bus. Park buses begin at bus stop #2, then #3, then #4 and finish up with bus stop #1. DtD and Park Exit buses begin at bus stop #1, then #2, then #3 and finish with #4. It was set up this way to allow guests in the ranchos to use the bus like an internal shuttle to get from the back of the resort to the front without walking. There are signs that explain this at each bus stop.

Thanks for the explanation. That makes sense.

 

[patsal]

We've benn a few times and DH has a convention there in Sept so we'll be back again.

Pros: Beautiful and on the high end for amenities at the moderate grouping.
Way cool pool and all recreational amenites of a deluxe
Convienient bus stops and busses are never overcrowded
COns: Personally dislike PepperMarket with kids it is too expensive and the food is subpar IMHO.
Really big resort--sometimes it is quite a hike to the pool and I'm not really into riding an internal bus system to get to a pool

 

[Carol D]

CSR is our new favorite mod! After our trip in June, we fell in love with all aspects of the resort. The main pool was a hit and the food court was tremendous. DH live getting the rib eye and prime rib dinners. The transportation was the best we've experienced at WDW.

 

[PaulaSB12]

I am doing a family holiday with my sister and her three monsters (aka my adorable nieces and nephew) so I want to go to CSR this year I am doing a solo trip at POFQ as it looked nice, with 2 sinks I can clean my teath in one and my face in the other!

 

[Michelle2]

I had somehow missed your report. First, congratulations on your wedding/honeymoon. I just got a chance to read your trip report. Thank you. You have only gotten me all the more excited about our arrival on September 1 at CSR.

We are checking in at CSR on the 1st too! Maybe we will see you around!
It will be me, DD11 (very red hair), and my Dsis. I loved hearing all of the pros and cons, gives me an idea what to expect. I am really excited about the pros!

 

[mcco5543]

No I didn't, you're number 125.

Thanks Buzz!

 

[G8r4evr]

There's nothing wrong with being a resort "expert", but I hope it's ok for regular posters to voice their experiences and opinions, also.

As do I.

 

[Tinkermom1971]

We stayed at CSR in 2005 on our first trip to Disney. We had a medical emergency that CSR and the CM's went above and beyond to help us. We have chose to stay there again in November 2007. It is a beautiful resort. I can't wait!!!

 

[Buzz2001]

Interestingly, we stayed at both CSR & POR during Christmas 2005 and had never stayed at either (we have stayed at POFQ when it was Port Orleans and Dixie Landings) until that time.

As I posted in my trip report then (can't find in now as Search won't work but it probably didn't make Buzz's list as it was a few months before the first one listed in April), we loved CSR and to this day, my DGD still talks about it and says she wants to stay there. We had a lovely room in Cabana 9B. The room was beautiful, the grounds were lovely, and the staff couldn't have been nicer. I'm pretty certain that we had a privacy curtain then too.

We had absolutely no issues with any convention guests, and still think that CSR's bus service is the best on property. We traveled during the busiest season at WDW (Christmas) and CSR never felt crowded.

As in most things in life, the Pepper Market probably isn't for everyone, but we loved the variety. We were so used to standard food court fare that the PM was a very welcome change. We felt it was the best Counter Service option on the Dining Plan. Since we were on the DDP, we weren't bothered by the 10% gratuity.

We will definitely return and look forward to staying at CSR again.

On the other hand, we did not enjoy POR at all. Everything that could have gone wrong, did. Starting with the nearly hour long wait in the check in line (that we had to do twice due to a CM error) to the wait for luggage that never came and we finally retrieved ourselves, to the very understaffed and exceedingly slow service in the food court. The POR bus service, after having just stayed at CSR, was overwhemingly negative.

While POR will never be our first choice to stay again, it's definitely preferable than staying offsite or staying home and it's a nice that Disney offers so many options to suit different tastes and needs.

Yes, that was before I starting tracking them but now I've added you to the top of the list. You're post #0.

 

[Buzz2001]

We stayed at CSR in 2005 on our first trip to Disney. We had a medical emergency that CSR and the CM's went above and beyond to help us. We have chose to stay there again in November 2007. It is a beautiful resort. I can't wait!!!

I helped a women get her husband out of the pool. He had gone into diabetic shock. It was in June 2005. She was struggling to keep him afloat in the pool. It's very hard to get someone out of the pool when they are dead weight. I remember the concrete being so hot and they laid him down to try and revive him.