CSR review - just back

goofyintoronto

DIS Legend
Joined
Mar 29, 2011
Messages
14,182
Just got back today from a 6 night stay at CSR. It was just my son and I. We stayed in Cabanas 8A (thanks to everyone for recommending this location, its amazing!!!!!). Super close to the main pool and bus stop #4. The bus system at CSR was honestly the best i've experienced in disney. I couldnt believe how amazing it was. We waited no more than 5 min for a bus. And would you believe we didnt stand on the bus once? Not once! Both there and back. :eek: Shocking!

The grounds are gorgeous and serene. So beautiful. Loved the hammocks, nice touch. The flowers around the resort is so gorgeous. The rooms itself are very nice and spotless. Mousekeeping was amazing, even thou we didnt get any towel animals, Lol! Wait i lied, we got one.:lmao: But they were great with replenishing the shampoo's towels etc whenever they were used up.

Pepper Market buffet (breakfast) was really good. I cant believe its a QS credit. Really good selection for a QS! Didnt try lunch thou. We did have dinner one time. I had pasta, it was pretty good! For dessert i had cheesecake, yummy! My son had nacho's and inhaled the whole thing, so it must've been good. :rotfl:

The pool is awesome. Love the fact that there's QS food and mug refills at the pool, in addition to the bar. VERY convenient. My son loved the ping pong table and arcade by the pool. The slide is a lot of fun, i think its a tad longer than the one at POR. We didnt use the beach volleyball but it looked like fun. The CM's doing the poolside activities during the day were really good. They had movies at night but we didnt get a chance to watch any. Honestly my first impression of the pool wasnt positive thou. I wasnt wow'd by the appearance. The pool seemed bigger in pictures. I honestly think i prefer the pool at POR for some reason. I find it nicer with all the water falling from above, even thou it is a smaller pool than CSR (but not by much i think).

CSR is a beautiful resort with a great bus system, better than any other resort i've seen to be honest. As i said, we didnt wait longer than 5 min for any bus. I heard one guest say one time they waited an hour for a MK bus, but something did happen. Theyre just not sure what.

My one and only complaint is regarding their wifi. They have the WORST wifi connection EVER, it was the worst i've ever experience in all my years on this gorgeous planet of ours. It was beyond frustrating. I relied on wifi so my son can keep in touch with his dad (phone charges from canada are atrocious believe it or not). Another disser i met up with at the resort had stayed at casitas and said the wifi was great. So maybe it was just the cabanas 8a section? :confused3 I dunno. I know it wasnt my phone cause we had several devices which didnt work. You'd think a convention resort would have better wifi. sheesh! It did frustrated the ____ out of me.:furious: You have no idea. For my entire stay, 6 nights, i think i had a connection only 3-4 times, TOPS....and it was brief, maybe 5 minutes. Then i'd be disconnected. Thats absolutely disgraceful. Having said that, I cant say i'd never stay here again because of the terrible wifi, but its just something i wanted to mention. ;)

Other than that, its a great resort. Gorgeous, convenient. Very friendly staff. We loved it!

Prior to our stay at CSR, we did a 2 night room-only at Movies. We loved this resort as well believe it or not. A lot of fun. Better arcade which my son thinks is very important LOL! :rotfl: After weighing out the pro's and con's from value to mod, and after looking at our experiences with movies and CSR (and previous year with POR & POP), I honestly cant say that my experience at disney was enhanced by the beauty of a mod level resort. The wifi was better at Movies, CSR was atrocious....re: theme, we liked the theme at both (despite the obvious differences). Both resorts have a fridge. My son used the pool waterslide at CSR only twice, he just doesnt care for them. I only used the hot tub once. CSR is nice, but im not sure i'd go out of my way to book a mod in the future. POR is my true love to be honest, the boat to DTD is awesome, and i find the grounds prettier. And even thou the pepper market buffet is a great value, overall i prefer POR food court.

For our next trip I have to think about long and hard if the appearance of the resort is worth the extra $$$. Essentially, thats all it is for us since we dont really benefit from all the extra's that mods offer. The only mod that would sway me would be POR because of the boat to DTD (love it). It helps that the grounds are gorgeous, and the pool & food court are great as well.

Im all over the place arent I? Lol.
 
Thanks for the review. I'm on the fence about which mod to stay at next time. I loved CSR when we stayed 9 yrs. ago, didn't really like CBR, and I would like to try POR but I'm afraid I'll be disappointed.
 
Thanks for the review. I'm on the fence about which mod to stay at next time. I loved CSR when we stayed 9 yrs. ago, didn't really like CBR, and I would like to try POR but I'm afraid I'll be disappointed.

I havent stayed at CBR.....but both CSR and POR are great resorts. Both are gorgeous with different perks. POR has the boat to DTD, CSR has QS and mug refill at the pool.

Honestly I like POR better. The boat is what gets me. Such a great perk. I like the food court better there too...and they have bike/surrey bike rentals which is fun ....and honestly, I like the pool a bit better at POR too. Even thou CSR is bigger, I find POR nicer.

CSR has an incredible bus system....the best i've seen at disney. But again, there's the boat to DTD from POR. Lol.

Not sure if this helps you at all, but either resort you choose will be great. I dont think you will be disappointed with either choice.

In terms of that "disney feel", I dont think that either resort has more of a disney feel than the other. I'd say its about the same.
 
We stayed at CSR in June and we liked it a lot as well but for us, we prefer cbr. We stayed in the casitas section and found the wifi to be terrible in that section as well. We really enjoyed the pepper mill too. I have said several times I think the pool at CSR is overrated on these boards and found it disappointing. Interesting about the bus service. During our stay, we were the first pick up and by the time we made it to the cabanas area, the bus was always standing room only. Every morning. And we always waited longer than 5 minutes. I have learned never to base my resort decisions what others say about buses. You just don't know what your experience will be. If we had stayed in the cabanas section during our trip I am sure I would not have a favorable opinion of the buses. Movies is our favorite value. We love it! Glad you had a fun trip and happy planning for the next one.
 

we are going halloween week, and I just switched hotels from cbr to coronado , and Im so excited, we have FREE DINING, and I booked 1 xtra ts, so I might pay oop for one, or nix one, we are not sure yet, I guess it depends on how many qs we have by the end of our stay, We have primetime 50's ressies for our travel day (late flight out so we will do a park after we send our bags on magic express) I am getting so excited, so are my kids and DH!!!! thanks for all the info!
 
twinboysmom said:
We stayed at CSR in June and we liked it a lot as well but for us, we prefer cbr. We stayed in the casitas section and found the wifi to be terrible in that section as well. We really enjoyed the pepper mill too. I have said several times I think the pool at CSR is overrated on these boards and found it disappointing. Interesting about the bus service. During our stay, we were the first pick up and by the time we made it to the cabanas area, the bus was always standing room only. Every morning. And we always waited longer than 5 minutes. I have learned never to base my resort decisions what others say about buses. You just don't know what your experience will be. If we had stayed in the cabanas section during our trip I am sure I would not have a favorable opinion of the buses. Movies is our favorite value. We love it! Glad you had a fun trip and happy planning for the next one.
its true that everyone will have different experience with the buses. you have to take everything with a grain of salt.

I agree about the pool. its nice but overrated for sure. I dont agree that its the best among all mods. but it is nice.



Posted from DISboards.com App for Android
 
scorpad99 said:
we are going halloween week, and I just switched hotels from cbr to coronado , and Im so excited, we have FREE DINING, and I booked 1 xtra ts, so I might pay oop for one, or nix one, we are not sure yet, I guess it depends on how many qs we have by the end of our stay, We have primetime 50's ressies for our travel day (late flight out so we will do a park after we send our bags on magic express) I am getting so excited, so are my kids and DH!!!! thanks for all the info!

its a beautiful resort. we loved it. Ask for cabanas 8a section. its the best! Also dont forget if you have kids, they have marshmallow roasting by the firepit every night (by the pool).


Posted from DISboards.com App for Android
 
We states in 8-A at CSR before as well. Absolutely loved it. Very quiet
 
JohnO said:
We states in 8-A at CSR before as well. Absolutely loved it. Very quiet

Best location ever! I loved being close to the pool and bus stop.


Posted from DISboards.com App for Android
 
Glad you had a great trip! Been interested in CSR but just had an awesome stay at POR. The Royal Room and view upgrade totally spoiled us and will have definite trouble picking a resort in the future.
 
Gorechick said:
Glad you had a great trip! Been interested in CSR but just had an awesome stay at POR. The Royal Room and view upgrade totally spoiled us and will have definite trouble picking a resort in the future.

I'd love to try the royal room some day. Love POR.


Posted from DISboards.com App for Android
 
Wow!! We just got back this evening from 7 days at CSR and my experience couldn't have been more opposite of yours if I tried, LOL!

When we checked in (that process was a nightmare to begin with...) we were given a room in Cabanas 9A...room 9644. Room was dark, musty, and just kinda gross. We stuck it out but on night 2 the bug invasion did us in. Spiders, palmetto bugs, etc. streaming in our door. And, the busses were HORRID at stop 1. We were trekking to stop 2 to avoid 1 at all costs. So I went to the front desk and asked to be moved to Pop and the wonderful desk manager, Laura, called there. No room at the inn :( Instead, she upgraded us to a jr suite in Casitas..3317. Very close to El Centro but still a good hike to bus stop 2...but closer than we were before. The waits at 2 were still absolutely ridiculous. 30+ minutes. HOARDS of people.

And coming home from a park was always ridiculous. Every other resort had multiple busses...continuously coming. We waited almost 2 hours at MK one night for a bus. And that was after taking our time to leave....didn't walk out the front gates until well after 10.

we ate at PM a few times...good way to beat the heat. The food was hit or miss for us...very disappointing for me (vegetarian) but my Dh found plenty as did one of my boys.

The resort was massive. The dig site was too far, we had surly help, hated seeing everyone in suits, Rix Cafe was a joke, etc. etc. etc.

We won't be back ever again.

I am glad you had a good time...I just had to comment since it blows my mind that 2 very similar vacations can leave such a vastly different impression on people!!!

Welcome home!!!!
 
Minnesota! said:
Wow!! We just got back this evening from 7 days at CSR and my experience couldn't have been more opposite of yours if I tried, LOL!

When we checked in (that process was a nightmare to begin with...) we were given a room in Cabanas 9A...room 9644. Room was dark, musty, and just kinda gross. We stuck it out but on night 2 the bug invasion did us in. Spiders, palmetto bugs, etc. streaming in our door. And, the busses were HORRID at stop 1. We were trekking to stop 2 to avoid 1 at all costs. So I went to the front desk and asked to be moved to Pop and the wonderful desk manager, Laura, called there. No room at the inn Instead, she upgraded us to a jr suite in Casitas..3317. Very close to El Centro but still a good hike to bus stop 2...but closer than we were before. The waits at 2 were still absolutely ridiculous. 30+ minutes. HOARDS of people.

And coming home from a park was always ridiculous. Every other resort had multiple busses...continuously coming. We waited almost 2 hours at MK one night for a bus. And that was after taking our time to leave....didn't walk out the front gates until well after 10.

we ate at PM a few times...good way to beat the heat. The food was hit or miss for us...very disappointing for me (vegetarian) but my Dh found plenty as did one of my boys.

The resort was massive. The dig site was too far, we had surly help, hated seeing everyone in suits, Rix Cafe was a joke, etc. etc. etc.

We won't be back ever again.

I am glad you had a good time...I just had to comment since it blows my mind that 2 very similar vacations can leave such a vastly different impression on people!!!

Welcome home!!!!

wow your kidding me? we were both there the same time but had different experiences. how bizarre.

I heard bus stop 1 was awful b/c its the last pickup. I did my best to avoid it. sorry you werent so lucky.

we didnt see a single bug the whole time we were there. im perplexed as to why your room had a lot of critters? we had a corner room. pretty bright. not sure if the extra light makes a difference in chasing the creepy crawlies away? i doubt it but its a thought. lol.

The buses were fantastic both to and from the park. id be livid if i waited 2 hrs for a bus! so sorry you experienced such a thing. Thats awful.

:(



Posted from DISboards.com App for Android
 
goofyintoronto said:
wow your kidding me? we were both there the same time but had different experiences. how bizarre.

I heard bus stop 1 was awful b/c its the last pickup. I did my best to avoid it. sorry you werent so lucky.

we didnt see a single bug the whole time we were there. im perplexed as to why your room had a lot of critters? we had a corner room. pretty bright. not sure if the extra light makes a difference in chasing the creepy crawlies away? i doubt it but its a thought. lol.

The buses were fantastic both to and from the park. id be livid if i waited 2 hrs for a bus! so sorry you experienced such a thing. Thats awful.

:(

Posted from DISboards.com App for Android

It happens all the time.

I have learned at my age that some people see the glass totally empty, some see it barely full, some see it half full and some see it does not matter how full the glass is, life is still a gift. Like me.

I.E, people see a line as an annoyance, and I see it as a great way to get to know people.
 
Missytara said:
Quote:

Originally Posted by goofyintoronto


wow your kidding me? we were both there the same time but had different experiences. how bizarre.

I heard bus stop 1 was awful b/c its the last pickup. I did my best to avoid it. sorry you werent so lucky.

we didnt see a single bug the whole time we were there. im perplexed as to why your room had a lot of critters? we had a corner room. pretty bright. not sure if the extra light makes a difference in chasing the creepy crawlies away? i doubt it but its a thought. lol.

The buses were fantastic both to and from the park. id be livid if i waited 2 hrs for a bus! so sorry you experienced such a thing. Thats awful.



Posted from DISboards.com App for Android

It happens all the time.

I have learned at my age that some people see the glass totally empty, some see it barely full, some see it half full and some see it does not matter how full the glass is, life is still a gift. Like me.

I.E, people see a line as an annoyance, and I see it as a great way to get to know people.

Thats lovely. And so VERY true! :)


Posted from DISboards.com App for Android
 
Another example of how you can get two different experiences at the same place and time. I always read negative reviews but don't base my decisions on them (usually). It's just like the popularity of FQ and Pop on the boards. I felt Pop was far too busy and chaotic yet people rave about it. I "toured" FQ during our recent stay at POR and was appalled at how filthy the food court was and how gaudy the decor was. Yet people rave about FQ. To each their own.....
 
I'm confused. Are the bus stops numbered in a different order than they really pick up? During our stay in March the bus stop by Casitas was always the first stop. :confused3 The bus stop by the main building was always the last stop.

Which stop was the one you had issue with? The one by the main buildings?
 





Receive up to $1,000 in Onboard Credit and a Gift Basket!
That’s right — when you book your Disney Cruise with Dreams Unlimited Travel, you’ll receive incredible shipboard credits to spend during your vacation!
CLICK HERE









DIS Facebook DIS youtube DIS Instagram DIS Pinterest DIS Tiktok DIS Twitter DIS Bluesky

Back
Top Bottom