Disney's CARIBBEAN BEACH RESORT Information & Questions

[Tiggr924]

Thanks for replying.

This is one of the contradicting posts I've seen, (from wdwinfo.com)

• Disney's Caribbean Beach Resort- The resort will be undergoing many refurbishment projects starting mid May 2017 for 2 years. Several villages within the resort will not be available. Old Port Royale Food Court, Shutters at Old Port Royale, Cabana Pool Bar and Calypso Trading Post will be closed starting 5/2017- through 2018.

Both are saying the same thing. The OPR, Shutters, etc will be closed through 2018. The second post just acknowledges that there will be further renovations to the rest of the resort (i.e. villages) and that will take 2 years.

 

[ehrenrj]

Both are saying the same thing.

My point is neither are official Disney communications.

And I think wdwinfo was misleading because the Cabana Pool Bar was torn down. It might be resurrected, but I haven't seen clear plans as to what specifically is being built/updated.

 

[Tiggr924]

My point is neither are official Disney communications.

And I think wdwinfo was misleading because the Cabana Pool Bar was torn down. It might be resurrected, but I haven't seen clear plans as to what specifically is being built/updated.

Gotcha. I thought you're point was that they were contradicting. You're right Disney hasn't officially communicated anything except that starting May 2017 those areas are under refurbishment.

 

[Disneyqueendenmark]

So so excited! Just booked my first stay at CBR!
I'm very very excited!!! But to be honest, I'm also really nervous about the refurb. If it will have an impact on our stay and if there will be a lot of noise all day... but it was All star music vs Caribbean Beach resort with only a price difference of $240 for 9 nights! So I took the chance

 

[DavidHobart]

Disney hasn't officially communicated anything except that starting May 2017 those areas are under refurbishment.

FWIW, 2018 CB prices compared to 2017 show next to no increase until the Fall Season, and then Fall and Holiday have increases of 5-6%. Most other resorts I've studied (Disney's 2018 price mess so far has made this hard) show 4% plus increases in most every season.

So insofar as prices are an "official communication" of something, this may be a clue that the major work (e.g. dining) may be resolved by the beginning of the Fall Season-- 8/26/18...

 

[bizeemom4]

We just concluded our first stay at CBR. We were there because family had already booked there. We normally stay at the Swan. Since we never saw CBR pre-construction, I don't have anything to compare it to. Overall, our stay was fine for what we wanted on this visit.

My only advice: avoid the dinner buffet at all costs. We enjoyed the breakfast, but dinner was absolutely awful. I think others may have felt the same, because attendance at dinner was very low.

Agreed. We were there for 2 weeks and just got home on Saturday. We looked at the dinner buffet and then ran away. No way was I going to eat that. I can't believe people are jealous that CBR folks get to use a quick service point on such an "expensive" meal. LOL.

 

[LongLiveRafiki]

Thanks for replying.

This is one of the contradicting posts I've seen, (from wdwinfo.com)

• Disney's Caribbean Beach Resort- The resort will be undergoing many refurbishment projects starting mid May 2017 for 2 years. Several villages within the resort will not be available. Old Port Royale Food Court, Shutters at Old Port Royale, Cabana Pool Bar and Calypso Trading Post will be closed starting 5/2017- through 2018.

The best I have been able to surmise is that sometime in 2018, the food court, restaurant, pool bar, and gift shop will all be open, if not before. The 2 year date I have seen floating around seems to be in regards to the overall construction that is happening in regards to Barbados being demolished and the new DVC building being constructed. That will likely not be completed until 2019.

 

[AnnaKat]

I hope you & your family have a wonderful stay!
It sounds like you got a fab rate.

I was surprised that we received an email from Disney with a code for a deeply discounted summer stay @ CBR.

Yep, ONLY for @ CBR, which makes me think that their bookings are down.

 

[AnnaKat]

So so excited! Just booked my first stay at CBR!
I'm very very excited!!! But to be honest, I'm also really nervous about the refurb. If it will have an impact on our stay and if there will be a lot of noise all day... but it was All star music vs Caribbean Beach resort with only a price difference of $240 for 9 nights! So I took the chance

I hope you & your family have a wonderful stay!
It sounds like you got a fab rate.

I was surprised that we received an email from Disney with a code for a deeply discounted summer stay @ CBR.

Yep, ONLY for @ CBR, which makes me think that their bookings are down.

 

[AngiTN]

Agreed. We were there for 2 weeks and just got home on Saturday. We looked at the dinner buffet and then ran away. No way was I going to eat that. I can't believe people are jealous that CBR folks get to use a quick service point on such an "expensive" meal. LOL.

We ate it one night. What they had tasted fine. Felt it was typical Disney buffet offering. Same exact things found on the buffet at H&V or Chef Mickey's. Just fewer choices. I can't fathom eating it more than 1 time a trip but I say that for any Resort QS anyway. We aren't fans of any of them.

 

[oj01]

The best I have been able to surmise is that sometime in 2018, the food court, restaurant, pool bar, and gift shop will all be open, if not before. The 2 year date I have seen floating around seems to be in regards to the overall construction that is happening in regards to Barbados being demolished and the new DVC building being constructed. That will likely not be completed until 2019.

Thanks for that. Kind of what I'd assumed. Now need to sit down and think about whether we gamble on everything being open (and running smoothly!) by October or look at the other moderates.

 

[SimonSez]

Agreed. We were there for 2 weeks and just got home on Saturday. We looked at the dinner buffet and then ran away. No way was I going to eat that. I can't believe people are jealous that CBR folks get to use a quick service point on such an "expensive" meal. LOL.

What did you find to be wrong with it? Just curious as we are only six weeks out from our CBR stay, like to hear people's opinion on the buffet

 

[AppleSister1]

Thanks Angi, for the King Room info!

Angi....I have a king room booked for August. I don't think there's a King Preferred category. Haven't stayed here before,but from what I'm seeing now, Trinidad North seems like a great spot. Yes? Am I correct?

Right, no King Preferred, just Preferred in general, King are anywhere, but Pirate. So if you book King you can request anywhere, including Preferred buildings. So we requested Trinidad North. And yes, it is a great location.

 

[writerguyfl]

So so excited! Just booked my first stay at CBR!
I'm very very excited!!! But to be honest, I'm also really nervous about the refurb. If it will have an impact on our stay and if there will be a lot of noise all day... but it was All star music vs Caribbean Beach resort with only a price difference of $240 for 9 nights! So I took the chance

I stayed last month and posted some pretty critical comments about my experience. My biggest complaints were the destruction (as opposed to construction) and the dining options. I was there while they were tearing down buildings. It looked horrible, as if a natural disaster or war had happened. Fortunately for you, that phase of the project seems to be done. They should be quickly moving on to construction. Maybe I'm odd, but I think construction looks nicer than partially demolished buildings.

As for the dining, had I known a little more, I'd have prepared by bringing more things like snacks. I expected the Island Markets to be stocked with food and they weren't. If you plan ahead and bring your own snacks (or have some shipped to the resort), you probably won't end up feeling the same way I did.

Finally, I will note that the room itself was well appointed and in excellent condition. This is an old resort, but they clearly did a great job with their last room renovation. I also was just a stone's throw from the area where buildings were being demolished. I really never heard any noise while I was in my room. I'm not a pool guy, but I did go over to that area. Yes, there was some noise but it wasn't obnoxious.

 

[bizeemom4]

What did you find to be wrong with it? Just curious as we are only six weeks out from our CBR stay, like to hear people's opinion on the buffet

It looked to be very plain. Very basic cafeteria food. Nothing at all like a buffet like Tusker House or any others on property. Yes, it's a quick service buffet but I was not on the dining plan and for $21, there are a million tastier options at the parks or Springs. The line was crazy long too which added insult to injury for me.

 

[saksn4]

We recently returned from our stay at CBR. Our room was in Trinidad North bldg 31. This was a great location! We were close to pool, food tent, and bus stop. My husband was talking with a bus driver while waiting for their shift change. The driver stated they are short on drivers right now, so drivers are under a mandatory overtime schedule. We never waited more than 15 minutes for a bus. It seemed the longer wait times we experienced were when returning from a park. From what we read, we expected the worst from bus service, but usually experienced a surprising short and pleasant wait time.
As for iced tea drinkers, my daughter is not a soda drinker. She will only drink fresh brewed ice tea and water. Our previous trips she would drink the Peak ice tea from the ice tea machine; these machines are not available at CBR. She ended up going into the food tent, filling a cup with hot water and adding a tea bag. Then she would fill her refillable cup with ice, and pour her brewed tea over the ice. This took a bit more time and hassle, but it was a solution to not having iced tea available. Just an option for other tea drinkers!

 

[SimonSez]

It looked to be very plain. Very basic cafeteria food. Nothing at all like a buffet like Tusker House or any others on property. Yes, it's a quick service buffet but I was not on the dining plan and for $21, there are a million tastier options at the parks or Springs. The line was crazy long too which added insult to injury for me.

Okay thanks for the input

 

[Mickey & Minnie Mom]

As for iced tea drinkers, my daughter is not a soda drinker. She will only drink fresh brewed ice tea and water. Our previous trips she would drink the Peak ice tea from the ice tea machine; these machines are not available at CBR. She ended up going into the food tent, filling a cup with hot water and adding a tea bag. Then she would fill her refillable cup with ice, and pour her brewed tea over the ice. This took a bit more time and hassle, but it was a solution to not having iced tea available. Just an option for other tea drinkers!

Thank you for this first hand account. My husband also likes his fresh brewed tea but made due with Peak. Since we are driving we plan to just bring along some 6 packs of the Pure Lead bottled tea and will make due with that. I appreciate you taking the time to post!

 

[kalliyan1]

Need help on what location/building to request. I just booked a last minute trip fro next week. I would like to be in an area that is away from the construction if possible and/or close to the pool. We are currently in a standard room. We don't care about the dining at the resort or the bus stops.
Thanks!

 

[GBBTomorrow]

Hi! I apologize if this has been asked before. I tried a search, but didn't come up with anything.

Does anybody know if I will be able to string together a 3-4 mile run at Caribbean Beach during the construction? Is there at least a mile of sidewalk I could loop 3-4 times? Barring that, is there a way to leave the resort on foot to sidewalks on the main roads?

Thanks!