Just back 11/13-11/19

[sharibrat]

Just got back from our first family trip to Disney World with DD who is 2.5 !! We had a wonderful time!! I'll give a brief recap (have a TON of laundry to do) and then answer any questions you all may have!

MAGIC EXPRESS: I was leary of not having my luggage in sight......but it was wonderful and we had our luggage within about 4 hours of landing in Orlando!

CARRIBEAN BEACH RESORT: Very nice hotel. I had read conflicting reviews on here but I can't think of anything 'bad' about it. I cannot imagine what the deluxe hotels offer that this moderate one did not!!!! We didn't even have time to use the amenities that it had! Never even used the pool or the park for DD ! No time!

Our room was ready at 11am when we arrived which was an excellent added bonus! I thought the food court had pretty good food, though I got tired of it by the end of the week. Nice selection, and being pregnant, I was able to eat somewhat healthy!

WEATHER: BEAUTIFUL! The last 2 days a 'cold' front came through in the low 70's. Cracked me up to see the CM's at Epcot wearing wool peacoats in low 70 weather! Looks like this next week could be pretty cold for the Thanksgiving crowd!

CROWDS: WHAT CROWDS????????? We could not believe how empty it was. We just kept getting on rides with never more than a 15 minute wait, usually no wait at all. Rode small world on boats by ourselves a few times! On Friday, 11/18 it did get pretty crowded at MK but I am guessing that was some of the Thanksgiving week crowd rolling in.

PARKS: With a 2.5 year old we spent most of our time in MK, particularly in Fantasyland. DON'T MISS THE NIGHTTIME PARADE IN MK (I think it's Spectromagic), it was fabulous. THe fireworks at the Castle were pretty good also, set nicely to music. The 3pm parade was nothing too exciting.

IF PREGNANT: Lots of bathrooms always closeby and clean. I was usually able to find fruit or something healthy to eat. Waiting areas for buses, etc didn't have many benches to sit on. Probably my only complaint!

MEAL/DINING PLAN: DEFINATELY WORTH IT!! When we ran out of meals by the end of the week and started actually paying attention to what food cost, I was amazed at how expensive it was! My only complaint here was the limited selection for snacks.....pop corn, certain drinks or ice cream. I could never use my snack for water in a restaurant becuase they didn't have Disani water in the restaurant, only really really expensive bottled water. Oh well. Again, minor complaint.

MEALS: Had a wonderful meal in Japan and at the Coral Reef.

Well, that is what I can think of for now......I'll answer any questions!

 

[pumba]

I am thinking about the ME too......not having my hands on it when we land at Orlando I would wonder....hmmmmmm did our luggage go to Puerto Rico or some other place?> Thanks so much for your report......I love reading how others do their time .....thanks again

 

[LYNSUE]

I am so happy to hear you liked the Caribbean Beach Resort. DH and I will be staying there in December. We booked a last minute trip after finding a great air fare. When I called for the room reservation, there was very little to choose from in the value and moderate range. (plenty in the deluxe, but not in our quick trip budget).

We stayed at Caribbean Beach about 12 years ago and I did not like it. It was very spread out. Of course we were traveling with two young boys at that time. I'm am hoping to like it better this time.

Did you have any issues with waiting for transportation? What building area were you in? How was the main pool and was there a hot tub? Was the hot tub available, or was it full of kids all the time?

I would appreciate any encouraging comments. And discouraging as well, so I can be prepared.

Thanks.

 

[sharibrat]

Did you have any issues with waiting for transportation? What building area were you in? How was the main pool and was there a hot tub? Was the hot tub available, or was it full of kids all the time?

Thanks.

Well it is very spread out but we requested Aruba or Jamaica and got Aruba. It was a short walk over a few bridges to breakfast each day and where the main pool is. That is really the only place you need to walk. I think there is a 'country' even closer but I had heard it can be noisy with lots of people walking by there. We also walked to customs house on our last day and that was not too far either.

We never had to wait longer than 15 minutes for a bus and they were not crowded. I am not sure about crowds in December, but the whole place had pretty low crowds while we were there!

The main pool looked very nice, though we never did swim! We were on the go too much! Yes, there was a jacuzzi and it was empty every time I saw it!

I thought our room was very clean and the maid service was good. We always had plenty of towels (something I usually need to ask for more of) and we had cute towel animals for our daughter every day. The bell that picked up our luggage upon leaving was very prompt.

The food court had a good selection each day. I got tired of it after 6 days, but there was a lot to choose from.

Hope you have a magical stay!

 

[Minniespal]

Enjoyed reading your report ~ Thanx for posting.