Just Back from the Caribbean Beach!

[franw]

My understanding is that only guest resorts are permitted to use WDW transportation that goes between the hotels and parks. We always rent a car when we go to WDW so that we can drive to the Boardwalk and the Marketplace. It saves lots of time and lots of crankiness at the end of the day. It is about a three minute drive to both from the CBR. We park at the Boardwalk or the Beach Club outlying parking or if we are really feeling flush we use the valet service. We love everything about the CBR and now that it has been renovated, it feels like it did the very first time we stayed there. I would say that the food court is very adequate and compares to any food court anywhere. For a quick meal or with little ones it is not bad at all.

 

[DisneyObsessed]

parrotheadlois, we just got back from CBR last week. We had a corner room and I didn't even ask for it. It was great. We stayed in Martinique 25, and the room was 2532.

 

[crzy4dsny]

Is a corner room better than a regular room? What is the difference in the two? Thanks.

 

[safetymom]

They are the same as a regular room except it has an additional window. I have pictures of a corner room on my web page.

 

[crzy4dsny]

Thanks Safetymom-

A corner room looks nice. Lots of sunshine.

I'll try to get one when we visit in May.

 

[parrotheadlois]

Originally posted by DawnF316
parrotheadlois, we just got back from CBR last week. We had a corner room and I didn't even ask for it. It was great. We stayed in Martinique 25, and the room was 2532.

Thanks Dawn - I'll ask for it? (Water view or regular??) Could you see Illuminations??? (not from your room, but could you from CBR anyplace?

 

[DisneyObsessed]

parrotheadlois, sorry I took so long to reply. When I just return from a trip, I don't spend much time here. I get depressed. Anyway....we could see a bit of the lake from our door. I didn't pay for a water view. When I had requested it, the CM said it wasn't worth the extra $$. We just walked to the end of the sidewalk, just a few feet, and the lake was right there. You can see the high fireworks of Illuminations. When you're walking from Martinique over to Old Port Royal, you can see the very top of the Epcot ball(as we call it). You can see the fireworks right over the top of it, and the're pretty loud. It was so cool!

 

[parrotheadlois]

Thanks Dawn, sounds perfect. We'll enjoy "your" room for you!! We'll treat it like its our own.

 

[Debby7]

Any recommendations for which building to request if we want to be near the first bus stop ?

 

[Chip 'n Dale Express]

Originally posted by Debby7
Any recommendations for which building to request if we want to be near the first bus stop ?

It's hard to say which area will be the first bus stop. Some buses start at Jamaica, and others start at Martinique. Some even stop at Trinidad South first.

 

[LeftCoaster]

Originally posted by Chip 'n Dale Express
It's hard to say which area will be the first bus stop. Some buses start at Jamaica, and others start at Martinique. Some even stop at Trinidad South first.

We definately noticed that on our trip. =) In 5 days, only once did we wait more than a few minutes for a bus and crowds weren't too bad. Didn't seem to matter where you were in the stop order it all seemed to run pretty smoothly there. All in all, I loved CBR and will be back in September. Also, CBR seemed to be incredibally convenient to all the parks.

 

[wtg2000]

It would be cool if there were actually set times for the buses. IE: Magic Kingdom bus leaves at 9:04, 9:24, and 9:44 ... etc etc... Epcot leaves 9:15, 9:35,, 9:55 etc etc... I guess the logisitcs of it would be a little more difficult, but I think it could save people time.

I've travelled all over the world and taken city and regional buses in massive cities with tons of traffic, construction and lights, and most of the time they were amazingly on schedule. Disney could make a fixed schedule and stick to it if possible. There's nothing worse than walking up to your stop and seeing a bus there, only to have it pull away before you get to it. Of course, if you run then it sits for another 10 minutes, but if you don't it takes off!

As for DD, we were once staying at the old PO and we lined up for the boat. The CM said 30 people would get on. We were 28, 29, 30. So we waited for 20 minutes. In fact only 24 could get on. Instead of waiting another 20 minutes we went to the bus - and waited 20 minutes. The bus took 5 minutes to go, then stopped at every DXL stop. It took in total over 1 hour to get there. I could have walked faster. As a result, I've kind of stroked DD off my list. Anyway - a better name would be Suburban Disney since it's hardly "downtown" with regards to the Disney property.

 

[Chip 'n Dale Express]

Originally posted by wtg2000
I've travelled all over the world and taken city and regional buses in massive cities with tons of traffic, construction and lights, and most of the time they were amazingly on schedule. Disney could make a fixed schedule and stick to it if possible.

Here's the problem... those major cities don't have the guest traffic flow that we have. Disney is very unique in that. In addition, most transit routes run 20-60 minute intervals. We aim for 10-15. We used to actually have a fixed schedule, very close to what you suggest... but for Port Orleans, or Caribbean Beach... what happens when a bus fills up before finishing all the stops? Also, Disney has a much greater ridership of guests who travel with various mobility devices, which require extra time to secure. A fixed schedule would not really work in guests favor. As it stands now, morning intervals are often times frequent enough to not warrant a schedule. Just this morning, we recieved an extra large demand at Old Port Royale for MK. We dispatched 4 buses for MK in a 15 minute period to handle the demand. We've had many years to study and figure out what works best... and a Flexible Independant Dispatching System (Mod & Flex) seems to work out really great for us.

 

[dis sjw]

i remember one time at night they had a bus that went from mgm to dd hope that helps!!

 

[Chip 'n Dale Express]

Originally posted by dis sjw
i remember one time at night they had a bus that went from mgm to dd hope that helps!!

There is a bus from the Studios to Pleasure Island. It is a ONE WAY trip, and runs from 3pm to one hour after the park closes. There is NO return transportation.

 

[wtg2000]

I'd like to see at least a fixed schedule in the afternoon, during the slow times, from the parks so you don't leave the park and wait for 20 minutes because you just saw your bus pull away without you. It's a crap shoot.

Today, I am taking a city bus down to catch an airbus to take me to the airport. I know exactly what time the city bus stops in front of my apartment.

Here's the problem... those major cities don't have the guest traffic flow that we have. Disney is very unique in that.

I'd be interested to know how Disney is unique. A city has a rush hour with it tapering off midday, and they still run a fixed schedule.

 

[DisneyObsessed]

In the grand scheme of life in this day and age, is 20 minutes really that hard to handle. You're in Disney World for Gods sake. Relax and enjoy.

Sorry, I just had to vent. I just returned from CBR and boy I would give anything (even a 20 minute bus wait each day) to get back there.

 

[Chip 'n Dale Express]

Originally posted by wtg2000
I'd like to see at least a fixed schedule in the afternoon, during the slow times, from the parks so you don't leave the park and wait for 20 minutes because you just saw your bus pull away without you. It's a crap shoot.

I'd be interested to know how Disney is unique. A city has a rush hour with it tapering off midday, and they still run a fixed schedule.

Most transit authorities publish schedules for busses that run further than 15 minutes apart. Once you get closer than that, its really pointless, because the buses are running so close to each other. Here at Disney, our buses run anywhere from 5-17 minutes apart. If you happen to miss a bus, the next one will be along SOON.

A few examples of how fixed routes are not adventageous:

Even during the slow times of the day, some areas can get pretty busy. Our flexible system allows us to handle the demand with ease. If we had it set up with times, that would not be able to get done.

For example... All-Stars to the Studios, mid afternoon. This route can get busy even midday. Buses typically run every 10 minutes. Say for example, we have fixed times. That means the buses have to run Sports, Music, Movies. The bus fills up at Music. It still has to go onto Movies, and just sit there for a minute, because it is on a fixed route schedule. The next bus comes in, and starts at Sports. Folks at on the bus, and at Movies are inconvenienced. Not very effective.

With Flex Dispatch... bus fills up at Music... If there are no guests going back to Movies, it heads back to Studios. Next bus comes in, and starts at Movies and works backwards. No one is inconvenienced.

We used to have fixed timed routes... (times were based from the theme park) If a bus was early... it had to sit. With Flex... it's Load & GO. Increased efficiency. With fixed routes, if a bus was late, it was very hard to catch up. Often times, a driver had to skip a run in order to catch up. Not very effective. There are many things that can lead to a bus getting behind... guests travelling with wheelchairs require a little extra time to make sure they are boarded safely. Guests with huge double strollers, and lots of junk... they take time. And then of course, there are those folks that send the 6yo kid ahead, to hold the bus, while they're still back in the room. With Flexible dispatch, each time a bus returns to the theme park, it gets a new dispatch, thus putting it back on time.

As for how we are unique... We basically have the job of moving tens of thousands of people from 19 resorts to 4 theme parks. Then, from four theme parks, back to the 19 resorts. A city transit system has rush hours with directions, but they go from many areas to many areas.

 

[Chip 'n Dale Express]

Originally posted by DawnF316
In the grand scheme of life in this day and age, is 20 minutes really that hard to handle. You're in Disney World for Gods sake. Relax and enjoy.

I think you just spoke most bus drivers mind, for us. LOL...