POR vs CBR - and, will they book up?

[halssister]

I'm torn, please help me make an informed decision!

My family LOVES POR. We love the remote feeling of the AB section, we love the food court, we like to take relaxing walks by the river. But POR also seems to be VERY popular, and standard rooms usually seem to book up quickly. We are trying to finalize our upcoming July trip, and we are Faced with a dilemma.

DH needs to get in his vacation request soon - the original dates we wanted to go have already been claimed, and we are worried he is not going to be able to get the time off when we want if he doesn't act soon. Unfortunately, discounts for July traditionally don't come out until March or April, I think. Cost is a huge factor for us - we can generally only afford a trip every 3-4 years, but decided to go again with only a year in between because, well, Disney! We definitely can't afford to pay rack rate for POR, even a standard room; DH suggested we wait another year (NOOOOOO!!!). We noticed that CBR is less per night than POR, and after looking at info, it does look like a nice resort.

So. Would you book CBR now at rack rate, to guarantee a room during your exact dates, then try to get a better deal when the discounts are released? Or would you roll the dice and hope POR (or even CBR) isn't booked up by the time discounts come out, and there are some standard or garden view rooms left? We couldn't afford POR even at a discount if the only rooms left were preferred, for example. Would we be happy at CBR? People who have stayed at both, does CBR seem to have the same relaxing vibe as POR? DS has autism and needs some chill time at the resort mid day in order to have the energy left to tackle a second trip into the parks in the evening, so a relaxing "nature-y" type vibe is a must. He does LOVE water, so the lake may be very calming for him too. I'd love opinions!
Thanks

 

[Disneylover99]

I'm torn, please help me make an informed decision!

My family LOVES POR. We love the remote feeling of the AB section, we love the food court, we like to take relaxing walks by the river. But POR also seems to be VERY popular, and standard rooms usually seem to book up quickly. We are trying to finalize our upcoming July trip, and we are Faced with a dilemma.

DH needs to get in his vacation request soon - the original dates we wanted to go have already been claimed, and we are worried he is not going to be able to get the time off when we want if he doesn't act soon. Unfortunately, discounts for July traditionally don't come out until March or April, I think. Cost is a huge factor for us - we can generally only afford a trip every 3-4 years, but decided to go again with only a year in between because, well, Disney! We definitely can't afford to pay rack rate for POR, even a standard room; DH suggested we wait another year (NOOOOOO!!!). We noticed that CBR is less per night than POR, and after looking at info, it does look like a nice resort.

So. Would you book CBR now at rack rate, to guarantee a room during your exact dates, then try to get a better deal when the discounts are released? Or would you roll the dice and hope POR (or even CBR) isn't booked up by the time discounts come out, and there are some standard or garden view rooms left? We couldn't afford POR even at a discount if the only rooms left were preferred, for example. Would we be happy at CBR? People who have stayed at both, does CBR seem to have the same relaxing vibe as POR? DS has autism and needs some chill time at the resort mid day in order to have the energy left to tackle a second trip into the parks in the evening, so a relaxing "nature-y" type vibe is a must. He does LOVE water, so the lake may be very calming for him too. I'd love opinions!
Thanks

Will you still go to CBR at standard room rack rate if discounts don't get released for your dates? If yes, then book it now. If not, then wait.

 

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

Hi. I appreciate you being torn. It is hard to know to jump or not but personally Inwoukd book CBR now and just be happy with the resort. I have stayed at POR and like you love it. We got dissapinted last Christmas as POR was booked up and had to book CSR instead but ended up loving it! We visited CBR in September some friends were staying there. They really enjoyed the resort. It looked pretty. They have stayed at POR too.

Least if you book it you know wohooo I am going to Disney. Staying in a nice relaxing resort for your son. I have Austism and I would stay there.

 

[Dis703]

Will you still go to CBR at standard room rack rate if discounts don't get released for your dates? If yes, then book it now. If not, then wait.

This. I don't book until there is a special because I know I'm not going if I can't get some sort of deal. If that means I change resorts or rooms I'm generally okay with that. But if you know you are going no matter what and are willing to pay rack rate I'd go ahead and book it.

As for the resort, I haven't stayed at POR, but I absolutely LOVE CBR. It is a very quiet, laid back, relaxing resort with the quietest rooms we've experienced so far at Disney. It's very spread out to the point sometimes you feel like you are the only ones there. Bus, food court and pool can get busy but the rest of the resort stays pretty calm and quiet.

 

[ChasingLeslie]

I would book now and be vigilant for discounts.

CSR is going to be undergoing a rehab and availability over there is already limited/non existent, so I am guessing that the other mods will fill more quickly than usual.

 

[halssister]

Will you still go to CBR at standard room rack rate if discounts don't get released for your dates? If yes, then book it now. If not, then wait.

Good point!
Looks like I need to talk to DH (the money guy haha) tonight and see if he's ok with that, because I personally would like to still go this summer regardless of the cost haha!

 

[halssister]

Least if you book it you know wohooo I am going to Disney. Staying in a nice relaxing resort for your son. I have Austism and I would stay there.

Thank you, that is good to hear! I know staying someplace different would be a slight adjustment for him, but knowing it's still very relaxing helps. Hey, we may even discover a new favorite, right?

 

[halssister]

I would book now and be vigilant for discounts.

CSR is going to be undergoing a rehab and availability over there is already limited/non existent, so I am guessing that the other mods will fill more quickly than usual.

Good to know, I hadn't heard this! Thanks for the info!

 

[Disneylover99]

Thank you, that is good to hear! I know staying someplace different would be a slight adjustment for him, but knowing it's still very relaxing helps. Hey, we may even discover a new favorite, right?

Have you considered booking a value resort? We love Pop more then POR. You can request a standard lakeview room. It's very peaceful and relaxing. Great vibe! Plus you can walk across the bridge to AofA and enjoy the food court there.

 

[halssister]

Have you considered booking a value resort? We love Pop more then POR. You can request a standard lakeview room. It's very peaceful and relaxing. Great vibe! Plus you can walk across the bridge to AofA and enjoy the food court there.

No, the value resorts really hold no interest for us. Beds are too small (at home I have a queen to myself, definitely not sharing a full size with DH!), rooms seem a little cramped, and DH absolutely hates the look of them. I know lots of people love POP, but just doesn't appeal to us at all.

 

[crazylady]

Personally, I find POR more relaxing than CBR. There is something about the mossy trees and river that is peaceful to me. But CBR is so relaxing in a beach vacation kind of way.

Have you looked at booking through Orbitz or Cheaptickets? You can save a bit that way now.

 

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

Thank you, that is good to hear! I know staying someplace different would be a slight adjustment for him, but knowing it's still very relaxing helps. Hey, we may even discover a new favorite, right?

Exactly we did with CSR it was simply delightful! We were glad to be torn away from our comfort zone. Now we have more choices next time we run out of our wonderful DVC points.

 

[loves to dive]

I've stayed at both resorts - the mansions at POR and in Jamaica section at CBR and enjoyed them both. Both seemed very laid back and quiet, I was at POR in Sept. and CBR in March, both during festivals (F&W and F&G) and while depending on the time of day it was the buses could be crowded at both, I never had any issues. I would just stay at whichever one was less.

 

[DJFan88]

Last few times I booked a deal in POR and I got on right away, the Standard rooms were all gone and the available ones were the garden, pool, riverside. I kept looking back continually and was able to eventually get preferred, which is what I wanted. I think less Standard are released as they have no problems booking them, which is what the discount is for anyway.

 

[halssister]

Personally, I find POR more relaxing than CBR. There is something about the mossy trees and river that is peaceful to me. But CBR is so relaxing in a beach vacation kind of way.

Have you looked at booking through Orbitz or Cheaptickets? You can save a bit that way now.

I have considered it, the problem is a lot of our "Disney money" is either Disney gift cards or Visa rewards dollars, so we would have to go directly through WDW. We save by buying gift cards regularly, which forces us to use that money for Disney trips only!