Solo trip - A brief stay at CSR with a stop at AKL (with pics!)

[JanetMom]

A trip report with some brief glances into Coronado Springs and Animal Kingdom Lodge.

Some background… I was fortunate enough to get to go to a seminar for work that took place at Coronado Springs this past week. This was a solo trip while my family stayed home. To keep personal costs to a minimum, there were no parks, just some enjoyable moments at the resort. This would have been a perfect opportunity for my family to accompany me, but we had just returned from an amazing Disney trip. In March we went to WDW, enjoyed the parks and the luxury of staying in a CL room at the Contemporary with a view of the Magic Kingdom. Because of that trip the allure of a quick trip to CSR wasn’t that great so we decided to save the money and they stayed home.

My work meetings took place on May 18-19, but because of the Toronto-Orlando flight schedules I was lucky enough to fly in on Monday afternoon and not leave until Thursday morning, so here comes the trip report…

On Monday morning I was up and so excited to be going back to WDW. I had a great flight, landing on time.
For anyone who travelled AC out of Toronto for March Break, you will be amazed at how few people were at the airport. When we went down for March break, this area of the airport was filled with people.

The ME had no line and they let us on a bus quickly, so I was off to Coronado Springs in no time. As usual we had to make a few stops first, but it is always fun to try and get a glimpse of the other resorts.
I was so excited to arrive at WDW that I tried to get a picture of the welcome sign but from halfway back in the bus it wasn’t possible.

First stop was Pop Century. It looked like fun.

Next stop was Caribbean Beach. I couldn’t manage a good picture of this resort.

And then… Coronado Springs!

(okay, enough of the bad pictures – from now on I will only post good pictures)

Check in was a breeze. There were only a few others there and I had my key in hand within minutes. Since this was a work trip the room was booked by the travel agent, who booked a basic room. I did ask that the travel agent request Casitas 1 or 3. I was very pleased to get a king bed in Casitas 1 with a view of a courtyard garden. I was in room 1236.

It was just under two hours since my plane had touched down and I was now exploring my new temporary home. Here are some pictures of the room.

Comfy bed

Dresser with plenty of storage (6 drawers plus fridge)

Bathroom vanity area with clothes rack (there were more hangers than most hotel rooms provide) (and apparently I am not keeping my promise to not post bad pictures, as this picture quality isn’t that great)

Tub/toilet area was a bit small for my liking – it was a tight fit to get in the room and close the door

The safe is very tiny. It barely fit my small purse.

The view towards the door – the rooms are small but laid out well so they don’t feel so small

The only seating in the room is the desk chair and two stools

This is the view of the garden from my room

Here is what the outside of the room looks like. While it was nice to walk out of the room and see the gorgeous view, with everyone walking by the room and the window being so large, I always had the sheer curtains drawn so that everyone couldn’t see into the room. For that reason, I would not pay extra for a view at CSR.

I’ve forgotten how much time doing a trip report can take. I’ll stop for now but keep the updates coming in the next few days.

 

[KatMark]

I'm here, Janet. I'm glad you started your report.

 

[sherreis]

Count me in! I leave on June 5 for my conference which is from June 8 to June 12.

 

[Princess116]

I'm in, great start!

 

[JanetMom]

Enough of the room, on to the rest of the resort. Since I had so little time, I was very excited about the idea of heading straight for a drink by the pool. So I changed into my swim suit, packed my bag with my camera, my book and my sunglasses, and off I went.

But first, the responsible part of me kicked in and I decided to go check out the conference centre so I could find my way to my meeting the next morning. I do have to say that while I love the way that CSR feels so intimate, all the different areas and buildings makes it confusing to find your way around. The signs are easy to follow but it took me a while to learn the best routes.

A better view of the garden outside of my room

One of the beautiful Casitas fountains

Heading towards the conference centre (note the clouds rolling in)

The conference centre – this area is huge! It was easy to find all the rooms, but it was a very large conference centre

After the conference centre I decided to check out the resort restaurants on my way back outside

Pepper Market

Maya Grill

View down the hall to the beautiful entry fountain

The fountain by the registration area

Don’t forget to look up – the ceiling is beautiful

And then I went outside to head to the pool and the clouds looked like this…

Since it was now officially a thunder storm I abandoned my pool plans and went into the Pepper Market for a steak sandwich. I couldn’t resist being outside (even if it was a storm) so I ordered my food to go and ate at an outdoor table close to the building, under an umbrella.

I found the Pepper Market to be a disappointment. The steak sandwich was okay, but given the price I would have preferred something a bit nicer. I found the food to be medium priced, but lower quality. I would still be willing to eat at the Pepper Market again (which I did) but I wouldn’t go out of my way for it.

After my meal I decided to go relax in my room until the storm passed by.

Stay tuned for my evening at Downtown Disney.

 

[JanetMom]

Count me in! I leave on June 5 for my conference which is from June 8 to June 12.

It is a great place for the conference. Best conference food I have ever had and very relaxing for your down time. You will enjoy it!

 

[giftcard]

Waiting for more...

 

[disneyj914]

I wish my company would send me to a conference at Disney!!! haha I love all the pictures of Coronado Springs, I'll be there in December and I also requested the Casitas b/c I think the fountains and courtyards are beautiful! Looking forward to the rest of your non-park adventures!

 

[Golf4food]

I wish my company would send me to a conference at Disney!!! haha

Who doesn't? (Crazy people, that's who!)

I love all the pictures of Coronado Springs, I'll be there in December and I also requested the Casitas b/c I think the fountains and courtyards are beautiful!

Same for us. We decided to add a few days onto a stay at AKL using rented DVC points, and I've always wanted to stay at CSR - I love the Mayan look/feel and the refurbed rooms look great. Our current favorite mod is POR, but CSR looks like it could give it a run for its money.

Subbing to keep up with the fun.

 

[JanetMom]

Who doesn't? (Crazy people, that's who!)

Our current favorite mod is POR, but CSR looks like it could give it a run for its money.

I agree - crazy people!

I cannot imagine POR being as nice as CSR. It is a beautiful place.

 

[The Original~Mad4mky]

Thanks for your report and pictures. My daughter --who has Down syndrome and I are headed to the CSR in July (12-20)--for the National Down syndrome Conference (July 17-19).

Thank you for showing a picture of the conference area.
It IS large--which is good--because for the conference we are attending--thousands will be there (they have held it in some hotels in the past that were just not large enough! Luckily, it seems as though the organizers are getting wiser to always hold in in places that can accommodate large numbers).
They've held the conference in the Disneyland area several times, but this is the first time I can remember it being held at WDW.---needless to say---we BIG Disney fans are ecstatic about the trip.

We're coming in early--and staying a day late (Harry Potter World is also on our agenda).

So--thank you again for your trip report.

 

[JanetMom]

You are going to love it there. A perfect place for a conference.

 

[JanetMom]

A walk around the resort

Around 6:00 p.m. the sky was clearing up so I headed out to Downtown Disney. On my way I decided to walk around the lake first.

CSR is gorgeous and it is impossible not to stop to take a picture every few steps. In addition to checking out the resort I really wanted to see Glen’s relative(s) so I was stopping to check out the water every few steps. So much of Disney is man-made/artificial that I was really hoping to get a glimpse of a genuine Florida alligator – something we don’t have in Toronto! But tonight I had no such luck. No alligator for me.

Here is my photo tour

The garden outside of my room

Outside of El Centro

Looking across the lake to El Centro

The Casitas quiet pool

This is one of my favourite pictures

Kathy’s hammock (it was too wet to try it out, after the thunder storm)

Plenty of opportunity for gorgeous nature shots at CSR

Checking out the Dig Site

The hot tub

A couple of ducks who were annoyed with me as I was taking pictures of the hot tub

More beautiful nature shots

Looking across the lake to the Cabanas

That’s enough pictures for one night; I’ll save the trip to Downtown Disney for another day.

 

[Golf4food]

Thanks for the pics, it is a lovely resort.

 

[KatMark]

Janet, you took a picture of my hammock. I'm sorry it was wet after the rain and you didn't get to sit in it.

Your pictures are absolutely beautiful. Would you give me permission to use a few of them when I next update the CSR thread?

 

[KathyRN137]

Thanks for all the pix...

Enjoying your report as I have just booked a weekend trip for DH and me; we'll be staying at CSR for the first time!


Kathy

 

[JanetMom]

You will love it there!

 

[sherreis]

Janet -- thanks for all the beautiful pics! Gets me even more excited for my arrival next Saturday!

 

[JanetMom]

Janet -- thanks for all the beautiful pics! Gets me even more excited for my arrival next Saturday!

I'll try and finish my report before you leave next Saturday (no promises though).

 

[JanetMom]

And now off to Downtown Disney

After I made my way around the lake, I happened upon the El Centro bus stop and waited for the bus. I should have thought about going to the bus stop by the Cabanas so that I would be at the last stop before leaving the resort, but I didn’t think of that.

I was very curious about how I would feel about the bus ride. We don’t own a car which means we are transit people – waiting for buses, even standing room only buses doesn’t bother us. That said, the buses are always our least favourite part of Disney. We have stayed multiple times at Wilderness Lodge and once at the Contemporary. When it comes to the transportation we love being able hop on a boat, or as at the CR, to just walk to the park. The buses are always fine, but not a highlight for us. The bus ride we dislike the most is the one to Downtown Disney as it always seems to take forever. I was hoping that being in a resort that was closer to Downtown Disney would help.

I should put a general resort comment in here before we get going on the bus… We have always stayed at a deluxe resort so I was very curious about CSR and to see if it was so nice that we could save some money on our next trip and stay there instead. Upon arrival in my room I wasn’t sold on switching to CSR. The room was definitely smaller (but still fine), there weren’t as many toiletries (on our trip to the CR we received shower gel and solar relief gel), the safe was much smaller and the toilet area was much smaller. All of these things are pretty minor, so it really was dependent on liking the property and deciding if I missed having a balcony. After walking the resort on the stormy afternoon I wasn’t sold – I was still keeping an open mind, but I was still neutral on the resort.

Back to the bus ride… I sat down to wait and watched two MK and one Epcot bus come and go. After 15 minutes the bus came. While I waited I watched a group of business people who were a bit obnoxious. There was about 15 men and two women at the bus stop and every one of them had a drink in hand. Really is the beer so important that you must carry it with you to the bus? They were also going to DTD and while they were reasonably well behaved they did spread themselves out across the entire bus so the other five of us on the bus were forced to listen to all of their conversations.

The bus made the loop of all the stops around the resort and it took about 25 minutes for the bus to leave the property and another 20 to get to DTD. At this point I can say that I did not find the bus at CSR to be any better or faster than the buses from WL or CR.

When I got off the bus there was a great view of Dreams Take Flight.

I decide to go watch Dreams Take Flight as it was such a gorgeous night to just sit by the water.

Mary Poppins is my favourite Disney character

Up it goes…

A little further up…

Waaay up!

Now off to get some shopping done. My mission at DTD was to get the Haunted Mansion soundtrack for my son and two mugs for my son and I. The mugs were really a gift for my husband as he bought a Jack Skellington mug in March and my son and I keep using it because we love the size and shape. So now we all have our own mugs and my husband gets his back. My son’s mug is Mike and I get the Cheshire Cat.

On my way to the main store I passed by the Adventurers Club. I’ve never been there but I’ve heard so many Disers talk about it that it just looks so sad all closed and quiet.

My original DTD plan included a stop at Earl of Sandwich, since I’ve read so many good comments about them, but I was still full from supper, so no food or drink from me.

Around 8:00 p.m. I decided to head back to the resort. I walked up to the buses and just missed one, but the next one was there within 10 minutes and by 8:35 p.m. I was back at the resort. The trip back seemed much quicker than the earlier ride.

When I got off the bus and came around El Centro my feelings changed – I fell in love with the resort. It is gorgeous at night!

I went to my room to see if my luggage had arrived. I was a little nervous about my luggage as it still hadn’t been delivered when I left my room at 6:00 p.m. (five hours after my plane had landed), but when I returned to my room it was waiting for me, so I unpacked a bit and went out for one more stroll.

The Casistas fountains are so beautiful with their night time lighting.

The Laguna Bar is very relaxing. This is not the best picture but it is a very good margarita!

I took a few moments to relax by the lake, take a few more pictures and then return to the room. These pictures aren’t the best but I had to try and capture some of the CSR beauty after dark.

Tomorrow – all business