Which Mod WDW resort....

[cindyloumn]

Do you believe is the best??? We are going in May..is this a good time? (wk before mem.day) I am sooo overwhelmed with all the info provided..that I just dont know which one to choose! We have 2 daughters ages 8 and 10..This is their first time there.so we want it all to be perfect..!!
THANK you so much for ANY info you can give!!!!!

 

[cjsmom5]

Welcome to the DIS boards!

I think it depends on what you like. Each of the moderates has a different theme. And, they are all a little different in size.

Port Orleans French Quarter is the smallest and is currently closed for rennovations. I"m not sure when it opens back up.

Port Orleans Riverside has two themes to it ... both are the down south theme with one side being "bayou" and the other being "mansions."

Carribean Beach is themed around the Carribean.

Coronado Springs is around the Southwest. This hotel is also a convention hotel so if you want to stay away from that this wouldn't be the place for you.

Each place has its positives and negatives ... depending on who you talk with. Everyone has their favorites. All moderates have a food court. I'm not sure about the "sit down" restaurant. I know the French Quarter no longer has one but Riverside has Boatwrights. Not sure on the others. They all have pools around the theme and many have lots of pools in addition to the main pool area.

All moderates are on "bus lines" with Port Orleans also having a boat to Downtown Disney and the Marketplace area. All of them have bike rentals, etc. I think.

I don't think you will be unhappy wherever you land. I would suggest you take a look at the pictures first and decide what theme you like.

Our favorite is PO French Quarter with Riverside being a close second. My DH (5) likes the fishing at Riverside and I have heard that they just redid the pool area ... although I haven't been since last December. The food court there has ample selections and they have a nice gift shop. Riverside has great entertainment at night in the lounge area. He plays the piano and always gets the entire crowd involved ... kids and adults, both. Kids just love him. It is a lively evening, for sure. I've heard good things about Boatwrights although haven't eaten there. And, when we have been the bus transportation has been excellent. We really like how close it is to downtown disney and the alternate boat transportation is nice ... depending on what time of the year you go. May should be very nice. December can be cold.

I think all moderates have full size beds. At PO Riverside they have two full size beds along with a trundle bed which will sleep a small child. Those rooms can sleep up to 5 where the other ones can only sleep four.

Hope that helps.

 

[shelleybell]

POR
THE KIDS WILL LOVE THE POOLS. TAKING TO BOAT TO DD IS FUN, ALSO.

 

[BobNed]

Here's another vote for POR. It really is a nice resort. Almost a deluxe at moderate prices. The Bayou section is very nice with only two floors per building. The food court is one of the best, and Boatwrights (the sit down restaurant) is excellent.

 

[FreshTressa]

We stayed at POR and loved it. The atmosphere was great and we loved the pool area.

Our room was kind of worn though, so, if that is a real issue with you I would choose CSR since the rooms are newer.

 

[jordanyosh]

I have only stayed at the CBR, but 3x. We really enjoy it because it is spread out. We stayed in Barbados which is one of the farther villages, but enjoyed the peace and quiet. I also like the fact that each village has its own pool and laundry facilities. The lake around which CBR is located is huge, making renting those watermice speed boats extremely fun.

Which moderate you will like depends on what your preferences are. Some of the other posters have done a good job describing each resort.

As far as making your vacation perfect.....well don't set the bar too high. No vacation is perfect, especially one to WDW. There are so many variables that you cannot plan for when you take a vacation to WDW. Just expect the unexpected and know that whatever happens, you will have a great time.

Welcome to this site. It is a great source of info. You may also want to check out www.wdwig.com and www.wdwmagic.com for additional info.

 

[safetymom]

I don't think you can go wrong with any of the moderates. It all comes down to theming. We have stayed at all the moderates and CBR is our personal favorite.

If you want to see some pictures of CBR just follow the links in my signature. Also check out the CBR FAQ for all sorts of good information.

 

[LoriZH]

I've only stayed at one moderate, it was Coronado Springs and we absolutely loved it.

I've also read and heard of great reviews with Port Orleans Riverside.

Good luck!

 

[Buzz2001]

CSR!

 

[Lewski709]

Your kids will love any of them. You may not. My vote is for POR, as it is truly a beautiful place and the boat is unique and great to DTD. The pool is great and I recommend the Bayou area.

 

[Dalpal]

Hi,
About going in May.
We have gone in May three times and I have to say the weather is perfect then with the exception of when we went in 2000(90s). The crowds are really low too.
The only drawback to going in May is that the parks close earlier then if you went during the peak time.
This last time we went was the first time we went in the summer(July) and it was a much larger crowd then in May, but it seemed more exciting......I liked going to the parks later into the night too.
It was the first time we got to see spectro. They never had spectro playing when we went in May. I think they have more parades in the summer months too.
So May is good for weather and crowds, but you do miss alot of the extra stuff they do in the peak seasons.

As for the resorts I have stayed at AS,PO, CSR and YC(Our 30th Ann.) Out of those the YC was the best with SAB and the resort itself is beautiful. I cant say enough about this resort, but the cost is something we could not do all the time.
AS was just ok to me It was very clean (as they all are),but loud.
PO was very nice, the ground are pretty.
I did not like CSR that much, its not that it was bad or anything. It just didnt have that disney feel.
This time we are going to try CBR. I have heard so many good things about it and I would like to try as many resorts as I can.
Hope this has helped. You will have a great time, after all you are in Disney World!

 

[sorcerermikey]

I've stayed at all 4 moderates and my least favorite is CSR and CSR is great! You really can't go wrong. One thing your post made me think of is the weather here in May. May is full blown summer here, no less hot and humid then June, July or August. Coming from Mn, it should feel downright tropical to you so my first thought was go with a tropical theme and pick CBR. The only time I don't like CBR is in the "winter" when the theme just felt disconnected or irrelevant. If you went in Jan. or Feb. the weather might feel tropical and CBR would still be fine.

 

[2MuchOhana]

Cindyloumn,

May is usually a good time of the year to go. Unfortunately though weather can be "iffy" for any vacation no matter what time you go. I do think you should be okay as far as the crowd levels. The parks won't be empty; but I don't think they will be filled to limit.

Okay. Here is my "two cents" worth of advise for you. When staying onsite I have only ever stayed at the CBR. I have alwayed enjoyed my stays there (twice previously, one forth coming in December); however that does not mean that I am totally biased. My suggestion would be to get your girls involved with where you are staying. There are a lot of great pictures out there, as well as, information. Aside from here at the DISboards you can see pictures at http://www.wdwig.com and athttp://wdwfun.com Hopefully, together as a family you can decide on which Moderate suits your families wants and needs.

I am not in the postion to tell you what is best for you and your family. What is good for me could be another persons nightmare. I have found good and bad reviews for every single Resort. It comes down to a matter of personal preference and expecatations.

Good Luck with making your decision! I know you will be happy no matter where you decide to stay!

 

[iluvwdw_2002]

cindyloumn,

Hey!! We are going in May as well!! And I believe the same time as you...the weekend before Memorial Day!! We are staying at a moderate as well, and after many posts and help from my wonderful Disney friends here at disboards, we decided to go with POR, and crossing our fingers to get a room in the mansions.

I have gone in May before, and to me it's the best time to go. The weather is perfect, and the crowds are pretty low. Have fun deciding!!!!

 

[Mady/Sophiemom]

Ups, and downs to CSR, and CBR. I can't speak for P.O.

We liked the pool better, at CSR. The slide is awsome, and you can see the entire, pool, and baby pool, from one location. At CBR, everything at the pool is broken up. AT CSR, the hot tub is much bigger- huge in fact. CBR's barely fit 4-5 people.

However, in May the pool at CSR closed early- 8pm. I don't think the CBR pool closes that early.

The bus service was quicker at CSR. No driving around a large resort, and 7 different stops.

Our room at CSR, was very close to the big pool, but as far away from the food court, as possible. You can get your mugs refilled at the pool bar, but that closed a bit early too.


CBR- IMO- unless you get a room close to the big pool, you are kind of far away. I heard alot of complaints about this.
It was nicer that the food court, and pool, are all right there together.

The busses seemed to take forever, to make it around the resort. It prob. wasn't as long as it seemed, but it was longer, than at CSR.

We enjoyed both resorts for different reasons.

Good luck, and have fun.

 

[WDWgirls]

We have stayed at POR and POFQ (closed). I love POR! The grounds are absolutely beautiful. Its like walking through a park and the Sassagoula River is lovely. Por also has a sit down restaurant that is open for Breakfast as well as dinner (not sure about lunch) - I believe the sit down restaurant at CBR is only open at dinner. The food court is great too - very large and roomy with a tv for cartoons and a lego table to entertain the kids. I have never had a rundown room at POR - they have all been nice. The boat ride to DTD is pretty and my kids love to rent the surrey bikes. A really great resort!

Michelle

-------------------------------
DL
POR
Poly
WL
POFQ
GF
ASMu
ASMo
Disney Wonder

 

[leighe]

DH and I love CBR. It is soooo colorful. I love the theming. I agree that it has just the right atmosphere for warm, summer weather. We stayed in Trinidad North which was maybe a 3 minute walk to the main pool and food court. However, it was so quiet and when we were in our room we felt like we were on our own island. The quiet pool was wonderful. We were there in July and there were several times when we were the only people in the quiet pool at all. We never had any problems with the buses - we always had a seat and never waited more than 10 minutes. Shutters (the "sit-down" rest.) is really very good - underrated, IMHO.

 

[purplebelle]

Originally posted by sorcerermikey
I've stayed at all 4 moderates and my least favorite is CSR and CSR is great! You really can't go wrong. One thing your post made me think of is the weather here in May. May is full blown summer here, no less hot and humid then June, July or August. Coming from Mn, it should feel downright tropical to you so my first thought was go with a tropical theme and pick CBR. The only time I don't like CBR is in the "winter" when the theme just felt disconnected or irrelevant. If you went in Jan. or Feb. the weather might feel tropical and CBR would still be fine.

See, now I love CBR in the winter b/c it allows me to escape the Chicago cold and feel as far away from it as possible! Brr...