Opinions on Caribbean Beach

[rphillips14]

In our previous four trips, we have stayed at Port Orleans Riverside. This trip, in September, we are staying at Caribbean Beach. I would love to hear some reviews:

[Amy]

We stayed there quite a long time ago ~ I would guess around 2000. I remember the food in the food court was a bit weird, Mom would get scrambled eggs for breakfast and they would come with different Caribbean spices in them. She learned to ask for "plain" eggs I would guess the food might have changed a bit since then, but I sure wasn't a fan then!
The grounds are beautiful. I enjoyed walking on the beach in the morning around the lake there, but was sad you couldn't swim in it due to the really large snapping turtles. I have some nice photos of the turtles lounging on the beach though. I seem to remember there were hammocks scattered about for resting if you wanted to do that instead of going to the parks
The only complaint I remember having is that it seemed like the resort bus took a long time to make the stops around the different villages to pick you up to go to the park. I think we got spoiled staying at the All Star resorts where the buses seem to run frequently and pick you up and you are on your way to the parks without stopping at other places.
Overall though, I think you will really enjoy staying at the Caribbean Beach, it is really pretty and serene. Definitely a laid back island sort of feel to the place

[Len90]

My opinion about Caribbean Beach is that it is a great resort with theming but the size scares me away. We were thinking about staying there in 2006 but the idea of having so many buildings and the lines for buses drew us away from it and over to Wilderness Lodge. Besides that, you will love it. Just be prepared to handle crowds at the bus stops.

[sfein]

We stayed there quite a long time ago ~ I would guess around 2000.

I stayed there in 2000 as well. Go figure.

The ground are large but I found if you learn the bus route, you can shortcut the time. We found we stayed at the first stop so coming back, we got off there, but we would quickly walk up to the main building to get the last (or near last - can't remember) stop to get on bus and not have to wait all the way around. The rooms are larger than all-star. Also, even though there are multiple pools, there is one main pool with a fort and slide (which makes it better than the all-stars pool). Fun if you have young kids (mine were 5 and 3 at that time and they loved it).

Overall we liked it, but found we preferred getting two rooms at all-stars for only a little more money. But comparing with Port Orleans (we stayed before it became Riverside), we preferred Caribbean Beach.

[lonepalm]

We stayed there on our honeymoon a few years ago. We love it. We rented a car so we weren't concerned about the size or bus routes or anything, but we enjoyed it very much.

[Chuckus95]

My wife and I stayed there in 1999 in a King Room with a Water View in the Jamaica section. We really enjoyed the Resort. It was nice and laid back. We especially liked going out to the beach, laying on a hammock with a glass of wine, and watching part of Illuminations. We did not notice any issues with buses, but we were not in any hurry so we may not have noticed any issues.

We have not stayed at PoR so I cannot give you a direct comparison. We have stayed at PoFQ and CSR. For an adult only trip, i would pick PoFQ over CBR, but with kids, I would choose CBR over either PoFQ or CSR.

[yodiwan1]

My wife and I stayed there 3 years ago for our anniversary in a king preferred room. It was right after the update with the added Nemo accents. We loved it. The food court was better than average, and the addition of a fan in the room was great(we usually stayed at value resorts) By staying in a preferred room you don't have to worry about the resort being so large. Very comfy beds, and plenty of room.

[I am Sulley]

Stayed at CBR in 1998. Chose to pay the extra as wanted something a bit better. We were not disappointed. Yes it's big but enjoyed my morning walk for the coffee and breakfasts whilst my wife got the children up and ready. A good hint for dads

Wanted to stay somewhere else in 2011 but as we were only booking 8 days before (that's another story) could only get in the CBR. It was just as good if not better as the girls were older so we could stay out later. The walk round the lake is lovely and as each "Island" has its own pool then they're never crowded particularly if you want to avoid the fun pool. The food court could possibly be a bit better but we ate twice in Shutters restaurant and found it very good especially on the dining plan so no worries about prices.
I have read lots about criticism of the bus service which amuses me maybe cos I'm British and work in the bus industry but I honestly think its very good. Hearing parents getting children aged about 5 excited about their first ride on a bus is just crazy to me. As sfein said learn the stops and you can often get off and walk to your room quicker. We had a very early Character Breakfast at Epcot and buses were running every 15mins from an hour before first sitting.

To us a good resort if you have kids with plenty of space to play and good entertainment. The outdoor films are good in the evenings. Also a good resort for us oldies as it is also quiet and does not feel crowded anywhere.

If you stay in Aruba or Barbados there are excellent views of the Epcot fireworks. The view is also good from Old Port Royale Town

[DAR]

I've always liked CBR

[Chernabog]

It is a great place! Your room location could change your opinion of that, but it has a great atmosphere and we had a blast when 12 of us stayed there around 2008. It is very appropriately named!

[Cardinals314]

My wife and I stayed there 3 years ago for our anniversary in a king preferred room. It was right after the update with the added Nemo accents. We loved it. The food court was better than average, and the addition of a fan in the room was great(we usually stayed at value resorts) By staying in a preferred room you don't have to worry about the resort being so large. Very comfy beds, and plenty of room.

With Caribbean Beach so large, you need a preferred room. If not, you may have a mile walk to the main building. There is an internal bus system that would take you to the main building, but you don't want to rely on that. You won’t find queen-size beds like the other resorts offer, thus the smaller beds make it more difficult to sleep four people (if you are bringing 4 people). The pool is the best out of the moderate resorts, if you enjoy spending time there during your trip.

[GoldenBear]

I loved staying there as a kid. Taking the little boats around the lakes, biking on the paths, great little pools for each sub-section. I think it's a great place for a family, gives you some options on days where you might not want to go to a park.

[MmeLeota]

We stayed at CBR last year, and it was the first time we had ever stayed on property. The size of the property can definitely be overwhelming! I can't remember which building we were in, but it was one of the front buildings. That meant we didn't have to hike too far to our room from the check-in area, but the main building was quite a walk...but we loved it! The grounds are so beautiful and surprisingly quiet if not in the vicinity of the main pool. We went for really nice exploration walks in the morning, and we were able to catch some of Illuminations (if we were in the room at that time) from in front of our building.
The inside of the room was themed to Finding Nemo, but it was well done. (I was confused about the whole "Australian" movie fitting with the Caribbean, but I guess the whole "ocean" thing just works) The most obvious decoration was probably the wallpaper border. The bedspread had hidden Nemo characters in it and the curtains represented water...subtle, but yet magical enough to remind you that you're at WDW.
Overall, we truly enjoyed our stay at CBR. We do not have any basis for comparison as far as staying at a property goes, though.

...a note about the buses...we had a few instances where buses were very full because there were not as many buses for CBR as some of the other resorts. We were there in January, so I would hope there are more buses during the summer, otherwise that might be a downfall.

[boilerbabe]

We've stayed here several times...our last stay was a split stay in '07. It's not my fav moderate just b/c of the size. If you request to be near the lobby/food court, it's not too bad!