Annette H.
Yelp
This is my 4th visit to Caribbean Beach Resort. All other times, I probably would have rated it 4 stars. This trip was disappointing.
We knew before booking the reservation that this resort is under construction. But we also knew that a lot of Orlando is under construction, supposedly in preparation for Walt Disney World's upcoming 50th anniversary as well as the addition of a gondola that'll go from this resort to select parks (not sure exactly which ones).
Our favorite part of this resort in the past had been the Old Port Royale, which was a spacious dining area with different cuisines. One day, you might be in the mood for American food, like a burger. Then the next day, Italian pasta. Then maybe fried chicken. At Old Port Royale, you and your party could order from various places and then meet together in the dining area to eat together.
However, with the current renovations and construction, Old Port Royale was not available. Instead, there was a tent that was set up with a buffet option for $20-21/person (drinks included), as well as a food truck with four options: Bacon Cheeseburger, Pulled Pork Hoagie, Jerk Chicken and another one I can't remember. Those options were about $12-15 each.
We purchased Disney mugs for $20 with unlimited refills for your entire stay (up to two weeks). The catch is, the mugs don't fit a whole lot and then if you want to refill your mug, you have to find the nearest "Coca Cola Freestyle vending machine." Ours was in the building over, which took a while to walk over there, stand in line for your turn, and then walk back to your room. Online, Disney posts that it's best not to select a room anywhere close to those vending machines or their "island markets" where they sell snacks and sandwiches, due to heavy traffic.
The rooms at CBR are decent but nothing fancy. While they're considered "moderate" in Disney's classifications, we compare it more to a Super 8 motel. In the past, they used to welcome you with a towel folded up with Mickey ears (see photos from the past), as well as shampoo, conditioners and soaps emblazoned with Mickey logos all over the place. Now, they've gotten rid of all of that and have community shampoo/conditioner/body wash containers located in the shower stalls, like you would see at a gym. I guess it's more environmental that way, but it was fun in the past to bring back those little Disney containers for memories' sake.
The buses and Disney transportation at CBR are what we loved the most about staying at this resort in the past. In previous years, we had only come during Run Disney race weekends like the Walt Disney World marathon or Wine and Dine weekends. This year, our friends wanted to come in late June, early July to celebrate our anniversaries. I totally forgot that this is when kids are out of school. As a result, the parks were PACKED, the hotels were PACKED, the buses were PACKED and the whole experience was less than stellar this time around.
We are extremely grateful that we didn't hear any noise from any neighbors around us, nor did we hear any construction noise.
The good thing about staying at CBR is that you get a magic band (those cool bracelets that unlock your room and allow you to charge stuff to your room). If you order your magic bands, i.e. make your room reservation at least 2 weeks ahead of your travel date, you can go to My Disney Experience to customize your magic band. That is, you can choose a colorful band and get your name personalized on the back. If you don't customize it due to now knowing about this feature (as we did on our first trip), or booking it too close to your travel date, then you'll be issued a gray magic band.
On the one hand, we're glad we stayed at CBR so our friends (who were coming to WDW for their first time) could experience the whole Disney experience of Magic Bands and Disney transportation. On the other hand, we spent A LOT more money to stay on site than we would have if we had stayed at a Hilton nearby, using Hilton Honors points (as we had planned to do initially).
My recommendations for myself and other Yelpers in the future:
If you can, avoid the summer months. It is crazy hot and humid in Orlando and the parks are PACKED. Why pay higher prices for this frustration? Plus there is so much rain, thunder and lightning during the summer months. There were times in our day where it would be raining and all activity would cease in the resort, because they didn't want anyone in danger during lightning strikes.
We will never come again in June, July or August if we can help it. Race weekends are packed but not as bad as this!
Don't expect too much from this "moderate" resort. Usually when I pay $200 a night for a room, I expect nicer accommodations with more perks. This is pretty simple. The complimentary Disney Magical Express shuttle from MCO airport to CBR is awesome though!