Opinion on Moderates

[thlarock]

Hi all,

For our next stay we are thinking of staying at a moderate - any opinions on which one to stay at? Probably will just be me and my wife on this trip. Driving down most likely in November of this year or next.

Thx - Tom

 

[Miffy]

POFQ is my favorite moderate. Small footprint, doesn't share buses (although sometimes in off-hours it'll also stop at POR, but FQ is the first stop in both directions), lovely grounds, boat to Disney Springs, decent food court, and beignets.

Stay tuned. You are about to get every WDW mod recommended to you!

 

[Marthasor]

CSR Tower - it’s the deluxe of the mods

 

[Nabas]

We’ve stayed at all four.

They are all roughly equivalent, with their own pluses and minuses.

As @Miffy wrote, POFQ is by far the smallest. We think it makes a nice couples resort.

Coronado Springs tends to be the least expensive, although Grand Destino Tower is pricy.

I cannot recommend Caribbean Beach Resort. It is the oldest Moderate but jumped from the least expensive to most expensive once they added the Skyliner. The Skyliner is Disney’s least reliable transportation, since it shuts down for thunderstorms, which happens pretty much every day in the summer. We’ve been left stranded by the Skyliner more than once.

I suggest looking at theming and go with the one whose theming appeals the most to you.

 

[Disneylover99]

My vote will always be POFQ.
The tower at CSR would be my second choice.

 

[Wood Nymph]

We like POR. The main pool has a great pool bar with plenty of seating and shade. The main pool has a slide and a fun water feature. There are four quiet pools which are nice, too. Boatwrights is a nice option for dinner. Yee Ha Bob has a fun night time show in the lounge five nights a week. And there is a boat to Disney Springs. All in all, this resort has a lot of great features for an adults only trip.

 

[fla4fun]

POFQ is my overall number one pick (compact resort)

CSR tower is second

POR is third (multiple bus stops, large resort)

CBR is fourth, but if they renovate all the rooms similar to what they did with the old pirate rooms, it may move to third permanently. See notes.

CSR non-tower is fifth (resort very large)

NOTES: The time of year affects some of my choices. From November to early May, what is considered our dry season, the Skyliner is very reliable. During the wet season, the Skyliner is down nearly every afternoon, and can cause major transportation hiccups (at Epcot more than DHS because of where the buses are located in relation to the Skyliner). When the Skyliner is running, I would choose CBR over POR.

 

[The Foolish Mortal]

We really love Coronado and Riverside. But it does help that we tend to stay in the slightly nicer rooms (GD Tower or Royal rooms)

 

[beccasmom]

POFQ is a nice resort and our favorite moderate by far. We like POR too, but it’s a much larger resort. CBR was the first moderate at WDW - we stayed there before it was completely finished - but seems to be showing it’s age. However, the Skyliner is a nice perk. We haven’t stayed at CSR although we’ve visited. I’ve heard nice things about the Destino Tower.

 

[Once.Upon.A.Time]

We would go with either CSR or POFQ.

 

[gmi3804]

Every MOD has been mentioned now. Where you gonna stay?

 

[baggs32]

Coronado hands down for us. We are night owls and the lounges at CSR are open later than at any other resort. Most are open until midnight or later depending on how busy they are. Even places at Disney Springs aren't open that late.

I find the size of the resort to be a plus too. It is very spread out but it feels less crowded because of that. A few extra steps there don't really matter when you are walking the entire time you are there anyway. No issues with the buses in our 4 stays there either.

 

[disneyseniors]

We like POR. The main pool has a great pool bar with plenty of seating and shade. The main pool has a slide and a fun water feature. There are four quiet pools which are nice, too. Boatwrights is a nice option for dinner. Yee Ha Bob has a fun night time show in the lounge five nights a week. And there is a boat to Disney Springs. All in all, this resort has a lot of great features for an adults only trip.

I agree Wood Nymph! POR has been our favorite for years. We love it for all the reasons above and for the beautiful grounds. We always stayed at alligator bayou and loved the tropical feel and the little bridges. Their quiet pool is wonderful and never too crowded.
However, now we stay at POFQ due to mobility issues. You will see a lot of people with mobility issues at POFQ due to it's small area. It's a nice resort, but we would go back to POR if we could. We do visit POR a lot to take it all in!

 

[Simba's Mom]

Not all people agree, even within families. DH always loved POFQ best, but he loves cajun food and creole. My favorite was POR, felt more relaxing to me. So be ready to compromise-we're DVC now, and compromise between OKW and BCV all the time.

 

[Micca]

CSR would be my pick.

 

[sainca11]

I personally love the Port Orleans Resorts the best. I love the size and lounge at POFQ, but also love the pool/bar and rooms at POR. I stayed at CSR before the tower was built, and it was not my favorite, however this could be because desert landscapes (the theming of CSR) are not my favorite. But I will admit, I have heard wonderful things about the tower at CSR. As for CBR, I think the best thing about it is the Skyliner, but other than that, it is my least favorite.

 

[unrequited23]

Are you planning on using your car or Disney transportation? Or a mix of the two when it's to your advantage, Disney bus to MK, for example? Do you like to check out other resorts? Are you rope drop everyday people?

If you plan on using your car to get places I would say let menus, aesthetics and price determine where you stay. (CS would win here in my book.) If you only want to use Disney transportation. rope drop and like to check out other resorts, I would book at CBR.

 

[Apthorp76]

POFQ is my overall number one pick (compact resort)

CSR tower is second

POR is third (multiple bus stops, large resort)

CBR is fourth, but if they renovate all the rooms similar to what they did with the old pirate rooms, it may move to third permanently. See notes.

CSR non-tower is fifth (resort very large)

NOTES: The time of year affects some of my choices. From November to early May, what is considered our dry season, the Skyliner is very reliable. During the wet season, the Skyliner is down nearly every afternoon, and can cause major transportation hiccups (at Epcot more than DHS because of where the buses are located in relation to the Skyliner). When the Skyliner is running, I would choose CBR over POR.

Are there bus stops at the International Gateway for when the Skyliner is down? I've only been through that entrance when the Skyliner was running so I've never looked for them.

 

[Wood Nymph]

Are there bus stops at the International Gateway for when the Skyliner is down? I've only been through that entrance when the Skyliner was running so I've never looked for them.

They send buses to the Boardwalk bus stop when the Skyliner is down.

 

[fla4fun]

They send buses to the Boardwalk bus stop when the Skyliner is down.

Sometimes. It’s tricky. I have been sent to the front of the park instead of to an alternate bus at IG every time. Others have said that they have been sent to buses at one of the Epcot resorts. There is no consistent policy for what happens when the Skyliner goes down. I wish they would put an alert on the app, so we would know exactly what to do.