I can't give you any advise regarding the deluxe resorts but I can give lots of information on the Caribbean Beach Resort. So....here goes:
We stayed at the CBR in June, 206 and we watched the fireworks from the Jamaica beach. Just in case any of you guys wanted more information on the CBR, here goes.....
Our family of four stayed at the Caribbean Beach Resort for ten days/nine nights in June, 2006. We were extremely pleased with the resort. So much so that we booked our June, 2007 trip just a month after arriving back home. (would have sooner but had to wait for the 2007 rates to come out).
We had absolutely no trouble with checking in, crowds, housekeeping, etc. The air conditioners worked extremely well. So well, in fact, that, when we came back from the parks in the evening, we had to turn the air off for a while.
We stayed in Jamaica and love it. Although we don't care that the resort is spread out, I have heard that most people don't want to stay in Trinidad South or Barbados because of their proximity to Old Port Royale.
Below, I have very detailed information on the CBR but I think you would also benefit by going to wwww.allearsnet.com. Click on accomodations. Scroll down to Caribbean Beach Resort. There, you will find a fact sheet and tons of pictures.
Now....here goes.....
I have shared the following information with numerous family and friends and all have said it helped them greatly when making their decision on whether or not to stay at the Caribbean Beach Resort
The Caribbean Beach Resort is a moderate resort. The resort is large and spread out but, to many, that is part of the appeal. Because the resort is spread out, the guests are spread out too. Meaning....the crowds aren't what they are at some of the other resorts. There are numerous villages surrounding a lake. The resort resembles a large oval.
The rooms at the Caribbean Beach Resort are 340 square feet where the rooms in the other moderate resorts are 314. You wouldn't think that the extra footage would make much of a difference but it does once you get everyone and all your luggage in the room.
The two story buildings are in clusters and each cluster surrounds a courtyard. The buildings are brightly painted and have wide, wraparound walkways. The rooms open to the outside walkways but that's okay because the walkways are so wide, you never had a problem with the weather or passing other guests. We saw many guests taking advantage of the walkways by bringing out their chairs and sitting outside a while in the evenings.
The Custom House is where you will check in/out. Most guests will not need to visit the Custom House for any other purpose so it is not necessary to request a room near the Custom House.
It is totally up to you on whether or not you want to pay the extra money for a "preferred" room location. Some of the villages are a bit of a walk from the Old Port Royale and some are quite close. I, personally, wouldn't pay the extra price. Honestly, if you have a problem with walking at your resort, you're in for a big problem when you hit the theme parks. Also, there is an internal resort bus which will pick you up at any bus station and drop you off anywhere within the resort.
Old Port Royale is where the food court/arcade/store and sit down restaurant are located.
The villages of Aruba and Jamaica are the two villages which are located just across the bridge from Old Port Royale meaning that your walk to OPR will be fairly short. To get to Old Port Royale, you will pass over a wooden footbridge and walk through an island in the middle of the resort's lake. There are severl walkways on the island and there are benches and picnic tables on the island.
We were in Jamaica Building 41. This location was just a five minute walk to Old Port Royale and just a three minute walk to the Jamaica bus station. We found out that, most times, Jamaica was the first to pick up and let off on the bus lines. This is a definitely plus!
Our room, 4154, faced a well maintained courtyard and was upstairs. We NEVER heard any of our neighbors. Never did we hear them talking, their television playing, their water running or their toilet flushing. The only time we heard anyone was when the lady and her two sons checked in next door. They were a little rambunctious when getting settled. We didn't hear them through the walls, we heard them as they were passing our door.
There were bunnies, ducks and lizards running about the courtyard. Benches and tables are set up along the pathways. These are nice spots to just take a minute and relax.
The Jamaica beach was swept clean each night and we never saw trash lying around for very long before a groundskeeper came by and picked it up. There were several hammocks on the Jamaica beach and it was nice to lie back and watch the Epcot fireworks each night. Our son had a ball playing in the sand and making sandcastles.
The Jamaica quiet pool was just that....quiet. There were never more than a dozen people in the pool at once. The laundry facilities were connected to the pool area so you could wash and dry your clothes while you swam. This was nice 'cause you didn't feel as if you were wasting any of your vacation time doing your laundry.
There is a promenade (a little over a mile long) that circles the entire resort. We rented a four seater bicycle from the marina and rode around the promenade. You can also rent single bicycles, canoes, watermice, pontoon and sail boats at the marina. The lifejackets (ranging in sizes from small children to large adults) were free of charge when you rented a boat from the marina.
We were quite surprised by Old Port Royale. The store was divided in two and was larger than I had thought it would be. They sold tropical themed items and also the typical Disney merchandise. They actually sold quite a bit more merchandise than what I was expecting. Our first purchases were the Caribbean Beach Resort t-shirts (very cute), an autograph book and a pen. No need to wait until we get in the crowded theme parks before buying the required book and pen.
The arcade wasn't huge but it was large enough to handle the June crowd. You purchase a 'refillable' playing card. It was nice to just swipe the card and play the games. No keeping up with change or tokens.
We were pleased with the food court. There were several food service stations. The grab and go station sold fresh made sandwiches, salads, boiled eggs, veggies and dip, yogurt, fresh fruit, an extensive bakery, and an assortment of drinks. There was a pasta and pizza station, a burger and chicken station, a station that sold steamed veggies and a station that had rotissiere chicken. The kids' meal of chicken strips are served in sand buckets with shovels on the side. Perfect for use at the beach. Breakfast items included fresh baked items, Mickey shaped waffles, bacon, sausage, omelets, cereals and juices.
There was a large station in the center of the food court that had the various beverages. There were toasters and microwaves. Condiments like ketchup, mustard, sugar, creamer, peanut butter, cream cheese, etc. were there too. Many mornings, I went to the food court and purchased breakfast items and brought them back to the room. This way we could eat while getting ready to head to the parks. The castmembers will give you a large brown bag with handles on it to carry your items.
Since we were staying ten days, I brought several packets of peanut butter, cream cheese, sugars, jellies, utensils etc. back to the room. That way, I didn't have to stop every time and pick them up. Saved us some time.
Back to the rooms.....the room has two double beds with a nightstand between. I used the nightstand drawer to store all the film, camcorder tapes, park maps, etc. The beds are raised so you can store your luggage beneath (to get it out of the way). There is a table and chairs in the bedroom area(typical size). A large mirror hangs above the table and chairs. The wooden armoire hold a television and has three large drawers and two small lingerie drawers.
The refrigerator is enclosed in a wooden cabinet. The refrigerator was the small college dorm type. It worked really well and was roomy enough for our left over fresh fruit and desserts. We also had lots of water and colas. There is a large padded bench with a deep drawer underneath. This is great for storing your large items. Above the bench is a peg type shelf. Perfect for hanging bags, hats, backpacks, etc.
The closet/sink area is spacious. There are stone tiles in this area. There are two sinks enclosed in a wooden cabinet and there is storage space beneath both sinks. There is a hairdryer in this area. We brought along a cheap laundry bag. We put all our dirty clothes in the bag and left it in the corner of the closet area. At the end of the trip, I just smushed down the clothes, stuck the bag in a large garbage bag and put them all in the suitcase. Because there were four of us, the laundry bag didn't hold everything. It worked so well though that I am taking two along on our next trip.
The closet rod and shelf were fairly long. There were about a dozen wooden hangers on the rod and we brought along two dozen more. (We just left the wire hangers in the room when we left. They came from the dollar store so it didn't matter.) There was enough room to hang all our shirts (4 people, ten days). The coffee pot was on the closet shelf and we moved it to the table in the bedroom. There is an iron and ironing board in the closet area. Enclosed in the closet wall is a very slim small safe. The safe was big enough for our extra money, wallets, camera, etc.
There is a privacy curtain that can be pulled to separate the closet/sink area from the bedroom area. This is nice when you have guys and girls in your group and you're all trying to get dressed at once.
The bathroom was small but immaculate. There was no mold or mildew and no loose tiles. The bathtub had a bench/shelf at the end and was sparkling clean.
Mousekeeping was great. They came in and cleaned each and every day. The garbage was always taken out, the floors cleaned, etc. Fresh towels and washclothes were left as were soaps and shampoos. It is up to you on whether or not you want the bed linens changed daily. There is a placecard that they ask you to place on the bed if you want the linens changed. This is part of Disney conservation efforts.
Even on the days we slept in, housekeeping left a huge bag of towels, washclothes, soaps and shampoos in our doorway.
We received four towel animals during our stay. Our housekeeper even left us notes saying "Have a magical day!" "Hope you are enjoying your stay!", etc. We tipped her daily.
The buses ran very efficiently while we were there. We never waited longer than twenty minutes for a bus and that was because we, literally, just missed the EPCOT bus. It was pulling away as we got there. This also wasn't first thing in the morning. This was about 10:30 a.m. (one of our sleep in days). Some times, there were two and three buses (either picking up or dropping off) at the bus stop at once. Until this last year, we always drove our car to where ever we were going. After taking the bus system, I will never drive my own car again. I loved sitting back and letting the expert Disney bus drivers hassle with the traffic. We especially liked taking the bus to the Magic Kingdom. If you drive your own vehicle, you have to park way off, take a tram to the Ticket and Transportation Center and then take either the monorail or ferry to the Magic Kingdom. The buses drop you off just outside the Magic Kingdom gates. Wonderful!!!!!
If you need more information on the Caribbean Beach, please let me know. I will be glad to offer suggestions. Lisa
