Here now - Coranado Springs 5/16/18

[kaetra]

Cons - construction work, materials and equipment are just about everywhere with little or no effort to scrim/hide. Many eyesores while driving the perimeter. Pepper Market was very grimy, dining room desperately needs a good deep cleaning. Did not recieve a refurbed room. Pro - every bed got a free set of 3 trading pins and a "thank you" letter for pardoning the pixie dust.

Presented with new policy at registration, if you opt out of housekeeping for your entire stay you get a $50 gift card per room.

We're in Ranchos 6B, and it is very quiet back here. A large golf cart transport drives around and gives you rides around the circle from end of Casitas to Ranchos area.

Rain incredibly heavy at times today for 30-60 minute durations, as well as 10-15 minute heavy bursts here and there.

 

[mddsnygals]

Oh, no! We'll be there in 3 weeks-I was hoping the construction wouldn't be too bad or impact our stay. Not a good report on Pepper Market-gross!

 

[Dug720]

It's $50 regardless of how long your stay is? Usually it's $10/night minus one night.

 

[my_ears]

I was there recently in Ranchos 6B aswell. The old room smelled really bad. I called and they quickly moved me to a refurbished room in Ranchos 7A which was really nice. I agree about Pepper Market. It's dark, seems dirty and dingy. I was SOOO dissapointed when I ate there and the food I had was really bad.

All in all it's a beautiful resort but for me its way too spread out and big. The bus situtation is annoying with all the stops. Not a fan.

 

[kaetra]

It's $50 regardless of how long your stay is? Usually it's $10/night minus one night.

Our stay was 6 nights so that lines up.

 

[kaetra]

On our last day, 5/22/18, housekeeping started pulling out all the room accessories from every room and piling them in the corridors. Ironing boards, irons, trash cans, ice buckets, etc.

Looks like 6B refurb has begun.

 

[kaetra]

I would not stay here again. Especially after the construction is over and the prices go up. It’s a very bland resort, the food was terrible.

My friend likes it because there aren’t many little kids there.

 

[xoSonya]

Oh, no! We'll be there in 3 weeks-I was hoping the construction wouldn't be too bad or impact our stay. Not a good report on Pepper Market-gross!

I didn't think construction was that bad. I was there 5/19-26. I was in Ranchos 7A.

Pepper Market is totally disgusting and the Cast Members are miserable and slow. Most of them look like they hate their job.

Cafe Rix has amazing chocolate mousse and chocolate chip cookies...and great service.

 

[ChasingLeslie]

I would not stay here again. Especially after the construction is over and the prices go up. It’s a very bland resort, the food was terrible.

My friend likes it because there aren’t many little kids there.

Like all resorts, it’s a matter of preference. We have kids and we all love CSR! We stayed during construction last summer with no issues...we are staying again in three weeks.

 

[SL6827]

I loved CSR, the Ranchos section was awesome to me. But ya, the food sucked.

 

[Remy is Up]

Here now ap preferred room. Thoughts are the room is comparable to most deluxe resort rooms. Beyond that. Construction aside because that isnt bad..the resort doesn't feel authentic or have the same atmosphere as a port Orleans resort. Busses are not reliable, bus stops are spread out and quite the hike. Even preferred rooms are a walk to the main building. Food court is adequate but not great. Still believe that port Orleans riverside or French quarter are a better property. Fiance even said art of animation was better in March and that is a value resort.

 

[my_ears]

Thats sooo true about the Pepper Market cast members. They looked miserable and annoyed when we went to order/pay. Not a single one even cracked a smile.

I didn't think construction was that bad. I was there 5/19-26. I was in Ranchos 7A.

Pepper Market is totally disgusting and the Cast Members are miserable and slow. Most of them look like they hate their job.

Cafe Rix has amazing chocolate mousse and chocolate chip cookies...and great service.

 

[fab1976]

Wow we were there in April and I fully enjoyed the food! Cast members didn’t smile so much at me but my 5 yr old daughter brought HUGE smiles to their faces.

 

[GPC0321]

Pepper Market is totally disgusting and the Cast Members are miserable and slow. Most of them look like they hate their job.

I got this exact same feeling about the Cast Members at Pepper Market when we were there in 2016. Sad experience with barely edible food.

 

[buzznina]

We have stayed at CSR 10 times over the past 13 years (over half have been for a conference), and though we prefer the PO resorts over it we still like CSR a lot. With being lucky enough to have a lot of WDW trips, I can say that buses are hit or miss at every resort and I do not even consider it when picking a resort. We are also not fans of the Pepper Market, we found the food pretty good but the service lacked. We did really like Cafe Rix. I totally disagree with a poster that said it's a hike to the bus stops or to the main building from a preferred room. Preferred rooms are at the very most a 5 (usually less) minute walk to El Centro and most resort rooms are a 5 minute or less walk to one of the 4 bus stops. Unfortunately, WDW is starting to make all rooms bland looking, with the new refurbs. As for construction, it really does not bother us to see it as long as it does not take any amenities away, i.e. pools or food etc.

 

[Vern60]

Gosh, I was tossing around the idea of a possible late August trip but have been reading a lot of negative Coronado reviews lately. First, does anyone know if the pool will remain open? I've heard beginning in September they are closing it for refurbishment.
We stayed here many years ago and liked it well enough, then our family grew to 5 and we haven't been back. But not only here, some other sites also have many negative reviews about Coronado, and the poor service. Some say it's turned them off to Disney entirely, Yikes!
Maybe I should consider CBR instead, though I would certainly miss a regular food court and small store, or I guess for a moderate the POR is pretty nice... decisions, decisions. Or ... maybe FINALLY make a stay at Contemporary? But I've heard that pool is just so so, and end of August we'd most likely be swimming a lot.
Sorry, didn't mean to hijack this thread, just got worried reading so much negativity about the Coronado.

 

[kbmartin]

DH and I stayed at Coronado in December and were very pleased to book it again for our stay in August. We were in Ranchos 7A, which was a very quiet (and refurbished!) location that was right by transportation. The walk to the main pool was a bit longer than I would have liked, but it wasn't a huge deal. I think their pool area is stunning; I can't wait to use it when it's actually warm out (we hit a VERY cold snap when we went in December and only used the hot tub). The walk to the main area is long depending where you are in the resort, but I think people don't do their homework - there's an internal transportation system. You can hop on almost any bus and hop off at your desired area as it travels around the resort. With that said, yes, the food court (Pepper Market) was awful. We only tried it on our last day when we were waiting for the Magical Express. My DH liked the coffee at Rix Cafe quite a lot - we were there frequently. We never had an issue with cast members - they were all pretty friendly and happy to help us out. (Some issues and how they were solved: We decided to forego housekeeping and needed fresh towels; when necessary, we found a housekeeper in our area and he showered us with towels and TONS of toiletries. At Rix Cafe, my DH wanted some Powerade for his refillable mug, but the fountain was pretty much just shooting out water, so the cashier gave us a bottled Powerade to go instead.) I would not hesitate to stay at CSR again. We really liked that we didn't see a lot of kids - it definitely has more of an adult vibe. We like the theme - it feels like you are at a tropical resort. We also really loved our refurbished room - it felt very luxe.

 

[momofkids]

I stayed at CSR in March and August of 2017. The CMs at Pepper Market were super nice. The bartender at the pool bar was awesome. We didn't find the walk to the pool, main building or buses to be long at all. We were in Rachos 7A also.

 

[3gr8boys]

We stayed at CSR in April. Had a refurbished (Casitas) room and really liked it. I enjoyed the Casitas theming a lot more than I expected, the greenery and the fountains were delightful. We only ate in the Pepper Market and Cafe Rix for a couple of breakfasts and coffee/snacks....I thought the CMs were pleasant and very helpful. Planning to return in 2020....hoping that I won't be priced out when the construction is finished!

 

[cassie58]

Gosh, I was tossing around the idea of a possible late August trip but have been reading a lot of negative Coronado reviews lately. First, does anyone know if the pool will remain open? I've heard beginning in September they are closing it for refurbishment.
We stayed here many years ago and liked it well enough, then our family grew to 5 and we haven't been back. But not only here, some other sites also have many negative reviews about Coronado, and the poor service. Some say it's turned them off to Disney entirely, Yikes!
Maybe I should consider CBR instead, though I would certainly miss a regular food court and small store, or I guess for a moderate the POR is pretty nice... decisions, decisions. Or ... maybe FINALLY make a stay at Contemporary? But I've heard that pool is just so so, and end of August we'd most likely be swimming a lot.
Sorry, didn't mean to hijack this thread, just got worried reading so much negativity about the Coronado.

I know you mentioned your family growing to 5 - if that is the case for your trip, you would have to choose between CBR and POR as moderates to accommodate your party.