Welcome back to another resort review! This time we stayed at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort. Caribbean Beach Resort or CBR for short, is a large moderate resort with Skyliner access. I have stayed at this resort at least 3 times and I think it maybe a favorite of mine. This resort is located near EPCOT and Hollywood Studios with easy access to those parks via Skyliner. Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom and Disney Springs are accessible by bus. So, let’s take a deep dive and explore Caribbean Beach Resort.
One thing to keep in mind about this resort is that it is LARGE. CBR is laid out in a U shape along a large lagoon and is broken up into 5 “Islands” all named after actual Caribbean places, Jamaica, Aruba, Martinque, Barbados and Trinidad. I have stayed in Jamaica and Martinque so far. Old Port Royal is your, what I would call, resort hub. This is where you will find dining, shopping, guest services and the main pool.
I think the size of this resort makes it a great option and it can also pose some challenges. The positives about this resort being so large is that there are lots of rooms and with this being a moderate resort the price is much more doable for more people. When booking trips, I usually see availability for this resort most of the time.
The negative of this resort could be just the sheer size of it. There are paths and you can walk but it’s a long way all the way around. For those who like to run or jog these are great running paths and I see people getting their sweat on. There is an “inter island shuttle” that will just take you around the resort so if you don’t want to walk from say, Trinidad all the way to Port Royal or the Skyliner then they do provide an option.
A great thing about booking this resort is you can request certain things like being closer to the Skyliner. This resort actually has access to 2 Skyliner stations. Jamaica has the resort station, but the Riviera Resort is basically attached to Caribbean Beach and also has its own Skyliner station so that being placed in Martinque or Parts of Aruba you can easily access that Skyliner station. You can also request ground floor rooms as well. Always be aware that these are just requests and not guaranteed.
CBR has quite an impressive main pool if you ask me. It’s very large with multiple water slides, there is a separate whirlpool and smaller splash area for little ones who are more into the splashing around and not quite into swimming yet. Each island has its own pool as well, but these pools are more standard rectangular hotel type pools and do not have lifeguards. The main pool did have lifeguards and even some children’s counselors directing games. You should however always accompany your children to the pools.
If swimming isn’t quite your thing CBR has Caribbean Cay a little island in the lagoon that you can walk to. It has walking paths and relaxation areas along with a playground. I especially liked the hammock hangout area. The area was nice and quiet and would be a great place to chill on a resort day or even taking a break from the parks. The sand makes it feel even more like the Caribbean.
CBR has several dining options. Pictured is Sebatian’s Bistro in Port Royal. This is a sit-down restaurant and reservations are highly recommended. This restaurant only serves dinner and is described as having Latin cuisine. the WDW app has this listed with $$$ indicating that you can expect to pay about $35-$59.99 per adult. CBR also has sever quick service and lounges. Banana Cabana is located near the main pool and offers up refreshing drinks and quick bites of food.
Pictured here is the Cuban sandwich from the Centertown Market also located in Old Port Royal. The market serves breakfast, lunch and dinner. Centertown Market has walk up and mobile order as well as a Grab & Go area with premade options for guests on the go! This is also where the drink refill station is located. In addition to the options at Old Port Royal, in Trinidad there is the Spyglass Grill which offers American fare with a Caribbean twist. This is a walk-up quick service kiosk that also offers mobile ordering. They also offer breakfast, lunch and dinner.
This trip we purchased the refillable resort mug. These cups hold hot and cold beverages and definitely saved us some money. Each mug initially costs $19.99 and is valid through your stay. You can only use this at the resorts not in the parks. If you have smaller kiddos who maybe don’t eat or drink that much you could in theory fill up your mug and then distribute the drink into different cups. I would however be mindful of how much you do this. But for adults who can easily drink a good 12-14oz these are great. My husband is quite the coffee drinker and used the mug to get himself coffee multiple times a day, we also filled our mugs with soda in the afternoons too.
Now that we have explored a lot of the resort amenities we can talk about the room. CBR has several room types. King bed rooms have just the one king bed and sleep 2 adults. Most of the rooms have the standard 2 queen beds that also sleep up to 4 adults, and these rooms can be reserved with standard views, water or pool views or preferred rooms that are close to the pool and Old Port Royal. They also have rooms with a 5th sleeper option. The room will have 2 queen beds and a child size pull down, usually in a bench type piece of furniture.
This trip we stayed in a king room since it was just the two of us. Moderate resorts offer subtle theming and more amenities than value resorts which tend to be highly themed but don’t quite have the amenities of higher category resorts such as multiple dining and shopping locations. CBR is as the name suggests Caribbean themed. Our room had the ability to be connected to the room next to us and had a shelf with hooks to hang bags and coats. We also had a table with a couple chairs right as you enter the room. we also had some larger bench type seating on either side of the TV console dresser. The benches were wider and made for a nice place to put an extra suitcase. The TV stand/ dresser had a mini fridge and 3 drawers on either side of the mini fridge. If you are staying in a resort more than 2 nights I always “unpack” and use that space Disney provides so I don’t have to constantly get into a suitcase.
On each side of the bed there was a nightstand with a drawer. There were plugs as well built into the nightstand to make charging your phone and other devices pretty convenient. The bathroom is a split style where the sinks are separated from the shower and toilet, the bathroom is separated from the room by barndoor style doors. There’s also a shelf and hanging rod in the room with the sinks, that area acts like closet. The extra pillow and blanket are located on the shelf there. We had 2 sinks and storage under the sinks as well. The toilet shower room is a little tight, definitely only room for one person in there.
Overall, I really enjoy this resort. The proximity to the Skyliner is one of my favorite things about this resort. This resort usually has availability for the dates I’m visiting and it’s well priced. With the sprawling grounds and large main pool there’s a lot to do at this resort. The resort also hosts activities such as tie dying a shirt or pillowcase with a mickey design. The shirt or pillowcase you had to purchase but the activity was free to hotel guests. I will definitely recommend this resort as an option for my clients.
