What can you tell me about CSR...the good the bad and the UGLY!

[pigletpooh123]

Hi again. I'm in the planning stages for 4/04. There are 4-6 adults and 2 kids in my party ages 7 and 9. We were thinking we would stay at POR . My dad really liked this resort but since I have read on here that POFQ is closing, I think we will try some where new. SO, I have been reserching CSR and it looks great. My kids are thrilled with the pool. What can everyone tell me about this place. Thanks everyone, I really enjoy reading these posts. I come here everyday and pretend!!!

 

[dvcfamily41801]

While there is not a Disney resort that I don't like, for whatever reason, I just did not like the food court here. The food was good, it was just a strange set up with the ordering and serving.

But other than that we loved it there!!

 

[slimplaw]

I did not like the fact that if you are at the back of the resort, it is close to a 15 minute walk to the front for a meal.

 

[NCRedding]

Pros: The pool and spa area are wonderful. The lake area is gorgeous. The bus system works great. I liked the food court.
Cons: The resort is VERY large. If you are not located near the dig site, it isn't really convenient to get there (we drove). The sidewalks are multi-level, which make it very pretty, but hard on those with mobility issues. I didn't like that you had to cross a parking lot to get to the bus stop.
UGLY: The housekeeping supply area was next to our room; we were woken up every morning at 7 to hear the chattering of the staff getting ready to go to work.
You will find lots of people who love this resort.

 

[Buzz2001]

CSR is great!!!

Best pool area for any moderate. Great transportation because it is not shared with other resorts. Check out my CSR website below. It isn't as large as it is masde out to be. The walk way around Lago Dorado is 1 mile. The avg person can walk a mile in 12-15 mins. So to walk from the farthest Rancho building would be 1/2 mile which takes about 7-8 mins.

 

[Redmic]

Pros: Very beautiful, we especiallly liked the look of the Rancho section; fun place to ride surrey bikes; great pools.

Cons: The food court is hard to navigate (especially with children) and we thought the food was very bland; lots of walking to get around the resort.

 

[Luv2Roam]

Quiet. Clean. Spacious. Newer, nicer looking. (Although the outside is getting that bleached out FL sun look. The colors have lost their vibrancy.)
Good bus service. Nice gift shop. Room service available.
There were four adults in our party, one being picky on his food. (Not a picky eater. Just picky.) We ALL really liked the food court. CHeck out service to pay the Pepper Market bill was slow, except when a manager was at the register(s).
In room coffee makers.
Very nice pool/spa area.
Ceiling fan over the bed. TV inside a cabinet (with doors).
When we were there in January 2001, DH used the hot tub (spa) times. He finally gave up as he said the hot tub water was warm, not hot. I always wondered if was just bad timing on our part. But I have read others post the same.
So the hot tub area is very nice, and it has a large tub. Just don't be surprised that your water in your room's tub would be hotter.
Fitness center, beauty salon and in room massage available, at extra cost. (I think the last two are available. I didn't use any of these services.) Also think bikes (boats??) were available to rent. We didn't use those either.
Take your luggage to the outside luggage area, to the left of the main entrance. Then check in.

 

[NotTooGoofy]

Our family (including DDs 8 and 11 years old) loved staying at CSR and we plan on going back in December. I suggest staying at in Cabanas buildings 9A and 9B. These rooms are close to the pool, reservations desk/food court and El Centro bus stop. If you like peace and quiet, you could stay in the Ranchos section.

We loved the pools/hot tub and room decor. The only drawback was the food court. The food is about the same in quality as the other moderate resorts but they tack on a 10 or 15% gratuity. There are servers to provide refills on drinks and clear your table but I'd rather just do those things myself. Perhaps because CSR has a convention center (and caters to business clientele more than other Disney resorts) is the reason they use this set up.

 

[safetymom]

I didn't enjoy the hot tub because there were too many kids in it without parents. The water was hot.

I also didn't enjoy the food court because of the 10% surcharge. Also you needed to wait and get a pass to refill your mugs.

I enjoyed the walk around the lake and the resort is beautiful but I still prefer CBR or POR.

 

[pigletpooh123]

Thanks everyone, sounds like a nice place but the food court has me a little worried. Guess I'll have to do some more research!!

 

[gumdrop]

pigletpooh...

I love CSR and I think the food court is great. I'll admit, I was apprehensive about it before I left, but I had no problems with it what so ever. I'll attach the review I wrote on CSR after my trip this past August. I hope you find it helpful, though it is a bit biased because I had absolutely no complaints! I would copy and paste it here, but it is a bit long. I hope you find time to check it out!

--Maren

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=256071

 

[susy]

Okay, first let me say that we have stayed at ASSp, ASMo, CBR, AKL, and CSR and CSR is our favorite !!!!!

The resort is situated around a lake and you can see the whole, thing (except a few buildings in Ranchos) from anywhere around the lake (CBR is more spread out to me) . hree sections mean you can stay here 3x and have three different experiences!

Casitas- more hotelish, formal feel, beautiful!!! Lots of fountains and courtyards.

Ranchos- best themed in my opinion. Choose 7B and you will be right by the main pool and a little bit of a walk to the food court.

Cabanas- we stayed here and liked it fine, but reminded me of CBR- too tropcal for me. Being from FL, we are bored stiff by palm trees and beaches! Close to food court and pool- 8A or 9B

Great marina with all kinds of boats, bikes,and surrey bikes. Great path to walk or ride all around the resort.

4 bus stops and no sharing with another resort. I heard the buses aren't crowded. This could be that the "conventioneers" are in meetings.


Pool- best pool area (including AKL). Great slide, huge hot tub, playgroud and game room right there. Sandy play area and volleyball area. Nice pool bar with some food items-burgers, chicken fingers,etc.


Nice rooms with coffeemakers and coffee, irons, hairdryers, room service (even breakfast).

Maya grill- really great breakfast buffet.

Pepper market- We have GOT to stop calling this place a food court.
At all the other food courts- you order your food, pay at register, find a table and go get your drinks, paper napkins, plastic silverware. Then you throw away your garbage and leave.

At the Pepper Market- you are greeted and seated. A waitress takes your drink order and you get up and walk around making your selections (real plates). You return to your table and eat (real flatware and cloth napkins are already at the table). You get up, leave your "garbage" at the table and pay at the register at the exit. You can also get "take out" and not pay the 10% tip.
There is also a grab and go section just outside the pepper market.

We just love CSR!

 

[Snow Brite]

We have only had the one trip to WDW and we stayed at CSR. I have also been to DLR and stayed at the DLH.

I would have to say I was a bit disappointed in CSR. It was clean, well kept and everything it was made out to be, but nothing more. I was really disappointed in the lack of "disney"ness. Other than the Mickey soap and shampoo in the shower there was nothing there to tell you where you were. After the pixiedust wallpaper that glows in the dark at the DLH I was disappointed. Which is not to say the theme was not well carried out.

I agree that it is a hike to the main area from 9A/9B. When it is hot, you have walked around the parks all day and then stop at the gift shop to pick up your packages, only to have to hike another 15 minutes back to your room, its a LONG way.

The pool was good, but I found it was a bit crowded and had quite a few wild kids in it. My kids loved the slide, I loved the pool bar and the hot tub was good also. The kiddie pool was a lot of fun for my 5 year old DS. But again, after the Neverland Pool it was disappointing to me.

That said, the Housekeepers were very good, the room was well-laid out with a sink and closet type area outside the bathroom, a large table and chairs and plenty of drawer space. The carpet was a bit worn, but paint and finish on furniture was in good repair. The lobby, gift shop and the rest of the main building were lovely. The resturant was a little intimidating the first time, I just told the host we had never been there before and he explained it all perfectly. We really enjoyed the freedom of it after that.

All in all, I guess that I would go back, but would probably try another resort first.

Jennifer

(who has worked in hotel management for 15+ years. Can you tell from this report? LOL!)

 

[Buzz2001]

The food court is not that hard to navigate. My DD has been eating there since she was 5 (10 now) and she loves it. She feels so independent when she can go pick something out and get her card stamped.

The Pepper Market is our favorite place to eat. When you enter the Pepper Market, you will notice it's not your average food court. This is Disney's first new style, "interactive" food court on property. It serves breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. You choose your meals in a Mexican market-style set-up while walking from station to station and talking with the chefs. You are seated by a host/hostess and everyone in your party receives a ticket. The host/hostess will take your drink order. You are then free to stroll around the food areas, choose what you want to eat and receive a stamp on your ticket for each item you get. If you don't see something you like, ask because they will mix and match items for you.

At the end of the meal, you present your ticket(s) to a host/hostess and pay as you leave. 10% gratuity is charged automatically to your bill so be sure not to leave an additional tip on the table. If you feel the 10% was not deserved, speak to the host/hostess when paying and it will be removed. The Pepper Market is open 6:30am - 11pm.

Take out meals are not charged the 10%.
Check out my website below for more info on CSR and the Pepper Market, including pictures.

Have a great time!

 

[safetymom]

I don't feel that I should have to ask to have the 10% taken off my bill. It should be like everywhere else if you receive good service then you tip. When all they do is seat you, bring my 1 drink I don't think I should have to pay. Having a cloth napkin and silverware isn't worth 10% to me. I also shouldn't have to do take out to avoid the charge. After my experience we won't stay there because of the food court. They did have a different selection that other moderates that we stayed at but until they change the additional charge we won't be back.


The resort was nice, now if they could do something about the food court I will stay there again.

 

[Pig Pen]

We are staying there for the 2nd time in May. We are two adults w/o small children and after staying at All-Stars, CSR was a welcome relief. We absolutely adored this resort. We thought about trying another resort, but decided to return to CSR. It's quiet, calming, beautifully themed, and has a deluxe feel.

The Dig Site pool is very large and impressive with lots of lounging space. The waterslide and kids' area looked fun, however there were very few kids there during our Sept visit.

The spa was HOT! The big plus was that it was open late. The spas at the Dolphin closed down at 9:00, but we could still get into the CSR spa at 11:00 pm. It was not crowded either.

We stayed in Casitas 5 and received a free upgrade to a waterview room. Everything in our room was perfect. Housekeeping was perfect, the location was perfect. We were about halfway between the food court and the main pool, very close to the Casitas quiet pool and laundry. The bus-stop was close by and NEVER crowded, and the buses were always on time.

Although the resort is large, we didn't find it a great hardship to get anywhere. One time I hitched a ride with a CM in one of the little carts they drive around. You can do this anytime. Just flag them down and they will take you wherever you want to go within the resort. Unless you are the slowest walker in the world, or get lost, I cannot imagine it would take more than 5 minutes to get anywhere. It's just under a mile to completely circumnavigate the lake.

I just loved this resort. Buzz's website is very informative and you can see even more photos at www.ourlaughingplace.com.

We didn't use the food court at all last trip so I cannot comment on that (we tend to eat sitdown or in the parks).

Have a great trip!

 

[Luv2Roam]

And like with everything else, what pleases some, irritates others (and visa versa).
AT ASMu, DH commented he wished they used real silverware, like CSR. Agree -- I do feel like I am at McD's or a kid's party.
I don't mind paying a little more for food when it's better food. I would rather pay a little more and have good, hot food and use real silverware, than McD's type food with chinzy minature plasticware. At home and in a hurry is one thing. But on vacation.....
One thing I did notice on our last trip at ASMu, we ate breakfast at ASMu a few times. There was no such thing as a *hot* breakfast.
At Pepper Market, food is hot off the grill, plentiful, good variety, and better tasting.
The PM isn't run by Disney. (Hence, the automatic tip.) But the tip really wasn't that big of a deal to us. The servers were helpful and friendly. Sometimes it's nice to have an extra hand and have someone else get you refills.
Many times the length of the line at the various PM stations discouraged us. I usually went with whatever station had the shortest wait. But the lines moved faster than I thought.
DH is looking forward to our return trip to CSR. My favorite stay so far has been as ASMo. But I think I can *suffer* through CSR.
True, no Disney icons or theming. But again, no big deal to us.
The quiet was really nice.

 

[Buzz2001]

AT ASMu, DH commented he wished they used real silverware, like CSR. Agree -- I do feel like I am at McD's or a kid's party.

I agree with Luv2Roam. No comparison. I don't mind the 10% one bit. Well worth it. Our server got us refills, brought us condiments and/or anything we needed.

 

[Pig Pen]

Perfect comparison! The All Stars ARE the "McDonald's" of the Disney resorts!

 

[pigletpooh123]

Thanks for all the info on the pepper market. Thanks also to gumdrop for her link to her trip report. I would like to try this resort noew if only I can talk my mom into it!!!