Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort Review: Why This Disney World Resort Is Worth A Closer Look
There is something about Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort that you don’t fully appreciate until you spend a few days there. Looking at photos gives you the colorful buildings, palm trees and Caribbean theme, but it doesn’t really show you what it’s like to come back after a long Disney World day, grab something to eat and realize you’re perfectly happy staying right where you are for the rest of the night.
That was one of the things I enjoyed most about our stay. Some of the best features aren’t necessarily the ones that jump out when you’re comparing Disney World resorts online. It’s the amount of outdoor space, the quiet leisure pools tucked into the villages, walking along Barefoot Bay in the evening and having places where you can sit without feeling like you’re in the middle of another crowd. Disney Resorts are a favorite of so many, and now that I have stayed on one, I can understand why.
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I’ve covered our room, Old Port Royale and some of the more practical parts of staying here in other posts, so I don’t want this review to be another rundown of the same information. This is about the resort as a whole and why I found myself enjoying Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort for reasons I didn’t necessarily expect before we stayed here.
I am no way an expert in Disney, but I do know that the next time we go, we will definitely be staying on a Disney Resort hotel property again. Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort has so much to offer that I will probably stay here again. I know that you have a lot of questions about the resort, so let me answer a few of them first before I get into the meat of this review.
What Else Should You Know Before Staying At Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort?
There are always a few questions that don’t quite fit into a general resort review but are still helpful when you’re deciding where to stay at Disney World. From parking and elevators to room amenities and resort activities, these are some additional things worth knowing before checking into Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort.
No. The guest room buildings at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort are two stories tall and do not have elevators. If stairs would be difficult for anyone in your travel party, requesting a ground-floor room is important. A request isn’t guaranteed, but this is something I would note on the reservation rather than waiting until arrival to mention it.
You can sometimes catch portions of the nighttime fireworks from areas around Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort, but this isn’t a resort I would choose specifically for a fireworks view. Buildings, trees and distance can affect what you see, and the experience isn’t comparable to watching the full nighttime show from inside the park. Think of any fireworks you happen to see from the resort as a fun little bonus rather than part of your evening entertainment plans.
Yes. Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort has self-service laundry facilities available in the resort villages, which can be especially useful during a longer Disney World vacation. Having laundry available also makes it easier to pack a little lighter or deal with those inevitable Florida days when heat, humidity or an afternoon rainstorm leave you wanting a fresh change of clothes.
Yes. Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort typically offers recreational activities beyond swimming, although the schedule and specific offerings can change. Depending on when you visit, you may find activities such as Movies Under the Stars, campfire activities and other scheduled resort recreation. Check the current recreation schedule when you arrive because it’s an easy way to add something fun to a resort evening without heading back into the parks.
Yes. Guests can have groceries delivered to Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort from outside delivery services, which can be helpful if you want bottled water, breakfast items, snacks or other basics in your room. Disney has procedures for accepting grocery deliveries, and policies involving storage, alcohol and unattended deliveries can change, so I recommend checking Disney’s current guidelines before placing your order.
Once you get beyond the big reasons people initially consider Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort, it’s details like these that can make planning the actual stay easier. Knowing what to expect before you arrive means you can spend less time figuring things out once you’re there and more time enjoying the resort and the rest of your Disney World vacation.
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What It Is Really Like Staying At Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort
One of the biggest compliments I can give Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort is that I enjoyed being there. Disney World trips can very easily become a schedule from the minute you wake up until you finally get back to your room, but Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort gives you somewhere to return to where the pace feels different. The buildings are spread among several villages around Barefoot Bay, with palm trees, tropical landscaping, colorful buildings and plenty of open space between them. Once you move away from Old Port Royale and into the villages, things can get surprisingly quiet.
I started appreciating that separation more as our trip went along. We could spend the day surrounded by thousands of people and then come back to a resort where it didn’t feel like those thousands of people had followed us home. At the same time, we weren’t returning to somewhere that felt empty or like everything shut down after the parks closed. Old Port Royale still had activity, we could get something to eat or have a drink, and then head back toward the quieter parts of the resort when we were ready.
That’s the balance I think Caribbean Beach gets right. There is enough going on that you can enjoy spending time at the resort, but you can also get away from the activity without ever leaving the property.
Barefoot Bay And Caribbean Cay Give The Resort More Than Just Pretty Scenery
Barefoot Bay does much more for Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort than provide a nice view. Because the resort wraps around the 45-acre lake, so much of your time outside the room is spent near the water. Instead of constantly walking through hotel corridors, you’re outside among palm trees, landscaping and colorful buildings. Caribbean Cay sits in the middle of it all, connected by the footbridge, and is worth doing more than simply walking through on the way to somewhere else. There are paths, tropical landscaping and places to sit, and it gives the center of the resort another little pocket where you can slow down.
The whole area becomes especially pretty later in the day. As the sun goes down and the lights come on around Barefoot Bay, the resort starts to feel different. You can see the buildings across the water and watch the Skyliner gondolas moving overhead while the paths become noticeably quieter. We didn’t always need another plan after dinner. Sometimes walking around the resort or finding somewhere to sit for a while was enough.
That may not sound as exciting as a new attraction or a hard-to-get dining reservation, but it’s one of the things I remember about staying here. Disney World already gives you plenty to do. I like having a resort that also gives you places where you don’t have to do anything.
The Size Of Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort Can Actually Work In Its Favor
Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort is large, and that fact tends to dominate conversations about the property. What doesn’t get mentioned nearly as often is what you gain from all that space. The resort has room for separate villages, multiple pools, sandy areas along the lake, walking paths and outdoor spaces where you aren’t constantly surrounded by other guests. Old Port Royale can be busy while another part of the resort feels completely different.
I liked being able to leave the activity behind without actually leaving the resort. After a packed day at Disney World, walking back into another crowded environment isn’t always what I want. Caribbean Beach has areas where you may only pass a few people, and over the course of the trip you start finding the places you like best. Maybe it’s a particular spot near Barefoot Bay, the leisure pool closest to your room or somewhere you like sitting in the evening.
If everything at Caribbean Beach were compressed into a much smaller footprint, some things would certainly be more convenient, but I think the resort would lose part of its personality. The space is what allows different areas to have different energy, and that’s something I ended up appreciating rather than simply seeing the size as a drawback.
The Leisure Pools Are One Of The Most Underrated Perks
Fuentes del Morro Pool gets most of the attention because it’s the feature pool at Old Port Royale, but I think the leisure pools are one of the more underrated benefits of staying at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort. The villages have their own leisure pools, so you don’t have to head to the main pool every time you want to spend an hour or two by the water. Sometimes I want the music, activity and energy of a Disney feature pool. Other times, especially after a few park days, I want a chair and a quieter afternoon.
Having both options makes it much easier to actually use the resort during your vacation. Going to the pool doesn’t have to become an event that takes up half the day. You can spend a little time there, head back to the room, get ready and continue with whatever you’re doing later. On a longer trip, I could very easily build a slower day around the resort, sleep in, spend some time at the pool, wander around Caribbean Cay, have a late lunch or drink at Old Port Royale and decide later whether I even felt like going into a park.
Those are the kinds of days that used to feel like I was giving up Disney time. Now I look at them completely differently. If I’m paying to stay at a Disney World resort, I actually want to enjoy the resort instead of only seeing it early in the morning and late at night.
Old Port Royale Gives Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort A Fun Center
I’ve gone much deeper into Old Port Royale separately, but you can’t really talk about the overall feel of Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort without it. This is where the resort gets lively, with Fuentes del Morro Pool, Centertown Market, Banana Cabana, Sebastian’s Bistro and the main shopping area all centered here. You can come over for breakfast, grab something casual, have a drink outside or make dinner at Sebastian’s Bistro your evening plan.
What I like most is that Old Port Royale doesn’t take over the entire personality of the resort. It gives Caribbean Beach a center without making every part of the property feel busy. We could spend time there when we wanted a little activity and then head back toward our village when we were ready for something quieter. That works especially well on a resort afternoon because you aren’t limited to sitting in your room or spending hours at the pool.
It also makes those nights when you don’t want to return to a park much easier. There doesn’t always have to be another reservation or another destination. Grab some food, have a drink, walk around Barefoot Bay and enjoy the resort you paid to stay at. I found myself appreciating those evenings more than I expected.
Staying At Caribbean Beach Opens Up More Dining Than You Might Expect
The dining at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort is better when you stop thinking about the resort as an isolated property. Centertown Market, Banana Cabana and Sebastian’s Bistro give you several choices right at Caribbean Beach, but Disney’s Riviera Resort being so close adds another group of restaurants and places to grab something without turning dinner into a trek across Disney World.
I really like having that flexibility. On a slower morning, we could head toward Riviera for coffee or something to eat and enjoy another resort for a while. In the evening, dinner could be the plan instead of something squeezed between attractions. And because you’re in this entire area of Disney World, you can expand beyond Riviera when you feel like venturing farther toward the EPCOT resort area.
That’s a benefit I appreciate more now than I would have years ago. Not every Disney World meal needs to happen inside a theme park, and not every evening needs to end with fireworks. Sometimes trying another restaurant, walking around a different resort and heading back to Caribbean Beach makes for a pretty great night.
Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort Has Plenty Of Room To Do Absolutely Nothing
This might be one of my favorite things about Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort, and it isn’t something that usually makes it onto a resort comparison chart. There are so many places where you can simply hang out without feeling like you need a reason to be there. Grab a coffee and find a table outside, sit near Barefoot Bay for a while, bring something back from Centertown Market or find a bench and watch the resort go by. After spending hours in the parks where we’re always thinking about what we’re doing next, I really like having a resort where doing absolutely nothing feels like a perfectly good plan. From the moment of arrival to the first ride on the Skyliner, this resort is a complete package.
I also think this is one of the benefits of Caribbean Beach being so spread out. There isn’t one central area where everyone has to gather when they’re outside their room. Old Port Royale can be busy while another part of the resort is completely quiet. There are sandy areas along Barefoot Bay, tables tucked around the resort and plenty of spots where you can sit down without feeling like you’re taking up space that belongs to someone eating a meal or waiting for something. Sometimes we just wanted to be outside and enjoy where we were staying, and Caribbean Beach makes that really easy.
The resort gets even better for this in the evening. The bright colors that stand out during the day look completely different once the lights come on around Barefoot Bay, and I love seeing the Skyliner gondolas floating overhead while we’re walking around. Some nights we had already spent the entire day in a park and had no interest in finding one more thing to squeeze in before bed. Sitting outside with a drink or wandering around the resort for a while was exactly how I wanted to end the day.
That’s something I really want my friends to understand when I tell them why I like this resort. Disney World already gives us more things to do than we could possibly fit into one vacation. I don’t need my resort to keep me entertained every second too. I want somewhere that still feels fun and unmistakably Disney, but also gives me permission to slow down for a few hours. Caribbean Beach does that so well, and it’s one of those things you may not realize you’re going to love until you’re actually there. Building in a resort day should be something to do if your budget allows.
Is Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort Worth Staying At?
After staying here, I understand why Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort has so many people who keep coming back. You can read all about the obvious reasons to book it before your trip, but those aren’t necessarily the things you’ll be talking about when you get home. For me, it was how much I enjoyed the resort when we weren’t trying to get anywhere. I liked coming back after a park day and still wanting to spend time outside instead of heading straight to our room.
It’s also all the little choices you have once you’re there. We could go to the feature pool or choose a quieter leisure pool. We could spend time around Old Port Royale or head somewhere with hardly anyone around. We could walk through Caribbean Cay, sit near Barefoot Bay, head over toward Disney’s Riviera Resort or decide we weren’t going anywhere at all. None of those things sounds huge on its own, but having those options made the resort feel like a part of our Disney World vacation instead of simply where our room happened to be.
And that’s really where Caribbean Beach won me over. I love the parks, and you will never have to talk me into another Disney World day, but I’ve reached the point where I also want to love my resort. I want to come back in the afternoon and be happy that we’re taking a break. I want to have nights when we’re done with the parks and don’t immediately start looking for somewhere else to go. Caribbean Beach gave me that, and I think that’s why I enjoyed the resort more as our stay went along.
Would I stay at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort again? Absolutely. Not because I can make a checklist of amenities and prove that it’s the perfect Disney World resort, because there really isn’t one resort that’s perfect for everyone. I’d go back because we had fun there, I liked the way the resort felt, and there were parts of it I genuinely looked forward to coming back to each day. If one of my friends asked me whether Caribbean Beach should be on their list, I wouldn’t have to think very long about my answer. Yes, give this resort a chance. There is a lot more to love about it than you might expect.
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