coronado springs vs riverside?

[disneydad1]

food courts seem comparable

maybe a slight edge to pool at Coronado springs

need 2 rooms for party of 7 and will try for a preferred room

we typically drive to parks for flexibility rather than Disney busses.

which resort do you recommend?

 

[lady_hlh]

The food court is way better at Riverside but the pool at CSR is really wonderful if your family likes to spend down time at the pool. My hubby is a huge pool person and he disliked the pools at Riverside. If you want to take the buses at all, we had terrible experiences with the buses at POR. Most of the time on the way back from the parks we got on the POFQ bus to avoid the massive lines and walked between resorts. I'm not big pool person and if I had a car I would probably pick POR because I loved the southern theme but the pool people in my family would probably pick CSR instead.

 

[Scott MC]

POR feels more luxurious, and for us, is more relaxing and pretty to look at. Also, the food court and restaurant are far superior. We also never had to wait longer than about 3 min for a bus at POR. Now CSR on the other hand.....

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Meanwhile, I would pick CSR every time. I have no great positive feeling for "the old South."

 

[saskdw]

CSR is referred to by many as the the Deluxe-lite or Deluxe of the Mods. It has far more amenities than POR and a much more upscale feel to it. I much prefer the Mexican/tropical theme/vibe on my vacation versus the old south theme that matches 100's of lake's with in a couple hours of where I live.

Things it has that POR doesn't:

Fitness center, salon, spa, sauna, lap pool, night club with dance floor, 2 outdoor lounges (one by the lagoon and one by the pool), Business Class rooms, far larger and nicer pool, largest hot tub at WDW, room service, 2 table service restaurants (Maya Grill is a hidden gem at WDW and far better than anything at POR), Pepper Market is much better than the quick service at POR and CSR is generally regarded as having the best bus service at WDW.

IMO, CSR offers the most for your dollar of any WDW resort.

 

[Hoosier Mom]

Coronado is our favorite.....I felt there were less kids here and therefore the buses felt a bit more peaceful......plus to us, the buses didn't seem as full since some were attending meetings in the convention center. I thought the food offered at Pepper Market had more to offer than Riverside. So for us, food and buses seemed better at Coronado. But for sleeping arrangements, we liked Riverside "preferred" for the pull down bed option for our son. But then again, when we at Coronado, they put a rollaway in our room for him.

This next trip we wanted Coronado again, but it's booked full....so it's back to Riverside for us.

Oh, one more nice thing about Riverside was the Yeehaw Bob show. I hope it's still there. He had a nice singalong show.

 

[Disneymama5816]

I would choose CSR. The rooms remind me of a smaller Contemporary resort. The pool is really nice. I think CSR is prettier at night as well. The fountains/lighting are just beautiful

 

[rosiebean]

(Maya Grill is a hidden gem at WDW and far better than anything at POR), Pepper Market is much better than the quick service at POR

I respectfully disagree. Boatwright's at POR is probably my favorite non-signature resort restaurant. I also enjoyed POR's quick service more than the one at CSR (I found more variety at POR). I personally would never call Maya Grill 'far better' than most restaurants at WDW's resorts. (for me, it's lower middle tier)..it's really a matter of personal tastes.

 

[buzznina]

We really love all Mod resorts and would not hesitate to stay at any of them. Our favorite Mod is POFQ and then we have POR slightly over CSR. I know it was mention that CSR has more amenities, but for our family it has a lot less. We do not use the spa and get enough exercise at the parks so do not use the gym. We rather have more family amenities like surrey bike rentals, carriage rides and family entertainment with Yee Haa Bob -vs- an adult night club. We like POR FC better, we really like CSR pool slide over POR's but we like the pool design better at POR. I give CSR a slight edge over POR on buses, but transportation is pure luck and can be great or bad at every resort.

 

[ChasingLeslie]

I've stayed at both, but am returning to CSR for our upcoming trip. I'd give the edge to POR's food court, but CSR's Dig Site (entire pool area) is far superior. You're not relying on the buses...would you use the POR boat to DSp?

They are both lovely resorts; it's hard to go wrong.

 

[GreatLakes]

I like both resorts but my wife and I chose CSR for three reasons.

1. We like the themeing better.
2. We wanted a fitness club.
3. CSR has the only lap marked pool and my wife was in the middle of triathlon training.

 

[Terpsichore]

I agree with this completely. We've stayed at both resorts and each have their charms. We prefer the food court at POR, but found the pool and bus service better at CSR. Both resorts are beautiful, with CSR being especially lovely at night. We could see fireworks when we were at CSR. (We stayed in the Cabanas.)

 

[Gradeadork]

We will always choose CSR over POR. That being said, our favorite moderate is CBR...
We enjoy the food court and pool much more at CSR. We always request a room close to food court though. I don;t mind the walk to the pool, but I have to be able to grab my coffee quickly in the morning. Transportation seems to move faster at CSR. POR is too large and the buses stop at POFQ as well so they take forever. Because CSR has convention space, there seems to be less families, less crowding, at pool.

 

[JennaDeeDooDah]

Josh over at easywdw actually did a great article where he compared all of the moderates and ranks them each according to size of rooms, grounds, pools, etc. You might be interested in the thread as a way to compare POR and CSR. That way, you can give extra weight to the categories that matter to you and your family and make a good decision based on your personal preferences.

http://www.easywdw.com/easy/disneybest/best-disney-world-moderate-resort-hotel/

 

[MouseMama11]

We honestly had a horrible experience at CSR and will never stay there again. I didn't like the fact there was a convention center at the resort, the people at concierge and reception were not pleasant, especially at check in... the main pool was beautiful but other than that we were not huge fans. But like everything Disney, everyone has different experiences and different preferences.

I've always loved POR and we will be staying there again in August!! We just like the theming and we love the food court! It's our favorite quick service restaurant! Just the overall atmosphere keeps us coming back.

 

[Shellyb84]

We stayed at CSR for a long weekend in May. We loved it and it would be our first choice for a moderate. It is a lovely resort and the atmosphere is very relaxing! We had good experiences with the buses. The pool is very nice. The rooms were nice and clean - the tile in the bathroom could use updating but other than that, no complaints!

 

[disneydad1]

thank you all for your thoughts - still conflicted - like the food ct at POR and tend to make good use of it but would also like to try something new....decisions, decisions....

 

[Olaf63]

I've stayed at both and would choose CSR over POR. If the budget allows, I would also choose business class with access to the lounge. Its a great location with added perks. Buses are definitlye better at CSR. Its central locale allows for quick rides to all the parks

 

[Jonas_Swe]

food courts seem comparable

maybe a slight edge to pool at Coronado springs

need 2 rooms for party of 7 and will try for a preferred room

we typically drive to parks for flexibility rather than Disney busses.

which resort do you recommend?

Hi!

I'll join the choir here and vote for Coronado Springs Resort, all the way!

The theme is awesome, and carried out really well throughout the resort.

As for rooms you can choose to stay close to the main building in a Casita (preferred rooms, family rooms and junior suites) or in a Cabana somewhere along Lake Dorado. Since the resort spreads out around the lake there are several tram stops for the in-resort tram service for those who want a ride from the Main Building to their Cabana section.

I agree to what have been said regarding CSR to be the more Deluxe of the Moderate resorts. And especially the food offerings with QS and The Maya Grill which is one of my personal favorites on all WDW property.

 

[wdwrule]

gree to what have been said regarding CSR to be the more Deluxe of the Moderate resorts. And especially the food offerings with QS and The Maya Grill which is one

We went to the Maya Grill for the first time a few weeks ago and it was very good! In our experience, service was above and beyond, the food was excellent (we love Mexican food), and the atmosphere was wonderful. There was a live performer playing mariachi music where I swear the lights on the posts flickered in time with his music. Maybe I just got all caught up in it! But anyways it was a very good experience with great food for us, including the kids.