Yo Ho! Yo Ho! A Pirate’s Stay For Me at Disney’s Caribbean Beach!
How many times have you watched “Pirates of the Caribbean” or any pirate movie and wonder what it would be like to live like a pirate? Well, I know I have and Disney gives you a little taste of it in a Pirate Room at Walt Disney World’s Caribbean Beach Resort! Last month, I took the opportunity to stay in a pirate room and my inner child (and let’s be honest my adult self too) was excited to escape into the pirate world for my trip!
In case you are not aware, Caribbean Beach Resort is going through some major renovations in the Old Port Royale area which is the main dining area and where the feature pool is. I didn’t spend as much time there as I normally do when I’m staying at a Disney resort because of the renovations. They are changing the main dining area which I am very excited about and I cannot wait to see once everything is complete! In the meantime, you can still have a great meal in Centertown which currently is the temporary dining hall. Centertown has a buffet for breakfast and dinner and I tried their wonderful breakfast buffet. There was a large selection of options and lots of seating in the temporary dining hall which is basically a huge tent (don’t worry there’s A/C!). You can even check out the artist renderings of what everything will look like once the renovation is done. Outside of the dining hall was a food truck/bar which is called the Centertown Food Truck. There’s also another temporary merch cart to grab your Caribbean Beach souvenirs and other items like sunscreen, towels, pins, etc. As I mentioned before, I didn’t spend as much time in the area because of the renovations but it’s still worth exploring if you want to grab a good meal or hang out and the main pool, the Fuentes del Morro Pool which is themed after an old colonial Spanish fortress!
I always do a bit of research whenever I stay in a Disney resort. I want to have a basic idea of where I’m staying, what the room looks like, etc. So, when I did my research for this trip I got mixed reviews about staying in a pirate room. One major complaint that I read was the location of the pirate rooms. They are furthest back on the property in the Trinidad South section. This section is the furthest away from Old Port Royale. You can walk to Old Port Royale and would take you about 15 mins or take a bus that takes you to the different sections of the resort. I had a car, so I also was able to utilize that, but I didn’t find the location an issue. I could see not knowing where the pirate rooms are before arriving could make it any issues but if you’re reading this then you’re already ahead of the game! If Old Port Royale was the only section to get dining or go to the pool I could see the negative in staying in a pirate room but that is not the case. There are leisure or quiet pools throughout the resort and one right in the Trinidad South section. There is also a newly opened quick service dining option right by the Trinidad South leisure pool called Spyglass Grill and I loved the dining selection there! Spyglass Grill just opened this past March, so it is still new, but it was a much needed and perfect addition to Caribbean Beach Resort. They put a Caribbean twist on their dining selections and they did it so well. A perfect example is something as simple as the potatoes I had with my scrambled eggs for breakfast. They were your typical potatoes but mixed with yuca and cooked together; it was so good! Then there’s also a Cuban Sandwich (with a breakfast option which includes an egg on it), Tacos (with plantain and yucca chips!), and chili-lime shrimp salad on their menu just to list a few of their options. Personally, I’ve added Spyglass Grill to my list of great dining option out of the parks and a good place for breakfast!
So now that the major complaint that I’ve heard about pirate rooms is taken care of and in my opinion not a good complaint, let’s talk about the rooms! Let me first say that booking a pirate room is an upcharge from a standard room at Caribbean Beach. It is probably about $50 more a night and you can choose between a standard or water view when you book a pirate room and a water view is going to be more than the standard view of course. I booked a water view because I wanted to be able to see the water from my room. This specific trip was more a relaxing trip for me. I was going to spend more time relaxing than hitting the parks full force, so the relaxing view was worth it to me. I also requested a corner room which I did receive. A little-known fact about some of the moderate resorts is if you get a corner room in some buildings, you get 2 windows instead of one. This was another reason why I was glad I got a water view. I was able to overlook the water and I was steps away from a small beach where I relaxed in the hammock one afternoon!
Now back to the room itself! The minute you walk into these rooms you are transported into the world of pirates. The room is styled in a Spanish colonial feel with dark warm woods, reds, dark green, and brown shades throughout. The pirate rooms consist of 2 Double Beds (standard rooms at Caribbean Beach now have 2 Queen Beds) but these beds are pirate ships! Yes, you sleep in a pirate ship when you book these rooms complete with a mast on the wall above the beds with 2 overhead lights that look like lanterns on a ship. The mattresses on the beds were different than other mattresses I’ve slept on in Disney resorts, it almost seemed like they were a type of foam mattress. I can’t confirm that, but it is how it felt to me and was not as comfortable to me as the other beds on property. The nightstand between the beds is a barrel with a cutout to store items and luckily it has outlets and USB ports (we are modern pirates after all!). The table has a compass displayed on top with the 2 coordinating chairs styled in a Spanish colonial style as well as the curtains on the windows. Then there is the dresser below the TV which doesn’t even look like a dresser it looks like 4 crates stacked oddly together. There’s even an East India Trading logo stamped on the side of the crates! Beside the dresser is another barrel which has your coffee maker, ice bucket, and drink supplies on top. But this barrel houses your mini fridge which has been upgraded to the mini fridge with the see-through doors which I think are great, so you don’t forget any drinks when you leave. Next to the fridge is a crate which opens to house the extra blankets that are usually stored in hotel rooms. I found this a perfect perch for my luggage during my trip! The carpet was a favorite feature of mine because it had the round map from the third Pirates film, “Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End.”
Now the moderate rooms like the value resorts have the sink area of the bathroom open to the rest of the room but you do have a curtain with the “Pirates of the Caribbean” skull and sword logo on it (which is hanging from a sword curtain rod) to draw close for any needed privacy. There is hanging space and a long shelf in the sink/vanity area which is standard in the moderate resorts. The sink/vanity area is similar to some deluxe resorts with 2 sinks and shelving underneath to store your bathroom items. The mirror and lighting are decorated in the Spanish colonial style of the rest of the room and in each corner on the mirror frame you will find a coin like the one featured in the first Pirates film, “Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl.” The shower area’s wall looks it’s brick and the shower curtain features all the ships from the “Pirates of the Caribbean” films. The shower area also has the large bottles of shampoo, conditioner, and shower gel attached to the wall which Disney is switching to in order to be more green and of course cost conscious. I personally have mixed feelings about this because I love any chance to be more environmentally friendly, but I also love taking home my left-over shampoo and conditioner. But it’s ok at least I got to enjoy the amazing bath products while I there.
I loved staying in the pirate rooms and escaping into a pirate world during this trip. I think it’s a great option for anyone that loves pirates or has someone in their party that loves pirates. I am curious to see what happens to these rooms during the next renovation though. With what I’ve seen in newly renovated rooms like at Pop Century and Yacht Club, they are creating more area for storage which will be great in the bathroom. I am a big fan of the extra storage and organization in the newly renovated rooms. One thing I don’t see them being able to do is the storage under the bed because then they’d have to get rid of the pirate ships which are a major draw in the pirate rooms. But we all know that Disney always comes up with a solution. In the meantime, I’m happy with my stay in the pirate rooms and love that I can now say I slept in a pirate ship!
If you’d like to plan a trip and stay at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort, be sure to contact the official travel agent of The Disney Nerds Podcast, Once Upon a Time Travel.
