Coronado Springs is a great resort which felt like home in many ways. Coronado Springs is located in the “Animal Kingdom Resort Area”, however I think it’s closer to Hollywood Studios. It is a moderate level resort with a Latin and Mexican theme. The Three Caballeros above sums up the theming perfectly There are plenty of amenities for guests of all ages and the rooms are surprisingly large and comfortable. There are multiple pools around the property, with some being much better than others. Check out the full review of Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort after the jump.

NOTE: This is a review during a stay for the Flower & Garden Festival in 2014.

The Resort

Coronado Springs is a spread-out moderate level resort. The rooms surround a 22 acre lake which is one of the resort’s best & worst features. The main pool is located near the center of the resort and is easily accessible from most room locations. The resort isn’t truly close to either park so it is much more relaxed and quiet than other resorts on property. The resort has a convention center onsite. Due to this the typical guests seen at Coronado Springs is different than other resorts on Walt Disney World Property. During my stay I noticed more adults than children. The lake is lined with a sandy beach and many adults were going for a morning or evening run along this area. The lake is extremely beautiful, but leads to other issues.

Since the giant lake is smack dab in the middle of the resort you are forced to walk around it to get anywhere. There are pathways which can be used to cut across the lake, but these aren’t conveniently located the majority of the time. We stayed in Building 9 of the Cabanas which is is one of the closer buildings. It was still a quarter mile walk to the main building, which doesn’t sound like much but after a long day at the parks or a hot Florida day this can be a real issue. Since we were so far away we never took advantage of our refillable mugs from the dining plan. For a week’s visit we refiled the mugs maybe three times.

Transportation

Since Coronado Springs isn’t near any of the parks you’ll be relying on Disney’s bus service or your own vehicle. It’s definitely not walking distance to any park. The resort does have it’s own bus line, so you won’t have to worry about busses filling up at other resorts before they get to you. Having said that, the busses can fill up depending on which stop you choose to use. The main building spot is the first on the list and most popular, so it’s not uncommon for the Magic Kingdom bus to be filled before heading to any other stop.

Since Coronado Springs only has bus transportation you should factor in travel & traffic time when planning your arrival at the parks. During our stay it wasn’t uncommon for a trip to the closest parks, Animal Kingdom & Hollywood Studios to take 20 minutes or more. Magic Kingdom was the longest trip for us and on a crowded bus could be an issue. I would love to see an additional form of transportation at Coronado Springs. It would be awesome to take a boat to a park, and return to the lake in the middle of Coronado Springs.

Rooms

The rooms at Coronado Springs are great. They are larger than most moderate rooms at Disney World thanks to the convention center. The majority, if not all, of the rooms have outside entrances. I thought this would be an issue, but it didn’t’ bother us one bit. The rooms felt very comfortable and quiet. A family with children was staying directly next door to us and we didn’t hear them once. The beds were comfortable and plush. We stayed in a standard view room and we were pleased with our view of the courtyard. The room included a mini fridge which was very welcome in the Florida heat.

My only complaint with the room would be the bathroom. The shower looked dated and could do with refreshing. Coronado Springs is one of the few moderate resorts to have a sliding wooden door between the room and the sink area of the bathroom. This is great to use a changing area if there’s others in the room. Other moderates have a curtain instead of the door. I still would have liked to see a more split style bathroom with an additional sink. Some of the deluxe and deluxe villas offer these types of bathrooms.

Amenities

Since the resort has its own convention center there are tons of amenities onsite. The pool is the biggest draw. The Mayan pyramid is really detailed and is a popular picture site for guests. This is expected for a Disney hotel, you can’t just have a boring old pool! This pool can get crowded, and it’s usually full of children. So, if you’re just a group of adults and just want to relax in a pool without the need for theming or a snack bar then your best bet would be one of the three smaller pools sprinkled throughout the resort. During our stay we noticed these pools were empty most of the day and when they were in use it was only by a few adult couples.

Since the resort houses a convention center there are plenty of dining options. There is even a bar, which served really good drinks! The main dining option is the Pepper Market. This is a quick service “buffet” style restaurant. I say buffet in quotes because even though you can go and choose from many different food stations and options you’ll be paying for each item at the end of your trip. The dining plan does cover this restaurant, but it is really specific as to how many items you can choose. It might be wise to double check with a cast member before loading up on the Mickey waffles. The food we had here was good, but not as good as the true buffet at 1900 Park Fare in the Grand Floridian.

Verdict

If you’re looking for a quiet, well appointed moderate resort that doesn’t feel like you’re sleeping in the parks then this is a great choice for you. Just keep in mind the spread out layout and bus transportation can be an issue for some. We’ll definitely be returning to Disney’s Coronado Springs resort in the future!