Caribbean Beach Stay Report: Dining & Transportation
Following Part 1 of our Caribbean Beach Resort Stay Report, we continue here with a look at the hotel’s restaurants and bus transportation. We’ll also share rope drop lines and wait times for the Skyliner to Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and our race against the clock to arrive in time for a spot in the virtual queue of Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance.
By way of quick recap, we booked a weekend at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort because that’s when occupancy is the highest and crowds at the hotel are likely to be highest. In essence, this is a ‘worst case scenario’ look at CBR, which should prepare you for what to expect (and how to avoid most problem points) if you’re staying here in the next few months.
Digging right into things, dining is one of the biggest woes at Walt Disney World right now. Not all restaurants are open, and the operational ones are all seating guests at a significantly reduced capacity. In the parks, this is mostly a non-issue. Lower crowds coupled with shorter hours results in much less demand for table service restaurants. Most are not even hitting their reduced numbers.
At Walt Disney World’s resorts, we’ve noticed it’s a different story–especially at dinner. Also due to the shorter park hours, more guests are waiting to eat dinner until arriving back at their resorts. Once at the hotels, the same issues also exist with reduced capacity and fewer restaurants being open.
Caribbean Beach Resort has two restaurants that currently are not operating–Sebastian’s Bistro and Spyglass Grill. The latter makes complete sense, as this entire area of the resort is not yet open. However, the status of Sebastian’s Bistro is a bit more puzzling and, frankly, irritating. There’s more dinnertime demand at Caribbean Beach than normal this time of year, and the lack of options pushes guests to Disney Springs or off-site.
Consequently, Banana Cabana has seen a surge in popularity. This lounge has offset the increased spacing between tables by expanding its seating area. Even after doing that, it’s often totally full.
There’s also a to-go line for Banana Cabana (visible on the far right side of the photo above), which often had 3-6 guests waiting in line.
Inside, Centertown Market is requiring Mobile Order, and you’ll regularly find guests congregating here waiting for their food. There’s no reason to do this as a notification is sent when orders are ready, but guests linger anyway.
As with most counter service restaurants, the menu at Centertown Market has been dramatically scaled back. This is normally one of our sleeper picks, but not currently.
Instead, we’d recommend walking over to Disney’s Riviera Resort and dining at Primo Piatto.
The menu there has also been significantly reduced, but solid options remain. We like the burger (it’s not the normal Walt Disney World counter service patty), Croque Monsieur, Sausage & Pepperoni Pizza, Tuna Niçoise Salad, Spicy Italian Sandwich, and Grilled Vegetable Skewer (above).
On the plus side, after getting past the initial crowd congregating in the Centertown Market food court’s entrance, we found seating to be abundant at Centertown Market, both inside and outside.
We’d strongly recommend avoiding indoor bars & lounges around Walt Disney World, and choosing restaurants with open air seating if you want to mitigate some risk while visiting the parks. See our Best Outdoor Dining Options at Walt Disney World for recommendations on that front.
We didn’t otherwise find the lobby at Centertown Market to be particularly busy.
There are guests lounging in here to cool off or wait for Disney’s Magical Express, but that’s always the case. Whenever we popped in, it was quieter than normal.
Disney’s Magical Express drop-offs and pick-ups are still occurring with regularity.
Due to pre-arrival info pushing more guests towards online check-in, these drop-offs don’t really result in traffic jams in the lobby. There are more than enough Cast Members to handle new arrivals, and most are bypassing the front desk.
Turning to the topic of transportation, we had heard reports of problems with the buses at Caribbean Beach.
It’s always difficult to assess the credibility of complaints about Walt Disney World bus service. Two parties staying at the same resort for the same dates could have dramatically different experiences simply by virtue of luck. That has always been the case.
This is especially true at Caribbean Beach Resort. Due to its internal loop, buses have been a source of guest frustration at Caribbean Beach for as long as I can remember. Search on any forum and you’ll find angry messages dating to the advent of the internet. Even before that, Walt Disney World fans probably circulated complaints via courier pigeon (or courier parrot, to be more on-theme).
The point is that this is nothing new. The internal coupled with “normal” inconsistencies means some guests can have really bad experiences with transportation at Caribbean Beach. We’re not discounting that–it definitely happens.
It’s also worth noting that bus service has generally improved at Caribbean Beach in the last couple of years by virtue of a reduction in rooms (due to Disney’s Riviera Resort replacing several buildings at Caribbean Beach) and the Skyliner now servicing Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
You might recall that early this year (which feels like a decade ago), Walt Disney World reduced bus service from Skyliner resorts to these parks. This has now been discontinued entirely. It’s worth noting here that bus service to the parks from Skyliner resorts was/is considerably less efficient, but was offered as a courtesy for guests with fears of heights.
We’re less concerned with anecdotal bad luck and more with what’s normal during times of peak demand. Our fear was that due to reduced capacity on the buses, existing issues with Caribbean Beach Resort’s bus service would be exacerbated, with delays, skipped stops, and headaches becoming the norm. That’s not at all what we found.
To the contrary, in making the rounds between 7:30 am and 9:15 am, when demand should be heaviest to Animal Kingdom and Magic Kingdom, we observed no shortage of buses bound for these two parks. On separate occasions, one partially-full Magic Kingdom bus departed because another Magic Kingdom bus was arriving behind it.
It was a similar story throughout the day with the internal buses, which take guests to Old Port Royale/Centertown.
If you don’t want to walk, this is certainly an option, but even with prompt bus service you will often beat these buses in a foot race.
Two things we can’t speak to are bus frequency later in the day, and bus lines leaving the parks at closing. As for the former, we never saw large crowds congregating at any bus stops throughout the day (but we also didn’t sit around to monitor like we did in the morning). As for the latter, we never took the buses from any of the parks.
It’s also worth noting that the bus wait times both in the My Disney Experience app and on the boards at the bus stops are turned off. We began noticing reliability problems with these late last year, and it appears this is the “solution.” Hopefully it’s only a temporary thing.
We also monitored the morning rush at the main Skyliner station at Caribbean Beach Resort. This hub station offers direct service to Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and connects to Pop Century/Art of Animation, Riviera Resort, and Epcot.
At 7:30 am, no one was here. By 8:30 am, there was a modest line starting to form. The photo above was taken at 9:01 am–the line is totally inside the station.
There are markers on the ground leading over the bridge back to Trinidad that indicate the estimated wait times.
With arriving at Disney’s Hollywood Studios by 10 am being imperative for anyone who wants a shot at Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, this is a potential source of concern.
Closer to the Skyliner station, we see another wait time sign. We also see the operating hours, which help explain said frustration. This has been a problem since last December, and our advice in those pre-closure months was to take an Uber or Lyft from these resorts.
Running the Skyliner even 15 minutes earlier would resolve so many guest headaches.
Above is the 5 minute wait sign (photo shot at 9:03 am). If we were smart, we would’ve lined up then, but we were still finishing up with the bus research. If you’re vacationing at Walt Disney World, you presumably will not be monitoring bus stop wait times, so instead line up for the Skyliner before 9 am.
While this looks crowded, the wait was actually under 5 minutes for the Disney’s Hollywood Studios line. Even operating at reduced capacity with only one party per gondola, the Skyliner is incredibly efficient.
We finally got in line for the Skyliner at 9:25 am, at which point the line was just in front of the 25 minute wait sign.
The reason the line is significantly longer than at 9:01 am is because guests have started to arrive from Pop Century and Riviera Resort (if you’re staying at the Riviera, you’re far better off walking over to this station). Additionally, many guests at Caribbean Beach probably don’t realize how long this will take, and wait to get in line under the erroneous assumption that Skyliner lines will be short.
Our total wait ended up being 17 minutes and 12 seconds. Not bad given the length of the line, but also not great considering the urgency of being inside Disney’s Hollywood Studios by 10 am.
As we’ve stressed repeatedly, Walt Disney World should really drop the requirement of being in the park for attempting to obtain a Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance boarding group. Validate against the Park Pass, rather than entry. There’s literally no good reason for not changing this.
Arriving to Disney’s Hollywood Studios by 10 am is totally doable as a guest of Caribbean Beach Resort–just get in line for the DHS route at like 8:55 am; you’ll be among the first to board and you won’t be “competing” with Pop Century or Riviera Resort guests in line.
Unfortunately, it’s a different story for anyone staying at Pop Century. Even being towards the front of the line at your resort could mean cutting it close with the line at Caribbean Beach’s hub station. (We’ll book a stay at Pop Century to test this as soon as we can find a good deal.)
It’s also worth noting that if you’re using the Skyliner at literally any other time of the day, there’s no wait whatsoever. The problem is exclusively with Disney’s Hollywood Studios at rope drop.
On a tangential note, we’d recommend keeping an eye on the weather forecast. The Skyliner can go down due to lightning, which is a daily occurrence in Florida this time of year. Alternate bus service is offered in that case, but it can be horrendous if you’re trying to get back from BoardWalk to Caribbean Beach or Pop Century.
Back to the topic of our morning commute, we boarded the Skyliner for Disney’s Hollywood Studios at 9:42 am and arrived there shortly before 9:50 am. With the temperature screening, bag check, and the turnstiles still to get through, we’d still be cutting it really close. We’ll pick up there with the dramatic conclusion of this story in Disney’s Hollywood Studios Rope Drop Report: Low Crowds & Luck.
Overall, the issues of dining and transportation at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort are something of a mixed bag. Unlike the pool situation, which we found to be generally better than the complaints suggested, there are real issues with restaurants and Skyliner service at Caribbean Beach. Even more frustrating is the fact that Walt Disney World could easily address both problems.
Even with that said, there are still plenty of silver linings–bus service is surprisingly good, walking to Riviera Resort greatly expands restaurant options, and lining up at the Skyliner station a few minutes before opening solves that. On balance, Caribbean Beach is still a great resort option right now–almost certainly worth the upgrade cost from Pop Century–you just need to know how to work around these issues.
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
YOUR THOUGHTS
Have you stayed at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort since it reopened? What do you think of all the modifications? Have any anecdotes of your own to share with regard to Skyliner, bus service, or dining options? Will you be booking a resort reservation for Walt Disney World this fall, or are these rules/restrictions/policies going to cause you to postpone? Do you agree or disagree with our assessment? Other thoughts or concerns? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
I’ve heard that Disney is not allowing guests to visit other resorts unless they have a dining reservation at that resort. Is that true? If so, I wonder how that works for visiting a lounge or counter service at a resort without a dining or guest reservation.
Disney’s is def discouraging it. You can drive in easily to the resorts with an adr. The guard may or may not verify your reservation but if you walk or take a bus/monorail/skyliner to a resort where you don’t have an adr there’s not anyone enforcing that. We went to beach club and riviera to eat at the quick service and had no issues. We took the skyliner to both.
We drove to Poly a few days ago for lunch (we were staying at Pop). I did my mobile order in advance, just in case they needed “proof” we were eating there. They stopped us at the gate, asked what we were there for, and just asked to see a photo ID. No issues. The night before we had an ADR at Wilderness Lodge. At the gate they asked for our name and ADR time. They found us on the list and let us through (no ID needed). This is a consistent experience over the past few years – nothing new (in my experience) post COVID changes.
As you say, the skyliner hours are illogical. We went last year and the DHS line shot down shortly after the park closed… even though Fantasmic was starting at park close. so if you watched Fantasmic, you couldn’t ride the skyliner. And it’s disappointing to hear that if staying at Pop, you could be in line before the skyliner starts running at 9AM and still have a good chance of not making it to DHS until after 10AM.
on 8/18 Pop Century to Epcot appx 10:30am. No waiting at either station. Could not make the return trip due to lightning. Had to go the Boardwalk for a bus. The bus was waiting for us
We stayed at POP Friday night after the day in EPCOT. We find the location and the rooms perfect for our needs, which are few. The room was very clean and had absolutely no problems. No problems or lines with the Skyliner, either. Arrived at EPCOT via Skyliner for opening and left just before closing with maybe 6 people total waiting ahead of us, which considering some of the long lines we have waited in previously, this was not even a “line”.
WDW is in the dumper!!! You pay so much money for everything and your stay is totally disappointing. Why go their at all this year. You don’t get any service and the food choices are bad. Disney should be doing more that this and are leaving their guest in the lurch. Everyone that is going this year will be absolutely disappointed in every thing at Disney!!!
Just returned from a week long stay at Kidani. The bus service was mostly excellent, with the following exceptions: getting to HS for opening was not something you could count on. Too many others were also waiting for HS and bus capacity was reduced enough that we once almost got left off the only bus after a 45 minute wait–and another time we stopped waiting when it was clearly hopeless, and just called Uber. The second exception was for Disney Springs–which as you pointed out was a weightier concern than usual given the abysmal dining options everywhere else (I wanted to point out that in addition to reduced options, the menus were severerly limited as well). It was over an hour wait for the bus twice for dinner, and nearly as bad a third day for lunch.
When I say excellent the rest of the time though I really do mean excellent. WIth the caveat that we were never aiming for rope drop outside of our HS days, our park buses were not what I would call swift but always reasonable and with sufficient capacity. Coming back to the resort, we literally never once had to wait; there was always a bus waiting for our return trip. This was pure bliss after hours of slogging through the parks on 95F days.
Just returned from a Caribbean Beach week. We go a lot and even with COVID–I was so disappointed with 3 major things–just as you outlined in your great article.
#1 – Food options were terrible! There was no reason they couldn’t offer more. Pizza, burger or turkey sandwich was the totality of options. REALLY? Pretty busy resort with NO OPTIONS. We ventured to POP one afternoon looking for more options and they had at least double the options of Caribbean Beach–so a value resort has better food options than a moderate. POP wasn’t good food–especially presentation. My kid got spaghetti with meatballs served in a cardboard box. So not cool. I got the pot roast—with mashed potatoes and gravy dumped in a cardboard box. We went to the boardwalk one evening and the only option was Italian (which was good) and their quick pick pizza. REALLY? So disappointed. Had to Lyft to get food off property. NOT the Disney experience.
#2 – Five Day stay – they swapped out our towels on one day—they didn’t once make our beds or swap our sheets. Very lame! Didn’t complain- was too tired and too busy.
#3 – every bus we took had to wait for the next bus due to limited seating. EVERY SINGLE TIME. Every bus was 20 min wait AFTER we had to wait for the first bus that didn’t have room for us. I’m sure it was just our bad luck, but very annoying.
I feel your pain. Also did a 5 night/6 day stay. Wouldn’t stay at CBR again- EVER. I complained about lack of any housekeeping and just an fyi because of covid housekeeping doesn’t make beds. They’re only taking out trash and towels.
We just returned from a short stay at Pop. We found the mobile ordering options extremely limited, especially the children’s menu. At breakfast, only the Mickey waffles were an option. We took the Skyliner over to Caribbean Beach for lunch. We then walked over to the Riviera and ended up stranded due to lightening shutting down the Skyliner. It was a long walk up and down hill to the bus stop (we were told it was “just around the corner”). Fortunately a Skyliner Resort Bus arrived quickly to take us back to Pop. Unfortunately, with the new dividers between the seating zones, the driver was unable to see us and forgot we were on the bus! After making ourselves known, he quickly apologized and took us back to Pop.
Overall, I felt reasonable accommodations were made to keep things clean and safe, but it felt like a shell of what the Disney resort experience usually is. We’ll be back – once things are more normal.
” Even before that, Walt Disney World fans probably circulated complaints via courier pigeon (or courier parrot, to be more on-theme).”
Can’t believe you have dissed our beloved carrier pigeons, Tom! Here in the rural area we live in this is still our primary method of getting news from the outside world. By the way, do you know if Lindbergh made it or not? Just kidding, informative and timely update. Great photos too. Do you ever shoot any black and white…, they can sometimes be quite impressive as well.
We had some similar issues with the dual bus loops at Treehouse Villas (Saratoga Springs) a few years back. Ended up driving mostly on that trip.
So are the boats not running at all now? We’re staying at the Swan for the first time in 19 days and obviously no Skyliner there, and walking seems to be best bet to get to Studios or Epcot. You can usually walk between those parks faster than the boats anyway!
Hi Tom and Sarah,
Thanks for all of the reporting and honest reviews you are providing. We have a trip planned in October for 7 nights at POP but with shorter park hours, we were thinking of changing to 5 nights and renting DVC points to take advantage of my resort time with upgraded pools. This report got me thinking. We are all for wearing the masks in the parks and to move about the resort and DS as well as from our pool chairs to the pool bar or restroom. That said, laying out for my wife with a mask or for the kids going to and from our chairs and taking a break out of the pool in our chairs would be a deal breaker if we have to wear them while at our chairs which are socially distanced already. Curious if you could elaborate on this part of the pool experience.
Thanks
We just wrapped up a stay at Caribbean beach and you do not have to wear your mask while in the pool or at your pool chair. You will need your masks heading to:from your room and the pool. Also if you decide to get anything from the pool bar, you’ll want your mask handy to wear when you walk over to the bar.
At Pop this past weekend, did not need to wear a mask at the chairs inside the pool area. Cast members were constantly cleaning tables and the lounge chairs. Some engaged in friendly chatter and never asks us to put the mask on while we were there. Once leaving the pool area though, masks need to be on (ie going to the restroom). In our experience, mask compliance was pretty consistent.
Thanks for the feedback. This is exactly what I hoped it was like.
My main issue with the skyliner, especially from pop, is that it is entirely unreliable with the weather right now. The only day I needed/wanted to use it, the line from Pop to CBR was down… the ENTIRE day. So just a word of warning that you can’t expect that the skyliner will always be available.
100% agree. We were able to use the skyliner from CBR to the parks only but by mid to late day, skyliner goes down and it’s a disaster waiting for a bus at the parks. Poor planning on Disney’s part knowing it rains every day in the summer.
They are being a little TOO cautious with weather. Lightning is possible, but it’s not going to burn the line down. There’s an issue with rain getting into the cabs if it’s a heavy downpour but those usually only last a few minutes.
Tom, so glad to hear you two will be accessing the situation over at POP as that is where we have our big trip planned for Christmas time for the 24th to the 30th and I am concerned about transportation and food. I am hopeful by then hours for the parks and transportation will increase. My other frustration is the HS and having to be IN the park to get the ROTR boarding pass.
On a good note, my husband and I went over to STK and had the burgers you recommended on the lunch special and they were deliscious! We just returned from a quick 3 day trip and had the opportunity to run over to DS and go to STK during the lunch special hours…so glad we did!
I think it would be really awesome if Disney would waive the parking fees at resorts, especially given all these changes in transportation.
Agreed!
There is not enough time nor do I have the energy to describe how awful Caribbean Beach is. Just some of our issues with the recent stay the week of August 3, 2020. Room smelled like sewage, promptly moved which was great, however it took the better part of a day to make it happen. The majority of cast members are clearly being mistreated for the bus issues, which is not their fault; thus they are grumpy which is not the norm for WDW. The only happy cast member at this resort is the security guard. And the bus transportation, this bus “service”, using that term loosely, is less than acceptable and someone at Disney should be all over this. They’re not, I submitted feedback to the GM and WDW and got lackluster responses. Disney cannot boast the Skyliner as the only transport to Epcot and DHS and be surprised when it goes down for inclement weather in the rainy season and only supply one bus/hour to these two parks.
Outside of the obvious issues, the rooms at this resort need some serious love. They are tired and in my opinion, the CBR rooms aren’t anywhere as nice as the POP refurbished rooms. Truthfully, I think outside of the pool having a slide (mod category pre-requisite), WDW should drop CBR down to a value accommodation category. I would not stay there again. And purely anecdotal, we’ve stayed at all WDW resorts and have never experienced such an awful stay. After talking with some other friends at Beach Club and Riviera, their resorts were empty and had minor bus issues compared to CBR and POP. CBR and POP had similar, if not, busier lobbies than experienced during pre-Covid times. It’s obvious everyone was looking for the budget friendly options and didn’t want to stay at the DVC resorts.
The skyliner runs between Epcot and the resorts until 10:30 pm? Do you foresee these hours staying the same into September and October when Epcot hours shorten? We have a CBR stay planned for December. We are concerned about less in park dining options and overcrowded resort dining, but we also love eating/drinking/spending time at the Boardwalk. The shorter hours would feel less bad if we could spend late dinner hours at the Boardwalk and still have the skyliner run back to CBR later in the night.
That remains to be seen. I’d expect some reduction, but not one proportionate to park hours. It sounds like World Showcase restaurants will still be seating guests fairly late–so maybe the Skyliner will be reduced to 9:30 pm? Just a guess!
We stayed at CBR back in 2015 before any of the renovations even began. We were in Martinique Bldg 23 which I see is now gone and part of the RR property. During our stay, the main pool was always full of people so we usually just went to the Martinique pool which was more than adequate for our needs. We haven’t been back to CBR since that trip, so we’ll have to take a run over there to see all the changes, plus check out RR.
We’re at CBR now till Friday and really enjoying the ambiance. No real lines or problems. They’re always cleaning and the resort is spotless. We have our car but we’ve used the skyliner twice and the lightning or threat of does shut it down for periods of time.
Having taken the walk once from EPCOT to the Boardwalk bus area I would suggest going back in the park which we did the second time. There are worse places to be stuck. In the future I think we’d opt for a minivan back over using the bus.
One recommendation I have is that Disney have a section on the mde app showing if the skyliner is running or detained. Tom do they have that already? No one at Disney knew of one.
I see Buses around CBR quite often and those two times we’ve used the skyliner we’ve walked right on.
We’ll try the Riviera for a meal upon your suggestion.
Are you staying at Carribean Beach Resort or Beach Club? They are 2 separate resorts. You can walk to DHS and Epcot from the Beach Club but have to take the skyliner from Carribean Beach. Hope that helps.
Thanks for these reports. If we follow through with our trip in December we have CBR booked again (after staying there last year based on your recommendations and loving it).
Dumb question…if you are staying at a resort and drive to a park for the day do you have to pay to park at said park? Sounds like RoTR should be not be a problem any more with your tips. We were thinking we would maybe get a car this time for MK and AK just to avoid any potential bus issues….
“Dumb question…if you are staying at a resort and drive to a park for the day do you have to pay to park at said park?”
No.
“Sounds like RoTR should be not be a problem any more with your tips.”
I don’t know that I’d go that far. We’ve become adept at the virtual queue process through practice and experience. If it’s your first time, the tips will definitely help, but don’t expect it to be a cake walk. I’d still recommend “budgeting” two days for DHS, and changing the second Park Pass reservation if you don’t need it.
Thanks for the info.
I think I was too cavalier with my RoTR should not be a problem. I imagine getting the virtual queue could still fall apart. It sounded like based on the report if you line up for the Skyliner early you can get to DHS in time for a decent shot, and you don’t need to rely on Uber/Lyft/driving.
Thanks again!
I’m confused…we just changed our GF stay in December to a split stay with Caribbean Beach Club Villa specifically to be able to walk to HS in the morning and avoid transportation at all. Is the walkway closed off? Or is the walk really long or something? Just not seeing why anyone would get in line for the skyliner if you have to do it an hour in advance if walking is an option! Thanks for any help, we have exclusively stayed on the Monorail line in the past so this is a big change for us.
Caribbean Beach is not Beach Club Villa. Those are two different resorts. If you mean you split your stay at GF with Beach Club Villa, then YES there is a walk way to Epcot and Hollywood Studios. Caribbean Beach is not a walking to resort. You have to take a bus or skyliner.
Caribbean Beach and Beach Club Villas are two different resorts. From Beach Club you can walk to the parks, but from Caribbean Beach you cannot.
Thank you so much, I definitely did not realize we were talking about 2 totally different places!
Are you sure you’ve changed to *Caribbean* Beach Club Villa? And not just Beach Club Villas? Caribbean Beach Resort is not a Deluxe resort so you would have downgraded if you originally had a GF stay. Also, yes, you can walk to DHS from Beach Club Villas, these are part of the Yacht and Beach Club and are across Crescent Lake from the Boardwalk. The walk is fairly easy (can get hot) or you can take a Friendship boat there/back too. You can access the Skyliner from the International Gateway at Epcot but walking to DHS will be a lot faster.
BCV is lovely, I’m sure you’ll have a great time.
But to note, the walk from Beach Club Villas to DHS is really far. Do-able for sure but i’d say it’s 30 minute walk, maybe less if you’re hustling.
It is a long walk, and there’s not even beer carts along the way! But it’s still usually faster than the Friendship boats. Especially now…