A Visit to Old Port Royale at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort

Old Port Royale might just be one of the most underrated areas among the Disney Resorts. If you’ve never visited Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort, Old Port Royale is the resort’s central hub, where you’ll find the lobby, major dining, a feature pool, and then some. It’s a stunning area, and I often wonder if most guests appreciate its beauty. When you’re tired and feel like you have to walk a mile to get anywhere at Disney, it’s easy to overlook the beauty surrounding you.

For this mostly photo article, we’ll start at the entrance and make our way through the entirety of Old Port Royale. I’ll highlight a few things you’ll want to know if you plan to stay here or visit on a resort hop. Below is a photo of the porte cochere lobby entrance of Disney’s Caribbean Beach.

As you walk toward the lobby, you’ll see a sign that says Old Port Royale. This is where you first begin to feel that island vibe with the pretty latticework.

The resort embodies a true island feel. However, it’s important to note that it does not have a modern vibe, and you are not walking out the opposite side to the clear waters of the Caribbean Sea. It’s a beautiful resort all the same.

We’ll step inside to see one of the most beautiful lobbies at Walt Disney World. I’m not kidding.

The foyer features oversized lantern fixtures and pretty parquet floors. Its light paint color brightens the space.

You’ll soon be greeted by this tremendous lobby. Hopefully, you can see what I mean about it being underrated. Here are a few photos of the various seating areas.

We’ll step outside to explore the rest of Old Port Royale. For reference, Caribbean Beach is comprised of six sections. Five of those sections are villages housing guest accommodations. They are named after Caribbean Islands: Barbados, Trinidad, Jamaica, Aruba, and Martinique. Old Port Royale is considered the “port of entry.”

Outside, we start to see vibrant buildings, palm trees, and a pretty fountain topped with a pineapple. Here are a few photos of the space immediately outside the lobby.

Looking to the right, you can see Disney’s Riviera Resort in the distance. We have a separate article detailing the walking distance between Caribbean Beach and the Riviera. When we stay at Caribbean Beach, we often enjoy several meals at Riviera’s quick-service restaurant, Primo Piatto.

We’ll start our walk around Old Port Royale by heading to the left. We almost immediately run into the Fuentes del Morro Pool, the resort’s feature pool area themed to a Spanish Fortress. When we reach the pool, we’ll have no choice but to take an immediate right.

Related: The Pools at Disney’s Caribbean Beach

Banana Cabana is on our right. It’s an outdoor lounge that also serves as the pool bar. The lounge usually opens at 11:00 a.m., and the seating area is always available. This is an excellent place to grab a drink or enjoy a meal.

If we continue straight, we run into the bridge across Barefoot Bay. An island called Caribbean Cay sits in the center of the bridge. One side of the island has a playground and a large seating area where Movies Under the Stars are held nightly. The opposite side has a small path that leads to a couple of private seating areas for guests to enjoy.

Since we’re exploring Old Port Royale, we’ll stay on this side of the bridge and make another right-hand turn. We see Sebastian’s Bistro sits adjacent to the front of Banana Cabana. This is the resort’s table service restaurant.

A wooden walkway with a railing wraps around the front of this area. You’ll usually see a few Adirondack chairs facing the lake. This area (in front of Sebastian’s Bistro) is where guests tend to sit and watch the sunset. It’s a beautiful area. You can see some of Epcot’s fireworks in the distance at night. Unfortunately, it’s not a great view. So, I wouldn’t recommend going out of the way to see them from this location.

The walkway wraps around the opposite side of Sebastian’s Bistro, and we find ourselves back where we started.

This time, we’ll head in the opposite direction.

This lengthy set of buildings that looks like an island town is home to Centertown Market, the resort’s tremendous quick-service restaurant. You can access the quick service from outside or inside the lobby. The hotel’s gift shop, Calypso Trading Post, sits next to Centertown Market.

Related: Centertown Market Review

As we continue, we start to see the lighthouse.

The Riviera comes into close view.

A small path leads to the lighthouse. Guests who have booked fishing excursions at Caribbean Beach depart from this area.

You’ll also notice a couple of games and activities available for children. A recreation cast member is usually available in the area.

We see one of the resort’s white sand beaches at the edge of Old Port Royale. This one has a volleyball net and a fire pit.

Guests meet around the firepit each evening to roast complimentary marshmallows. You can check the resort recreation calendar for the exact time during your visit. They are posted in several locations around the resort.

We’ll end with this sunset view of Old Port Royale from across Barefoot Bay. This photo was taken from the Aruba section.

Final Thoughts

I hope you enjoyed this visit to Old Port Royale at Disney’s Caribbean Beach. For more on the resort, you might enjoy one of the following:

• Walking Distances to the Rooms at Disney’s Caribbean Beach
• Disney’s Caribbean Beach Bus Schedule with Average Times
• Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort Review
• Preview the Under the Seas Rooms at Disney’s Caribbean Beach

You can also enjoy our entire guide to Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort.

More Planning

Resorts Gal specializes in Disney World Resorts, Characters, and Dining. Explore our resources, including our Disney World Resorts Guide. It provides an overview of everything you need to know about the Disney Resort Hotels. For dining, our Disney World Dining Guide is an excellent place to start. Our Disney World Transportation Guide is a wonderful resource for planning your routes. It’s one of our most popular resources. If you plan to meet characters in the parks, we have an updated list of Disney World Characters. It includes every available character meet-and-greet in the parks and where to find rare characters throughout the year. Lastly, our Disney Parks Guide provides a complete overview of all four theme parks and water parks.