Walking Distances at Disney’s Caribbean Beach (Are They Manageable?)

How far will you walk when you stay at Disney’s Caribbean Beach? Sure, the resort looks beautiful in pictures, and you wouldn’t mind enjoying that tropical island feel at Disney World. But will a stay here require a good deal of extra walking? That answer could go both ways. If you’re unfamiliar with the resort’s layout and set out aimlessly wandering upon arrival, you might immediately feel overwhelmed. However, if you do a little research and familiarize yourself with the resort map ahead of time, you’ll find that it’s pretty easy to learn your way around.

Of course, some room locations will be further away than others. So, you might want to make a special request based on your priorities. Over the course of several visits to Caribbean Beach, we tracked the distances from each village to Old Port Royale (the resort’s lobby) and the Skyliner. Before we get into those distances, we’ll discuss the size of the resort and a few tips for efficiently navigating your way.

How Big is Disney’s Caribbean Beach?

Disney’s Caribbean Beach is among the largest resorts at Walt Disney World. The resort sits on approximately 200 acres, centered by a 45-acre lake, Barefoot Bay. It comprises five villages featuring 24 two-story buildings with over 1500 guest rooms and one substantial lobby area known as Old Port Royale. For reference, none of the buildings at Caribbean Beach have elevators. Therefore, you must take the stairs if you receive a second-floor room assignment.

Preferred rooms are available in both the Barbados (buildings 31, 32, and 33) and Martinique (buildings 24, 25, and 26) sections of the resorts. These rooms are an upcharge because of their proximity to Old Port Royale. If you’re planning to spend a decent amount of time at the resort and would like to be close to dining or the feature pool area, you might consider upgrading to a preferred room. However, as you’ll soon see below, we prefer a few regular room locations that split the difference between Old Port Royale and the Skyliner. So, you shouldn’t necessarily pay for a preferred room upgrade.

Another thing: each Caribbean Beach village, including Old Port Royale and the Skyliner, has a bus stop. So you will be within a short proximity of a bus stop regardless of your room location. Additionally, an internal bus circles the resort. So you can take the internal bus to the Skyliner and Old Port Royale instead of walking. The bus might take a little longer since it makes so many stops. But it can also save you a few steps and help keep you out of the heat or rain a little longer.

Barbados Walking Distance to Old Port Royale

We’ll start with Barbados which sits ajacent to the pool side of Old Port Royale. This location is exceptionally convenient for the lobby, dining, and the Fuentes del Morro Pool. To get this distance, I started at the Barbados quiet pool on the far end of the Barbados section. Then, I walked past the feature pool to the lobby’s entrance to get the entire distance. Depending on your building’s location, you’ll likely be closer. Here are the results.

Distance from Barbados (Quiet Pool) to Old Port Royale Lobby Entrance

• 0.28 Miles
• Approximately 7-minute walk
• 722 Steps

Barbados Walking Distance to the Skyliner

Next, I tracked the distance from the Barbados quiet pool to the Skyliner. This distance is fairly short and convenient for accessing the Caribbean Beach Skyliner. However, depending on your building’s location, you will have a few more steps in this direction.

Distance from Barbados (Quiet Pool) to the Caribbean Beach Skyliner

• 0.16 Miles
• Approximately 4-minute walk
• 407 Steps

Martinique Walking Distance to Old Port Royale

On the opposite side of Old Port Royale, we run into Martinique. Martinique sits directly between Old Port Royale and Disney’s Riviera Resort. I prefer this location over Barbados for its proximity to the Riviera. Here’s what we tracked.

Distance from Martinique (Quiet Pool) to Old Port Royale Lobby Entrance

• 0.17 Miles
• Approximately 4-minute walk
• 430 Steps

Martinique Walking Distance to Riviera Skyliner

If you stay at Martinique, you’ll be close to the Skyliner station at Disney’s Riviera Resort. You’ll travel directly to Epcot from the Riviera. However, when traveling to Disney’s Hollywood Studios, you’ll have to exit at the Caribbean Beach Skyliner Station and join the line for Hollywood Studios. The Skyliner can have long lines, but they tend to move quickly. (If you don’t want to transfer, you can always walk or take the internal bus from Martinique to the Caribbean Beach Skyliner.)

Distance from Martinique (Quiet Pool) to Riviera Skyliner

• 0.26 Miles
• Approximately 7-minute walk
• 667 Steps

The photo below shows Martinique (blue buildings) and its proximity to the Riviera (the grey hotel behind the lake). Then, we have a photo of the Skyliner Station at Disney’s Riviera, which sits on the opposite side of the hotel near Aruba.

Aruba Walking Distance to Old Port Royale

I find that Martinique is similar to Aruba in location. Aruba has the advantage of being closer to the Riviera Skyliner, but it’s a little further from Old Port Royale. When you’re walking to Old Port Royale from Aruba, you’ll walk toward Jamaica and take the bridge over Caribbean Cay to Old Port Royale. Like Coronado Springs, a bridge across the lake’s center provides a shortcut. (For reference, Caribbeen Cay is a recreational island at the center of Barefoot Bay.)

Distance from Aruba (Quiet Pool) to Old Port Royale

• 0.28 Miles
• Approximately 7-minute walk
• 699 Steps

Aruba’s beaches look directly across the lake to Old Port Royale.

Aruba Walking Distance to Riviera Skyliner

It felt almost silly to add this next distance, but Aruba is the closest village to a Skyliner Station. It’s only a tenth of a mile from the quiet pool to the Riviera Skyliner. Again, you will need to transfer at Caribbean Beach for Hollywood Studios. You can also take the bus or walk to the Caribbean Beach Skyliner.

Distance from Aruba (Quiet Pool) to the Riviera Skyliner

• 0.10 Miles
• Approximately 3 minutes
• 243 Steps

In the photo below, you can see the Riviera Skyliner and how Aruba literally sits next door.

Jamaica Walking Distance to Old Port Royale

My favorite section of Disney’s Caribbean Beach is Jamaica. To me, Jamaica is the most centrally located area of the resort, with similar distances to Old Port Royale and Skyliner. It’s almost like no matter which way you go, it’s only a quarter of a mile. We’ll start with the distance from the Jamaica quiet pool to Old Port Royale.

Distance from Jamaica (Quiet Pool) to Old Port Royale

• 0.24 Miles
• Approximately 6-minute walk
• 612 Steps

The photo below shows the view from the bridge to Old Port Royale, looking back at the beach and the quiet pool in Jamaica. All of the quiet pools at Disney’s Caribbean Beach sit along the main walkway around the resort. If you ever make a lap around the lake, you’ll walk directly past each one.

Jamaica Walking Distance to the Skyliner

If you’re staying in Jamaica, you will be near the Skyliner Station at Caribbean Beach and the Riviera. We usually walk to the Caribbean Beach station for Disney’s Hollywood Studios and the Riviera for Epcot. We tracked the distance from the Jamaica quiet pool to the Skyliner’s entrance. Here are the results:

Distance from Jamaica (Quiet Pool) to the Skyliner

• 0.21 Miles
• Approximately 6-minute walk
• 564 Steps

Below, you can see the walkway from Jamaica to the Skyliner. If your building is on the outskirts of Jamaica, you’ll have a very short walk to the Skyliner.

Trinidad Walking Distance to Old Port Royale

Lastly, we’ll check out the Trinidad section of the resort. This area was formerly home to pirate rooms. However, they were refurbished to Little Mermaid themed rooms with a fifth sleeper last year. This area is entirely separate from the rest of the resort. So, it will require a little further walking to access Old Port Royale for dining and other amenities. We tracked the distance from the Spyglass Grill to Old Port Royale. Since Trinidad is so far out, this section has its own quick-service restaurant.

Distance from Trinidad (Spyglass Grill) to Old Port Royale

• 0.45 Miles
• Approximately 10-minute walk
• 1100 Steps

Trinidad sits across the lake from the Caribbean Beach Skyliner station. It is not adjacent to any other villages.

Trinidad Walking Distance to the Skyliner

Before the Skyliner, Trinidad was always considered the worst location at the resort. The former pirate-themed rooms were designed to lure guests to that area. But they weren’t popular either. However, guests often request Trinidad between the newly refurbished rooms and the close proximity to the Skyliner. Here’s the walking distance from the center of the village to the Skyliner.

Distance from Trinidad (Spyglass Grill) to the Skyliner

• 0.28 Miles
• Approximately 7-minute walk
• 702 Steps

Old Port Royale Walking Distance to the Skyliner

If you’re taking the Skyliner to Disney’s Caribbean Beach for a meal, you might want to be aware of the distance. It’s a 0.45-mile walk from the Skyliner to Old Port Royale. To make this route, we cross the road from the Skyliner and walk along the lake in front of Jamaica. Then, we cross the bridge that ends up directly at Old Port Royale. It’s a beautiful walk along the lake.

Distance from Old Port Royale to the Caribbean Beach Skyliner

• 0.45 Miles
• Approximately 9-minute walk
• 1000 Steps

However, if you get to Caribbean Beach and it’s raining, hot, or just too tired to walk, you’ll find an internal shuttle bus stop at the base of the Skyliner. It’s to the left, and it’s difficult to see if you’re not looking for it. You can sit here and wait on the next bus and then take it to wherever you’re going. It stops in the following order:

• Disney Skyliner Bus Stop
• Jamaica
• Aruba
• Martinique
• Old Port Royale
• Barbados
• Trinidad

If you’re going to the Riviera, you can take the Skyliner from Caribbean Beach to the Riviera, or you can take the bus to either Aruba or Martinique and then walk to the Riviera. The Martinique bus stop has a direct walking path that comes out near the Riviera.

Here’s a photo of our Caribbean Beach transportation map.

We hope these walking distances at Disney’s Caribbean Beach helped you decide whether the resort is a good fit or if you need to request a room location. For more details on how transportation works, check out our Caribbean Beach Transportation Guide. It details everything you need to know and the most efficient ways to get to and from the resort. For more on the resort, you might enjoy:

• The Resorts Gal Guide to Disney’s Caribbean Beach
• Exploring the Pools at Disney’s Caribbean Beach
• Disney’s Caribbean Beach Review
• Everything You Need to Know About Refillable Mugs at Caribbean Beach

In the Comments

What do you think about these walking distances at Disney’s Caribbean Beach? Are they more reasonable than you expected? Feel free to share your thoughts, questions, or feedback below in the comments.