Can you actually swim in the beach area at CBR?

[AmandaChan]

Mother in law was hoping to have a little bit of a beach experience at CBR. Can you actually swim in the lake and how often do people actually rest in the beach area? It's a weird question I know.

[Melanie]

No, you cannot, and after seeing it, I can't imagine you'd want to. We saw a young boy actually in the water last year over in the Jamaica area. I couldn't believe it, and the mom was right there watching.

There are chairs and hammocks to enjoy sitting in the beach area.

[AmandaChan]

haha thanks, yeah i figured you probably wouldn't really want to swim in a lake like that (although we have at home or whatever) but i was just curious. don't they let you swim in that lake area in polynesian and grand floridian?? i mean i guess it's nice to have a little beach to lay out and relax at

[Melanie]

No, there is no swimming the lakes at any of the Disney resorts, for various safety reasons.

[ºoºalyssaluvsmickeyºoº]

No, there is no swimming the lakes at any of the Disney resorts, for various safety reasons.

Like Gators

[sportsguy2315]

Like Gators

My rule of thumb (and other frequent Florida visitors/residents would agree, I'm sure) is to never swim in anything but a public beach (Plenty of those) or a swimming pool (Also large in number).

[greengeen]

There's a deadly parasite that thrives in shallow, warm water lakes in the south. So Disney no longer allows swimming. I cringe every time I see parents let their children wade in the resort lakes. It's sooo unsafe.

[mom2morgan]

Yep - I've seen this conversation before. Between the gators and the brain eating bacteria, I'm quite happy to stick to the pools!

[mickeys_princess_mom]

I stick to the pools, too, but I love relaxing in a quiet beach spot in a hammock or chair on the beaches at CBR.

[rubato]

Yep - I've seen this conversation before. Between the gators and the brain eating bacteria, I'm quite happy to stick to the pools!

I looked up the info on the brain eating bacteria last year and will NEVER go in the water in Florida ever again other than pools! Just nasty!!!!!

[nkereina]

When I was at the Poly last April, there was a rope no more than 10 ft out in the water with a sign. It was night time so I couldn't make out the sign but there were definitely kids wading in the water up to the sign. They couldn't go in any further than their knees but there were several kids and adults in the water. No one said anything to them. I don't know if the policy has changed since then, if they were doing this "illegally" or if wading is permitted.

[Scar]

When I was at the Poly last April, there was a rope no more than 10 ft out in the water with a sign. It was night time so I couldn't make out the sign but there were definitely kids wading in the water up to the sign. They couldn't go in any further than their knees but there were several kids and adults in the water. No one said anything to them. I don't know if the policy has changed since then, if they were doing this "illegally" or if wading is permitted.

Well, I've read that the brain-eating amoebas enter through the ears, not the toes, so this should be OK. Of course, I've also read that Gators prefer toes over ears so...

[joonyer]

"Naegleria fowleri" (pronounced /nəˈɡlɪəriə/, also known as "the brain-eating amoeba") is a free-living excavate form of protist typically found in warm bodies of fresh water, such as ponds, lakes, rivers, and hot springs. It is also found in soil, near warm water discharges of industrial plants, and minimally chlorinated swimming pools, (there is no evidence of this amoeba living in ocean water)

N. fowleri can invade and attack the human nervous system; although this occurs rarely, (about 40 known cases in the U.S. in the past ten years) such an infection will nearly always result in the death of the victim.

In humans, N. fowleri can invade the central nervous system via the nose, more specifically the olfactory mucosa and cribriform plate of the nasal tissues. The penetration initially results in significant necrosis of and hemorrhaging in the olfactory bulbs. From there, amoebae climb along nerve fibers through the floor of the cranium via the cribriform plate and into the brain.

More than you wanted to know, Yikes.

It's found all across the southern US from Florida to California, and one case has even been documented in Minnesota.

[ToraTory]

Just watch the show "Monsters inside of me" on Animal Planet if you want to know more about these nasty creatures. They are more common then you'd like to think!!

ummmm ewwwww you wouldn't catch me in a Florida waterway and believe me the stories about alligators in WDW are true, I've seen them.

Back on track now, the pool at CBR is awesome, crowded at times but awesome. The beach is very relaxing. Maybe since you guys like water you should consider upgrading to a water view room, they have awesome views at this resort.

Have a great trip -- tory

[Crow]

worse than Jersey shore?
ill report back after March trip on how CBR is poolwise etc

[MNNHFLTX]

People wade all the time in the water at many of the resorts (the Polynesian, Wilderness Lodge, Grand Floridian etc.) Generally speaking, that should be safe (albeit for alligators, most of which steer clear of humans). But to stick your head under any natural body of standing water in Florida--!!

[BraddyB]

worse than Jersey shore?
ill report back after March trip on how CBR is poolwise etc

JERSEY SHORE

G
T
L

[KeriWDE]

"[B][I]
It's found all across the southern US from Florida to California, and one case has even been documented in Minnesota.

This only reinforces my very firm opinion that swimming should be done only in water that has salt or lots of chlorine in it.

[dnickels]

For what it's worth, the brain eating bacteria fear gets a little overblown. The bacteria were present in Bay Lake (just like they're present in lakes all over the country) back when River Country was active and no one died. Disney holds a triathlon with the swim leg in Bay Lake and no one has died from that.

Of the long list of potential ways to die, this one should be wayyyyyyy down the list of things to worry about.

Regarding alligators, Disney catches any they can see and removes them from property. There might be a few little ones in the lakes, but anything big enough to do harm if it got ahold of you gets spotted and trapped pretty quickly.