PO Riverside or French Quarter - which one and why?

[mommak1]

Family of four traveling at the end of January for a week for our first Disney trip - kids are 4 and 7. Would you recommend PO Riverside or French Quarter? What are pros and cons of each? I'm leaning toward Riverside only because I thought one of the Royal rooms would be fun for the kids. I had been planning to do Wilderness Lodge but have decided to save some money and go with a moderate resort instead now that the reality of actually paying for the trip is hitting.

If it makes a difference with recommendations, I do not anticipate that we will go back to the room mid day. Neither kid naps anymore, and with the parks not being opened late night this time of year, what will probably work best for us is to head to the parks in the morning (probably not rope drop - we are not really early morning people, but we'll be trying not to start too late, either), spend a day in the park with breaks as needed, and then head back to our room after dinner.

 

[KrazeeK120]

I have stayed at POFQ but not Riverside. I LOVED POFQ and the main reason why is the size of the resort. It's much smaller and (in my opinion) easier to navigate than POR. There is only 1 bus stop at POFQ and we always shared buses with POR. We were always the first pick up and drop off. There were times that we actually had to skip the last bus stop at POR because the bus got too crowded (although I admit this is less likely to be an issue in January than in March when we were there).

I do think the decor looks nicer at POR, especially the updated decor. However, if you're not going to spend much time in the room, you may want to consider how much emphasis you put on the decor. The decor at POFQ is very nice. Also, there's no full-service restaurant at POFQ. I did eat at the full service restaurant at POR and it really isn't anything special...I think your money/dining credits would be put to better use elsewhere, to be honest.

I probably sound biased...but I just loved POFQ so much and when it comes to moderates, that one is the way to go, in my opinion. I really do think you would enjoy yourself at either resort though.

Best of luck with your planning!

 

[nkereina]

I prefer POR because of the size. We stayed there in September which is also low crowds, like January. The resort felt empty. We felt like the only ones there. We never found the buses to be overly crowded and the food court was never busy. We did make our way over to POFQ one morning for breakfast and found it to be crowded since it's so small. There was also a good size crowd at the bus stop, since there is only one there.

The only con about POR Royal Rooms is that if you get placed in Parterre Place which is the furthest building of Royal Rooms, it can be a haul to the main building where the food court is. In January, I don't think the pool will be a factor but it's an even longer walk to the pool. The walk doesn't bother me much but if you are traveling with small kids or the elderly, it could be an issue. No preferred rooms that are royal rooms.

 

[ke3d98]

I would say POFQ is the best of the two because its nice and small, quiet and NOT crowded. The decor is top knotch and the food court has awesome benyas!!! Pool and rooms are very nice and the gift shop has really cool disney merchandise

 

[Belle83]

I stayed at POFQ a while ago, and am staying at POR in a few weeks Though I haven't been to POR yet, I think the main differences are size (POFQ is much smaller), location (POFQ is closer to DTD on the boat ride, and it's the first bus stop before POR), and POFQ doesn't have a sit-down restaurant.

When I stayed at POFQ, I was 16. I remember thinking it was cute but not as cool as CBR. I always avoided POR because I hated the room decor, but with the recent renovations I think the rooms like much nicer. I think the pool is a little more interesting at POFQ than POR.

The royal rooms would be a great option for kids that age. They are a little more $, and their location is further away than other rooms at POR.

So, I guess my vote is for POR because of the royal rooms. We were planning on staying at WL until the reality of paying more $ hit too

 

[mamamary]

I have stayed at POFQ but not Riverside. I LOVED POFQ and the main reason why is the size of the resort. It's much smaller and (in my opinion) easier to navigate than POR. There is only 1 bus stop at POFQ and we always shared buses with POR. We were always the first pick up and drop off. There were times that we actually had to skip the last bus stop at POR because the bus got too crowded (although I admit this is less likely to be an issue in January than in March when we were there).

I do think the decor looks nicer at POR, especially the updated decor. However, if you're not going to spend much time in the room, you may want to consider how much emphasis you put on the decor. The decor at POFQ is very nice. Also, there's no full-service restaurant at POFQ. I did eat at the full service restaurant at POR and it really isn't anything special...I think your money/dining credits would be put to better use elsewhere, to be honest.

I probably sound biased...but I just loved POFQ so much and when it comes to moderates, that one is the way to go, in my opinion. I really do think you would enjoy yourself at either resort though.

Best of luck with your planning!

This pretty much sums up what I would say too. We did go to Riverside for dinner one evening and to look around/check out the pool. I would def. stay here one day but I have to say that I loved the size of POFQ. When I stayed at the larger resorts it really was a hassle to hit up either the pools or to go get my mug refilled. POFQ is very compact which really hit the spot on our last trip.

 

[dawgsgirl]

Room only discount for your time period not available at POFQ. I am not sure about the play stay dine package. Be sure and check out the prices!!

 

[Bee2u]

The only con about POR Royal Rooms is that if you get placed in Parterre Place which is the furthest building of Royal Rooms, it can be a haul to the main building where the food court is. In January, I don't think the pool will be a factor but it's an even longer walk to the pool. The walk doesn't bother me much but if you are traveling with small kids or the elderly, it could be an issue. No preferred rooms that are royal rooms.

We just returned yesterday. We stayed in Parterre Place, and it was just a short walk to the food court - just right across the bridge. We were also at a good location for the bus.
The Royal rooms are great - we didn't spend much time in the rooms, but in the times we were there, we all loved the fireworks headboards and the neat details of the decor.

 

[goofyintoronto]

We love POR! The grounds are prettier IMO. We love that its bigger, more to do and see. We love the bigger food court, more options. Love the make your own pasta, and salad. Pool slide is much longer. The bike/surrey bike rentals are located here, as well as the restaurant, water sport rentals, horse & carriage ride, Ye haw Bob entertainment. etc etc. love that resort.

If you like a small resort than maybe POFQ is the one for you. I personally like a bigger resort with more options. But for the record i dont find POR that big. At all actually. Compared to CSR and CBR, POR is much smaller.

Sent from my Galaxy SII

 

[Pixiedust34]

We've stayed at both, and love both! Can't go wrong with either one.

 

[Gorechick]

I've stayed at both and I give the edge to POR because of the setting, building/room options, multiple pools, and food court.

 

[Eric in Canada]

We've stayed at POFQ, Dec 2010. It is the smaller of the two, your a short walking distance from the main building and bus stop from your room and we we're in building one. Another pro is that the bus stops at POFQ first then pick's up PORS. There was a few times that the bus was nearly full by time it got to PORS. We also found that the decor was ok.

 

[hsmamato2]

I prefer POFQ based on my limited knowledge....I like the small size,bus setup,etc better. I also like that we can go to restaurants/pools at either hotel,since they're linked..... so whatever choice we make we still get both!

 

[joshiesdad]

I prefer POFQ. The size of the resort is a huge factor. We were there in October and had an amazing stay. The resort being so small ment you were so close to everything. The dining hall was good. There are a few more options to eat at Riverside. I liked being the first stop for the busses and the first stop on the boat to DTD. At the end of the day having that short walk to the room was a huge bonus. I felt like with the short walk to Riverside and the access to the amenities at Riverside as well that staying at FQ was the way to go. Got the small resort location and feel with the access to all that both sides have. It was a win win for us.

 

[LuvLDM]

I prefer POR, it's a beautiful resort with lush landscaping, great food court & really nice pool. Also, rooms have been recently renovated.

POFQ is also a quaint, pretty resort but I don't like the rooms as much after it's most recent refurb. The pool is cute but small and geared toward younger children, your 7 year old may find it a bit "babyish".

I can't really speak to the reliability of the buses as we always rent a car.

 

[soccerdad72]

Just got back last week from POFQ and would definitely recommend it, for many of the same reasons others have said. It's a smaller resort, so it's easy to navigate and with only one bus stop, it was easy to get to and from the parks. Only once during our trip could I remember there really being a big crowd at the resort bus stop and the food court never seemed really crowded (and this was Thanksgiving week).

 

[GoHerbie]

We've stayed 3 trips at the mansions in POR and love it. We did the carriage ride from POR which rode through POFQ and weren't impressed with its decor or layout. On our most recent trip we drove to the POFQ food court for a dinner and weren't impressed - it seemed like a value food court whereas the POR food court seems nicer (and more quiet with carpet). Regardless of which resort you choose, visit the other one to check it out and see for yourself.

 

[croppingcafe]

We stayed at POR in a Royal Guest --river View room....at the request of my 24yr old daughter who is in the college program. We were in Panterre Place. We were on ground level--which wasn't my first choice because we were 3 adults and thought being on the 3rd floor would allow families with children to be on the ground floor. The 3rd floor would've given us a better view, too. After our first night there I labeled the POR the hidden jewel of Disney. I thought the rooms were appropriately priced....and Disney did a great job with the little details--lots of hidden Mickey's in the room. I kept laughing at myself because there was rug in the detail of the carpet. I kept wanting to step over it so I wouldn't mess up the tassles.

The riverside mill had a good selection of different food choices...I especially liked the pasta bar.

Our daughter had to work one night, and we walked to POFQ. They had a guy at the bar playing and singing. My only regret was that they didn't have enough seats and we ended up sitting in the lobby behind the stage. It was a nice, small, quaint place for the adults. The eating area there was small compared to Riverside Mill.