Port Orleans Riverside Q&A Thread 2013, Part Two [Thread now FULL and closed]

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I will be traveling with a little one (less than a year) next summer and wondering what buildings you all would request.

I have never stayed at POR. We usually stay at CBR, but are wanting to try something new. I know that POR is a bit smaller. We would like to have a room close to bus stops and food court.

Many thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
I love you guys! Already planning our 2014 trip have started saving and gave up my 2 trips a day of Starbucks ($200 per month). Planning on booking once the packages are released in July for next July or August. POR will be my resort of choice... Here is my question: we were upgraded to a RR pool view. Talk about spoiled! The thing is my boys LOVED the quiet pool. They did not like the main one (confused). They loved going for a swim at midnight right by the room. Looking at the map I see all the mansions have close access to quiet pools. Without crossing fingers on requesting a mansion room... Would a PR give us close access to a quiet pool? I can't tell? Or would the only way to guarentee a quiet pool would be to pay for pool view?? TIA

If you booked preferred and requested say building 18 by fax, you may get it and be nicely located near a quiet pool. For the same money you can book pool view and request either Acadian or Magnolia and be nicely located as well. If you look at this map, the preferred locations are fairly close to a quiet pool. http://portorleans.org/maps-and-directions.php Even buildings 16 and 17 aren't THAT much further than the preferred locations and are right by the quiet pools as well and they have some gardenview rooms. They are about $17 less/night.

They have changed the room category descriptions *there used to be waterview* since we were near a quiet pool. We were in Acadian House. It is a lovely location. This very last time we were in Royal Riverfront and on the 2nd floor of Oak and even then we were only a hop from the quiet pool located between Oak and Parterre. We did our laundry while enjoying that pool area.
 
I will be traveling with a little one (less than a year) next summer and wondering what buildings you all would request.

I have never stayed at POR. We usually stay at CBR, but are wanting to try something new. I know that POR is a bit smaller. We would like to have a room close to bus stops and food court.

Many thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!

Based on your wish list, I'd book preferred. You will be located in Alligator Bayou...rustic type of lodging, but quaint. Fireside lodge type of furnishings/ambiance. Here is a map of the preferred locations:

http://portorleans.org/maps-and-directions.php
 
I have a couple questions about pool towels. are they regular beach towel size? or more like bath size? I like the bigger size so thought I might have to bring my own. Also I believe that I read they can only be picked up at the main pool? is that correct?
 
I have a couple questions about pool towels. are they regular beach towel size? or more like bath size? I like the bigger size so thought I might have to bring my own. Also I believe that I read they can only be picked up at the main pool? is that correct?

They're the exact same towels they have in the rooms, so just bath size.
 
We returned home Thursday from a great family trip. We spent the first half of our trip at POR so I thought I'd share some highlights!

We had only requested connecting rooms (as we have 8 kids ages 4-15) and had booked standard view. When we arrived we were told we had connecting rooms and one was ready but the other wasn't yet. We went ahead to drop our carry-on luggage in the ready room and were shocked to see we had been upgraded to a river view/preferred corner room (loved the windows!!!) We were in rooms 2732/31).

We then took the boat to DD (loved it!!!) and ate at Earl of Sandwich then headed to HS for a bit. We never got the text that our second room was ready so we checked back when we got back to POR and they said it was. We went to the room and found a wonderful flower and balloon arrangement from my coworkers along with a picture and card signed by Mickey welcoming us!

We typically used the South depot and never had to wait long for a bus and always got a seat. We loved the variety of options at the food court and being so close was great! My teens and I saw Yeehaw Bob on one rainy night and the show was perfect!

My only complaint (which has more to do with me being directionally challenged than anything) is that I got lost in the rain twice trying to find my way to the laundry by the quiet pool. I wish they were labeled differently than pool/laundry so you knew WHICH quiet pool/laundry the sign was directing you to!!!

Overall POR was so relaxing and quiet, we loved it!!!! And the grounds were just so beautiful!!!
 
They're the exact same towels they have in the rooms, so just bath size.
When we visited in May the pool towels and room towels were different. The room towels were the same surface all over while pool towels had ridges throughout (ribbed may be a better word to describe it).

The pool towels may have been a little larger than room towels but still not "beach" towel size. The pool towels were only available at the main pool; there were return bins at the quiet pools.
 
I just got engaged on Friday night to my best friend and we leave for the world in 5 days! We are celebrating our engagement honeymoon! I am going to fax in my room requests tomorrow and maybe a little pixie dust! I really want a button! ah can't wait! And POR is like the best place ever to celebrate!
 
mccartcm said:
I just got engaged on Friday night to my best friend and we leave for the world in 5 days! We are celebrating our engagement honeymoon! I am going to fax in my room requests tomorrow and maybe a little pixie dust! I really want a button! ah can't wait! And POR is like the best place ever to celebrate!

Congrats! I hope you get all the pixie dust to make your celebration even more magical.
 
Countdown: 4 days!! So excited! We always stay at Boardwalk so I'm excited to try POR! I hope we don't get lost! Lol this is a surprise golden birthday for my daughter (she turns 6 on the 6). Can't wait to start making memories!!
 
Well you can request it, sure. You might even get it if they happen to have spare capacity and are feeling generous, so no harm at all in asking politely.

However remember that is not what you have booked, and other people will have paid extra for those room types. I guess it's a bit like paying for a 40-inch television and then asking the shop if they wouldn't mind sending you the 46-inch model instead if they've got any spare. :)




Easily done! There are lots of lovely meandering pathways around Alligator Bayou, and sometimes there are quicker routes than taking the official signs and the grey-coloured main paths. Walking through the middle of another building sometimes helps cut down the detours too (not always though).




No reason why not as far as I know. They are Velcrod down (I think) but can easily be removed.

Andre


Thank you so much. :goodvibes
 
This is an awesome thread!

We are planning to stay at POR in March. I was going to book a preferred room (cause I'm all about paying for convenience), but I'm also thinking about the Royal Rooms. My girls are 4 and 8 and they would love it!

So my question is, how are they in terms of convenience? Walk to parking, food court, bus stop, boat to DTD?

TIA!
 
This is an awesome thread!

We are planning to stay at POR in March. I was going to book a preferred room (cause I'm all about paying for convenience), but I'm also thinking about the Royal Rooms. My girls are 4 and 8 and they would love it!

So my question is, how are they in terms of convenience? Walk to parking, food court, bus stop, boat to DTD?

TIA!

Royal Riverfront is more convenient to the foot bridges. We were in Oak Manor and were located close to the 2nd bridge that comes out right at the boat dock/lobby. I thought it as close or closer than when we stayed in Acadian near Old Man Island. It didn't seem long at all to walk. Check out this map: http://portorleans.org/maps-and-directions.php

We stayed right were the #90 is on Oak Manor.
 
Uber planner, will be there in 68 days!! First time for POR..I know I am not alone, scouring all the pictures I can find of the buildings and imagining our family walking up and taking in all the sites and sounds...but it's very hard to find resort specific pictures...I'm trying to figure out if I make a request which building? So for you multi visit families...any suggestions?

Top on the list...landscaping! I know as silly as that sounds, I LOVE a lush landscape around our room, it just smells amazing to have all those growing things around us!

I would prefer a corner room only because I am a tad bit claustrophobic, okay I'm seriously claustrophobic, I can handle elevators if I do mind games and think of something or talk to people next to me but in a hotel room I either need sliding glass doors or more windows..., once I'm asleep I'm fine, but knowing there are more 'exits' (I'm sure the windows would not be a good exit, it's all mental, makes me rest better.

I do love the look of the AB (we have five) buildings without the brick...and I could be as far from anything, I love to walk! Anyone know a great building that would be lush? And then I read a report today that there are some buildings that have traffic noise from a major street? Can you really hear traffic with all those trees?
Thanks for indulging my planning neuroses!
 
Well it's been a long 8 months planning but my trip is almost here. I start my drive from Indiana to Orlando Friday and then hit the Darkside. After that. I will be checking in Wednesday the 10th to POR. WHOOOOOOHOOOO:yay:

I just wanted to say THANK YOU to Andre and Venom. Your helpfulness here on this thread was invaluable. Andre, your website rocks and I hope your upcoming trip is pixie dust filled and full of Disney magic. :wizard: You are so very kind and caring as well as patient with all of us too!!! Happy travels with your journey from across the pond.

I never posted much but I did read here everyday. The information here is wonderful . Thanks again!!!

:love:

Denise
 
Uber planner, will be there in 68 days!! First time for POR..I know I am not alone, scouring all the pictures I can find of the buildings and imagining our family walking up and taking in all the sites and sounds...but it's very hard to find resort specific pictures...I'm trying to figure out if I make a request which building? So for you multi visit families...any suggestions?

I'm sorry I only have about 2,500 photos of Port Orleans on my website, but if you need more, I guess I'll have to hunt for some... ;) Just Google "Port Orleans" and my site is usually the first one returned after the sponsored links.

There is really no road noise within Port Orleans, the closest I can think of would be where Vista Road skirts along the very northern edge of property, but I've never noticed any noise from there even when standing outside.

What sort of room have you booked? I'd suggest Garden View from your comments, and really just about any of the garden view rooms in Alligator Bayou will be perfect for what you describe, with 26, 28 and 39 being the most enclosed (and probably least requested) buildings. The brick pillars are in the thirties areas (34-39). There are no elevators in the AB buildings, so no worries there.


I just wanted to say THANK YOU to Andre and Venom. Your helpfulness here on this thread was invaluable. Andre, your website rocks and I hope your upcoming trip is pixie dust filled and full of Disney magic. :wizard: You are so very kind and caring as well as patient with all of us too!!! Happy travels with your journey from across the pond.

Thanks for the kind comments, I'm glad you found my site and information helpful. I hope you have a lovely trip too.

Andre
 
We just returned from an 8 night stay at POR in a Royal garden view. We absolutely loved the resort to the point I'm seriously conflicted about our next trip (considering a family suite at AoA - since there might be 5 or 6 of us).

I thought I'd provide a review with some ideas for anyone traveling with knee issues or little kids. I dislocated my knee a few months before our trip :(

We stayed for 8 nights (6/20-6/28) - my mom, my daughter (age 4), my son (age 2) and me. We had 6 park days (but returned mid-day almost everyday for some pool time) and 3 days that were primarily resort days (while I was at a conference). The resort had a great balance of disney theming and less stimulation. The kids really benefited from early park days with a mid-day break (even though my son napped in his stroller most days) - it was nice to go to the quiet pool or the kid pool at the main pool area to cool off and chill out. They never melted or had issues at the parks when we took breaks. Every kids different but this strategy worked really well for us. It was also nice to have a sit down meal 1x per day - my kids are used to it and this gave us a nice cool down and eat together period. We found the quick service meals (no matter where they were) to be a bit chaotic and tougher with my sons dairy allergy. We did a bunch of character meals - which also served well since my kids loved them and it kept us from having to wait in long hot lines in the parks.

Mouse-keeping and the resort staff were great with us (kids loved the towel animals we got the first few days) - our room was chaotic with stuff but they did a fantastic job cleaning. On our departure day - my daughter came down with a 24hr stomach bug and she threw-up outside near the ME bus area. The greeter was fabulous at trying to make her feel better and help us clean-up (she was really upset getting sick in public).

Room organization - I can't say enough about bringing hanging shelves, pop-up hamper and laundry bag. They worked wonders. We did laundry 1/2 way through the trip. Easy and convenient with the hamper and laundry bag. Little kids go through a ton of clothes in this type of heat. I packed clothes for each day in a ziplock for each kid. Made getting ready for early park days a cinch. My mom commented that she thought I was a nut when she first saw them a then changed her mind by day 2. Lol. Being able to hang out at the quiet pool and do laundry made it bearable and easy.

Transportation wise - we had a mixed bag. Loved the boat to DTD and FQ. Serious draw for me with the kids. The buses - while convenient most of the time - are tougher for those traveling with multiple strollers. In my opinion - easy and manageable with older kids and adults. Little stroller bound kids - a bit painful. You have to constantly collapse strollers and try to juggle kids and stuff into a busy bus. We rented a car for part of our trip (due to my offsite conference) and I was very happy that we did. I planned to take the buses more - but it was often easier and faster to drive. I rented from the on-property Alamo - pretty inexpensive ($185/wk) and easy shuttle to and from the resort. I would definitely rent again until the kids are older. We brought their carseats with us (flew southwest - free and doesn't count towards baggage). The other plus was we had a number of table meals at other resorts and I didn't have to stress about getting there on time or factor 60-90 min of travel time which is hard with toddlers.


If anyone traveling I similar circumstances has questions feel free to holler - we had a great trip - due in large part to the advice I got through the boards on mobility, allergies, and traveling with small kids. We can't wait to go back - I already want to plan our next disney adventure.

Hi! I have been following this thread forever and am posting for the first time! My family (myself, my husband, and our two kids -my son is 4 & my daughter is almost 2) will be visiting in about a month - August 6-13. We have a royal room with a garden view booked. Your post was awesome because we are in a really similar situation. My daughter can't have any dairy and also has some other dietary restrictions we are still figuring out (hoping for more answers once she is scoped next week.) Did the TS restaurants have milk substitutes? We use Almond Milk, but she can have soy as well. I plan on having some delivered to the room, but am hoping she can some at dinner some times as well. I am assuming no c/s restaurants have anything.

We will not have a rental car and will have a double stroller... Any tips for managing the buses?

Thanks!
Michelle
 
I'm sorry I only have about 2,500 photos of Port Orleans on my website, but if you need more, I guess I'll have to hunt for some... ;) Just Google "Port Orleans" and my site is usually the first one returned after the sponsored links.

There is really no road noise within Port Orleans, the closest I can think of would be where Vista Road skirts along the very northern edge of property, but I've never noticed any noise from there even when standing outside.

What sort of room have you booked? I'd suggest Garden View from your comments, and really just about any of the garden view rooms in Alligator Bayou will be perfect for what you describe, with 26, 28 and 39 being the most enclosed (and probably least requested) buildings. The brick pillars are in the thirties areas (34-39). There are no elevators in the AB buildings, so no worries there.

Andre

I am pretty sure we are garden view! :) I have spent hours looking at your amazing pictures, the kids (all teens) will ask me to show them again where they are staying :) I found 4-5 shots of perfect buildings but there is no listing of the building number...I will try and go through here or the other thread and seeif I can sharethem...maybe if I count the picture number you would be able to id it for me? Great to hear about the traffic! Thanks so much!

Image 44/45 or 38 on the AB photos on your website....love 44/45!!!
 
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