You Want to Stay Where?! A July PTR*All New X 2 5/17!

[katt789]

POR is definitely next on my list of resorts to stay at, especially those princess rooms!! They're amazing!!

I have to comment about AoA though, it really wasn't that bad! There's a sidewalk along the parking lot that cuts down the walk a bit, and if you actually cut across the parking lot (which isn't that hard to do as not a lot of cars are actually out and about) it really cuts down on it. As for CMs, we encountered a ton of amazing ones, and the food court was never as bad as Pops was. Maybe at not a peak season it'd be better than what you've heard? Either way, it's a great resort, and I can't wait until the prices on the suites go down, I really wanna stay in a Lion king room!

What a headache on trying to figure out what that code was for, and that you couldn't use it, ugh! Dumb! I've been annoyed enough that my AP won't register properly on the site so I cant see what discounts I'll get for that.

I'm excited to hear more!

[marDgreen88]

Ugh, what a hassle! I'm glad everything worked out in the end... I'm dying to stay in a Royal Room! They look unbelievably awesome, I bet yall will all love it!

[KristinAnne]

Originally Posted by KristinAnne

Here are my updated guesses. My problem is that I'm not terribly aware of how many credits you get per visit w/ the DDP or DxDP. But we'll see how I've done.

1. Cinderella's Royal Table
2. Akershus
3. Chef Mickey's
4. Narcoosees
5. 1900 Park Fare
6. Crystal Palace
7. 50s Prime Time
8. Ohana
9. Ohana
10. Mickey's Backyard BBQ
11. Tusker House
12. Cape May Cafe
13. Mama Melrose
14. Garden Grill
15. Hollywood & Vine
16. Be Our Guest

C.S.
1. Landscape of Flavors
2. Be Our Guest
3. Earl of Sandwich

I'm going to switch Landscape of Flavors to Sunshine Seasons since you're not staying at AoA anymore.
The new room looks awesome!

[ronnmel]

Originally Posted by ronnmel

I think your rules are great!


1. Cinderella's Royal Table
2. Akershus
3. Chef Mickey
4. Via Napoli
5. 1900 Park Fare
6. Crystal Palace
7. Yak & Yeti
8. Sci-Fi
9. California Grill
10. Ohana
11. Tusker House
12. Cape May Cafe
13. Coral Reef
14. Ohana breakfast
15. Hollywood & Vine
16. Be Our Guest


Counter-service:
1. Be our Guest
2. Sunshine Seasons
3. Landscape of Flavors (does the foodcourt at AoA count?) If not I'll guess something else.

I too am going to change my counter-service guess.

3. Earl of Sandwhich

[Aurora1972]

That's terrible about the pin code! My feelings would have been hurt too! I also would have cried. That code had to have meant something?? Right?? Frustrating for sure.

[SoNotAPrincess]

AoA is the only value I really want to stay at, but I think you guys will love POR! Of course, I'm a bit partial...it's practically my home away from home!

Don't forget that you can use the POFQ pool, too (the slide is less intense and they do a Mardi Gras pool party). I know you have your ADRs, but I think Boatwrights is one of those unsung places on property. And don't forget to drop in and see Yehaa Bob in the River Roost Lounge one night if you can...Maddie will have a blast at his show.

OK, this is me stopping!

Here are my guesses...

1. CRT
2. BOG
3. Akershus
4. 1900 PF
5. Crystal Palace
6. Cape May (x 2)
7. Cali Grill
8. Chef Mickey’s
9. Ohana
10. Hollywood & Vine
11. Brown Derby
12. Via Napoli
13. Le Cellier
14. Yak & Yeti
15. Tusker House
16. Hoop De Doo Revue

Counter Service
Columbia Harbor House
Sunshine Seasons
EoS

[smidgy]

reading your pincode story on your TR, in a bit more detail than on Nebo's really put my mind in your position.. and really IRKED ME!!

how dare they offer you something (you didnt' ask for it, mind you), and then you spend all that time trying to "claim" it, and they end up making you feel like a free loader. sheesh!

sorry, you probably have gotten over it by now, and I'm getting you all worked up again. (as nebo says, that's what I do best! tee hee)

anyway, sometimes you have to just set your mind on what you have now, and look forward to that. (can someone tell Nebo how to do that? he always wants to "tinker")

the last 2 moderate resorts we have stayed at were CBR and CSR. so we are due for a POR stay.. once, we did a really weird thing. we booked a split stay.. 5 nights at POFQ and 5 nights at POR. I think we had the DDP for the first part, and walked over to Boatwrights to eat from french quarter. (It is a good restaurant.. love the prime rib).
another day, we strolled over to POR from FQ, to check out the area we had requested, and see which rooms we would want (I know, we are weird).

by the time we got over to POR, we felt like we had been there already!!! It was a strange trip. (what a long, strange trip it's been. you guys are too young to get that reference. Grateful Dead?)

one of the very cool things about either of those resorts is that they are sister resorts. you can use either food court, any of the pools. POFQ has the Scat Cat Club, POR had the River Roost with yeehah Bob. we love both food courts.

you might want to take a morning to take to boat ride (or walk) over to FQ to get the BEIGNETS for breakfast (note: they do NOT nuke well) and then use the pool there for a bit.

the other cool thing to try to find a reason to take advantage of: the boat ride to Downtown Disney. now, with a package, you always have that durned Planet Hollywood Voucher. if you are on a DDP, geez, ya got enough eatin' to do already!
but Im sure Maddie would find something she liked at Once Upon a Toy, or World of Disney. the Lego store is cool. is Maddie too "
girly" to enjoy dinosaurs? Our grandson Jackson (you remember him, Maddie's future hubby?) loved eating there. where the dinos come to life.

aw man, I want to go with you guys! we have been debation POR for a while, and each trip it gets voted out. our next trip is AOA (LM room) and BWV (boardwalk view!).

the great thing about disney is you never get tired of going, ause there are so many dif. resorts!!!

[hstrickland]

Hi again!

Subbing!....It's supposed to be raining today, so I'll have plenty of time to catch up! Now....back to reading

Heather

[merbobear]

16 ADRs for TS Locations
I'm taking a risk here by guessing pretty much every character meal out there, but since Maddy is such a grand master at character hunting, it might just pay off
1. Be Our Guest
2. 1900 Park Fare
3. 1900 Park Fare
4. Akershus
5. Chef Mickey
6. Play & Dine at Hollywood & Vine
7. Crystal Palace
8. Tusker House
9. Cinderella's Royal Table
10. 50s Prime Time Cafe
11. Beaches & Cream
12. Cape May Cafe
13. 'Ohana
14. Hoop Dee Doo Revue
15. Garden Grill
16. Garden View Tea Room...going on a limb with this one, but if you haven't booked it, you should look into it! We really enjoyed it last year.

3 Planned CS Locations

1. Riverside Mill
2. Earl of Sandwich
3. Columbia Harbour House

[pkondz]

hmmmm.... what's this? A PTR?

lurk, lurk, lurk....

[RGirl]

Well you know that you're disqualified from the game now right?

Well, if you insist!

I'm so excited that we are both staying in Royal Rooms. I think they are going to be great!

[shan23877]

Originally Posted by Stringbean&Wingnut

How annoying about trying to figure out that PIN code!! I definitely do not blame you for calling back and attempting to see what it was - that's so frustrating!

I do think it's awesome that you let Maddie choose what resort you were going to stay at - the Royal Room sounds perfect for your little princess!!

It was super frustrating. I've never had such an experience with Disney. It was disappointing.

We figure that these are really her trips at this point, and eventually we'll get to choose. I'm pleased with her decision. It looks really cool, and I love the look of the mansion section.

Originally Posted by Cinderella909

You will all love the Royal room! Do hope you asked for a garden/water view, as the standard view is in the back overlooking the parking lot. That said, it really didn't bother us as we kept the blinds mostly closed and loved walking through the resort.

Have to share our magic lamp story. When we got into the room, my DS was stretched out on the bed while I was checking out all the details of the room. I saw the sink, and here's our conversation:

Me: "Did you see the sink?"
DS: "No, why?"
Me: "The faucet is Aladin's magic lamp."
DS: "Really? How do you turn on the water?"
Me: "You have to rub it!"

So, he gets up to check it out!

Guess I'll just have to wait until July to hear Maddie's reaction to the room! Do be sure to have the camera ready!

Karen

We didn't request a specific view, but we tend to be in the room only to sleep. We've usually got the drapes closed to keep the light out anyway. Last year we booked water view at CBR, and literally never looked out the window. I'm excited that the rooms seem to be in a great location, and that they're in the mansion seciton! Maybe I've read Gone with the Wind too many times, but I think I'll feel right at home in a nice Southern mansion.

Oh my gosh that's the funniest story! I wish that I could pull that one on Bryan, but he's lurking here.

Overall did you enjoy your stay at POR? We're excited about it!

Originally Posted by afwdwfan

I think I see another hint...

I figured most people would guess that one!

Congratulations on the new room, and by all means, share the story. Everything isn't always perfect, and that's part of it. I think if I were you, I would e-mail customer service. They sent you a pin code and basically told you to ask about it. Well, if a CM on the phone can't help, you're still entitlted to answers. You should basically copy and paste this update into an e-mail and send it to them. I don't know that it will make any difference, but somebody needs to know PIN codes are going out and then when people call in, CM's don't have answers. Wherever the problem might lie in that process, something needs to be fixed.

After I read your comment I did email them. I used my post as the outline for it, and I'm actually really happy with how the email read. I'll definitely keep you guys posted on how they respond.

Originally Posted by Avery&Todd

OK, coming out of lurkdom to comment on your PTR!!

LOVE the pics of your new room!!!! I think Maddie will LOVE it - and I wouldnt be a fan of long wait times for busses either..my DH wont stay at a Value mainly b/c of the transportation options...

one trip we didnt step foot a on a bus the entire time!!

Here's my list:

1. 1900 Park Fare
2. Cape May cafe
3. Akershus
4. Be our Guest
5. 50's Prime Time Cafe
6. 'Ohana
7. 'Ohana (2)
8. Chef Mickey's
9. CRT
10. Coral Reef
11. Tusker House
12. The Garden Grill
13. Hollywood & Vine
14. Yachtsman
15. Via Napoli
16. Crystal Palace


Counter Service
1.Columbia Harbor House
2. Cosmic Rays
3. Be Our Guest

Yay! Welcome! Thanks for joining in! Please don't be a stranger!

I'm excited for our stay at POR, I hope that the buses run as smoothly as they did at POFQ-we had no complaints when we stayed there.

Thanks for joining in the game!

Originally Posted by ronnmel

Otaku was afraid of swimming until recently. When we went to Disney when she was 10 I was shocked to discovered she didn't know how to swim (Ron and I had just met a year before). We tried our best to get her used to the water, then when we came back we enrolled her (against her will) in swimming class. It took about a month, but once she finally felt comfortable putting her head underwater, she took off! We realized she had no idea how to hold her breath. What we did to help her was start practicing outside of water, for example in the car, to hold her breath for 5, 10, 15 seconds. Then in the pool we had her put only her mouth underwater, then her nose, eyes, and eventually whole head. Now she LOVES swimming and we have a hard time getting her OUT of the pool. Hopefully, Maddie will get more confident with swimming over the years and discover the joy that it can bring.

We weren't able to get Maddie in swimming lessons last year because of the move, but we'll definitely be doing it this year. She's getting a lot better about putting her head under water, but she's still only doing it as a "trick", she hasn't had any desire to actually use it to swim.

Bry and I feel pretty strongly that she should be a good enough swimmer to save herself, so she'll be in lessons for the foreseeable future.


As for your other issues, it's true that the walk from the LM rooms to the food court can be long, especially when you like to use your mugs a lot. I don't think it's much longer than going through Castaway Cay in Caribbean Beach though. And it's such a beautiful walk!!!! Plus, you have to pass by the food court on your to and from the bus. Speaking of, we had great bus service while we were there. Plus, if you see a POP bus at the park you can always hop on it and walk to your room from there. You don't need that info for this trip anymore, but maybe next time.

I think the Genie lamp faucet and the firework headboard are my two favorite things about the royal rooms.

That's good to hear. I think that what worried us most is that Maddie will be walking for the first time on this trip. If we had a stroller, we wouldn't worry about it at all. I'll store that info away for a future trip.

I love those faucets! Aren't they a cool touch? Maddie's favorite part was the "magic carpet" on the floor!

Originally Posted by mickeystoontown

Wow! What an ordeal! I went through a very similar experience with Disney and it left a bitter taste in my mouth for quite a while. Then, I popped in a Disney peppermint and it was all good.

Did you follow up Lisa? I sent an email this week, but I'm not sure that anything they'll say could make me feel better. I think that will just take time.

Originally Posted by sunnysideup3

We stayed at the POR Royal Rooms when we went in December and we really liked it. Make sure to request something in Parterre Place or Oak Manor that's close to the bridge, if you like using your mugs, it will put you closest to the food court. A fellow DISer runs this website and it's a JEWEL for all things POR:
http://portorleans.org/.

Thank you! I'm just starting to do my research on POR. I love having a new resort to learn about! I'm excited to be so close to the food court and main bus stop. We were quite a ways away at CBR-the walk was so lovely that I didn't mind it much, but we still gave going to OPR some thought.

Originally Posted by Marsheliz

Wow, the Royal Rooms look amazing!

I dont blame you for being frustrated with being on the phone for that dang long.. GEEZ.

I feel like sometimes you get great customer service, and sometimes you don't. When we went back in Sept when I called the front desk crying ( I dont know if I mentioned that I thought 3 adults and 2 children could fit in a regular POFQ room) but anywho- my mom has stage 4 cancer and we wanted her to come with us on this last trip and I was being cheap... I am all upset and call the front desk about moving to another hotel and they hooked us up with a suite at AOA.

I was so very thankful for that and for the CM. We would have had a miserable trip being cramped in that room.

Cant wait to read more!

Thank goodness you got such a great CM in that situation. How scary to think what would have happened if you didn't!

Originally Posted by CandleontheWater

I'm so sorry about the PIN debacle! I've personally never received a pin, so I don't know how it is supposed to work, but I know its supposed to be an easier/better experience than you guys had!

I am, however, pleased as punch to see that you booked POR and a royal room at that! I think you know by now that I LOVE POR, and I think you guys made an awesome choice. I havne't had the chance to stay at in a Royal room, but before the redo my favorite building was Parterre Place. Its a great location and a really easy walk to the food court. The mansions are so pretty to look at, the boat to DTD is awesome, and you have the added bonus of Yeeha Bob. Plus I think that the POR food court is one of the best for traffic flow and is a good size for the resort.

Ok, now to my ADR guesses (I'm usually terrible at this, but I'll give it a shot)

1. CRT
2. Ohana
3. Le Cellier
4. Rainforest Cafe
5. Tusker House
6. Sci Fi
7.Coral Reef
8.Via Napoli
9. Be Our Guest
10. Boma
11. Chef Mickeys
12. 1900 Park Faire
13. Artist point
14. Teppan Edo
15. Yachtsman Steakhouse
16. Mama Melrose

I've never received on either, but like you I'm pretty sure it should have been much easier.

I knew you'd approve! We're excited to stay there. The mansions look so pretty, I'm really glad that the princess rooms are in that section.

I'm going to keep an eye on earlier Friday flights-I think Yee Ha Bob could be a really fun thing to check out on arrival night!

Originally Posted by lvcourtneyy

Wow what a terrible Disney customer service experience. Even a simple "I'm sorry that pin code got to you by mistake" would've gone a long way more than all that nonsense!

Wow. The Royal Room looks awesome. I love the look of the LIttle Mermaid rooms but I am 100% with Maddie on this. The royal room is gorgeous and of course, fit for a princess!

It really would have gone a long way (40% off would have gone a whole lot further )

Don't they look awesome? I'm so sorry that I wrote them off last year. I think we're going to love them!

[cindianne320]

Sorry for the PIN confusion.

I think you will LOVE the Royal Rooms. I can't wait to hear a first hand account of them!

[shan23877]

Originally Posted by katt789

POR is definitely next on my list of resorts to stay at, especially those princess rooms!! They're amazing!!

I have to comment about AoA though, it really wasn't that bad! There's a sidewalk along the parking lot that cuts down the walk a bit, and if you actually cut across the parking lot (which isn't that hard to do as not a lot of cars are actually out and about) it really cuts down on it. As for CMs, we encountered a ton of amazing ones, and the food court was never as bad as Pops was. Maybe at not a peak season it'd be better than what you've heard? Either way, it's a great resort, and I can't wait until the prices on the suites go down, I really wanna stay in a Lion king room!

What a headache on trying to figure out what that code was for, and that you couldn't use it, ugh! Dumb! I've been annoyed enough that my AP won't register properly on the site so I cant see what discounts I'll get for that.

I'm excited to hear more!

I totally forgot that you've stayed at AoA! You take too many trips Miss! How did you think it compared with somewhere like CBR? We've never done a value before, and I'm a little apprehensive.

It was a headache, and it made me kind of sad too.

Originally Posted by marDgreen88

Ugh, what a hassle! I'm glad everything worked out in the end... I'm dying to stay in a Royal Room! They look unbelievably awesome, I bet yall will all love it!

It was frustrating to say the least. I'm really excited about Royal Rooms! They look really cool, and I've always liked the look of the Mansion sections of POR!

Originally Posted by KristinAnne

I'm going to switch Landscape of Flavors to Sunshine Seasons since you're not staying at AoA anymore.
The new room looks awesome!

Dully noted.

Doesn't it?!

Originally Posted by ronnmel

I too am going to change my counter-service guess.

3. Earl of Sandwhich

Gotcha down for EoS Mel!

Originally Posted by Aurora1972

That's terrible about the pin code! My feelings would have been hurt too! I also would have cried. That code had to have meant something?? Right?? Frustrating for sure.

That's what I thought! I was pretty close to tears, but that CM who switched our reservation when I called for the last time saved the day. He really made me smile.

Originally Posted by SoNotAPrincess

AoA is the only value I really want to stay at, but I think you guys will love POR! Of course, I'm a bit partial...it's practically my home away from home!

AoA has been the only value that's piqued my interest so far (POP looks like fun, but I don't really want to stay there).

Full disclosure--It was your TR that inspired the switch! I've seen pics of the Royal Rooms before, but never knew anything about all the special touches. I showed Maddie your TR when she made decision, so thank you very, very much.

Don't forget that you can use the POFQ pool, too (the slide is less intense and they do a Mardi Gras pool party). I know you have your ADRs, but I think Boatwrights is one of those unsung places on property. And don't forget to drop in and see Yehaa Bob in the River Roost Lounge one night if you can...Maddie will have a blast at his show.

Maddie loves the "king Tritan" slide at POFQ and was really disappointed that we weren't staying there last trip. She's not a strong swimmer, so that pool is perfect for her.

I think if we take an earlier flight we might try to catch Bob on our arrival night!

No need to stop! All this great info is just making me more excited to stay there!

OK, this is me stopping!

Here are my guesses...

1. CRT
2. BOG
3. Akershus
4. 1900 PF
5. Crystal Palace
6. Cape May (x 2)
7. Cali Grill
8. Chef Mickey’s
9. Ohana
10. Hollywood & Vine
11. Brown Derby
12. Via Napoli
13. Le Cellier
14. Yak & Yeti
15. Tusker House
16. Hoop De Doo Revue

Counter Service
Columbia Harbor House
Sunshine Seasons
EoS

Thanks for joining in the ADR game! I hope that it will be fun for everyone!

Originally Posted by smidgy

reading your pincode story on your TR, in a bit more detail than on Nebo's really put my mind in your position.. and really IRKED ME!!

how dare they offer you something (you didnt' ask for it, mind you), and then you spend all that time trying to "claim" it, and they end up making you feel like a free loader. sheesh!

sorry, you probably have gotten over it by now, and I'm getting you all worked up again. (as nebo says, that's what I do best! tee hee)

Don't worry Smidgy, I had myself all worked up about it too. I was so upset at the way they handled it. That's exactly how I felt-I'd been offered something, and I ended feeling like I was begging. It put a really bad taste in my mouth.

anyway, sometimes you have to just set your mind on what you have now, and look forward to that. (can someone tell Nebo how to do that? he always wants to "tinker")

I feel like I belong to the club now.

the last 2 moderate resorts we have stayed at were CBR and CSR. so we are due for a POR stay.. once, we did a really weird thing. we booked a split stay.. 5 nights at POFQ and 5 nights at POR. I think we had the DDP for the first part, and walked over to Boatwrights to eat from french quarter. (It is a good restaurant.. love the prime rib).
another day, we strolled over to POR from FQ, to check out the area we had requested, and see which rooms we would want (I know, we are weird).

I would do it. I'm already stalking the POR thread and checking the map to try to figure out what building we'd want.

by the time we got over to POR, we felt like we had been there already!!! It was a strange trip. (what a long, strange trip it's been. you guys are too young to get that reference. Grateful Dead?)

I'm not that young. I was singing Loose Lucy to my dog yesterday.

one of the very cool things about either of those resorts is that they are sister resorts. you can use either food court, any of the pools. POFQ has the Scat Cat Club, POR had the River Roost with yeehah Bob. we love both food courts.

you might want to take a morning to take to boat ride (or walk) over to FQ to get the BEIGNETS for breakfast (note: they do NOT nuke well) and then use the pool there for a bit.

Maddie LOVES the POFQ pool, and I'm still dreaming of the Beignets. Best use of a snack credit ever. If I"m looking at the map correctly, the mansion buildings are closest to POFQ. Is that correct?

the other cool thing to try to find a reason to take advantage of: the boat ride to Downtown Disney. now, with a package, you always have that durned Planet Hollywood Voucher. if you are on a DDP, geez, ya got enough eatin' to do already!
but Im sure Maddie would find something she liked at Once Upon a Toy, or World of Disney. the Lego store is cool. is Maddie too "
girly" to enjoy dinosaurs? Our grandson Jackson (you remember him, Maddie's future hubby?) loved eating there. where the dinos come to life.

Of course I remember Maddie's future husband! We do have a DTD afternoon planned. She'll go crazy for the Lego store this year. She's just getting into the 'girl' Legos that they just came out with.


aw man, I want to go with you guys! we have been debation POR for a while, and each trip it gets voted out. our next trip is AOA (LM room) and BWV (boardwalk view!).

the great thing about disney is you never get tired of going, ause there are so many dif. resorts!!!

Now I'm jealous! BWV? We stayed at BWI on our honeymoon and LOVED it!

Originally Posted by hstrickland

Hi again!

Subbing!....It's supposed to be raining today, so I'll have plenty of time to catch up! Now....back to reading

Heather

Thanks for joining in Heather! You haven't missed much!

Originally Posted by merbobear

16 ADRs for TS Locations
I'm taking a risk here by guessing pretty much every character meal out there, but since Maddy is such a grand master at character hunting, it might just pay off
1. Be Our Guest
2. 1900 Park Fare
3. 1900 Park Fare
4. Akershus
5. Chef Mickey
6. Play & Dine at Hollywood & Vine
7. Crystal Palace
8. Tusker House
9. Cinderella's Royal Table
10. 50s Prime Time Cafe
11. Beaches & Cream
12. Cape May Cafe
13. 'Ohana
14. Hoop Dee Doo Revue
15. Garden Grill
16. Garden View Tea Room...going on a limb with this one, but if you haven't booked it, you should look into it! We really enjoyed it last year.

3 Planned CS Locations

1. Riverside Mill
2. Earl of Sandwich
3. Columbia Harbour House

Character meals for Maddie? Whatever would make you think that?

Thanks for playing!

Originally Posted by pkondz

hmmmm.... what's this? A PTR?

lurk, lurk, lurk....

Thanks for lurking Ponzerbell!

My goal is to make this PTR interesting enough that you'll feel compelled to speak up.

Originally Posted by RGirl

Well, if you insist!

I'm so excited that we are both staying in Royal Rooms. I think they are going to be great!

I think that you may have had insider information. It's just not right.

Me too! The more I see about them, the more excited I get!

[shan23877]

A little update on the PIN Code fiasco of 2013

A little something you might not have known about me: I really suck at "just letting it go"

By Thursday of this week I was still feeling pretty unsettled about the way things turned out with the whole PIN code thing, so I sent an email to Guest Relations. I'm not sure if that was the proper place to send it, but I figure in this day and age it's not too hard for someone to forward it along to the right person.

I'm glad that I waited a few days to send the email, because with a few days to think things over I was able to write an email that I think conveyed what happened and my feelings about it without being overly emotional. I'm pretty proud of the email I crafted.

The email was a little on the long side, but at the end I did say that I'd appreciate a response if only to know that someone read the whole thing. I received the standard "auto-response" almost immediately, and it said that I'd get a more personalized response within 5 business days.

I don't think that this will be resolved in a way that will make me happy that this ever happened, but I'm hoping that at the very least they'll make some changes so that no one else has to go through what we did.

I'll keep you guys posted when I hear back from them!