Disney's PORT ORLEANS RIVERSIDE RESORT Information & Questions

[tinkerbella16]

That's one of the remarkable things about POR. In fact it runs at close to 100% occupancy for most of the year, but you'd never know that there were 2,000 other occupied rooms around the resort, it always feels so quiet and relaxed. Well, except for maybe the food court at breakfast time - I don't think the original scale and design anticipated quite the amount of guests that it would be dealing with on a daily basis; 100% occupancy is just not normal for a hotel.

Andre

And I also noticed this same thing at POFQ, which is surprising given how small it is over there. Also one night I went over to AoA to take a look around for the first time since my friends were staying there. Wow! What a difference- that place alone made me realize how much I love POR and its quiet atmosphere. People were everywhere outside and in the main building! The food court was packed around 7:30pm, which I guess is normal for dinnertime. I just kept thinking to myself how nice and quiet it was at Port Orleans during my entire 10 day stay. What a difference.

 

[andrewilley]

Thanks! I will go ahead and pack our power strip, just in case

Always do that. I have two, a six-way and a four-way.

Andre

 

[mevelandry]

I'll be there in 12 days and I can't wait...

 

[MrsSkellington]

Looking at POR for our next trip this spring. Do you think that the murphy/pull-down bed could accommodate a bed rail? Our son is getting too big for his travel crib but still needs some "walls"!

 

[Sue M]

I think we have decided to stay at Riverside in October 2016, 2 kids both boys ages 10 and 14. Do you think this resort will be ok for them?

They will love it. Be sure to take them to see Bob Jackson's show at night, and go to The Fishing Hole in the morning.
It's also fun to see & hear the horse & carriages going by. Take the boat to DTD. Both during daylight and at dark. The atmosphere is so different.

 

[celina14]

Hi all! We are planning a trip for November of 2016 and POR is one of the resorts on our short list. We've never stayed on property before so I'm really excited about it but I have a couple of questions. It will be myself, my DH, my DD(5) and DS(2).

1. I'd like to try and stay within reasonable walking distances to food and buses since we will have the 2 little ones so that would make things much easier. I know I can book a preferred room which is a possible option but are there any other buildings that are still within a good distance of the main areas.
2. My son will most likely need a crib (or pack and play or whatever they give you there), will this make the room super crowded? Would it be better if we got a king bed room that has one of the fold down beds for my daughter and then there would be more room for the crib? Or would we be fine with the 2 queens and the pack and play?
3. And one more- is a River view worth it? I doubt we'll be spending a ton of time in the room but it would be nice to be able to look out on the river but it's not as important as a good location or getting a king room if that's a possibility.

Basically my perfect scenario would be a preferred location, king bed w/ murphy bed and a river view... That's not asking too much right? LOL! I know that probably doesn't even exist and if it does that it's not a guarantee so just trying to prioritize what's most important.

 

[Sue M]

Hi all! We are planning a trip for November of 2016 and POR is one of the resorts on our short list. We've never stayed on property before so I'm really excited about it but I have a couple of questions. It will be myself, my DH, my DD(5) and DS(2).

1. I'd like to try and stay within reasonable walking distances to food and buses since we will have the 2 little ones so that would make things much easier. I know I can book a preferred room which is a possible option but are there any other buildings that are still within a good distance of the main areas.
2. My son will most likely need a crib (or pack and play or whatever they give you there), will this make the room super crowded? Would it be better if we got a king bed room that has one of the fold down beds for my daughter and then there would be more room for the crib? Or would we be fine with the 2 queens and the pack and play?
3. And one more- is a River view worth it? I doubt we'll be spending a ton of time in the room but it would be nice to be able to look out on the river but it's not as important as a good location or getting a king room if that's a possibility.

Basically my perfect scenario would be a preferred location, king bed w/ murphy bed and a river view... That's not asking too much right? LOL! I know that probably doesn't even exist and if it does that it's not a guarantee so just trying to prioritize what's most important.

I think there will be room for a pack and play. There is space between door and bed by wall.
No, I wouldn't book river view. To me it's not worth it, we stay in the mansion section and all the buildings are always ng the river. You don't have to walk far to see the river, love sitting on a bench enjoying the view.
Our fav location is either Acadian House or Magnolia Terrace. I make a request to be close to Old Man Island foot bridge.

 

[andrewilley]

Looking at POR for our next trip this spring. Do you think that the murphy/pull-down bed could accommodate a bed rail? Our son is getting too big for his travel crib but still needs some "walls"!

Yes, you can request a bed rail and it will fit with the murphy bed.

1. I'd like to try and stay within reasonable walking distances to food and buses since we will have the 2 little ones so that would make things much easier. I know I can book a preferred room which is a possible option but are there any other buildings that are still within a good distance of the main areas.
2. My son will most likely need a crib (or pack and play or whatever they give you there), will this make the room super crowded? Would it be better if we got a king bed room that has one of the fold down beds for my daughter and then there would be more room for the crib? Or would we be fine with the 2 queens and the pack and play?
3. And one more- is a River view worth it? I doubt we'll be spending a ton of time in the room but it would be nice to be able to look out on the river but it's not as important as a good location or getting a king room if that's a possibility.

Basically my perfect scenario would be a preferred location, king bed w/ murphy bed and a river view... That's not asking too much right? LOL! I know that probably doesn't even exist and if it does that it's not a guarantee so just trying to prioritize what's most important.

There are lots of rooms within fairly close walking distance to the main buildings, but of course you are not guaranteed to get one in the same way that you are with Preferred Location. The next best categories to ensure this would be Royal Pool View (as all of those rooms are located near to a footbridge over to the main building) and regular River View (which means your room will overlook the pathway that goes around Ol' Man Island, which again gives you fairly good access). Other than that, you can always place a requests, but they are not guaranteed. Personally, I like regular River View as that gives the best combination of a lovely outlook and the likelihood of a convenient location.

If you book King Bed by the way, you could genuinely request one in an otherwise 'preferred' building (14, 15, 18 or 27) or a room with a river view (both are valid options for King Bed rooms) but again that does become a request, and you might be located further away if they can't fulfil that request. Booking King Bed would also be OK in terms of room occupancy for two adults, one child, and an under-three in a pack'n'play, and you would be automatically assigned to the Alligator Bayou section as you would need a murphy bed. A pack'n'play would fit OK into a two-queen bed room too though.

Andre

 

[celina14]

I think there will be room for a pack and play. There is space between door and bed by wall.
No, I wouldn't book river view. To me it's not worth it, we stay in the mansion section and all the buildings are always ng the river. You don't have to walk far to see the river, love sitting on a bench enjoying the view.
Our fav location is either Acadian House or Magnolia Terrace. I make a request to be close to Old Man Island foot bridge.

Yes, you can request a bed rail and it will fit with the murphy bed.


There are lots of rooms within fairly close walking distance to the main buildings, but of course you are not guaranteed to get one in the same way that you are with Preferred Location. The next best categories to ensure this would be Royal Pool View (as all of those rooms are located near to a footbridge over to the main building) and regular River View (which means your room will overlook the pathway that goes around Ol' Man Island, which again gives you fairly good access). Other than that, you can always place a requests, but they are not guaranteed. Personally, I like regular River View as that gives the best combination of a lovely outlook and the likelihood of a convenient location.

If you book King Bed by the way, you could genuinely request one in an otherwise 'preferred' building (14, 15, 18 or 27) or a room with a river view (both are valid options for King Bed rooms) but again that does become a request, and you might be located further away if they can't fulfil that request. Booking King Bed would also be OK in terms of room occupancy for two adults, one child, and an under-three in a pack'n'play, and you would be automatically assigned to the Alligator Bayou section as you would need a murphy bed. A pack'n'play would fit OK into a two-queen bed room too though.

Andre

Thanks so much for the assistance! I think I might be best off booking a preferred location as I think that's the most important thing to me is not having to trek all across the resort with 2 little kids and it's the only way to guarantee the close location. Does it help you get a better chance at any requests you may have if you book earlier or does that not really play into it at all? Also am I correct that the only way to get a king room is to book it as such? So as an example- if I wanted a King river view I have to book as a king and request river, I can't book river and request a king right?

 

[andrewilley]

Does it help you get a better chance at any requests you may have if you book earlier or does that not really play into it at all? Also am I correct that the only way to get a king room is to book it as such? So as an example- if I wanted a King river view I have to book as a king and request river, I can't book river and request a king right?

Booking early doesn't make any difference, requests are only looked at a few days before arrival and there is no reference made to when a request was made. Sending a fax makes much more of a difference.

Yes, King Bed rooms are sold under that category only - so booking a King bed and requesting a river view, or building 14, would be perfectly valid. However booking Preferred Location would not normally get you a king bed, just a standard or garden view in buildings 14, 15, 18 or 27.

Andre

 

[celina14]

Booking early doesn't make any difference, requests are only looked at a few days before arrival and there is no reference made to when a request was made. Sending a fax makes much more of a difference.

Yes, King Bed rooms are sold under that category only - so booking a King bed and requesting a river view, or building 14, would be perfectly valid. However booking Preferred Location would not normally get you a king bed, just a standard or garden view in buildings 14, 15, 18 or 27.

Andre

Ok, that makes sense. Thanks so much for your help!

 

[cheerful chickadee]

We're exactly 2 weeks away from our trip and have been trying to come up with a room request. I really want to stay in the mansions section of the resort, we've booked a standard view. I saw some people talk about the touring plans room request fax, what exactly is this?

 

[lttlmc3]

Can we all talk about the song that they play every so often at the food court? "Here At the Riverside" or something like that? My husband and I found this hilarious.

 

[catdrj]

We will be at POR Jan 22-25 (our first time...so excited!). During that time, the main pool will be closed. Does anyone know if there is access to the rest of the island? I'm especially interested in taking the kids to the campfire there. Also, I read something about marshmallows at the campfire...are they provided for free?

 

[andrewilley]

We will be at POR Jan 22-25 (our first time...so excited!). During that time, the main pool will be closed. Does anyone know if there is access to the rest of the island? I'm especially interested in taking the kids to the campfire there. Also, I read something about marshmallows at the campfire...are they provided for free?

The rest of the island will be open, for cross-route walking, campfire, kids' playground and fishing hole. The closures will be the main pool, kiddies pool, hot tub and the Muddy Rivers pool bar.

Marshmallows are provided for free at the campfire, or you can bring your own smores kit if you want.

Andre

 

[Muskegon78]

The rest of the island will be open, for cross-route walking, campfire, kids' playground and fishing hole. The closures will be the main pool, kiddies pool, hot tub and the Muddy Rivers pool bar.

Marshmallows are provided for free at the campfire, or you can bring your own smores kit if you want.

Andre

Have you heard any updates for the timeframe of the pool closure?

 

[andrewilley]

Have you heard any updates for the timeframe of the pool closure?

No changes to what I posted before, no. Still the same.

Andre

 

[CandiceF]

We just returned fro 8 days at CBR and 1 day at Riverside. We loved Riverside so much that we booked a Free dining bounce back for September 2016! My question is, what is the difference between a standard view and river view, besides the view of water? We could only get river view with the free dining bounce back for the end of September. We would prefer to go in November but Riverside was not included in free dining this year. Does Riverside usually offer a room only discount for November? If we got a 25% room discount on a standard room and added base tickets and the dining plan it looks like we would only be paying around $90 more. Sorry I am rambling, we are just excited for Riverside and trying to figure out if river view is worth the extra cost?

 

[andrewilley]

My question is, what is the difference between a standard view and river view, besides the view of water?

Just the view, there is no other difference. Standard Views almost all face out towards the parking lots (on the outer perimeter of the resort buildings) while River Views face the... um, well... river, and thus they overlook the inner pathway around Ol Man Island (so they are also going to be pretty well located for reducing the walking distances too).

Andre

 

[CandiceF]

Just the view, there is no other difference. Standard Views almost all face out towards the parking lots (on the outer perimeter of the resort buildings) while River Views face the... um, well... river, and thus they overlook the inner pathway around Ol Man Island (so they are also going to be pretty well located for reducing the walking distances too).

Andre

Thank-you so much for the reply! View is not that important to us because with 3 kids we are not in the room that much. I think it seems like a lot more money just for a view. Do you know if they usually offer a room only discount for Riverside in November?