Port Orleans..French Quarter...or Riverside??

[MickeyRules94]

For those who stayed.. which is better... food... bus service.... better for kids... etc.. and anything else you can think of
Thanks

 

[disneyfanintn]

While I haven't stayed at both, this past June we spent the first night of our stay at French Quarter and loved it. It was great. We will definately stay here again.

River side just seems too big.

 

[TN Traveler]

We stayed at Riverside 5/30-6/54 and absolutely loved it. It is a very spread out and large property but it's also very, very pretty. Lots of trees, walkways, little ponds w/streams and bridges zig-
zagging everywhere. We were in bldg 28 in the Alligator Bayou.
The food in the Cafe is really good, the service was great and the accommodations were comfortable. I'd definitely stay there again.
I stayed at the French Quarter in Sept 2001. Enjoyed it also but think I like Riverside better.
Either way, you can't go wrong--it's DISNEY!!

Hey Disneyfanintn---We're from Gallatin!! Welcome to disboards!
Not sure where Pegram is but check out Meets boards......we're having a get together for Middle TN Disney folks. Check it out......!!

 

[Darth Eisner]

Riverside was definitely a highlight for my family on one of our many Disney excursions. We also stayed in Alligator Bayou and loved the room theming and grounds.

On our last trip all my wife did was lament staying at WL instead of coming back to Riverside. I know what you're thinking, but it was more the sense of isolation given when at Riverside as opposed to the more hotel-like atmosphere of the WL.

At Riverside we had a waterview right on the canal and spent our mornings and evenings walking the property. Rabbits and ducks everywhere, cane pole fishing and just a really neat turn of century riverwalk setting.

We are now on ther verge of divorce over whether or not to check out Port Orleans French Quarter. I want to stay at a different resort each visit and she just wants her Riverside.

Hope this helps!

 

[Lou-Ann]

LOL...........I think I owuld let her book her Riverside and then make a point of spending some time at PORFQ. Let it be her decision to try it and everyone will have a better time.........When mama;s not happy....no one's happy.....

 

[DCSingle]

I've stayed at both and think both have their own pros and cons so it really depends on what it important to you and your family.

Riverside is much more spread out with lots of pretty landscaping. This is great if just walking around and enjoying the atmosphere is fun for you and it also gives more of a sense of privacy even when the resort is crowded. A downside can be that some buildings can be a bit of a walk to the food court/main hub which can be difficult if any members of your family aren't good walkers or you don't want to haul the stroller out for every trip. French Quarter is much more compact which makes everything closer, but you do lose a bit on the feeling of privacy/crowdedness.

Both food courts are pretty good. I personally liked the atmosphere and spaciousness of the Riverside food court better and enjoyed overlooking the river and water wheel, but food and prices are similar. Riverside also has a sit down restaurant that we enjoyed, while FQ doesn't.

As for the pools, both have water slides. FQ slide is geared toward a bit younger crowd, while I saw lots of older kids and adults on the Riverside slide. I liked the shadier/more tropical atmosphere of the Riverside pool better.

We had a car on both trips so didn't use the buses much, but it's fun to take the boat to Downtown Disney from either resort. Room layout and furnishings are very similar between the two resorts and most/all rooms will shortly be refurbished so I don't think the rooms are much of a deciding factor.

I think these are both great resorts and you'll enjoy staying at either and can easily walk/boat/bus to the other to use any of the extra amenities (marina is at Riverside). For me I'd probably base the decision on which theme appeals most to me and whether I like a more compact or spread out layout.

 

[tink2]

We've stayed at both and while we loved both, we prefer POFQ. Both are beautiful resorts. We prefer POFQ because it is smaller which makes it easier with small chidren. Everything is so close by while at POR you have more of a walk. The food courts were both fine with us. POFQ has more of an advantage in buses too. The resorts usually share buses- with POFQ people being picked up and dropped off first- meaning your chances of getting a seat are much better at POFQ. Again, this is helpful with small children. Either way, you cannot go wrong. Both resorts are wonderful!!!

 

[Naisy68]

Here's another vote for POFQ. We just returned from there a week ago and I miss it terribly. It is a smaller resort and easy to get around. Also, there is only one bus stop (actually there are two but they have different destinations and they're right next to each other.) and it's the first to pick up/drop off at POFQ. We went over to POR and it was beautiful as well but I am partial to POFQ. Their food courts have similar items as well. The mugs are good at either resort food court too so that is nice. AND one more plus- The pool at POFQ has wonderful theming.

Bottom line - both resorts are beautiful but I felt that POFQ was a bit more convenient for our family.

 

[MickeyRules94]

Thanks to all who responded I really enjoyed all of your feedback and I felt it was very helpfull!
thanks again

 

[sters]

We stayed at the Alligator BAyou section of POR, because we are a family of 5 and that is the only section of any moderate that will accommodate families of 5. So, keep in mind that there are likely to be a lot of larger families in that section. We were in Building 17 near the quiet pool and laundry, which proved to be very convenient for an insomniac like me. This section was landscaped beautifully, with lots of winding paths and brides... it was divine, and a little disorienting at first. The mansion section was too sterile for my tastes, so I was very happy with our section of the resort.

The main pool area is just great! We passed the fishing hole and a wooden rustic-styled playground on our way to the main pool. There was a slide that the kids adored and a nicely themed pool area. A hot tub was tucked away not too far from the bar.

The food court at POR was cute, too. The kids liked sitting by the water wheel. There wasn't much of a line to worry about and I thought the food was very good! My son and I, both breakfast people, ate at the restaurant one morning. There was no line at all, service was excellent, and the food delicious. Very pleased. I went to the lounge one night for the cheezy piano act. People were having a good time.

There are bike rentals, carriage rides and a boat launch to DTD by the food court. All in all, I thought this resort had an awful lot to offer for a moderate.


I can't comment on the French Quarter. We are unlikely to ever stay there since we are a family of 5.