CallingAll Experts.....Which Moderate?

[DarthGoofy]

We are thinking about a Moderated instead of a Value for our May trip.

It will be myself, DW, and our DS(4).

Give me the good, the bad, and the ugly on your favorite Moderate, and which do you think would be the best for our son?

I never been to a Moderate, and need all the help I can get.

 

[litlpixie]

#1 fan of Alligator Bayou checking in to give my opinion on PO Riverside. The place is our personal favorite. Clean rooms and decently priced food court, beautifully landscaped, quiet, charming. It had all that my 3 kids needed and wanted. Boat to and from DD is soooo cool especially at night. Quiet pools all over the resort with laundry facilities at each pool area was convenient---never a crowded spot!!! Can't wait till April!!

 

[DisneyKidds]

Im my opinion Port Orleans Riverside is the best of the moderates. I think it is the best themed of the moderate resorts and the grounds are beautiful. You really feel like you are in the Old South. I like the Mansions. Old Man Island has a nice pool with a water slide, and there is a big playground as well. Over on the Rumors and News board we have lots of discussions about things like Disney resorts. There are some pretty tough critics over there and most generally agree that POR (Dixie Landings as it used to be known) was Disney's best effort at a moderate resort as far as having an immersive theme. POR Riverside has some nice touches, including boat transportation to Downtown Disney, Horse and Carriage rides around the property, a good full service restaurant, and an extensive food court.

Of course you will find lots of other people with different favorite mod resorts - even in our house. My DW likes Coronado Springs best. For her, the newer the better and CS is the newest of the mods. The grounds are very nice, as is the pool with slide. There is also a nice playground for the kids. Pepper Market is an upscale food court with very good food. Since CS caters to Disney conventions there are a few more amenities, such as up scale full service restaurant and bars.

Good luck deciding.

 

[Terk-1]

This is the BEST moderate on property for many, many reasons!! This is the smallest moderate resort, which makes it so easy to get around. No matter which building you are in, it takes minutes to get to the pool, main building & bus stop. There is only one bus stop here. It does share some of it's buses with POR, but always picks up and drops off at POFQ first. The pool is nice and there is a hot tub tucked away behind the pool bar. The atmosphere is beautiful and so is this resort. Haved stayed at POR & CBR and won't stay there again for several reasons, but one main one being it being so spread out.

So, the French Quarter is my vote for the BEST moderate!!!!

 

[DisneyKidds]

French Quarter is currently closed for rehab and I don't know if a reopening date has been established.

 

[Buzz2001]

CSR is our favorite!!! Your sone will love the pool and slide! Check out my CSR website below for info and pics.

 

[sullins5]

We just luv CBR!!!Our 1st trip, DS was 4, DD was 3- they loved the pirate themed pool, the shop at the food court (with too cool items) and just being able to walk/run around. The Parrot Cay (an island walk-way) was just as much fun crossing. They loved how you could pick any food at the food court. The rooms are a bit larger than other mods, and even though we had standard rooms, we never had a 'bad' one.

The bus stops do take a little while, but with toddlers it seemed to build the excitement - "Is this the one or the one behind it?"
And yes, the resort is spread out, but if your active at all (and chances are with a toddler you are) it's quite fun. We always rent the boats, bikes, feed the ducks, and walk alot.

Going back to CBR in May - Now with teens and yet another toddler!

 

[wld]

We have stayed at what used to be All four moderates and here is our take.
1st trip ever was CBR when DD's were 8 and 11. Since we knew nothing and had never seen these boards we were put in the South something buildings and it took about 10 minutes to walk to the food court. Although it was beautiful......well the walk wasn't so great.

2nd trip was Port Orleans DD's 9 and 12. Again farthest building but this is such a small resort it wasn't too bad and we loved the boat trip to downtown disney. The girls also loved the pool with the dragon slide.

3rd trip and 4th trip was Coronado Springs. 1st time, you guessed it farthest building so again a bit of a walk. 2nd time we found these boards and we were close to everything. This is a beautiful resort and the girls love the food court. It is simply fantastic and romantic at night. The pool area is cool too. It is also the most visually appealing from "curbside" we think.

5th trip was with family that wanted to stay at CBR much to our dismay. Since we now knew how to get closer to everything we did and managed to get a really nice location with Standard View that was actually a little garden area right outside our door and no parking lot in sight. We loved this and the walk to the food court but the pool area is not our favorite.(we had a 4 year old with us on this trip and he seemed to love it)

6th trip just parents WL Didn't care for it and would have rather been at the moderates!!

7th trip Port Orleans (Old Dixie Landings) Stayed in mansions but on walking around think I would have been happier in bayou but girls now 16 and 20 (how did that happen) loved the mansions DH didn't care but loved the resort. Again we love the boat ride. Didn't use the pool area.

I'm not sure what my personal favorite is, or my families as we love them all for different reasons and I really think you would be happy at any. Just pick whichever theme visually appeals to you the most.

 

[Kelmag]

I've been to them all and POR (or Dixie Landing's, as I will always refer to it) is the best.

 

[lulugirl]

Originally posted by Kelmag
I've been to them all and POR (or Dixie Landing's, as I will always refer to it) is the best.

I agree, it really is a beautiful resort!

 

[sullins5]

DarthGoofy -
So I guess it just depends on you, your family - your likes, dislikes, active/non-active - what you're looking for in a resort -
I've notice from all the Disboarders, we all have our fav's and not-so fav's. I always ask myself "What am I in the mood for - an island resort that feels like I'm in the Carribbean?" or a down home feel - southern belle type resort, or .............

As you can see, we all differ, but any and I repeat ANY are wonderful!!!

I'm live in Ms. so I have all the Southern culture you can get, so we as a family tend to go the other 'routes'.

Have Fun!!!!!

 

[jvas]

Gotta go with POR!
It's a beautiful resort...my entire family loves it! As you have already heard, the grounds are beautiful, we love the pools,
food court, and the bar!