CBR or POR Riverside

[tmills]

Doing a trip this June & can't decide between Carribean Beach Resort or Port Orleans Riverside. There will be 4 of us (2 adults, dd 13 & ds 9). Which resort would you choose & why? We've stayed at POFQ & Cornado Springs (1 night), Wilderness Lodge, Animal Kingdom Lodge, SSR, AoA (family suites only) Pop Century & all of the All Star resorts. I'm wondering which has the best pools for kids & food options. TIA!

 

[crazylady]

I would choose POR. They both are big but the layout of CBR is awkward to me.

I think the grounds at POR are beautiful. It's very easy to navigate to the food court and lobby from the rooms. I love the concept of pool hopping with French Quarter but we've never done it. I don't love the boat to Disney Springs. It moves slow as molasses, I'd rather drive or take the bus.

FWIW, I just returned from my first trip to CBR since the reno and the new rooms looked great. The beds were really comfortable too.

 

[Sue M]

Both resorts are nice. At CBR room location is more of a make or break your stay. Because it's around a lake with only one bridge crossing.
POR is along a river, with multiple bridges. So more connections.
POR is our fav moderate, I think it has more to offer, with the boat to DTD, evening entertainment, and carriage rides. They also have cane fishing, in a peaceful beautiful area. The CM there is fun to talk to and a wealth of information. He's been there for years.

 

[HM2012Butler]

I have always favored POR over CBR. Both are nice and fairly peaceful but I think POr is even more relaxing and a lot of fun. There is just something that rubs me the wrong way about CBR. The lounge at POR is a lot of fun too

 

[DJFan88]

I've stayed at both twice. When the kids were small, CBR. But when my kids were your kids ages, POR worked great. There's more shade and the Dixie music playing is so nice and themed. Hands down, better food court and options. ( I love the make your own pasta, salad and yogurt options- in addition to the usuals) Don't forget you can easily walk over to POFQ to increase those options.

 

[AllieBoo]

We have stayed at both and definitely prefer POR! We just did not like CBR that much, even though we were in the Jamaica 45 building, which is one of the best in terms of location to the main pool, food court, etc. If if you weren't in one of the buildings that is close to everything, you would have a long hike to get to the main pool and food court. There is an inter-resort bus at CBR, that's how big it is. We found the bus service to the parks at CBR to be horrible.

POR is by the river and is very pretty - and the buses were much better for us.

 

[ELSA711]

We've always stayed at POR and loved it! Stayed at CBR this last trip and equally loved it. We really loved the beach, pool and bar. It was really nice and I am surprised I liked it so much.
We tried to go to POR for lunch because we love their QS and we regretted it. Always feel like it's so packed there.
We will definitely go back to CBR again but will alternate between the two. We did pay for preferred room at CBR and that helped a ton. Plus we had our car with us, so we weren't tied to bus service all the time.

 

[S550_Mustang]

I actually had made an account to ask this very same question. We are trying to decide between these two since the preferred room is practically the same price between the two. I will be going with my grandmother, mother and sister.Not to thread jack, but if you were to get a preferred room in CBR or POR, which would be the shorter walk to the main building with the food courts etc? Is the food court at one better or typically less crowded than the other? Buses better at one vs the other?

 

[JoannaTN7]

LOL! My, this is a common conundrum as it was one of my questions, too (though I was more inclined to do the French Quarter).

I settled on CBR because I can at least request a room with a murphy bed for my little one. My 13-year-old would rather not share a bed with her 5-year-old brother if it can be avoided! At Port Orleans you have to pay for a preferred room to get the murphy. Also, the CBR rooms are a little bigger and even though there are only 4 of us, any extra space would be a big help! I showed my daughter the pool for both and she loved them equally, though my little one kept gushing about the beach. I have heard that the size of CBR can be daunting, but we're a family of walkers so I think we'll be able to deal with the size of the resort tolerably.

Either way, I'm sure you'll have a great stay. Mine is still a ways off, but I'm getting this ball rolling now!

 

[Ensusieasm]

Doing a trip this June & can't decide between Carribean Beach Resort or Port Orleans Riverside. There will be 4 of us (2 adults, dd 13 & ds 9). Which resort would you choose & why? We've stayed at POFQ & Cornado Springs (1 night), Wilderness Lodge, Animal Kingdom Lodge, SSR, AoA (family suites only) Pop Century & all of the All Star resorts. I'm wondering which has the best pools for kids & food options. TIA!

POR for lots of reasons..... I just love the boat ride to Disney Springs. I love water that can take you somewhere vs. the lakes at CBR that go nowhere.

 

[Sue M]

I actually had made an account to ask this very same question. We are trying to decide between these two since the preferred room is practically the same price between the two. I will be going with my grandmother, mother and sister.Not to thread jack, but if you were to get a preferred room in CBR or POR, which would be the shorter walk to the main building with the food courts etc? Is the food court at one better or typically less crowded than the other? Buses better at one vs the other?

Can't answer about preferred room distance, as I haven't stayed in that category room. But I don't think there's a difference in food court crowds or bus service. On any given day no matter what resort, you can have bad or good bus service. I prefer the food court offerings at POR.

 

[hsmamato2]

Both ar elovely, but I like POR/POFQ complex by the river....

 

[RustManFan]

I like both a lot but always recommend CBR for families with little kids and POR for others!

 

[ricosuave]

We've stayed at both and I love CBR more than POR. They are both big resorts, I just like the tropical feel of CBR over the bayou. We just felt very disconnected from the resort. Like we were hiding in the swamp lands lol

 

[maxiesmom]

LOL! My, this is a common conundrum as it was one of my questions, too (though I was more inclined to do the French Quarter).

I settled on CBR because I can at least request a room with a murphy bed for my little one. My 13-year-old would rather not share a bed with her 5-year-old brother if it can be avoided! At Port Orleans you have to pay for a preferred room to get the murphy. Also, the CBR rooms are a little bigger and even though there are only 4 of us, any extra space would be a big help! I showed my daughter the pool for both and she loved them equally, though my little one kept gushing about the beach. I have heard that the size of CBR can be daunting, but we're a family of walkers so I think we'll be able to deal with the size of the resort tolerably.

Either way, I'm sure you'll have a great stay. Mine is still a ways off, but I'm getting this ball rolling now!

You don't have to pay for a preferred room to get a murphy bed at POR. You just have to request a room with one, and those rooms are all in the Bayou section. But they are not all preferred.

I've stayed at both, and to me it isn't even close. I much prefer POR over CBR. I didn't care for the food court at CBR at all. And while I walk all day long at work I don't want a 10 minute hike to get a pop refill at my resort. CBR is just sooooo big.

 

[DJFan88]

. And while I walk all day long at work I don't want a 10 minute hike to get a pop refill at my resort. .

In the straight out sun.!
Love the shade of POR.

 

[Tiggr924]

We prefer CBR The beachy theme is nice for the summer. We have never had a problem with the layout. The walk isn't too far. Of the 4 moderates, POR would be our 2nd choice. I think it really comes down to which theme you like best!

 

[coolbrook]

We have stayed at both and I would stay at either of them again. As far as table service restaurants I prefer Shutters at CBR over Boatwrights at POR. My DD12 preferred the pool at CBR to POR's because it was amore open area and it had two slides. I like the rooms at CBR right now since they have been recently refurbed. I do really like the boat to Disney Spring from the Port Orleans resorts. I like the lobby and big rocking chairs on the porch at POR. The food court area at CBR is pretty beat up looking. I think it need a refurb or at least some paint and flooring. I enjoyed the food at both food courts.

 

[Ariel on Land]

CBR is my favorite. There's just something about the colors and the atmosphere! The pool is better, there are hammocks on the beach. They pipe in tropical music as you walk along the grounds. It's just so relaxing! I was really disappointed there weren't any CBR rooms left in our discount, so had to go with POR. The rustic, bayou thing just doesn't appeal to me at all. Trying to get myself excited about it, but it's a struggle! I'm hoping when the fall discounts come out, I might be able to switch! So I vote CBR! But clearly, lots of others like POR too.... I suppose it's just a preference thing. They are really pretty similar when it comes down to it.

 

[soniam]

I have stayed at both in the last 2 years. Here are some points. I like both. It's a hard choice.

POR:

• Boat (a little slow) to Disney Springs
• Curtain, not a door, separating sink area from room
• Double sinks
• Main pool seems better for little kids (I don't know about any new pool/play areas, if there are any.)
• Food, lounge, gift shop, and checkin are all in one building
• Royal Rooms
• Great theming, but I love New Orleans
• Great lounge and Yee Haw Bob

CBR:

• Barn door separating sink area from room (provides more of a noise and light buffer)
• Double sinks
• Main pool seems to be better for older kids, and a nice play area for little ones
• Sand beaches
• Checkin/luggage service is in a separate building that's a bit of a walk from the food and gift shop
• A little big but not a problem for us
• Could see the Hollywood Studios Star Wars fireworks and Illuminations from parts of the hotel
• Very close to DHS
• Seems to have lower rates and gets better discounts
• Pirate Rooms only have double beds and curtain separating sinks from room
• Chairs at the little table in the room are metal and uncomfortable and seem cheap