Disapointed with PORiverside!!

[Laugh O. Grams]

We just got back from a 10 day vacation at WDW on Sunday. We spent our first 7 nights at AKL and, as usual, loved it! First time we ever treated a WDW vacation as a real "vacation". Had room service-breakfast in bed every morning and actually spent the first 3 days just lounging by the pool, the weather was picture perfect, and didn't even think about going to the parks (much ). Dinners at all of our favorite restaurants, 2 at Jiko, 2 at Cali Grille, 1 at Portabello.

Our last 2 nights, we had friends come up from south Florida and they were staying at PORiverside, so we switched resorts to be closer to them. Huge mistake! I can't believe the difference in quality from one resort to the next, even if one is deluxe and the other moderate. Mold on the shower tiles, beds the size of postage stamps, and the resorts exterior finishes needed some refreshing. Even the attitude of resort's guests changed for the worse. From smiling and happy, nodding and saying hello as you passed each other in the hallways, to no looking up, no smiling, nothing. C'mon people, we're still at WDW, right?!? I will have to say that the one thing PORiverside has going for it is the piano guy at the bar next to Boatwright's. He was great! Loved seeing our friends, but next time, we all stay at our fav, AKL.

 

[wildernesslodgelover]

Arrrrgh! I am so confused! We usually stay at WL, and have stayed at AKL once and LOVED it! we stayed at CSR on our first trip and were very happy there...but now we are afraid to go back to a mod after staying at deluxes! We were planning an anniversary trip...just DH and I..and we were gonna stay at POFQ or POR but now I am having second thoughts!

 

[highland3]

Argh! You've got me worried now. We've heard soooo many good things about POR, I can't believe you had such a bad experience.

Please, someone make me feel better about POR!!!!!!

 

[tiggersmom2]

Argh! You've got me worried now. We've heard soooo many good things about POR, I can't believe you had such a bad experience.

Please, someone make me feel better about POR!!!!!!

Highland3 - POR is My FAVORITE moderate!!!!! Nothing is better than having an Alligator Bayou room and feeling like you stepped into a Huck Finn/Tom Sawyer storybook!!!!! The landscaping is.....ahhhh.....beautiful, my kids LOVED the playground and the abundant small pools are a godsend.

 

[Laugh O. Grams]

Do yourself a favor, especially if your doing it for something special, like an anniversary, and spring for the Deluxe. You will be so much happier. I love WDW and everything about it, but the difference between the quality levels is enormous!! We stayed at the Alligator Bayou, Bldg. 24, room 2435. I'm not bashinging PORiverside out of anything but to help others better enjoy their trips. Trust me, you will be happy you did!

 

[TaurusSES_Sport]

We did not like AKL at all, and felt it was just the opposite. We loved POR though!

 

[bytheblood]

Highland3 - POR is My FAVORITE moderate!!!!! Nothing is better than having an Alligator Bayou room and feeling like you stepped into a Huck Finn/Tom Sawyer storybook!!!!! The landscaping is.....ahhhh.....beautiful, my kids LOVED the playground and the abundant small pools are a godsend.

I totally agree. You will be happy with your choice.

 

[kjs1976]

OF COURSE a mod is going to be a waaaaayyyy different expereince when you've just come from a deluxe!!!! C'mon! You can't go from AKL to POR and not notice differences. I don't think it is a fair review in those respects. You will be more spoiled at a deluxe. We stayed at AKL last May and wanted to always be able to stay there. Yes, our future WDW visits at mods or values can't be anywhere near compared to our fabulous experience there...it's a deluxe...they are just nicer in so many respects!

Keep that in mind...those of you who see this initial review of POR and begin to have second thoughts.

 

[Laugh O. Grams]

We did not like AKL at all, and felt it was just the opposite. We loved POR though!

Wow!! I find that unbelievable! I guess, to each his, or her, own. Good luck in your decision!!

 

[chimera]

POFQ/POR are the only moderates we'll stay at. We love the theming and beignets at FQ!

When we were there last Sept, they were doing a lot of work on some of the buildings at POR. There was a whole section that was closed in the mansion area. Maybe all the buildings are slated for some refurbishing?

 

[Nolcrest]

Don't let this discourage anyone from staying at a moderate or POR. The wonderful thing about Disney is they have resorts to suit all tastes.

I've stayed at deluxes and moderates and quite frankly prefer moderates right now.

If the theming appeals to you don't worry about it. Everyone is looking for something different on their vacation.

Thanks for the post though. I like reading about everyone's experiences.

 

[kate]

Agree with TaurusSES_Sport; we just returned from a split resort 11 day vacation. Stayed 1st at AKL. Found the staff slow, unfriendly and unhelpful. Room was dirty. Calls to front desk received no results. Requested and paid for a Savanna room with a view. Had a view - of other folks' windows. Requested a different room, was told none were available (at 1pm) and that none would be available during our stay. Will not stay there again. 2nd part of visit was spent at POR. Requested a renovated room. Received a renovated room. Service was great. Room was great. Will stay there again.

 

[highland3]

Thanks folks! I'm feeling better now. This close in the countdown I didn't want to worry about the resort.... just the fun!

 

[Laugh O. Grams]

Agree with TaurusSES_Sport; we just returned from a split resort 11 day vacation. Stayed 1st at AKL. Found the staff slow, unfriendly and unhelpful. Room was dirty. Calls to front desk received no results. Requested and paid for a Savanna room with a view. Had a view - of other folks' windows. Requested a different room, was told none were available (at 1pm) and that none would be available during our stay. Will not stay there again. 2nd part of visit was spent at POR. Requested a renovated room. Received a renovated room. Service was great. Room was great. Will stay there again.

Hey! Were you following me?!? When were you there and who gave you our itinerary ? I honestly can't believe that you had such a different experience but who am I to argue? You mentioned a great tip that I wasn't privy to. We always stay at Deluxes and usually at AKL, so I had no idea that you are required to ask for a new, renovated in order to get a quality room at POR. In the future, I would suggest that anyone staying at POR request a renovated room or you may have a similar experience as me. On a positive note, all who enjoy staying at POR won't have to worry about me taking up rooms at your favorite resort. I'll be at AKL !

 

[A Mickeyfan]

Beds the size of postage stamps??? Did you not know that the deluxe have the queen size beds & mods have the full? As far as the place itself...PO-R has to be one of the nicer resorts on property... but to each his own. As other poster have commented, you can't compare the property of a deluxe to one of a moderate. If you paid what you had paid for a deluxe than complain about the size of the bed, but when you pay for a moderate, you are getting what you paid for....if that makes sence to you. We love PO-R (and FQ for that matter) Last June we stayed 11 days at PO-FQ, and the June before that it was PO-R... and both times, I didn't want to go home

 

[MiJo]

thoroughly enjoyed it, again! We have also stayed at AKL and enjoyed that, too. POR was recently refurbished. I must admit that we didn't think Mousekeeping was quite up to snuff and we did have a small stain on the carpet near the table. No big deal. We had a King bed and I thought it was too big! I never knew if my DW was in bed or not. As for the people, when we were there, many of the guests were there for an IBM conference. I admit, everyone carrying one of the special conference backpacks seemed miserable, until the last night. It turns out they were spending 12 hours a day in conferences. Everyone else staying at POR was friendly. We had quite a few nice conversations in the spa durin our stay. We even met another DIS'r there and a CM who works in the hair dept. at the MK. Perhaps a trip to the River Roost lounge to see Bob "The Piano Man" Jackson perform would have helped Laugh O Grams enjoy this resort. We sure do!

 

[rkmassa]

Do yourself a favor, especially if your doing it for something special, like an anniversary, and spring for the Deluxe. You will be so much happier. I love WDW and everything about it, but the difference between the quality levels is enormous!! We stayed at the Alligator Bayou, Bldg. 24, room 2435. I'm not bashinging PORiverside out of anything but to help others better enjoy their trips. Trust me, you will be happy you did!

We stayed at POR for our 10th anniversary and couldn't have been happier. We stayed in the mansion section because the bayou area didn't appeal to us. Our room was clean and smelled fresh. The place was just wonderful. I wouldn't hesitate to stay there again. We just don't feel the price of deluxe is worth the huge extra expense. We spent our savings on a great Wishes cruise, great food, and lots of recreational activities. For those of you wondering if you shoud stay there, I wouldn't let the report of one person change your mind or worry you. There are far too many good reports about POR.

 

[Okiemom]

We loved the Riverside. The grounds are beautiful and the food court is one of the best. The river is nice too. I think it is unfair to compare a deluxe to a moderate. You pay more for the deluxe so it should be nice. I for one can not afford a deluxe, but I felt the Riverside was very, very nice. Don't 2nd guess your decision, I think you will love it!

 

[Mari annie]

I was in the hospitality industry for years and now I pay top dollar and stay at Disney Property 2xs yearly leaving tomarro for 10 days!
You had a rare incident. 1) you should of complained to the front desk mgr.
2) they should of changed your room asap or as soon as possible.

I myself prefer the POR (Alligator Bayou area) myself.
That's where were are staying 1/2 the trip! Then off to the Poly!

Wether you have x amount of dollars to spend or not, it's not the resort itself it's the travelers on vacation. People are people.
The people you probably encountered on your passing where probably from New England (I can say this I was born here and lived here most of my life)
having experienced life down South, there's a HUGE HUGE difference
a VERY VERY PLEASANT difference.
People here are cold, distant and not friendly for sure.
Even my kids say it.
I know that's rolling it all in a nutshell, but I believe that's what you may have encountered.
I hope that your issue was resolved. Never put up with any health issues in a hotel/motel. See the hotel manager right away.

We have encountered similiar issues at WDW over the years at both value and luxury and each has something to offer, don't dismiss one hotel over the other.
Rule of thumb traveler's what is posted on these threads doesn't necessarily mean your room is going to be that way.
A great attitude and a smile goes a long way!

May all of you enjoy your trips!
Pixie Dust to All!

ONE MORE DAY TO SEE MICKEY!!!

 

[coasterville]

I'm on the POR love train. I just returned from 7 nights at POR, and LOVED it.

We had a room in Oak Manor (9046), with a nice courtyard view with a fountain and everything, pretty nice for a 'standard' view room.

Never having stayed there, I didn't worry with making room requests and happily took what I got. The room was nice, beds was nice and firm, and all the amenties, the frige, hair dryer, coffee maker, not to mention the iron and board I didn't even think of using. Nice large (like a 27") TV set with front side A/V jacks that ARE operable. (I used them to view my digital pictures). We did have a broken leg on one of our chairs but a quick call to maintenance and they switched it out for another one.

Another big thing about POR is the quiet, their must be some good sound proofing between units cause it was nice and quiet in the room.

Then outside the room is the wonderful setting of a river running through the middle of the resort, the food court food was for the most part above average (stay away from the pizza), breakfast at Boatwrights was wonderful.

Friendly staff in registration, super fast bellhops, a great gift shop, the tranquility of the river cruise, the convenience of having 4 disney bus pickup/drop off points.

As someone else mentioned, a hidden gem of POR, that you won't find in the information packet you get when you check in is the piano player at the River Roost (the resorts cocktail lounge). If you are into singing along to oldies, standards, and campfire style songs, and have no inhibitions about doing silly things in front of people you will never see again, his shows are a laugh riot. One night when it was getting cold outside, we went to see his first set, ordered up some terrific nachos, and wound up staying for all three of his sets that night. I mean he rocks that piano, quite literally.

I will now be torn when it comes time to make future WDW plans, do I stick with a sure fire winner in POR, or do I try one of their other themes....