Home from POR today 10/30

[Coloradomom]

Some interesting things to share. This was our 6th time at POR and as usual it did not disappoint. We arrived about 7:30 PM on 10/22,left this AM at 6:30. Me, DH, DD age 15 and DS age 19 for the first 3 days.

1. We were in room 3751 in AB. It had just had the renovation complete according to our bellman. Had a coffeemaker and refrigerator in the room. Everything new and clean..spotless. Coffee was supplied every day and once our housekeeper noticed that DH (the coffee drinker) only drinks decaf that is what she left.

2. The frig is encased in a ice wood like cabinet, with a top that has a little shelf on the back. Very handy for keeping our food supplies,cups and bowls on. We thought this was a classy touch.

3. The new tilework in the bath area is so pretty. The curtain between the bedroom and bath area was very handy. There are also dimmers to control the light levels on the lamps over the beds.

4.As has been mentioned here, the mattresses are amazingly comfortable.DH never sleeps well in hotels, even in WDW,but he slept like a rock every night.Only drawback...they are higher up so if you are short like me, it works best to slide out of bed in the AM.

5. We liked the location a lot. It was a short, about 1 minute walk to the north depot, and about a 4 minute walk to the west depot. Our strategy here was that in the mornings we went to the west depot so we'd get a seat (I really hate to stand on the buses). Then we would get off at the north depot. When we went back to the parks in the later afternoon, we'd do north depot since it is not as busy then.

6. Ole Man Island was fine.DD liked the new additions of the water sprays. Only downside is that the lifeguards leave at 8, and after that people tend to monopolize the hottub, staying in it much longer than the 15 minutes indicated on the safety rules. Some nights it was impossible to get in, one group in particular was there every night. This group also had glass beer bottles. The other tough part of the hot tub for us was that people were smoking there. This is not prohibited,but DD has severe asthma and cannot be around smoke of any kind as it is her worst trigger. So even if there was room, the smoking precluded her going in, especially since it was the same group monopolizing the tub.

All in all, we think they did a nice job on the renovation. They were working on bldg 38, but all of it was inside..the outside work had been done.We could see the workers in the rooms and some nights they left the lights on in the empty rooms.Looks almost done.

Hope this helps. Thanks to everyone for their great tips..we had a wonderful time.

 

[Captain Blue Sky]

Very cool POR report, Coloradomom!

We (DW, DD - 10, DD - 5, & me) are staying at POR in June. Have never stayed there, so I am very much glad to hear such positive feedback from your experience!!

Tell me, do you happen to know how far along they are in renovating the room interiors? When do you think it will all be done?

Another question, how was the bus transportation? Granted, it is an off-peak season (value?). Any problems there??

When you refer to AB, is that Alligator Bayou? I'm not quite fluent with all the abbreviations yet...

Thanks again for your insights!! It sounds like you had a great time at POR!

 

[ciera321]

Loved hearing your great review on POR. We are planning to stay at POR for the first time in May/ June 2005 and now I know for sure that's the right choice for us. Now I just have to decide if the mansions or the AB are right for us. Sounds like we would be happy with either one!! Did your newly renovated room have the same rustic timber type headboards or did they update those, too? Thanks again for a great review!!!!

 

[soccer mom]

Thanks for the report, Coloradomom!

We (DH, myself, DD 16 & DS 18) will be arriving January 4 at POR.
I have a few questions:

Do you know if all rooms have blowdryers now? Don't want to lug a blow dryer, but don't want to get caught with a wet head!

I requested AB rooms close to food court. If we happen to get further away, how long do you think it takes to walk to food court from furthest point (DH always goes to get our breakfasts while we get ready and we eat in the room).

Also, I am worried about getting connecting rooms. They were always guaranteed when we brought all four of our children and they were all minors. Now we are down to just two and one is not a minor, but I would be terribly disappointed if we were not all together!

Thanks for your help!

Jo

 

[Coloradomom]

Captain Blue Sky: from what our bellhop said it sounds like they are almost done. Yes, AB is Alligator Bayou.
Bus transportation was fine. Actually October is now regular season, it is not as crowded as summer but is more crowded than it used to be when we started going there in October 9 years ago. We really like the bus system, and have never had a problem at all. In fact it must have been great luck or timing because we had only one wait over 10 minutes on this trip.

Ciera 321: the renovated rooms have the same headboards but they also have pretty decorative curtains on the wall behind them.We have stayed in Mansions before but tend to like the overgrown feel of AB, but that is just us.

Soccermom: We did two rooms when our son, who is now in college, was in high school and came for the entire week. We never had a problem getting connecting rooms,even with the two of them (then ages 13 and 18).
Don't know about all the rooms but our renovated one did have one and it worked well.
Re: food court, funny you should ask because that is exactly what my DH does every morning. Kids eat cereal that we bring but I like a hot breakfast so he went and got it for me. From bldg 37, which is a healthy walk, to get there, get my food and get back was about a 20 minute round trip at about 7:15. Later in the morning would likely take longer since the food court gets busier.

 

[Stini228]

Glad ya had a good time!! We'll be there in less than a month and are hoping for a renovated room