It's The Port Orleans FAQ Thread!!!

[HockeyMomR]

Another great time for a boat ride (if it's not too cold).....If you're using the bus to get from POR to the parks, instead of taking the night bus back to POR, take it to DTD then catch the boat back to POR. The last boat from DTD to POR leaves at either 11 or 11:30. DH and I did that then grabbed a cup of hot chocolate from the Riverside Mill and sat outside by the "River". It was a very nice way to end the day.

That sounds nice. We are planning to go to Epcot Tuesday evening for dinner and Illuminations (Mom missed Illuminations when she went to Disney with us two years ago). So, of course I have to take her to my favorite end of the day show! Is there a bus to DTD from Epcot or should we head over to BWI or my favorite BC and get a bus to DTD from there after Illuminations?

Also, any other hints about POR would be appreciated, how about building number recommendations; any? or should we leave it to luck as we will be there for such a short visit? How about busses? This is one concern of mine. Thanks for the help

 

[TruBlu]

What is the pirate cruise?

Since my boys have not done the one at POR yet (they will in June), I'll tell you about the one at CBR.

The kids (ages 4-10) meet at the dock at 9:30, put on life jackets and pirate gear, then board a "pirate ship" (pontoon boat) with CM pirates. Parents are not allowed to go. They follow a treasure map and eventually find a treasure chest (after going to several ports/beaches). At one point they steal their lunch - pb&j, goldfish, rice crispy, juice. Eventually they return to port, open the treasure chest, and split up the booty. I think they got back around 11:30-12:00. My boys said that if was the most fun thing at Disney.

 

[lucky978]

how can i post pictures from the my pictures part of my computer? we were in building 39 in rooms 3905 and 3906 and i could not have asked for a better location. we were far enough from a road that we heard not one car and when we opened our front door, i could see the kids swimming in the quiet pool that was 5 feet from our door.

I would love to see your pictures. You must first load them to a photo website - I use photobucket.com.

I'm not real good at explaining it, but it's not that hard once you figure it out. There is a 'tech support' board on this site that will help you.

http://disboards.com/showthread.php?s=&postid=4886029#post4886029

Good luck - and I hope to see your photo's soon.

 

[kxmeeh]

okay, i've been playing with this for an hour...let's hope this works. this is the view of the quiet pool from our room door. i could not have asked for a better location. we were in room 3905

 

[kxmeeh]

wow, that actually worked...but it's really big. let's try something else. this was christmas morning. we set up the presents and the tree while the kids slept. it was completly classic...the youngest woke up, said it christmas, can we sleep in. she rolled over to go back to bed, saw the treeon the other side of the room and said....we did get presents, only she yelled it.

 

[CleKait]

My mom and I are trying to plan for our May trip and she can't decide on a hotel. We are trying to find a Moderate or Value we like, but Deluxes are out of the question or else we would have the WL booked already

I love the look of the Port Orleans Resorts!

My mom's question is though how's the buses for Riverside like?

 

[schaery]

My mom and I are trying to plan for our May trip and she can't decide on a hotel. We are trying to find a Moderate or Value we like, but Deluxes are out of the question or else we would have the WL booked already

I love the look of the Port Orleans Resorts!

My mom's question is though how's the buses for Riverside like?

The buses run pretty consistently from POR to the parks. POR does share buses with POFQ so they can be a little crowded and the ride a little long sometimes. The bus to MK was always the busiest, and a few times we had to wait for another to come along because we didn't want to have to stand up on the bus. I really don't have any complaints, however, as I didn't mind all that. I love POR so I would definitely choose it again. (We stayed in Alligator Bayou, Bldg 16, and the bus stop was within a quick walk of the room).

 

[schaery]

That sounds nice. We are planning to go to Epcot Tuesday evening for dinner and Illuminations (Mom missed Illuminations when she went to Disney with us two years ago). So, of course I have to take her to my favorite end of the day show! Is there a bus to DTD from Epcot or should we head over to BWI or my favorite BC and get a bus to DTD from there after Illuminations?

Also, any other hints about POR would be appreciated, how about building number recommendations; any? or should we leave it to luck as we will be there for such a short visit? How about busses? This is one concern of mine. Thanks for the help

Yes, there are buses from all the parks to DTD. You just can't catch a bus from one resort to another. (well, except for POR to POFQ, I guess). In December, we stayed in Alligator Bayou, Bldg 16. It was perfect for us. Just far enough away from the pool/restaurant/buses so as not to be annoying but just close enough that it was a quick walk to each.

The buses run very frequently from POR but do tend to get crowded as they share with POFQ. There were a few times that we waited for the next bus because we didn't want to stand up all the way to the parks. However, we were there 2 weeks before Christmas and the crowds were picking up a little. I don't think it will be quite as crowded now.

The food court, Riverside Mill, has excellent counter service meals very reasonably priced. I started to recommend buying the souvenir cup at $12 so that you can get unlimited refills but just being there for 2 days, you probably won't spend a lot of time at the resort. Hey, it's a nice souvenir anyway. And, they have a great gift shop if you don't want to spend time at the parks shopping.

 

[CleKait]

The buses run pretty consistently from POR to the parks. POR does share buses with POFQ so they can be a little crowded and the ride a little long sometimes. The bus to MK was always the busiest, and a few times we had to wait for another to come along because we didn't want to have to stand up on the bus. I really don't have any complaints, however, as I didn't mind all that. I love POR so I would definitely choose it again. (We stayed in Alligator Bayou, Bldg 16, and the bus stop was within a quick walk of the room).

Thanks for the information, I'll pass it along to my indecisive mother.

 

[Silly Little Pixie]

We just got back (Nov. 8-11) from POR and the bus situation was just horrible. We waited at least 25 minutes for a bus each time. Friday morning we decided to walk to the main bus stop for an MGM bus. We waited 30 minutes for a bus and saw 5 MK buses, 2 epcot, even a couple DTD buses at 930am. I talked to a family standing near me and they had been there for 10 minutes longer then we had so it was that we had just missed the bus. Another time it was 40 minutes to get a bus to epcot. The resort itself is wonderful and very pretty through. The room we had was great and I love the AB building we stayed in.

Oh no!!! Those are the dates we'll be there this November. I've heard the bus situation is bad at POR... and one thing that irritates me and gets me in a grumpy mood is waiting and waiting for the bus... yeah yeah I know, chill out, but I do know from previous trips this is the one thing that pushes my buttons.

Should I consider moving our ressie to POFQ then? We've not been to PO before so it won't really make a difference probably to us.

 

[schaery]

Oh no!!! Those are the dates we'll be there this November. I've heard the bus situation is bad at POR... and one thing that irritates me and gets me in a grumpy mood is waiting and waiting for the bus... yeah yeah I know, chill out, but I do know from previous trips this is the one thing that pushes my buttons.

Should I consider moving our ressie to POFQ then? We've not been to PO before so it won't really make a difference probably to us.

POR and POFQ share buses so that won't help you out there. I've never been in early Nov. and so can't tell you if that was just an exceptionally busy week last year or just a normal thing. I didn't feel our waits were too bad the 2nd week of Dec. Maybe there was some convention going on at that time. You may want to check around the "net" and see if there are any planned for that week this year. You may can call POR and see if they have any conventions booked for that week.

 

[HockeyMomR]

Yes, there are buses from all the parks to DTD. You just can't catch a bus from one resort to another. (well, except for POR to POFQ, I guess). In December, we stayed in Alligator Bayou, Bldg 16. It was perfect for us. Just far enough away from the pool/restaurant/buses so as not to be annoying but just close enough that it was a quick walk to each.

The buses run very frequently from POR but do tend to get crowded as they share with POFQ. There were a few times that we waited for the next bus because we didn't want to stand up all the way to the parks. However, we were there 2 weeks before Christmas and the crowds were picking up a little. I don't think it will be quite as crowded now.

The food court, Riverside Mill, has excellent counter service meals very reasonably priced. I started to recommend buying the souvenir cup at $12 so that you can get unlimited refills but just being there for 2 days, you probably won't spend a lot of time at the resort. Hey, it's a nice souvenir anyway. And, they have a great gift shop if you don't want to spend time at the parks shopping.

schaery -Thank you again for your quick response to my questions. I am getting excited about trying a new resort with just my mom! I really like your plan going to DTD after Epcot and then taking the boat back to Riverside! Thanks for the building recommendation!

 

[MS_mom_1965]

I had planned to take the boat to DTD and back a couple of evenings during our upcoming March trip. I'm afraid it may be a little cool then. Are the boats enclosed in any way, or just open?

 

[DRRluvsWDW]

wow, that actually worked...but it's really big. let's try something else. this was christmas morning. we set up the presents and the tree while the kids slept. it was completly classic...the youngest woke up, said it christmas, can we sleep in. she rolled over to go back to bed, saw the treeon the other side of the room and said....we did get presents, only she yelled it.

Your room looks great! How exciting!
Did your corner room have a king? WE will have 2 beds with a trundle in AB. I requested a corner room, but was told those were only kings.
Your Christmas am looks wonderful!

 

[lucky978]

okay, i've been playing with this for an hour...let's hope this works. this is the view of the quiet pool from our room door. i could not have asked for a better location. we were in room 3905

Great pics! Thank you for sharing. You certainly look like you put alot of effort into making Christmas morning magical - and it looks like it was a success! I can't imaging lugging all those gifts to and from Florida! But it certainly looks amazing.

Thanks again for sharing!

 

[LisaNJ25]

okay, i've been playing with this for an hour...let's hope this works. this is the view of the quiet pool from our room door. i could not have asked for a better location. we were in room 3905

We spent a lot of time in that pool and laundry room behind

 

[DisneyJo]

wow, that actually worked...but it's really big. let's try something else. this was christmas morning. we set up the presents and the tree while the kids slept. it was completly classic...the youngest woke up, said it christmas, can we sleep in. she rolled over to go back to bed, saw the treeon the other side of the room and said....we did get presents, only she yelled it.

So cute, how did you manage to keep the presents hidden?

 

[schaery]

I had planned to take the boat to DTD and back a couple of evenings during our upcoming March trip. I'm afraid it may be a little cool then. Are the boats enclosed in any way, or just open?

No, they're open. I'll see if I can upload a picture of the ferry for you. In March, it's hard to say what the weather may be like in FL. Could be shorts weather one day and coats the next. I think you'll be fine if you bring a jacket.

Woohoo, there's the picture but kinda big. Sorry.

 

[schaery]

schaery -Thank you again for your quick response to my questions. I am getting excited about trying a new resort with just my mom! I really like your plan going to DTD after Epcot and then taking the boat back to Riverside! Thanks for the building recommendation!

By the way, in case you get Bldg. 16, when you get off the bus, you'll notice a pathway in the bushes behind the depot....it's a shortcut to the parking lot for Bldg. 16. We took the shortcut coming and going. Of course, there are paths that are marked to tell you how to get to the bus stop but my DH is all for shortcuts so he noticed the "beaten path" the 1st time we rode the bus. .

 

[Cixelsyd]

DF and I are trying to decide between POFR and POR for our honeymoon trip in late August. Would someone please help us out by comparing the two in terms of a relaxing, quiet, and romantic atmosphere? I assume FQ has less hustle and bustle since it's smaller, but I'd rather have people's take based on first hand experience. Thanks a million!