It's The Port Orleans FAQ Thread!!!

[kileybeth]

buses should definitly be running but if you have an extra early ADR (say 7:30am @POLY) coming from POR then just go to main check in area and the concierge will let you know what to do and often even arrange the transportation for you. Disney will also hold a reservaation for you for up to 30 minutes if you are late arriving. Just let them know you are on your way.
wouldn't hurt to let them know it is your honeymoon as well! Congratulations!

 

[tink-princess]

Oh ty ty to you both! Im was so worried and thought all our reservations were gone to waste!

 

[DisneyCatMom]

I recently read TGM I think, that all the park buses technically are suppose to start running 45 minutes prior to the earliest park opening-so that would be 45 minutes prior to any EMH also.

 

[kileybeth]

It is also true that if you have an early ADR, and you are staying onsite, have used ME to get there, Disney is very happy to have you trapped there so to speak and will get you where ever you need to go, on them even if it has to be a cab.

 

[kxmeeh]

I guess I am in the minority here. I loved using me and using the busses. I thought it was great not having to worry about directions, other people with road rage because their kids are in the back seat saying are we there yet. getting back to reality and driving the 2 hours to get home from the airport, that's what i hate.

 

[themcgoos]

This is our 5th trip to WDW. We rented a car once and it sat in the parking lot unused the entire vacation. We love not having to drive while on vacation because like everyone else, we drive so much at home. We love the DME, the buses, the boats, etc.

 

[andrewilley]

We use the buses or the car depending on how we feel and which park we're going to, I guess I mostly tend to drive in the evenings when I'm going for EHM hours. The buses really are fine though, except at very busy times such as park closing immediately after fireworks when the queues can get very long - but to be fair, even then the buses do tend to run just as fast as they can load them.

For the MK we always take the bus, due to the remote location of the parking lot - except when we've got first-timers with us. In that case we always drive as there is NOTHING like crossing the Seven Seas Lagoon on the ferry boat and seeing the castle in the distance. Now that's a Magical Moment.

Andre

 

[cjstarr]

Once again our plans have changed (started at CSR then to CBR), we'll be staying at the POR from 6/29/08 to 7/05/08. This will be our first time staying at a DW resort. My question are simple and probably the same as all the others that have never stayed at a resort or the POR.
First our group of castaways are, me DH55, DW39, DD18, DS15, & DS5.
Since our DS5 has never been to DW this is the main reason we are going. (that and we have trouble explaining to him why he is not in our DW photos from 2001 when he ask )
So any information about POR that the Dis-members can offer we well be thankfull for. (like which rooms or building to stay at, boat, car, or bus to parks and so on)
Also I hear that a couple of rod & reals or fly rod might be in order?

Thanks to all

 

[kxmeeh]

old man island is alot of fun. if you have the time, swim there for a few hours during the day. the guards play games with the kids during the day. you don't need to bring a rod and reel if you are doing the catch and release fishing (opens at 6 am) they provide anything you woud need to fish, and it's great to get away. I love por and am going back in july. we are requesting the same building 39.you'll get more opinions about what rooms are better if we know what kind of room you booked, either standard or water view. water view booked for us, but we always request looking at a quiet pool instead of the river. my girls favorite part of por was opening the door and seeing a pool they could jump in at any time. i posted these pics on another page on here, but i have no idea which one. oh yeah, f you're on the ddp, i would highly recommend the CS at the food court. we ate there 3 times during our stay and didn't eat the same thing twice. this was the view from our door

 

[cjstarr]

old man island is alot of fun. if you have the time, swim there for a few hours during the day. the guards play games with the kids during the day. you don't need to bring a rod and reel if you are doing the catch and release fishing (opens at 6 am) they provide anything you woud need to fish, and it's great to get away. I love por and am going back in july. we are requesting the same building 39.you'll get more opinions about what rooms are better if we know what kind of room you booked, either standard or water view. water view booked for us, but we always request looking at a quiet pool instead of the river. my girls favorite part of por was opening the door and seeing a pool they could jump in at any time. i posted these pics on another page on here, but i have no idea which one. oh yeah, f you're on the ddp, i would highly recommend the CS at the food court. we ate there 3 times during our stay and didn't eat the same thing twice. this was the view from our door

kxmeeh thanks for the reply, we requested a river water view as I grew up along the Savanna river and spent many a days roaming up and down its banks as a kid in Augusta Ga. As for the fishing do you need to rent a rod & reel of is it provided for you free of charge on request? I’m sure my DS5, DS15, & DD18 would love to catch a few. We have a few here and a couple of fly rods as well.
We are on the DxDDP it seem to be better for us as it will give us more flexibility to do some of the character breakfast & dinners for DS5.
If you remember where you left your photos at please let us know as we would love to see them.

Thanks again!!!

 

[pkondz]

Once again our plans have changed (started at CSR then to CBR), we'll be staying at the POR from 6/29/08 to 7/05/08. This will be our first time staying at a DW resort. My question are simple and probably the same as all the others that have never stayed at a resort or the POR.
First our group of castaways are, me DH55, DW39, DD18, DS15, & DS5.
Since our DS5 has never been to DW this is the main reason we are going. (that and we have trouble explaining to him why he is not in our DW photos from 2001 when he ask )
So any information about POR that the Dis-members can offer we well be thankfull for. (like which rooms or building to stay at, boat, car, or bus to parks and so on)
Also I hear that a couple of rod & reals or fly rod might be in order?

Thanks to all

You can rent individual cane poles for $4.26 per half hour or you can choose the Family cane pole fishing adventure, for up to 6 people that costs $13.32 per half hour.

Since there are 5 of you, you will have to room in Alligator Bayou (trundle bed for the little one). Buildings 14, 15 and 18 are usually considered the best as they are closest to Dining, marina and main pool. Check the resort map here: http://www.wdwinfo.com/resortmaps/port-riverside.htm.

Be sure to take the boat ride to DTD.

Your little one will love the pool at POFQ which you can use as well as the POR pool. Either take the boat or walk down to POFQ.

We always used the buses to get around and it was the most relaxing vacation I've had in years.

The older kids might like renting sea racers, kayaks or maybe bikes. Or maybe the Medicine Show Arcade might be more their thing. The horse drawn carriage ride in the evening is also nice but may not be able to take all of you. It can accomodate 2 adults and 3 kids, ask if they have room for all of you.

Hope that helps!

 

[susan0326]

old man island is alot of fun. if you have the time, swim there for a few hours during the day. the guards play games with the kids during the day. you don't need to bring a rod and reel if you are doing the catch and release fishing (opens at 6 am) they provide anything you woud need to fish, and it's great to get away. I love por and am going back in july. we are requesting the same building 39.you'll get more opinions about what rooms are better if we know what kind of room you booked, either standard or water view. water view booked for us, but we always request looking at a quiet pool instead of the river. my girls favorite part of por was opening the door and seeing a pool they could jump in at any time. i posted these pics on another page on here, but i have no idea which one. oh yeah, f you're on the ddp, i would highly recommend the CS at the food court. we ate there 3 times during our stay and didn't eat the same thing twice. this was the view from our door

We just got back last Saturday from a five night stay in Building 39! We were disappointed not to get closer to the main buildings, but it seemed closer by the end of the week than it did at first. We were in 3927, we faced a little creek and greenery. The landscaping is incredible. We rarely saw any of our neighbors and definitely didn't hear them. We were used to Pop Century where there are people everywhere. We could tell that this resort has fewer rooms.

The rooms at POR are great but Mousekeeping never left us any towel animals and didn't do anything with the kids' stuffed animals. We were used to that at Pop, but oh well. There seemed to be fewer food choices at the dining hall versus Pop. Oh, and the buses don't run as frequently as they do at Pop. We waited over 30 minutes for our first bus to Hollywood Studios the day we arrived and I missed the new Block Party parade that had a soft opening. We drove the rest of the time since we had our car and our GPS loaded with all of the Disney POIs. Those three things were the only negatives (mousekeeping, dining, buses). Other than, that we loved POR! We really felt like we were at a Deluxe resort. It's beautiful and relaxing. It really has a special charm about it and I think we will be repeat guests. I'll post a trip report and pictures soon.

 

[kxmeeh]

we didnt take many pics of inside the room, th only pics we did take was on christmas morning, sorry about seeing our christmas. we never had any problems with the buses, and i would have to agree building 39 is a walk from the main building, but the grounds are so beautiful and shaded that it never bothered us. we rcvd towel animals 7 of the 9 days there, the other 2 dyas (the weekend), the girls stuffed animals were arranged all cute. i hope you find this will be a great fit for your family like it was for ours!

 

[Ashes8380]

I just found out we're staying in POR! My family has an all girls WDW trip every few years. Last time we stayed in the FW cabins, but we've grown in number since then and can no longer fit. The original thought was that we'd have to do a value resort, but then we got some kind of resort discount (haha no details -- I'm clearly not in charge of this trip!) making it possible for us to stay at POR. I am super excited, as this is the first time since I was about eight years old that I've not stayed at a value. The cabins were nice, but I hated all the buses at FW and am super excited about this! Thanks for all the great info on this thread!

 

[cjstarr]

You can rent individual cane poles for $4.26 per half hour or you can choose the Family cane pole fishing adventure, for up to 6 people that costs $13.32 per half hour.

Since there are 5 of you, you will have to room in Alligator Bayou (trundle bed for the little one). Buildings 14, 15 and 18 are usually considered the best as they are closest to Dining, marina and main pool. Check the resort map here: http://www.wdwinfo.com/resortmaps/port-riverside.htm.

Be sure to take the boat ride to DTD.

Your little one will love the pool at POFQ which you can use as well as the POR pool. Either take the boat or walk down to POFQ.

We always used the buses to get around and it was the most relaxing vacation I've had in years.

The older kids might like renting sea racers, kayaks or maybe bikes. Or maybe the Medicine Show Arcade might be more their thing. The horse drawn carriage ride in the evening is also nice but may not be able to take all of you. It can accomodate 2 adults and 3 kids, ask if they have room for all of you.

Hope that helps!

pkondz are you allowed to bring your own rod & reels to use or do you have to rent theirs? If you can use the ones you bring do you still have to pay to fish?
Thanks

 

[pkondz]

pkondz are you allowed to bring your own rod & reels to use or do you have to rent theirs? If you can use the ones you bring do you still have to pay to fish?
Thanks

I don't know, but I would suspect that you should be able to, but I really don't know. For more info, you could call the Resort Recreation Reservation Center at (407) WDW-BASS (407-939-2277). Check this link for more Disney fishing opportunities.
http://www.wdwinfo.com/recreation/fishing.htm

 

[mom2mykids]

pkondz are you allowed to bring your own rod & reels to use or do you have to rent theirs? If you can use the ones you bring do you still have to pay to fish?
Thanks

I thought I read somewhere that you can't use your own at POR but there maybe place where you can. I know I've seen something about fishing at Disney. I think the link someone posted should give you that info.

 

[mommyof3grlz]

We hope to be going there this Sept.

 

[Mrs Grumpy]

I am trying to read through this entire thread but it is taking me several days to do it. We are hoping to stay here for the first time in Sept. 2009. I can't wait!

 

[cjstarr]

TDC Nala are you still in charge of this site? if so you can fix your pictures on the first page of this thread by using the link that I have below.

http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v494/cjstarr/Port Orleans Riverside/

I put your pictures here on photobucket because everytime I come to this page I'm not able to see them without doing a copy & paste in the address bar, then hitting the back button. All you need to do is edit your post and use the IMG link on photobucket. I will keep them there until you are able to move them to a site of your own at which time you can notify me and I'll remove them from my account.

Charles