JUST BACK FROM POFQ---ANY Q's?? (PICS ADDED PG3, #33!!)

[ericafny]

I'm glad you had a nice stay. I have a question how deep is the pool where the slide exits?

I am not sure exactly but there was no where in the pool that went over 5 ft. So prob 4'9" or so. The lifeguards are also very attentive and I saw a few hanging out by the bottom of the slide when they saw the little ones going down it.

 

[ericafny]

How was the bus service? (wait times, crowds pushing, etc)

OK bus service is so-so. You share bus service with POR except for the MK buses. POFQ is the first to get picked up and first to get dropped off, however once you get picked up you have to stop at 4 POR stops. I would allow extra time when traveling. Going home from the parks the buses got crowded but Disney did a good job at sending extra buses when needed. As long as you allow for extra travel time you should be fine.

 

[yesmylove]

How did you find the food in the food court. My mum and aunt are planning to go next year and both need to eat very plain food with no spices or sauces. One is a diabetic and the other has gastric problems. I'm looking for things like baked potatoes, plain chicken, plain rice, fruit etc. Also my mum needs to have plenty of water for her medications, can she get large bottles of water at the resort store or is there a place where she can have it sent in. Sorry so many questions.

 

[ericafny]

How did you find the food in the food court. My mum and aunt are planning to go next year and both need to eat very plain food with no spices or sauces. One is a diabetic and the other has gastric problems. I'm looking for things like baked potatoes, plain chicken, plain rice, fruit etc. Also my mum needs to have plenty of water for her medications, can she get large bottles of water at the resort store or is there a place where she can have it sent in. Sorry so many questions.

I am similar in having some stomach problems that limits me to eating certain spices and foods. The food was pretty generic food court food: burgers, pasta, salad, sandwiches. For me, I had to ask them to omit meat most of the time. They did have soy based veggie burgers with very little spice which I found to be good. I think if you explain your dietary needs to them they will try to accomodate. They were pretty accomodating to me. You could also call the resort before you leave and let them know of the dietary restrictions so they can be prepared. As for water I only saw the standard bottle size, not the giant ones. I have heard of people on this board shipping water to the resort for their stay so maybe you would want to consider that. I think Costo does it (I see you are in Canada, so not sure if you have those there but they have a website) and Staples I believe doesi t as well.

As far as dietary restrictions in the rest of Disney you will definitly not have any problems as everyone was very accomodating and willing to adjust dishes, spices, etc. to suit my needs.

 

[yesmylove]

thanks for the information, I will pass that on to my mum.
Kathie

 

[skipperkim]

Has anyone ever seen a bus stop at any park after closing that didn't have a line? At least POFQ you know you'll be off first. Also, POFQ has its own bus stop at MK in the evening. It used to have its own at MGM too. I would never would choose a resort because of the bus service. I have yet to find one that would measure up in my book, yet. But I'd still rather let Disney do the driving than me.

As far as CSR being centrally located, that's depends on what you are really talking about. It's between AK and MGM. I don't know how that makes it centrally located. The quickest moderate resort to get to from MGM is POFQ. Don't believe me, check out www.ourlaughingplace.com . PO is right across the street from Epcot, though the road access doesn't look like it. But Disney designed it that way. Yes, the boat to DTD is slow. That's what makes it so much fun. There's also a bus that goes to DTD.

I guess the reason that Disney designed resorts so differently. There's something for everyone. No one resort could please everyone.

 

[Buzz2001]

Has anyone ever seen a bus stop at any park after closing that didn't have a line? At least POFQ you know you'll be off first. Also, POFQ has its own bus stop at MK in the evening. It used to have its own at MGM too. I would never would choose a resort because of the bus service. I have yet to find one that would measure up in my book, yet. But I'd still rather let Disney do the driving than me.

As far as CSR being centrally located, that's depends on what you are really talking about. It's between AK and MGM. I don't know how that makes it centrally located. The quickest moderate resort to get to from MGM is POFQ. Don't believe me, check out www.ourlaughingplace.com . PO is right across the street from Epcot, though the road access doesn't look like it. But Disney designed it that way. Yes, the boat to DTD is slow. That's what makes it so much fun. There's also a bus that goes to DTD.

CSR is only a 5 min ride to AK, MGM, and Epcot and a 10 min ride to MK. Best times of any mod resort. There are individual resorts that are quicker to one park but CSR is the quickest mod to all of the parks.

I guess the reason that Disney designed resorts so differently. There's something for everyone. No one resort could please everyone.

I agree!

 

[Davefrompgh]

We also just came back from POFQ...we also have 2 teens..DS13 and DD12...The pool and theming of pool was a little too young for them...slide was definetely too small for them,although they each did it once. However, we loved this resort because of the size, bus transportation, food court and boat to DTD. I would absolutely stay there again. We requested Building 5, first floor (do not like to walk steps after being at the parks for 12+ hours and do not want to wait on an elevator)..we were in room 5110. It was perfect. Right across from pool, pool bar and 2 minutes to food court and gift shop.

We really did not spend much time at the pool. I think we would have spent more time (especially after parks) if the kids would have liked it better, but really we were very tired and we did 3 water parks.

If you have any other questions, I also would be happy to answer. PS..there would definetely be enough room for a twin size aero bed, bedside the door. I am not certain they are allowed?? No flames, just not sure...

 

[Davefrompgh]

One more thing...I really liked the location of POFQ...it really seemed very centrally located to all parks. It was only a 10-15 minute ride even with 1 or 2 stops at POR. Our bus drivers did not seem to stop at every bus stop at POR.

 

[Buzz2001]

We also just came back from POFQ...we also have 2 teens..DS13 and DD12...The pool and theming of pool was a little too young for them...slide was definetely too small for them, although they each did it once.

Yes, it seems geared more for the toddlers.

Welcome back!

 

[disneymomof2boyz]

Subscribing! We are going for the first time in Dec. and we are so excited, can't wait until you post your pics!

 

[Sabrina90744]

I am not sure exactly but there was no where in the pool that went over 5 ft. So prob 4'9" or so. The lifeguards are also very attentive and I saw a few hanging out by the bottom of the slide when they saw the little ones going down it.

Perfect, I am thinking about switching to POFQ. DS10 isnt that strong of a swimmer and about 4'8" so should be ok in 5 ft. Thanks

 

[ericafny]

OK...Here are the pics as promised:

This is a pic of one of the toilets in the hotel lobby. I took it because I thought it was cool how Disney stuck to the theming of the French Quarter right down to the toilets..

This is the sink area in our room (notice the towel animals wrapped around the sinks)

Here is a close up of the towel animals

Shower

Double windows (we had a king corner room with not one but two windows!!)

These are pics of the grounds, this truly is a beautiful resort

(walkway to Riverside)

Boat coming from Riverside to French Quarter

Mansion at Riverside

Walkway to the pool

Outside entrance to main lobby, food court, bar, and store

 

[momtoBrandon&Jacob]

Ok, I have a bit of a dumb question considering we just stayed at POFQ 3 months ago, but here goes. When you guys went to the bus stop, did you go through the main building/lobby each time or is there another way?? We always went through the lobby. Just wondering if there's a "shortcut".

 

[ericafny]

Ok, I have a bit of a dumb question considering we just stayed at POFQ 3 months ago, but here goes. When you guys went to the bus stop, did you go through the main building/lobby each time or is there another way?? We always went through the lobby. Just wondering if there's a "shortcut".

Since we were in building 4 we walked down the stairs and kind of through the parking lot and there was a path leading to the bus stops. If you were in the South Quarter you would have to go through the lobby, bus stops are closest to the North Quarter...not a dumb question!

 

[buffalogirl]

What beautiful pictures!!! Thanks for posting.

 

[ericafny]

What beautiful pictures!!! Thanks for posting.

Thanks! I see you are staying at CSR on your next trip...have you stayed there before? I have pics from that resort when I stayed there in 05.

 

[mominwestlake]

Your pictures are beautiful! I am worried though when some describe the pool as one for toddlers! My kids are 5, 10, 11, 13, and 15. I was leaning toward French Quarter over POR since it had the 1st bus stop.

I see that you have also stayed at the Dolphin. It looked great to me but I read that they don't offer transportation to/from the airport and we won't have a car. With 7 of us I worry it will be an expensive ride.

We have also considered CSR but I read something about tipping in the pepper market that had me worried.

I am more confused than ever now!

 

[buffalogirl]

Thanks! I see you are staying at CSR on your next trip...have you stayed there before? I have pics from that resort when I stayed there in 05.

We stayed at CSR Dec 2006. We considered staying at POFQ last year, but then realized there could be issues with Pop Warner going on. The reviews on the DIS and Buzz's web site convinced us to try CSR. We loved it, but the size and theme of POFQ still appeal to me, especially after seeing your beautiful pictures.
DH, like your DBF, enjoys the food at Pepper Market. I thought when the codes came out, we might end up switching, but we were able to get $362 off our CSR package.
So maybe we'll stay at POFQ in 2008?

 

[ericafny]

Your pictures are beautiful! I am worried though when some describe the pool as one for toddlers! My kids are 5, 10, 11, 13, and 15. I was leaning toward French Quarter over POR since it had the 1st bus stop.

I see that you have also stayed at the Dolphin. It looked great to me but I read that they don't offer transportation to/from the airport and we won't have a car. With 7 of us I worry it will be an expensive ride.

We have also considered CSR but I read something about tipping in the pepper market that had me worried.

I am more confused than ever now!

Don't be confused! This is vacation, it's supposed to be fun The pool at FQ is slightly geared towards kids, however we are two late 20-somethings and enjoyed just relaxing in the pool on a hot day. You can also walk or take the boat to POR and use their pool which we walked past but didn't use and it looked very nice! FQ is a better choice to stay at though due to bus stops and close proximity of all the buildings at the resort.

Yes there is no transporation to airport from the Dolphin. We cheated and stayed 2 nights at ASsp before we headed to the Dolphin. They transferred our luggage for us and we took the bus to MGM and then the boat over to the Dolphin. Going back we had rented a car for the last 2 days because we wanted to go to Universal. Dolphin has an Alamo rent a car desk in the lobby. We drove the car back to the airport and dropped it off there.

The food court at CSR is very different than the other food courts. You wait to be seated and the 'servers' bring you drinks. A 10% gratuity is included into the price of your food so that is the 'tip' for those servers that get you drinks. You pay when you leave, on your way out. To avoid the 'tip' tell them when you order your food you want it to go and then take it outside to one of the tables there and eat it. You won't get charged the 10%.

Hope I helped!!