Just back from Riverside.....

[NOVATraveler]

Going in 17 days, but wil have own car. With all the bad reports, I guess I'll be driving to parks from SSR. Is everthing clearly marked, or should I start printing out maps to AK, Epcot, etc., now?

 

[bytheblood]

I am glad you enjoyed your stay at POR. Sorry to hear of your bus trouble.

While I like POR, my preference is POFQ. The bus service there is much better than CSR or POR. (I cannot say anything about CBR as I have never stayed there.) You are always the first to be picked up and dropped off when sharing a bus with POR to EPCOT, AK or DS. I have stayed at CSR and found their bus service to be inferior to POFQ.

 

[tinkerbell1967]

Whoa, You are spoiled staying at CR. Bus service is just that, "mass transit". If you plan ahead and aren't running late the busses are fine. My guess is the people that are complaining, complain about alot anyway. We usually give ourselves 45min. when taking a bus at Disney. That way if we get there early we are early and go do something real quick. Something we overlook on other trips. If the bus is running late or slow, we are still ok. It's vacation, you are supposed to enjoy yourself and relax. POR is great because of the boat to DTD, and I have heard people complain about that too here. Go to POR, you' ll love it.

That is a rude comment, People are to give their thoughts on the resort and the bus service and be giving an honest opinion. Just because someone is complaining about the bus service doesn't mean they complain about everything like you say. Yes, you are on vacation but we are not talking about a cheap vacation here. So yes, I expect the buses to come on a timely matter and get me to where I am going without standing around for an hour. I expect service when I stay at Disney and the bus service is a big part of that. I say go and find out for yourself, the resort is beautiful!

 

[LorieR]

DH and I will be staying at POR in Dec. for our 7th time! Obviously we love it. We have been in the mansions every time and enjoy the walk to the food court. We always rent a car and so have never dealt with the bus issue. Everyone is different so I guess it just depends on what you are looking for.

 

[maxiesmom]

While I like POR, my preference is POFQ. The bus service there is much better than CSR or POR. (I cannot say anything about CBR as I have never stayed there.) You are always the first to be picked up and dropped off when sharing a bus with POR to EPCOT, AK or DS. I have stayed at CSR and found their bus service to be inferior to POFQ.

I know I am in the minority (or maybe alone) on this, but I would rather be the second resort picked up. That way you are on the bus for a shorter period of time, and to the parks that much quicker.

I think how crowded the busses are depends on when you are taking your trip. We stayed at POR this past October, and rarely had to stand. I was rather shocked, because at check in we were informed that the resort was booked to capacity. I expected the busses to be horrible, but they were not.

I wouldn't skip POR just because you are worried about the busses. It is, IMHO, the prettiest resort Disney has.

 

[Maine-iac]

DH and I will be staying at POR in Dec. for our 7th time! Obviously we love it. We have been in the mansions every time and enjoy the walk to the food court. We always rent a car and so have never dealt with the bus issue. Everyone is different so I guess it just depends on what you are looking for.

DH and I will arrive 2 days after you. This will be our first time staying at POR and our first trip with just the 2 of us and our first trip during the holidays. We requested AB section.

 

[sazcjg]

Whoa, You are spoiled staying at CR. Bus service is just that, "mass transit". If you plan ahead and aren't running late the busses are fine. My guess is the people that are complaining, complain about alot anyway. We usually give ourselves 45min. when taking a bus at Disney. That way if we get there early we are early and go do something real quick. Something we overlook on other trips. If the bus is running late or slow, we are still ok. It's vacation, you are supposed to enjoy yourself and relax. POR is great because of the boat to DTD, and I have heard people complain about that too here. Go to POR, you' ll love it.

Not true at all here In fact we told our kids that waiting in line was just part of visiting any theme park and to not get into a hurry. If you read my earlier post you wouldnt have seen me complaining about the busses leaving POR just the returning busses from Epcot mostly. After a long day at the parks and your "dogs" are barking the last thing you want to see is a line at your bus stop that is at least 3 TIMES as long as it is at all the others! I watched 2 sometimes 3 busses cycle thru to pick up their resort guest before we would see 1 for POR! So my opinion and advice stands...rent a car if you want to avoid MAJOR frustration trying to return to the resort, never did I suggest that the resort itself was not nice. I have read many reviews of POR concerning the busses and was leary but thought to myself that only the "squeaky wheels" complain on these boards and to take it with a grain of salt Well after experiencing it for 7 nights I can now chime in and say they were right The bus service is inadequete compared to the other resorts that we witnessed while waiting and waiting in the POR bus line

 

[sazcjg]

We still had a wonderful trip and will go back someday soon We will just rent a car The intention of this thread was not to slam POR but to share our experience while we were there The grounds are pretty, room was fine and housekeeping was great, the walk to the bus stops not bad.

 

[maxiesmom]

I will say the one night we did have problems with the bus, it was coming back from Epcot. I was there with my dad, waiting for Illuminations. It started to thunder and lightening, and I didn't think hanging onto a metal rail around a big body of water was the place to be. Call me crazy. Anyway, we decided to go back to POR, and did wait about 25 minutes for a bus. But the ride is super short, 7 minutes from Epcot to POR. And dad and I like to hang out and chat with people, so it was not a big deal to us. If we were in a hurry we could have just hopped in a taxi. I always keep an extra $20 in my fanny pack, just for that.

 

[ols386]

I don't think it matters which resort you stay at, concerning the bus trasportation. It's hit and miss. We've stayed at 6 of the resorts....sometimes good timely bus service, and sometimes not. While I love POR, it's my favorite resort, the bus service is not necessarily reliable, the toilets flush really loud, and it is a large resort....we had quite a walk from our building in AB to the food court (but we walk and jog every day so it doesn't bother us...except if it's during the summer season when the temperatures are high). If you have small children or elderly family members, I can see where the walk might be difficult. I didn't think bus service was any different at CBR and CSR, than it is at POR. They are all large resorts, and have multiple stops going to and from the parks/resorts. Our last visit to WDW in January, we rented a car, and it was more convenient than riding the bus. We will probably be renting a car on our future visits to WDW.