Zdog
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jun 2, 2007
- Messages
- 180
Still adjusting to reality, and finding myself using a refillable mug way too often around the house, I have some observations to pass along after a week in the world. As Pete likes to say, this is only a snapshot in time.
Resort: Port Orleans Riverside, Royal Room (river room). We were in the Oak building, with a corner room facing the river. Room was clean but a little on the small side. This is our 6th trip, with all other stays at the Wilderness Lodge. POR was booked to save about $1,000. Overall we liked the room, and the corner location allowed for a second window which added to the light. Mousekeeping was spot on, and we had towel animals and other surprises left on a daily basis. We did leave a tip each day. The resort is large, and while our location was good (few minute walk over the bridge to the main building), I can see where some of the rooms in the back reaches of the POR campus would be a bit of a hike for conveniences. We had a rental car, and parking was pretty easy. I was surprised at how many empty rooms there seemed to be in our area, and despite the crowds at food court and main pool, the rest of the resort was always quiet, with very few people walking around. The boat ride to DD was relaxing and gave great view of some of the other resorts, and a whole new perspective. And finally, we really loved the nightly movies on the lawn next to our room. We watched the movie 'Tangled' one night, and it was one of those magical moments I won't soon forget.
The parks were, well, the parks. We tried to arrive early on some days...which wasn't always possible, since we have two teens who love to sleep...and on the days we arrived in the morning, crowds were light, and many rides possible. Our stay was for 7 days, and this seemed to be the perfect amount of time. We didn't feel we had to do an all out assault on the parks, and on some days, we stopped in for a few rides or a character autograph (daughter had to get one from Peter Pan), then left to go back swimming, or to hit another park. When crowds were large, we encountered the typical kind of behavior you get when a lot of people occupy the same area: sometimes rude, sometimes friendly, sometimes ambivalent. Always a good idea to pack your patience. There will be people who cut in line. There will be people who bump you, or block your way, or who demonstrate less than the golden rule philosophy. It's best to go with the flow. That's what we did. BTW, we typically travel to Orlando most years in August, and have been lucky with the weather. This year, not so much. We had typical Florida weather...sunny and hot in the am, t-storm in the pm. While we got rained on in most of the parks, it didn't hinder us, but again, this is why getting out early in the day is key.
Service: at times, amazing. We were particularly impressed with service we received at Narcosee's and Teppan Edo. At Narcosee's, were were served by a gentleman named Amir, and he was fantastic! Had us laughing all night long, but was also an excellent server. We also had a great gal make dinner for us at Teppan Edo. I believer her name was Pie, and she too was fantastic. Kept a running funny banter while making the first few items, but once we started eating, she toned it down...she was perfect, and the food was excellent too. We also ate at Via Napoli (pizza was great, daughter did not care for her lasagna), Le Cellier (wife and son loved their filet, mine was undercooked) Chef Mickey's breakfast (never feel like we get food value out of this one...but character interaction can't be beat!) and Yak and Yeti (good meal, and got to walk through AK after it was closed..very cool!).
As for the street level cast members, some were great, others, eh. It never ceases to amaze me at how some of these folks, even though they're probably making minimum wage and working with large numbers of people every day, can keep a fresh, upbeat attitude and represent the Disney brand so well. I saw one guy working the popcorn stand near Space Mnt. one night. It was warm, and standing next to a hot popcorn popper couldn't have been easy. But he was all smiles, very efficient, and looked like he was actually having fun at his job. These are the types of nuances I'm noticing after a few trips.
Overall, another great Disney trip for us. We ate, we rode, we had a blast. My wife and I really liked POR, but we're already talking about our next trip, and heading back to a deluxe. The cost savings was nice, but the room at times was a bit cramped with clothing and such. The addition of a balcony allows for a lot of extra storage and a place to enjoy a morning cup of coffee. Worth an extra grand? I'm hoping for a discount next time we go.
Resort: Port Orleans Riverside, Royal Room (river room). We were in the Oak building, with a corner room facing the river. Room was clean but a little on the small side. This is our 6th trip, with all other stays at the Wilderness Lodge. POR was booked to save about $1,000. Overall we liked the room, and the corner location allowed for a second window which added to the light. Mousekeeping was spot on, and we had towel animals and other surprises left on a daily basis. We did leave a tip each day. The resort is large, and while our location was good (few minute walk over the bridge to the main building), I can see where some of the rooms in the back reaches of the POR campus would be a bit of a hike for conveniences. We had a rental car, and parking was pretty easy. I was surprised at how many empty rooms there seemed to be in our area, and despite the crowds at food court and main pool, the rest of the resort was always quiet, with very few people walking around. The boat ride to DD was relaxing and gave great view of some of the other resorts, and a whole new perspective. And finally, we really loved the nightly movies on the lawn next to our room. We watched the movie 'Tangled' one night, and it was one of those magical moments I won't soon forget.
The parks were, well, the parks. We tried to arrive early on some days...which wasn't always possible, since we have two teens who love to sleep...and on the days we arrived in the morning, crowds were light, and many rides possible. Our stay was for 7 days, and this seemed to be the perfect amount of time. We didn't feel we had to do an all out assault on the parks, and on some days, we stopped in for a few rides or a character autograph (daughter had to get one from Peter Pan), then left to go back swimming, or to hit another park. When crowds were large, we encountered the typical kind of behavior you get when a lot of people occupy the same area: sometimes rude, sometimes friendly, sometimes ambivalent. Always a good idea to pack your patience. There will be people who cut in line. There will be people who bump you, or block your way, or who demonstrate less than the golden rule philosophy. It's best to go with the flow. That's what we did. BTW, we typically travel to Orlando most years in August, and have been lucky with the weather. This year, not so much. We had typical Florida weather...sunny and hot in the am, t-storm in the pm. While we got rained on in most of the parks, it didn't hinder us, but again, this is why getting out early in the day is key.
Service: at times, amazing. We were particularly impressed with service we received at Narcosee's and Teppan Edo. At Narcosee's, were were served by a gentleman named Amir, and he was fantastic! Had us laughing all night long, but was also an excellent server. We also had a great gal make dinner for us at Teppan Edo. I believer her name was Pie, and she too was fantastic. Kept a running funny banter while making the first few items, but once we started eating, she toned it down...she was perfect, and the food was excellent too. We also ate at Via Napoli (pizza was great, daughter did not care for her lasagna), Le Cellier (wife and son loved their filet, mine was undercooked) Chef Mickey's breakfast (never feel like we get food value out of this one...but character interaction can't be beat!) and Yak and Yeti (good meal, and got to walk through AK after it was closed..very cool!).
As for the street level cast members, some were great, others, eh. It never ceases to amaze me at how some of these folks, even though they're probably making minimum wage and working with large numbers of people every day, can keep a fresh, upbeat attitude and represent the Disney brand so well. I saw one guy working the popcorn stand near Space Mnt. one night. It was warm, and standing next to a hot popcorn popper couldn't have been easy. But he was all smiles, very efficient, and looked like he was actually having fun at his job. These are the types of nuances I'm noticing after a few trips.
Overall, another great Disney trip for us. We ate, we rode, we had a blast. My wife and I really liked POR, but we're already talking about our next trip, and heading back to a deluxe. The cost savings was nice, but the room at times was a bit cramped with clothing and such. The addition of a balcony allows for a lot of extra storage and a place to enjoy a morning cup of coffee. Worth an extra grand? I'm hoping for a discount next time we go.
