Moderate Resorts Question

[Cardinal]

My family and I are considering going to WDW over winter break. Since the Contemporary is fully booked (and we absolutely hated the Polynesian), we're considering the moderate resorts. I have a few questions about the Port Orleans Resorts.

~What is the better Port Orleans resort?

~Does the Port Orleans Riverside really have a ferry to Downtown Disney?
Does Downtown Disney have an entrance into World Showcase?
If it does, would that ferry stop come close to the entrance to World Showcase?

~Does the Port Orleans French Quarter have anything that the Riverside Resort doesn't have?

Thanks,
Cardinal

 

[JacknSally]

downtown disney isn't near world showcase...
we stayed at french quarter - it was very nice! i loved it! i know we rode the ferry to downtown disney a couple of times, but i dont remember if we went to riverside for that. it was a few years ago.

 

[oldschoolfigmentluvr]

if you want a hotel that has a good rate and is close to WS you should stay the dolphin or swan. it has all the ammenities of a disney hotel, except for access to the magical express. you can still do Extra magic hours and get disney transportation to and from the parks. you can even walk to WS from the hotel or take the ferry.

 

[sharonmickey]

Both POR and POFQ have a boat to Downtown. The same boat stops at both resorts. POR has a sit-down restaurant, POFQ does not. POFQ is not as big or has spread out. The buses usually stop at POFQ first. When I was at POFQ there was a musician who played in the lounge most evenings. In fact the last time I was at POR I walked over to POFQ for the entertainment.

 

[Mr. Pig]

There is a ferry that starts at POR, stops at POFQ then continues on to DTD. As stated the waterway that this boat runs on is not the same as the one that goes to Epcot. You would have to take a bus from either DTD or Port Orleans (or drive) to get to Epcot.

The differences:
POFQ is themed to be like New Orleans French Quarter streets. It is a smaller more compact resort. There is only one pool but the resort is the smallest Moderate.
POR is much larger, spread out themed more backwoods with a "bayou" section which is more rustic and a "plantation" section with buildings themed as mansions. It also has a table service restaurant. It has a main pool and several "quiet" pools.
Both resorts have similar food courts. They are very close to each other - a short walk away. For this reason you can use any of the pools if you are staying at either resort.

 

[Cardinal]

Oh, okay. Do moderate resorts get access to Extra Magic Hours?

 

[oldschoolfigmentluvr]

yes all disney owned resorts have access to emh's

 

[Pakey]

if you want a hotel that has a good rate and is close to WS you should stay the dolphin or swan. it has all the ammenities of a disney hotel, except for access to the magical express. you can still do Extra magic hours and get disney transportation to and from the parks. you can even walk to WS from the hotel or take the ferry.

I would have to second this. If you are used to staying deluxes, you may find the change to moderate a disappointment (we tried it once, stayed at POFQ, and much prefer to stay deluxe). It was the convenience that we missed; the resorts themselves were nice enough.

We just returned from staying at the BC and walked through over to the Dolphin a couple of times. It's a beautiful hotel and the ease of access to Epcot and DHS is fanstastic.

At Port Orleans, the buses do stop at French Quarter first, which is nice because you can usually find a spot, but then the bus will make the several stops at Riverside after that. For the ferry to DTD, since it stops at Riverside first, it was usually SRO by the time we got on at FQ.

 

[CanadianGuy]

I'm moving this over to the Resorts board.. it's a better fit there than here on the Theme Parks board.

Thanks!

 

[mysticks1]

Oh, okay. Do moderate resorts get access to Extra Magic Hours?

All Disney resort guests have access to EMH.

 

[wahoostampingirl]

We stayed at both POFQ and POR this year. As to which is "better", it really depends on your personal tastes. We stayed at POFQ first because of all the great reviews. It was ok, but I wasn't wowed. We just stayed at POR and I loved it. We were in the Bayou section and I loved how the buildings were all nestled in the trees. I also liked the pool and the playground at Riverside. We ate breakfast at Boatwrights and it was so yummy. Of course, you could eat at Boatwrights while staying at POFQ, but it was just so convenient while staying at POR. One caveat, we had a car and it would have been quite a long walk from our building to the pool and main bldg. Also, when we stayed at POFQ, it was nice being the first people picked up by the buses, but it did make for a longer bus ride. We didn't ride the buses when we stayed at POR, so I can't make any comments about them from there. One more thing, the bayou section of POR has trundle beds. This came in handy even for our family of 4. The mods only have double beds, so the trundle can be used to space out people a little more. Good for families that have restless sleepers like ours.

 

[BarleyJack]

We also recently returned from a stay at POR and were thrilled with it. I stayed at the poly years ago as a kid, that's my only other comparison for disney resorts. A few notes: someone stated that deluxes are more convenient. While this may be true, take into consideration that POR/POFQ are closer to a few parks than say for example, AKL. No there is not room service or club/concierge level, but it is perfectly comfortable (although standard queen beds would be nice). There are mult pool areas, all nicely themed. As far as transportation goes, we had no problems at all. The only time we had to stand on a bus was leaving the MK one night, never once leaving the south depot at POR to a park. When leaving the North Depot (closest to our room) the bus was generally nearly empty, regardless of the time of day. The ferry to DTD was a nice relaxing trip, it takes about 20 minutes. I think your other questions have already been answered, hope we were able to help some! Here are some pics of riverside, in case you haven't seen any: