jaletu2000
<font color=deeppink>I am a DISneyholic...<br><fon
- Joined
- May 14, 2001
- Messages
- 214
It was a really great trip for our family of four. We have two boys ages 10 and 12 and they really enjoyed it this time! Definitely, if you are trying to decide between on-site or off - splurge and go on-site. It was a whole different vacation from our other trips to the World.
We drove to WD from Memphis, TN. Stayed overnight with parents in GA on the way. Got up early on Sat., May 25, and went the rest of the way to Orlando. Very easy trip for us but long. We were sure excited when we got to Disney. Had a little trouble navigating the backroads in WDW but found PO-Riverside pretty quickly.
For starters, the resort is very beautiful and much bigger than I expected. It is very clean and the maid did a wonderful job each day. If you hang out that sign that says "Don't disturb" - they don't! So be careful as we left it on by accident one day. They left us a big bag of towels and stuff hanging on our door - but they left the room alone as we requested. I thought the staff here at PO-Riverside was extremely nice and very helpful.
Our checkin went very fast. I was surprised as there was a long line but they had plenty on hand to deal with a crowd. The checkin itself was smooth as glass with no hitches. I was not sure what kind of room we would get and was delighted when we got to stay in Parterre Place - the Mansions! I had requested Mansions from Dreamsunlimited but wasn't sure if we could get it. Yes, we went through DreamsUnlimited for this vacation and I can only sing their praises to the sky! You must try them. Regina, our rep, made everything so much easier (esp. on me).
Parterre Place is a wonderful building - very quiet and near the footbridge that takes you to the foodcourt and main pool. The theming is more formal but lucious and restful. Like your own private manor house. The room was very big to me. I was expecting something much smaller! We had plenty of room and eventhough it had double beds, those were the most comfortable beds ever. My DH and I were not crowded at all. The shelf in the sink area was small all right but held a lot more than I thought. The closet area was ample for all our junk and they gave plenty of hangers. All in all it was perfect. And we didn't feel crowded. Unlike a lot of others, we did wind up spending a good amount of time in our room and it was a pleasure.
We stayed around the resort for our first day there as we had gotten there at around 2:30 PM. The DS's had to swim of course and it is a great pool. We had PS for Ohana at 6:30 so we made sure to get ready to go by 5:30 as we didn't want to be late. Let me just say a word about driving around DW. It is huge! Get that map and hold on to it (you are given a good one at checkin). You will need it if you do any driving at all. I was afraid for most of our trip to use the buses to get anywhere as I had heard they can be slow. So we drove to our PS's.
We found the Poly very easily and before we knew it we were walking into the most beautiful lobby I've ever seen. I fell in love with this resort! I want to stay here in the future - I don't care how much it costs. The lobby was enormous and working alive with people. You could see leis on just about everyone. We went upstairs and found Ohana's, gave our name and had just ordered drinks at this little lounge when our beeper went off. They were extremely busy but very quick. We were taken to a seat close to a window that looked out on the Volcano pool. I told my DS's that it was a volcano and it smoked but they didn't believe me - lol.
I think my DH was kind of impressed by the surroundings and the restaurant but the boys were not too interested. Then the food arrived and the games started. To my surprise my older DS got up and went over for the coconut races! Then his brother followed and before I knew it they were enjoying themselves! Then we noticed that the Volcano was smoking and they got really excited. This was a great meal! I would do this again. Our server was really nice and very attentive. We got plenty to eat!
After this meal, my older DS begged to go shopping and who am I to turn that down? Billfold Alert! There is an incredible amount of shopping to do at this resort. They have everything from inexpensive to exorbitant. It was alot of fun. Then we went to the beach and staked out a spot on one of the swings. We looked over the pool on the way and it is really inviting. It was so pleasant sitting on the beach, waiting for the water show. My two DS's ran off their energy up and down the beach, played in the sand, and played light-saber with the two flashlight sabers they had gotten inside. With evening falling, this view is georgeous. The water light show was pretty cute but it was getting late and it was another hour before the fireworks. Looking back I wished we'd stayed but we were so tired. We had been driving quite a bit. So we quit the Poly and went back to Riverside. We slept like babies. The next day was our MK day and PS at 1900 Park Fare. It was a magical start.
We drove to WD from Memphis, TN. Stayed overnight with parents in GA on the way. Got up early on Sat., May 25, and went the rest of the way to Orlando. Very easy trip for us but long. We were sure excited when we got to Disney. Had a little trouble navigating the backroads in WDW but found PO-Riverside pretty quickly.
For starters, the resort is very beautiful and much bigger than I expected. It is very clean and the maid did a wonderful job each day. If you hang out that sign that says "Don't disturb" - they don't! So be careful as we left it on by accident one day. They left us a big bag of towels and stuff hanging on our door - but they left the room alone as we requested. I thought the staff here at PO-Riverside was extremely nice and very helpful.
Our checkin went very fast. I was surprised as there was a long line but they had plenty on hand to deal with a crowd. The checkin itself was smooth as glass with no hitches. I was not sure what kind of room we would get and was delighted when we got to stay in Parterre Place - the Mansions! I had requested Mansions from Dreamsunlimited but wasn't sure if we could get it. Yes, we went through DreamsUnlimited for this vacation and I can only sing their praises to the sky! You must try them. Regina, our rep, made everything so much easier (esp. on me).
Parterre Place is a wonderful building - very quiet and near the footbridge that takes you to the foodcourt and main pool. The theming is more formal but lucious and restful. Like your own private manor house. The room was very big to me. I was expecting something much smaller! We had plenty of room and eventhough it had double beds, those were the most comfortable beds ever. My DH and I were not crowded at all. The shelf in the sink area was small all right but held a lot more than I thought. The closet area was ample for all our junk and they gave plenty of hangers. All in all it was perfect. And we didn't feel crowded. Unlike a lot of others, we did wind up spending a good amount of time in our room and it was a pleasure.
We stayed around the resort for our first day there as we had gotten there at around 2:30 PM. The DS's had to swim of course and it is a great pool. We had PS for Ohana at 6:30 so we made sure to get ready to go by 5:30 as we didn't want to be late. Let me just say a word about driving around DW. It is huge! Get that map and hold on to it (you are given a good one at checkin). You will need it if you do any driving at all. I was afraid for most of our trip to use the buses to get anywhere as I had heard they can be slow. So we drove to our PS's.
We found the Poly very easily and before we knew it we were walking into the most beautiful lobby I've ever seen. I fell in love with this resort! I want to stay here in the future - I don't care how much it costs. The lobby was enormous and working alive with people. You could see leis on just about everyone. We went upstairs and found Ohana's, gave our name and had just ordered drinks at this little lounge when our beeper went off. They were extremely busy but very quick. We were taken to a seat close to a window that looked out on the Volcano pool. I told my DS's that it was a volcano and it smoked but they didn't believe me - lol.
I think my DH was kind of impressed by the surroundings and the restaurant but the boys were not too interested. Then the food arrived and the games started. To my surprise my older DS got up and went over for the coconut races! Then his brother followed and before I knew it they were enjoying themselves! Then we noticed that the Volcano was smoking and they got really excited. This was a great meal! I would do this again. Our server was really nice and very attentive. We got plenty to eat!
After this meal, my older DS begged to go shopping and who am I to turn that down? Billfold Alert! There is an incredible amount of shopping to do at this resort. They have everything from inexpensive to exorbitant. It was alot of fun. Then we went to the beach and staked out a spot on one of the swings. We looked over the pool on the way and it is really inviting. It was so pleasant sitting on the beach, waiting for the water show. My two DS's ran off their energy up and down the beach, played in the sand, and played light-saber with the two flashlight sabers they had gotten inside. With evening falling, this view is georgeous. The water light show was pretty cute but it was getting late and it was another hour before the fireworks. Looking back I wished we'd stayed but we were so tired. We had been driving quite a bit. So we quit the Poly and went back to Riverside. We slept like babies. The next day was our MK day and PS at 1900 Park Fare. It was a magical start.
! We would really like to stay on-site next trip and I am leaning towards PO. I haven't decided between the FQ or Riverside. Your wonderful description certainly makes Riverside sound inviting.
