POFQ vs. Riverside in terms of transport/kid-friendliness

[2019TripIdeas]

We are not 100% narrowed down on our trip this coming Spring (looking at first week of February), but leaning toward French Quarter or Riverside. Other contenders are a cabin at Fort Wilderness or Beach Club if we can work out the budget for it (would likely have to see if we can rent points?).

We will not have a car so be relying on Disney transportation- I know they'll love the boats. Is there an upside in terms of transportation to either Riverside or FQ?

Is one resort more kid-friendly than the other (a cool pool or something special? Nightly activities? We plan to do Hoop-tee-doo Review one night anyway, and I don't envision spending tons of time at the resort- maybe a warm afternoon to swim, but otherwise we'll prob always do rope drop, but will mix up whether we do full days at parks or come back for afternoon break.


Basic info that might help: We have 3 kids (4, 2, 18 months at time of trip, though the older two will be close to birthdays). We don't have any issue staying in a 2 Queen room and we travel with them a lot. They're generally calm and they mostly go with the flow, so don't need things dark/quiet/or anything like that for sleep. I thought about Art of Animation but don't love the bus being our "only" option, nor did I love the theming on the suites- our kids are used to staying at Hyatt/Marriot or AirBnBs etc when we travel, so wouldn't be disappointed to not be in a "kiddie" place. Bus issue with Animal Kingdom Lodge as well, though I know they'd LOVE the animals and food and general experience there.

 

[dansdad]

We are not 100% narrowed down on our trip this coming Spring (looking at first week of February), but leaning toward French Quarter or Riverside. Other contenders are a cabin at Fort Wilderness or Beach Club if we can work out the budget for it (would likely have to see if we can rent points?).

We will not have a car so be relying on Disney transportation- I know they'll love the boats. Is there an upside in terms of transportation to either Riverside or FQ?

FQ has 1 bus depot for all park buses, POR has 4 throughout the resort. So at FQ once you get on the bus, you are generally on your way to the parks. Unless the bus FQ stops at Riverside also. It doesn't happen often, but does happen.

Is one resort more kid-friendly than the other (a cool pool or something special? Nightly activities?

With your kids ages, I think the splash area at FQ would be a big hit.

Food-wise: It looked like you have to go to POFQ for food if you're eating at hotel? Will we be pretty limited there?

Not at all. Both FQ and Riverside have a food court and Riverside also has a Table Service Restaurant.

 

[Donaldswife]

We are not 100% narrowed down on our trip this coming Spring (looking at first week of February), but leaning toward French Quarter or Riverside. Other contenders are a cabin at Fort Wilderness or Beach Club if we can work out the budget for it (would likely have to see if we can rent points?).

We will not have a car so be relying on Disney transportation- I know they'll love the boats. Is there an upside in terms of transportation to either Riverside or FQ?

Is one resort more kid-friendly than the other (a cool pool or something special? Nightly activities? We plan to do Hoop-tee-doo Review one night anyway, and I don't envision spending tons of time at the resort- maybe a warm afternoon to swim, but otherwise we'll prob always do rope drop, but will mix up whether we do full days at parks or come back for afternoon break.


Basic info that might help: We have 3 kids (4, 2, 18 months at time of trip, though the older two will be close to birthdays). We don't have any issue staying in a 2 Queen room and we travel with them a lot. They're generally calm and they mostly go with the flow, so don't need things dark/quiet/or anything like that for sleep. I thought about Art of Animation but don't love the bus being our "only" option, nor did I love the theming on the suites- our kids are used to staying at Hyatt/Marriot or AirBnBs etc when we travel, so wouldn't be disappointed to not be in a "kiddie" place. Bus issue with Animal Kingdom Lodge as well, though I know they'd LOVE the animals and food and general experience there.

French Quarter only has one bus stop so you don't have to worry about multiple stops at the resort. Both of them are family friendly and you can use both pools while you are staying at either one. I prefer FQ because of the one bus stop and more compact resort, no matter what building you are in you are not far from the food court or pools, POR is much larger and more spread out.

 

[gharter]

When our kids were younger, they liked both, but the FQ seemed more kid friendly. Better pool, smaller, easier bus access. i actually liked the theme of Riverside better and we stayed there when the kids we slightly older and not as much into the pool area.

 

[disneyinthespringtime]

We are at FQ now and love that when our bus leaves or arrives again it is the only stop. Also love that it took us only 3-5 min to walk from our room down by the river to the bus stop or front desk area. Given how much walking our kids are doing at the parks it is great to know your room is not far away once you get “home” to your hotel.

 

[a1tinkfans]

I think POFQ would be best based on bus stop, pool for ur kids ages and resort, smaller scale.
We ve stayed at both... many times and for ur family dynamic I think it’s best.
Have a Magical Visit!

 

[nkereina]

Is there an upside in terms of transportation to either Riverside or FQ?

It's true that POFQ only has the one bus stop while POR has four, but we found the sole bus stop at POFQ got crowded at times which made it feel a little chaotic. Since there is not a formal queue at the bus depot, often people would board the bus as they walked up not taking into account people who had been waiting for a while. And then people jockeying to be near where the bus would stop and the doors would open so they could claim bus seats. It just felt too busy for us at times, so the thing we liked about POR is that there were 4 stops to help spread the people out. Even if it took a few extra minutes to get on the road.

Is one resort more kid-friendly than the other (a cool pool or something special? Nightly activities?

I agree that POFQ may be more kid friendly because of the pool, and also because its a small resort making it easier to get around. The New Orleans themes of either resort will be lost on kids, but the bright colors of POFQ might be more appealing. We do like POR's food court better, but POFQ's certainly sufficient. If you haven't already, check out the Dis Unplugged's recent 7 in 7 resort video series. They cover both POR and POFQ.

 

[buzznina]

We have done a lot of trips since our 1st DD was 6 month old and since then, we learned that transportation can be good or bad at any resort. We no longer even factor in transportation when we decide on a resort. I constantly read posts where 2 families that stayed at the same resort at the same time and had a totally different transportation experience. So I would not eliminate AKL because of transportation. Between the PO resorts, I think POFQ is more kid oriented, plus like others have mentioned you can boat, walk or bus over to POR and use their amenities.

 

[KenHutch]

FQ is our favorite resort as well and as many posters have said one bus stop really beats the multiple bus stop thing. Another point, you have young ones and everything in FQ is 5-7 minutes apart and after a long day a 5 minute walk to your room really beats that 10 to 15 minute walk you can get at Riverside. And we have stayed at both resorts so I know from personal experience.

 

[2019TripIdeas]

^Thank you all for your feedback! Sounds like POFQ is probably the way to go. I'm sure we'll end up walking around Riverside as well or taking boat over to check it out. I am so new to Disney resorts (on previous visits we stayed off site twice and at Shades of Green once) so still trying to figure it all out. SO many choices!

 

[Haley R]

^Thank you all for your feedback! Sounds like POFQ is probably the way to go. I'm sure we'll end up walking around Riverside as well or taking boat over to check it out. I am so new to Disney resorts (on previous visits we stayed off site twice and at Shades of Green once) so still trying to figure it all out. SO many choices!

You will love POFQ. It is our favorite Disney Resort!