POR vs. POFQ?

[tzuhouse]

We have ressies for POR in December. It is NOT available for our entire stay. POFQ is. Can someone tell me if I would be disappointed by changing? Is there much of a difference other than the theme? I love the water wheel shown in the picture of POR. We'll be traveling with two boys, 6 and 4. We've talked about switching to ASSp or Pop, but we really like the Port Orleans. I would LOVE to stay at GF or Boardwalk, but there is no way we could pay that much per night, especially for 10 nights.

Thanks in advance for your advice.

Mary

 

[dr2004]

Funny it was the reverse for my trip, the good news is the resorts are considered sister resorts (like Yacht and Beach Club or Swan and Dolphin) if you stay at either, the whole resort is open to you, so you can use the pools, activites ate ach without sneaking in

The grounds are beautiful and you can walk between both

 

[tzuhouse]

I thought I'd heard that somewhere. And, I know we won't be spending much time in our room, anyway. I just thought Alligator Bayou would be more of a casual homey feel.

Mary

 

[Janet2k]

Tzuhouse, Dr2004 raised an excellent point: the resorts are sister resorts. Feel free to use both resorts' food courts, swimming pools, grounds, etc.

As to which one I like better (I've stayed in both numerous times), I prefer the French Quarter. I find it more intimate. As a matter of fact, I love the French Quarter so much that I would actually choose to stay there over a few of the Deluxes.

No matter which Port Orleans resort you stay in, I hope you have a wonderful vacation.

 

[Lizzybee]

Of those two resorts we've only stayed at POR because we had 5 in the room, but we did visit the pool area at POFQ. I preferred the look of POR, it felt more resort and less hotel like to me, but if I were in your situation I'd stay at POFQ because I wouldn't want to switch hotels during a trip (just my preference) and you can use all of POR's ammenities anyway. While POFQ doesn't have a sit down restaurant and POR does, POFQ gets picked up and dropped off first with the busses, before all POR stops. POFQ is also a much more compact resort, so less walking to get to main areas (although our bldg in POR was close enough anyway). I guess what I'm trying to say is, if you want to have one hotel to stay in, then you'll love POFQ just fine, especially if you have a positive attitude about it. Lots of people prefer POFQ over POR anyway. Transportation between the resorts includes boat and sometimes from POFQ you'd be able to take a bus because it picks up at POFQ first and usually goes on to pick up more people at POR (ask the driver to be sure though). Also the walk is a pleasant 10 min stroll along the Sassagoula River.

 

[tzuhouse]

I do have ressies for our full stay, at POR. Have had for about 8 months. But, if I go through the Best Rate program, I can get POFQ for about $150 less than keeping my POR with AAA discount. I've been waiting for AP discounts, but nothing so far. Thanks to everyone for your thoughts on the situation!!!! I really appreciate it, as we've never been there, so have nothing to compare to.

Mary

 

[Janet2k]

Thought I'd post some links to photos of a few of my Port Orleans stays:
PO-French Quarter room
PO-Riverside room
PO-French Quarter room

Other folks here on the Dis have much better photos. Maybe you can do a search of the website in order to find their links.

 

[Janet2k]

By the way, here is a link to Disney's video of the Port Orleans Resort complex: click here.

 

[jtovey56]

We stayed at Riverside last time and loved it. We're going to try the French Quarter for our next trip as it sounds great too.
Jim

 

[*NikkiBell*]

To be completely honest with you, I would change my entire stay to POFQ if I was in that situation or any other. We stayed at POFQ for seven nights in March and fell in love with it. It is very small, but quaint, and peaceful. It gives more of a romantic aire than POR, but does accomodate any children who visit. We thoroughly enjoyed the beautiful grounds and boat to Downtown Disney. The themeing is centered around Mardi Gras and New Orleans.

One of the best perks at POFQ is that you get picked up on the bus first to go to the parks. After POFQ guests are picked up, POR guests are which sometimes leaves few empty seats for POR guests. I really would encourage you to give POFQ a try. You definitely will not be disappointed!

Oh, and before I forget to mention it, POFQ's rooms were remodeled within the past year. They're outstanding!

 

[briarberry]

We just returned from POFQ on Tuesday and loved it. It is a beautiful resort. My daughter is 8 and I was a bit worried it would be too "adultlike" for her but she loved it, especially the pool area. She even commented on how quiet it was which was nice after a busy day at the parks. We were in building 5 which was right across from the food court area. The landscaping is lovely and we had a fountain right outside our room. If you are planning on using Disney transport you get picked up and dropped off before the POR guests which is great. All the stops at the parks are fairly close so you don't walk too far. We both agreed that we will stay at POFQ from now on.

 

[tzuhouse]

Wow! Thanks to both of you! I had not even thought about the bus possibly being full, or close to it, by the time it got to us. I guess I just assumed there would be one for each resort! I think we are going to wait 15 days and see if AP discount comes out. If not, or if it's not such a good deal, then I'll book FQ via best rate and just get credited for all the $$ I've given Disney for Riverside.

Mary

 

[Delilah Bleu]

We're staying at POR because when we orginally booked our trip we had a party of 5. We now have 4. I decided to stay at POR but request the mansions. Have a great trip!

 

[*NikkiBell*]

Sure thing! The buses are shared between the two sister resorts except for a night bus going to MK; usually they have separate ones late at night due to the high volume of people coming and going.

You will love POFQ! I can't say it enough! Enjoy the live jazz music at Scat Cat's Lounge and the massive serpent slide in the pool!

 

[disnan52]

I am going to POFQ for the first time Mar 06. Last trip stayed at POR mansion side. I loved POR, everything about it was great. I want to visit POR next trip. What building is the favorite. I have requested 6, finding out it is a smoking building, have asthma do not want smoking.

 

[Kimmielee]

I am going to POFQ for the first time Mar 06. Last trip stayed at POR mansion side. I loved POR, everything about it was great. I want to visit POR next trip. What building is the favorite. I have requested 6, finding out it is a smoking building, have asthma do not want smoking.

We are going for our second POFQ stay in April 2006. We LOVED it... last year we had the furthest room possible... Bldg. 7, corner room, water view.. it was beautiful and even though it was the furthest from the lobby, buses, , pool, etc... nothing took more than 10 minutes to walk to.

This time we requested NS, Building 5, corner room.... closer than before but I will not be disappointed if we don't get our request granted... it's my favorite resort, by far!!!

Like one of the previous posters stated, it's "intimate", not sprawled out like POR. We had no problem taking the boat over there for the sit down restaurant. It was well worth the trip... and only a few minutes at that! The other thing I loved was the ability to hop on the boat to go to DTD. That opened up our dining choices so we weren't eating the cafeteria food every day!

Best wishes on your trip!