Port Orleans French Quarter yes or no?

[OatsZoo]

I have been reading alot about the POFQ and am now second guessing my decision to stay there. We were looking for a moderate resort (can't afford a deluxe and previously stayed at a value). We are not much of beach type people so Carribean Beach is out. But now that I read so reviews am wondering if it was a good choice.

I hear French Quarter is beautiful but I hear the busing in Port Orleans is shared and can take some time to get out as there are 5 stops (4 in riverside and 1 in FQ). And let's face it, we don't want to waste time sitting on a bus then going to the parks.

Anybody been that could give some advice and in-sight to the resort. It is really hard to get info out there as it all seems to be about riverside.

Thanks so much!

 

[linda1118]

I have been reading alot about the POFQ and am now second guessing my decision to stay there. We were looking for a moderate resort (can't afford a deluxe and previously stayed at a value). We are not much of beach type people so Carribean Beach is out. But now that I read so reviews am wondering if it was a good choice.

I hear French Quarter is beautiful but I hear the busing in Port Orleans is shared and can take some time to get out as there are 5 stops (4 in riverside and 1 in FQ). And let's face it, we don't want to waste time sitting on a bus then going to the parks.

Anybody been that could give some advice and in-sight to the resort. It is really hard to get info out there as it all seems to be about riverside.

Thanks so much!

Although no one can guarantee that you will love a resort or have nothing go wrong, I honestly believe you will enjoy POFQ. I recently stayed at POR but visited at POFQ and thought they were both lovely resorts. If the theming appeals to you, then it is probably the right choice!

We didn't have any problems using the bus system. All the mods have multiple stops. CBR has 7, CSR has 4, and POR/POFQ as a whole has 5. In fact, sometimes POFQ has it's own bus, so at those times it has only 1! Most of the stories you hear about the buses are leaving the parks, and usually then only if you leave at closing when the lines can be long.

Safetymom posted a message a while back to take some of the negative reviews with a grain of salt. There could be some ulterior motives to them, and recently one was even pretty much proven to be bogus.

Finally, any time a poll is taken on the mods, POFQ is right at the top!

I hope you have a wonderful trip!

 

[dixipixi]

We stayed at POFQ in late May/ early June of '06 (so some of my info may be outdated ).

We were somewhat nervous about staying there, but in the end, we really liked the resort. We were wondering how we would feel about the resort (we only live about 70 miles from the real New Orleans). It felt very much like home to us. We have very similar landscaping in our yard and we were very comfortable. It is a beautiful resort. We were very happy with our room and the resort facilities.

As for the buses, we never had a problem. Our group consisted of myself, DH, DS (17) and his friend (also 17), and DS (13), so if we had to stand on a bus, it was no big deal. I think I would have more of an issue if I were travelling with older or younger people or trying to get around with a stroller.

Catching the bus at the hotel is no big deal because at POFQ, you're the first on. Our boys always wound up standing anyway, because they would give their seats up to people who got on later at Riverside.

Leaving the parks was the worst. It seemed like the PO line was always the longest (every day, at every park). Often, though, at least 2 buses would show up at once and the line moved pretty quickly. POFQ is the first stop back from the parks as well. We were always glad to be the first ones off!! Occasionally, there are separate buses for FQ and Riverside returning from the parks. I think it is more common during busy periods.

I have only stayed at one other moderate (CBR) and I much prefer POFQ.

 

[OatsZoo]

Thank you so much for the help. We stayed at All Star Movies last year and found pretty much what you discribed. We shared a bus with the other All Star resorts but the same thing sometimes there was 2-3 buses sometimes only 1.

I do realize that at closing and after fireworks it will be crazy no matter where you stay and I must say Disney does a great job moving so many people as quickly as possible. But I read it took a couple 1 1/2 hrs to get from POFQ to the POLY for dinner reservations and it got me thinking.

Thanks for the reassurance. Anymore comments would be greatly appreciated as I have only stayed on site one other time in the Value and not sure what to consider with a Moderate.

 

[LakeAriel]

I own a DVC timeshare in Disney and still will return to POFQ next August..It is a lovely resort and small..Oh how I love the smallness of it all. I tried CBR for a night a few weeks ago and they have an internal bus! Just way too big and way too much walking from room to bus etc...The only bus issue I had was POFQ is the very last parking zone at one of the resorts, I forget which..With bad kneees the longer walk was a drag but overall you can't beat this resort!

Have a wonderful trip and don't second guess yourself!

 

[MAGGIED]

We have stayed at the POFQ and loved it... for all the reasons the others have stated above... also my daughter loved the bakery.....the pool was fun and the resort is small and everything is close......I think you will like it!!

 

[Smooshdog]

DGF and I stayed at POFQ this december and loved it!! We got one of the 40% off codes last year (not this year though ) and put it to good use. We have only stayed at value resorts and I have to say it will be hard to go back. FQ was a beautiful resort and being from Louisiana they did a great job making it look like New Orleans. The rooms were great, the area was nice and quiet, and the food court was nice.

The bus system isn't perfect, but it isn't perfect anywhere. The best part was that even though it was busy in the parks, every time I got on the FQ bus from MK there were usually only 5 or 6 other people on it.

If we get the chance to stay there again we will do it in a heartbeat! I hope you have a great time!

 

[bookgirl2632]

I'm so glad to have my choice confirmed. We stayed at POR last time and visited POFQ. We loved both and decided that we'd stay at POFQ on our next trip. We are looking forward to September so much!

As for the buses, I concur with the other posters. I had heard horror stories, but chose to take them with a grain of salt. I'm glad I did. Even being the second to last bus stop at POR, we almost always had a seat on our way to the parks. Coming back was fine too, even at park closing. Sure, there were a couple of times when we had to wait (EMH at MK, MNSSHP, closing at Epcot), but we expected that. As stated before, there were often a few buses that pulled up right behind each other. We never waited long for a bus and it didn't take long to get to any one park.

 

[Mickey23]

I didn't care for POFQ, especially the shared buses.

 

[Shmily1]

We stayed at POR last weekend, during the marathon. There was no time that we had to wait more than 10 minutes for a bus and that was leaving the resort going to MK. On the way back from MK, the bus was there waiting and we got right on. About 2 minutes later, we left. Sharing the buses was never a problem at all.

Now the boat ride to DTD is another story. We had to wait about 30 minutes for that one. When we got to the marina, the boat was there, but they only let about 25 people on at POR so they have room for the ones getting on at POFQ. There was way more than 25 waiting on the boat! The boats run about every 20 minutes, but this time it was longer and the ride from POR to DTD is almost 30 minutes total. It is a very interesting ride, but don't wait until your dinner reservation time to leave! I was starving by the time I got there!

 

[sassyat30]

If you're worried about the buses, don't be.

It takes less than five mins to drive to all the stops and pick people up.

 

[Jamie77]

If you want to always have a seat on the bus, POFQ is the best way to go. After people get picked up at POFQ, there are 4 stops at POR and often the bus is packed full after the POFQ folks get on. It makes no sense to me why POR can't have it's own bus. I'd like to stay there but due to that fact alone, I'm afraid to try it.

 

[MEredhead]

We have stayed at POFQ a few times and loved it. Most of the time the bus would go straight to the parks. If I remember correctly, only in the very early morning did we swing through POR. I did find the buses to run more frequently in May than September. I think you will be happy with POFQ - we were!

 

[disneygirl29]

Rest assured I think you will like it. We stayed there in 2006 over thanksgiving, so not a "slow time", it was the first MOD we had ever stayed at (previously we stayed at deluxe level only) and I was nervous to be honest, but went with the reviews and tried it... we loved it. We did not find the bus service to be bad, and we travel with 6 kids and 3 adults! It is true you do sometimes share with Riverside but it has never been a problem leaving the resort and heading to the parks—we have never missed a bus b/c it was over crowded. It is true that at night when leaving a park at prime time (right after fireworks etc) it is a bit busy but they do not just have a bus every 10-20 min, they are constant… Disney is prepared, so while you might not make the 1st bus due to being to full, the next bus is right behind and your wait is not much! This past year (2007) we had a 40% off code and it wouldn’t work at FQ so we opted for Riverside… again no problems with buses… and while Riverside is beautiful and as nice as FQ I prefer FQ for the size! And the begets (sp? Pastry’s)!

So in a nut shell I think you will like FQ… I have never stayed at a value, but I can only imagine that the bus service would be no different and no worse, if anything a bit short drive time to the parks. If the buses never bothered you at the value, then I am sure they will not be an issue at the MOD… and it sounds like if the deluxe are out this is your best option to stay at a MOD, and I believe the FQ is the best mod there is… and the polls tend to support that as well.


Good luck you will have a great time… heck it’s Disney! Can’t not like it!

And CB is bigger than Riverside and Riverside is big if you ask me!

 

[paula70]

Although no one can guarantee that you will love a resort or have nothing go wrong, I honestly believe you will enjoy POFQ. I recently stayed at POR but visited at POFQ and thought they were both lovely resorts. If the theming appeals to you, then it is probably the right choice!

We didn't have any problems using the bus system. All the mods have multiple stops. CBR has 7, CSR has 4, and POR/POFQ as a whole has 5. In fact, sometimes POFQ has it's own bus, so at those times it has only 1! Most of the stories you hear about the buses are leaving the parks, and usually then only if you leave at closing when the lines can be long.

Safetymom posted a message a while back to take some of the negative reviews with a grain of salt. There could be some ulterior motives to them, and recently one was even pretty much proven to be bogus.

Finally, any time a poll is taken on the mods, POFQ is right at the top!

I hope you have a wonderful trip!

I agree with this poster. I think the whole "shared" bus system is blown way out of proportion! Although the themeing is different, you have to think of POR/POFQ as one resort. Yes, the advantage to FQ is they get the first bus stop, there was always plenty of room for all. There are obviously busier times (at park closing) but either they bring extra buses ot FQ gets their own. Anyone can have a bad experience w/ bussing-regardless of the resort so go into it w/ an open mind! We absolutely love the the size, theme and relaxed atmosphere of FQ! AS for the boats, we used it as a relaxing way to take a break and go downtown. I definitely wouldn't use it if you are on a schedule. If the boat is full or you just miss it, it will set you back time-wise. That happend to us when we were going to go back and freshen up for an ADR at CM's, the boat had just pulled away, so we just hopped on the bus back to the resort instead! Just got to go with the flow when at Disney!

 

[momtoBrandon&Jacob]

I agree with everyone. We stayed at POFQ in April '07 and are already booked for May '08. We just love the size of the resort, the quiet, the great pool for the kids, the food court has plenty to choose from - especially the beignets!! Can't say enough great things about it. Also, we really didn't have any problems with the busses that I can recall, but we're not very picky people nor are we impatient. If the bus ride took an extra 5 or 10 minutes so be it.

 

[michaelwilliammidd]

Although everyone's feelings won't be the same because with so many people there are going to be many different experiences....I say don't question your POFQ decision at all. We loved POFQ and had no problems with bus service, in fact between POFQ, CBR and POP, it was probably the best resort for buses we stayed at.

 

[chatty]

We have stayed on site at WDW 19 times in the last 10 years and we have stayed at the CR, PORS,Swan and the Dolphin, GF,CBR,WL,AK,and POFQ...out of all of these Resorts we have stayed at POFQ 11 times and we are going back to the POFQ this FEB. making our stay there our 12th..We stay there because we Love it there. Money is not the issue with us when we go we just Truly Enjoy being there so much. POFQ is small and quaint, Friendly and Fun. When we get there we feel like were home.. I could go on forever. so...don't worry about the POFQ you will Adore it..
chatty:

 

[jam217]

I also stayed at POFQ last weekend during the marathon and I loved it. I've already decided I'm staying there again next year. I liked the smallness of the resort and close proximity of the rooms to the food court and bus stop. Bus pick ups were quick and I usually took the boats in the evening when they run 10 minutes apart.

I would definitely recommend this resort over POR. I stayed at POR several years ago and was overwhelmed by the size.

 

[pwdebbie]

I've been to WDW exactly one time, just this past Oct. and we stayed at POFQ. Now, if anyone was going to not like the bus system, it would have been my dh. But after the first day, he's the one that said, "We're not using the car until the day we leave." Busses were NOT a problem at all. If we did all of Riverside, it only added -- at the most -- ten minutes. I have to say that the people at Riverside are probably a lot more dissatisfied with the bus sharing than the people at POFQ. I wouldn't hesitate to go back to POFQ. Not even interested in trying any of the others. Doubt I'll ever have another chance to go, but I can always dream, right?

Deb