Port Orleans Riverside FAQ thread --- 2012, Part Three --- NOW FULL / CLOSED

[dansdad]

We are staying here for this trip. I am very nervous. We have really not stayed at this hotel before.

What are you nervous about? Maybe we can help ease your fears. POR is a very lovely resort.

 

[Hunnypaw]

What are you nervous about? Maybe we can help ease your fears. POR is a very lovely resort.

I concur! We feel this is the best moderate resort.

 

[lucifie]

DH just asked me a question I didn't know the answer to. I was showing him the video of the AB rooms and he saw the cartoon alligator by the murphy bed. He asked if the alligator was from a Disney movie. I told him not that I know of, but I figured if there is a story someone here would know it.

 

[andrewilley]

We are staying here for this trip. I am very nervous. We have really not stayed at this hotel before.

You've stayed onsite at WDW about 17 times according to your sig - at a mixture of Values, Moderates and Deluxes - what have you got left to be nervous about?? Just imagine the Caribbean Beach, but a lot prettier and probably with somewhat less walking.

Andre

 

[andrewilley]

DH just asked me a question I didn't know the answer to. I was showing him the video of the AB rooms and he saw the cartoon alligator by the murphy bed. He asked if the alligator was from a Disney movie. I told him not that I know of, but I figured if there is a story someone here would know it.

It's Louis from Princess and the Frog.

Andre

 

[siskaren]

DH just asked me a question I didn't know the answer to. I was showing him the video of the AB rooms and he saw the cartoon alligator by the murphy bed. He asked if the alligator was from a Disney movie. I told him not that I know of, but I figured if there is a story someone here would know it.

That's Louis from The Princess and the Frog.

ETA: OK, that's pretty funny that Andre and I answered at the same time.

 

[kandim]

I have to admit I, too, am a bit apprehensive about our stay at POR - we arrive 1/30!! We were at WDW this past Feb, originally booked in ASMu but were moved to ASSports due to our dissatisfaction w/our room at ASMu. I have a knee injury which is aggravated when on my feet too long, so I ask for a location close to the main building. The location we were given at ASMu was the last building, furthest part of the building from the elevator and the building was being renovated so it was desolate. It took me 3 calls before I spoke w/someone even remotely willing to discuss the problem with me!! This time when my daughter booked us at POR there were no preferred rooms, so we booked GV. As I read these boards it seems POR is very accommodating to everyone's needs & wishes, but I am still concerned.

 

[amomma23]

DH just asked me a question I didn't know the answer to. I was showing him the video of the AB rooms and he saw the cartoon alligator by the murphy bed. He asked if the alligator was from a Disney movie. I told him not that I know of, but I figured if there is a story someone here would know it.

He's from The Princess and the Frog. Right?

 

[DevonsDisneyMom]

Hi All I figured this was the BEST place to come to get help with my questions about POR. Ok so here it goes.... Starting to do some research for my upcoming trip in August. POR is one of the resorts we are considering staying at. This will be our 15 visit and have never stayed here before.


Why should we stay here? One of the main concerns that I have is the sheer size of the resort. I have stayed at both CBR and CSR. Is POR really that much bigger?

If we do stay here, my hope is to book a Preferred room. Ideally, I'd like to stay in AB 14. If that is not available, where else should I request? My goal is to be close to the food court and 'Ol Man River Pool.

Appreciate any feedback that you can provide!

 

[andrewilley]

I have a knee injury which is aggravated when on my feet too long, so I ask for a location close to the main building. As I read these boards it seems POR is very accommodating to everyone's needs & wishes, but I am still concerned.

Yes, the room assignment folks at POR are normally very helpful. Make sure your request is in your initial booking first, but also send the resort a direct fax about 3-5 days before your arrival date explaining your request in more detail. If you are really worried, you could always contact the WDW Special Assistance line for special rooms, but by the sounds of it just a general request would be fine for you. There are some fairly well located GV rooms in Alligator Bayou 16 and 17, or the Acadian House and Magnolia Terrace mansion buildings.

I have stayed at both CBR and CSR. Is POR really that much bigger?

If we do stay here, my hope is to book a Preferred room. Ideally, I'd like to stay in AB 14. If that is not available, where else should I request? My goal is to be close to the food court and 'Ol Man River Pool.

To be honest, POR is smaller than either CBR or CSR (or rather, due to its layout not having a large lake in the middle, it tends to be more compact and easy to get around).

AB #14 would be a great choice, but you wouldn't be far away in any of the Preferred buildings (there's a bit of a clue in the name ) or even in 16 or 17, which are the next closest. See the map in the first post, or take a look on Google Earth, for an idea of the layout.

Andre

 

[HLAuburn]

I have to admit I, too, am a bit apprehensive about our stay at POR - we arrive 1/30!! We were at WDW this past Feb, originally booked in ASMu but were moved to ASSports due to our dissatisfaction w/our room at ASMu. I have a knee injury which is aggravated when on my feet too long, so I ask for a location close to the main building. The location we were given at ASMu was the last building, furthest part of the building from the elevator and the building was being renovated so it was desolate. It took me 3 calls before I spoke w/someone even remotely willing to discuss the problem with me!! This time when my daughter booked us at POR there were no preferred rooms, so we booked GV. As I read these boards it seems POR is very accommodating to everyone's needs & wishes, but I am still concerned.

While Disney is VERY accomodating, POR is a really big resort and the buildings are pretty spread out. Since your room location is more than just a preference, I would call and see if there are any preferred rooms available. A GV still might be a good distance from the main building and/or a bus stop. Another option might be to see if there is a Royal Room available - at least you know you will be in one of two buildings, and both are pretty close to the main hall.

 

[DevonsDisneyMom]

To be honest, POR is smaller than either CBR or CSR (or rather, due to its layout not having a large lake in the middle, it tends to be more compact and easy to get around).

AB #14 would be a great choice, but you wouldn't be far away in any of the Preferred buildings (there's a bit of a clue in the name ) or even in 16 or 17, which are the next closest. See the map in the first post, or take a look on Google Earth, for an idea of the layout.

Andre

Thank you so much! This makes me feel better. We love CSR, but I'm ready to try something new. I guess I just was concerned regarding what preferred buiding to request, b/c I'm not sure how close or far apart the building are from each other in the Bayou section!!!

One more question, how is the bus transportation to and from the parks?

 

[Missytara]

Hi All I figured this was the BEST place to come to get help with my questions about POR. Ok so here it goes.... Starting to do some research for my upcoming trip in August. POR is one of the resorts we are considering staying at. This will be our 15 visit and have never stayed here before.


Why should we stay here? One of the main concerns that I have is the sheer size of the resort. I have stayed at both CBR and CSR. Is POR really that much bigger?

If we do stay here, my hope is to book a Preferred room. Ideally, I'd like to stay in AB 14. If that is not available, where else should I request? My goal is to be close to the food court and 'Ol Man River Pool.

Appreciate any feedback that you can provide!

I have not stayed at CSR, but I have read up on their thread and POR will be very similar to CSR.

CBR is totally different in that its shear size is exasperated by the layout of the site. It is much more elongated, so rooms tend to be farther from main building.

In addition, unlike CBR, where your walk back from the bus stop through the parking lot is completely out of shade until you arrive at your separate building, POR is different. Once you exit the bus stop and walk around the sidewalk to the building (you don't have to walk across pavement), you are under the walkways of the building until you reach your room.

I have stayed in Acadian House, standard view a few times and the walk was no more than five to six minutes to the main building. Same with Parterre Place and Oak Manor before they went to RR's.

 

[Missytara]

Thank you so much! This makes me feel better. We love CSR, but I'm ready to try something new. I guess I just was concerned regarding what preferred buiding to request, b/c I'm not sure how close or far apart the building are from each other in the Bayou section!!!

One more question, how is the bus transportation to and from the parks?

You will get different answers to this question.

I travel solo and go at off-times, so I never had trouble getting a bus. Even with a group, you should not see any issues, unless it is a truly busy time of year.

People who tend to go at rope drop and travel at the busiest times of days will tell you that POR bus transportation is a "nightmare", but I have never experienced it.

One of the great advantages of staying at POR is you have alternate ways to return to the resort in the evening. I always end my evening at a resort for dinner and a leisurely stroll before getting on the DTD bus. Then you can either transfer there right to a POR bus, or walk over to the Marketplace boat dock (you can see the top of the volcano of RFC from the bus hub - just walk towards it) and take the water taxi. While the buses run every 20 - 25 minutes at the hub, the water taxi runs every 10 minutes after 4 pm, so I am never waiting long for a water taxi. It is a nice way to end the day.

 

[firstwdw]

I am trying to figure out the logistics of a character breakfast at the Beach Club. We are staying at POR without a car. If I got a very early breakfast time(7:30)....how would I get there? If I did a later time such as 10:45ish and had it correspond with our DHS day-then could we be at 9am rope drop of HS, have time to get Toy Story Mania fastpass or ride it and then be over to Beach Club on the Water Taxi in time? I'm just trying to determine if it's worth the hassle. We just want to have breakfast with Goofy and the beach club looks so cute! But it also seems like a "you can't get there from here" kind of place. Maybe we'll stick to Tusker House for our AK day instead.....

 

[Cinderumbrella]

I am trying to figure out the logistics of a character breakfast at the Beach Club. We are staying at POR without a car. If I got a very early breakfast time(7:30)....how would I get there? If I did a later time such as 10:45ish and had it correspond with our DHS day-then could we be at 9am rope drop of HS, have time to get Toy Story Mania fastpass or ride it and then be over to Beach Club on the Water Taxi in time? I'm just trying to determine if it's worth the hassle. We just want to have breakfast with Goofy and the beach club looks so cute! But it also seems like a "you can't get there from here" kind of place. Maybe we'll stick to Tusker House for our AK day instead.....

We enjoy Cape May for breakfast, but admit we only eat there when staying BC, YC or BWI. The logistics of using WDW transportation for any resort to resort hop is time-consuming at best.

However, a taxi would be another alternative, if you are willing to go that route.

 

[andrewilley]

A GV still might be a good distance from the main building and/or a bus stop. Another option might be to see if there is a Royal Room available - at least you know you will be in one of two buildings, and both are pretty close to the main hall.

RGR's won't necessarily guarantee all that much, as you could just as easily be on the far side of Parterre Place which are some of the furthest-away rooms.

If you can't get Preferred, then regular River View would help a little, as those all overlook the walkway around the island and so are among the closest rooms (including some in 14 and 27, which are the same buildings that have the preferred rooms). But personally I'd stay with Garden View to keep the cost down, and put in a request on medical grounds.

I am trying to figure out the logistics of a character breakfast at the Beach Club. We are staying at POR without a car. If I got a very early breakfast time(7:30)....how would I get there? If I did a later time such as 10:45ish and had it correspond with our DHS day-then could we be at 9am rope drop of HS, have time to get Toy Story Mania fastpass or ride it and then be over to Beach Club on the Water Taxi in time?

The 7:30 breakfast would be a little uncertain by Disney transport, I'd suggest geting a taxi as your safest bet. The 10:45 option would be very do-able though. You'd have ample time to get to DHS, get a fastpass (and even ride TSM too, if you're there at rope-drop) and then head over to the Beach Club. As long as you're out of the Studios exit and heading for the boat dock by about 10am, you should be fine for a 10:45 breakfast at the BC.

Andre

 

[HLAuburn]

RGR's won't necessarily guarantee all that much, as you could just as easily be on the far side of Parterre Place which are some of the furthest-away rooms.

If you can't get Preferred, then regular River View would help a little, as those all overlook the walkway around the island and so are among the closest rooms (including some in 14 and 27, which are the same buildings that have the preferred rooms). But personally I'd stay with Garden View to keep the cost down, and put in a request on medical grounds.


Andre

I agree that your best bet (IF you can't get a preferred room) is to put in a request noting your medical reasons for a particular location. It also couldn't mention that you *tried* to book preferred, but it wasn't available.

But I still think RRs would be a good option. We were on the far back side of Parterre, and I still thought it was MUCH better than a regular AB room or other MB buildings. Most of those buildings require you to walk across OMI or around it and that can be quite a trek!

Just my 2 cents!

 

[PISCESANGEL]

Subbing! There is a lot of great info on here and we are heading to POR in a week!

 

[DevonsDisneyMom]

I have not stayed at CSR, but I have read up on their thread and POR will be very similar to CSR.

CBR is totally different in that its shear size is exasperated by the layout of the site. It is much more elongated, so rooms tend to be farther from main building.

In addition, unlike CBR, where your walk back from the bus stop through the parking lot is completely out of shade until you arrive at your separate building, POR is different. Once you exit the bus stop and walk around the sidewalk to the building (you don't have to walk across pavement), you are under the walkways of the building until you reach your room.

I have stayed in Acadian House, standard view a few times and the walk was no more than five to six minutes to the main building. Same with Parterre Place and Oak Manor before they went to RR's.

You will get different answers to this question.

I travel solo and go at off-times, so I never had trouble getting a bus. Even with a group, you should not see any issues, unless it is a truly busy time of year.

People who tend to go at rope drop and travel at the busiest times of days will tell you that POR bus transportation is a "nightmare", but I have never experienced it.

One of the great advantages of staying at POR is you have alternate ways to return to the resort in the evening. I always end my evening at a resort for dinner and a leisurely stroll before getting on the DTD bus. Then you can either transfer there right to a POR bus, or walk over to the Marketplace boat dock (you can see the top of the volcano of RFC from the bus hub - just walk towards it) and take the water taxi. While the buses run every 20 - 25 minutes at the hub, the water taxi runs every 10 minutes after 4 pm, so I am never waiting long for a water taxi. It is a nice way to end the day.

Thank you so much for your input. I for one absolutely hate the layout of CBR. CSR doesn't bother me. Yes it is big but I enjoy walking the grounds.

POR seems very quite and serene to me. Which I like after the hustle and bustle of the park. As of now we are leaning toward POR for our stay I think. I think I sort of like the Bayou section of the resort the best, So most likely will book a preferred section there. But if I don't can you recommend any standard section that is most convienent?