Port Orleans Riverside OR Port Orleans French Quarter for a 3 year old?

[pepperidge]

My husband, our 3 year old son, our 1 year old daughter and myself will be going to Disney at the end of January - early February this year to celebrate the kids birthdays (Feb 4 and Feb 15). I am from New Orleans and have wanted to stay at the Port Orleans for quite a while now... I've read many compliments on the French Quarter section, but have heard that the Riverside is nice as well.

With small children, is one resort better than the other? Too bad that you can't hop on a boat that can bring you to the Magic Kingdom and/or Epcot; Even MGM or Animal Kingdom would be a nice boat ride. That would be sooooo helpful with the stroller situation. From what I understand, Downtown Disney is accessible via boat, but we don't go down there... We're too busy riding "It's A Small World", "Winnie the Pooh", "Peter Pan", "Buzz Lightyear" and all those kiddie rides in Magic Kingdom.

The 3 year old LOVED the water slide at Storm-A-Long-Bay (Yacht & Beach Club's pool) and I've heard that there are nice pools at these hotels as well, but I don't know if they are geered to older or younger children. He was too little for the pool slide at Wilderness Lodge for example & the lifegaurds would not let my husband go down the slide with him.

I didn't realize that there were 2 different kinds of rooms... Elegant and rustic -right? This will be a tough decision. We sure did like the "rustic-ness" of Wilderness Lodge, but elegance would be nice too. We've never stayed at the Grand Floridian before, but I read somewhere that if you are on a budget, give the Port Orleans Riverside a shot for a similar, less expensive experience. Does anyone have an opinion on that suggestion?

We will be renting a car, so taking the bus will not come into play for us. (It seems to be less of a bother if we drive - having the 2 strollers filled to the gills with "stuff" that would need to come out before we board the bus and then re-packed once we exit. And not having to wait for the buses is also nice... I've heard some horror stories about wait times.

Any suggestions from anyone that's visited or stayed at the Port Orleans French Quarter or Riverside would be greatly appreciated! Please keep in mind that we have the 2 kids, so playgrounds, activities, and kiddie things are important to us these days. And if you have specific room numbers that you have stayed at in the past and really loved, that would be great to know about too.

Is there any consierge floor at this hotel? I've never done that before, but would like to one day.

Thanks y'all!
Mimi

 

[Martin S]

If you have young children you may prefer the FQ, simply because it is smaller and easier to get to the foodcourt etc. Try to get one of the buildings overlooking the pool as they are very close to everything.

The pool is nice with a good slide for younger children, when we were there the lifeguards were happy for us to go down the slide with the kids on our laps.

 

[Steffi]

POFQ isn't as large & spread out as POR, so that would probably be easier for your family. The pool is great for kids and the slide is a good size for little ones. And even if you don't need anything at DD, the boat ride there from PO is a nice experience. It's great to have something to do away from the hustle of the parks.

 

[melomouse]

Hi -
Sounds like you are planning well. I am just back from POR with my kids( now 10 & 6). We have been fortunate to stay at WL this past summer and POFQ last summer.

POR is gorgeous and there is more to do - but your baby's a bit young for all the biking, water stuff yet. POR is also WAY to big for my need with kids. DS got lost on the way back to our room one night!

Pools and slide at POFQ are better, layout more compact, and you can always walk or ride over to POR if you want and use their facilities. The alligator fountain pool and serpent slide are rated by somepeople to be the best WDW resort pools, next to Stormalong Bay.

Let us know what you decide. I'll imagine myself back there while you plan!!!LOL!

melomouse

 

[eeyore0062]

Chalk another vote up for French Quarter.

Reasons:
Not as spread out
Only one centrally located bus stop
1st on and 1st off of the busses to the parks
Whimsically themed pool.
Slide not as steep or fast
Whimsically themed food court with big screen TV with Disney movies playing the entire time it is open.
If you want to visit PO-R, there is a boat that will transport you that runs every 15 minutes between 9 am, and 9:30 pm.

After staying at both, I highly recommend PO-FQ, especially if you have kids!

 

[pepperidge]

I called the Disney Reservation number today and changed our reservations over to the French Quarter.

I appreciate your help on this and I believe we've made the right choice.

Thanks Again,
Mimi

 

[JulesMom]

I have stayed at both.

I would stay at PO-FQ. It is much smaller, so you have a VERY short walk to the pool, parking lot, food court or laundry.

My kids really liked the slide at PO-FQ

 

[Bev J]

Another vote for FQ, it is just so easy to get around this resort with very little walking. We stayed in Bldg 4 on the first floor, very close to parking, food court and just far enough from the pool so the late night swimmers did not bother us.First floor was also good for us so we did not have to climb the steps at the end of a long day of touring-we were never bothered by any noise from above. It was fun to open the door and step out into a little garden area to play a bit or watch the bunnies or squirles. Have a great trip.

 

[PoohBWV]

I have stayed at both and like POFQ much better - smaller, at that time first on the bus route (not sure about now), beignets in the morning, great pool and more of a "New Orleans" atmosphere. You guys will love it.

 

[weloveminnie]

Sounds like a plan, you should probably try POFQ.

 

[Schmeck]

A bit off topic, but if you're planning on spending lots of time at Magic Kingdom, I'd take the bus. The parking lot at MK is across the lagoon, and you need to take a monorail or ferry ride to get to the main entrance. And if you have to park way on the other side of the parking lot (like we did) you'll even have to take a tram to get to the ferry/monorail...

Schmeck, who wasn't too impressed by POR-mansions, but would be willing to do POR-Alligator Bayou or POFQ!

 

[ChiTownZee]

Good choice to go with POFQ. We loved it.

And I just wanted to say not to overlook the boat ride to DTD. I said the same things as you for years and we tried DTD for the first time this last trip. The boat starts at 4:30 and my daughter loved the boat ride, it was very enjoyable, and she had a ball at DTD. We spent at least 2 hours at Once Upon A Toy, I can't tell you how long at the Lego store (they have a big outdoor area with building stations) and you wouldn't believe the Lego sculptures they have going on! I'm a shopper so I was in heaven, the home store, gourmet store (oh my!) and the Christmas stores were my fav's. And you MUST get a hot fudge sundae from Ghiradelli's, I swear they are drugged!

 

[king_triton2001]

Another thumbs up for POFQ! We have also stayed at both and liked both. Our kids were also 3 and 1 when we stayed at POFQ. The compact size of the resort, paths, courtyards and playground were perfect for the kids to run around in and dissipate some of that energy before taking a nap!! We were in bldg. 4, which was convenient to the food court, parking, bus, and not too far from the pool. You really should plan some time to take the boat to DTD - it is a pleasant ride.