Port Orleans Riverside Q&A Thread 2013, Part Three (NOW CLOSED, see 2014 thread)

[andrewilley]

I had it on my CSR trip in October. It was in the room in the night stand. It wasn't given at check-in.

If you don't get a bounceback leaflet in your room, just ask for one from mousekeeping or the front desk, they'll almost certainly have one.

Andre

 

[Rebekkap]

We always bring or own beach towels. The ones at the pool are about the same size as a bath towel.

Thanks, great tip

I have a big yellow travel beach towel that rolls up really small - I will bring that along.

 

[Rebekkap]

I never saw such a book on my November trip at Coronado Springs and my recent February trip at POR. I looked at all my paper work and there was no BOG book in my folders.
That's ok, I'm sure the 35% was on the deluxe resorts so that isn't an expense/interest for me.


Hi Rebekka.
I brought a pump bottle of liquid soap with me in my check in luggage back in November and never used it because the "mousekeeper" took the bar soap and put it on a clean folded pretty fanned face cloth. That helped my soap dry nice.

This trip I just folded the facecloth because the "mousekeeper" at POR didn't seem to have the fun folding skills. But both my shower soap and my sink soap were on face clothes and worked fine.

I only bring this up because packing these extra things don't seem like extra weight but it all ads up.
AND when I checked my luggage at the airline for departure the agent questioned me about any liquid soap or detergent. She said that some TSA agents have been removing them from suitcases. I didn't have that problem but with recent things in the news, why add more things to make your suitcase heavier if you can do without it. If you are only 2 adults, consider the face cloth idea for the soap.

One thing that was helpful when I was with my husband in November was I brought one of those Dollar store folding cloth closet/drawer organizer. I left it on the dresser for my husband to toss the contents of his pockets at the end of the day. Helped us know where wallets/keys and loose change/receipts were. Oh and our magic bands.
It just helped keep the room neater.
I also brought a pop up hamper both times. This way dirty clothes went in there and we didn't mix it in the suitcase with cleaner clothes. When it was time to pack, we put all the dirty socks and underwear in the empty plastic bags from purchases in the parks that we consolodated into other bags, and then packed the dirty clothes in one of the check in suitcases. Then when I got home I knew that suitcase was my laundry.

Hope that helps.
Oh don't forget chapstick/lip balm!
Oh and I was able to go bagless into the parks most days this trip. I wore shorts and pants with the side pockets. (cargo pants) I was able to keep my phone in that side pocket and small flat wallet in the other to old my ID and credit card. (Had to have my Disney Visa/license on me to get my free 5x7 photo at Epcot)
Oh small ziplock bags. I found some of the desserts from the bakery were too big to eat in one sitting, so I was able to put it in the fridge for the next day.

Here is a "tip" I figured out this trip. Look for refrigeration coolers in the resort gift shop and in the parks. The Dasani water bottles are $2.75 but the coolers have the bigger 1.5 liter bottles for $3.75. That is a huge savings if you are a water drinker and don't like the chlorine taste of the tap water.
I had a couple empty bottles with me so I refilled them so that when I got to the parks I could toss the plastic. The rooms have cups you can use to drink water in the room.

Have a magical trip!

Thank you! So many tips I don't know where to start!

We're thinking of getting a grocery delivery, so I was going to order some liquid soap rather than bring it, and I hadn't even thought it might not be allowed in checked bags, so thanks for that. We'll probably get water delivered too - I definitely don't like the taste of the water, and it makes awful tea and coffee.

I like the idea of the drawer organiser - I definitely don't want the room getting too untidy, so that's a great idea. I usually bring a laundry bag - we're probably going to do some laundry while we're there, and when we're going home we're heading to two different countries sadly so we can't put all the washing in one bag!

Ziplock bags are a great idea - I find the portion sizes at Disney are massive and as we're doing the dining plan, no doubt we'll have leftovers!

I went bagless in the parks last time and I'm planning to again - it saves so much time! All I really need is my phone, magic band, sunglasses and a small container of sunscreen to reapply.

And I never leave home without a lip balm

 

[Yellowstonetim]

Thank you! So many tips I don't know where to start!

We're thinking of getting a grocery delivery, so I was going to order some liquid soap rather than bring it, and I hadn't even thought it might not be allowed in checked bags, so thanks for that. We'll probably get water delivered too - I definitely don't like the taste of the water, and it makes awful tea and coffee.

I like the idea of the drawer organiser - I definitely don't want the room getting too untidy, so that's a great idea. I usually bring a laundry bag - we're probably going to do some laundry while we're there, and when we're going home we're heading to two different countries sadly so we can't put all the washing in one bag!

Ziplock bags are a great idea - I find the portion sizes at Disney are massive and as we're doing the dining plan, no doubt we'll have leftovers!

I went bagless in the parks last time and I'm planning to again - it saves so much time! All I really need is my phone, magic band, sunglasses and a small container of sunscreen to reapply.

And I never leave home without a lip balm

I like the drawer organizer, too! Haven't tried one. We did take the hanging/folding organizer and hung it on the closet bar (with Velcro) in the bathroom area. It worked fantastic. I'll make another plug for the pop-up hamper. We bought one this last trip. It worked wonderful and was so much nicer than a bag. They are very light, collapses flat to go in a suit case and pops up to make a nice small hamper. It was so nice to be able to just throw clothes in it and go. It kept the room nice and neat.

 

[winterman]

If you don't get a bounceback leaflet in your room, just ask for one from mousekeeping or the front desk, they'll almost certainly have one.

Andre

I had one in my room at POFQ in Nov. '13 but it only talked about free dining. Since I will likely travel solo, that's not a great deal for me. So, I asked about room only offers and got 30% off on a return to FQ. I didn't ask about other resorts.

 

[Molly Wobbles]

Hi All! First post.

Booked our vacation last night for POR! It will be my Husband and 4 year old son's first time staying on property and I could not be more excited to have them experience an on-site vacation.

Thanks, Andre, if it weren't for you and your info, I would have never realized the 'magic' of Port Orleans Riverside!

 

[siskaren]

Ziplock bags are a great idea - I find the portion sizes at Disney are massive and as we're doing the dining plan, no doubt we'll have leftovers!

I went bagless in the parks last time and I'm planning to again - it saves so much time!

If you're going bagless, where are you going to put the ziplock bags filled with leftovers?

 

[mollyseven]

generally like the "idea" of taking leftovers with us but it just never works for "us"..
My son isn't a big dessert eater and so I thought a couple times that I would order something different and then take his dessert that I knew we liked "to go" but both times we tried this...once in Epcot at Rose and Crown we took a bakewell tart to go and once in Epcot at Tutto Italia we were taking the tiramisu to go...both ended up a mess by the time we got to the front gate and we each had a bite and tossed them.....it's just too difficult for us to manage keeping a nice dessert in good shape for the return to the hotel....between the walking, shopping and bus rides, it just isn't going to happen. After this Matthew just got tea for dessert and we moved on. For counter service it's easier as some of the desserts are easier to carry....a cookie or some fruit is much easier to manage than full lovely dessert. I don't think I could mange leftover meals any easier...much easier to share a meal than bring half of each home.

 

[RejoyceoverDisney]

I had one in my room at POFQ in Nov. '13 but it only talked about free dining. Since I will likely travel solo, that's not a great deal for me. So, I asked about room only offers and got 30% off on a return to FQ. I didn't ask about other resorts.

30% on FQ...uh I would have loved that bounce back. But had I even thought to look into it my husband might have blow a gasket. LOL These two month apart back to back trips was pushing it enough. I suspect the earliest I will have any hope is Fall of 2015 and only if my husband's friend goes with the kids. We said we would try to go the same time so we could do some hanging with their kids and have fun watching them.

But I would love to stay at FQ or POR again.
LOVED Magnolia!!

I'm excited for those of you getting ready to go or just booking and starting to plan.

 

[Venomhatch]

Good evening everyone. Just got home after a long and exhausting day. Now for some The Walking Dead!

 

[cbrown1007]

Is there a kiddie pool at POR? I don't see it on the resort map.

 

[Venomhatch]

Is there a kiddie pool at POR? I don't see it on the resort map.

Yes there is a kiddie pool. There is one that maybe is a foot if that, deep.

The other pools are 3.5 to 5.5 foot deep.

 

[Rebekkap]

If you're going bagless, where are you going to put the ziplock bags filled with leftovers?

I've got a fold up shopping bag that fits in a pocket - bagless into the parks doesn't mean you have to be bagless once you're in there!

 

[Koh1977]

I'm sure it's been asked, but how long does it take to make the loop around the resort before heading to each park? Then how long does it take to get to each park?

Thanks!!

Booked at GF right now for 4 nights in July, but thinking of switching...it would save $400-$600 I think...

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

 

[andrewilley]

Is there a kiddie pool at POR? I don't see it on the resort map.

I'm sure it's been asked, but how long does it take to make the loop around the resort before heading to each park? Then how long does it take to get to each park?

The trip between each of the outer stops is about 2 mins, so the whole loop takes about 8 minutes (a little longer if there's a lot of people waiting or a wheelchair load).

From leaving the resort, the parks vary from about 10 mins for Epcot, then about 12-15 mins for MK and Studios, and 20+ mins for Animal Kingdom (which usually goes via Blizzard Beach first).

Andre

 

[Koh1977]

The trip between each of the outer stops is about 2 mins, so the whole loop takes about 8 minutes (a little longer if there's a lot of people waiting or a wheelchair load). From leaving the resort, the parks vary from about 10 mins for Epcot, then about 12-15 mins for MK and Studios, and 20+ mins for Animal Kingdom (which usually goes via Blizzard Beach first). Andre

Awesome. Thanks!

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

 

[mymeme]

Just a word about POR: Wonderful!!! We just returned home today after 7 nights. The resort was great! We were in Bldg 14 and loved it. We had the best Mousekeeping of all time. The name on the card was Georgina (sp ?). She made towel animals for our little grandson that were so cute. The pool was real nice. First 2 days we were there it was really nice weather. Then 3 days of cold and rain. Then Sunday was sunshine again. Sad to leave very early this morning. Also, Magic Express worked out great for us.

 

[onelugnut]

couldnt say it better than the above post.
riverside was great. rooms, people, pools.

let me just add, that we ate ate Boatwrights, and it was great too.

and DO NOT MISS BOB JACKSON
he is my favorite thing at DW.
seriously, after the parks, take the whole family down and sing a song and have some laughs.

 

[zabache]

Were there any bees in the pool area? When I went in August I didn't stay long because there were a ton of bees.

 

[patclairesmom]

The hanging organizer and pop up hamper is a must do at Disney.