Port Orleans - Riverside stay

[Crifer13]

Hello

I am staying at the Port Orleans riverside resort in September . is there any pro's / con's that I should know about ?

Thank You

 

[pepe of ohio]

Hello

I am staying at the Port Orleans riverside resort in September . is there any pro's / con's that I should know about ?

Thank You

It's huge, really huge... 4 bus stops... That ought to relate to the size of the resort...

 

[JennyDrake]

GREAT food court.

Build your own pasta is easily enough for 2 people.

Definitely take the boat ride to DTD!!

Yes, it is a large resort.

 

[Crifer13]

Thank you

That's actually the first thing I want to do when I get there . After checking in of course

 

[Rose23]

Here's a few more items:

1) If you want peace and quiet, seek a room towards the back of the resort but know that you will walk 15 minutes to the front for food, arcade, store, etc. (it's a fun and beautiful walk though).

2) The food court fills up quickly so try to eat breakfast before 7:45am if possible. The masses come around 8am/8:30am.

3) DO NOT attempt to catch a Disney bus at the front (River Delta/Blue Bayou stop) of the resort in the mornings after you've eatten breakfast at the food court. Instead, take an extra minutes and walk to East Depot; you will have a better chance of getting a seat, although you will probably be kind and give it up when you see the expectant moms, elderly, wheelchairs and small children board at the front stop (River Delta/Blue Bayou).

4) If you have a car, parking is free at the Disney parks since you are staying at Port Orleans. Consider driving back to Epcot if going to evening fireworks (Epcot is right next door to Port Orleans). You won't have to worry about getting on a bus after Illuminations. Disney buses are very crowded at park closings for Port Orleans guests.

5) Be aware that Port Orleans seems to attract large youth groups which can make the resort very busy at times.

6) Very nice boat ride to Downtown Disney but it is a slow one (20-30 minutes).

7) Here's the unofficial website: www.portorleans.org.

Have a wonderful trip and enjoy your family time together!

 

[Alison Wunderland]

No elevators!! I got stuck in a building with no elevators. I was told that some buildings have them and others don't. I was a pain trying to get my baby up to the second floor with a stroller when he was asleep in my arms at night. Also, it was a pain trying to get all the luggage up the stairs with the baby when we checked in. I had to leave it unattended at the bottom of the stairs. Had I known there were no elevators I would have asked for help from the get go.

I was all the way at the back of the resort so it was a loooong walk to the food court. About 10 minutes or so. I didn't get much use out of my reusable mug.

The plus side was that where I was located was so quiet and serene.

 

[Crifer13]

Thanks for all the information about the resort . This is all stuff I didn't know before

 

[Mousemommy1]

This would be a good thread to review. Lots of good information.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3116350

 

[dminnie]

I'm not sure about the suggestion of where to get a room for peace and quiet. You just never know what neighbors you'll get no matter where you stay. We had a very quiet stay at CSR, until the last two days when the family that moved in next to us came along. I'd look at the map of POR and just ask for whatever building strikes you (and then hope for quiet neighbors).

Yes, it's a big resort. Everyone points that out for all the mods (except FQ which doesn't have as many amenities as the others...no TS, no quiet pool). WDW is huge, so you can expect to walk a lot no matter where you stay, unless you're going there to stay put in your room.

The food court is nice. The make your own pasta(or...choose your toppings I think) is good. We never found time to do the boat to DTD, but that sounds like a nice relaxing thing to do.

It's nice that POR is so close to the POFQ. You can take a walk over there to get beignets! Also, they do allow pool hopping between these resorts. You could go over there to check out the FQ pool. Not sure if you're bringing kids along. The FQ pool is geared more towards little kids, with a very tame slide.

 

[mimidodaplgo]

Check out portorleans.org for a lot of good information about the resort. I have stayed there for three separate trips and my family loves it. We love the layout, the rooms in the plantation section, food court, boats that take you to DTD and back and ,of course, Yeehaa Bob who plays in the lounge during the weekends. This is our favorite resort!!

 

[Crifer13]

Thanks for all the info here .

This has been very helpful

 

[Shaden]

The resort is not THAT big, people constantly over state the size of it. At Portorleans.org they actually have distances from different points to the main buildings. I would say there is no walk that is longer then 10 mins, and most are 5 or less.

I also wouldn't necessarily say not to use the main building bus stop, in fact, we used the main building bus stop for all our departures. We had a great experience with the busses.

The resort is beautiful, you are going to have a wonderful time.

 

[nkereina]

No elevators!! I got stuck in a building with no elevators. I was told that some buildings have them and others don't. I was a pain trying to get my baby up to the second floor with a stroller when he was asleep in my arms at night. Also, it was a pain trying to get all the luggage up the stairs with the baby when we checked in. I had to leave it unattended at the bottom of the stairs. Had I known there were no elevators I would have asked for help from the get go.

I was all the way at the back of the resort so it was a loooong walk to the food court. About 10 minutes or so. I didn't get much use out of my reusable mug.

The plus side was that where I was located was so quiet and serene.

Only the Alligator Bayou section of the resort does not have elevators. All buildings are two floors. The Magnolia Bend section (the mansions) all have elevators, and are three floors.

 

[Babsy]

There is also a horse drawn carriage ride at POFQ that you might like. It is an easy stroll between POR and POFQ.

 

[chirogrrl]

We stayed one night (pre-cruise) and didn't do the parks, so I can't comment on the buses. We did take the boat to DTD and it was lovely and relaxing. WAY better than any bus ride I have had to/from DTD

We loved our room location, it was tucked into the back corner of Parterre Place. This made for a quiet location and the corner room had 2 windows. It was an easy walk to both the Riverside and French Quarter food courts (finally got to try the beignets!) And a quick walk to the quiet pool.

It was far from the main pool, so it's not an ideal location if you plan on spending a lot of time there.

In the evening, the main building has a very fun and festive vibe. We caught a little of Bob Jackson's show in the lounge, and the shop is big and has a great variety.

We really enjoyed our night, maybe we will go back! Have fun!

 

[bookgirl2632]

The resort is not THAT big, people constantly over state the size of it. At Portorleans.org they actually have distances from different points to the main buildings. I would say there is no walk that is longer then 10 mins, and most are 5 or less.

I also wouldn't necessarily say not to use the main building bus stop, in fact, we used the main building bus stop for all our departures. We had a great experience with the busses.

The resort is beautiful, you are going to have a wonderful time.

I agree with all of this. We were in the mansions, in Acadian House, to be exact. Our room was toward the back, overlooking a courtyard. To get back to the main building, we simply had a short walk over the island and we were there. It only took about five minutes. And we also used the front bus stop quite often and never had a problem.

I would agree with other posters and suggest you either walk down or grab the boat to POFQ. We did this on our departure day, since we didn't have time for a park before our flight. It was really beautiful, hence the reason that I would love to stay there next year. But if a discount is unavailable, we'll definitely be back at POR.

 

[Missytara]

There is also a horse drawn carriage ride at POFQ that you might like. It is an easy stroll between POR and POFQ.

Actually, you have it backwards; the carriage ride initiates at POR by the marina; that is where you book it.

It takes you around POR and over to POFQ and back, ending at POR.

Same with the surrey bikes; you have to book and pick them up at the marina, but you can go over to POFQ and back to POR to drop them back off again.

 

[Crifer13]

Thanks again to everyone here that's given me information. All this is making me wish that my check in date was tomorrow not next month

 

[lilkimmyk]

Only the Alligator Bayou section of the resort does not have elevators. All buildings are two floors. The Magnolia Bend section (the mansions) all have elevators, and are three floors.

Thank you for the clarification about the elevators, I am in looking into this resort for our stay and was unaware there were some buildings without elevators. I just assumed all buildings had them. Thanks again!

 

[nkereina]

Thank you for the clarification about the elevators, I am in looking into this resort for our stay and was unaware there were some buildings without elevators. I just assumed all buildings had them. Thanks again!

Sure thing! To guarantee you're in a room with elevators, you could book a royal room. All royal rooms are in the mansions and all mansions have elevators. Avoid booking a preferred room - all preferred rooms are in Alligator Bayou, which do not have elevators. If you book any other category, just request the mansions if you want an elevator and if they can fulfill your request, you will be in either Acadian House or Magnolia Terrace.