port orleans riverside

[reseager]

has anyone stayed at the POR recently? we are going in late april w/3 small boys and a lot of the reviews i have read are neg.
any advice or things we need to know?

 

[shellybaxter]

DH and I LOVED POR - We thought it was great. The main pool was fun, but they had quiet pools spread around too, for when you didn't feel like so many people. We thought the rooms were a nice size (we had a King Bed Room) with lots of light and nothing looked old or worn really. Well, the calking around the tub was cracking a bit, but whose calk isn't cracking - no big deal. The bus service was nice (POFQ wasn't open yet though, so I'm not sure what it's like now.) And even though it was a big resort, it didn't take long to walk the places we wanted to go - we were in Magnolia Terrace. The best part was how BEAUTIFUL it was, just really really well landscaped, like out of a movie about the old south. You'll have a blast!!

Shelly

 

[Minky]

Do not believe the other reviews...I was nervous about staying after reading other reviews too, and we usually stay in AKL which is just perfect...but I fell in love with POR, it is beautiful the grounds are gorgeous, everyone is so friendly...and AT NIGHT you will literally feel like you have been swept away back in time, it is gorgeous at night and the horse drawn buggies going around the grounds adds to the charm. The walking is not bad at all we had a short 5 minute walk to the food court, but the scenery makes it great. The food was great, sit down restaraunt boatwrights was nice, and DONT MISS the boat ride to Downtown Disney at night....very relaxing. Youll have a GREAT time I promise
Let me know when you get back
Minky

 

[dmonroe]

We stayed there in December; and I can't think of anything negative about our stay. (Except that our stay was during Pop Warner, and the crowds were heavier than we had expected. Really no big deal!) Our room was clean, mousekeeping was great, bus service was fine, the food was good (food court and Boatwrights!) Nope! Nothing negative about our stay there. Have a great time!

 

[Chris22]

I'll also be at the POR the last week of April w/DW, DD9, DS4 & DD2. Looking forward to my first time at a moderate.

 

[cottontail]

minky and dmonroe what buildings did you folks stay in? Just wondering if it was the mansions or the alligat bayou.

Deb.

 

[tinkgrl]

Hi,

Love POR!!!!! Been there twice & would go again. Very peaceful place. Have fun!

Allison

 

[dmonroe]

We stayed in the mansions (Magnolia Terrace). We loved the location. It was convenient to the bus stop, and just a short, peaceful walk to to pool and food court. One thing, our room faced the courtyard of Magnolia Terrace. I don't think I would have liked the location as well if we had faced the parking lot.

 

[disneyeveryyear]

I was just there Sunday - Wednesday and loved it. Hadn't stayed there in a few years, but wanted EE during Spring Break.

Room was very well done (just one minor snafu with housekeeping). Didn't look worn or dingy. We were in Magnolia Bend - Acadian House #8065.

Checked in at 1:00 on Sunday and our room was ready. Only request had been non-smoking (guaranteed due to kids asthma).

We got Magnolia Bend, first floor, right outside a quiet pool. Didn't have a view because stair case was in front of window, but we tend to close the blinds when we get there and leave them closed. There is just something about people walking past and looking in room that creeps me out.

DH and DS ate lunch at food court one afternoon. Both really liked Chix. Parm. sandwich. Carrot cake was pretty good too!

We did take boat to DTD on Sunday afternoon with no wait, but by the time we returned there were lines of 30+ people at each POFQ and POR trying to get to DTD. No line coming home either. They were beautiful rides.

Tuesday afternoon we rented a boat. Had a great time doing that. It was a new experience for us at WDW.

The pools were extremely well kept and quite refreshing.

If you have any other questions, let me know.

 

[HANDYMOM]

Don't be worried about bad reviews. People are always quicker to complain than they are to rave. Also, a lot of people that have stayed at the deluxe resorts often set expectations high. Having stayed at both deluxe and CBR, I can assure you that both are beautiful and fun in their own way. DH and I are bringing DS's to Riverside in 28 days! Yeah,

I hope you enjoy your stay.

 

[GaryWT]

We were there 5 years ago and will be back in a week. I have not read anything negative but maybe I should take a look. I am expecting another great week there.

 

[GaryWT]

Just read some of the reviews and I guess everyone is different but some give 1 star or 5 for value and not returning but go on to tell how great it is in the comment section. I did read one that had some problems in the room and it took awhile to fix it, most people probably would have reported the problems and headed off for the day but they were on their honeymoon and the room is more important to them. Anyway, I am not worried and am looking forward to our trip.

 

[shanac14]

My family and I just returned about two weeks ago. At first we thought POR was great & it was a good match for us, as we were traveling with a 22mth old. The grounds were very pretty, but as the week went on our opinion changed. On a positive note I will say I found it easy to get around. The bus service was great. Didn't have to wait very long when we used it. I too read a lot of negative things about the resort and was nervous about staying there, but tried to keep an open mind. On the negative side: The food court really wasn't that good - all pre-cooked & overpriced (which we expected it would be). We stayed in Arcadia house and our room was showing it's age. We had a water view room - of the pool (it was actually blocked by trees, etc., but still nice). Halfway through the week we were on our way to breakfast and passed through the pool area.....not sure what happened, but the pool was loaded with garbage. There were several employees trying to clean it out. That was the end of our using that pool. Also the towel return bins were always overloaded and full, so we used the main pool. A few minor incidences throughout the week also changed our opinion. Without getting too lengthy with all of them...one was a blue bowl that was left on the ground near our room. It took 5 days for it to be removed. We had a bottom floor room, which we were happy with, but at 6:30am every morning we were awoken to the gentleman upstairs going to the bathroom & then flushing the toilet. When I say it was loud I mean it was loud. I don't know how old the bathrooms are, but when you flushed it was LOUD. The last incident to occur, which for me made my decision to never return was what my husband told me after we checked out. He didn't tell me when it happened (halfway through our stay) because he knew I wouldn't be able to stay there. He got up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom. He happen to see something out of the corner of his eye in the tub......a huge cockroch! It came up through the drain (we are assuming). From then on he kept the drain closed.

The reviews are definately mixed. I'm sorry to be so negative & I hope you do enjoy your stay. Overall we had a great time on our vacation, but for us when we go back because of our experience we'll spend the extra money and stay at one of the deluxe resorts.

 

[DMRick]

We love POR. This wil be our third trip to POR (We did POP in January). We are often value people, but we prefer to stay at values only in the colder months, as we would miss the shade at POR. I don't know of any other pool (but then I haven't stayed at a lot of places at Disney..just all the values and POR.. but I have checked out all hotel pool areas) that offers you shade near the pool with trees. And walking the grounds are such a treat. We love almost having the quiet pools to ourselves, and we've been very pleased with the clean rooms, etc. We've not had a room showing wear, and each time we have been there, they have been refurbing another area. As far as finding a bug in your room, well, it is Florida and although Dis sprays often, bugs happen in that climate. Garbage in the pool? Well, I'm pretty sure Disney employees didn't put it there, but I'm glad they were trying to clean it up.
I will say that our grands prefer the values for the cuteness, but we prefer POR. We eat breakfast each day in the foodcourt, and although the food isn't spectacular, we thought it was good on the days we had regular meals there. The price was good, and service pretty fast.

 

[susy]

Really, a roach in FL is nothing and they are EVERYWHERE.

 

[Dan Murphy]

I have stayed there several times and I think it is a very nice resort, beautiful, relaxing, great food court. A few wpictures of it in a picture thread I put up on this board a day or so ago.

 

[tinkerbee]

I love POR we have stayed there twice, once in October 2001 and this past Jan. I think it is a wonderful resort. It is a very large resort with over 2000 rooms but some times you feel as if you are the only one there.

We own DVC and I still very much enjoy the feel of POR. The castmembers there are wonderful and very friendly.

And as for the resort not being clean. I find it hard to believe since on our first trip we saw a castmember dusting one of the bridges!!!

 

[vhoffman]

Ok, first of all, let me state that I am NOT a fan of cockroaches, or any other bug, for that matter. However, don't let the sight of a cockroach freak you out to the point you feel the hotel is somehow "unclean". I'm from Michigan orginally, but have lived in Texas for the last 20 years. In Michigan, a cockroach was considered a mark of filth, poor housekeeping, etc. I remember my parents being very stressed to find what they thought was a cockroach in the basement (it was too small to determine for sure what it was). My mother went to a store on the other side of town to buy insectcide and I was forbidden to mention to anyone that we had a bug in the basement. (I feel slightly weird telling it now!) However, upon moving to Texas, I had to adopt a different attitude towards bugs. The heat and humidity breeds cockroaches, especially the large tree roach, or palmetto bug. They come from the outside in, especially during rain storms. The fact that they are inside a building doesn't mean that the conditions, dirt, etc. breed or attracted them. They just move around a lot. The smaller cockroach is the type associated with dirty conditions and tends to take up permanent residence in dirty buidings and breed there. The large cockroach is very frightening to see, I've seen some over 3 inches long and saw one about 5-6 inches long. they can fly, too! Any type of cockroach can bring dirt, germs, etc. and is not to be tolerated. If I saw one, I'd certainly call management to spray. However, like I said, the mere presence of a cockroach is not an indication of bad housekeeping in hot, humid climates such as Florida.

 

[GaryWT]

Having been there in the past and going in 5-6 days there is nothing anyone can say to upset me. The court from what I remember and what others have said is one of the best. POR is on prperty so it is cared for just as all other Disney properties are. As far as price, we are in Disney and everything is more costly so POR is no different than any other resort or park. I just can not wait, days away and here we come.

 

[colleen costello]

We have stayed at POR repeatedly over the last 10 years, really since it opened. I have NEVER had a bad room. Each location has it's pluses (quiet, pretty view, close to the action, etc) The grounds are gorgeous... We took pics just this March and friends look and say "How beautiful -- where is that?"

The rooms are not huge but certainly adequate. The quiet pools are peaceful and the main pool has lots of action and a pool slide my kids love. The pool bar has snacks and WONDERFUL drinks; there is even a fishing pond with catch-and-release fish. We feel the place is a good bargain, especially when you can swing a discount on the room (MOUSESAVERS!). The food court is OK with a reasonable selection and lots of snacks. The sit-down restaurant is a nice option. We LOVE Riverside!

PS: A bug can get in at ANY moderate because of the doors that open to the outside. If this worries you, roll up a towel before bed and make a "barrier." You can spray a bit of RAID over the threshold if you are really worried!