Needing Reassurance On My Choice of POR!!!

Good Luck. You will be on the PORFQ bus service for 40 minutes before actually leaving the property.

Bus service from POR seems to be hit or miss, as reports from previous guests are across the board from good to bad.

A few tips for you:

Port Orleans Riverside has four bus stops, and generally the first pick up is at the bus stop closest to the main building (lobby, gift shop, etc.) If you are close enough, I'd leave from that stop if possible.

Depending on how busy it is when you visit, you may have to share a bus with Port Orleans French Quarter for Hollywood Studios, Epcot and Animal Kingdom. Generally, there are seperate busses at each resort for Magic Kingdom. If they are sharing busses for any of the parks, the busses usually stop over at POFQ first, then come over to POR.

If you have a problem catching a bus, make sure you let someone know about it. The squeaky wheel gets the grease - just be polite but firm with the issue.

Coming back from the parks, especially MK if they are running seperate busses for POR and POFQ, if one line is signifigantly shorter than the other, then pick the shorter line. The two resorts are close enough to walk - from the bus stop at POFQ to the lobby of POR is about a 10 - 15 minute walk.

If you can avoid leaving the park with the masses (i.e. right after a parade or fireworks, or right at closing time) you will usually have less of a hassle catching a bus. Not always a convenient option, I know, but an option none the less.

Overall, remember the bus system at Disney is a form of mass transportation. It has to move a whole ton of people from one place to another, and it usually accomplishes it with decent results. But with any mass trans system, there are peak hours, breakdowns, traffic issues, etc. If you have reservations or need to be somewhere at a specific time, just be sure to give yourself enough leeway for bus issues, sit back, and relax.

Of course, if your budget allows, and transportation is a major concern, consider a rental car. Parking at Disney hotels is free, and since you are a Disney Resort guest, parking at the theme parks is free as well. Except for Magic Kingdom, it is almost always faster to drive yourself than to take the bus. A rental car will give you the freedom to come and go as you please.

Don't worry, even with a little extra wait time for a bus, you'll still be in the most magical place on earth!

Enjoy your trip! :wave:

POR is wonderful. The bus service is hit and miss at all resorts. You'll love the atmosphere of POR. Just enjoy the trip and resort. Be wary of reviews b/c they can make you worry for no reason. POR is honestly our second favorite resort.

There is no real issue with the resort. If you plan on returning to the hotel and then back to the park midday you may have to wait a bit longer for a bus, or ride on the bus for a bit longer. That's because when we stayed at POFQ last, early morning buses tended to just do either POFQ or POR, but afternoon/evening buses tended to do both. It's really not that bad. The potential extra few minutes on the bus is no worse than having to ride all around CS or CB, or even driving yourself from off property. Just relax and enjoy it.

We loved POR - gorgeous property. We loved the atmosphere. We were there in Aug '08 and we had no problem with the bus service. We usually would get on the bus from the main stop by the main building. By the last stop the bus would be pretty full. And it didn't take long to make each stop. We would totally stay there again!

We stayed at POR in October 2008. I was concerned about our choice after reading about the buses too, but we didn't have have problems. We also tended to board the bus at the main stop and never had to wait very long. The buses tended to be pretty crowded in the evenings going back to the resort, but I think that is the case no matter where you stay. The resort is beautiful and very peaceful. We had a great experience there.

You can have bus service issues anywhere at WDW. I would focus on the fact that POR is a beautiful resort. You will love it! It is our favorite moderate resort!

As others have said, your best bet is to plan on using the main depot for getting busses to the parks. In the mornings, a number of busses are dedicated to that one location (other busses hit the satellites).

It will be crowded, especially if your week is the last week in March (Easter week), but with a plan is managible. I always suggest getting an early start. If you are staying in MK for EMH, there will be surges after the parades and fireworks, but if you stay a bit beyond that by about 1/2 an hour it becomes more normal again.

Not by choice, we'll be down the last week of March again, and with our routine will have a fine visit. May also be spending part of it at POR.

We just stayed at POR last month for the first time and we all fell in live with the resort. We never had any problems with the buses, the food court was very nice, and the staff was very friendly. I think you will have a great time. Like someone else said, reading some reviews can make you worry for no reason.

POR appears to be a great resort. We got a good look at it when we walked over and spent some time there while staying at POFQ. POR has a great pool area, a table service restaurant, a better food court with more variety than POFQ, and a hotel store with better variety than POFQ. With that said, POFQ has supposedly better bus service, is much easier to get around, and has a great pool area itself. I really don't think you can go wrong with either one.

As far as relying on bus service, I'd rather just rent a car, but that's my opinion.

I havent stayed at FQ, only Riverside. Loved it except for the buses which is what most others have pointed out.

But the buses are ridiculous in ANY moderate simply becuase of the expansive layout and multiple bus stops. Personally, ANYONE staying at ANY moderate MUST get a preferred room so you are close to the main building as possible. The main bus stop can be just as crowded as the rest of the stops, but it's usually first to be picked up, so going to the parks you are most likely to get a seat for the loooooong ride. Plus being close to the building makes it easier to get a quick bit to eat. if not, its a long walk or long bus ride just to get a snack or meal.

And staying at POR is the easiest to get to Downtown, IMHO. The boat is easy and relaxing versus the riduculously cramped Downtown bus stops and the sharing of buses with other resorts.

wvdisneyfamily said:

POR is wonderful. The bus service is hit and miss at all resorts. You'll love the atmosphere of POR. Just enjoy the trip and resort. Be wary of reviews b/c they can make you worry for no reason. POR is honestly our second favorite resort.

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I disagree. At POP, I have NEVER had an issue with the bus service.

Just came back from 10 days at POR. Love the resort, love the food, love
Yehaa Bob especially! Do not miss him under any circumstances.

I can state that we had ONE 20 minute bus wait, and that was the only time in 10 days we waited that long. It was due to someone at another stop that had parked their van right in the middle of the bus lane or something.

Yes, sometimes you drive around the resort to other stops. Yes, we stopped at POFQ ONCE.

This is all trivial when you consider multiple trips back and forth, park hopping and resort pool trips during all the days we were there.

I think the bus service was exemplary. The drivers were always great to chat with, and you know what? I always enjoyed striking up conversations with fellow passengers about what they've seen, where they've gone, etc.
So the bus rides were never an inconvenience to our family.

disney4life2008 said:

I disagree. At POP, I have NEVER had an issue with the bus service.

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I haven't stayed at POR yet (this February for the first time!), so I can't comment on their bus service, hoewver, I have to agree about Pop. Their bus service is exemplary, and exceeds the service I've received at certain deluxe resorts. I'd probably rank their organized (love the queues) bus service as the best I've encountered on property.

wvdisneyfamily said:

POR is wonderful. The bus service is hit and miss at all resorts. You'll love the atmosphere of POR. Just enjoy the trip and resort. Be wary of reviews b/c they can make you worry for no reason. POR is honestly our second favorite resort.

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THANK YOU THANK YOU!!! Yes the buses at ALL the resorts are hit or miss , Sometimes you may wait longer than others....
POR is by far my favorite resort up until we became DVC members in 06 and even then I was wary of leaving my beloved resort!.. THe theming of the resort is beautiful...gorgeous grounds....Great pools and nice general store ..
Need to defintaly see Bob the piano man In the lounge ..Good clean fun for the whole family! I could go on and on about this place ...But see for yourself when you go in March!!! Oh and by the way we stayed in both sections of POR , aligator Bayou was our fav....Building 14, 16 and 18 are great locations....near , bus, dining hall (which is great by the way) and pools!!

:wave:Thanks everyone for all the reassurance and great information.

I am just so excited about this trip and want it to be very memorable for me and my daughter! I know we will have fun no matter what, but I just wanted to make sure I hadn't made a big mistake by moving from POFQ to POR. We have always loved the feel of the campground and that is why I think we will like POR so much more.

Neither one of us minds walking, and we will just go with the flow on the bus transportation. After all....it is free!

Getting on the bus at POFQ did not seem to take 40 minutes to get around to all the stops at these resorts. I do recommend getting on at the South Depot, the stop right outside of Fulton's Store, at POR. It is the first stop at POR.

We stayed there 9 months ago. I have been several times at several resorts. For the money, this is the best for a relaxing quite resort after a busy theme park day. I prefer the boardwalk area resorts as you don't rely on buses there almost at all but they are so much more money! Buses are what killed the magic for me on more than one day, but that's not a riverside issue, it is a whole property issue. Disney really should look at a more imaginative way to get people from A to B besides what every city has. ANYWAY, other than that Riverside is lovely and recommended.

I've stayed at Riverside once or twice a year for the past eight years, and I love it there! Alligator Bayou is my home away from home. I've also stayed at a couple of other WDW resorts and, in my experience, Riverside's bus system is not any better or worse than it is at those places. Just enjoy it, it's a beautiful resort.