Advice on Port Orleans Riverside

wdwsplash83

wdwsplash83

Member
Hi, have booked my next WDW trip for September this year and I'm staying at PORS because it looked so nice in photos and vidoes. Also back then the reviews where good but the closer I get the reviews seem to be getting worse:shrug:

Has any stayed recently and what was it like? would you recommend staying there? I was thinking maybe changing to Coronado Springs as it's the same price. :veryconfu

I have already stayed AKL but can't afford it this time around.

Any Help or personal reviews would be great, many thanks.
 
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wdwsplash83

wdwsplash83

Member
Original Poster
Hi all, thank you very much for your feedback. I was worried but now I'm very happy with it all :). I'm sooooo excited about going back to WDW, I went back in 2008 for the 1st time and I loved it.

Only 209 days to go...not that I'm counting:p.
 
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Cmoore12282

Cmoore12282

Member
Our first trip to WDW in 08 was our honeymoon and we stayed at riverside and absolutly loved. This past year we were trying to be cheap and booked pop, but for whatever reason we got a free upgrade to Sartoga springs. Saratoga was nice, but i was expecting it to kind of make me forget about riverside since it is quite a notch up in price. In all honesty though i would much rather of been back at riverside, the atmosphere and themeing was much better in my opinion. The quick service area was much better, more variety and much more fun to hang out in and eat with the waterwheel going. I could go on but in a nutshell next time we can afford a moderate i'd love to go back to riverside.
 
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redfive13

redfive13

Active Member
POR is my absolute favorite moderate resort! I definitely prefer Riverside to French Quarter. It almost feels like a deluxe resort at a bargain price. I'll probably be staying there again this fall. That will make my 3rd stay at Riverside.

Don't switch resorts, decide on which style room you would like (Alligator Bayou or the "Mansions") and enjoy your stay.
 
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go3epcot

go3epcot

Member
Having stayed at Value, Moderate, and Deluxe levels my family and I have settled on POR as our favorite. For the money, it gives us a great experience each time we stay (4 times now). Last trip we stayed at the Aligator Bayou section for the first time (Bldg #15 I believe) and it was great! Close to main building (food and shopping) and bus stop. Pleasant walk to boat ride to Downtown Disney was also convenient. Though not quite as tropical as the Polynesian, it was pretty close and much less expensive! Kids (and Dad) love the main pool. Disabled son enjoys all aspects of POR (stayed in Acadia House previous 3 trips and enjoyed it, but prefered setting and closeness of bldg 15). Have a great trip!
 
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wannabeBelle

wannabeBelle

Well-Known Member
I agree with everyone's postings on this question, Riverside is amazing!!! The theming is top notch, the landscaping has won awards, the food court is decent although I still miss Boatwright's for breakfast, The rooms I have had have always been clean, comfortable and well taken care of. You wont have any problems there at all.
Party, The main pool area is on an island in between the main building and most of the outer buildings, You are probably best off staying at Maginolia Bend area (The Mansion area) for easy access to the main pool area. Belle
 
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wvdisneyfamily

wvdisneyfamily

Well-Known Member
My DH and I love POR. We have only stayed there once, but it was very enjoyable. Our biggest complaint was the walking. We stayed in the Magnolia Bend area and always walked to the main bus stop so a lot of that extra walking was our own fault. We never had bus trouble or anything I've ever seen others complain about in reviews. It was clean, quiet, beautiful, and romantic. You'll have a good trip. After all, you are in Disney World. :)

If you ever get the chance, stay at the Wilderness Lodge.
 
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CuriousDeGeo

CuriousDeGeo

Member
My family stayed at POR back in 2000 and again this past year. Both times we LOVED it!! The scenery and ambience is wonderful and we never had any issues. The food court is awesome and our room was really nice as well. Many people do not like how the bus system works, but it never really bothered us. We were never late or anything like that. I would definitely stay with POR and maybe next time your could try out Cornado, or maybe even check out Magnolia Crescent.
 
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dixiegirl

dixiegirl

Well-Known Member
wannabeBelle said:
I agree with everyone's postings on this question, Riverside is amazing!!! The theming is top notch, the landscaping has won awards, the food court is decent although I still miss Boatwright's for breakfast, The rooms I have had have always been clean, comfortable and well taken care of. You wont have any problems there at all.
Party, The main pool area is on an island in between the main building and most of the outer buildings, You are probably best off staying at Maginolia Bend area (The Mansion area) for easy access to the main pool area. Belle
Click to expand...

Ahh Boatwrights......Oh god the Banana Stuffed french toast!!!! Oh and pair it with a mimosa, HEAVEN(yes I said that in a sing songy way...LOL)
 
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Cmoore12282

Cmoore12282

Member
Yea i was disapointed to find out that Boatwrights wasn't doing breakfast anymore too. We ate there in the mornings probly 4 of our 7 days. They had to biggest plumpest sausgae links you could imagine. They were always busy too, even for being "off season". I wonder why they stopped doing breakfast? We definantly would have went back last trip just to eat. Its a shame because we enjoyed the atmosphere, but the dinners weren't really for us so we'll probly never go back to eat unless they bring the breakfast back.
 
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wannabeBelle

wannabeBelle

Well-Known Member
I am right there with you!!! I loved that place for breakfast. It actually would factor into my resort choice as a big plus for Riverside!!! I miss my bluberry pancakes, I have tried some of the others on property, it just isnt the same!!!! I have spoken with many people who were greatly disappointed that this wasnt available anymore. So as of now Coronado Springs is the ONLY Moderate with a sit down breakfast. Belle
 
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stuart

stuart

Well-Known Member
You just need to look at my signature to get an idea of how good the resort is.

Over the years we've seen a lot of changes but its the only resort excluding Yacht & Beach we would stay at. We would only choose them as its walking distance to EPCOT and the R&C. As previous posters have said the rooms are always clean and well looked after. The food court is still really good and great entertainment in the lounge at night when Bob is on.

Depending where abouts your room is there could be a lot of walking but the resort is so well landscaped this should be looked on as a bonus. You will find out what the quickest routes are. This often requires going back around the floor you are on to a path which works out to be quicker than the one nearest you. There is a myriad of paths in between the bayous and the mansions however one thing to remember is that the large grey paths will always lead to the main path that goes around the resort. I would recommend you don't use the local bus stops at night unless you have walked a path during the day, but if you get stuck, just follow the grey path to the main path around the Sassagoula and you'll find your bearings once again.

However, near to your room will be a bus stop (although some times the first few buses of the day wont stop at these). There are 4 stops around the resort - usually doesn't take long, but if you get wheelchairs or a guest issue things can be held up. A couple times it has taken us less time from front gate to EPCOT than to get around the resort lol! The Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Animal Kingdom & Blizzard Beach, DHS buses pick up first at the South Depot (front entrance / lobby) and work round the resort to West North and East. The Downtown Disney & Typhoon Bus will do the outer stops first before heading to the South Depot and then POFQ. At peak times of the year there are seperate buses throughout the day to Magic Kingdom and at night from EPCOT. It is worth noting that as you can walk between resorts your sometimes better off hoping on a POFQ bus and then walking or getting a boat up to POR. The boat to POFQ and Downtown takes about 25 mins or thereabouts and certainly worth doing if you have the time to spare. You'll have to get a bus though as soon as any thunder and lightning comes along.

There will also be a quiet pool near to you which is great for when your returning later in the morning to the hotel and seats are all taken at the main pool on Ol' Man Island.

I could go on and on but you can also check out www.portorleans.org A website i only came across a couple of weeks ago. However drop us a PM if you have anything else to ask.
 
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C

Caretames1

New Member
Although Jan 2009 was our very first trip to DW, We stayed at POR and we LOVED it. We were in building #18, and the pool was right out our front door. We had a 5 min walk to the bus stop( main entrance). The boat trips to downtown disney were the most relaxing. We are going back in Jan 2010, and back at POR. I hopfully can work it out to be in the same building or ones around that area. Enjoy your stay!
 
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scottnj1966

scottnj1966

Well-Known Member
The place is very nice. One of my favorites.
Stayed there a few times.
Great boat ride between riverside, french quarter, and downtown disney.
Plenty of food options. Nice pools.

http://www.bigfloridacountry.com/portorleans.htm


wdwsplash83 said:
Hi, have booked my next WDW trip for September this year and I'm staying at PORS because it looked so nice in photos and vidoes. Also back then the reviews where good but the closer I get the reviews seem to be getting worse:shrug:

Has any stayed recently and what was it like? would you recommend staying there? I was thinking maybe changing to Coronado Springs as it's the same price. :veryconfu

I have already stayed AKL but can't afford it this time around.

Any Help or personal reviews would be great, many thanks.
Click to expand...
 
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G

gccgrad1996

Active Member
Riverside resort

The Riverside is a beautiful resort. We stayed there in 1999 and had a wonderful experience. We have also stayed at the CSR and it was beautiful as well. But if I had to choose between the two I would definitely chose Riverside. For us CSR was very large and definitely more crowded due to the fact there were conventions going on there, so the main lobby area always seemed to be full of people. We also stayed at the French Quarter in 2008 and are going back there this summer. It is attached to the Riverside but much smaller. If you get a chance one evening take a walk down to the French Quarter and take a look. My daughters love the sea serpent slide at the pool. Have a great time!
 
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J

Jay & Sue

Active Member
Hello,
You were looking for some current info about Riverside. We stayed there from Feb. 21-25 and have no complaints at all. Our room was clean, comfortable, and in excellent condition. We had a refrigerator and coffee pot but no microwave. We asked for a corner room on the second floor in the Alligator Bayou section. They gave us room 2648 (building 26 room 48 (try to request it as it is a great room)). Much more interesting setting and private than the "mansion" buildings which are nice but apprear more motel like. Make sure that they give you a room that does not overlook a parking lot - a waterview room is a waste of money. Walking distances are actually not bad at all - only took a few minutes to get anywhere in the resort. For some reason people don't like to walk when they go to Disney - get used to it - it is good for you - of course we didn't any kids in tow which does make a difference. The boatride to Downtown Disney was nice. Didn't use the bus as we have our own car. Food court was OK but expensive. About $8.50 for a breakfast similar to a McDonalds delux big breakfast so nothing to rave about. Dinner at Boatrights was OK but overpriced like most Disney food. Riverside was very nice and would stay there again but would get tired of foodcourt food and the high prices of the sitdown restaurants (about $75 for dinner for two at Bomas). In any event you will have a great time and will enjoy Riverside. Feel free to pm me for more information.

Take care,
Jay & Sue
 
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