Disney's PORT ORLEANS RIVERSIDE RESORT Information & Questions

[jacobsmommy]

We will be at Port Orleans Riverside in just two short days!! We have stayed once before in a royal room, but my parents and brother's family haven't. I'm excited for them to see the resort. They really have only stayed at value resorts before (except for one time my dad got us a great deal at the Boardwalk right when it opened). We have royal rooms again this trip.

 

[SarahC97]

We will be at Port Orleans Riverside in just two short days!! We have stayed once before in a royal room, but my parents and brother's family haven't. I'm excited for them to see the resort. They really have only stayed at value resorts before (except for one time my dad got us a great deal at the Boardwalk right when it opened). We have royal rooms again this trip.

I'll be there in 4 days with some first-timers too! Can't wait!

 

[TOBS2010]

How is the bus service from this resort? Also, are the rooms decent? We are currently supposed to stay at All Stars Movies resort, but I have heard the rooms are bad and the bus service can be bad. Need help! Thanks!

The rooms at POR are bigger than Movies. Nearly all of the Alligator Bayou rooms have been referred at this point. Try to request to stay there as opposed to the mansions and it will make a big difference. I like POR over the values because the grounds are great. The pools are nice too. The busses aren't bad at all---when you are trying to get to parks at opening or coming home after fireworks, it is going to be a rush----but truthfully you are going to face that same problem coming from nearly any of the hotels unless you are in walking distance to the park. The busses are nice that there are four stops so you can get dropped off relatively close to the building you are in. We like the food court at POR and you can walk over to FQ if you want a change of pace. Another great bonus is the boat to DS that you wouldn't get at Movies. And Yeehaw Bob is at POR, which makes a fun activity in the evening without having to leave your hotel. POR doesn't feel like a budget or even moderate hotel to us, I would definitely choose it over Movies unless it was completely out of the budget for you.

 

[heymommy]

We are staying in a preferred room this month as my mom needs to be close to things. She will have a scooter.
If we need to leave for Early Morning Magic, at what time will we need to be to the bus stop? We usually go to the one near the store/lobby (is that the south?). Will this be an issue?

You will need to go out at least an hour before the park opens. However, with the scooter, I would suggest that you go a little further to the west bus depot. This will be the first stop and will help ensure a spot on the bus. I went last month and used a scooter. We did early magic hours each morning. There were some mornings ( and depending on the park you are going to ) that the bus was pretty full by the time it got to the south depot by the main building. They will sometimes ask people who are sitting to move to accommodate the scooter.... but it is a bigger problem if there are already 2 scooters on the bus before it gets to you.

 

[Aliciahere]

Weird question- Is their real cream for purchase at the resort? I love having coffee in my room but can’t stand the fake creamer you get.

 

[georgiedisney]

If we are staying in a royal room in September does anyone know what the best building to request is? To be near to the bridge for easy lobby/food court access would be good too!!

 

[andrewilley]

To be near to the bridge for easy lobby/food court access would be good too!!

You have your answer there, that's what you should request. Both Oak Manor (90) and Parterre Place (95) have some rooms that perfectly fit the bill for you, but they also both have other rooms that are quite a lot further out. So trying to second-guess availability by asking for one specific building might be counter-productive.

Andre

 

[hereforthechurros]

Woah does anyone else find the refurbished rooms wholly unattractive? Yikes. We have 7 nights booked over NYE and I’m seriously considering a change.

 

[andrewilley]

Woah does anyone else find the refurbished rooms wholly unattractive?

Yup, I find them colder and less welcoming, with less immersive theming and rather blander overall. But that's the way WDW seems to be going - more generic modern hotel trends, and less whimsical and inspiring.

Andre

 

[hereforthechurros]

Yup, I find them colder and less welcoming, with less immersive theming and rather blander overall. But that's the way WDW seems to be going - more generic modern hotel trends, and less whimsical and inspiring.

Andre

I actually like clean and modern, Copper Creek Villas for example are my favorite rooms on property, but these rooms don’t seem to fall into any category.
Nothing southern or rustic about them, but not clean and modern either. That strip of blue turquoise around the top of the walls isn’t doing anyone any favors either, blah.

 

[MDarling]

Does the Riverside Mill Food Court still have the "build your own pasta" bar as an option?

 

[DaisyDuck001]

Don't know about pasta, but when I was there a couple months ago, the "build your own salad" option had been replaced by pre-made salads. So disappointing, as it wasn't nearly as good as the freshly made customized salads used to be.

 

[andrewilley]

Does the Riverside Mill Food Court still have the "build your own pasta" bar as an option?

No, all the Make-Your-Own options were gradually removed about a month or two ago. Now that the changes have settled down, I've got to do an update on the menus on my site, which should be up sometime tomorrow.

Andre

 

[Lazyfaire]

First-timer at POR here...Question for those who've stayed in Garden Views (no 5th sleeper): Where have your rooms have been located? Based on what I've read, I see that they can be basically anywhere except Preferred locations but curious if they tend to be more in one section or building(s) than another. **Bonus points for room location/building location requests we should consider making. I'd say that close to transportation would be high on our list, but maybe you have some other helpful insights for us. Thanks in advance!

 

[dansdad]

First-timer at POR here...Question for those who've stayed in Garden Views (no 5th sleeper): Where have your rooms have been located? Based on what I've read, I see that they can be basically anywhere except Preferred locations but curious if they tend to be more in one section or building(s) than another. **Bonus points for room location/building location requests we should consider making. I'd say that close to transportation would be high on our list, but maybe you have some other helpful insights for us. Thanks in advance!

On the map in the below link, click on any building and it will show you the classification of every room so you'll be able to see where every Garden View room is located.

https://www.portorleans.org/riverside-info.php

 

[Lazyfaire]

On the map in the below link, click on any building and it will show you the classification of every room so you'll be able to see where every Garden View room is located.

https://www.portorleans.org/riverside-info.php

Thank you for pointing me to this!

 

[mamateacher]

Regarding location requests, is it best to name just one request for a section of the resort (for example, AB) rather than a specfic one (AB, Building 38, top floor)? Which request would be more likely to be honored?

 

[Wood Nymph]

Regarding location requests, is it best to name just one request for a section of the resort (for example, AB) rather than a specfic one (AB, Building 38, top floor)? Which request would be more likely to be honored?

We have always had the request for AB honored and I think it is an easy one to grant. The next most likely one would be top floor. Asking for a specific building would reduce your chance of getting the second floor since that would be much harder to honor

The rule of thumb when making requests is to put the most important request first. The more requests you make the less likely you are to get them

 

[mamateacher]

Thank you! I forgot to ask....I read (not on here) that online check in requests trumps all other requests that are made by fax, phone, etc.). Has anyone found this to be true? Is there a way to request AB when checking in online?

Thanks again.

 

[VAlegacy]

has anyone tried applying fall room discount to their existing fall reservation? Anyone having any problems?