Port Orleans - Riverside

Hi everyone!
Booking at stay for Nov 29-Dec 3. Have only ever stayed at Wilderness Lodge but looking at moderates to save a bit and POR comes highly recommended…considering royal room. Any suggestions/tips on the resort itself and transportation (buses, etc…)? It will be the husband and I w/ two kids, 10 and 8.
Thanks! :smile:

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Been there many times, a little spread out, but one of my family’s favorites. Great food court, Royal rooms look very cool (haven’t stayed in one), good pool, never had a problem with buses. And of course Yeha Bob performing in longe. Als boat to Disney Springs.

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I have stayed in the Royal Rooms a couple of times and before that, I always requested those buildings. I love the choice of quiet pools, the beautiful grounds and one of the best food courts in Disney. Make sure you plan on taking the boat to DS!

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Just stayed there 12/2015. It’s a really nice resort, but REALLY spread out! As was said, great main pool. Great food court. Great gift shop. Really fun piano bar! Walking to buses can take a few minutes. Parking lot can be far from your room, if you have a car. Overall great choice. I’d stay there again.

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We were just at POR for the first time last month. We enjoyed our stay there and thought it was beautiful and peaceful (although the kids were less than impressed…they are devoted fans of AoA which does admittedly have a lot more kid appeal.) We stayed in a Royal room and it was cute, but I’m not sure I’d pay extra for it again. The buses were efficient and easy to get to, the food court was good, and Yeeha Bob was absolutely amazing! We spent some time wandering around the resort and walking over to the French Quarter (also beautiful and a little more kid appeal…we may stay there next time.) Also took the boat from Disney Springs back to the resort - a relaxing ride, and a nice feature of Port Orleans worth taking advantage of. I would definitely stay there again, especially for a grown-up only trip.

We’re also Wilderness Lodge vets but decided to go with POR for our upcoming trip in May. We considered the extra savings more important this time with a long stay. The construction was also a consideration. We’re going to miss the views of MK and miss the boat ride there, for sure.

For those that have stayed at POR, with kids, which ‘side’ did you prefer? Our boys are 6 and 2. I don’t think we would use the Murphy bed and will be using a stroller. The TP recommended are second floor of the Alligator Bayou but I’m worried about carrying the stroller up to the second floor each day.

Any tips on selecting the right place to stay would be greatly appreciated!

Good info., thanks! How long would you say the bus ride is to MK (once you get on the bus, not including wait time for bus as I realize that can vary)?

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Definitely planning to take boat to DS on our last day there for a good breakfast! Any suggestions? Only been to DS once at night in 2012 when it was still DD.

YES, we will be missing the daily boat ride to/from MK as well. One of our favorite things about WL, but we are planning to take boat from MK one evening to WL for a WCC dinner reservation so that will be nice. Let me know what else you find out about POR, we’re excited to check it out.

Any particular room suggestions? We will either get a preferred w/ pull down bunk or royal room. How many floors are there? We prefer not to be on the ground floor if at all possible…

15 mins. I usually drive to all parks except MK. I don’t usually pay attention.

Alligator Bayou buildings have 2 floors, Magnolia Bend have 3, if I’m not mistaken. As a family of 5, we have only stayed in Alligator Bayou and have been very satisfied. On our last trip, we did a preferred room and the location was perfect for access to the food court and buses. The bus rides aren’t long, but I couldn’t quote you actual length of time. POR is our go-to resort and we will be there in 16 days!

Nice resort - but it is not as nice as WL (IMHO). I would get a car for transporation

We did a fax room request for Oak Manor in the wing closest to the river but ended up on the opposite side, which actually ended up being close to the east (I think) bus depot. I think the choices are more limited for room requests when you have a royal room because there are fewer of them available. We walked around the entire resort and I honestly don’t think there are any bad locations due to the 4 bus stops, but we don’t mind walking. I think if you want easiest access to the main building and bus stop the Alligator Bayou preferred rooms would be best. I believe the Magnolia Bend buildings (where Royal rooms are located) have 3 floors. We requested the first floor because I find it easier to not have to wait for elevators with my son’s wheelchair. Noise is never an issue for my family because I have them up early and we are so tired by the end of our days that nothing can stop us from sleeping!

We have been to Disney twice, the first time staying at WL with free dining, and the second at POR in order to save money, both trips in early November 2014 and 2015. DS 6 & DS 5 went with us both times, had a bunk bed room at WL. In our opinion, there really is no comparison, we absolutely love WL. On our last trip while staying at POR we went back to WL for dinner at WCC and just immediately had a feeling of “being home”. However, the savings were significant at POR. We stayed on the first floor of the AB section in order to get the murphy bed. The room felt so much smaller than WL, the resort was significantly spread out, vs being all under one roof at WL. My DH had significant misgivings about the bus situation at POR, but it seemed comparable to WL taking into account you share buses with other resorts vs a longer bus ride getting around the same resort. AB was very close to the main building/food court/quiet pool and fairly close to the main pool. If we were to go back to POR I would definitely do AB again.

We have stayed at POR twice, with the most recent being earlier this month. We love it! The room is smallish for me, DH and DSs 4, 7 and 10, but we really only slept there. The resort is beautiful, the make your own pasta bar is amazing, and I found the buses very efficient. Sadly, our room request did not work AT ALL and we ended up on top of one of the parking lots, about as far from the lobby as we could be, but it was a nice walk every time!

We stayed at POR in a royal room river-view at Oak Manor, building 90. We requested an upper level corner room with double windows. It was wonderful. Only a short walking distance to the walkway, main building, buses, boats, pools (main & private) and right next to the courtyard for the nightly movies. It was really nice being able to settle down in the evenings to a movie outside with snacks before bedtime when we came back early. The only thing I disliked was the carriage ride. They took us around the parking lot, so it was disappointing.

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I had make a reservation of the royal guest room, pool view. My knee is not good, what’s your suggestions for on-line check in and room request fax?

We ended up not staying at POR, we switched to WL when free dining came out so I have no idea. Sorry!!

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