Reviews of Port Orleans Riverside Resort (Moderate Resort)
Reviewed by fireman Review Date: 11/24/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
Loved POR! It was beautiful. The room was nice and loved the murphy bed for our 9 year old. We went to smaller pool by building 35 by laundry much more quiet than main pool. Bed was super comfy and housekeeping always did a great job! Will def be back here!!
Pros:
Beautiful groundsCons:
alot of walkingReviewed by jessm11 Review Date: 11/19/2013
Rating: (6) Recommended
Things I wish I'd known when booking my room reservation at Disney. We picked Port Orleans Riverside over Art of Animation because of reviews that said AofA was noisy in regards to toilets flushing and that the moderate resorts
provide refrigerators.
Well one of our beds in Alligator Bayou was positioned directly under the toilet in the room above and all night long we could hear every single time someone upstairs peed or flushed - not cool at all! We would have asked to change rooms but I injured myself right before we went and needed a ground floor and were told when we checked in that there were no other ground floor rooms so we kept it (this was before we knew about the toilets and was based on distance to the lobby). In addition the walls between the rooms were thin and
we heard the nightly 10/11 pm tantrum of the tired kiddo next door clearly. It was also noisy with the staff carts motoring around the pathway outside beginning very early in the morning. Lawn mowing also starts early.
The second primary reason we picked Riverside was because we knew we'd be eating breakfast in our rooms every day and wanted to be able to keep juice, yogurt, and cream cheese there. Unfortunately there was a recall on all units before our trip and refrigerators
were scarce. I did call and request one and was told they'd do their best to accommodate the request. When we got there we found out it was for medical need only; information that would have been helpful to have been given prior to our arrival.
The rooms were clean and adequate but much smaller than a regular hotel room and the bathroom was tiny.
If you are going to really be spending time at your resort then Port Orleans is certainly lovely and offers beautiful outdoor play spaces and
activities. The rooms stayed nice and dark on the mornings we chose to sleep in after late nights and the staff were all friendly.
Given that we focused on spending time in the parks we would have been much better served by a value resort as we saw NO added value in staying at a moderate resort versus value. I think if I hadn't read so many glowing reviews about how quiet and great a value Port Orleans was I might not have been as disappointed but I went with expectations of a quiet, decent sized room with a refrigerator and none of that proved to be true.
Pros:
dark rooms in am, cleanCons:
very noisyReviewed by meeskamooska Review Date: 11/10/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
I have stayed at this resort every time I have gone to DisneyWorld and I would never want to go anywhere else. We have recommended it to many of our friends and quite a few have returned. People who have stayed at many resorts have said that the amazing thing about Port Orleans Riverside is that it is the one resort where you feel like you have actually left Disney and entered a whole new world. We stay in a regular room in the Alligator Bayou, and it's perfect for my family of three. Here's a tip, request Alligator Bayou, riverview, building 14 to get the best experience. You will be literally twenty steps away from the food court, which then attaches to the rest of the main building, and is very close to the main pool. The food court is amazing, the smell when you walk in there feels like home to me. It can get a little hectic in the morning, but we always manage to find a seat. Try to get a seat next to the water wheel! There are lots of activities going on at POR. For example, in the afternoon, at the pool, they are always playing games that children can participate in. The ferry transportation to Downtown Disney is very convenient. Finally, the people who work there are great and always smiling! Mousekeeping always does a fantastic job in our room. We love Port Orleans Riverside and would recommend it to anyone.
Pros:
Atmosphere, activities, rooms, mousekeeping.Cons:
—Reviewed by goofy31 Review Date: 11/02/2013
Rating: (3) Not Recommended
Our family vacation was much less than anticipated for staying on Disney Property. We will never spend that kind of money again for such low standards. We had a wheel chair which we had to leave in the car because the access to the room was impossible. There was no refrigerator in the room. When I called housekeeping they informed me all the refrigerators had been removed because people were using them for too much food. She told me to use my ice bucket ! I was told we were informed but as yet I have never received a letter or email informing me of this. Because I insisted over and over again she finally got me a refrigerator. Not a very magical way to start the vacation. There also needs to be better marking to the building, everyone there just wanders until they get lucky and find their place. You can do better Disney...... We will never stay on Disney property again. Oct 13 to Oct 19
Pros:
pretty groundsCons:
confusing layout and no refrigeratorReviewed by Mouse fan 1967 Review Date: 10/27/2013
Rating: (6) Not Recommended
First stay at Riverside. October 21-25. It was a lovely resort.
Upon checking into our room we found out that we would not have a refrigerator. When I inquired at the front desk, I was told I should have received a letter notifying us of this. Yet we didn't.
The busses were overcrowded and would arrive infrequently.
We have been visiting Disney regularly for the past 19 years. This was by far our worst experience at a resort. We have stayed at the luxury resorts in the past, I guess you get what you pay for.
Pros:
Nice rooms, good housekeeping, nice landscaping, designCons:
Busses, no refrigerators, too spread outReviewed by MzSarah10 Review Date: 10/22/2013
Rating: (9) Recommended
We have stayed here three times and love this resort. We will keep coming back. The create your own pasta is my husbands favorite. We upgraded to a Royal Room for the promotion and loved it. We had an adjoining room with my parents and it was great. Pools are great; staff was friendly and helpful.
Pros:
Princess Room, friendly staff, great foodCons:
Resort is spread outReviewed by tashie112183 Review Date: 10/20/2013
Rating: (7) Recommended
We stayed at the Port Orleans River side from October 08-16, 2013. I was travelling with my Mom, Dad, and my neices who are 4 and 7. We had a double stroller and a scooter for my dad.
I had checked in online, and our wait was not very long to check in to our room. Our room was not yet ready, but the staff did call to see if there was a room they could potentially put us in. There was! We were in the Alligator Bayou, room 2404. Getting to our room seemed to take forever because of the location. My one complaint is that they need some sort of internal transportation system to get around the resort. Our bags were being looked after by Disney's Magical Express, so we only had our carry on bags to cart around.
My one other complaint about the resort is the food court. The food was delicious, but trying to move around, especially in the morning, with a double stroller and a scooter was next to impossible. It was just too overly crowded.
The beds were amazingly comfortable, and the trundle bed slept the 2 little ones perfectly.
Overall, I enjoyed my stay. We were not very far from the west depot bus stop, which was usually the first or second stop to get on or off.
I loved this hotel and will stay here again....If I don't have to stay in Alligator bayou, the rooms were just too far from the main lobby/pool.
Pros:
Land Scape, pools, staff, bus stop locations.Cons:
finding your room on check in, food court crowdedReviewed by snovak Review Date: 10/19/2013
Rating: (6) Recommended
Stayed from Oct 11th thru the 16th. Had asked for a first floor room, which we got but unfortunately it was a 15 min. walk to the food court which didn't help, one person in our group has mobility problems. The room itself was kept very clean the entire time we were there and there was plenty of room. The food court was extremely busy at breakfast time making long lines and hard to find available tables, but there are plenty of very good food selections. The wait for buses was very long and with a resort as big as Riverside is you would think they would have double the buses running . We had tickets for the Halloween party and with all the people at the bus stop going to the same place you would think they would take that into account and schedule buses accordingly. Going back to the resort was even worse. Its a very pretty resort but I will probably not stay here again, its too big for us and the cast members were not as friendly as I remember from a previous visit.
Pros:
Beautiful resortCons:
Not enough busesReviewed by StacyLovesDisney Review Date: 10/11/2013
Rating: (5) Not Recommended
This year check-in was terrible(9/8-9/15). The resort had arranged my parents room in Alligator Bayou and my 2 rooms in Magnolia Bend-completely across from the resort. I had linked all of our resort reservations when I made trip reservations in Feb. I called before we left to make sure we would be close to my parents. I was assured a note had been made and they would place us close together. It took an hour for them to find us rooms close to each other. After getting this straight, the check-in clerk told me he would NOT give me the keys to my husband's room (we had connecting rooms for the kids) because he wasn't here to check himself in. I told the clerk, he's been standing here. He left to take our son to the bathroom. Why didn't you tell us this before. Another clerk heard and came over. (The clerk I got was in training and also did not speak fluent English. He seemed confused throughout this process.)She told him to give me the keys to the extra room, which he did. What a mess. The front desk manager was watching from afar and came over to give us a free choice fast pass on our MagicBands for the wait and trouble we went through.
We went to our rooms in Magnolia Bend. I was quite disappointed in the cleanliness of the room. My 7 year old daughter, while in the bathroom, kept saying, "There's hair everywhere." Sure enough, there was a lot of long black hair in the tub, floor, behind the bathroom door, and toilet. One of the light bulbs above the sink was blinking like a strobe light and finally burned out. The clothesline in the bathtub was broken. The extra safety latch on the top of the door was broken off. There were no styrofoam cups left. In room 2, I pulled back my daughter's bedspread and there looked like a fresh stain on the sheets. I called and requested new sheets and told them about the stains. After an hour went by, I called back and said we were nearing bedtime and really needed the sheets. I stepped out to get some food at the food court. When I got back, sheets had been delivered and left on the table for me to change. The carpet in both rooms was becoming worn in some spots and it needed cleaning. There was also a light bulb burned out in room 2.
Some mornings, the bus stop we used had a person from Disney trying to regulate the bus schedules. On the days he was not there, the buses were overcrowded. My parents had to stand on the bus on a couple of the days when they went to the parks on their own at 8:30AM!
As for the boat transportation to Downtown Disney, that was too crowded as well. at 7:00 the line to get on the shuttle was around the building where you wait to board. We aborted those plans. On another evening we got a bus as soon as we got to the stop at 7:00. We thought we were lucky. But, the bus goes to French Quarter --where no one boarded. Once at Downtown Disney the line to get on the boat was too long at 9:00PM. We went to the bus stop and had to wait for a 2nd bus to get back to P.O. Then the bus went to Pleasure Island, got stuck in traffic. What should have been a 15 minute drive, took over an hour to get back to our room.
The food at the food court was good. I love the Mahi Mahi sandwich. Grant is able to cook it plain since I can't have the blackened style. Kids love spaghetti and chicken noodle soup and hubby loves turkey dinner. I found it confusing why the food court's ice machines were not working well or not at all. We eat early, so there should have been plenty. One evening I went to go get a refill from my resort mug at 10:00PM. There were many people in the food court buying and eating. The employees had already closed down one side of the drink area. The line to get a drink was from the drink station to the cash register area. I left and did not get a drink.
Our building was quiet, which was nice. We've stayed here each year for the past 9 years and have been pleased (even when they mixed up our reservations 2 years ago) At this point we are wondering if the resort has just gotten "too big" with the redesign of the rooms. We will be looking at other Disney resorts for our next trip.
Pros:
beautiful, food courtCons:
room mix-ups, poor mousekeepingReviewed by lovewdw2 Review Date: 10/10/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
The last time I stayed here was back in 1994 and it was called Dixie Landings. I liked it then but coming here in August 2013 was a Great trip. I had checked online and asked for a corner room, which I did get. I had 2 big windows and was very close to the Food Court. The landscape was so beautiful that I took pictures on the day I arrived. My room was 2753 and it was on the 2nd floor. I had a nice view when I walked out my door. Plus when I arrived the Cast Member that checked me in showed me a map and the way she told me to go was a lot longer than the way I found later on. The landscape made me feel like I was in the South but the lazy part!
I went in the pool just once and even that was relaxing. I didn't go in the hot tub, I forgot about it actually. I found a shaded spot and took a nap! I thoroughly enjoyed my stay! I did eat at the food court on the day I was leaving, but I couldn't eat there EVERYDAY! (I had brought cereal with me). It was pretty crowded but then again everyone was headed to the parks. I did eat one meal, dinner at Boatwrights. It was good, I ate warm corn bread with soft butter. Not too many choices, but I may not eat here again. I tried it and that was enough for me. In the Food Court, they had the best Chocolate Croissants! OMG!
Overall I would definitely stay here again! I had a king bed and the layout of my room was very nice. Where I stayed the Bus Stop I took was the South, which was to me the Main Stop. I tried getting off the West Stop but it was a long walk to my room. This resort was certainly relaxing!
