Reviews of Port Orleans French Quarter (Moderate Resort)
Reviewed by Feller Review Date: 06/13/2016
Rating: (0) Recommended
I would like to send a thank your to CM Edith at FQ on 6/13/16 for all her help in planning my family gathering. We haven't even left and the CM Edith has made our get away magical.
Thanks again EDITH.
Pros:
CM EdithCons:
—Reviewed by hammons16 Review Date: 04/30/2016
Rating: (10) Recommended
I have absolutely zero complaints about the resort. Our room was perfect, updated and clean. Not dingy at all. We got the pool view and stayed in 2339. I dreaded the third floor at first but we loved having an upper level view and the walk was still not bad. The kids loved having a view of the pool and it added ot the excitement of the trip and I would book that same room again. Every CM we encountered was very friendly. I had read reviews that were contrary but this was certainly not our experience. I love the fact that the food court is small.. sure it can get cramped just a little, but it is not a loud overpowering gigantic food court like POP. When you order your food they give you a buzzer and you can go sit back down and not stand in line (like burgers, nuggets, etc). I thought this was an awesome service. Our daughter has a shellfish allergy and the chef was super friendly and did not treat our requests like a burden in the very slightest. Every CM behind the grill was friendly. Mousekeeping was the best that we had ever encountered. I think I told my husband one day that our mousekeeper was the bomb because everyday I was impressed. I could tell they went the extra mile. They even wrapped up my phone cord and set my daughter’s stuffed dinosaur up on the bed with her pillow one day, and rearranged our soaps. The pool staff was also very friendly.
Busses were prompt and maybe 1 or 2 times we waited more than ten minutes. More often we were running after the bus that was already sitting there. On our last trip we remembered having to drive all over POR every time we went somewhere and this was seldom the case. I also loved the fact that they have the screens now with the updated bus times and now a CM frequently waits at the stops and clarifies time (once there was a wait time for DHS for 40 minutes and he checked into it). My son is begging to go back to "the same room with the same pool". We can't wait to come back.
Pros:
laid back, small resort, beautiful grounds,Cons:
—Reviewed by swtmelisa15 Review Date: 04/12/2016
Rating: (6) Recommended
This was our first stay at French Quarter, the grounds were beautiful, check in was fast and easy, and the kids loved the pool and slide. My only complain would be the food court, it was small and dirty and more than once the staff were rude and even after complaining in front of the manager no one apologized or seemed to care. I was very disappointed!
Pros:
Beautiful grounds and Friendly staffCons:
Food Court and Food court EmployeesReviewed by BobH Review Date: 04/10/2016
Rating: (9) Recommended
I stayed alone at FQ (daughter and her family stayed at Riverside) April 2-8, 2016, in Building 6. Check in was quick and easy, staff friendly, parking close enough to be no problem for me, at age 70, to carry clothes and other items to room. FQ is beautiful, quiet, and for adults, the perfect Disney resort. Live music near the bar, outdoor movies for families, easy and pleasant walk to Riverside along the river. I've read reviews of FQ complaining mildly about the buses, the food, and some aspects of the rooms. Alone, I had no problem waiting in the Florida sunshine, seated on a bench at the bus stop. I was there during a very busy, crowded week, and the buses did have some delays, and I had to stand during a few of the rides, but unless Disney increases its bus fleet by a thousand, I don't see how it could provide more timely service. The drivers of all the buses I rode were friendly and cheerful. As for the food court, the drinks area was not dirty, but it was messy -- spilled drinks, napkin containers empty, just generally sloppy. Again, with so many people using this area, a bit of mess should be expected, unless Disney pays an employee to do nothing but stand there and clean things up as soon as they spill. As for the food, I found the pot roast, mac/cheese, and corn, with cornbread combo to be not just good but delicious. Had it three times. The pastries were outstanding. I think FQ might be more fun for adults than children, especially older adults. Evenings were calm, quiet, and sitting on the bench overlooking the river was a real pleasure. I stayed at Riverside several times over the past fifteen years and thought FQ would be a disappointment. It most definitely was not, and I will stay there again instead of Riverside.
Pros:
QuietCons:
Room never vacuumedReviewed by fluffy30 Review Date: 03/29/2016
Rating: (3) Not Recommended
Was looking forward to our three night stay here (Mar 19-22) following a week at Saratoga Springs but was sadly disappointed. We stayed in building 7 which was the furthest from the lobby, pool, food court and bus stop, but it was still only a 5-7 min. walk to the main areas.
Liked the small size and the room was fine although the bathroom is very compact. Parking was close to each of the buildings. That's about it for pros to this resort. The food was terrible both at breakfast and the one dinner we had. Service was so slow and ordering chaotic. Had to go to different windows to order food then get a pager from each one and pay at the cashier. Our sandwiches got cold while waiting 10 min. for our kids burgers. The drink refill area was dirty and the straw dispenser just filthy. The pool area was very crowded and the kids found the slide too small. They did enjoy the water play area. I thought the children's activity leaders to be a bit snippy with the kids and the greeter at the door to the lobby was rude. He actually scolded my six year old for asking for a plastic coin. He seemed much more interested in engaging with the adult guests. This was the 15th Disney resort we have stayed at (I'm trying to get to them all) and my least favourite so far. We did go over to Riverside and enjoyed pizza for lunch one day and checked out the pool. We may try there next time. I think French Quarter may be better suited to couples and adults but for families it really misses the mark.
Pros:
Small resort. parkingCons:
Food court, staffReviewed by Alhio Review Date: 02/19/2016
Rating: (10) Recommended
My family stayed in two rooms (grandparents in one) the week of February 7, 2016--during Mardi Gras.
We have stayed at this resort three or four times since 2005. Our last stay at Port Orleans was at Riverside in 2013.
We were in ground floor rooms (ours was a corner) of building 1.
To be honest, we would always prefer to stay at this resort. It's small and lovely, with multiple mini-gardens and pathways, fountains and landscaping that make you feel like you are somewhere genteel and serene.
The smaller resort size means you feel more like the staff there know you. The costumed greeter recognizes you and your family each day.
Even though it was bursting with New Orleanians for Mardi Gras (the resort has its own parade, and Mardi Gras activities for all ages in the afternoon around the pool), the only place we really felt any crowd was in the morning at the pancake window.
There is a single bus stop, and we never had any problem with arrival times. We made use of services the airline check-in, luggage storage, delivery of packages from the parks, and the Magical Express luggage delivery--all of which worked perfectly.
Busses coming TO the resort (and sometimes having Riverside guests) always stop at French Quarter first.
Everything is nearby your room (compared to other Disney Resorts), and the vibe is not at all frenetic (unlike the All-Stars and other Value Resorts).
The resort is quiet, but doesn't shortchange you on the Disney touch. The pool is spectacular with its waterslide and colorful statuary. Boats travel the scenic little river to Downtown Disney/Disney Springs (it takes about 20 minutes) and up to Riverside (in case you'd like to make use of their amenities like the pool or restaurants).
The food court is smaller (of course), but had plenty to please us the times we ate there. The laundry is now taking credit cards and its availability can be checked online.
The staff was pleasant and knowledgeable (we used all the regular services, and also spoke several times with the concierge desk).
When you get up in the morning you encounter staff busy at cleaning the grounds and the 'streets', which makes you feel like you're in a small little residential part of a city.
When we requested a towel display for a special occasion from housekeeping, they handled it perfectly.
Several times the DirectTV signal on our TV and my parents' TV next door was a bit shaky (I don't know if the high winds during our visit were to blame), but that is honestly the only negative thing I can say about the resort.
We love it, and wish that we could find availability at it for each of our trips.
Pros:
Intimate setting, atmosphere, manageable sizeCons:
Rooms get reserved quicklyReviewed by rjdrewett Review Date: 02/07/2016
Rating: (9) Recommended
Stayed 1/30/16 through 2/6/16. Have stayed in the past - about 7 years ago. Very nice property. Bus service to/from parks excellent. Only twice did we share buses with Port Orleans Riverside - and French Quarter was picked up and dropped off first. This was about the same as 7 years ago. In general, a quiet hotel. Food at food court was good, and didn't seem as busy as when we stayed at Pop Century (granted that was 9 years ago!). Boat service to Disney Springs is nice. Appears they are currently working on improvements to pool area (kid's play zone). Would definitely stay again!
Pros:
Smaller Size, Bus Service, QuietCons:
—Reviewed by Cheyru Review Date: 12/14/2015
Rating: (2) Not Recommended
A Motel 6 range hotel. The hotel is old and it shows. The walls were dirty and needed cleaning with soap and white vinegar. TV remote did not work, they dropped off batteries the first night, did not work, second night dropped off remote but did not come it to try to see if it worked. Finally gave up and went to bed. Last morning figured out you have to point remote at right corner to get it to work. Over all musty old smell. Elevators only one per building, had to walk to back and then front again if room was on the other end. Old also. Nothing special about the room for the price you pay. They lost my scooter and I had to wait until it just appeared in front as if by magic. With other problems in the park, regarding scooter use and other issues will never visit Disney again unless someone else pays for everything and that might make up for the money ill spent.
Pros:
Pool, VIP service for unscented bedding.Cons:
Room Dirty, broken TV, customer service attitude. elevatorsReviewed by MemphisMickey Review Date: 10/21/2015
Rating: (10) Recommended
Two families and mine stayed from 10/9 thru 10/16. We each had pool view rooms. While each room truly did not have a clear view the location was worth the extra cost to be close to the pool, bus station, lobby, store and food court. Our group included four boys ranging in ages from 8 to 10. The cast members managing the hourly pool activities was a pleasure for adults to kick back while the boys had a lot of fun. For our family we have now stayed here 9 times. Other resorts (Polynesian, Caribbean Beach, Coronado, Pop Century and Wilderness Lodge, which we have stayed in the past 15 years) tend to be more crowded less laid back.
Pros:
Size of resort / Pool StaffCons:
Bus service to RiversideReviewed by sandc Review Date: 09/18/2015
Rating: (10) Recommended
French Qtr is our go to resort. We absolutely love it there. We have stayed at other resorts but this is by far our favorite. We usually request building 4 but this trip we decided to try the pool view. We had a room on the second floor in building 5. We loved it. Our room was spotless when we arrived. Our housekeeper was great. We had the same lady almost everyday. The one day it was not her, our room was barely cleaned. The resort is quiet and small which is nice.
The food court was good. Just wish they would change it up a bit. We were there for 2 weeks and the menu did not change. The create your own salad was our go to food choice. Every staff member we encounted were friendly and very helpful.
For 2 weeks, we never waited more than 5 minutes for a bus leaving the resort. Not once did we pick up at Riverside either which was different from past trips. We did share with Riverside coming home which makes the busses a little more crowded but that is not a big deal. Never waited more than 10 minutes for a bus back to FQ.
We love the pool. I am personally not a fan of the games and the host speaking loudly into the microphone for hours but the kids like it. That is the one thing I wish Disney resorts never started doing.
We took the boat to Downtown Disney a few times. Such a nice relaxing boat ride.
We have only been back home for 2 weeks and I am already planning our next trip for FQ. I can't wait to get back to my second home!!!
