wilderness lodge or port orleans-riverside

[mludman]

what are the pros and cons for each resort. i am planning a trip for this august. traveling with wife and kids(8, 6 and one years)

[mydisneygirls]

I have stayed at both and I would have to choose Wilderness Lodge over POR. With young children, I'm assuming your choice of park will be the Magic Kingdom (even at my age my choice is MK). Very easy access getting there by boat and if the little ones get tired, you can be back to your room in 15 minutes. Staying at POR, you'd have to wait for/take a bus. To me, it's just a nicer resort all together. I think once you stay there, that will be the resort you'll want to stay at all the time.

[AgentC]

I really like both of these resorts but if the price was not an option I would pick Wilderness Lodge every time.

In my opinion, it is one of the prettiest resorts and most relaxing resorts. The brook running throughout the grounds and the lobby is beautiful. The geyser is fun. You have 2 sit down options and a decent quick serve.

Pool area is very nice. Decent playground (or at least there was last time I was there) plus you can see the MK fireworks from the beach.
Rooms are a bit larger than POR and of course are all on inside corridors. I think all the rooms except first floor have balconies. There is also a good kids club that provides activities during the day and child care are night.

Possible Con- Quick serve is small
Boat to MK (I love it, but some people don't)

POR is also a very attractive resort. It is much more spread out and not adjacent to any park. Bus transportation to all parks. Great food court. 1 table service restaurant and a good piano show in the lounge.

Two very different areas- Aliigator Bayou and Mansions. I am partial to the Royal rooms in the Mansion section, but that might not work if you have boys.

Have fun planning!

[merryc17]

Wilderness Lodge, definitely. The location is wonderful.

I agree with the other posters. Some people don't care for the boat (I love it) and there isn't a lot of quick service food options. However, the hotel itself is beautiful and the pool area is pretty awesome. There is a geyser!Thinking like a kid, it's much more impressive than PO.

You can also see the fireworks from the Magic Kingdom from the hotel. Plus, you can get to and from WL so much faster.

PO is a great hotel with a completely different feel. You can't really make a bad choice here...but I'd go with WL for sure!

[Capt_redshirt]

my recommendation would be look at the map layouts of the 2 resorts.. both are great places to stay and have a lot of pros to them the restaurants being one... but if you've never seen POR layout you might be surprised... the area is massive if i recall correctly there are 4 bus terminals around the outside ring of the hotel grounds. that being said if you like the charm of what POR offers but want something a bit closer together id also consider PO:FQ its right next door (also if you want to go to the restaurants on POR its a quick boat ride (or 1 mile walk)

[VWL Mom]

As you can see by my signature, WL is my favorite. We've been staying there since the year they opened, IMO a wonderful family type atmosphere. When my boys were babies it was just great to be able to run back and forth to MK either by bus or boat. Plenty of beach for them to run on and a great playground. Now they also have the movies on the beach at night which is fun for the kids.

plus you can see the MK fireworks from the beach.

With all our stays, I never knew that!

[buzznwoodysmom]

It's funny you ask this because I am currently booked at Riverside, but oh how I wish we were staying at WL again. LOL. We are traveling with extended family, and since they are a family of 5 they have to stay in a room that sleeps 5. Riverside is always their choice. We don't have to stay at the same resort as them (and we usually don't) but my children asked if we could stay at the same resort as their cousins this time. Thus we are at Riverside for our upcoming trip. Under any other circumstance I'd pick WL over Riverside!

Wilderness Lodge is our favorite resort! I love how close you are to MK, yet feel a million miles away once inside. It's such a beautiful, peaceful place to stay. I don't think I have anything negative to say about WL! Just thinking about it kind of bums me out that we'll be at Riverside in Feb.

[mydisneygirls]

plus you can see the MK fireworks from the beach.

With all our stays, I never knew that!

Just wanted to say that you cannot see the MK fireworks clearly from the beach but you can see some of them. Best view is from the Poly beach!

[Janmac]

Most recent trip (2012) was a Royal Guest Room (Oak Manor) at Port Orleans Riverside. Trip before that (2010) was at Wilderness Lodge.

While I liked both resorts as far as theming, there are perhaps only 2 areas that POR tops WL. The counter service area at POR is probably better than WL at least in the size. Wl has a small seating area. As for food options, I am just as happy at WL.

The second area is the store at POR which has more snack and drink options than what I remember WL's store having.

During both trips we had a family member become ill resulting in unplanned trips to the CS venue. It was much easier to access the WL area over the POR.

I would return to WL every trip, if availability allowed. I really like that everything is under one roof at WL. This might especially be nice during August.

We too were under the impression that the fireworks could be seen from the beach at WL. The trees on the island blocked all but the very highest.

A short boat ride to the Fort Wilderness beach produces a better view. Last time I saw the fireworks from this beach (2006) the music was piped in but low volume and difficult to hear.

Jan

[AgentC]

Just wanted to say that you cannot see the MK fireworks clearly from the beach but you can see some of them. Best view is from the Poly beach!

Yes, I agree and some spots are better than others. Sorry if I was not clear. It is not a Poly type view at all. You are watching them in the sky and of course you can't see the castle, but I still enjoy them on nights that we hanging out at the resort.

There is a spot other than the beach that had a clearer view, but I can't remember where it was.

[Gator]

I'm gonna lean towards WL. The feel in the lobby and the resort is so great, and I've only eaten there. I've stayed at POR, and we were underwhelmed. It's so big. The food court and dining were just OK. If you get put in an Alligator Bayou room, you'll be sorry you went there at all. And the bus transport seems to be the worst of the moderates.

[Patricia]

I love WL!
If you stay here, go over to the villas and see the Carolwood Pacific Room. It's like a mini museum of art, history, photos and two of the cars from Walt's backyard train. There is a Hidden Mickey hunt, you can ask at the desk. A waterfall (cool factor). You can watch the electric water pageant from the beach. There is a beach. They have their own geyser.

You can get a clearer view of the fireworks from WL in the Cast Member parking lot.
Walk out the front doors, staying to the right.. walk down the drive and turn right into the parking area and straight on through till you hit the fence. It's not the "best view" as it's far.. but it is a view. I've watched from there more than once. Everyone claims it's busy out there, but we've always been alone.

I love Port Orleans Riverside!
I have a night here during the upcoming Icot meet. I like that I can take the boat to Downtown Disney. Love the landscaping and quiet pools here. Great atmosphere. Lots of food choices. I like that I can walk over to the French Quarter section and have a beignet. I like the night time entertainment at Riverside and the French Quarter and tend to wonder back and forth a lot. Riverside has a cool pool. To confuse you more, after what Gator said... I actually prefer the Alligator Bayou area and rooms, although I haven't been since the renos. I have never waited long for a bus either.. but that could be luck.

[Aurora]

I like both, for many of the reasons already listed. We also haven't minded the Alligator Bayou rooms at POR, even those on the far end of the resort -- it's very peaceful there.

If I had to choose, though, I'd pick WL. I like the feeling of being in a hotel with inside doors instead of outside. The grounds are beautiful, the pool is awesome for the kids. Love the lobby and the wide porch you can sit out on and just enjoy the atmosphere. The rooms are slightly larger than POR (340 sq ft vs. 315), and they're warm and homelike.

And, there's the convenience of the boat to the Magic Kingdom, which IMHO is a huge amenity.

[mom2morgan]

I think the bottom line is that POR is a moderate and WL is a deluxe. I like POR very much, but I would ALWAYS choose the Deluxe in any situation. Everything is just "nicer".

[Lindsey310]

We have stayed at both and prefer the wilderness lodge. Great proximity to magic kingdom and when we stayed here in march 2012, we enjoyed the water parade that we watched from the beach. We stayed in the villas when we stayed here in march but I love how the rooms are in the main building. The lobby is spectacular and DH and I love to people watch there! Pool is great with a cool waterslide. Only thing I'm not a fan of is the restaurants. They need a bigger quick service and we had a bad experience at whispering canyon cafe and won't eat there again.

POR was the resort we stayed in for our first visit. It will always hold a special place in my heart. That being said, we love the quick service eating area there and frequent it often for breakfast. Rooms are spread out quite a bit so you may find a hike to the main eating area and buses. There are usually many bus stops before you can actually get to the area you may be staying in. Love the atmosphere here.

My vote is for WL.

[bruin1344]

WL. One of my favorites resorts. I love the decor, its close proximity to the MK, and a beach to relax at

[RavsRuleDisney!]

Have done both and were happy at both resorts. For the extra $$ WL is great. everything under one roof which is great with 3 little ones in tow. whispering lodge great resort eating choice. pool is one of WDW's best IMO. Boat ride to MK is quick and convenient. Excellent theming throughout.

POR our recent home away from home last 2 trips. Our DS' are 11 & 13 now so a bit more walking (resort spread out a little) not a problem. Grounds are beautiful. Also great food options FQ a nice area to check out.

Either way - ENJOY!!

[RavsRuleDisney!]

Wilderness Lodge is our favorite resort! I love how close you are to MK, yet feel a million miles away once inside. It's such a beautiful, peaceful place to stay. I don't think I have anything negative to say about WL! Just thinking about it kind of bums me out that we'll be at Riverside in Feb.

Hey now, you are on your way with family to the Happiest place on Earth"....don't be TOO bummed out!!

[buzznwoodysmom]

Hey now, you are on your way with family to the Happiest place on Earth"....don't be TOO bummed out!!

Hahaha, your right. I should just be happy we get to go back. It's DS's 13th Birthday trip and he is the one who asked to stay with his cousin's, aunt, uncle, and the grandparents are coming too now. So his birthday/his choice. Riverside it is......I guess. LOL.

[MrPeetrie]

Mludman, you are choosing between to very nice resorts so you can't go wrong with either selection.

If money were not an issue, I'd probably lean toward Wilderness Lodge primarily due to its proximity to the Magic Kingdom. The boat ride in the morning is one of my favorite rides while on property. If you're vacation is scheduled around Christmas, then I'd give an even bigger nod to WL as it is breathtaking during the holidays.

But POR is amazing for a moderate. I think it has a fantastic pool complex. It has a great food court, better than at WL. And there's a boat ride to Downtown Disney from POR. (It's a great way to get there.)

Good luck with your decision.