Port Orleans French Quarter or Riverside?

jensantuit · #1 05-21-2011, 10:20 PM

I will be running my first half marathon this coming January in Disney. We are thinking about staying at one of the Port Orleans resorts, but we don't know anything about them. If you have stayed at either the French Quarter or Riverside, please give us your input good and bad. Thanks in advance

PoohRules · #2 05-21-2011, 11:36 PM

Are you running on the Goofy weekend? We love POFQ, we like the fact it is smaller. Recent posts also say they have Queen beds now, so yet another plus.

I just ran Expedition Everest Challenge and had a blast. I am toying with the Wine and Dine on October 1 and/or the Princess Half in February.

Enjoy and maybe we will see you there!

KatrinaJ91 · #3 05-21-2011, 11:45 PM

We love POR!! I have posted many times about how much we love POR....but here I go again!
This will now be our home resort. There are many reasons why....the boat to Downtown Disney is one reason! The food court is really good and the small bar with Bob Jackson is amazing! We always stay in the Alligator Bayou...usually in Bld 15 or 18....it is very close to the bus stop, food court, main bldg and pool! The grounds are so relaxing and fun to walk around. We prob won't ever stay anywhere else!

mgmnut · #4 05-22-2011, 05:02 AM

I have never stayed in POR but we have stayed in FOFQ and loved it. I liked that it was a smaller quiet resort. We had a building all the way in the back corner and the walk to food court / busses still was not far. You still get the boat to DTD. I would not hesitate to stay there again.

darthmacho · #5 05-22-2011, 10:14 AM

I stayed at POR last summer, and felt that because it had a sit-down restaurant (Boatwright's), a better (but more crowded) cafeteria, and a more spacious grounds to explore, it was the superior resort. If these things are not important to you, I imagine it comes down to theming. POFQ felt like a quaint little city, while POR felt more like the country.

You'll probably enjoy either.

Also, I'd check the refurb schedule at POR. You'd probably rather be away from any construction.

tinksmom02 · #6 05-22-2011, 10:57 AM

You can't go wrong with either resort, because they're sister resorts so you get to use the amenities at each one. It would all come down to what kind of theming you'd like. We prefer the size of POFQ and how it seems quieter, plus...beignets! BUT, POR has a larger food court and BOB JACKSON!

You're really not far from anything at either resort (although I've heard that the Mansions are a bit of a longer walk-the 1 time we stayed at POR we were in Alligator Bayou).

LudwigVonDrake · #7 05-22-2011, 11:13 AM

I've never stayed at Riverside but POFQ is my favorite moderate. Small, compact, decent bus transportation and beignets

buzznwoodysmom · #8 05-22-2011, 11:14 AM

We have stayed at both and loved POFQ, but didn't love POR. We've actually stayed at all the moderates. I'd say POFQ was my favorite, while POR was my least favorite of all the mods. I didn't like the room decor at Riverside. We stayed in Alligator Bayou and the rooms, to me, looked like an old worn down camp, hated it. I'm not sure what exactly it is, can't put my finger on it, but I didn't really enjoy this resort at all. POFQ was lovely and SMALL. That's what I loved most about it, the compact size. No matter where your room is you are close to everything. It was very quiet as well.

E-OR · #9 05-22-2011, 11:14 AM

We have loved POFQ and have stayed at this resort many times. We will be there again in Sept/Oct. The size is what really appeals to us. We have stayed at CBR and just hated how big it was. With POFQ you are close to the food court, pool, laundry, boat to DD, and a short lovely walk to POR for using boats, pool, food court, and their sit down restaurant no matter what building your in. We have thought about staying at POR but had second thoughts knowing how big it is and knowing there could be a chance we might end up in a room a good walk from everything. Now that POFQ has newly renovated rooms we are even more excited. LOVE THIS RESORT!!

crltkcagle · #10 05-22-2011, 12:44 PM

We always stay at POR riverside and we love it! We have to stay in the Alligator Bayou section because we are a family of five. Its a very nice laid back quiet resort. The food court is really good and the swimming pools are nice.

My parents always stay at PORFQ because they do not have children anymore (we are all grown) and they like the atmosphere of the resort. The pool here is a lot of fun and the food court serves beignets.

I think either one would be a great choice!

HoosierDisneyFan · #11 05-22-2011, 03:11 PM

We have stayed at both and both were great.

We prefer POFQ because of the smaller size (less walking after a long day at the parks) and that "generally" if the 2 resort share a bus you get picked up first and and dropped off first (thought this is not true 100% of the time). Also now has Queen size beds.

POR does have a bigger store, bigger pool, bigger hot tub, bigger arcade, etc (but more people).

My advice is if you are at the parks most of the time, POFQ is a better selection but if you are looking for resort activities, POR would be your best bet. Keep in mind that both resort are a short 10 min walk apart and you can share the services of both.

You will enjoy regardless of you selection.

mgmnut · #12 05-23-2011, 10:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HoosierDisneyFan

Keep in mind that both resort are a short 10 min walk apart and you can share the services of both.

This is true, plus you can take the boat from one resort to the other if you don't wish to walk.

Jeany031 · #13 05-25-2011, 08:11 AM

i love POFQ! I can't wait to stay for Dec 2011!
POFQ will have a outdoor movies! here it is!

The grassy courtyard between buildings 4, 5 and 6 has often been used for entertainment during special events such as Easter and Halloween, but it seems that the resort is now trialling the idea of having movie nights three nights a week (Wednesday, Friday and Saturday) on a giant inflatable screen. Presumably this will happen during the summer months when it's always warm enough to sit out in the evenings.

The May 2011 schedule is as follows (subject to change):

Wed 4 May: A Bug's Life
Fri 6 May: The Sword in the Stone
Sat 7 May: Monsters, Inc.
Wed 11 May: Toy Story
Fri 13 May: G-Force
Sat 14 May: Wall-E
Wed 18 May: The Princess Diaries
Fri 20 May: Beauty and the Beast
Sat 21 May: The Princess and the Frog
Wed 25 May: Bolt
Fri 27 May: Mulan
Sat 28 May: Meet the Robinsons

source from portorleans.org!

Tinkerbella16 · #14 05-26-2011, 03:07 PM

I have stayed at both and I loved them both.. but I really loved POFQ more. The size is perfect.. no matter where your room is, you are pretty much close to everything at the resort. There is only 1 bus stop instead of 4 like POR.. sometimes they share buses but the 2 times I've stayed at Port Orleans we never shared busses with the other resort.

I love the boat to DTD. I think POR & POFQ are such a bang for the buck.. I really don't want to stay anywhere else when I go to Disney. The grounds at FQ are so gorgeous.. the cobblestone streets, you really feel like you are in NO. The rooms were always very clean. The staff was always very friendly. You will definately love POFQ or POR.. I just prefer FQ more.

Jeany031 · #15 05-26-2011, 06:56 PM

awesome! i can't wait to love POFQ!

A Big Kid · #16 05-27-2011, 09:14 AM

We stayed at Riverside for the 10 marathon. While it is a nice moderate, depending on which building you are in, in can be a long walk from the lobby area to your room. FQ is much smaller.

If you are inclined to have pasta the night before your run, you can NOT beat the "build you own pasta" at the riverside food court! (Even if I am not staying at riverside, I usually have my pre-marathon dinner here!)

If a special treat after your run is important, the beignets at FQ can't be beat!