Disney's PORT ORLEANS RIVERSIDE RESORT Information & Questions

[Jadyreen1282]

Yes, lots of them connect. Basically 5th Sleeper simply guarantees a room in the Alligator Bayou section - as does any booking with five people aged 3+. You can only have two of the rooms connect though, the third will just need to be somewhere nearby. There are plenty of 5th Sleeper Woods View and 5th Sleeper Standard View rooms very near to each other by the way (often back-to-back rather than side-by-side).

Andre

Andre, do you have any insight as to why they don't offer 5th sleeper pool view?

The wife and I love the pool view AB rooms but I always have to request AB when I book a pool view to make sure.

 

[Momto8]

Yes, lots of them connect. Basically 5th Sleeper simply guarantees a room in the Alligator Bayou section - as does any booking with five people aged 3+. You can only have two of the rooms connect though, the third will just need to be somewhere nearby. There are plenty of 5th Sleeper Woods View and 5th Sleeper Standard View rooms very near to each other by the way (often back-to-back rather than side-by-side).

Andre

That's good to hear! Yes, I know the 3rd room can't connect and they are all in Alligator Bayou, though one time we requested to be in the Mansions since every time we stayed there we were always in AB. The person checking us in said the manager said yes and they charged us for a rollaway for the 5th person. I wanted to see what those rooms were like.

Thank you Andre!

 

[andrewilley]

Andre, do you have any insight as to why they don't offer 5th sleeper pool view?

It was felt it would complicate an ever-more complex room inventory management system to the point of breaking. They would have needed to add 5th-Sleeper Pool View, River View, and even '3rd-Sleeper' King Bed rooms. And even Preferred options for Standard/Garden/Pool/River/King for completeness.

The person checking us in said the manager said yes and they charged us for a rollaway for the 5th person.

That is no longer an option, they haven't offered the rollaway beds for several years now. Not sure why you would have been charged for the extra bed though; when they had them, they were free (any extra-adult charges would already have been included in the booking). The only facility for five people now is the fold-down beds in the AB rooms.

Andre

 

[Wood Nymph]

My family and I will be booking a stay at Riverside. I plan on requesting the Alligator Bayou lodge 14. How does the main pool compare to the French Quarter? To me when I look at online pictures it looks kind of small with a lot shade? Thanks

We really like the main pool at Riverside. I love the shade and it has plenty of tables to sit at. The pool bar is very convenient, too. It is a really nice pool. We haven't stayed at French Quarter but the pool there doesn't look as nice as the pool at Riverside, in my opinion. The main pool, the lovely grounds, and the boat to Disney Springs are some of my favorite things about Riverside.

 

[Joe Brig]

Any info on the boats to Disney Springs? The boats don't have an inside area, so Disney should be able to restart them without any problems.

 

[andrewilley]

Any info on the boats to Disney Springs? The boats don't have an inside area, so Disney should be able to restart them without any problems.

Nothing as yet. They haven't restarted any of the Disney Springs ferries so far - either the internal water taxis, or the Old Key West / Saratoga Springs boats.

Andre

 

[GatorChris]

Situation: just had to cancel a 6 night trip to CBR because we all test positive for C19 the day before our flights. In order to not lose our flights, we had to book this year. And with the 50th, prices are out of control. We just rebooked Disney for POR, but at $321/night. We Honeymooned at POR-AB and swore we'd never return. The AB looks like an old apartment complex in South Birmingham. The bus service was lousy compared to every other moderate we've tried, and the AB is far from everything.

I'm at this point about ready to cancel Disney for their stupid high prices and do a Universal trip instead. Is there anyone who can talk me off the ledge? Has POR improved at all over the last 18 years?

 

[HangWithMerida]

I mean, to each his own but I really like POR. It's my favorite of the moderates. I love the character of theming of both of the PO resorts. But if you didn't have a good experience the first time and go into it thinking you will hate it, you probably will.

 

[mickeystoontown]

Are the royal rooms dog friendly?

 

[Rory607]

Situation: just had to cancel a 6 night trip to CBR because we all test positive for C19 the day before our flights. In order to not lose our flights, we had to book this year. And with the 50th, prices are out of control. We just rebooked Disney for POR, but at $321/night. We Honeymooned at POR-AB and swore we'd never return. The AB looks like an old apartment complex in South Birmingham. The bus service was lousy compared to every other moderate we've tried, and the AB is far from everything.

I'm at this point about ready to cancel Disney for their stupid high prices and do a Universal trip instead. Is there anyone who can talk me off the ledge? Has POR improved at all over the last 18 years?

Can you book a room on the mansion side? We’ve stayed there multiple times and really enjoyed the resort. We’ve never stayed in AB, but found the mansion area very peaceful and a nice break from the parks. I can’t speak to the bus service because we either do POR or a deluxe.

 

[andrewilley]

Are the royal rooms dog friendly?

Technically, the whole resort is dog friendly. However they do prefer to place guests with dogs into Alligator Bayou building 24 wherever possible. That said, if someone with a Royal Room booking arrives with a dog, they should still be accommodated.

Can you book a room on the mansion side?

If you book any Royal Room, you are guaranteed a mansion building room. If you book a (non-Royal) Standard or Garden View, you are much more likely to be assigned to a mansion building room - as other bookings with the 5th Sleeper option would need to be placed into the Alligator Bayou rooms - but it is not guaranteed. If AB is not full they might assign you there anyway.

Andre

 

[DduzDis]

We are staying at POR for the first time next Feb. We have two young DDs that are very excited to stay in a royal room. We’ve booked a River view so I understand that puts us in a specific area of the resort. Can anyone tell me about the bus experience? We would likely walk over to the main area to fill mugs before we head out. So most likely that bus. Thanks!

 

[Wood Nymph]

We are staying at POR for the first time next Feb. We have two young DDs that are very excited to stay in a royal room. We’ve booked a River view so I understand that puts us in a specific area of the resort. Can anyone tell me about the bus experience? We would likely walk over to the main area to fill mugs before we head out. So most likely that bus. Thanks!

The park bus makes four stops, starting with the west depot and ending with the south depot, which is the depot closest to the main area. The bus depot closest to the Royal rooms is the third bus depot, called the East depot, the fourth is the south depot. The south depot is also the most crowded and the bus will have people on it who boarded at one of the first three depots. The buses at park opening are usually the only ones that fill up fast. If you want to get to the park around park opening you may want to get to the south depot really early.

 

[DduzDis]

The park bus makes four stops, starting with the west depot and ending with the south depot, which is the depot closest to the main area. The bus depot closest to the Royal rooms is the third bus depot, called the East depot, the fourth is the south depot. The south depot is also the most crowded and the bus will have people on it who boarded at one of the first three depots. The buses at park opening are usually the only ones that fill up fast. If you want to get to the park around park opening you may want to get to the south depot really early.

We are early birds so this is doable. Thanks for the information!

 

[Ensusieasm]

If you book any Royal Room, you are guaranteed a mansion building room. If you book a (non-Royal) Standard or Garden View, you are much more likely to be assigned to a mansion building room - as other bookings with the 5th Sleeper option would need to be placed into the Alligator Bayou rooms - but it is not guaranteed. If AB is not full they might assign you there anyway.

Andre
[/QUOTE]

I know that the room category “woods view-5th sleeper” would be in Alligator Bayou. So, I was wondering, if I book a “woods view” room would my room definitely be in Magnolia Bend?

 

[Ensusieasm]

We are staying at POR for the first time next Feb. We have two young DDs that are very excited to stay in a royal room. We’ve booked a River view so I understand that puts us in a specific area of the resort. Can anyone tell me about the bus experience? We would likely walk over to the main area to fill mugs before we head out. So most likely that bus. Thanks!

I you want to get on that first bus it would be safer to get on at the East Depot because sometimes the bus gets so full at the first three stops, it can’t take more passengers, and won’t even stop at the South Depot.

 

[andrewilley]

I know that the room category “woods view-5th sleeper” would be in Alligator Bayou. So, I was wondering, if I book a “woods view” room would my room definitely be in Magnolia Bend?

No, while that would be the most likely outcome, it is not 100% guaranteed. Especially when they near capacity, any overspill of Woods View bookings would be assigned to Alligator Bayou rooms.

Andre

 

[TropicalDIS]

No, while that would be the most likely outcome, it is not 100% guaranteed. Especially when they near capacity, any overspill of Woods View bookings would be assigned to Alligator Bayou rooms.

Andre

Have a Woods view room booked for November, and have requested to be in Alligator Bayou. Should be something they can do?

 

[andrewilley]

Have a Woods view room booked for November, and have requested to be in Alligator Bayou. Should be something they can do?

As I said, you are much more likely to be placed in the mansion buildings.

You can change your booking to Woods View 5th Sleeper though, or Preferred Location, both of which would ensure you are in the AB section.

Andre

 

[Ensusieasm]

No, while that would be the most likely outcome, it is not 100% guaranteed. Especially when they near capacity, any overspill of Woods View bookings would be assigned to Alligator Bayou rooms.

Andre

Thanks, Andre. Even though the reservations chat cast member advised that “woods view”, without the added fifth sleeper, would be Magnolia Bend, I still had misgivings and I knew I should come here and ask the expert.