jenrose66
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Mar 17, 2005
I stayed at POR from 2/3 to 2/8 with my mom and my daughter who just turned 3 in November. We were located in building 28 on the 2nd floor. Our room was Garden View (I was fine with standard view but we had a free dining pin and garden was all that was available at the time of booking). We had a view of a nice little swamp type garden and the quiet pool. We were at the very back of the building though and if we had been 2 rooms back we would have faced the parking lot. We were closest to the West Bus Depot and found it was quicker to walk along the parking lot to get the bus stop, even though it wasn't as scenic as following the signs through the resort around the buildings.
I did not bring a stroller for DD and it took 10 minutes to walk to the food court or pool area when we walked together. I was able to make it in 5 or 6 minutes alone. I didn't mind the walk but my mom complained about it a lot. I guess I can see why people request certain room locations at this resort and if I stay here again in the future I would probably do the same.
This is a beautiful resort. I had stayed at POFQ a few times but it has been about 9 years. Our room was very nice and it was clean and in good condition. I appreciated having the trundle bed so DD had her own sleeping space. However, I did find storage to be a bit lacking and think it would be tight with a family of 5 (which I have, but I didn't have everyone because we went with my mom and she takes one grandchild at a time )
I found service efficient and friendly. Check in was easy as was dealing with concierge when I had an issue with one of my dining reservations (I have some thoughts on the dining plan but I will review that in a separate thread on the dining plan board). The entire resort was clean and in good repair and the gift shop was big and well stocked.
I had a few criticisms. These aren't deal breakers for me and I wasn't upset about them, I just know the readers on the DIS appreciate details so I will make mention of what I didn't like, just as I have mentioned what I did like.
I didn't care for the bus transportation. It wasn't particularly slow as in the amount of time it takes for a bus to show up, however with making 5 stops it takes up to 15 minutes before leaving the resort.
I don't know if this issue is POR specific but I hated the new automated mug refill. Half the time I'd put my mug on the tray and hit the button for pop and the machine would tell me to place my mug on the tray, like it wasn't registering. Sometimes I'd give up and go to another machine. I saw other people having the same problem. I just found the system glitchy. Plus I mean I get the point that they are doing this so people don't bring old mugs every year, however, when they say the mugs won't work at different resorts that isn't true. We had been walking around the resort exploring after dinner and found our way to POFQ and for research sake and my own thirst I tried my mug there and it worked no problem which leads me to believe mugs are chipped to length of stay but can't discern what resort you are at.
Also there is horse poop on the ground from the horse drawn carriage rides. The resort doesn't have the best lighting in the evening and after a close call we realized we needed to be paying close attention to the ground while we were walking.
My final thought on the resort is that it is very nice. The theme is definitely nicer to look at than a value resort...but not worth the extra cost in my opinion. I actually liked AoA and AsMo better and found myself missing it there. The bus sharing with the all stars doesn't take as long because the stops are closer together and with a family of five I love the AoA family suite. Plus I think the food courts at the values have more to choose from.
I would sacrifice space to stay at a Deluxe resort near Epcot or on the Monorail due to ease of transportation...if I had a good room discount. However, when DH and I go back for a family vacation we are considering staying at a vacation home offsite and visiting some other places (universal and legoland)...
All in all I had a nice stay and we all had fun. Feel free to ask any questions
I did not bring a stroller for DD and it took 10 minutes to walk to the food court or pool area when we walked together. I was able to make it in 5 or 6 minutes alone. I didn't mind the walk but my mom complained about it a lot. I guess I can see why people request certain room locations at this resort and if I stay here again in the future I would probably do the same.
This is a beautiful resort. I had stayed at POFQ a few times but it has been about 9 years. Our room was very nice and it was clean and in good condition. I appreciated having the trundle bed so DD had her own sleeping space. However, I did find storage to be a bit lacking and think it would be tight with a family of 5 (which I have, but I didn't have everyone because we went with my mom and she takes one grandchild at a time )
I found service efficient and friendly. Check in was easy as was dealing with concierge when I had an issue with one of my dining reservations (I have some thoughts on the dining plan but I will review that in a separate thread on the dining plan board). The entire resort was clean and in good repair and the gift shop was big and well stocked.
I had a few criticisms. These aren't deal breakers for me and I wasn't upset about them, I just know the readers on the DIS appreciate details so I will make mention of what I didn't like, just as I have mentioned what I did like.
I didn't care for the bus transportation. It wasn't particularly slow as in the amount of time it takes for a bus to show up, however with making 5 stops it takes up to 15 minutes before leaving the resort.
I don't know if this issue is POR specific but I hated the new automated mug refill. Half the time I'd put my mug on the tray and hit the button for pop and the machine would tell me to place my mug on the tray, like it wasn't registering. Sometimes I'd give up and go to another machine. I saw other people having the same problem. I just found the system glitchy. Plus I mean I get the point that they are doing this so people don't bring old mugs every year, however, when they say the mugs won't work at different resorts that isn't true. We had been walking around the resort exploring after dinner and found our way to POFQ and for research sake and my own thirst I tried my mug there and it worked no problem which leads me to believe mugs are chipped to length of stay but can't discern what resort you are at.
Also there is horse poop on the ground from the horse drawn carriage rides. The resort doesn't have the best lighting in the evening and after a close call we realized we needed to be paying close attention to the ground while we were walking.
My final thought on the resort is that it is very nice. The theme is definitely nicer to look at than a value resort...but not worth the extra cost in my opinion. I actually liked AoA and AsMo better and found myself missing it there. The bus sharing with the all stars doesn't take as long because the stops are closer together and with a family of five I love the AoA family suite. Plus I think the food courts at the values have more to choose from.
I would sacrifice space to stay at a Deluxe resort near Epcot or on the Monorail due to ease of transportation...if I had a good room discount. However, when DH and I go back for a family vacation we are considering staying at a vacation home offsite and visiting some other places (universal and legoland)...
All in all I had a nice stay and we all had fun. Feel free to ask any questions