Category — q. Reviews

DISNEY’S PORT ORLEANS FRENCH QUARTER

Port Orleans French Quarter, and its sister resort Port Orleans Riverside, are Disney World’s best-loved moderate resorts.

French Quarter is also my own personal favorite among the moderates, and it’s inspired a great fan site, PortOrleans.org.

However, many stays–most recently in November 2016–confirm that Disney’s Port Orleans French Quarter Resort remains the fourth best of the moderate resorts for first time family visitors.

(These moderate rankings are very close; for what the moderates provide, and how they compare to the other Disney World resort classes, click here)

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DINING OUTSIDE OF WALT DISNEY WORLD

This site has lots of advice on where to dine at Walt Disney World–see this for a recent introduction to its “Where to Eat” material.

It lacks, though, material on anything off-property, and is thin on some on-property areas, like Downtown Disney and the Swan and Dolphin.

Those looking to supplement–or ignore!–my suggestions would be well-served by grabbing a copy of the Zagat Orlando City Guide.

THE ZAGAT ORLANDO CITY GUIDE

The Zagat Guide to Orlando–a 2013 edition published in late 2012–is a long and slim 158 page guide to Orlando dining, nightlife, shopping, and attractions.  More than half the book is devoted to Orlando area dining, with 360 restaurants ranked and (briefly) reviewed, and that’s its real strength.

The dining section begins with summaries of top-ranked restaurants in various categories, including “Most Popular,” “Top Food” (overall and also by cuisine, by “special features,” and by location), “Top Decor,” “Top Service,” and “Best Buys.”

It then gives even more detailed lists of top-ranked venues in the special features, cuisines, and locations categories, and then shifts to more than 50 pages of detailed individual restaurant entries, arranged alphabetically.

So you can use the guide in many ways.  You can look for a venue in any of the category rankings covered in the first sections, or you can check out an alternative you are considering in detail in the listings section.

Compared to this site’s material, the Zagat Orlando City Guide has much more comprehensive coverage, especially–as you might imagine–outside of the core Disney World properties. It can help with Downtown Disney and Universal Orlando dining much more than I do–and also of course with dining unrelated to theme parks!

Among the Disney World venues, Victoria and Albert’s shows up at or near the top of any category it is eligible for, and Jiko also does quite well.

Curiously, neither Rainforest Cafe nor Raglan Road is included…which would be my top-ranked restaurants in Downtown Disney for families and adults respectively.

But regardless of these lacunae, I still think the Zagat Orlando City Guide is a great buy for visitors wanting to go outside the Disney World walls for their dining, or for those looking for another source of guidance.

I much prefer it to on-line alternatives like TripAdvisor, because while like them it’s crowd-sourced, it is also both curated and edited.

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DISNEY’S PORT ORLEANS RIVERSIDE RESORT

(Note 10/17: Port Orleans Riverside is now part of a dog-friendly pilot program.)

With more than 2000 rooms sprawling in two different sections around Disney’s (man-made) Sassagoula River, Port Orleans Riverside is probably Disney World’s best-loved moderate resort, and has inspired a great fan site.

I’ve stayed at Riverside nine times since I started this site, most recently in September 2015. These visits confirm that Disney’s Port Orleans Riverside Resort remains the third best of the moderate resorts for first time family visitors.

(For what the moderates provide, and how they compare to the other Disney World resort classes, click here)

You can have a wonderful visit at any Walt Disney World resort.

However, this site recommends that first time visitors to Walt Disney World avoid the moderate resorts, while noting that these resorts are wonderful for visits after the first. (See this for why.)

That said, the moderates represent ~30% of the rooms of Walt Disney World, and will be sought by some because this site’s recommended resorts are sold out, because you are on return visits, or because–sensibly–you’re just not that into my rankings!

So I stay in them all, and update my reviews.

REVIEW: DISNEY’S PORT ORLEANS RIVERSIDE RESORT

Resorts are ranked on this site for first time visitors based first on their kid appeal, and then on their convenience.

On this basis, Disney’s Port Orleans Riverside resort is the third best moderate resort for first time family visitors.

(Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort is first, but see this before booking it; Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort second; and Disney’s Port Orleans French Quarter is fourth; these results are very close.  The Cabins at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort are ranked last, and this is not close.)

Kid Appeal. The southern bayou and plantation theming of this resort, while charming to many adults (especially the Magnolia Bend section, whose Georgian architecture is quite lovely), will miss most kids entirely.

That said, its extra amenities bump it slightly ahead of its sister resort Disney’s Port Orleans French Quarter. (French Quarter visitors are encouraged to use these amenities; the difference is that for Riverside guests, they are immediately present.)

Moreover, the Royal Rooms will have great appeal to some kids–though they are more expensive, and less convenient, than alternatives.

Now, I get comments all the time along the lines of “We stayed at Riverside and it had great appeal for my kids!” Of course it did. All the Disney resorts have great kid appeal. My point is that some have even more than others…

Convenience. Disney’s Port Orleans Riverside is in the middle of moderates convenience.

While often thought of as out of the way, it is in fact just across the street (or two) from Epcot, and along with Port Orleans French Quarter is the closest of the “traditional” moderates to the Magic Kingdom. It also shares with French Quarter a slow boat to Downtown Disney.

The principal convenience frustration is that, since it shares most buses with Port Orleans French Quarter, it has in effect 5 bus stops. The Magic Kingdom bus is the exception–it has only four stops, as it skips Port Orleans French Quarter.

Buses fill all too often before they get to their final stop (which varies, depending on the route), and the first day or two of a visit, it can be hard to identify from inside the bus whether one is at the West, North, or East Bus Stop.

Getting off at the wrong stop matters, because Port Orleans Riverside is pretty darn big, and can be a challenge to get around.

While at my pace no room is more than a ten minute walk from the central service area and pool, this is assuming you take the most direct path, and don’t get lost.

Getting lost–especially at night–in the far reaches of the Alligator Bayou section is easy.

It’s not widely noticed, but the texture of the concrete paths in the Alligator Bayou section is meant to help with wayfinding.

Where there are groups of buildings, the main path through them is textured to look like a plank road.

The image above shows the junction between the path around the river and one of these plank road paths. The texturing is meant to indicate to you that you are on a main path, and keep you from wandering off accidentally onto a building-specific path.

The image on the right side shows the texture of the plank road a little more clearly.

As a final convenience point, the two story buildings in the Alligator Bayou area have no elevators.

Other distinctive features. One of only  two traditional moderates that can sleep five, in the Alligator Bayou section. (Caribbean Beach is the other, and its five person rooms are slightly more livable.) These Alligator Bayou rooms provide two queen beds and a short Murphy bed. With Port Orleans French Quarter, the only moderate with no lake, and with the French Quarter the only moderate with boat transport to Downtown Disney.

ACCOMMODATIONS AT DISNEY’S PORT ORLEANS RIVERSIDE RESORT

Much more so than Disney World’s other moderate resorts, Port Orleans Riverside has distinct areas and room types, with varied pros and cons.

There’s two areas–Alligator Bayou and Magnolia Bend–and three different room types.

See the map (click it to enlarge it)–whose colored circles I will explain as I go along.

THE MAGNOLIA BEND SECTION OF PORT ORLEANS RIVERSIDE

The Magnolia Bend section of Port Orleans Riverside contains the four large buildings circled in yellow at the right of the map, themed as graceful southern plantation homes, with courtyards, porticoes, grand stairs, and fountains.

The two top-most of these buildings are Acadian House and Magnolia Terrace.

These two buildings are the most highly recommended among the Port Orleans Riverside options, because of their

• Access to bus stops–above on either side, circled in red
• Access to the main pool, on the island at the center of the map over the bridge between them, and
• Access to the food court and services, just to the left of the pool

The rooms you’ll find here are tied with the rest of the Magnolia Bend rooms for being most livable, and tied with the Alligator Bayou rooms for having the lowest cost.

Their floor plans are typical of the moderates. What make them more livable than the Alligator Bend rooms is that they have both more, and more accessible, drawer space.

For a full review of this room type, see this.

The two bottom-right buildings, Oak Manor and Parterre Place, circled in black, are where you’ll find Riverside’s Royal Rooms.

Royal Rooms are distinctively decorated to a Disney Prince and Princess theme, and are higher cost than any other options at Port Orleans Riverside. Their floor plans are very similar to those in the two other Magnolia Bend buildings.

Families who find the added theming worth the extra ~$45-$80 per night these rooms cost may find them quite pleasant.

The buildings themselves, however, are distant from the main pool and from bus stops.

A detailed review of the Royal Rooms is here.

THE ALLIGATOR BAYOU SECTION OF PORT ORLEANS RIVERSIDE

The Alligator Bayou section of Port Orleans Riverside is on the top left of the map, circled in purple. The two-story, no-elevator buildings here are themed as backwoods hovels homes.

While some of these buildings are quite convenient, e.g. Building 14, many are distant from one, two, or all three of the main pool, central services, and bus stops.

However, these rooms are among the few “traditional” moderate rooms at Walt Disney World that can sleep 5–the only other ones are at Caribbean Beach.

The fifth sleeping spot is in a short (66″) Murphy Bed that drops down from the TV/dresser object.

The geometry of the object means that these rooms have both less drawer space to start with, and also that the drawers are inaccessible if the Murphy Bed is in use. The five person rooms at Caribbean Beach have a better design–they both have more drawers, and some of their drawers remain accessible after the bed is lowered.

These rooms are great for families seeking a Riverside room, but needing the extra sleeping spot; otherwise, a room in the Magnolia Bend section at either Acadian House or Magnolia Terrace is a better choice.

See a full review of these Alligator Bend rooms here.

BEST PLACES TO STAY AT DISNEY’S PORT ORLEANS RIVERSIDE

This site suggests that first time visitors stay in standard rooms, not preferred rooms (because they won’t be spending much time in their rooms, or going to the main resort food area often; the single exception is visitors to the Animal Kingdom Lodge, who should always pay for savanna views.)

Unless you need the bed for the 5th person, stay in a top floor (quieter) standard room in building 85– “Magnolia Terrace” –in the Magnolia Bend section. This area is much lovelier than the other section, Alligator Bayou, and the storage is more convenient. And of the non-Royal options, Building 85 is the best choice–lovely, closer to the pool and central services, and with a nearby bus stop.

If you do need the fifth person bed in Alligator Bayou, shoot for a ground floor room (no elevators) in buildings 38 or 39—better views, closest to the main pool—or 27 for a balance among views, pool access and closeness to the central services area.

Room request forms for Riverside are particularly thin on options. If you booked a Royal Room you’ll automatically be put in Oak Manor or Parterre Place, the buildings that include them; if you booked five people three or older, you’ll automatically go into one of the Alligator Bayou rooms.  Beyond this, call to express your preferences.

PHOTO TOUR OF A MAGNOLIA BEND STANDARD ROOM AT PORT ORLEANS RIVERSIDE RESORT

This review continues here.

TOPICS IN THIS REVIEW OF DISNEY’S PORT ORLEANS RIVERSIDE RESORT

• Overview of Port Orleans Riverside
• Photo Tour of Standard Magnolia Bend Rooms
• Photo Tour of Alligator Bayou 5 Person Rooms
• Photo Tour of Magnolia Bend Royal Rooms
• Amenities at Port Orleans Riverside
• The Pools at Port Orleans Riverside
• The History of Port Orleans Riverside

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For the first page of this review of Disney’s Port Orleans Riverside Resort, see this.

STANDARD ROOMS AT PORT ORLEANS RIVERSIDE

Port Orleans Riverside has two areas and three distinct room types.

• Its Alligator Bayou area has rooms sleep five in two queen beds and one short (~66 inches long) Murphy bed.
• Its Magnolia Bend area has two room types, Royal Rooms and Standard Rooms, each sleeping four in two queen beds.

This page reviews the Magnolia Bend Standard Rooms at Port Orleans Riverside.

All the rooms in Port Orleans Riverside are being refreshed and updated as part of a refurb that began in 2018 and is expected to be completed in 2020.

For typical families, these Port Orleans Riverside Magnolia Bend standard rooms are the best choice.

They won’t fit five–families that size at Riverside can only stay in the Alligator Bayou section.  And, while elegant, they aren’t as sumptuously decorated as the Royal Rooms.

But they are uniformly more convenient and less expensive than the Royal Rooms.

For most families, they are also a better choice than the Alligator Bayou rooms.

They are typically around the same price as the Alligator Bayou rooms, but are more convenient than most.  Moreover, they have about 50% more drawer space than the Alligator Bayou 5 person rooms, their drawers can be easily accessed all the time, and their theming, while not quite as interesting as that of Alligator Bayou, is less dark and murky.

A PHOTO TOUR OF THE STANDARD ROOMS AT PORT ORLEANS RIVERSIDE

The floor plans of the Riverside standard rooms (above) are about as typical of the Disney World moderate resorts as you’ll find–similar to those of the Royal Rooms and to the floor plans of sister resort Port Orleans French Quarter.

When you enter, you’ll find two queen beds on one side. Each has its own separately controlled reading light.

There’s a blank wall space near the entry–this is where a connecting door would be in rooms so outfitted. You can see it on the far right of this shot from the bath area.

A closer view of a bed…

…and of the bedside table between the two queens.

Each bed has a different charming image set into its headboard.

There’s another image on the wall between the bed area and the bath that reinforces the overall “steamboat landing” theme of Port Orleans Riverside.

The other side of the room has a table and two chairs, a combined dresser/TV/mini-fridge, and a small ottoman with a coat rack above.

From the bath end.

The table and chairs.

The central thingy on this side of the room combines a TV, dresser drawers and a mini-fridge, and is also where you’ll find the coffee maker–which I usually move to the bath area.

All the Riverside rooms are short on dresser drawers, but these rooms and Royal rooms have the most, and most convenient, drawer space. (Alligator Bayou rooms have about 50% less space in drawers that are hard to access when the Murphy Bed in those rooms is in use.)

The mini-fridge is similar to what you’ll find in other Disney World rooms. (I try to remember to put scaling objects in them so that you can get a better sense of the size of these fridges. I also try to remember to have something in focus…)

At the end of this wall, you’ll find a little ottoman with a coat rack above.

The bath area is separable from the bed area with a fabric screen. Beyond it, the sink area has a hanging area to one side, where you’ll also find an ironing board, iron, and safe.

I really like the detailing and color scheme of the sink area…

The tub and bath, as usual, are in a separate space. Here, too, the color scheme works for me.

For most folk who are committed to Port Orleans Riverside, these standard rooms will be the best choice.  They are more livable, less murky, and–mostly–more convenient than Riverside’s Alligator Bayou rooms. Riverside’s Royal Rooms are just as livable, but more expensive and less convenient and, to my taste, a little overdone.

PHOTO TOUR OF AN ROYAL ROOM AT PORT ORLEANS RIVERSIDE RESORT

This review continues here.

TOPICS IN THIS REVIEW OF DISNEY’S PORT ORLEANS RIVERSIDE RESORT

• Port Orleans Riverside: Overview and summary
• Theming and accommodations at Port Orleans Riverside
• A photo tour of a four person standard room in Port Orleans Riverside’s Magnolia Bend section
• A photo tour of a four person Royal Room in Port Orleans Riverside’s Magnolia Bend section
• A photo tour of a refurbed five person Murphy bed room Port Orleans Riverside’s Alligator Bayou section
• Amenities at Port Orleans Riverside
• Dining at Port Orleans Riverside
• The pools at Port Orleans Riverside
• The history of Port Orleans Riverside

OTHER KEY PAGES FOR WHERE TO STAY AT DISNEY WORLD

• Where to stay–the Basics
• Where first-timers should stay
• Reviews of all the Disney World resorts, based on my 150+ stays in them

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THE COUNTRY BEAR JAMBOREE

The Country Bear Jamboree re-opened late last year in Frontierland at the Magic Kingdom after a two-month hiatus for repair and refreshing.

The figures that are the center of the attraction were re-done (and re-furred), and multiple other rehabs and replacements were done as well.  My friend Jodi has a video of Imagineers discussing the re-do on her site here.

The show was also tightened up a bit–two songs were cut, one was moved, and some dialog was sliced.

The tightening didn’t change the tone of the show much–it’s still Country Bear Jamboree: one of my favorites, but definitely an attraction that some families can skip.

REVIEW: THE COUNTRY BEAR JAMBOREE

The Country Bear Jamboree is one of the rides that opened when the Magic Kingdom opened in 1971, and was one of the few there that had no precedent in Disneyland.

It features an active and fun medley of Americana-inspired, mostly humorous, songs presented on five related stages by more than a dozen audio-animatronic bears–and a few other animals as well!

At opening, the bears were a tour de force, and were the highest expression of Disney’s audio-animatronic skills to date. This, and the fun of the songs, meant that the attraction was wildly popular.

Since then, the technology has been eclipsed by other instances–e.g., Epcot’s The American Adventure, and tastes have shifted away from roots music.

As a result, the ride has become less popular, especially with returning visitors–although little kids continued to love it.

The refresh and update of the show improves its attractiveness to both first time and returning visitors by cleaning it up, tightening and shortening it. The shortening -from about 15 minutes to about 11 minutes–also increases the show’s hourly capacity.

Improving the attractions’ attractiveness and increasing its capacity at the same time is a good thing both for visitors to the show and everybody else.

The more people that see the Country Bear Jamboree, the fewer people in lines everywhere else!

And this may be working…when we saw it in mid-December 2012, my wife and my were among only a dozen or so in the audience  but on a late January 2013 visit, the show was more than half full!

While a couple of songs have been cut (and one moved) the basic musical approach remains the same.

This is not the “Country Music” of Garth Brooks stadium shows.  Rather, the music is of another, simpler era, combining influences and songwriters from Appalachian folk music, bluegrass, Bakersfield-style country, and the vaudeville country of Kenneth C. Burnes and Henry D. Haynes.

The song list is unified both by a generally comic presentation and–as in much great music*–by the bass line, which in almost all the songs relies on the traditional root-fifth, root-fifth pattern.

The music is off-putting to some who don’t have wide-ranging or tolerant musical tastes.  Too bad for them.  For little kids the show is a hoot, and for most of the rest of us it’s an enjoyable “C” Ticket.

For more history, and more and better photos, see my friend Mike’s review here.

*That’s me and my bass on the far right…

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NEW FANTASYLAND SO FAR

In 2012, two major parts of Disney World’s Fantasyland Expansion opened: Storybook Circus, which opened bit by bit over the course of the year, and major parts of the Enchanted Forest, which opened formally in December.

Still coming are the Princess Fairytale Hall, expected to open in 2013, and the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, whose opening date–never formally announced–seems to be possibly slipping to 2014.

New Fantasyland was much hyped, and so far is a bit of a disappointment–although the only fair grade is “incomplete.”

The disappointment is partly that it doesn’t live up to the hype. For all the hoopla, so far there’s only two new attractions:

• One of them, Under the Sea ~ Journey of the Little Mermaid, is ho-hum for all but big fans of the film
• The other, Enchanted Tales with Belle, while as good as anything at Disney World, has sharply limited capacity

In totality, though, New Fantasyland is a nice achievement.

Besides the two new attractions, it includes two fine new restaurants, a fundamental and successful re-theming of the area that used to be Toontown Fair into a fun circus-themed area, and a doubling of the low-capacity Dumbo.

For first time visitors, New Fantasyland is almost entirely positive.

• While Belle and Ariel have been well-represented at Disney’s Hollywood Studios for years, they are now much more profoundly present at the Magic Kingdom where, as princesses, they fit quite well.
• Each of the new dining options comes in at the top of its class–at a park where dining quality has been an issue for decades.
• The totality of the additions will absorb thousands of people at busier times, relieving a bit congestion in other parts of the park.

For returning visitors, the grade comes closer to “incomplete.”  

While there’s much to be charmed by at what’s been achieved so far, returning visitors will be more sensitive to the mismatch between hype and achievement, and there will be some who miss Snow White’s Scary Adventures or Minnie’s House.

But it’ll be interesting to see if Princess Fairytale Hall is more like the wonderful Enchanted Tales with Belle than, say, like the so-so Ariel’s Grotto, and of course the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train has great potential.

If Seven Dwarfs is at least a “D” Ticket ride–an experience on par with, for example, Mickey’s Philharmagic–then New Fantasyland will end up being pretty special.

If it’s another “C” Ticket like Under the Sea ~ Journey of the Little Mermaid, then this expansion–the largest in the Magic Kingdom’s history–really will go down as a profoundly missed opportunity.

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