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Sheryl · 01-05-2003

Hi Guys!
I wanted to post a report as a way of saying thanks for all the help with my Disney trip. We stayed at the Port Orleans Riverside..

Tips:
You might have to let the water run a while until it turns hot. It feels weird watching a lot of water go down the drain, but hey.. I'm on vacation, I'm taking a hot bath! So..let it run if you have to, it will get hot. Might take 2 minutes..but well worth the wait, as mine got really hot after the wait.

If you pay in full, you don't have to check-out. Who knew? You just keep your key(s) as a souvenir.

I got two adult keys and two child keys. I didn't look and used the child key first and after that only the child keys worked. Make sure you check which keys work and which keys don't before you take off. Don't assume the "adult" key is going to work. Maybe the child key will work instead.

If you really want a "Mansion" room instead of a "Bayou" (or vice versa)..call before you get there. I read on one website 5 days out, on another 3 days out, but I didn't remember to call until 2 nights before we got there. I requested mansion rooms and that we all be together - I got 3 rooms. I called the resort directly and asked the person that answered what I could do to up my chances of getting my requests. She transferred me to the Front Desk. It turned out they had already decided to put us in the bayou. I said "Is there any way to get out of the bayou?" I said, "It's ok if we can't be together, but I'd rather have the mansion rooms because it's my parents first time".
So the guy I talked to, who was very nice, said that they would for sure get us in Mansion rooms, but maybe not together. However, they =did= put us all together and it was really nice!

I forgot my dog's vaccination papers, which was a flaw in my plans because if I would have had them I could have gotten them to take him on walks at Epcot for $2.50 a walk..as many as I would have wanted. So he was marked as "unverified" and since it was a nice day still I put him in an outside cage with his crate. I got him later that night (you just call security after hours to let you in) and took him over to MGM's studio's kennel, because they have no outside cages (so they have to put him inside) and they put him in a little cage, but I had a pillow for him, his favorite doll, and other stuff. He did ok. I could have put him inside at Epcot too, which would have been a better plan afterall. But the reason I moved him was I was hoping for a larger inside cage that I could put his crate in also, but that didn't happen...so.. ultimately, I think if I had wanted that I should have taken him to Universal's kennel. They always give me a big enough inside cage for his crate, but that would have been a lot more trouble to visit him, etc. At any rate, next time I will remember his papers for sure and get him lots of walks and not worry about him. I just had to plan to visit him and walk him myself. If you are taking your dog and want the "walks", I'd call and make sure he has the vaccinations they officially need to be "ok'd". Otherwise, I don't know that it really matters.

We used the Quick and Casual vouchers ($10.00 a piece) we got via Connections at Beaches and Creams. YES, every voucher can get you a Kitchen Sink dessert (worth about $22). It is true! Only one person in our group got one though and with three people working on it, they still couldn't finish it. Maybe on an empty stomach someone could? I got adult meals for the kids. Heavenly Hamburgers - double patties instead of single for both my kids - with fries - why not, it was included I thought. Neither one could completely finish theirs. (That's a first). That meal was truly enjoyable, as everyone in our group was totally full at the end. The deluxe desserts were great! We joked about ice cream for the rest of the day.

The water at the pool was heated to a nice warm temperature..warm enough for the kids to go swimming the first night. After that the weather got really chilly and I don't think it mattered to our group how warm the water was...:) - although I did always see a few people in the water.

We were freezing after the sun went down on our Disney day and we turned in early. The hot chocolate ($2.00 a cup) is the only thing I would recommend at cafe type dining place at the Port Orleans Riverside. We ate breakfast there the day we left and I didn't think it was that great. My crew had pancakes. Turned out, my kids wouldn't even eat theirs. Which is a sign of disappointment if the kids, who generally don't care about quality - won't eat theirs. They didn't care that the two pancakes with bacon was $3.59 a pop either. What is wrong with them? ;) I realize a lot of people on this board don't say anything bad about Disney. I, however, am not one of those people.. heh. :) I'm sure there is a glowing opinion of breakfast at the Riverside out there - I'm not worried. I just don't have one.

As for the day, we ran across nice "cast members" and some not nice ones. I would say - just don't go thinking they will all be nice. Most of them will be nice.

Oh, and I gave my parents some calendars as part of their Christmas present and I forgot about them and somehow they made it on the stroller. (We take a stroller to carry water underneath, if for nothing else) So eventually my parents ended up holding the wrapped calendars. Security to Magic Kingdom made them unwrap it. Ha! So, point being, don't bring any wrapped anything.

I think that's about it! The rooms were beautiful I thought. I really thought everything was pretty. Very clean. Very nice. I was very glad we stayed on Disney property and so very glad I picked that resort. It seemed uncrowded and relaxing..

Til next time...

01-05-2003	#1 (permalink)
Sheryl Mouseketeer Join Date: Oct 2002 Posts: 66	Port Orleans Riverside/ Trip Report Hi Guys! I wanted to post a report as a way of saying thanks for all the help with my Disney trip. We stayed at the Port Orleans Riverside.. Tips: You might have to let the water run a while until it turns hot. It feels weird watching a lot of water go down the drain, but hey.. I'm on vacation, I'm taking a hot bath! So..let it run if you have to, it will get hot. Might take 2 minutes..but well worth the wait, as mine got really hot after the wait. If you pay in full, you don't have to check-out. Who knew? You just keep your key(s) as a souvenir. I got two adult keys and two child keys. I didn't look and used the child key first and after that only the child keys worked. Make sure you check which keys work and which keys don't before you take off. Don't assume the "adult" key is going to work. Maybe the child key will work instead. If you really want a "Mansion" room instead of a "Bayou" (or vice versa)..call before you get there. I read on one website 5 days out, on another 3 days out, but I didn't remember to call until 2 nights before we got there. I requested mansion rooms and that we all be together - I got 3 rooms. I called the resort directly and asked the person that answered what I could do to up my chances of getting my requests. She transferred me to the Front Desk. It turned out they had already decided to put us in the bayou. I said "Is there any way to get out of the bayou?" I said, "It's ok if we can't be together, but I'd rather have the mansion rooms because it's my parents first time". So the guy I talked to, who was very nice, said that they would for sure get us in Mansion rooms, but maybe not together. However, they =did= put us all together and it was really nice! I forgot my dog's vaccination papers, which was a flaw in my plans because if I would have had them I could have gotten them to take him on walks at Epcot for $2.50 a walk..as many as I would have wanted. So he was marked as "unverified" and since it was a nice day still I put him in an outside cage with his crate. I got him later that night (you just call security after hours to let you in) and took him over to MGM's studio's kennel, because they have no outside cages (so they have to put him inside) and they put him in a little cage, but I had a pillow for him, his favorite doll, and other stuff. He did ok. I could have put him inside at Epcot too, which would have been a better plan afterall. But the reason I moved him was I was hoping for a larger inside cage that I could put his crate in also, but that didn't happen...so.. ultimately, I think if I had wanted that I should have taken him to Universal's kennel. They always give me a big enough inside cage for his crate, but that would have been a lot more trouble to visit him, etc. At any rate, next time I will remember his papers for sure and get him lots of walks and not worry about him. I just had to plan to visit him and walk him myself. If you are taking your dog and want the "walks", I'd call and make sure he has the vaccinations they officially need to be "ok'd". Otherwise, I don't know that it really matters. We used the Quick and Casual vouchers ($10.00 a piece) we got via Connections at Beaches and Creams. YES, every voucher can get you a Kitchen Sink dessert (worth about $22). It is true! Only one person in our group got one though and with three people working on it, they still couldn't finish it. Maybe on an empty stomach someone could? I got adult meals for the kids. Heavenly Hamburgers - double patties instead of single for both my kids - with fries - why not, it was included I thought. Neither one could completely finish theirs. (That's a first). That meal was truly enjoyable, as everyone in our group was totally full at the end. The deluxe desserts were great! We joked about ice cream for the rest of the day. The water at the pool was heated to a nice warm temperature..warm enough for the kids to go swimming the first night. After that the weather got really chilly and I don't think it mattered to our group how warm the water was...:) - although I did always see a few people in the water. We were freezing after the sun went down on our Disney day and we turned in early. The hot chocolate ($2.00 a cup) is the only thing I would recommend at cafe type dining place at the Port Orleans Riverside. We ate breakfast there the day we left and I didn't think it was that great. My crew had pancakes. Turned out, my kids wouldn't even eat theirs. Which is a sign of disappointment if the kids, who generally don't care about quality - won't eat theirs. They didn't care that the two pancakes with bacon was $3.59 a pop either. What is wrong with them? ;) I realize a lot of people on this board don't say anything bad about Disney. I, however, am not one of those people.. heh. :) I'm sure there is a glowing opinion of breakfast at the Riverside out there - I'm not worried. I just don't have one. As for the day, we ran across nice "cast members" and some not nice ones. I would say - just don't go thinking they will all be nice. Most of them will be nice. Oh, and I gave my parents some calendars as part of their Christmas present and I forgot about them and somehow they made it on the stroller. (We take a stroller to carry water underneath, if for nothing else) So eventually my parents ended up holding the wrapped calendars. Security to Magic Kingdom made them unwrap it. Ha! So, point being, don't bring any wrapped anything. I think that's about it! The rooms were beautiful I thought. I really thought everything was pretty. Very clean. Very nice. I was very glad we stayed on Disney property and so very glad I picked that resort. It seemed uncrowded and relaxing.. Til next time...