8 trips to Walt Disney World equals 2 stays at Caribbean
Beach Resort plus 5 stays at Port Orleans Riverside plus 1 stay at Port Orleans
French Quarter. During our most recent
trip, we enjoyed a week’s stay at Port Orleans French Quarter.
Port Orleans
French Quarter is a sister resort to Port Orleans Riverside. They have separate check-ins, separate luggage
service, etc. They do share boat service
to Downtown Disney and some bus service to various parks. Guests staying at either resort can used the
themed pools at both resorts. We’ve done
just that—swimming in Doubloon Lagoon at French Quarter while staying at Riverside. That’s how we became more familiar with the
resort in the first place.
So, after 5 successful stays at Riverside, why did we decide to give French
Quarter a try? Well, it was the call of
the recently refurbished rooms at French Quarter that included queen sized
beds. Sounds a bit trifle I know, but it
was enough to get us to try something new, and we were glad we did!
French Quarter is, well, quaint. There is a grid of “streets” or paths that
run between the buildings. The main
building is in the center with the food court, shop, and arcade. The playground, which was closed while we
were there, is just behind the main building, along with the hot tub, laundry
facilities, Doubloon Lagoon, and then the boat dock is last. The guest buildings spread out on either side
of this main or central area. There is one bus stop, located just outside the
main building.
When we arrived about 10:00 am after disembarking from the
Disney Dream, our room was ready, which came as a pleasant surprise to us as
check-in is typically 3:00 pm., and an ever bigger surprise to luggage and bell
services.
We made it to our room in building 6 on the third floor—yes,
there were elevators. We had a lovely
water view room, which I was informed was an upgrade.
Our plans were to take a swim, do some laundry, have lunch,
and head to a park. We accomplished all
of those things.
Upon arriving to our room, we were greeted with the
mysterious ball cap hanging over the smoke/fire detector on the wall. I called guest services, which directed me to
housekeeping to inform them. The ball
cap stayed in the same location for our entire stay. We left it there for the next set of guests.
We also had a bit of a misstep our first afternoon, as after
showering—after our swim—I went to blow dry my hair with the in-room hairdryer,
and within seconds sparks were flying and smoke was coming out of the hairdryer
before it stopped completely. Yes, I had
blown up the hairdryer.
While the husband called guest services for the second time
that day, I went next door, as we had talked to our neighbors that day,
too. I had hairbrush in hand and asked
if I could finish blow drying my hair and explained what happened. They wondered where the smoke smell was
coming from, and at least now they knew.
They were gracious and allowed me to finish drying my hair. I thanked them.
Guest services said they would bring up a new
hairdryer. A new one was installed by
the time we returned from the parks that evening. But the ball cap, was still there!
We also noticed that our refrigerator wasn’t keeping things
cool. A 3rd call to guest
services. By the time we returned from
the parks that evening, it had been fixed.
My philosophy—they can’t fix it if they don’t know about it!
The rest of our stay was uneventful, meaning we didn’t have
to call for help anymore! Our room was
spiffed up daily with clean towels, sheets, and a restocking of the Disney
supplies we love bringing home with us.
We learned that there are movies played in the garden
between buildings on a giant inflatable screen on various nights.
We learned that lightning will stop the boats from taking
guests to/from Riverside
and Downtown Disney, even if it isn’t raining.
But, busses will run to Downtown Disney and if you want to eat at
Boatwright’s at Riverside,
the resort will send you via shuttle, which is a nice touch.
We learned that the food court is a bit slower at French
Quarter than Riverside. With fewer guests, they wait and make your
order fresh. I guess this is a good
thing when you think about it, it just takes longer. We dined at the food court twice, once for
lunch and once for dinner. Often, what
we wanted was not there, like a child’s chocolate milk. We then asked and were allowed to get the
larger size for the same price as the child’s.
It pays to ask! There were Legos
to play with—which they no longer have at Riverside,
and a TV—tuned to the Disney Channel—to watch.
The food court was decorated for Mardi Gras and had great things to look
at.
We learned that luggage and bell services are completely
separate. Luggage services will
hold/store your luggage. But bell
services will deliver and pick up. I
asked the difference, and it was about who gets tipped and who doesn’t. I had never experienced such separateness of
services when staying at any other resort.
I don’t know if it was because I didn’t need/use the services or just
wasn’t paying that close of attention.
We were able to use the luggage service for our bags for the
return flight. Bell services retrieved the bags for us and
took them to the airport check in counter at the resort. The bags were weighed and tagged—good thing,
as I had to adjust some things to even out the weight. We paid the baggage fees right there, had our
boarding passes printed, and when we arrived at the airport, we went straight
to security and to the gate for our flight.
Loved this! Usually our flights
leave so early that this service isn’t available to us, as it begins at 8:00 am
at the resort.
Let me sum up the pros and cons of staying at Port Orleans
French Quarter:
- Pro—one
bus stop that is steps away from any guest building. Convenient!
- Pro—everything
at the resort is nearby due to the smaller size. Convenient!
- Pro—queen
sized beds.
- Con—depending
on the time of day and park, bus service may also pick up guests at Riverside, which may
delay your arrival to a park.
Port Orleans French Quarter is reserved for our next Walt
Disney World stay!