We chose to visit Walt Disney World's Port Orleans - French Quarter Resort (and, of course, the WDW theme parks) when we saw an Internet deal for a free dining plan with a multiple day WDW hotel stay. We chose the French Quarter resort,
more +specifically, because the price seemed decent, and the pictures looked like the hotel would be a bit more unusual and less-kiddie than the other lower-priced WDW hotels. We think we picked a great place to stay - we really enjoyed the resort! The grounds are gorgeous and you really feel like you're wandering among plantation houses right on the (quiet) river.
It's located on the WDW property, of course, and for those that don't have rental cars with them (we didn't - we used the complementary airport transportation) there are several ways of getting throughout the parks: Disney's park shuttles, the monorail, and the river ferry. From Port Orleans specifically you can catch the park shuttles or the ferry, which takes you to Downtown Disney, by way of a 20-30 minute trip on the water. It is the first stop on the ferry route, which means you always can get onto a ferry (not like at the other Port Orleans {Riverside} Resort, where there would be a crowd waiting by the dock and no room on our ferry to take anyone else). The ferries came about once ever 15-20 minutes. The closest shuttle stop to our room was near the check-in area, and there are two covered waiting areas. They took a long time to come sometimes, but I think that would be the same at every resort, probably.
The hotel was very clean, and the room was a nice size for two adults and our (1 1/2 year old) son. We chose the least expensive option of two double (or maybe it was queen?) beds instead of a single king sized bed, and we requested a porta-crib for our son. When we arrived the crib was not in the room, but a quick call to housekeeping assured us that it would be brought up within the hour. There was plenty of room to set up the crib, which was really a pack-and-play. The room was not overly Disney inside, with fairly refined furniture, including a table and chairs, and a small sitting area in the front. Everything was always clean and well-maintained, and the workers were friendly. My only complaint was that the "closet" was basically a hanging bar with a couple of high shelves near the bathroom, and we would have liked a bit more room up high to keep things out of our son's reach. The room seemed comparable to many nice motels we've stayed in.
There were several pools, and even though one was nearby we didn't end up going in any of them - we were just too darn tired when we got back to the room after a long day in one of the parks. There was a large food-court style restaurant, which we ate at one morning for breakfast, but we preferred to eat in the parks so we never visited the (large) sit-down restaurant they had. We saw signs for bike and trolley rentals, and there was a lounge in the check-in building.
Overall: this is a great hotel for someone who wants the Disney Parks experience, but doesn't want to be staying in a super Disney-themed hotel, and doesn't want to break the bank. When our son gets a bit older he might prefer something more like one of the other resorts, with better kid-accommodations or a playground, but we thought this was lovely and quiet, and great with a little guy.
Date of Stay: 09/12/2008
Children in Party: 1
Accommodations Dining Kids Play Area Money Value Pool & Water Fun Staff
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Disney's Port Orleans Resort - French Quarter
