Disney Port Orleans Resort Hotel Guide

This resort used to be known as Dixie Landings. This excellent Moderate Disney resort is themed with the Mississippi Bayou area in mind. As always Disney has done an excellent job.

The Sassagoula River runs through the resort - hence the Riverside name. The resort is beautifully landscaped and has 2 distinct styles of rooms. The plantation themed Magnolia Bend and the more rustic Alligator Bayou.

The Port Orleans Riverside Resort has just over 2000 rooms. Most of them have 2 double beds and sleep 4 plus one child under 3 in a crib. There are a small number of King rooms which sleep up to 2 people.

The rooms have the nice feature of having 2 vanities outside the bathroom. This is combined with a closet with a good sized hanging and storage space. The rooms are nicely themed and decorated.

Rack room rates for Port Orleans Riverside start at $149 up to $249 plus tax.

Rooms are priced according to your view. The lowest priced rooms will have a view of the parking lot. The resort is beautifully landscaped so the Garden View rooms can be a good bet. Water view rooms are either of the river or the pool - you need to make it clear which you would prefer when you make your reservation.

Most rooms overlook either a courtyard or a parking lot. Only about 15% of rooms have a water view.

Would I pay extra for a water view? Probably not in this resort. None of the rooms have balconies or terraces - they all open out from a corridor. So when it says view all that you have is a view from your window. Personally I would rather save money on the room rate unless the view is amazing and I can sit out on my balcony to enjoy it. Not a possibility at Port Orleans!

Some rooms are wheelchair accessible. Always ask when making your reservation.

The address of Disney'sPort Orleans is 2201 Orleans Dr. Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830-1000. The phone number is 1-407-934-5000 and the fax number is 1-407-934-5353.

The Riverside resorts main themed pool is Ol' Man Island. The pool has a slide, a children's pool and a spa which holds up to 8 people. This pool is very popular with kids and so can get busy and yes you guessed it, a little noisy! The Muddy Rivers bar is located next the this themed pool and is a great place for snacks and drinks.

If you are looking for something a little more peaceful there are 5 other swimming pools around the resort. Each of these pools does have changing facilities - they can be a bit of a long trek from your room so these are a great idea.

You can rent bikes and paddle boats from the marina. If you enjoy fishing then a great idea is the catch and release fishing on Ol' Man Island. You are pretty likely to catch a fish here as the odds are in your favor!

You can also schedule a fishing trip on the Sassagoula River. Or for the kids each Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday there is the Sassagoula River Adventure Cruise. Call 407 WDW PLAY to make reservations in advance.

Boatwright's Restaurant is the only full service restaurant serving breakfast and dinner in the Port Orleans Resort. Yes you guessed it. It is popular. So to make sure that you cut down your wait, and this can be up to a couple of hours if you are really unlucky, then make sure you make Advance Dining Reservations. Call 407 WDW DINE up to 180 days before you want to dine. The restaurant serves up southern specialties such as Jambalaya and Buttermilk Fried Chicken. There is a children's menu with the usual favorites of chicken nuggets and mac and cheese. For dessert why not try that old stand by Apple Pie?

The Riverside Mill is a huge food court serving all day from 6am to midnight.

If you want a full service bar then head to the Muddy Waters Pool Bar or the River Roost Lounge.

The grounds of Port Orleans are beautifully landscaped. It is a great place to stay in the convenient location of Bonnet Creek.

Bus transportation is available to all the parks from Port Orleans. Most guests report that the buses are pretty efficient although sometimes the wait times can be frustrating, but this usually isn't a problem.

There are direct buses to each of the theme parks Disney's Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Disney's Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom. The bus to Downtown Disney also stops at Typhoon Lagoon. The bus to Animal Kingdom makes a stop at Blizzard Beach.

A relaxing way to travel is on the boat to Downtown Disney.

Getting to other Disney resorts from Port Orleans is not quite so convenient as with the exception of the bus service to Fort Wilderness after 4pm, there are no direct buses to other resorts. If you want to travel to another Disney resort you need to go through another transportation hub such as one of the parks or Downtown Disney. Unless you are dining at one of the other resorts though this shouldn't be too much of a problem.

I think that Disney moderate resorts offer great value. All the advantages of staying at a Disney resort for a very reasonable room rate starting at just $149 a night. Disney's Port Orleans Resort is so beautifully themed that this alone makes it one of my favorite resorts. The only disadvantage is the lack of full service restaurants for such a large resort, but if you can live with that then Disney's Port Orleans should be high up on your list of places to stay for your next Disney vacation.

Think Disney interpretation of New Orleans French Quarter and here you pretty much have it. There is a large central registration building surrounded by seven 3 story buildings numbered 1 to 7.

Each of the rooms in the French Quarter are a generous 314 square feet and have 2 double beds. They can sleep up to four plus a child under 3 in a crib. Most of the rooms have 2 double beds. There are 62 rooms with a King bed but these are priced at a higher rate - specify that you would prefer a King room at the time of booking as these rooms are very popular. But these King rooms in the French Quarter only sleep 2 people.

None of the rooms have a balcony and they are all accessed by an outside corridor.

Standard rooms start at a rack rate of $149 up to $219 depending on season. The King rooms run from $175 to $249. The water view rooms start at $174 and rise to $249. Rates do not include tax and are subject to change.

Standard views are the lowest price - they have a view of the parking lot. The Garden View rooms have a view of the landscaped grounds of the resort. The Water views are of the swimming pool or the Sassagoula River.

Rooms are priced according to your view. The lowest priced rooms will have a view of the parking lot. The resort is beautifully landscaped so the Garden View rooms can be a good bet. Water view rooms are either of the river or the pool - you need to make it clear which you would prefer when you make your reservation.

Most rooms overlook either a courtyard or a parking lot. Only about 15% of rooms have a water view.

Would I pay extra for a water view? Probably not in this resort. None of the rooms have balconies or terraces - they all open out from a corridor. So when it says view all that you have is a view from your window. Personally I would rather save money on the room rate unless the view is amazing and I can sit out on my balcony to enjoy it. Not a possibility at Port Orleans!

Some rooms are wheelchair accessible. Always ask when making your reservation.

The pool at Port Orleans French Quarter certainly makes an impact! This dragon themed water slide is a lot of fun. The pool is located at the center of the resort - if you want a view of the pool then request Buildings 2 or 5.

Food choices in the French Quarter are limited. The Sassagoula Floatworks and Food Factory is a food court and is the only place to eat in the French Quarter. You can of course walk over to Boatwrights which is the full service restaurant in Port Orleans Riverside, but this is about a 15 minute walk. You can also take a bus to Riverside. To get the bus just get on any resort bus and Riverside will be your first stop. Or you can take a boat to Riverside from the marina - they arrive about every 20 minutes

There is a bar, the Scat Cat's Lounge in the lobby and a pool side bar too.

You can rent a variety of water craft from the marina - this can be a lot of fun! Fishing is also allowed. You can hire bikes too. This is a nice way to travel around the beautiful landscaped grounds of both Port Orleans and Riverside.