We recently stayed at Disney's Port Orleans Riverside Resort. Ever since I heard that this resort offered "Princess Royal Rooms" I knew that we would have to stay here. Upon arrival, we were welcomed into a beautiful lobby.
Port Orleans Riverside and its sister resort, Port Orleans French Quarter, are both styled in a classic southern way- both with nods to New Orleans. Port Orleans French Quarter actually looks a lot like the French Quarter, while Port Orleans Riverside is largely based on the plantation mansion style of the South.
The lobby, quick service cafeteria, gift shops and table service restaurant are all located in the main building. My children loved the water wheel on the side of it! I should note that "Boatwrights" is the sit down restaurant at Port Orleans Riverside, but I have never seen this restaurant get a good review. I have never personally eaten there, but I will say that some people just like that the resort offers a table service option. Typically, only deluxe resorts offer table service restaurants, but POR is actually a moderate resort.
POR is located in the Downtown Disney area. The only way to get to the parks is by bus. To get to Downtown Disney, you can simply take POR's complimentary water taxi! If the weather is nice, this is a great little ride for all ages!
Disney has a great pool at this resort. They even have a baby wading pool for young ones, which I haven't seen at any other resort!
The entire resort is absolutely beautiful! I was really impressed with how much Disney made this resort look like a Southern Plantation!
I guess it's a good thing it's so pretty because this place takes a LONG time to walk around. It's incredibly spread out, just like most of the moderate resorts. We were staying in the Mansion just across the bridge from the lobby, and it was a solid 10 minute walk. That wasn't a big deal for us, but if it's raining or you've been in the parks all day and tired, it's a very big deal.
The mansion pictured above is where we stayed. Unlike Caribbean Beach, POR had elevators! We were thrilled!
But the reason we were here was to try the ROYAL ROOMS! The front desk clerk handed the kids their own scroll, which was an invitation from Princess Tiana to stay in these special rooms!
We were in awe when we opened the door to our room; it was incredible! There were little touches of every Disney Princess scattered through the room. We had a blast finding all the references the characters
But the coolest thing was the bed's headboard! They are beautiful in the light, but when you turn out the room lights and press the button on the side of the headboard you are treated to beautiful bayou fireworks! (See video above!)
Much like the bed spread, the shower curtain had a jeweled pattern, which was a subtle nod to each of the princesses.
The view from the rooms that are a "water view" had a fantastic view of the river. I took this picture from the front of the "mansion."
It's an incredibly beautiful resort to walk around. You will definitely do some walking, though. Everything is a bit of a walk.
There is a great playground very close to the pool. Along with carriage rides, fishing and boating, there is definitely a lot to keep you occupied while you stay here!
Aside from how spread out the resort is, I really didn't have any complaints about our stay here. We really enjoyed it! Two thumbs up!
