Port Orleans Riverside Resort may be one of Disney's most picturesque resorts. The theme here is Southern charm on one side and the Bayou on the other side. Let's check it out.
Fun Fact: This resort opened in 1992 under the name "Dixie Landings". When going through Disney brochures with my family, I do remember seeing "Dixie Landings" as an option. However, we never stayed there. We opted for other Disney Resorts instead. In 2001, "Dixie Landings" was officially renamed Port Orleans Riverside.
River Roost is the resort lounge. We did not have time to relax in here...lol
There are four mansions in the Magnolia Bend section of Port Orleans Riverside and they all have unique names: Parterre Place, Oak Manor, Magnolia Terrace, and Acadia House. All the buildings here are three stories and have elevators.
The main building at Port Orleans Riverside is called the Sassagoula Steamboat Company.
This is where check in will be, as well as all the restaurant's lounges, gifts shop, and arcade.
The lobby area sort of resembles a steamship boat.
The two eateries here are Boatwright's and Riverside Mill.
Boatwrights is the table service restaurant. I've been wanting to try this place just for the sake of "trying it" so I could cross another Disney restaurant off my list, but at the time, the menu didn't look all that appealing to me. You can see the current menu HERE. I will admit, after looking at the menu today, I have found a few things I would try.
The quick service place is called The Riverside Mill. It is a food court style like all other resort quick service locations.
There is a rustic vibe here. On this day, I wanted to grab a quick lunch, something light, before heading to Magic Kingdom.
I chose the Pimento BLT. This was a classic BLT sandwich with house made Pimento cheese. It was actually quite filling.
Fultons General store is the resort gift shop. It is the only one. You can by typical resort merchandise in here as well at some Port Orleans Riverside exclusives. You can by limited sundries here. This is also here you will find the press penny machines. I always scope those out!
The Medicine Show Arcade is sort of hidden in a hallway near the main lobby.
We did not play in here, but we took a look around. I remember some of our friends playing some cool interactive games here one a rainy day. To be honest, it would not have bothered me one bit to have had some rainy weather during our visit. That would have given us an excuse to stay in and play a while. We had so much fun playing at the arcade at Wilderness Lodge, that now we want to check them all out!
After our lunch at Riverside Mill, we just happened to run into Snow White. We have run into characters several times at the Deluxe Resorts, but never at one of the Moderates. This was a first for us and it was very exciting to see. There was not a line to meet Snow White, so she was very gracious with her time and posed for pictures with us.
The character sightings at resorts are rare and are never guaranteed nor are they scheduled. Later on that day we ended up seeing more characters ( Chip and Dale, and Daisy Duck) as they were leaving the resort and getting on to their Character Caravan bus!
There is actually a lot of recreation right here at Port Orleans Riverside. We've gone fishing here with our dad before. They offer cane and pole fishing and you can buy bait here as well. You can read more about fishing at Port Orleans HERE. You can also read about our day fishing at Fort Wilderness HERE.
We've also rented watercraft here. We rented the "Mouse boats" which are little speed boats. These only hold two people. You can rent bigger boats, like Pontoon boats, at other resorts.
There is a path here for jogging and biking. We've never rented bikes here, but we hope to rent the Surrey bikes some day. Although, I heard that they are hard to peddle at this resort, especially in the heat. We have rented bikes at Disney's Old Key West Resort and you can read about that HERE.
A bucket list activity for me, is to do a horse and carriage ride here. These operate in the evening and it sounds like a lovely way to tour the resort.
Once you leave the common areas, Port Orleans Riverside has two sides to it, essentially making it two unique sections of the resort. The side we have always stayed at is called Magnolia Bend.
The Magnolia Bend section represents old Southern Plantations. The buildings mimic mansions of the antebellum south with their grand stature and winding staircases. This is the part I say is very picturesque. I've known a few Disney Brides who have done wedding photos here.
Disney Tip: Parterre Place is closest to the Resort Center ( Main Check in building and restaurants) and Magnolia Terrace is closest to a bus stop.
In addition to the main resort swimming pool ( where all the pool games are held), there are two quiet pools in the Magnolia Bend section.
Unlike the Magnolia Bend rooms, these rooms can accommodate up to five people. There are two queen beds and a pull out trundle bed.
One of the biggest reasons guests book the Magnolia Bend Mansions is for the Royal Guest Rooms. These rooms are princess themed.
The Royal rooms come with two queen beds.
With a flip of a switch, you have a light up headboard that represents fireworks!
Royal portraits of all the princesses who where an inspiration for this room.
More royal touches.
Like most moderate resort rooms, this room also had a split bathroom area. For a more detailed pictures of this fabulous Royal Guest Room, please see our room tour post HERE.
The other section of Port Orleans Riverside Resort is called the Alligator Bayou.
This section is more "woodsy" and seems a little more secluded.
The buildings here look like little cottages on the outside but feel like log cabins on the inside.
There are 16 buildings in this section. The buildings here do not have specific names, but all have numbers so you can differentiate your building from another. The Alligator Bayou buildings are only two stories and do not have elevators.
There are three quiet pools in the Alligator Bayou section.
Disney Tip: Alligator Bayou buildings #14 and #15 are closest to the main building ( and main bus stop).
Alligator Bayou #37 is closest to one of the additional bus stops.
Transportation
Unfortunately you will need to take a Disney bus to all four of the Disney theme parks.
However, you can take a leisurely boat ride down the Sassagoula River to Disney's Springs! This is definitely a nice perk of staying here.
If you want to visit other nearby Disney Resorts, you can walk to Port Orleans French Quarter ( Port Orleans Riverside and Port Orleans French Quarter are connected).
You can also take a boat to Disney's Old Key West and Disney's Saratoga Springs. If you are already at Disney Springs, just go to the dock to the resort you want to visit and the boat will take you there.
FYI: Sometimes ( not very often) the Sassagoula River gets low and the boats are not able to run. If this is the case there are buses that will take you to Disney Springs. You can NOT walk to Disney Springs from Port Orleans.
We really do enjoy this resort. Although you can not walk to any of the theme parks, we like the fact that it is so close to other resorts and Disney Springs, which opens up a lot of options for dining, shopping, and recreation!
Would you stay here?
Till next time ~M
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Fairytales and Fitness is a personal blog authored and edited by us, Meranda and Lacey. The thoughts expressed here represent only our own and are not meant to be taken as professional advice. Please note that our thoughts and opinions change from time to time. We consider this a necessary consequence of having an open mind in an ever changing society. Any thoughts and opinions expressed within our out-of-date posts may not be the same, nor even similar, to those we may express today. Some links may contain affiliate links. Some links are just to pages we'd like to share.