Disney's Port Orleans - French Quarter

Mjau, we have stayed at the French Quarter a couple of times. We really like the theme of New Orleans that they have at the resort.

Rooms at French Quarter.

The restrooms are a bit small.

The rooms feel a bit colder as they do not have a carpet. There is also not really any Disney details. The rooms still look elegant. We definitely prefer the rooms at Riverside, although we really like the theming of the exterior. Mjau, we really like the small parks with fountains.

We really like the buildings!

The jazz theme can be seen all over the resort!

One of the highlights is the Scat Cat lounge with live music on select nights. Our Granddads and their friends went there one night and said it was amazing. They have delicious drinks and the beignets are delicious, mjau. You will however need an ID to purchase the beignets as you will get three small basters with different fillings: Kahlua, Rum Chata and Baileys. Mjau, it is like a fun science project. You will fill the beignets yourselves with the different alcohol, so you can mix and match if you want. A tip from Grandpa is to not order a drink if you are having the beignets as they are really strong.

Scat Cats Lounge during the day.

Scat Cats, named after Grandpas very successful Parisian band.

Delicious Beignets!

These are the basters the alcohol filling was in.

There is also a food court at French Quarter, Sassagoula Floatworks and Food Factory. Mjau, make sure to look at the decorations by the entrance as you will find different Disney characters from The Princess and the Frog in the cards.

It takes around 15 to 20 minutes to walk from French Quarter to Riverside along the Sassagoula River. Sometimes we just take a relaxing stroll between the resorts if we need to get away from the crowds at Walt Disney World.

Having a fun time with jazz playing alligators!

The French Quarter only has one swimming pool, Doubloon Lagoon. There is a scary sea serpent named Scales that you can use as a slide. We guess it is safe, mjau. No children have been eaten yet. There is also a friendly alligator jazz band that play music all day. Mjauhihi, our butlers started fighting over one of them. Poor alligator…

Au even found a street named after her!

You can get to Disney Springs using the boat. You will have to use the bus to get to the parks. There is only one bus stop at the French Quarter but the bus is shared with Riverside as well.

We do not know if we prefer French Quarter or Riverside. Riverside is definitely more relaxed and the experience is different depending on which area you are staying at. The French Quarter is a bit more compact. We really like the theme of New Orleans and Jazz at the French Quarter.

Disney's Port Orleans - Riverside

Mjau, we have stayed at the Port Orleans Riverside Resort several times. We have also stayed at the Port Orleans French Quarter a couple of times. Mjau, we will be reviewing the French Quarter in the next post.

The big and comfortable beds at Alligator Bayou!

This time we stayed at the Alligator Bayou and the Royal Room.

The Alligator Bayou room was really cosy. It felt as if you were staying at a summer cottage, mjau. The beds are really comfortable and are bigger than the beds at French Quarter. Mjau, they were even bigger than the ones at Wilderness Lodge. They even had a critter bed with really nice Disney details. Louis is painted on the wall next to the critter bed. We really liked the details in the room. It looked as the room was built with vintage wooden container boxes.

Critter bed with Louis the Alligator!

We really like the details here, mjau.

Mjau, the bathroom felt really big as well. It had two sinks and a bathtub as well. Mjau, we really liked that they had a curtain between the sinks and the beds, so that we did not have to look at our butlers all the time.

The bathroom at Alligator Bayou!

The Alligator Bayou has a smaller swimming pool. There is also a bigger pool area with a bar for the entire Riverside resort at Ol’ Man Island. Mjau, we did not go swimming this time. Mjauhihi, our butlers wanted to go swimming one evening. Little did they know that the pool had already closed so they had to walk back in their bikini in shame.

Riverside has a Lounge, Restaurant and Food Court. We ate at Boatwright’s Dining Hall a couple of years ago. After they changed the menu to less interesting and less delicious food we have not been at the restaurant, mjau. We ate at the Riverside Mill Food Court several times. Usually we just get a bagel or muffin for breakfast. The good thing about the Port Orleans Resorts is that if you do not like the food at Riverside you can just walk to French Quarter and vice versa.

The lamps add to the feeling of being in the Bayou in Louisiana.

Mjau, to get to the parks you will have to take the bus. The Riverside resort is quite spread out so it has several bus stops. The bus is often shared with the French Quarter resort as well. Mjau, you can also take a boat to Disney Springs. Sometimes we go to Disney Springs at the end of the day and take the boat back at the resort just to enjoy the boat ride along the Sassagoula River. We prefer to take the boat in the evening as it is extra cosy. During the ride you will see the Treehouse Villas and Saratoga Springs Resort. You can also go to Disney’s Old Key West resort by boat, although you will have to switch boats at Disney Springs. Mjau, it is still a pleasant ride if you want to eat breakfast at Olivia’s Café.

Walking from Riverside to French Quarter along the Sassagoula River, mjau!

The good thing about the Port Orleans resorts is that it is fairly in the middle, so you do not spend too much time on the bus going to each resort. We also really like that Port Orleans has two different resorts that are within walking distance of each other. We also really like that Riverside has different areas within its resort. You can stay at the cosy houses at Alligator Bayou or the magnificent mansions at Magnolia Bend.

The amazing Royal Rooms at Riverside!

The Royal Rooms at Riverside is a must for all Disney movie fans. We love all the details inspired by the Disney movies. On the table there is a letter to the guests left by Princess Tiana. There are portraits of the princesses and silhouette portraits of the princes. We would have preferred the princesses to have the silhouette portrait. It would look a lot classier and elegant, mjau.

Portrait of some of the Disney princesses. Where is Eilonwy?

Mjau, a welcoming letter from Tiana!

Silhouette of the princes! 

We felt that the beds were a bit smaller than in our room at Alligator Bayou. The beds were really comfortable. We loved the headboards. They had a button you could press and you would see fireflies fly across the headboard and fireworks go off in the distance. We preferred this over the headboard at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim with the castle and fireworks. Although we wish the Royal Room would play the same music. Mjau, actually we do not know which we prefer… both of the headboards are amazing!

So beautiful! Look at Evangeline in the sky, mjau!

It is important to note that there is no critter bed available in the room. So you might have to sleep in layers if there are many of you. There is however a really nice bench that looks like the footstool-dog Sultan from Beauty and the Beast. On the floor there is the carpet from Aladdin taking a nap.

Don't step on Carpet while he is taking a nap!

Sultan from Beauty and the Beast!

The bathrooms are really nice with two sinks. There is also a curtain than separates the sleeping area from the bathroom area. The highlight of the bathroom is the water taps that look like the lamp from Aladdin.

We tried rubbing the lamp but no genie came out... Only water, Mjau!

There are so many details in the room. If you look at where the wall meets the ceiling you can see several Disney characters. We especially like the picture of Pascal washing the frying pan.

The fairies from Sleeping Beauty are watching you sleep!

Pascal is cleaning that frying pan for Rapunzel!

You can also see hidden Mickeys in the lamps. You can also find Cinderella’s pumpkin carriage where you hang your jacket.

 

Mjau, how is Cinderella going to leave the ball now?

Mjau, hidden Mickeys! Takes us back to Kingdom Hearts 3.

It is always really difficult to decide which rooms and resort we like the best. The Alligator Bayou is really relaxed and cosy. The Royal Rooms have so many Disney details. Magnolia Bend is really elegant. Mjau, so we just have to visit them all!

Disney’s Wilderness Lodge Resort

Mjau, after spending the last year in different countries our family was finally reunited in Walt Disney World for Christmas. As usual we spent the first night at Hyatt Regency at Orlando International Airport. The Siamese sisters flew in from United Kingdom while Bu and Grandpa finally returned from their trip to Australia and Hawaii.

The lobby looks extra cosy with the large Christmas tree.

The fireplace in the lobby has amazing details.

We were really excited to finally stay at the Wilderness Lodge at Walt Disney World. It has been a dream for a couple of Disney trips, when we visited the Geyser Point bar and grill and Whispering Canyon. We were even more excited to spend Christmas there with all the Christmas decorations, fireplace and the cosy lobby. The pool looks nice, although we did not try it as it was so cold outside.

Mjau, getting ready for a fun day at Magic Kingdom.

Our room at Disney's Wilderness Lodge.

The hotel looked as though we were at a hunting lodge in a national park. So cosy, mjau. The rooms had really nice details. The bedposts had carved animals on them. Mjau, a bit scary to sleep with a beaver staring at you! The headboard also had a carved scenery that reminded us of Bambi. The beds were a bit smaller compared to other resorts. The bed itself was comfortable although our butlers were being difficult. One was snoring and two of them were fighting over the pillow-border as they had to share a bed. Mjau, they could have let us cute Siamese sleep on the bed and share the big floor instead. No need for pillow-borders! Gorbachev, tear down this wall!

A scary beaver.

A cute rabbit.

A majestic squirrel.

Some kind of bird...

A closer look at the details of the carved headboard. I can just see Bambi's family and can imagine the hunter hiding behind a tree, mjauhihi.

The bathroom was nice and spacious with two sinks. By the bathtub they had four cute tiles of Chip, Dale, Bambi and Meeko. This room definitely has a woodland creature and critter feeling. Our butler that lives in Tampa brought a Christmas tree for our room so Santa knows where to bring our presents. Mjau we also had a nice surprise when Grandpa bought us our own Christmas stockings!

Mjau, two sinks so we can use one as a jacuzzi while our butlers share the second one.

Fun details on the tiles in the shower. Poor critters have to watch our hideous butlers use the restroom and shower.

Mjau, we also had a really nice view of the Wilderness Lodge Villas and a small lake (not the Seven Seas Lagoon). Mjau it was so nice to be able to see rabbits, squirrels and even deer. Mjauhihi, Disney really puts a lot of consideration into theming.

Mjau, a nice view from our balcony.

There are several dining options at Wilderness Lodge. They have quick service options at Roaring Fork, the food here is ok and is a good option for something quick to bring to the room. The service is excellent and we got free sausages with our French toast once. They also have character dining at Artist Point which we have not tried. We have a tradition to go to Whispering Canyon for Breakfast at least once during our Disney trip. Mjau, their delicious Banana French Toast is worth the visit. Mjau, Whispering Canyon is really loud but you can always request a corner table to get some privacy. Just do not ever ask for ketchup, ever! We also really like the Geyser Point bar and grill. However we only visit if we get to sit on the lounge chairs with the view of the lake. They have really nice drinks. The fried oysters were delicious and the burgers are ok too. It can be really windy but it reminds us so much of summer back in our home country, Finland, that we do not mind. Mjauhihi, just hold on to your whiskers! The territory lounge is also really nice, especially during the cold Florida winter. Mjauhihi, one of our butlers visits the bar and lounge so often that the waitress remembers her.

Mjau, cocktails at Geyser Point.

Mjau, delicious fried oysters! The carpenter and walrus have been in town!

Banana bread French toast!

Magic Kingdom is the park closest to Wilderness Lodge. You can go there by bus or by boat, as we prefer. It is important to note that Wilderness Lodge does not have a Monorail station. If the monorail is really important to your trip, it is better to stay at Polynesian, Contemporary or Grand Floridian. We prefer to just take the boat. You can take a boat directly to Magic Kingdom. We prefer to take the scenic route which first takes you to Fort Wilderness and then to Contemporary. From the contemporary we usually just walk to Magic Kingdom. Sometimes if you are lucky you can see Captain Hook and Smee at the docks at Contemporary.

To get to the other parks you will have to take a bus. The bus rides take really long, one evening we were shocked to find that the bus ride to Disney Springs took over an hour, mjau. The Contemporary and Wilderness Lodge also shares busses. We hope it is only temporary and will change. Mjau, we think it is unacceptable that deluxe resorts have to share busses! 

It is better to stay at Wilderness Lodge if you only want to visit Magic Kingdom or do resort hopping at the resorts surrounding Seven Seas Lagoon. For park hopping we recommend resorts near the Disney Springs area or Epcot and Hollywood Studios.