Disney's Port Orleans Resort French Quarter and Disney's
Port Orleans Resort Riverside are a pair of resort hotels that are
themed to look like New Orleans and the Old South. Both resorts are located in
the Downtown Disney area, and are connected to each other and Downtown Disney
via the Sassagoula River.
Disney's Port
Orleans Resort French Quarter was designed to reflect the style and
architecture of New Orleans' French Quarter. The resort opened May 17, 1991 as
Disney's Port Orleans Resort with 432 guest rooms in three guest buildings and
expanded to its current 1,008 rooms in seven 3-story guest buildings containing
144 rooms each.
Disney's Port
Orleans Resort Riverside was designed to reflect antebellum south along the Mississippi
River. The resort opened February 2, 1992 as Disney's Dixie Landings Resort,
initially with rooms located in its Alligator Bayou section, and shortly
afterward the remaining Magnolia Bend section was opened. Alligator
Bayou consists of 1,024 guest rooms over 16 buildings styled as rustic,
weathered lodges with 64 rooms per lodge. Magnolia Bend consists of 1,024 guest
rooms over four buildings styled as southern plantation grand manor homes with
256 rooms per mansion.[1]
Beginning March
1, 2001 road signage and other theming began to change reflecting the Disney's
Port Orleans Resort and Disney's Dixie Landings Resort properties becoming
"regions" of a united Disney's Port Orleans Resort. As of April 1,
2001, the regions became French Quarter and Riverside, respectively. Changes
leading up to and after this period would include the French Quarter region
losing Bonfamille's Cafe table-service restaurant, bike rentals, and
boat rentals. French Quarter region guests would have to use the larger
facilities in the Riverside region. Bonfamille's Cafe's is now only used
occasionally as a meeting space for food and beverage management, and a
training facility. Bonfamille's Cafe's kitchen is Disney World's test kitchen. Other
theme changes took place such as Colonel's Cotton Mill food court
becoming Riverside Mill.
In 2012, Disney
transformed about a quarter of the 2,000 rooms in the "Riverside"
section of Disney's Port Orleans Resort into "Royal Rooms."
Disney's Port Orleans Resort Riverside has a 3.5-acre (1.4 ha)
recreation area called Ol' Man Island featuring the resort's
158,000-US-gallon (600 kL) feature swimming pool with a large rustic saw-mill
themed water slide and a hot tub. The island also contains a children's
playground and the Fishin' Hole, where guests can rent cane fishing
poles and bait for a small fee.
There are also
five smaller 'quiet' swimming pools at Disney's Port Orleans Resort Riverside,
three located within the Alligator Bayou section and two in the Magnolia Bend
area. Riverside also has a marina where guests can rent bicycles or surrey
bikes. Rental of personal watercraft was discontinued in early 2014 from all
Disney moderate-level resorts, including Riverside. Horse-drawn carriage rides
are available in the evening.
Disney's Port
Orleans Resort French Quarter features the Doubloon Lagoon
225,000-US-gallon swimming pool, which has a sea-serpent themed water slide
named Scales that is jockeyed by King Neptune. This area also includes a hot
tub and a children's playground.
