Riverside or French Quarter?

[tiggerificmom]

Which resort is better? We are a family of 5 so we'll be reserving two connecting rooms. Kids ages range from 16 to 2 years. First time staying at the moderate resorts other than the Cabins. Any suggestions or opinions?

[jonahbear2006]

french quarter, hands down. the pool is quieter, the hot tub is quieter (riversides is always packed), better park for the kids, the baby pool is warm so you could even sit in that instead of the big pool if you want. riversides baby pool is freezing. Its smaller so no walking like at riverside. At riverside it is a hike to get to the pool. Sassagoula's food is sooo much better than riverside mill. One night all i wanted was a hotdog and ended up in the french quarter to get one. the rooms in the french quarter are prettier and you get a whole diff feel just being there. I think the music is nicer, the colors are less generic on the architecture, and I felt the pool was more lenient. we were able to hang out at this pool till about 2 am, whereas the other pool they were getting grouchy at midnight. The downside to the pool at FQ is that the waterslide is more thrilling at old man island but i dont think this is, in any way, a good reason to stay in riverside. The boat for riverside, is right outside of the pool area in FQ, and that will take you to the pool and you will still get to enjoy all of the quieter and much more tasteful look of the french quarter.

[Briansmom]

I am a HUGE fan of POFQ!! And that will be where we will always stay! I agree with everything that jonahbear said! And the beignets are yummy!

That being said though....I know that they have a trundle bed in Alligator Bayou at Riverside that would allow you all to stay in one room and not have the extra expense of another room. However....I have never stayed here so in no way is this a recommendation for them. I am sure there will be others that will sound in on it.

[GoldenDreams]

I agree with the other posters in recommending the French Quarter. I like that it is smaller and therefore easy to get to and from the foodcourt, shopping area, pool, and bus stop. My son really enjoys it there too. We found it nice to go back to the foodcourt for dinner after a long day in the parks. We could relax and eat and he could play with the blocks and legos or watch the Disney cartoons. He loved the "dragon pool" too.

[GoldenDreams]

One other note about the French Quarter --- the playground is relatively close to the food court so one person can take the kids there while others finish breakfast. We found that our son needed this downtime to just play with other kids and I was glad for this setup.

[ChipNDale79]

The wife and i love Riverside and FQ, if they were about the same size i think it would be a toss up. But simply because of size, we go with FQ.

[PAYROLL PRINCESS]

I liked the smallness of FQ better. Both are pretty resorts. You have much less walking to do at the end of the evening if you are at FQ. There really isn't a bad building to stay in. And you can use the facilities at both resorts.

[garymacd]

We, too, prefer FQ for the small size and proximity of everything.

But I would seriously consider Aligator Bayou section of Riverside. With the trundle beds you would have plenty of room for everyone in one room and save yourself the expense of a second room.

[HoosierDisneyFan]

We have stayed at both and I would suggest if you are planning to spend most of the time at the parks, POFQ is best. POFQ is smaller so less walking back to the room after a long day at the parks. Also the buses generally pick up at POFQ first (that way you can get a seat) and drop off first (first off the bus).

If your plan on having "Resort Time", POR would be best. POR has bigger pool (several pools), fishing, boat rental area, bigger arcade, bigger playground, bigger gift shop, TS resturant, bigger bar area, bigger food court, etc.

Of course you can use the facilities of each during your stay!

[Genie1953]

Well I must put in a good word for Riverside here. However I must be honest as we have never actually stayed at French Quarter and only stayed the one time at Riverside. We did love it at Riverside and will be staying there again in April. We were in the Oak Manor Mansion which was really pretty close to the main building where the food court is. We were next to one of the quiet pools so that was also nice. We did walk over to the main pool but there were too many people there so only used our quiet pool. We loved Riverside's food court and also Boatwright's table service restaurant. We walked over to French Quarter one morning and had the Begniets and they were indeed wonderful. From what I have read I don't think you could go wrong at either place really.

[brad817]

We're staying at POFQ in February largely based on the recommendations of this board. Can't wait!

That said, it looks like POFQ doesn't have a sit down restaurant, just the food court. Is that correct?

Boatwright's looks like the only sit down restaurant at POR. Is Boatwright's within reasonable walking distance from POFQ? And most importantly, how is the food?

[HoosierDisneyFan]

There is no TS restaurant at POFQ. Boatwright's @ POR is the closest and probably a nice 10 to 15 minute walk on a paved path along the river / canal.

[Genie1953]

It was maybe a 10 minute walk from Riverside to French Quarter. The walk is very enjoyable. We will be walking over to French Quarter again in April to have some of those wonderful Begniets again.

[gueli]

Ah, the majority speaks for FQ...like a pp, I too am staying at FQ largely do to reccomendations here- although my stay is a mere 21 days from now (leave nov 30...)
now I have stayed at riverside many years ago, and would not hesitate to do so again. Outside of wanting something different this trip, the size of the resort is what attracted me.
I do not think you can go wrong with either.
Good luck in deciding, I will let people know what I thought of FQ when I return.

[brownie]

They are sister resorts so you can use the facilities, like the pools, at either one. Riverside is bigger and more spread out. French Quarter is smaller and more intimate. There is only one pool at French Quarter and we found it crowded when we stayed there. We found the food options to be better at Riverside.

I think it comes down to your theming preferences and the distances.

[Briansmom]

Originally Posted by brad817

Boatwright's looks like the only sit down restaurant at POR. Is Boatwright's within reasonable walking distance from POFQ? And most importantly, how is the food?

The walk is very manageable. And if you don't want to walk, you can take the boat from POFQ to POR.
We thoroughly enjoyed our meal at Boatwrights. The service was good and I remember there being a nice selection. And being from the south, it was nice that they had REAL sweet tea! Only thing is that now they are only open at dinner (supper) time.

You guys enjoy! I keep telling my family I want another trip to WDW this coming year to celebrate my big 5-0 birthday....somehow I don't think they are listening...and besides, who would plan it if they were to surprise me? I am the planner!!
Ya'll go and have fun for me...I'll look forward to your trip reports!

[SuzieN]

I've stayed at both and would be hard pressed to choose a favorite. If I were you, I would choose POR simply because you could put all 5 of you in 1 room and save a huge amount of $$$$$!!!!!! Yes, it's a bit tight with 5 in 1 room, but really, how much time do you spend in the room? They both have lovely grounds (POR is definitely more lush) and are beautifully themed. The boat ride to DTD is one of my favorite resort perks and is available at both. I just stayed at POR last month and a few nights wandered over to POFQ while taking an evening stroll (as if I didn't walk enough in the parks!!!). Really love them both but would not pay for an extra room when you can stay in 1 room at POR. Good luck with your decision!!!