Disney's Port Orleans Resort - Riverside in Orlando, FL

Our recent two-night stay at Disney's Port Orleans Riverside was meant to be a restful start to our 16-day vacation. Unfortunately, the experience was marred by significant housekeeping and management issues that left us frustrated and disappointed. This, unfortunately, reflects a broader trend we’ve noticed at Disney resorts in recent months—declining cleanliness and maintenance standards. Check-In and Housekeeping Problems: Upon arrival, my brother was assigned a room around 11 AM after flying overnight to Orlando. However, the room was far from ready. It was dirty, with visible signs of neglect: High-touch areas had smudges, resembling orange residue, likely from the previous guest's dirty hands. The back of the bed was visibly dusty. Candy was found behind chairs and doors, suggesting a lack of thorough cleaning. The bathroom was not properly cleaned, and basic soap amenities were missing. Delayed Resolution: After discovering these issues, my brother contacted the front desk to report the problems and requested to speak with a manager. It took five hours and multiple follow-ups before a manager finally reached out to address the situation. By 7 PM, we were finally offered a clean room, and the manager arranged for our luggage to be moved. However, even this simple task was mishandled, with our luggage being sent to the wrong room, causing an additional 45-minute delay before we could finally settle in. After a long day of traveling, this was incredibly frustrating, especially when all we wanted was to relax and enjoy the resort. A Pattern of Decline: This isn't the first time we've encountered issues like this at a Disney resort. Over the past few months, we’ve noticed a growing trend of lackluster maintenance and cleanliness across various Disney properties. For a brand known for its attention to detail and magical experiences, this ongoing decline is disappointing and disheartening. Lack of Remediation: Despite the multiple issues and disruptions, no remediation or compensation was offered. We paid a premium for what was supposed to be a Disney-caliber experience but instead received the equivalent of an overpriced motel stay for the first day of our vacation. The lack of attention to basic housekeeping standards and the poor handling of the situation by management set a disappointing tone for the start of our trip. Final Thoughts: Disney's Port Orleans Riverside failed to meet the expectations of a Disney resort, where cleanliness, guest experience, and service should always come first. This ongoing trend of neglect across Disney properties reflects poorly on the brand. While mistakes can happen, the slow response time, mishandling of luggage, and lack of resolution left us feeling undervalued as guests. We expected much more, especially given Disney’s reputation and the premium prices they charge.

The sidewalk has bumps everywhere and scuffed my shoes just walking around here. Trip hazards everywhere. I don't know how they can charge this much but not fx the uneven sidewalks. Also there are no elevators and if you are at the front of the building you can hear everyone dragging their suitcase up and down the stairs in the morning and late at night.

Fabulous stay at this beautiful hotel my only gripe is the room is quite small for 2 adults and 2 teenagers. Food was good but did get a bit repetitive after two weeks. Pool area is lovely and the life guards are brilliant always smiling and a credit to the hotel. Tony round the pool was lovely a pleasure to talk too and always happy. We did have one issue with someone leaving their yappy dog in the room whilst obviously going for breakfast (very annoying at 8am) maybe guests with dogs should be in a different part of the hotel. All in all our second stay here and it didn’t disappoint definitely recommend.

I think next time I will stay at the French Quarter, sister-resort to Riverside. actually, I'll be staying anywhere that's quieter than any Disney resort imaginable! But that's another story.I am not sure if the music sets the vibe but here are the differences. And, I could stay at the French Quarter and be a happy visitor with the amenities. The music is different. By the way., There's more horn at Riverside and after a while it just sounds like noise. The French Quarter is currently renovating its rooms. however, the resort has a more laid-back feeling and vibe than Riverside. The French quarter landscaping is in square grids with quiet walkways around gardens that lead to the various buildings. Riverside is set off on different winding pathways that lead to bungalow style buildings culminating in the main building that more or less funnels people to its cafeteria and has no sitting areas outside. The Pools - Let's start with the pools. Riverside has a large pool that is removed from the main building that serves as the lobby, the bar and the huge cafeteria. The pool is very very busy. My sister and I checked out the hot tub only to find that there were children jumping in and out of it as if it was a kiddie pool. yes, adults were supervising. Sorry, my association with hot tubs is you sit in them to soak and for conversation. There is no diving board. On the other hand, he has smaller pools scattered throughout the resort, which are wonderful and very quiet. No one was in the hot tub at the French quarter. In fact, it's removed from the pool area, hidden in plain sight and creates a space for soaking not playing. The pool at the French Quarter is also very large with Mardi Gras themes of a huge Dragon and Poseidon waterslide. visually more attractive. The seating area is larger and more accommodating to families which therefore creates less stress and more open space. I noticed that both pools are near the canals, which is visually attractive, but worrisome due to signage warning of snakes and alligators. or ironic. The Cafeteria. Riverside resort is nice. let's face it, Disney - besides having security more efficient than TSA pre-check- has the answer to feeding masses of people on all its properties. Disney does it well. The cafeteria is big. The staff is marvelous and helpful, considering there are always tons of families with their scooters, Cadillac strollers and loose, running around kids. The noise level is crazy. I had two meals over at the French Quarter and I'm not sure why, but there did not seem to be the frenzied need to rush through the process of acquiring food as Riverside. I enjoyed two nice meals over at the French Quarter, and I would suggest if you can that you consider eating at 4 o'clock instead of the witching hours of breakfast and 630 on. 4 o'clock is also a good time to eat at Disney restaurants that require reservations. There is some leisure when you're able to sit down this early and you aren't rushed through your meals. If you are on the meal plan, be sure to get your mug so you can get free refills of liquid beverages. rooms-I did not see the French Quarter rooms, our room at Riverside was very spartan - no pictures-maybe one picture a table with old furniture. Coffee maker was very basic with Joffrey coffee, which seemed to be to be similar to a Folgers coffee. Nice shower, hot water, nice soap and other cosmetic amenities. be sure to visit the other resorts if you can. They are accessible by bus or tram and other forms of transportation. Each of them has their own unique vibe. Kudos to the Polynesian resort which greets you at the door with an aloha and a lei. Again, Riverside is all hustle and bustle, always in motion and busy.

Absolutely beautiful setting. Quiet and relaxing to be on the grounds. We stayed in Alligator Bayou. Restaurant staff were helpful with our allergy restrictions. Good amenities available and it was fun to ride the boat from Disney Springs! Only downside was the cost of doing a load of laundry.