Spetember 2015 visit and Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween

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AV1022
Posts: 2
Joined: May 10th, 2015, 1:42 pm

Spetember 2015 visit and Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween

Unread post by AV1022 »

Hello,

My family and I are taking our first Disney World trip to the Port Orleans Riverside in September. We have reserved two Royal Rooms with the Riverview and are hoping to have adjoining rooms. I wanted to see if any one had any tips for the month of September at Riverside (things to see, bug spray?, should we bring blankets for movies under the stars) as well as if there are any suggestions on location we might possibly request.

I have been reading that corner rooms and 2nd floor are the best unobstructed views for the Riverview. Does anyone know if you get the Parterre building if you will also be viewing the parking lot of the main building? Are there are any must do's that should take in while at the resort?

Two other questions, we have a double stroller, is this an issue on the buses or boats?

Final question, our twins are four years old, do you think the Mickeys Not So Scary Halloween Party is worth it? We went to the one in Disneyland to celebrate their birthday and found the MNSSHP way more crowded then the regular park days.The character lines and ride lines were so long we only rode two rides the whole party... I was hoping someone had a take on the Magic Kingdoms party. We will be there during the opening party in September and are staying for 8 days. I'm not sure if we would be doing too much. Any thoughts, tips and shared experiences would be appreciated, thank you! :D
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MardiGroggy
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Joined: August 11th, 2013, 10:30 am
Location: North Florida

Re: Spetember 2015 visit and Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween

Unread post by MardiGroggy »

Welcome AV,

Since no one else has replied yet, I'll try to help with some of your questions. First of all, I can say with complete confidence, as a Florida resident, that you can count on it being HOT, and probably very humid, at WDW in September. When we visit during the dreaded August-September cheap(er) rates time period we always plan our activities around the hottest parts of the day, and make sure we are sufficiently hydrated and shaded as much as possible. Certainly hats, bug spray, and sunscreen, are important to have available. We don't do the movies, but you can sit on the grass or bring chairs or whatever else you want to sit on. You are required to fold up any strollers you take on the buses or boats, so the main issue with the double stroller would be the bulk of it when folded. There is usually enough room on the boats. The buses can be "standing room only" cramped sometimes, so a double stroller may be more of a problem there. There is, of course, plenty of stroller parking at the various rides in the parks. It is a good idea to have a clever and/or hi-vis way to identify yours amongst the crowd when you are parking it, however. You may want to consider the logistics of navigating through the crowds at the parks with a double stroller versus two single strollers. You may find it easier to go with two, unless you have one of the "tandem" versions. Just FWIW.

The view of the parking lot from Parterre isn't as bad as it looks on the map. There is plenty of landscaping on both sides of the river, so the parking lot is well shielded from view. Still, I would think that Oak mansion could be nice also, with more of a view toward the main buildings, dock, mill, etc. You can request a particular building by the methods outlined elsewhere on this site, so if the possibility of any parking lot view is a turn-off, I suggest you make that part of your request. We have never stayed in the Royal Room mansions, so maybe someone who has can comment further about comparing the river views from Parterre and Oak. Also, there is a link somewhere on this site that will take you to another site that has photos of the view from every room at PO. I never can find it when I want to, but maybe Andre can link it here for you. Again, there is a lot of info here about the best way to make room requests, so I recommend checking all of that out.

As for things to do at the resort, check out Andre's "Top Ten Reasons." I always recommend Yehaa Bob, but the twins are probably a bit young to get much out of that experience. Everyone else in the family should really enjoy it, though. The pools will be welcome relief from the heat and the main pool on Ol' Man Island is well "guarded" and has lots of activities for kids. We've never been to the Halloween Party, so I can't help you there.

Good luck with your trip planning. Let us know if you have any other questions. Hope this helps!
Last edited by MardiGroggy on May 14th, 2015, 11:48 am, edited 2 times in total.
MardiGroggy
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"Laissez les bons temps rouler!"
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MardiGroggy
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Re: Spetember 2015 visit and Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween

Unread post by MardiGroggy »

I found the room view photo link:

http://touringplans.com/hotel_maps/disn ... -riverside

Check out the views from any of the Building 95 river side rooms and you'll see what I mean about the parking lot being well shielded from view.
MardiGroggy
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Admin
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Re: Spetember 2015 visit and Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween

Unread post by Admin »

Sorry, I meant to come back and reply to this (I read it while on my mobile).

swd has covered a lot of your points, but I'd like to add that I agree that the river views from the northern end of Oak Manor are probably slightly nicer than the Parterre ones, but even those are still very nice, you don't feel like you're overlooking a parking lot. Upper floor is nice, as is having a corner room. Touringplas.com is the place to go for photos anyway.

Here's a view from the northern end-wing of Oak Manor anyway:

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And this from the southern end-wing of Oak:

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And even from Parterre it's still lovely as there are plenty of trees:

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For the movie screenings, they do provide free towels to sit on, so no need to take your own. It's worth spraying the kids with bug repellent first though, as even with towels, sitting on the grass for a couple of hours could be asking for the odd bite or two.

I'd recommend MNSSHP, I think four is about the youngest age to get very much out of it though. Choose a weekday rather than weekend date if you can to avoid the busiest times, but September isn't usually too bad anyway (don't go to the first one of the season though, perhaps aim for the second?). Ride queues are generally fairly short. There are lots of characters around, but they can still build up queues as some are unique to the parties so do expect some waiting time. The Boo to You Parade is a must-see though, and I also very much like the fireworks (not sure how well 4-year-olds would cope though; my daughter didn't get to like fireworks until a good bit older than that because of the noise). And what kid (or adult!) is going to turn their nose up to free candy? And if you can stay till the end of the party, they'll be giving it away in great big handfuls!

Andre
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AV1022
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Joined: May 10th, 2015, 1:42 pm

Re: September 2015 visit and Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween

Unread post by AV1022 »

SDW and Admin,

Thank you! Thank you! I really appreciate all of the information that you provided especially about the rooms. We have heard so many wonderful things about Port Orleans and can't wait to go! The pictures of the views from the rooms were beautiful! Our daughters can't wait for the pool...

In regards to MNSSHP, we would be there for the opening week. I'm guessing that both will be busy as one is the opening on Tuesday and the next party is on a Friday. Our daughters do love Fireworks so I'm sure they will be very excited.

Thank you again for all of information!

AV
Thorpy
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Joined: February 10th, 2013, 1:06 pm

Re: Spetember 2015 visit and Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween

Unread post by Thorpy »

I can add to the comments of the other 2, and very much second the comments about bug spray when watching the movies. I got several bites when I nodded off during Mulan ;) They irritated me for a few days.
Nicola74
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Location: Chester, England

Re: Spetember 2015 visit and Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween

Unread post by Nicola74 »

We stayed in Parterre Place, a second floor corner room not far from the bridge over to the main building. It never occurred to me this was techincally also a view of the parking lot. I can honestly say it was a lovely spot to be in and wouldn't hesitate to recommend it. I have just tried to post a photo, resized the file so it was small enough to post but didn't know how to make the actual image small enough to look at in the post sorry. But you really don't see the parking lot, it is very well obscured by the trees.
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