Port Orleans News

The September 2016 Recreation Activities and Movie Schedules for Port Orleans Riverside and Port Orleans French Quarter are now available. See the main Recreation Activities Schedules page for full-size printable PDF versions.

The main feature swimming pool hours will remain at 9am—11pm for the first few days of September, and then they switch to 9am—10pm from September 5th. The evening campfires will commence at 6:00pm this month and the Movies Under the Stars will be screened at 8:30pm, with both activities occurring on alternating days at the two resorts — Monday, Wednesday, Friday & Saturday at Riverside, and Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday & Saturday at French Quarter.

On Labor Day (Monday 5th September) there will be a few extra “End of Summer Extravaganza” daytime poolside activities at both resorts, plus an afternoon barbecue.


Live Evening Entertainment

No visit to Port Orleans Riverside would be complete without spending an evening in the company of the legendary "Ye Haa" Bob Jackson at the River Roost Lounge, playing 8:30pm—midnight four nights a week (Weds—Sat).

Port Orleans French Quarter’s Scat Cat’s Club does not currently have official resident musicians, but filling the gap admirably are Jason Thomas and Billy Varnes, two members of the fabulous Off Kilter rock band which used to perform in Epcot’s Canada pavilion. Their dates are only announced a month or so in advance (generally most Saturdays, Sundays, Mondays and Tuesdays) but if you happen to be around for any of their evenings (8pm—11pm) do yourself a favour and pop along, they are highly recommended. Jason & Billy's September dates are 3, 4, 5, 6, 10, 11, 12, 13, 19, 20, 24, 25, 26 & 27. Greg Hayworth will be subbing for Billy on September 6, 13 & 27.

For anyone staying at Port Orleans at the moment (or if you are just in the area and want to pop by) we've got a small informal meet at the River Roost Lounge (next to the POR lobby) at 7pm on Saturday 6th August. Everyone is welcome, see you there?

Facebook event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/1137482842981655/



Andre

The August 2016 Recreation Activities and Movie Schedules for Port Orleans Riverside and Port Orleans French Quarter are now available. See the main Recreation Activities Schedules page for full-size printable PDF versions.

The main feature swimming pool hours are 9am—11pm for the rest of the summer, including the new children’s Aquatic Play Area at Port Orleans French Quarter. The evening campfires will commence at 6:00pm this month and the Movies Under the Stars will be screened at 8:30pm, with both activities still occurring on alternating days at the two resorts — Monday, Wednesday, Friday & Saturday at Riverside, and Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday & Saturday at French Quarter.


Live Evening Entertainment

No visit to Port Orleans Riverside would be complete without spending an evening in the company of the legendary "Ye Haa" Bob Jackson at the River Roost Lounge, playing 8:30pm—midnight four nights a week (Weds—Sat). Note: Bob will be on vacation from 29 August until 6 Sept.

Port Orleans French Quarter’s Scat Cat’s Club does not currently have official resident musicians, but filling the gap admirably are Jason Thomas and Billy Varnes, two members of the fabulous Off Kilter rock band which used to perform in Epcot’s Canada pavilion. Their dates are only announced a month or so in advance (generally most Saturdays, Sundays, Mondays and Tuesdays) but if you happen to be around for any of their evenings (8:30pm—11:30pm) do yourself a favour and pop along, they are highly recommended. July 2016: 3, 4, 5, 9, 10, 11, 12, 16, 17, 18, 19, 23, 24, 25, 26 & 31.C'mon Disney, Jason & Billy certainly deserve a permanent contract if anyone does!

The temporary food location, in place during the current refurbishment work of the main food court, is located in the old Bonfamille's Cafe area as expected, and is thus quite a bit smaller than the normal food court. To provide for the maximum seating capacity they can (which appears to be around 20 tables) you order your food at two registers and cast members bring it out from the kitchens directly to your table (rather like the quick service system in use at the Be Our Guest restaurant, but without the magic roses). This means that no Create-Your-Own options are available. See below photos for menus.

There are chilled grab'n'go cabinets too, plus two Coca Cola Freestyle machines and coffee machines for use with your refillable mugs. Tables in Wonderland cards are accepted, as is the Quick Service Dining Plan. Extra transportation between French Quarter and Riverside is available should you prefer to use the full food court there.

The automated player piano in the lobby has been removed for the time being to allow better access, but otherwise Scat Cat's Club is operating as normal (including evening entertainment).

The refurbishment work is expected to continue into the Fall, and should be completed sometime before Thanksgiving.

Some photos have been uploaded by NCDisneyMom from the POFQ thread on the DISboards (she apologises for the focus in some of them, it was a bit dark to get good shots). Thanks for the update:

The USA ‘rack rates’ for Rooms and Packages in 2017 were released at 6am EDT on Tuesday 21 June 2016, roughly the same time that they were issued last year. You can now book rooms and packages with Disney online or via their telephone Reservations Center for 2017 vacations, up to the normal maximum of 499 days in advance.

The average room prices at Port Orleans went up by 7.1% compared with last year’s rates, and by 12.1% compared to 2015 rates. French Quarter was hit the hardest, with some room categories, such as King Bed, seeing a nearly 12% annual rise. That’s some inflation rate they’ve got down there in Florida!

The overall tiering at French Quarter seems to have settled into a new pattern too, with River View rooms now considered to be a mid-tier rate, and King Bed and Pool View firmly at the top level. Presumably this is demand-based, as King Bed rooms at French Quarter always guarantee a corner room, and Pool View rooms are all very conveniently located for access to the main building, bus stop, and ferry dock.

The original heavy differentials for Royal Rooms have now been almost completely eroded, with Garden, Pool and River views mostly selling at the same nightly rate, and even then only around $6 more than the cheapest Royal Rooms. So if you are planning a Royal Room vacation, it’s definitely worth considering a Pool View (for the guaranteed convenient location) or a River View.

There is no separate price point for Independence Day this year, so the Summer rate lasts for a full two and a half months from May 29 to August 12. Some room categories now feature weekend pricing during the Summer period, although most are still block-priced as in previous years. And even more strangely, in several categories (such as Preferred Location rooms and all of the Royal Room options) weekend nights during Summer are actually priced lower than the surrounding weekday rates, rather than the normal $30 or so hike for Friday/Saturday nights. I do wonder if this might be an error?

Once again, Memorial Day appears to be an anomalous blip at Riverside, significantly more expensive than even Christmas week at $383 per night for a River View room — a full $70 more than a similar River View room at French Quarter for the same nights.

For more information and a full pricing breakdown, see the main Room Rates page at http://www.portorleans.org/roomrates.php#2017