Port Orleans News

The first stage of the Port Orleans Riverside Lobby Refurbishment has now been unveiled and we have a few photos to share. Work will continue on the other side of the lobby very soon, and during that phase checkin facilities will be at the new desks while concierge services will be operating from in front of the River Roost Lounge. The likely completion date is now looking to be around 22 June according to Bob Jackson's revised schedule.


These new desks are currently located where the old online checkin was situated, but eventually that section will be empty and they will be moved over to where the current front desk is. There are a few elements which still need to be added, such as light poles and a foot bar across the bottom:




According to what I was told, the new floor tiles are on the left and the older ones on the right, but I'm not sure about that[Edit: see update below]. The original carpet (see above) is due to be replaced during the next phase too:



I can't wait to see this finished - given the level of detail we can see so far, and the quality of the finish, I think it will look really beautiful.


Update 20-May:
The more I look at this photo the more I think that all of the above tiling is new. I'm sure the older tiles were lighter and more neutral in colour, and the grouting was darker. I was going by what I was told by the photographer about the right-hand side being old, but those darker tiles look far too new and match so perfectly with that gorgeous decorative strip that I think they must all be new. Also the original hard-wood border between the tiles and the old carpet is gone.


Update 22 May:
All of the tiles in the above photo are definitely the new style. The remaining two-thirds of the lobby has now been walled off, and construction work there has commenced (mostly overnight after 11pm). Registration/checkin is now being handled from the new desks, which are currently facing outward beside the corridor to the games arcade.

Port Orleans French Quarter (then just simply "Disney's Port Orleans Resort") first opened its doors on 17 May 1991, so today the resort turns Twenty One.

Thanks for 21 years of magical vacation memories!

Josh from EasyWDW.com just put up a couple great Port Orleans Riverside commentary posts, along with tons of pictures taken on 27 April. Well worth a view at Part 1 and Part 2 if you're a POR fan (or just want to know more about the resort).


So what's going on with these very temporary-looking signs in the food court I wonder? I hope they're not planning on putting in video screens like the ones over at French Quarter. While presumably eminently practical, they'd be very out of character for the theming when compared to the previous rotating menu boards.

Port Orleans Riverside's Alligator Bayou building 16 re-opened today with all new refurbished rooms, and next Friday (11 May) buildings 17 and 24 are also due for completion. After that will come building 15, which is due to re-open on 25 May. For full details and the rest of the projected schedule, please see our Refurbishment page.

All of the guest rooms at Port Orleans French Quarter and Port Orleans Riverside now feature new Cuisinart dual-pod coffee makers, which have gradually replaced the old 4-cup filter machines over the past month or so.

These new units can make two cups of coffee simultaneously, using coffee pods which are inserted into trays through which hot water is passed. Free pods are supplied, which will be replenished daily by housekeeping.