Port Orleans News

At Port Orleans Riverside, the first of the long-awaited Alligator Bayou refurbished rooms are now complete and Building 36 has reopened to the public, right on schedule. Construction workers will now be moving on to buildings 37 and 38, and then 39, all of which should be completed by 15 December - just in time for the Christmas holidays, it's almost as if they planned it that way...

One guest has already posted a few iPhone photos to PhotoBucket, and I've asked if she could maybe send me the original images so we can see more of the details. The soft furnishings look great, and it appears that the elaborate, immersive theming has been carried through with every element - and I adore the Port Orleans details on the new bedspreads! Also note the Alligator motifs on the comforter pillows.

As with French Quarter last year, a visiting guest was able to sneak a quick pre-opening look inside one of the newly refurbished rooms in Alligator Bayou building 36 for us on Tuesday 8 Nov, and they look amazing!

The room seems very true to the original rustic concept, but perhaps going even a little further than before - note that as I said a while back, the flooring in the bathroom has been retained, plus those lovely wood-hewn bed heads. The rustic planking effect in the bathroom and for the carpet are also nice touches. The new pull-down bed looks great too - complete with a picture of Louis from Princess and the Frog inside. Obviously there are still finishing touches to be done (such as the bedding and curtains) and you'll note that the cover isn't on the A/C unit yet, but so far it looks like they've done a fabulous job - although I too have some serious concerns about the amount of storage space provided for five people and all their luggage. Not sure if the section under the murphy bed is three drawers or one large one as there don't seem to be any handles on it as yet. And is it just me, or are there an awful lot of different wood colours going on? Perhaps that's deliberate to tie in with the backwater bayou theme though.

The first rooms are due to open for guests in a few days time.

Beth's comments about the room are as follows:

OK-I just got back today and have pictures of Bldg 36!!!! First off, it is nowhere near finished. One of the guys showed me into a room that he said was "more done" than the rest of them and it was not all the way finished by any means. It didn't look like they had started on 37-38 either.

Anyway, there is a fold down bed like the previous pictures of Aulani; it is where the old wardrobe/TV furniture used to be. The TV is mounted high on the wall, then there is the fold down murphy bed (sideways) that looks like a bench seat with maybe some drawer space underneath that. The refrigerator is besides it with a few very small drawers attached to the side. Overall there is very little drawer space compared to the old wardrobes. The bed was fairly good sized and would sleep someone up to 5 feet tall I believe. The problem is where are 5 people going to put all their stuff in that room?

The quiet pool between Oak Manor and Parterre Place at Port Orleans Riverside was scheduled for maintenance work to the restroom area between 10 October and 11 November. It was reported by a guest that the pool was closed around 19 October, so should presumably be reopening soon.

Episode 949 of the excellent WDW Today podcast is devoted to a discussion of the Port Orleans resorts. The hosts have always regarded the Port Orleans resorts as their favourite moderate resorts at WDW, and while there are a few minor factual errors** the overall show is a nice balanced overview of the pros and cons of staying at Port Orleans.

Click here to listen to or download the show.

** Update: Episode 952 the following week offers some further thoughts on Port Orleans, including corrections to the little issues I mentioned above. Thanks for listening guys.

The November Recreation Activities and Movie Schedules for Port Orleans Riverside and Port Orleans French Quarter are now available, please see our Recreation page for full details and to download printable PDF copies.

Of particular note is that, with the earlier winter nights starting to draw in, movies will start at 7pm this month.