Port Orleans French Quarter Q&A Thread, New for 2012 (Read first posts for FAQs)

[xandaman]

Originally Posted by taylor3297

On the one day that my friend has to work, I am planning on going to a Braves spring training game at the ESPN Wide World of Sports. How do I get there from POFQ.

The Braves is my favorite team and I have always wanted to go to a spring training game. I am so excited.

I believe there is a bus from the resort, if not then you can bus or boat to downtown and from here bus to the wide world of sports.

[strmtroopr96]

Originally Posted by taylor3297

On the one day that my friend has to work, I am planning on going to a Braves spring training game at the ESPN Wide World of Sports. How do I get there from POFQ.

The Braves is my favorite team and I have always wanted to go to a spring training game. I am so excited.

You would need to to catch a bus to the WWOS at either Pop Century, CBR, or the All Star resorts. Be sure to give yourself plenty of time to get to one of those resorts and then to WWOS. You might find it much easier and quicker to just take a taxi directly to WWOS.

[mom2taylorandemily]

Ok, this may not be the right place for this question, but since we are staying at POFQ I thought I'd start here. We'd like to go to Seaworld this year on our vacation. We have Busch Gardens Annual Passes and they are good for admission to SeaWorld. We are not renting a car and only using DME and Disney transportation around the World while we are there. So, we are trying to figure out the best way to get to SeaWorld. It will probably be easiest, although maybe not the cheapest, way to just take a taxi. Does anyone have any experience with this? How much would it cost? Is there another way; like a bus or something from another location? Or would we be better off just trying to get a rental for the day. Thanks!!

[bookgirl]

Originally Posted by mom2taylorandemily

Ok, this may not be the right place for this question, but since we are staying at POFQ I thought I'd start here. We'd like to go to Seaworld this year on our vacation. We have Busch Gardens Annual Passes and they are good for admission to SeaWorld. We are not renting a car and only using DME and Disney transportation around the World while we are there. So, we are trying to figure out the best way to get to SeaWorld. It will probably be easiest, although maybe not the cheapest, way to just take a taxi. Does anyone have any experience with this? How much would it cost? Is there another way; like a bus or something from another location? Or would we be better off just trying to get a rental for the day. Thanks!!

Taxi which would be a little pricey and probably more than a one day rental by the time you pay for a round trip.. Or you can check with a shuttle company I believe Mears has one. That would probably be the best and least expensive route.

I know there is a city bus but with kids it might be more of a hassle if you have to transport stuff and it's a little convulted to catch the bus (at DTD I believe).

ETA: just realized you have teens. Bus may be okay but I'd be bummed at the time it would take so would spring for the shuttle.


I usually rent a car since I like to hit the outlets (there are a few there that are not accessible in my hometown), and make a walmart run, and sometimes a dinner off site. But if I didn't do these things then I would look at a shuttle.

[GirlDreamer]

Originally Posted by mom2taylorandemily

Ok, this may not be the right place for this question, but since we are staying at POFQ I thought I'd start here. We'd like to go to Seaworld this year on our vacation. We have Busch Gardens Annual Passes and they are good for admission to SeaWorld. We are not renting a car and only using DME and Disney transportation around the World while we are there. So, we are trying to figure out the best way to get to SeaWorld. It will probably be easiest, although maybe not the cheapest, way to just take a taxi. Does anyone have any experience with this? How much would it cost? Is there another way; like a bus or something from another location? Or would we be better off just trying to get a rental for the day. Thanks!!

I'd say you'd have to weight the costs against convenience. What's more important to you? The most convenient way, would obviously be a taxi (I don't think Mears shuttle is a good idea here, as it costs around $20 pp), I'm not sure how much a taxi would be, but probably around $30-35 somewhere. The bus is way cheaper, but you'd have to first catch a bus to DTD and then a Lynx bus from there, and I'm not even sure if that stops at Sea World, so you might have to swap buses as well. And that might be a lengthy process. A car rental might be a happy medium in price, but then you'll have to face the inconvenience of having to pick it up and drop it off, which again, will take some extra time.

[Sue M]

I would check out how much a 1 day car rental would be. Alamo & National are at Disney Car Care Center, near TTC or at Dolphin. CCC will pick you up. Budget is in DTD Doubletree, and Avis has a desk at DTD Hilton.

[OooDeLally]

We just returned from an 8-day stay at POFQ, our first visit there, and our first moderate stay after a few years of deluxe resorts. Overall we were satisfied with this resort. We were able to check in at 10 a.m. , and to our surprise received a room facing the river. This location was a blessing in disguise, as we prefer a quiet atmosphere. During my evening/morning walks to the main building, I found it quite noisy with kids/teens playing in the grassy area and at the pool and was glad that our room was not near the main building, pool or courtyard.

The room and its furnishings were what I expected for a moderate resort. The bathroom was clean, and there was plenty of space to place toiletries on the ledge behind the tub. Also the vanity was very spacious, with a large shelf under the sinks. Water pressure was strong, and there was always enough hot water. There was a ceiling fan in the room, a plus for us, although it shook quite a bit when turned on and made noise.

Three things I found lacking in the room: 1) No lamps, or low lights. Either you had the main lights in the room, or the lights from the vanity area. 2) The mattresses were extremely lumpy and not very comfortable. 3) No luggage rack. It would have been helpful to have one of these to use in the closet area.

We were pleased with the layout and convenience of the resort, although the elevator was a small hassle. It was located on one end of the building rather than the middle, and our room was on the opposite side. We only ate at the quick service dining a couple times, but were happy to see a wide selection.

The decorations and ambience of this resort is eerily similar to the real French Quarter.... inlcuding the big steaming pile of horse poop on one of the paths to the main building.

And please, anyone who is not familiar with authentic New Orleans beignets, please do not mistake the “beignets” served in the POFQ restaurant as such. The ones served here were nothing more than fried pancake dough, and the only thing that resembled an authentic beignet is the powdered sugar (although this did not stop the kids from enjoying them!).

[danceintherain]

Originally Posted by mom2taylorandemily

Ok, this may not be the right place for this question, but since we are staying at POFQ I thought I'd start here. We'd like to go to Seaworld this year on our vacation. We have Busch Gardens Annual Passes and they are good for admission to SeaWorld. We are not renting a car and only using DME and Disney transportation around the World while we are there. So, we are trying to figure out the best way to get to SeaWorld. It will probably be easiest, although maybe not the cheapest, way to just take a taxi. Does anyone have any experience with this? How much would it cost? Is there another way; like a bus or something from another location? Or would we be better off just trying to get a rental for the day. Thanks!!

We're planning on heading to Universal while we're staying at POFQ, and I've decided to rent a car.

- Cabs cost around $35 each way to that area.
- Mears Transportation is $19/adult round trip (http://www.mearstransportation.com/pdf/Rates.pdf)
- I've taken the LYNX from the airport before, and it's perfectly adequate public transportation, but not really a convenient option while you're on vacation. The trip from the DTD stop to SeaWorld only requires the use of one bus (50) and the trip should take around 30 minutes though. It does require some walking, and it would probably help if you were familiar with the area. I'm sure some of the bus drivers are more helpful than others. (ours from the airport was excellent). I think it costs $2.50/person/way.
- A 1-day car rental from a location on the Disney property seems to be around $40. At least that's what it is for my dates. There's also the cost of gas, tolls etc... I'm hoping to be able to get some deals that make it less. The best I've found thus far is $35/day for 4 days. Most of the discounts don't extend to my dates yet. Depending on where you rent from, they may even come pick you up at your hotel, and drop you off after.

I decided to rent a car, because we'll be able to leave and return whenever we want (DH always wants a break at Disney and we'll have a 2 year old with us). We can also use it to do a grocery run, and if we keep it for more than one day, for direct transportation to one of our resort meals.
Mears would have been $57, a cab would have been $70, and the bus isn't at all convenient for us (it takes around an hour and a half with a transfer to get from Disney to Universal).

[bookgirl]

Originally Posted by OooDeLally

We just returned from an 8-day stay at POFQ, our first visit there, and our first moderate stay after a few years of deluxe resorts. Overall we were satisfied with this resort. We were able to check in at 10 a.m. , and to our surprise received a room facing the river. This location was a blessing in disguise, as we prefer a quiet atmosphere. During my evening/morning walks to the main building, I found it quite noisy with kids/teens playing in the grassy area and at the pool and was glad that our room was not near the main building, pool or courtyard.

The room and its furnishings were what I expected for a moderate resort. The bathroom was clean, and there was plenty of space to place toiletries on the ledge behind the tub. Also the vanity was very spacious, with a large shelf under the sinks. Water pressure was strong, and there was always enough hot water. There was a ceiling fan in the room, a plus for us, although it shook quite a bit when turned on and made noise.

Three things I found lacking in the room: 1) No lamps, or low lights. Either you had the main lights in the room, or the lights from the vanity area. 2) The mattresses were extremely lumpy and not very comfortable. 3) No luggage rack. It would have been helpful to have one of these to use in the closet area.

We were pleased with the layout and convenience of the resort, although the elevator was a small hassle. It was located on one end of the building rather than the middle, and our room was on the opposite side. We only ate at the quick service dining a couple times, but were happy to see a wide selection.

The decorations and ambience of this resort is eerily similar to the real French Quarter.... inlcuding the big steaming pile of horse poop on one of the paths to the main building.

And please, anyone who is not familiar with authentic New Orleans beignets, please do not mistake the “beignets” served in the POFQ restaurant as such. The ones served here were nothing more than fried pancake dough, and the only thing that resembled an authentic beignet is the powdered sugar (although this did not stop the kids from enjoying them!).

We called for a luggage rack and they brought one right over. I have no idea why they don't have one in room. If I remember correctly the values didn't have racks in the room either. They will also bring more hangers or tolietries. I've really been happy with the Housekeeping services at POFQ. Of all the resorts they seem to be johnny on the spot when called or when you make a request.

Beingets, yeah they reminded me of sopapillas more than the beignets I had in NOLA, but they were nice except for me they had too much powdered sugar, but then again I don't like powdered sugar.

Glad you had a nice time. I'm really fond of this resort's layout.

[Mickey&JoshNut]

Originally Posted by GirlDreamer

I'm pretty sure our room didn't have any grab bars or anything. I think you would need to ask for an accesible room to get that.

Originally Posted by siskaren

I just checked pictures on allears.net and there are definitely grab bars in the tub area.

Originally Posted by EpcotBill

I just watched a couple of YouTube videos and there were no grab bars in the Standard room bathrooms. These videos were after the rehab last year.

I'm not saying they aren't there, just that I didn't see them in the videos. AllEars POFQ room video from 2010 does show the bar.

Originally Posted by karly05

Regarding grab bars: I just got back from POFQ on 2/13, and there were no grab bars in the tub/shower (standard/normal 2-queens room). As a PP said, you probably need an accessible room for that.

Thanks everyone....we are hoping by September that she will be more mobile (my Mom fractured her pelvis and it is healing)....I did find at Wal-Mart some suction grab bars that we will be using at home in our shower (solid non-tile walls) and if I need to, I will pack them in my suitcase.

[GirlDreamer]

Oh I wish april would hurry up and come around. Hopefully we'll get some good offers for next year so we can book our next POFQ stay

[zaz]

Hi all!

Getting excited as I'm leaving in 5 weeks!

At what time do they show the movies?

Thank you!

[arthuruscg]

Humm, I think the room at stayed at must have had your luggage rack because it had 3 of them.

[Missytara]

Originally Posted by mom2taylorandemily

Ok, this may not be the right place for this question, but since we are staying at POFQ I thought I'd start here. We'd like to go to Seaworld this year on our vacation. We have Busch Gardens Annual Passes and they are good for admission to SeaWorld. We are not renting a car and only using DME and Disney transportation around the World while we are there. So, we are trying to figure out the best way to get to SeaWorld. It will probably be easiest, although maybe not the cheapest, way to just take a taxi. Does anyone have any experience with this? How much would it cost? Is there another way; like a bus or something from another location? Or would we be better off just trying to get a rental for the day. Thanks!!

There is an entire sticky on the Transporation Board detailing traveling off-site, the most efficient ways and the costs.

[Missytara]

Originally Posted by zaz

Hi all!

Getting excited as I'm leaving in 5 weeks!

At what time do they show the movies?

Thank you!

7 pm in the wintertime - 9 pm in the summertime; they are between buildings no. 5 and 6. Basically it depends on what time of year you are there, so you should see them about 7 pm.