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Over the years I have had the opportunity to stay at many of the WDW Resorts in all categories, yet I always seem to come back to one as my favorite: Port Orleans French Quarter.

A moderate level resort, Port Orleans French Quarter (or POFQ for short) is a beautiful, quaint property located between the Epcot area and Downtown Disney. It has a “sister resort” – Port Orleans Riverside (formerly known as Dixie Landings) which is in walking distance along the Sassagoula River. When you arrive at POFQ, you feel as though you have stepped through a wrought-iron entry into the historic New Orleans district, where you can leisurely stroll cobblestone walks and inhale the sweet smell of magnolia blossoms in the air, as you watch the rippling waters of the river.

When you check in at the main building, Port Orleans Square, you will be welcomed by an entertaining greeter who will offer you mardi gras beads and maybe even a doubloon to toss into the fountain! From the front entry, you will find the registration area on your right, along with the resort gift shop, Jackson Square Gifts. An interesting fact about the registration area is that it is modeled after the Port Orleans Mint, giving the appearance of the inside of a commercial bank of the 1800s.

Also in the main building, you will find Scat Cat’s Club, where you can enjoy lively jazz entertainment in the evenings while sipping on an array of cocktails or other beverages and Sassagoula Floatworks & Food Factory, the POFQ food court. The food court offers a wide variety for breakfast, lunch & dinner and one thing you MUST try is the beignets! This tasty bakery item is available all day long and a favorite among guests.  At this time, there is not a table service dining location at POFQ, (Bonfamille’s Cafe, my all-time favorite Disney table service location) closed on August 5, 2000, but Boatwrights, located in Port Orleans Riverside, is about a 10 minute walk from here.

Outside the main building, in the center of the resort, you will find the one and only pool on POFQ property, Doubloon Lagoon. It can’t be missed as it has a giant sea serpent named Scales who serves as the pool slide….seriously, who doesn’t want to slide down the tongue of a sea serpent into the pool? Hahaha!

The area around the pool is also home to many dancing alligators, a kiddie pool, a playground, and Mardi Grogs pool bar. The resort laundry facilities are also located here.

The rooms at POFQ were all recently renovated. The 1,008 guest rooms are located in 7 three-story buildings, with 144 rooms per building. Sixty-two of these rooms feature one King Size bed instead of the normal two queen bed layout, and 12 rooms are specially adapted to accommodate disabled guests. Each of the seven buildings contains three elevator locations. Our favorite building is building 1, located at the very back of the resort. In 2009, we had a room on the 3^rd floor here, that was a corner room, which I highly recommend – you get a lot more light into the room as you have 2 windows instead of the normal one. While we had requested a standard room, the way the room was situated, we not only had a lovely view of the parking lot, but also of the bend of the Sassagoula River, right where it makes its turn to head towards Downtown Disney. It has become our most requested building.

If you are looking for a smaller resort on WDW property, that is quiet and easy to get around, I highly recommend POFQ. With little ones and strollers coming back from the busses each night, it’s so much nicer to not have that huge, long walk to get back to the room. No matter where you go in this resort, it’s never taken me more than 5 – 8 minutes to walk to and from. We enjoy the gardens and fountains on the property along with the brick lined roads that guide you where you go.

Sending pixie dust wishes & magical dreams your way – until next time…

Laura