5. Disney’s Port Orleans – Riverside

Image: DisneyWhile I believe that French Quarter is the superiorly themed resort at Port Orleans, I don’t want to undersell Riverside. It’s a wonderful facility, but the competition is fierce since a New Orleans theme is so tough to beat.

At Riverside, you’ll enjoy the beauty of the antebellum south, especially a specific part of the Mississippi River area. That gorgeous architecture along that body of water, the Sassagoula River, provides the backdrop for the resort. The setting is rural Louisiana from a simpler time, when time moved slower and people savored their surroundings more than their phones. The southern charm is on display in the buildings and at Boatwright’s Dining Hall, a restaurant set in a shipbuilding yard. It’s all quite lovely, just a bit underwhelming compared to its sibling at French Quarter.

4. Disney’s Contemporary Resort

Image: DisneyIn a way, the Contemporary suffers from the same problem that mars the themed land it overlooks, Tomorrowland. Both of them are supposed to represent something that’s difficult to define and always changing. Since Walt Disney World opened in 1971, the Contemporary has been there, shipping monorails to and from Magic Kingdom. And its theme is somehow both constant and impermanent.

The theme at the Contemporary is modernity. Every few years, Imagineers stylishly redecorate the interior trappings to reflect new and popular ideas in hotel décor. This frequent need for beautification is why the resort is so divisive. It has some features that will never change, specifically that monorail going through its A-frame design, and its proximity to Magic Kingdom.

Everything else is in a constant state of flux. I happen to like that the art deco style at the Contemporary will be different in ten years from what it is today, but others feel frustrated by the lack of familiarity. As such, it’s impossible to rank the Contemporary in the top three, even though I happen to spend more time at this resort than anywhere else.