Tell me about POP

ctnurse

DIS Veteran
Joined
Aug 12, 2005
DS 7 and I will be staying here in August. We have stayed POFQ, POR, CSR ,WL and at the Swan. I understand it is a value, the size, buses all of that, but share your stories. DS has seen pics and really wants to stay. I booked a standard view and have the DDP. What if any room requests should I ask for? Share your stories.:goodvibes
 
Definitely ask for a room close to the foodcourt. If you have the dining plan, and the refillable mugs, hiking to the center is daunting from far out, especially after walking all day.
 
I would just go to the pop official page and you will get all the info you need! Have fun!
 
Pop is a great resort. We always request 50s section Building C Illuminations view. This will give you a view of the lake some of the higher fireworks from Illuminations. On one occasion, we were able to see some of Wishes as well.

The food court is one good, better than the other resorts we have stayed at. The buses have always been great for us and you are not that far from any park or Downtown Disney.

None of the walks are that far.

Enjoy your stay.
 


Check out the offical web site, but we will be there in 10 days...always stay there, by far the best resort for everyhting you listed....request 50's building lake view upper level...so you can see illuminations...it is not a far walk from there to the "bowling alley" pool and the food court, if you get the 80's that IS a far walk....
 
Loud and garish buildings and surroundings. Funny stuff like giant bowling pins and Rubik's cubes. Spartan rooms that are...not garish, but not tasteful, either.

Cool check-in area. Pop music playing.

Very decent food court.

Cheesy gift shop.

Crowded pools.

CHEAP! :) (for WDW, anyway)

They wouldn't come get my laundry. I had to take it down to an area near the main entrance. :crazy:
 
We love pop. But this year are going moderate due to the Fd that was just announced.

With 2 of you there the room will be plenty big. With the 4 of us there for 10 days it does get rather small. We have no problems with the double beds either. Pop is very fun with a great food court and basic pools. My kids think that it is the best. I showed them pics of CBR pool to get them sold on the resort.

I'm just editing since we have decied to stay with pop. So that should tell you something.
 


Stayed there in '08 and loved it. We were in the 60's section, Baloo side, courtyard view. We were just past the stairs and vending machines - nice and quiet (of course we were there in Oct so it was not very crowded). We were super close to the Hippie and kiddie pools and the main entrance is just past the pool - no hassle when you come back late from the parks.

DD had breakfast there every morning and had no complaints, their snacks were really good too! The shop is well stocked, never waited longer than 10 minutes for the buses, CMs were very nice and everything was very clean and up to date. There were 3 of us and we did not feel cramped at all in our room.

I used to be a front desk CM at a couple of deluxe resorts and their rooms are not much bigger (yes, some corner/oddly-shaped rooms at deluxes are bigger but there are very few of those) than the Pop rooms. I would love to stay at one of the monorail resorts - maybe then I could book early breakfasts! - but we could have a much longer stay if paying Pop prices so that will never happen. I would not hesitate staying at Pop again :thumbsup2
 
Stayed at Pop just this past September with my mom. LOVED it!

We both have some mobility issues and we wanted something quiet. We got first floor in the 60s section, lake side, and it was perfect. It wasn't noisy at all, was a fairly short walk to the food court (in my opinion at least), and it was plenty big for the two of us. We spent most of our time at the parks. I took a walk around the resort every night, the lake is pretty, the icons are fun (very disney), there are signs for every year (from 50s-90s) along the path around the lake that are interesting to read, some nice benches that just overlook the lake (which I sat on at night while I called my BF to tell him about my day)...it was a very nice place to be.

The food courts would get busy around mid morning...but we usually were there between 7-8 and it wasn't very busy at all. I liked the food at the food court, though mostly just used a snack credit on muffin/bagel and filled my refillable mug with hot chocolate. Gift shop was small but had everything you could need.

Online check in was a waste since we came on Magical express and everyone who got off had checked in online except one or two so that desk was swamped and regular check in line was empty. But room was ready when we got there before 11am and it was really nice to be able to just drop our carry on bags off at the room instead of with bell services.

Getting a taxi to AKL was really easy. All the cast members we interacted with were pleasant and friendly. Bus service was always efficient. Even though there were longer lines when we closed a park, it was never too long of a wait before another bus came and we were on one of the first 3 buses.

I think you guys will have an excellent trip!!
 
We have stayed at ASMovies, POP, POFQ, CSR, AKL and Poly.
We have stayed at POP the past 3 trips and will be returning for our 4th stay this month. Here is our take on POP.

Grounds: Fun, bright, clean, over the top, Disney theming. :)

Rooms: Obviously smaller than mods or deluxes, super clean, great mousekeeping..plenty big enough for our family of 4 who spends most of our time in the Parks.

Food Court: Excellent - lots of choices - all of the usual suspects like burgers, nuggets and pizza - but also some great choices like super nacho's, shrimp lo mein, Mom's night out dinners (comfort food), yummy flatbreads and salads and huge ice cream sundaes.

Gift Shop: Great selection of merchandise - you can also do Pin Trading and Vinylmation trading.

Pools: We have stayed in all three pool areas. Computer Pool, Bowling Pin pool and Hippy Dippy. All are large and seem to accomodate the masses very well, even during the HOT seasons (we stayed in June and August).

We have used the bus system only 1 time in our 3 stays - It was mid December and they were very efficient. The one down side, the POP bus stop at the Parks seems to be the absolute farthest away. Can be a little tough at the end of a long day of walking, especially in the heat.

CM's: We have always found all the CM's to be outstanding - very friendly and helpful.

We have stayed in the 90's, 60's and 50's. Our favorite location was lake view in the 60's. Very quiet and just a 2 minute walk to the Hippy Dippy pool and a 5 minute walk to the main building. This past August we stayed in the 50's, building #1. Was also a great location because we had a car.

The only thing i would recommend about location is I would be sure not to have a room facing a pool. They can be pretty *lively* all hours.

And yes, it is a Value - so you will have to bring your own laundry down and wash it yourself.

HTH:)
 
I can't compare to other resorts, because it was our first trip. However, we LOVED the Pop! My boyfriend and I went, and are both in our mid twenties. We went while they were working on re-doing the rooms. We stayed in a renovated room in the 90s building, facing the laptop pool and LOVED it. Our carpet still had "goosh" in it, it was that new. We were on the highest floor, and that really helped with the noise factor. Granted, its a little "loud" in appearance. Actually, I think i described it once as a violent assault on my eyes. But, it was clean, well appointed, and no frills, and DIRT cheap in comparison to the other hotels. I would definitely stay again!
 
With 2,880 rooms, Pop was in the top 10 largest hotels in the US until they built another huge hotel in Vegas. However, we had no problem walking around it looking at the cool icons & soaking up the atmosphere. That said, I am glad we had a preferred room. We got off the bus, walked straight thru Classic Hall & out the back. Headed to the right for our stairs & went around the corner & to the end for our 2nd story room- a great location & never too far to go at the end of the night. As for construction noise, we heard a vehicle running & a truck backing up a couple of times at the pool and that was it. The lake & bridge were very romantic at night & we strolled around there a couple of nights. We stayed an extra night in the 90's section & it wasn't too far if you cut through the parking lot. We just "preferred" the other room location. I would pay for the preferred section again- we liked it that much. We heard only VERY minimal noise in both rooms & I know we had neighbors. At the Holiday Inn express on the way home, we heard lots more noise from the corridors & our neighbors than we did at Pop.

Before our trip, I read posts where people said if you just need a place to sleep & shower, the values are okay. I tried to not expect too much so I wouldn't be disappinted but I can't stand staying somewhere that I'm not comfortable with cleanliness, etc & I worried (I always worry). Everything was absolutely fine. The only difference between this & other hotels like Holiday Inn where we've stayed are the towels are thinner and the room is a tad smaller. It was a nice standard, comfortable, & clean hotel room & all 4 of us, DH, me, DD10, & DS9, spent time resting & relaxing while watching Stacy in our room.

I just saw another thread where someone said you should take an afternoon break-- if you're staying at a Moderate or Deluxe. Well, we walked through the Grand Floridian and it was dead silent except for the kids' activities director talking non-stop on a loud speaker at the pool. We could hear her from far away & that was pretty loud & annoying. Other than that, it just seemed desolate albeit peaceful. It would probably be pretty relaxing but I wouldn't classify it as fun. The QS food place was tiny & packed when we popped in to use the restroom. I know part of the price there is the proximity to MK, but we caught a bus from there to DTD and had to wait 40 minutes. The only other bus that came through was one to Hollywood Studios after 20 minutes of waiting. At Pop during our visit, these would have been ridiculous & unusual waits! Maybe not many people there take buses? Limos & town cars were everywhere & there weren't very many people waiting for the buses.

To sum all this up, I wouldn't pay $400 more (which is the price difference when I was pricing my vacation for 7 nights) for any Disney hotel over Pop. Even if I wanted to stay somewhere with a different theme, the money would not be worth it in my opinion.
 
This is exactly the kind of info I wanted. I just don't know anything about POP. I wanted to get to WDW this summer and didn't want to spend a lot on the room. Keep the info coming.

Can anyone tell me about any special stuff for kids???
 
They just rehabbed the rooms last summer. We love staying there and it is the only Value we like. The staff is always friendly and we really like the foodcourt there.
The cms really get into the theming doing the hustle and YMCA at various times during the day.
You might want to check out www.allearsnet.com
There are great pictures, reviews and info.
 
I've stayed at POP 3 times and am about to book my 4th! I love it. Considering the amount of time we spent in the hotel, it's just fine for me. I always traveled with adults so i can't tell you much about kids stuff, there is a kiddie pool and the big pools aren't too deep. The Hippie Dippie pool is really fun with the flowers around the edge spraying water. Yes the rooms and decor are loud but that's the whole fun of it.
I always thought the food court had pretty good choices. Sometimes the food wasn't the freshest if the place wasn't too busy.
The mug refill stations are right by the doors to the pool which is nice. So if you're at the pool and want a refill you can duck in without going through the main building or the food court.
We've done the preferred room (in the 60's and 50's) and also stayed in the 70's. I've never found any room particularly far, although I can't imagine coming home from the parks exhausted and walking to the 90's. It seems really far but it might just be my tired feet thinking that.
Unfortunately I can't compare it to any other Disney resort as it's the only one I've been to! But I do love it and will be there again in October!
 
And yes, it is a Value - so you will have to bring your own laundry down and wash it yourself.
You can still send your laundry out, they just won't come pick it up. :crazy:

I had to haul mine down to the staff area, which if you were standing in front of the main entrance, facing it, would be over to the right. There is a little desk there, but they actually had me come back behind the desk and into their area and wait while they got someone to come take the stuff. It was crazy. :crazy:

They were nice, but it wasn't service-nice. It was almost like I was an employee, too. One guy actually called me "baby." Nice! Really nice people...but it was odd and took a lot of time.

The whole thing was just weird.

I don't remember if I had to pick it up or not. I think they dropped it in the room, but won't swear to it.

They really should have housekeeping do a sweep like every other hotel in the world that has send-out laundry. "Bring it down yourself and hang out in the employee area" is ridiculous, "value" or not.
 
You can still send your laundry out, they just won't come pick it up. :crazy:

I had to haul mine down to the staff area, which if you were standing in front of the main entrance, facing it, would be over to the right. There is a little desk there, but they actually had me come back behind the desk and into their area and wait while they got someone to come take the stuff. It was crazy. :crazy:

They were nice, but it wasn't service-nice. It was almost like I was an employee, too. One guy actually called me "baby." Nice! Really nice people...but it was odd and took a lot of time.

The whole thing was just weird.

I don't remember if I had to pick it up or not. I think they dropped it in the room, but won't swear to it.

How much does this service cost?
 
The only problem we had was LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG bus lines after park closing time, especially at Epcot. It was easily many times longer than any line of any sort I've EVER seen in my lifetime. First time I was GOBSMACKED to see the length of the line, only to find out some minues later I'd only seen half of it :eek::eek::eek::eek:
So maybe a idea to leave Epcot a little before closing or stay in the shops until the park is emptier.

Otherwise we loved POP!! :goodvibes:wizard:

DS 7 and I will be staying here in August. We have stayed POFQ, POR, CSR ,WL and at the Swan. I understand it is a value, the size, buses all of that, but share your stories. DS has seen pics and really wants to stay. I booked a standard view and have the DDP. What if any room requests should I ask for? Share your stories.:goodvibes
 
How much does this service cost?
It's the same cost in all the Disney hotels. And it is about the same as any other hotel. And it is about as good/bad, too.

If you've never sent laundry out, it's like $6-7 for a shirt, a few dollars less for t-shirts. Socks are like $2.00. Every item is different. Then they tack on tax and ridiculous fees like an "environmental fee."

If you've stayed in any Disney hotel/motel (or most hotels in the rest of the world), you'll see the laundry bag and the little slip of paper hanging from one of the hangers in your closet.

Generally, you fill out the little slip and put it in the bag with your dirty clothes. You call housekeeping and they come pick it up. If they're busy and you're leaving, you just leave it right inside the door and they come get it. That is how it works in every single hotel - Disney and non-Disney - I've even been in.

But not at Pop. At Pop, I had to go to the front building, around to the side and then sit in the back, in the employee area. Weird. Odd. Strange. Different. Out of the ordinary. Kind of a pain in the butt.
 
We stayed at Pop over spring break this year (the week before Easter) for our first Disney trip, and we thought it was great. With there being no discounts that week due to the peak rates, we just couldn't justify the exorbitant price of mods and deluxes for a place we'd mostly be sleeping in.

My kids (6yo girls) LOVED it -- they loved all the theming, they loved the pool, they loved the food court, they loved the playground, they loved the gift shop, they loved the room, they loved the way the mousekeepers decorated the room every day, they loved that there were so many bunnies running around the grounds. I can't imagine they would have loved any other more expensive hotel more.

Even at this most crowded time of year, we found it very quiet (we were in a room facing the lake, away from the pool); we never heard any neighbors. I will say the room was a little claustrophobic for all 4 of us for a week, and the double bed was a bit small for us, but it didn't seem to me from the specs that the mods or deluxes were THAT much bigger, and certainly not enough bigger to feel like paying the difference.

We drove to the parks every day, but a couple times we did use the bus to come back to the hotel for a pool break during the day (leaving our car in the theme park lot), and we found the bus service very efficient. I imagine it gets very backed up at park closing, though. The staff was all extremely friendly.

I would definitely recommend the hotel to any family with smaller kids. We could afford to stay in a mod or deluxe, but I just don't see that it's worth spending the extra money.
 

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