Disappointed in Pop/Value Level

[2009CAN]

I've only stayed at Deluxe and Mods in the past and our upcoming trip is at POP. This makes me sad and nervous. We're paying for two rooms and because of that are priced out of the nicer resorts. This will likely be our last trip for a very, very long time and I already feel bummed out and we're still a few months out.

 

[maxiesmom]

I've only stayed at Deluxe and Mods in the past and our upcoming trip is at POP. This makes me sad and nervous. We're paying for two rooms and because of that are priced out of the nicer resorts. This will likely be our last trip for a very, very long time and I already feel bummed out and we're still a few months out.

Don't worry! I've stayed at all sorts of resorts, from the Poly to the All Star Sports. The value resorts are not fancy, but they are not the pits some people make them out to be!

The theming is more in your face, and the pool areas are not fancy. Plus they don't have a hot tub. However they do have bright and fun decor, and great food courts. As long as you go on your vacation with the mind set that you are at Disney and are going to have a great time, you will!

 

[glammadiva]

Stayed at all values and have never had an issue with any of them. Pop is definitely my favorite.

 

[AquaDame]

I've stayed at all three levels and honestly found all but the deluxes to be majorly lacking in upkeep. Lots of paint missing, dings, bugs etc. Have done ASSp (2x) Pop (2x) POFQ (2x) CSR (1x) and AKL (1x). Had weevels in the ice bucket at ASSp, a cockroach & tons of cigarette ash outside my door at CSR, and lots of dust & dead bugs in the corners of POP as well as a maid who left only the half used bottles of shampoo and conditioner at POP at check in. Very gross! The only problem I can remember at POFQ was general paint chipping and such... this was RIGHT after they opened up the refurbished rooms so I was pretty mystified. As in they had only opened one building so far with redone rooms (and we were very much in that one). I wish they could do a THOROUGH cleaning/refreshing of those rooms more often. For our next trip we are staying just at AKL again and I admit to being fairly relieved.

 

[Princess_Nikki]

We stayed at Pop with our 4 kids 2 summers ago. The rooms were always clean. We did see critters on the grounds, but they were the bunny sort, nothing scary. We were in the 50s building, nice and close to everything, but not right next to the pool which can stay noisy late into the night. The staff were fabulous, including the cleaning crew who rearranged my kids toys everyday. The rooms were always spotless. The air conditioning was perfect (sometimes too cold for me). The benefit of 2 rooms was less disagreeing about temp. When the air was too cold in one room, I went to the other. The rooms are a little smaller than moderate ( we haven't stayed Deluxe yet, so I can't compare). There are no water slides at the pools, so that might be an issue for your kids. Bathroom tissue was 1 ply when we were there. That was probably my least favourite feature. Nothing huge. We had previously stayed at POR in a regular room, and to be honest, we all preferred Pop to that. It is designed and decorated with kids in mind. It feels like Disney all the time. We spent many a happy afternoon and evening walking around the resort taking pictures. Lots of great activities in the pool area to make up for the lack of slide. I thought it was a fabulous family resort and a fabulous value.

Us too. I was just at POP a few weeks ago, June 24-28. Myself, DS6, & DS4 decided to stay there since All Star Sports was refurbishing their food court area. I just went for a few days to unwind with the boys. We are Florida residents who go several times a year, and since the boys are so small, we love to do the value resorts. We LOVED Pop.

Sorry to hear OP about your poor experience there, I hope you notify WDW, perhaps whatever building/Decade you were in does need some help!

We were in the 50's area ourselves, and it was AWESOME. Building 3, 3rd floor and Maria our mousekeeper was the best. She would always arrange the boys toys in a certain order around the room.

 

[4mykids]

We have stayed at the CR (both wings and tower), BC, BWI, Dolphin, AKL, POR (Alligator Bayou and Mansions), POFQ, Shades of Green, and Pop in my 30+ trips to WDW. When money was plentiful and prices were lower, we always stayed at the deluxe resorts. I hated the idea of going to the Pop, but my BFF talked me into it 7 years ago. We have stayed there six times since then with the latest stay being this past May. We LOVE the Pop. You just have to remember that you are staying in a value resort, and the amenities and room size are not the same. The transportation at the Pop is absolutely better than any of the other resorts we've stayed in. The rooms were clean with not so much as a hair in the bathroom -- and I checked! I don't think I can ever go back to the higher priced resorts. Just cannot see spending the $$$$$ when we are only in the room to shower and sleep. We are staying at the AoA (LM) in January, and I am already missing the Pop!! I'm sorry the OP had a less than desirable experience, but I've found on these boards that if someone is disappointed in their resort stay, they can find dozens of people who agree with them; if they loved their resort, they can find dozens who agree. To those of you who are worried about the Pop, don't be! Enjoy the theming, music, transportation, and ALL the $$$$$ you'll be saving! It allows us to make multiple trips rather than one every few years!

 

[JessicaKnits]

I think comparing Pop Century to a Days Inn is incredibly unfair and inaccurate. I can't recall a Days Inn, or any Holiday Inn either, that included multiple pools, a fully equipped food court with such variety, free and reliable transportation except for an airport shuttle, a wide variety of children's activities, immaculately mannered grounds, a pool bar, etc. Any hotel is going to show wear and tear over the years, some rooms more than others, depending on how guests abuse them when they stay. Pop was last retouched in 2010, so I imagine in another 2 years or so, it will be getting another facelift with new carpet, paint and furnishings.

I think going into a Value with appropriate expectations is key. At any level of hotel, you should expect a clean and comfortable room. You can't expect the finishes or theming or amenities of moderate or deluxe resorts.

Out of curiosity, I wanted to see which of Disney's hotels ranked the highest on TripAdvisor.com

I bet it would surprise you that Pop outranks both the Polynesian and Contemporary Resort. Pop Ranks #88 out of 329 hotels. The Poly and Contemporary are #99 and #129 respectively. Even Disney's Crown Jewel, The Grand Floridian, only ranks #77. In case anyone was wondering, Disney's Wilderness Lodge ranks the highest, at #16. Very eye opening to me! Those people are paying nearly 4x the rate for their room, and are leaving less satisfied!

 

[Amy&Dan]

Don't mean to offend anyone but what can you expect from a value?

Katie

Don't mean to offend you, but this post makes no sense.

Are you saying that values are so rock bottom cheap that to expect a clean room, decent food, nice grounds and pools and transportation to the parks that is reliable is just a forgone "not gonna happen at your cheap resort"?

At a WDW value, I expect the same standards of cleanliness, customer service and food quality that I expect at a deluxe. And so far for many stays at the values I have stayed at for the past nine years that has been delivered to me.

Now I don't expect a room that is large, double sinks, a table service restaurant and a balcony because if I did, I'd be delusional because why would I get that for hundreds less than the resort category that has those things.

At the Poly, I didn't expect better food, a cleaner room and better transportation, I just expected a larger room, a balcony, table service and room service options and proximity to a park. Which I got.

This idea that values are trashy Motel 6's that happen to have Disney theming and that to expect more than a Motel 6 is crazy. And not the case. Bad stuff happens at values like less than stellar housekeeping, long bus waits and non satisfied customers. But then that happens at the deluxe's too.

 

[Disneymommyof4]

Now that adds a whole new meaning to "mousekeeping"!

Haha..yes it does

 

[glammadiva]

Us too. I was just at POP a few weeks ago, June 24-28. Myself, DS6, & DS4 decided to stay there since All Star Sports was refurbishing their food court area. I just went for a few days to unwind with the boys. We are Florida residents who go several times a year, and since the boys are so small, we love to do the value resorts. We LOVED Pop.

Sorry to hear OP about your poor experience there, I hope you notify WDW, perhaps whatever building/Decade you were in does need some help!

We were in the 50's area ourselves, and it was AWESOME. Building 3, 3rd floor and Maria our mousekeeper was the best. She would always arrange the boys toys in a certain order around the room.

Maria is AWESOME!!!!! We get preferred room whenever we stay at POP and pray she is our mousekeeper. She even makes towel animals for our toothbrushes!

 

[disnut1149]

Hi
I always loved Pop, but since the return in 2010, the beds are really hard. If
you like a really firm bed, you should be ok. We had to change resorts during
our stay due to waking up with terrible backache.

 

[Simba77]

It's been a while since I stayed at POP, but both times I did it was fantastic. Not a thing to complain about. And last time I was there was before the recent round of refurbs.

I'm staying again in September, and I'm not concerned.

It doesn't matter where you stay, there is always a chance that you'll find something that bothers you. If something in your room is unacceptable, alert the front desk. If they can't clean it up or fix it for you, they can likely find you another room.

POP was far above and beyond any other "run of the mill" place (chain motels) I've stayed at outside of Disney. The atmosphere is fantastic. Yes, the rooms are basic. I don't "live" in the hotel room. I sleep there, I take naps there, I wash up and prep there. For the current price ($125 rack rate + free dining or ~$100 discounted) it's incredibly hard to beat.

I always feel immersed in Disney "magic" at POP, other than the rooms being slightly bland.

I'm not suggesting that everyone should/will love it, but from my standpoint, I've got nothing but great experiences and memories there.

 

[Don Disney]

I've only stayed at Deluxe and Mods in the past and our upcoming trip is at POP. This makes me sad and nervous. We're paying for two rooms and because of that are priced out of the nicer resorts. This will likely be our last trip for a very, very long time and I already feel bummed out and we're still a few months out.

Bummed out AND going to Disney!? Wow.... I wish I could be so bummed out!!!

 

[calnmace]

We were at Pop in April, and thought it was very clean, the cast members were very friendly and we had no problems whatsoever. Pop is by far our favorite value resort.

 

[calnmace]

I think comparing Pop Century to a Days Inn is incredibly unfair and inaccurate. I can't recall a Days Inn, or any Holiday Inn either, that included multiple pools, a fully equipped food court with such variety, free and reliable transportation except for an airport shuttle, a wide variety of children's activities, immaculately mannered grounds, a pool bar, etc. Any hotel is going to show wear and tear over the years, some rooms more than others, depending on how guests abuse them when they stay. Pop was last retouched in 2010, so I imagine in another 2 years or so, it will be getting another facelift with new carpet, paint and furnishings.

I think going into a Value with appropriate expectations is key. At any level of hotel, you should expect a clean and comfortable room. You can't expect the finishes or theming or amenities of moderate or deluxe resorts.

Out of curiosity, I wanted to see which of Disney's hotels ranked the highest on TripAdvisor.com

I bet it would surprise you that Pop outranks both the Polynesian and Contemporary Resort. Pop Ranks #88 out of 329 hotels. The Poly and Contemporary are #99 and #129 respectively. Even Disney's Crown Jewel, The Grand Floridian, only ranks #77. In case anyone was wondering, Disney's Wilderness Lodge ranks the highest, at #16. Very eye opening to me! Those people are paying nearly 4x the rate for their room, and are leaving less satisfied!

This!

 

[cubsblue]

Putting POP on the level of Motel 6. Just, wow! You either have never been to Motel 6 or had the worst experience ever at Pop. We love it and nearly picked it over CS on our next trip.

 

[Disneylover99]

We loved Pop last month!!!! The rooms are clean and the grounds are well maintained.....same as mod and deluxe Disney hotels.

BTW....Bus service rocked!!!! Maybe we were lucky, but we never waited more then five minutes for a bus during our 13 day stay. This includes going to the parks, coming back from the parks and it also includes DTD!

 

[scjo68]

I was one who expressed "worry" about staying at Pop in August after reading the op's review. Specifically I was concerned about the room being clean and cool enough. This was our first value stay.

I just wanted to revisit this thread to say that my worries were unfounded. We had a wonderful stay last month at Pop. The room was clean, comfy, and very cold. I never experienced the a/c going off, either at night or while we were gone. To be honest, I have never had an issue with that at any of our wdw resorts.

Bus service was wonderful. The cm's were friendly and helpful. I missed having a coffeemaker in my room, but I just brought my keurig.

The room was not large or luxurious, but it met our needs fine, and with the discount we got, the price was great.

 

[Tomader]

The Pop is overpriced. The OP is correct on the Motel 8 comment because my kids say the same thing. The rooms are very small and the beds are horrible. But if you want to go to Disney at a reasonable rate your stuck with the Values. Only in Disney would I sleep in such a small room facing a bowling pin.

 

[redngold]

We just got back from our trip and had a night at pop at the beginning that I had to add due to flights. This was our first time staying on site and Pop was just terrible, It felt just like the OP described and I even made the comment it felt like a motel 6 with disney slapped on it. The air did work fine and there were beds but that was about it. The resort itself felt very crowded and spread out. We went to POFQ after that night and it was like night and day. Just my opinion but after experiencing Pop we decided it is definitely worth the extra money for a mod.