No longer a Pop Century fan

[Rosanne]

I stayed there 2 1/2 years ago and we had tons of gross bugs in our room and bathroom. They weren't bedbugs, thank goodness. I imagine it was because we were near the lake and on the first floor. We are big fans of upper floors. I won't say we'd never stay there again but definitely upper floor if we did.

 

[polyfor4]

We stayed two nights at Pop in May 2012 and had maintenance trouble as well. One of our party members had a room to them self which was not available until 7 pm and when it was ready the floor was wet due to a carpet cleaning so they left an industrial fan on to aid with the soaking wet carpet. The room was just for one guy, we were only there two nights and they credited him $80 so we can't complain too much. If we were there longer than two nights or had our whole family in that room, it would have been a sour start to the trip. It wasn't the quality I expect from Disney and I agree with the OP that Pop might need some more TLC due to high volume. I guess Disney dropping the ball once in the 17 times we've been is okay with us

 

[polyfor4]

I forgot to mention that every time we've stayed at the Poly we've had room cleaning/ maid issues. Nothing to really affect our trip but just goes to show that human error can happen at a value or a deluxe! I would put good faith in any Disney resort but it does stink when the magic is lost even a tiny bit!

 

[dreamscometrue101]

I'm sorry to hear about your bad experience. It's gotten me a little concerned about my upcoming trip.

I usually stay at the moderate resorts, but I had heard great things about POP and my Niece loves the pictures so we decided to stay at POP for our trip 1/21 - 1/26.

I'm hoping your experience was an exception and not the norm.

 

[alecshawn]

I'm sorry to hear about your bad experience. It's gotten me a little concerned about my upcoming trip.

I usually stay at the moderate resorts, but I had heard great things about POP and my Niece loves the pictures so we decided to stay at POP for our trip 1/21 - 1/26.

I'm hoping your experience was an exception and not the norm.

POP is a great resort......remember, "a greasy wheel attracts oil"
There is alot of folks that only comment or whine when things go bad. Most people, when things go good.. say nothing. You'll be fine and love it.

 

[Allieran3]

We stayed at Pop from Nov 27- Dec 6th, and we had no problems. Our room was always cleaned, CMs were awesome, food was great. I love love Pop.

 

[Disneylover99]

DH was not wowed in the least. He kept asking me where those "Disney details" were that I had been raving about. Lukily I convinced him this trip was my worst ever and he needs to give Disney another shot...with a nicer resort next time. One day we went to the Grand Floridian and he checked out the lobby bathroom. He came out and said, "Finally I found a clean restroom!" So he is now convinced we need to stay at a Deluxe resort next time.

No longer a Pop fan.

Op I had to comment on your Grand Floridian washroom experience. it made me laugh. We had dinner one evening at the Grand Floridian and went to the washrooms by the lobby. The women's washroom was so dirty and disgusting I couldn't believe it. When I commented to my husband about this he said that the men's washroom was gross too! So tell your DH that Deluxe doesn't always equal clean.

In general I feel that most of your frustrations with Pop were as a result of a washroom that had suffered a lot of wear and tear and I totally get it. That would really bother me too and I probably wouldn't want to return.

Maybe next time find a resort that has had a recent rehab. I wouldn't necessarily think that Deluxe would be better. You may run into the same kind of washroom issues in Deluxe if there hasn't been a recent rehab.

 

[spoohs]

Op I had to comment on your Grand Floridian washroom experience. it made me laugh. We had dinner one evening at the Grand Floridian and went to the washrooms by the lobby. The women's washroom was so dirty and disgusting I couldn't believe it. When I commented to my husband about this he said that the men's washroom was gross too! So tell your DH that Deluxe doesn't always equal clean.

In general I feel that most of your frustrations with Pop were as a result of a washroom that had suffered a lot of wear and tear and I totally get it. That would really bother me too and I probably wouldn't want to return.

Maybe next time find a resort that has had a recent rehab. I wouldn't necessarily think that Deluxe would be better. You may run into the same kind of washroom issues in Deluxe if there hasn't been a recent rehab.

I have to agree that Deluxe isn't always better. A few years ago my friend and I and our dd's went from the Pop to the Beach Club and had a few minor maintance issue and one major issue that really could have caused seriously injury if we where not in bed lying down when it happenend. They where going to switch our room, but when they showed my friends the other rooms they weren't in decent shape either so we just stayed put and had them fix all the problems immediatly.

 

[cey]

I stayed at the POP from 27/11/12-11/12/12 and am afraid it will be my last! During the 2 weeks, I also had ongoing maintenance issues. Toilet not flushing (which was fixed), TV losing most of its channels ( which wasn't, even after several visits from the tech department. ) They told me to just jiggle the cable wires in the back, until the guide would come back on! ?????

The overflow football players during POP warner were a complete disaster. One friday, over 4 complete football teams took over the computer pool, forcing families out of the area. Later in the week, a lifeguard told me that they had to evict POP warner participants due to not having chaperones! Yes, I phoned the front desk and complained. As everyone else who was there that day! The front desk was very sympathetic (after all they had to field all the phone calls) but the manager was not. This year, Disney decided to spread out the kids and their families throughout numerous resorts, to reduce problems. Not working! Instead, Disney lost many families who will not ever stay at POP again! The last friday of POP warner, they closed the computer pool, as they had to move the lifeguards to another pool because of "problems". I really don't blame the lifeguards for the situation, as I have never seen CMs suffer so much verbal abuse from guests, as those two female lifeguards had to endure! The recent changes to the food court menu, have also not improved the food selection at all! Instead of localizing fish and shellfish items in one area, they have them spread all over the food court, resulting in an allergy nightmare. The chefs are not happy about the recent changes, but the one time, I did eat in the food court, did receive great allergy awareness service from the chef I dealt with. But as a result, I will never stay on-site again! Off site at Windsor Hills will now be my choice of a vacation destination at WDW! And don't even get me started on the disney buses and the large groups of people(8-10)who would walk on the bus with one scooter! Not even going there! I use to rave about POP, now I won't recommend it to anyone!

 

[maxaroni]

IMO, many of these issues can be in values, mods and deludes. Sometimes, it's the luck of the draw (mousekeepking, maintenance), just plain dumb luck. We stayed at Pop this past September, first time in a value and had no complaints at all. We loved it and we knew going in it was a value and that was what we wanted this trip.

However, we went to POFQ for dinner one night and ran into a couple getting off the bus with us that hated POFQ. They were staying there and had issues from the start.....had requested a room close to things (not sure if she paid for a preferred room or not) due to medical issues on the DH part. They were placed the furthest away. She stated she did say something but the CM said that was what was available and that's that. So, they suffered the whole trip as her DH didn't want to make a fuss. She went on to say she cut herself shaving and the blood on the sheets were there for 4 nights and she couldn't believe the sheets weren't changed. She was unhappy with that. She also stated that all of her travel docs (including CC #'s) were taken out of the room after mousekeeping was in. Now, why people leave that out is beyond me but they did. This woman went on to say that she had a fairly important position in business but her DH didn't want her to say anything. This was their last night. My DH persuaded her to go to a manager because it's better to straighten things out before she leaves (should have been earlier). She did say something about the travel docs and someone went to the trash and pulled things out of the dumpster, it was still all in an envelope. Now, the last thing we knew, she was still talking to the manager but he walked away a minute and she said they got a certificate for 20% off anything in the gift store and she was waiting to see what else.

We loved POFQ the twice we stayed and had zero problems.

Just saying, things can happen anywhere and one must speak up. When this woman went to the manager, her DH walked away but she had had it and we convinced her to go.

 

[kapoof]

Another reason to go deluxe...they are smaller house fewer people hence there are usually fewer problems. I do know problems can arise at any level, it takes one rude person to make things turn bad. However it seems to be more at the values due to pop warner, and the huge influx of tour groups. Which is very unfair to the nice families who stay there. I really wish Disney would stand up more to rudeness!

 

[Bravesfan]

Yes, this is kind of funny (wasn't at the time) but after we moved to POFQ, I think it was the 4th night, we returned to our room and found 6 or 7 inches of sewer water in the tub. Our DD & family also had this problem. So yes, things can happen at any resort.

 

[disnut8]

POP is a great resort......remember, "a greasy wheel attracts oil"
There is alot of folks that only comment or whine when things go bad. Most people, when things go good.. say nothing. You'll be fine and love it.

No on the OP but this is true. The OP had stayed at Pop nine times before but I'm sure didn't rush home and post how much she liked it and that's just human nature (again, OP, not bashing you but explaining what gets things posted here).

We had a horrible experience at All Star Sports and I probably won't be back there again. But we do enjoy Pop Century and only have had one issue and that was when the TV set would not turn off. We tried everything. Called engineering, went out to the parks, came back and the TV was fine. The only housekeeping problem we've had is when we are still in the room and she looks in the window. Learned to keep those blinds shut even with the DND sign on the door.

Now, the food court - not a fan at all. Not because of misundertstandings but because we don't like the food.

Too each his or her own when it comes to resorts so those people who are nervous about upcoming trips, relax. For every bad experience, I think you'll find five good ones. But you can't do that on the board because people very rarely post their good ones.

 

[maxiesmom]

You can have a bad experience at any resort. How I judge is how things are handled once I bring them to someone's attention at the time. I honestly don't think it is fair to you or to the resort to suffer thru a bad room. Why put up with a bad room for your whole vacation? Why not give them the chance to make it right? If they don't, you can take the step of switching resorts. And then send off an e-mail once you are home. But to spend your vacation annoyed, and then complain once you are home? Not so good.

I do understand being upset, and not wanting to return. But as someone on the Dis once told me after a bad experience, give the resort another chance. Maybe not your next trip, but the one after that go back. More people have good experiences than bad. Give them another shot.

 

[adisneymama]

Had the same experience 12/20-12/26 at Pop. Left two days early and received a refund for unused nights due to all of the issues we had. Many maintenance issues, room was musty as a/c wasnt working properly. It evntually went out all together. Front desk staff was hit or miss. A few were very nice but most were rude. CMs had no idea where the rooms were located. Don't get me started on the Food court! Was very upset and sad as Pop has always been one of our faves!

 

[KrazeeK120]

I haven't had problems at the Disney resorts I've stayed at. I'm staying at Pop for 3 nights in less than 2 weeks, so I am hoping for a pleasant experience there.

OP, I'm sorry that you had a bad experience at Pop. But I'm not sure that your complaint is entirely fair. Yes, you have the "right" to post whatever you want on a message board. Yes, there were problems with your room. But you did NOTHING while you were there to try to correct the problem. Rooms and resorts have maintenance issues sometimes. Such is life. I'm sure if you had said something, the folks at Disney would have either fixed the problems or moved you to a different room. Had you said something and they done nothing about it, THEN I think your complaining would be justified. You're complaining that you had a miserable week at your resort, but I think you are partially to blame. Disney can't help you or make your time more pleasant if they are unaware that there are problems.

 

[Salrx95]

Wow, this thread has made me both nervous and gotten my eyes open.

I fully understand more people complain than praise but we are checking in about 37 days. We switched to PoP instead of all Cars Suite AoA to save money after free dining was not offered during our week. So we are doing 5 nights Pop after 2 nights AoA and this thread makes me feel like we have a good chance of having issues. We chose Pop specifically to still walk over the bridge and the enjoy the "cars" experience.

Now, I have to hope we an upper floor with no maintenance issues, working TV, soft bed, good housekeeper while dealing with food court issues. Did I miss anything..lol.

Not worried about most of it but I have bad feet and a not so great back, though better after a procedure a few months ago, and the bed thing is of most concern. We won't eat much in the food court and will do breakfast in room when we don't have an ADR. The room is where is we mostly sleep and not do much else. We plan on doing the pool day while at AoA.

Like others have said, there can be problems anywhere, though we had pretty much none to speak of on our first disney trip in Feb 2011. This is a huge financial commitment to take our boys to WDW and hope it will all be magical.

 

[Tink415]

I haven't had problems at the Disney resorts I've stayed at. I'm staying at Pop for 3 nights in less than 2 weeks, so I am hoping for a pleasant experience there.

OP, I'm sorry that you had a bad experience at Pop. But I'm not sure that your complaint is entirely fair. Yes, you have the "right" to post whatever you want on a message board. Yes, there were problems with your room. But you did NOTHING while you were there to try to correct the problem. Rooms and resorts have maintenance issues sometimes. Such is life. I'm sure if you had said something, the folks at Disney would have either fixed the problems or moved you to a different room. Had you said something and they done nothing about it, THEN I think your complaining would be justified. You're complaining that you had a miserable week at your resort, but I think you are partially to blame. Disney can't help you or make your time more pleasant if they are unaware that there are problems.

The OP did say they had maintenance check the faucet several times and it didn't get fixed during their stay...
And moving to a different room might sound easy, but it can take hours, causing precious vacation time to be lost.

 

[disnut1149]

Wow, this thread has made me both nervous and gotten my eyes open.

I fully understand more people complain than praise but we are checking in about 37 days. We switched to PoP instead of all Cars Suite AoA to save money after free dining was not offered during our week. So we are doing 5 nights Pop after 2 nights AoA and this thread makes me feel like we have a good chance of having issues. We chose Pop specifically to still walk over the bridge and the enjoy the "cars" experience.

Now, I have to hope we an upper floor with no maintenance issues, working TV, soft bed, good housekeeper while dealing with food court issues. Did I miss anything..lol.

Not worried about most of it but I have bad feet and a not so great back, though better after a procedure a few months ago, and the bed thing is of most concern. We won't eat much in the food court and will do breakfast in room when we don't have an ADR. The room is where is we mostly sleep and not do much else. We plan on doing the pool day while at AoA.

Like others have said, there can be problems anywhere, though we had pretty much none to speak of on our first disney trip in Feb 2011. This is a huge financial commitment to take our boys to WDW and hope it will all be magical.

Hi,
I hope you like the beds. They are really, really firm. Not soft at all. They feel like you're sleeping on a board. No give at all with the beds that we had. We were in the 70's building and newly renovated. I was also thinking that if I wanted to stay at Pop again, or the other values,that I could buy two foam mattress toppers and mail them down ahead of time. I don't know how much that would help. Then I would either mail them back or just leave them there. Years ago, the resorts had foam mattress toppers that you could request. Not any more. Hope you have a great trip!!

 

[Jennasis]

Hi,
I hope you like the beds. They are really, really firm. Not soft at all. They feel like you're sleeping on a board. No give at all with the beds that we had. We were in the 70's building and newly renovated. I was also thinking that if I wanted to stay at Pop again, or the other values,that I could buy two foam mattress toppers and mail them down ahead of time. I don't know how much that would help. Then I would either mail them back or just leave them there. Years ago, the resorts had foam mattress toppers that you could request. Not any more. Hope you have a great trip!!

My mother, with a lifelong bad back, LOVED the beds at Pop. So much so that she took the information on them so she could buy one for home.