POP Century~Unofficially the Grooviest FAQ Thread #9~November 2013

[stevevm]

After 11 hours in the car yesterday and 5 the day before.
It's nice to wake up in Jacksonville, Fl with a clear sunny morning knowing we only have a 2 1/2 hour drive to POP!

Looking forward to lunch at BOG(Fastpass) and dinner at the POP food court.

And looking forward to our next 7 nights at disney then 3 at universal!

 

[Disneylover99]

After 11 hours in the car yesterday and 5 the day before.
It's nice to wake up in Jacksonville, Fl with a clear sunny morning knowing we only have a 2 1/2 hour drive to POP!

Looking forward to lunch at BOG(Fastpass) and dinner at the POP food court.

And looking forward to our next 7 nights at disney then 3 at universal!

Safe travels and enjoy!!!!!

 

[shyjade]

Although we loved our stay at Pop last year, I decided to "splurge" and stay at CSR in November in attempt to have a more relaxing trip (we've never stayed at a moderate). However, DD16 REALLY wants to visit Diagon Alley (I won't lie, so do I) so I have cancelled CSR and have decided to return to Pop! With the money I'll be saving we can take a day-trip to the Dark Side (it will be a surprise for DD's upcoming 17th birthday).

At first I thought I'd be a bit sad about giving up CSR but I know we will enjoy Pop again this year. Best of all, the affordable rates allow us to do something I've always managed to avoid...going off site. I feel like such a rebel!

 

[azureskies]

After 11 hours in the car yesterday and 5 the day before.
It's nice to wake up in Jacksonville, Fl with a clear sunny morning knowing we only have a 2 1/2 hour drive to POP!

Looking forward to lunch at BOG(Fastpass) and dinner at the POP food court.

And looking forward to our next 7 nights at disney then 3 at universal!

Have a magical time!

 

[mgsquared]

Although we loved our stay at Pop last year, I decided to "splurge" and stay at CSR in November in attempt to have a more relaxing trip (we've never stayed at a moderate). However, DD16 REALLY wants to visit Diagon Alley (I won't lie, so do I) so I have cancelled CSR and have decided to return to Pop! With the money I'll be saving we can take a day-trip to the Dark Side (it will be a surprise for DD's upcoming 17th birthday).

At first I thought I'd be a bit sad about giving up CSR but I know we will enjoy Pop again this year. Best of all, the affordable rates allow us to do something I've always managed to avoid...going off site. I feel like such a rebel!

Oh I know what you mean!! When I asked the TA for a quote I asked her to please also check a moderate (we wanted the free dining upgrade and sometimes with the upgrade it costs the same). There was a 600$ price difference! Geez, even if it had been a 200$ price difference... that's a Disney collectible figurine (DH really wants one!) or a bunch of other cool souvenirs. I read so many reviews and read about how the buses have stops within the resort and then go to the parks and the stops aren't always organized and or shaded.

I am not going to Disney to spend so much time on a bus! I also want to walk around but do not see how walking to the parks is worth 6x the price... so Pop! it is! I can walk to AoA and there is a dedicated bus and I can even take the AoA bus... it looks nice and fun and like a decent bed to sleep in after a long Disney day (plus who spends that much time in the resorts anyways? )

More money in our pockets for fun stuff!

We're super excited!!

 

[azureskies]

Although we loved our stay at Pop last year, I decided to "splurge" and stay at CSR in November in attempt to have a more relaxing trip (we've never stayed at a moderate). However, DD16 REALLY wants to visit Diagon Alley (I won't lie, so do I) so I have cancelled CSR and have decided to return to Pop! With the money I'll be saving we can take a day-trip to the Dark Side (it will be a surprise for DD's upcoming 17th birthday).

At first I thought I'd be a bit sad about giving up CSR but I know we will enjoy Pop again this year. Best of all, the affordable rates allow us to do something I've always managed to avoid...going off site. I feel like such a rebel!

Yay! What a wonderful surprise for your daughter.

I planned to stay in moderate resorts and realized how much I could save with the value resorts. We (my soon-to-be 16-year-old son and myself) realized we would rather be able to enjoy longer trips and more trips. We are also looking into the campsites at FW for future stays.

 

[brittanyyyrocks]

We'll be getting in on Sunday for our stay at Pop! Never stayed here before, so we're excited.

 

[momofboyz3]

I'm sooooo torn!!!! We stayed @ POR last year & 2015 really wanted to try CSR. My daily life (I am a single mom and work over 50 hours a week) is HECTIC. My boys 14, 14 & 10 have hectic schedules as well. So for us we enjoy ONE resort day, hanging out by the pool (and of course I like my adult beverage) we also love a more laid back resort, even my teens liked that about POR.
But....... When just playing around with resorts I couldn't help but notice such a price difference between POP & the mods!!!!! I've heard & read amazing things about POP. The bed size isn't a huge deal as we can manage for a week.
But, I'm afraid we will lose that "relax" feel after our RD days and running around the parks.

 

[Disneylover99]

I'm sooooo torn!!!! We stayed @ POR last year & 2015 really wanted to try CSR. My daily life (I am a single mom and work over 50 hours a week) is HECTIC. My boys 14, 14 & 10 have hectic schedules as well. So for us we enjoy ONE resort day, hanging out by the pool (and of course I like my adult beverage) we also love a more laid back resort, even my teens liked that about POR.
But....... When just playing around with resorts I couldn't help but notice such a price difference between POP & the mods!!!!! I've heard & read amazing things about POP. The bed size isn't a huge deal as we can manage for a week.
But, I'm afraid we will lose that "relax" feel after our RD days and running around the parks.

We stayed at Pop for 13 days last year and we still felt relaxed and able to unwind at Pop at the end of each day. We've also stayed at POR so I do realize that POR is more peaceful.

One question though....would your boys miss the slides? There are no slides at Pop.

 

[momofboyz3]

We stayed at Pop for 13 days last year and we still felt relaxed and able to unwind at Pop at the end of each day. We've also stayed at POR so I do realize that POR is more peaceful. One question though....would your boys miss the slides? There are no slides at Pop.

Thanks for the feedback, that does sound hopeful & sounds like you guys had a great time! I don't think the waterslide is a deal breaker for us

 

[JoshuaShaw]

You'll love it!

The resort was never really on my radar. Then I noticed they had breakfast burritos and tabletop arcade games and it was an insta-book. 102 days!

 

[EpcotBill]

I'm sooooo torn!!!! We stayed @ POR last year & 2015 really wanted to try CSR. My daily life (I am a single mom and work over 50 hours a week) is HECTIC. My boys 14, 14 & 10 have hectic schedules as well. So for us we enjoy ONE resort day, hanging out by the pool (and of course I like my adult beverage) we also love a more laid back resort, even my teens liked that about POR.
But....... When just playing around with resorts I couldn't help but notice such a price difference between POP & the mods!!!!! I've heard & read amazing things about POP. The bed size isn't a huge deal as we can manage for a week.
But, I'm afraid we will lose that "relax" feel after our RD days and running around the parks.

You have a valid concern. On this thread you'll get mostly pro-Pop answers. People who have had an awful experience at Pop don't usually hang around here. If money is one of the more important factors than go with Pop, you'll survive. If money isn't a big deal go with a Mod. Ignore all the "Pop is the most wonderful place on Earth and can do no wrong" reviews but also ignore the "Pop is a dump, I'd rather spend a week in prison" reviews. The truth is somewhere in the middle.

 

[Li Li]

I'm sooooo torn!!!! We stayed @ POR last year & 2015 really wanted to try CSR. My daily life (I am a single mom and work over 50 hours a week) is HECTIC. My boys 14, 14 & 10 have hectic schedules as well. So for us we enjoy ONE resort day, hanging out by the pool (and of course I like my adult beverage) we also love a more laid back resort, even my teens liked that about POR. But....... When just playing around with resorts I couldn't help but notice such a price difference between POP & the mods!!!!! I've heard & read amazing things about POP. The bed size isn't a huge deal as we can manage for a week. But, I'm afraid we will lose that "relax" feel after our RD days and running around the parks.

I don't have kids, but I've stayed at both POR and POP, and I really liked both. I think you can feel relaxed at both. But here is my one gripe...at POR, there are lounge chairs with plenty of umbrellas and areas for shade. At POP, the only umbrellas are attached to the middle of tables surrounded by sit upright chairs. If you want to lay on a lounge chair with shade you would basically have to drag it over to an unoccupied table and get as close to umbrella shade as possible. So, this would be a problem if, like me, you burn easily and want to lounge by a pool but only with umbrella protection. Just something to note!

 

[shyjade]

I'm sooooo torn!!!! We stayed @ POR last year & 2015 really wanted to try CSR. My daily life (I am a single mom and work over 50 hours a week) is HECTIC. My boys 14, 14 & 10 have hectic schedules as well. So for us we enjoy ONE resort day, hanging out by the pool (and of course I like my adult beverage) we also love a more laid back resort, even my teens liked that about POR.
But....... When just playing around with resorts I couldn't help but notice such a price difference between POP & the mods!!!!! I've heard & read amazing things about POP. The bed size isn't a huge deal as we can manage for a week.
But, I'm afraid we will lose that "relax" feel after our RD days and running around the parks.

I'm in a similar situation...single mom of a 16 year old extreme over-achiever who is on the go 99.9% of the time, and I've been working 70-80 hours/week between my full time job and "part time" job since the first of the year. I convinced myself I needed to stay at CRS for the downtime, relaxing by the pool, comfy beds, less crowded, etc. But when it comes down to it, I know our touring style and there will be very little relaxing at the resort for us. As much as we try to plan down time, we can't help but make the most of the parks and usually spend most of our time at the resort napping or sleeping so I know Pop will be perfect for our upcoming trip. Staying at a mod would be a waste of money with everything we plan to do, including a day-trip to the Dark Side.

 

[stindall]

I'm sooooo torn!!!! We stayed @ POR last year & 2015 really wanted to try CSR. My daily life (I am a single mom and work over 50 hours a week) is HECTIC. My boys 14, 14 & 10 have hectic schedules as well. So for us we enjoy ONE resort day, hanging out by the pool (and of course I like my adult beverage) we also love a more laid back resort, even my teens liked that about POR.
But....... When just playing around with resorts I couldn't help but notice such a price difference between POP & the mods!!!!! I've heard & read amazing things about POP. The bed size isn't a huge deal as we can manage for a week.
But, I'm afraid we will lose that "relax" feel after our RD days and running around the parks.

Request the 50's or 90's section, they'll be a little more mellow and they have their own pools. If your boys want a little more they can take a quick walk to the main pool for activities. There's also a bar near the main pool. It seems like your main concern is money so I'd go with Pop. People who have a bad experience are more to stick out in your mind when finding reviews as you're looking for the negative anyway.

 

[LadyRayado]

The margarita flatbread is delicious! The create your own salad is also a good choice.

The drive from POP to MK is about 15 minutes. I would leave an hour and 1/2 before hand? You'll probably want to be there 30-45 minutes prior to rope drop.

I *think* it's a 10-15 minute walk to AOA?

The flatbread was the first thing that stood out to me when I looked at the menus! Thanks for the advice!

 

[mamalocke]

You guys have me so excited for our stay at POP in just 2 months! It looked like so much fun there and now it sounds like it too!

 

[stulaurie]

Quick question about Ice at Everything Pop. Will I be able to bring in my own mug and fill it with Ice? Not sure if this is frowned on or if the Ice will work without the Chip in the bottom of the cup.

Thanks

 

[stindall]

The flatbread was the first thing that stood out to me when I looked at the menus! Thanks for the advice!

No problem! I got it several times last year and it was great every time.

 

[cfriend416]

Quick question about Ice at Everything Pop. Will I be able to bring in my own mug and fill it with Ice? Not sure if this is frowned on or if the Ice will work without the Chip in the bottom of the cup.

Thanks

I always filled my water bottle with ice and water from the soda machines in the morning.