AS Sports or POP ?

[KayJD]

Hi all.

I'd appreciate any input and advice from those who have stayed at either of these properties.

Hubby, DDs (6 & 8) and I are currently booked at AS Sports for two nights in early December. I'm now contemplating a move to POP Century mostly because of Pop Werner, which I learnt from this board will be happening when we're there and is a major presence at the All Stars.

As background, I chose the AS for the price point and the Sports specifically because I understood that they are first on the bus route.

I briefly flirted with the idea of moving to POR but given the limited amount of time we'll actually be at the resort (arriving 8 pm on Wednesday, MK open to close on Thursday, departing 10 am Friday), I'd rather spend the price difference elsewhere. If we were going to be at the resort longer, I would pay the difference to upgrade.

Any pros/cons to switching from Sports to POP? Leaving Pop Werner aside, is one property more appealing overall than the other?

Many thanks to all- this site is wonderful!

 

[JennyDrake]

You need to look up and visit the PW wen site. They have reservations in one hotel (usually AS Sports) PLUS overflow to another value. It varies from year to you and it could be Pop, so check. Just FYI, I have stayed ine th same resort as PW at least 6 times and have never had an issue of any kind.

 

[KayJD]

Ok thanks JennyDrake for putting my mind at ease.

I guess now it's a matter of which resort would be a nicer experience for us? AS Sports or Pop?

 

[JennyDrake]

With the exception of the food court's grilled flatbreads, _I_ vastly prefer AS. Smaller, less noise and chaos. And you don't have to walk through the gift shop to get to the food court, like you do in Pop. AS Music is my fave (I'll be there next month) but I stayed in Sports in August. I think you will like either one of them! In December I will be back at Pop!

 

[disneyshan]

I've stayed at both as well and if I had to choose between them, I would probably pick Sports. Smaller, less crowded, can actually get a table in the food court at peek times, buses less busy.

That said, POP has better selection in the foodcourt, but breakfast at disney is pretty much the same everywhere, so it's really only lunch and dinner that differ and if you are planning on being at the parks at that time, then no biggie!

 

[KayJD]

Thanks so much JennyDrake and disneyshan for putting my mind at ease.

Really appreciate the input.

We are really excited. This will be our third time at Disney but our first time staying on site. Even though we're only there for a few days, we want to have the best experience we can.

 

[stitchlovestink]

Pop Warner does not stay at POP Century! They stay at the All Stars! If you want to hear about the nightmare stories, do a search, you'll find stories of people who have had problems with them. I 'believe' there were instances of a group or two that were removed from the property for misbehavior a couple of years ago (but that could be a different group, but I believe it was their Football league).

Anyway, I have stayed at both... POP Century is MUCH Better!! Go check out the Thread on POP! The Food Court has much more to offer...much better Choices!!! And you can enter the food court directly from sidewalk on the side of the building where you come from all of the other buildings of rooms.

The Bus service is better too!! You don't share with other resorts. Sometimes the AllStars share (especially during the afternoon) and you have to deal with stopping at the other resorts before heading off to your destination. At POP, you get on the bus and off you go!

My experience at ASSp was kind of a let down. POP is just so much 'better'. MY experiences are that the staff is more helpful, they are happier, they are more 'excited' to be at work... Sports was just eeehhhh....
Like I stated earlier, go check out the POP thread and read thru it a bit and get some of the other opinions of people who have just returned. I think you might be surprised. There's no following like that for All StarSports! I wonder why???


Oh and as far as the food court crowd... I have been at POP in July and gone thru the food court at dinnertime to refill my mug and there weren't even 20 people in the entire place. And I have been there for Breakfast and been able to get a table just fine.... Yes it can be busy but it isn't nearly as busy as some of the counter service places in the parks at lunchtime, IMO. I guess if you are expecting a completely empty food court you'll need to eat at very odd times, no matter where you are.

 

[TigrLvsPooh]

I'm not an expert on the AS resorts, but I have stayed at Pop many, many times and our family loves it! We've never had a problem getting a table in the food court, the bus service is probably the best I've experienced on property, and I think your 6&8 year olds would love the theme! My youngest DS insists it's his favorite resort of them all even after staying in all the deluxes.

 

[calnmace]

Pop is a much better resort in my opinion. The food court has more choices, it has a more modern open concept feel, the buses are good, the staff seems to try harder. We love Pop! Hope you have a great time no matter where you choose to stay

 

[JennyDrake]

More information about PW--parents are not allowed to stay with the kids so if any families come, they can be at ANY resort. There were arrests at POP a few years ago due to the misbehavior of ADULTS (parents and coaches) associated with PW. Sadly, the kids get blamed for what happened. BTW I am 40 something, childless by choice and cannot really be considered Kid Friendly. Yet in multiple trips the same time as PW including 6 stays in the same resorts, I've never had an issue.

 

[KayJD]

Thanks all for the input.

I have had a chance to look through the POP thread and it does look very nice. Ironically we can get POP for a few dollars cheaper than we are currently paying for the AS Sports booked on a PIN offer.

I have read several accounts of unpleasant stays at AS due to Pop Werner but I've also heard many people echo JennyDrake in that they had no negative experience whatsoever. I guess a lot probably depends on where you are located in relation to an element that might get rowdy and of course, that can happen anywhere and anytime.

I'll have to bring all this info to hubby - time for him to officially weigh in!!

The trip is a surprise for the kids so we won't be soliciting them for their opinion - they'll be happy no matter what but I do think that the POP theme would appeal to them more than Sports (which of course, my hubby thinks is amazing).

 

[maxiesmom]

I stayed at the Music resort in 2010 along with Pop Warner, and had no problems with any of them whatsoever. I'm glad I didn't listen to the doomsayers and switch resorts! If I hadn't seen them walking around in their outfits, I wouldn't have known they were there!

What any of the All Stars have going for them over the Pop is their size. Pop is 50% bigger than any All Star Resort. Think about it this way: You will have 50% more people to fight for space on the bus. By the pool. And in the food court. No thanks!

Oh, I want to add that the Sports theme is so not what I expected. The preferred area is done in a Surf's Up theme. All very pretty--lots of blues and greens, with waves and colorful fish. For some reason I always thought the Sports would have a masculine feel to it, and it doesn't at all!

 

[Itinkso]

I just got back from Pop and even though the parking lots were full, I never saw anyone in my building (10). During my four night stay I never heard any noise from the adjacent rooms and I was on the second floor. The food court was fine and we had a freshly made burger at 10:00 one evening. Pop had one complete section of the dining area roped off but we were able to easily find a table. I wouldn't hesitate to stay there again!

Another added bonus is you can walk across the bridge and visit Art of Animation! Very cool over there!

 

[stitchlovestink]

I stayed at the Music resort in 2010 along with Pop Warner, and had no problems with any of them whatsoever. I'm glad I didn't listen to the doomsayers and switch resorts! If I hadn't seen them walking around in their outfits, I wouldn't have known they were there!

What any of the All Stars have going for them over the Pop is their size. Pop is 50% bigger than any All Star Resort. Think about it this way: You will have 50% more people to fight for space on the bus. By the pool. And in the food court. No thanks!

Oh, I want to add that the Sports theme is so not what I expected. The preferred area is done in a Surf's Up theme. All very pretty--lots of blues and greens, with waves and colorful fish. For some reason I always thought the Sports would have a masculine feel to it, and it doesn't at all!

You can't really compare the buses for POP and AllStars...that's like comparing apples and oranges. You're comparing a resort, POP, that has a dedicated bus service all to itself to a resort, AllStar Sports, that somes has a dedicated bus and sometimes shares. So sometimes the people at ASSp could be facing sharing a bus with MORE people until they radio in to change over from sharing buses back to dedicated buses. And even though they may be standing room only, POP buses moves their guests around pretty effectly. We see way more buses with POP written on the bar than ASSp, ASMu & ASMo combined (that's three resorts!!) Lastly saying that one would be dealing with 50% more people at the resort would only be accurate if each resort was at 100% occupancy which is not common.


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[maxiesmom]

You can't really compare the buses for POP and AllStars...that's like comparing apples and oranges. You're comparing a resort, POP, that has a dedicated bus service all to itself to a resort, AllStar Sports, that somes has a dedicated bus and sometimes shares. So sometimes the people at ASSp could be facing sharing a bus with MORE people until they radio in to change over from sharing buses back to dedicated buses. And even though they may be standing room only, POP buses moves their guests around pretty effectly. We see way more buses with POP written on the bar than ASSp, ASMu & ASMo combined (that's three resorts!!) Lastly saying that one would be dealing with 50% more people at the resort would only be accurate if each resort was at 100% occupancy which is not common.


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Actually I think the bus service at the All Stars is better! I've stayed at them 4 times, and each All Star Resort gets its own bus most of the time! So way fewer people on the buses than you would have staying at the Pop. The All Stars share on occasion, but it is not the norm.

The reason the Pop has it's own bus is that it is so large! It wouldn't make sense to have a resort that size try and share a bus with another resort, it would be a mess!

Plus, if you stay at the Sports on the occasions that the All Stars do share a bus, the Sports is the first picked up. So odds are good that you will get a seat on that bus! Odds of that bus filling up are lower than it would be going to the Pop.

The Pop has 2880 rooms. The Sports only has 1920 rooms. Yet the same size bus serves both resorts. Odds are better for getting a seat, and even for getting ON that bus, at the smaller resort.

 

[JennyDrake]

If you do decide Pop as PP said DO walk over to AoA and spend some time there. The theming is INCREDIBLE.

 

[maxiesmom]

I want to say too that I would never ever pick one resort over another, just because I assumed it would have better bus service. Each and every resort can have a horrible day where the buses just don't come frequently enough. And each resort can have days where the service is spot-on!

You have to look at each resort as a whole, and what it offers, and figure out which one fits you the best. For me, there are way more negatives at the Pop than there are at the All Star resorts. The size, the way you have to walk thru the food court to get to the gift shop, the layout of the resort. However, none of those things may matter to someone else.


You just got to figure out what matters to you and what doesn't, and go from there.

 

[stitchlovestink]

Quote:

Originally Posted by stitchlovestink

You can't really compare the buses for POP and AllStars...that's like comparing apples and oranges. You're comparing a resort, POP, that has a dedicated bus service all to itself to a resort, AllStar Sports, that somes has a dedicated bus and sometimes shares. So sometimes the people at ASSp could be facing sharing a bus with MORE people until they radio in to change over from sharing buses back to dedicated buses. And even though they may be standing room only, POP buses moves their guests around pretty effectly. We see way more buses with POP written on the bar than ASSp, ASMu & ASMo combined (that's three resorts!!) Lastly saying that one would be dealing with 50% more people at the resort would only be accurate if each resort was at 100% occupancy which is not common.


Posted from Disney Forums Reader for Android

Actually I think the bus service at the All Stars is better! I've stayed at them 4 times, and each All Star Resort gets its own bus most of the time! So way fewer people on the buses than you would have staying at the Pop. The All Stars share on occasion, but it is not the norm.

The reason the Pop has it's own bus is that it is so large! It wouldn't make sense to have a resort that size try and share a bus with another resort, it would be a mess!

Plus, if you stay at the Sports on the occasions that the All Stars do share a bus, the Sports is the first picked up. So odds are good that you will get a seat on that bus! Odds of that bus filling up are lower than it would be going to the Pop.

The Pop has 2880 rooms. The Sports only has 1920 rooms. Yet the same size bus serves both resorts. Odds are better for getting a seat, and even for getting ON that bus, at the smaller resort.

YES, but they send MORE buses to POP to service those 2880 rooms.
I've stayed at both ASSp and ASMu and I will stand by the fact that I have had Far Superior service All Around at POP than at the ALLStars. But those who want to continue to stay at the AllStars, that's fine! It'll keep more rooms available for those of us who Love POP!!
And I'm not judging it on just the bus service. There are multiple factors if you refer to my first posting on this thread. Oh and I have found the chefs in the food court at POP to be VERY accomodating if you have a special need/request!
Good Luck with your decision!!


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[disnut1149]

Hi
How comfortable are the beds at ASSports compared to Pop currently? Both resorts used to have comfortable beds, but when Pop got new beds last year, they're rock hard and we had to change resorts. I love Pop, but won't be able to stay there anymore. I haven't stayed at Sports for a couple of years. Thanks!!!

 

[twinboysmom]

Hi OP. we have stayed at movies and music during pop Warner and had zero issues. I have also stayed at Pop and we choose not to stay there again. We found it too large and spread out (we were not in a preferred room) and we did not have this wonderful bus experience that I hear a lot of Pop fans talk about. Yes it was dedicated but it was busy, buses were packed, and we had to wait several times for another bus to come because the one that came filled up and there was no room left. This was also during an early December stay. We did have a terrible bus experience at the all stars in 2003 but in many stays since then have not encountered any problems. But I agree with maxiesmom, don't pick a resort based on others bus experience because you never know what you will get.

Now for food options, I give the edge to pop and have always found the food courts at all the values very busy except during very off times. I think you will most likely like any resort you choose so I would pick the one with the theme or budget that you think would suit your family best. Hope you have a fantastic vacation!