Assistance with picking a resort - POP, AoA, CBR or AS

[DancinDaisyDuck]

Planning my first visit since 2018 and I feel so out of touch with all the changes! I am going for a Thursday - Monday long weekend in October and considering these resorts for the following reasons:

1. Affordability - sharing a room with a friend and our budget is $300 a night (so at AoA we would do a Little Mermaid room)
2. Location - Not vising MK so proximity to HS & EPCOT preferred.
3. Transportation - need to be at HS for rope drop so Skyliner is great or a bus first thing in the morning. I have no issues with Disney buses! We will not have our own car.

Theming isn't super important to us and I've already stayed at POP, All Star Music/Sports and Caribbean Beach several times. We will be busy in parks each day so no need for loads of bells and whistles or amenities. The room will really just be used for sleeping and showering. We don't want to consider an off-site or Disney Springs resort good neighbor option.

So given all of the above, what does the hive mind suggest? I know I am leaning between 2 already but hoping for input from more recent visitors.

Thanks!

 

[TheSouthernBelle]

Planning my first visit since 2018 and I feel so out of touch with all the changes! I am going for a Thursday - Monday long weekend in October and considering these resorts for the following reasons:

1. Affordability - sharing a room with a friend and our budget is $300 a night (so at AoA we would do a Little Mermaid room)
2. Location - Not vising MK so proximity to HS & EPCOT preferred.
3. Transportation - need to be at HS for rope drop so Skyliner is great or a bus first thing in the morning. I have no issues with Disney buses! We will not have our own car.

Theming isn't super important to us and I've already stayed at POP, All Star Music/Sports and Caribbean Beach several times. We will be busy in parks each day so no need for loads of bells and whistles or amenities. The room will really just be used for sleeping and showering. We don't want to consider an off-site or Disney Springs resort good neighbor option.

So given all of the above, what does the hive mind suggest? I know I am leaning between 2 already but hoping for input from more recent visitors.

Thanks!

I have stayed at all those resorts but in the last 2 years have stayed at CBR and POP. Have not done AofA or AS recently but the updates do appear nice. I will state upfront that my favorite of all values is POP and CBR is my least fave mod.

If Skyliner access and no bells and whistles needed, I am a vote for POP out of all of your choices. I know CBR is a has a few more perks but IMO, I prefer POP over CBR, especially if you'll be at the parks all day. The rooms are nicer/newer/fresher at POP and the murphy bed makes staying in the smaller value rooms much more pleasant.

The CBR rooms are really really tired. I know they're scheduled for a refurb but not sure when. The murphy bed pull down at POP isn't ideal but it does save space in the room and it's the same level of comfort mattress as the permanent bed.

If you can find it, there are deals to be had for the Swan and Dolphin which is awesome since it's walking distance to both DHS and Epcot. We got a two queen at Dolphin this month for just a hair over $300/nt and that wasn't with any marriott points or discount codes. I know that there are sometimes discount codes and other deals that can bring that price down even more. I know it's not disney theming but it's on property and a great option for Epcot/DHS focused trips. Walking to DHS is typically your fastest and most reliable transportation if you plan to RD.

 

[LeeLee'sMom]

I do not love CBR, just something about it, can't really put my finger on it. I would say POP or AoA, stay at both often and love the skyliner. Like another poster said you can get deals at Swan/Dolphin which are very nice resorts and walking distance. But in reality PoP is probably the best bang for your buck.

 

[piglet1979]

Out of the ones that you have mentioned I have only stayed at an All Star resort. It was not a bad resort for that stay as we spent all of our time in the parks. With what you are looking for, I would go with which ever one is the cheapest since you are planning on spending your time in the parks and not at the resort. So Pop or All Star would be what I would choose from. It would depend on how much I would want to be at a resort with the sky liner.

 

[mom to minnie&mickey]

Keep in mind that the walk from LM rooms at AOA is long, very long to get anywhere plus they are more expensive than POP so right there I would pick POP if the skyliner is a must for you. For me, based on what you said, I would pick the cheapest option which is All Stars (not Sports as I read the rooms are not refurbished). On average they are about $45 per night cheaper than POP and the busses work perfectly fine to get you to the parks way ahead of scheduled opening for rope drop. We have stayed at Music a few times and never had a problem rope dropping. Whatever you decide have a great trip.

 

[snikki]

I would do Pop if you really want the skyliner. If not AS. I no would most likely go with an all star because the skyliners go down during wind and storms. I would rather just deal with buses.

You say you won’t be spending much time at the resort so the amenities at CBR won’t matter and the walk from the LM rooms is long. So I would take those two off of the list.

 

[MainMom]

I stayed one night in a LM room and knew I could not handle the decor for more than that. It's also quite the hike from the food court and main building. I personally would choose Pop. Its our favorite value resort. We have not stayed at CBR.

 

[Disneylover99]

I’d go with Pop or Sports.

 

[kwdw]

Just do the cheapest All-Stars room you can get, IMO. You said the room is for sleeping and showering. Well, those are great for that! With the money you save, you could consider some ride shares to help with rope drop. Second choice would be Pop for the Skyliner access. The LM rooms just always seem to be higher priced than the other value rooms and I just don’t get why. They are still a value!

IMO, I’d focused on having money to spend on food at Epcot with you friend vs. resort amenities it sounds like you don’t plan to use.

 

[megs1313]

I hate CBR personally, but for your needs CBR really does fit the bill. I would personally choose POP of your reasonable options.

 

[shu24]

Planning my first visit since 2018 and I feel so out of touch with all the changes! I am going for a Thursday - Monday long weekend in October and considering these resorts for the following reasons:

1. Affordability - sharing a room with a friend and our budget is $300 a night (so at AoA we would do a Little Mermaid room)
2. Location - Not vising MK so proximity to HS & EPCOT preferred.
3. Transportation - need to be at HS for rope drop so Skyliner is great or a bus first thing in the morning. I have no issues with Disney buses! We will not have our own car.

Theming isn't super important to us and I've already stayed at POP, All Star Music/Sports and Caribbean Beach several times. We will be busy in parks each day so no need for loads of bells and whistles or amenities. The room will really just be used for sleeping and showering. We don't want to consider an off-site or Disney Springs resort good neighbor option.

So given all of the above, what does the hive mind suggest? I know I am leaning between 2 already but hoping for input from more recent visitors.

Thanks!

I have stayed AsSports, Pop and visited AofA and CBR many times. I would choose Pop based on what you described. My reasoning is that we feel very connected to AofA, CBR and Riviera when we stay at Pop due to the Skyliner. We considered AsSports for our upcoming trip because that will be your cheapest option. But we decided that Pop was worth the extra money for the convenience of the Skyliner and because we enjoyed hopping on the Skyliner to visit CBR and Riviera in the evenings. Our last 2 trips have been to Pop and it is hard to go back to not having the Skyliner as a travel option to Epcot and HS.

 

[k5xs]

Pop.

And if you can stay in a 60s room, you can have equal access to buses from/to AoA and Pop (great at park closing if you are taking a bus from EPCOT or DHS if SkyLiner isn't convenient--you made no mention of AK, but a bus is your only choice unless you rideshare), as well as access to both main buildings (shops, dining).

 

[DancinDaisyDuck]

Thanks everyone. In a surprise twist we've ended up at Port Orleans Riverside, ha! By the time we contacted the TA (my amazing, irreplaceable TA!) Caribbean Beach only had Pirate Rooms left. These rooms were cute when I had a 7 and 9 year old but 2 women in our 40's were not interested. We almost went with AoA but then we saw the POR package was only $100 more. I've never stayed at Port Orleans anything and Riverside is my friend's favorite so that's what we went with. I'm excited!

 

[maryj11]

Thanks everyone. In a surprise twist we've ended up at Port Orleans Riverside, ha! By the time we contacted the TA (my amazing, irreplaceable TA!) Caribbean Beach only had Pirate Rooms left. These rooms were cute when I had a 7 and 9 year old but 2 women in our 40's were not interested. We almost went with AoA but then we saw the POR package was only $100 more. I've never stayed at Port Orleans anything and Riverside is my friend's favorite so that's what we went with. I'm excited!

POR is my favorite moderate! If you can get a preferred room it will make it even better. It’s a long walk from some areas to the food court. Or request a room as close to the main building without it being preferred. Preferred cost a little more.
It’s a beautiful resort and we love the boat ride to Disney Springs!

 

[piglet1979]

We stayed there on our last trip. We loved it. We got so much info from the website below. Worth reading. When we went the person who put this website together was also on the Port Orleans Riverside thread here on the Dis. We faxed in our request for a room. I know it was just a request but we got what we wanted. We stayed in the building that was next to the Royal rooms. It was a great area and close to the main building and pool.

https://www.portorleans.org/

 

[RoseGold]

I would watch dolphin and put a price alert on it. It comes in much cheaper sometimes. It’s $170 for thanksgiving right now.

Also, it gets the deluxe after hours that those Disney hotels don’t. That’s a big deal right now.

 

[maryj11]

We stayed there on our last trip. We loved it. We got so much info from the website below. Worth reading. When we went the person who put this website together was also on the Port Orleans Riverside thread here on the Dis. We faxed in our request for a room. I know it was just a request but we got what we wanted. We stayed in the building that was next to the Royal rooms. It was a great area and close to the main building and pool.

https://www.portorleans.org/

They don’t take the fax request anymore, I don’t think. I would call Disney and ask them to add the request to the reservation. I know touring plans used to fax, but changed to emailing.

 

[maryj11]

I would watch dolphin and put a price alert on it. It comes in much cheaper sometimes. It’s $170 for thanksgiving right now.

Also, it gets the deluxe after hours that those Disney hotels don’t. That’s a big deal right now.

I just looked for Dec 11 week and don’t see anything under 1000. Are you looking on Priceline or some where similar?

 

[RoseGold]

I just looked for Dec 11 week and don’t see anything under 1000. Are you looking on Priceline or some where similar?

The Marriott rates swing wildly, and there are conferences and such that swing the prices. It's worth checking Marriott for your particular dates IMO.