GreatBiscuit
Golden but never flaky
- Joined
- Aug 20, 1999
Bonus Feature 2 - Pop goes the Biscuit: A Pop Century Review
If you read the PTR portion of this series, you already know what led to our group staying at the Pop Century and can skip the following section. If not, here it is again:
___________________________
When I first heard about the concept for Disneys Pop Century Resort, my initial reaction was "What were they thinking?" A resort based on the popular culture of the 20th century? Talk about a snoozer! This establishment quickly went to bottom of my resort list as the "Only if there are no other rooms on property" option.
Then the resort finally opened and I checked out Deb Wills photos on All Ears. The place didn't look quite as bad as I thought it would, but still, it was not rising any higher on my resort list.
As the years went by I began to read more and more Trip Reports from those who had stayed at this resort. One thing that I noticed was that the VAST majority of the reviews were positive. It seemed that for whatever reason, people really loved this place. As the time for our trip approached, I began digging a little deeper. It seemed that of all the value resorts, the Pop Century seemed to have the most favorable reviews when it came to the food court and the bus service.
In the end, I decided that since this trip was going to be all about the girls, I would let them be the ones to pick. (Dangerous I know.) I knew going in that concepts such as bus service, layout and food court options were a bit too abstract for a then 4 and 6 year old to deal with. Instead, I found about a dozen photos of each, put them all together in a power point and one evening, we sat down as a family and I showed them on the TV.
The kids sat through it all and their hands down favorite was the Pop Century. The pools were the deal breakers for both. Tahli was absolutely IN LOVE with the Hippy Dippy pool. That girl loves all things flowers and couldn't wait to swim in it. Hailee was just getting into Wii bowling at the time and thought the Bowling Pin pool was the coolest thing ever. (Wii sidebar - how is it a four year old could out-bowl me on that thing?) Tracy was leaning more towards All Star Movies and I have to say that mine was a split vote. In the end though, we went with the girls' suggestion and never looked back.
______________________________________________________________
I was worried at first that a value resort would somehow be "Less Disney" Nothing could be further from the truth. Here's my take on the place.
Disney's Magical Express: This was an awesome benefit and we didn't otice any longer wait times for the value resorts than we did for any of the other lines. The ME bus for the POP Century is actually shared with other properties and at no time did I feel that we were treated any differently simply for staying at a Value property. The Pop Century was the first stop upon arrival at The World and the last stop upon departure to the Airport.
Pros:
Cons:
Surprises:
I did not know that you have to bring your bags back down yourself when you depart. However, Bell Services had plenty of luggage carts available. You just give them a photo ID. Bell Services is outside and to get there, as you look at the front of the resort's main building, it is on the far right corner (closest to the 50's ection) right next to the door you walk into when you check into the resort.
________________________________________________________________
Resort Grounds: I loved the themeing of this resort. It was absolutely perfect for kids. The layout was very easy to navigate and the place still looked brand new. There were painters out all week doing touch ups.
Pros:
Cons:
Surprises: Even though I had seen photos of the place, I was still blown away by the details. I was actually surprised by the size of the resort. It seems bigger on paper and I thought it would take longer to get from place to place. The preferred room location in the 60's section was great, but not a necessity. As far as walking distance goes, we were actually a bit further away from the buses and Everything Pop than some of the preferred rooms in the 50's and 70's sections. I don't know that standard room would have been that much further of a walk. I also thought for sure that we would hit the playground at least once, but it was just way too hot. Aside from walking over and looking at it on day one, we never returned.
________________________________________________________________
Rooms: I knew going in that the rooms would be smaller than other resorts. I also knew that the beds would be doubles not queen. I was okay with this and prepared to deal with it. The rooms were clean and as I mention in the TR, they were touching up the paint when we checked in. The table was nice to have and it became the laptop workstation / Backpack holding area. The shelves by the TV housed my film and notebook. We kept the luggage in the sink area stacked up below the hangers, and I kept one suitcase in the far front corner by the front bed to serve as a nightstand on my side of the bed. The front door nearly touches the first bed when it opens so if someone is going to head out early, they should sleep closest to the door. The bathroom was clean and we never ran out of hot water. And of course who can forget those turbo flushers? I will echo the reports here of very limited counter space, but we used the shelf above the hangers as overflow. If the girls were in their teenage years, we would be a bit hard pressed to fit everything in there, but at this age, we did fine. The bottom line, it was certainly not deluxe accommodations, but the room was still nice and we enjoyed it.
Pros:
Cons:
Surprises: The room was actually a bit smaller than I thought it would be. You can tell in the photos that there is not much room to spare, but actually being there you get a better sense of it. I was pleasantly surprised by how new the room looked.
_________________________________________________________________
Pools: The pools were the primary reason we chose to stay at this resort. During our stay, we swam in the Hippy Dippy three times, the Bowling Pin pool once, the Computer pool once, the Hippy Dippy kiddie pool once, and sadly never made it to the Goofy splash pad.
Pros:
Cons:
Surprises: The pools were much more crowded than I thought they would be and the water was quite warm. The bowling PIN pool was the hottest of the three. I also thought we'd pend more time at the Goofy splash pad, but as they were off by themselves, we never made it over there to play.
_________________________________________________________________
Everything Pop: Our first on-property meal of the trip was here and it gave us a crash course in Disney Dining. The seating was always plentiful and the Cast Members kept it well bussed. I liked the setup of this place. The double drink stations helped with crowd control and it seemed like even at peak times, there was an order to the chaos. I didn't care for the Asian dish I tried, but the flatbread Nana had and the other selections at our table all looked great. I LOVED the desserts. On the gift shop side, they had quite an extensive selection and it seemed larger than many of the in-park gift shops. I enjoyed browsing through the place and wound up getting my WDW T-shirt there.
Pros:
Cons:
Surprises: They removed the "Slushie" machines in April so I was disappointed that they did not have them. Also, on two of the nights we were there, a crew was cleaning the carpets with those large truck mounted cleaners. They were there around 1 AM and the trucks were VERY Loud. If you had a room in the end of the 60's or 70's section, you would have definitely been able to hear it in the room.
_________________________________________________________________
Other Observations:
Bus service: The busses were easy to find and we only had a couple of long waits the entire trip. A few of the bus stops at the park were a bit of a hike, Epcot to be specific, but on the whole, they were not a significant distance further than some of the moderate or deluxe resorts.
Lobby: The layout was a little different than I imagined, but I liked the setup. I also loved looking at all the shadow boxes. When we arrived, we were the first group off the Magical Express bus. That said, there was still a LARGE line in the lobby (I'm guessing due to the time of day we arrived.) However, the line moved quickly and everyone was in a great mood.
TV Room: This was very crowded when we arrived, but the girls still enjoyed it. Other times, the place was deserted.
Laundry Rooms: I pretty well covered this in the TR, but to recap, they were small, lacked seating & themeing and a washer had a leak. This room was probably the most disappointing feature of the resort.
Fast Forward Arcade: I'm not much of an Arcade junkie so I really don't know whether this place had the latest and greatest games or not. I know it was a bit too advanced for our two, but I'm sure teens would love it.
Refillable Mugs: Others have quipped that only at Disney will you consider spending $50 for a weeks worth of a soda a bargain. I did several refills here and would probably go ahead and do the mug thing again, but ONLY if I flew and did not have a way to get to a grocery store and grab some two liters. Next time I MAY try bringing the crystal light pouches and a water filter / pitcher. We'll see.
Final Thoughts: I really enjoyed this resort. I am so glad we went ahead and chose it. If we wind up doing a value resort again (which at this point seems likely) I would hands down choose this resort again. For us, it works. I think maybe when girls are in their teen years and we require more space to maintain my sanity, we'll look at upgrading to a mod or dare I say a deluxe. But for now, it's fun, they love it, Tracy and I loved it, Nana & Papa and Preston & Aunt Janna loved it, so I would DEFINITELY recommend it highly to anyone considering a value resort. Just know what to expect before you go and you'll be golden.
Coming Up - Bonus Feature 3
If you read the PTR portion of this series, you already know what led to our group staying at the Pop Century and can skip the following section. If not, here it is again:
___________________________
When I first heard about the concept for Disneys Pop Century Resort, my initial reaction was "What were they thinking?" A resort based on the popular culture of the 20th century? Talk about a snoozer! This establishment quickly went to bottom of my resort list as the "Only if there are no other rooms on property" option.
Then the resort finally opened and I checked out Deb Wills photos on All Ears. The place didn't look quite as bad as I thought it would, but still, it was not rising any higher on my resort list.
As the years went by I began to read more and more Trip Reports from those who had stayed at this resort. One thing that I noticed was that the VAST majority of the reviews were positive. It seemed that for whatever reason, people really loved this place. As the time for our trip approached, I began digging a little deeper. It seemed that of all the value resorts, the Pop Century seemed to have the most favorable reviews when it came to the food court and the bus service.
In the end, I decided that since this trip was going to be all about the girls, I would let them be the ones to pick. (Dangerous I know.) I knew going in that concepts such as bus service, layout and food court options were a bit too abstract for a then 4 and 6 year old to deal with. Instead, I found about a dozen photos of each, put them all together in a power point and one evening, we sat down as a family and I showed them on the TV.
The kids sat through it all and their hands down favorite was the Pop Century. The pools were the deal breakers for both. Tahli was absolutely IN LOVE with the Hippy Dippy pool. That girl loves all things flowers and couldn't wait to swim in it. Hailee was just getting into Wii bowling at the time and thought the Bowling Pin pool was the coolest thing ever. (Wii sidebar - how is it a four year old could out-bowl me on that thing?) Tracy was leaning more towards All Star Movies and I have to say that mine was a split vote. In the end though, we went with the girls' suggestion and never looked back.
______________________________________________________________
I was worried at first that a value resort would somehow be "Less Disney" Nothing could be further from the truth. Here's my take on the place.
Disney's Magical Express: This was an awesome benefit and we didn't otice any longer wait times for the value resorts than we did for any of the other lines. The ME bus for the POP Century is actually shared with other properties and at no time did I feel that we were treated any differently simply for staying at a Value property. The Pop Century was the first stop upon arrival at The World and the last stop upon departure to the Airport.
Pros:
- Free
- Quick
- Easy
- The Disney magic begins as soon as your plane lands.
- Don't have to wait at baggage claim
Cons:
- Long wait for baggage once you arrive. (You DO have the option to retrieve your own luggage from baggage claim and avoid the delay.)
- Having to leave the resort 3 hours before your flight. (Although with the MASSIVE security line at MCO, this was probably not a bad idea.)
Surprises:
I did not know that you have to bring your bags back down yourself when you depart. However, Bell Services had plenty of luggage carts available. You just give them a photo ID. Bell Services is outside and to get there, as you look at the front of the resort's main building, it is on the far right corner (closest to the 50's ection) right next to the door you walk into when you check into the resort.
________________________________________________________________
Resort Grounds: I loved the themeing of this resort. It was absolutely perfect for kids. The layout was very easy to navigate and the place still looked brand new. There were painters out all week doing touch ups.
Pros:
- For a large resort, it is compact so that you can get around quickly.
- The themeing was a huge hit with the girls.
- We never had problems getting a chair by the pool.
- The playground was large and well maintained.
Cons:
- The elevators are hidden so if you dont know where they are, you might wind up taking the stairs a time or two. (They are in the center of each building behind the giant icons.)
- If your room faces the pool areas, the noise can be an issue.
Surprises: Even though I had seen photos of the place, I was still blown away by the details. I was actually surprised by the size of the resort. It seems bigger on paper and I thought it would take longer to get from place to place. The preferred room location in the 60's section was great, but not a necessity. As far as walking distance goes, we were actually a bit further away from the buses and Everything Pop than some of the preferred rooms in the 50's and 70's sections. I don't know that standard room would have been that much further of a walk. I also thought for sure that we would hit the playground at least once, but it was just way too hot. Aside from walking over and looking at it on day one, we never returned.
________________________________________________________________
Rooms: I knew going in that the rooms would be smaller than other resorts. I also knew that the beds would be doubles not queen. I was okay with this and prepared to deal with it. The rooms were clean and as I mention in the TR, they were touching up the paint when we checked in. The table was nice to have and it became the laptop workstation / Backpack holding area. The shelves by the TV housed my film and notebook. We kept the luggage in the sink area stacked up below the hangers, and I kept one suitcase in the far front corner by the front bed to serve as a nightstand on my side of the bed. The front door nearly touches the first bed when it opens so if someone is going to head out early, they should sleep closest to the door. The bathroom was clean and we never ran out of hot water. And of course who can forget those turbo flushers? I will echo the reports here of very limited counter space, but we used the shelf above the hangers as overflow. If the girls were in their teenage years, we would be a bit hard pressed to fit everything in there, but at this age, we did fine. The bottom line, it was certainly not deluxe accommodations, but the room was still nice and we enjoyed it.
Pros:
- Individual climate control
- Clean
- Great themeing
Cons:
- Small
- Limited storage and counter space
- Housekeeping came around early and while they observed our "Privacy Please" sign, the walls are thin enough that the vacuuming above and beside you will still wake you up. (This may be a problem at all the resorts.)
Surprises: The room was actually a bit smaller than I thought it would be. You can tell in the photos that there is not much room to spare, but actually being there you get a better sense of it. I was pleasantly surprised by how new the room looked.
_________________________________________________________________
Pools: The pools were the primary reason we chose to stay at this resort. During our stay, we swam in the Hippy Dippy three times, the Bowling Pin pool once, the Computer pool once, the Hippy Dippy kiddie pool once, and sadly never made it to the Goofy splash pad.
Pros:
- Themeing
- Size
- Open late
Cons:
- Water was almost too warm to enjoy
- Stayed very crowded the entire trip
- No poolside towels.
Surprises: The pools were much more crowded than I thought they would be and the water was quite warm. The bowling PIN pool was the hottest of the three. I also thought we'd pend more time at the Goofy splash pad, but as they were off by themselves, we never made it over there to play.
_________________________________________________________________
Everything Pop: Our first on-property meal of the trip was here and it gave us a crash course in Disney Dining. The seating was always plentiful and the Cast Members kept it well bussed. I liked the setup of this place. The double drink stations helped with crowd control and it seemed like even at peak times, there was an order to the chaos. I didn't care for the Asian dish I tried, but the flatbread Nana had and the other selections at our table all looked great. I LOVED the desserts. On the gift shop side, they had quite an extensive selection and it seemed larger than many of the in-park gift shops. I enjoyed browsing through the place and wound up getting my WDW T-shirt there.
Pros:
- Lots of open seating
- Large variety of food
- Great desserts
- Large selection of merchandise
- Well maintained
Cons:
- The dont serve Biscuits and Gravy. (Though their hash browns almost make up for it.)
- Too much sesame oil in the Lo Mein.
- They close at midnight so if you do evening EMH, (which we did many times) you dont get back in time for a late night mug refill.
Surprises: They removed the "Slushie" machines in April so I was disappointed that they did not have them. Also, on two of the nights we were there, a crew was cleaning the carpets with those large truck mounted cleaners. They were there around 1 AM and the trucks were VERY Loud. If you had a room in the end of the 60's or 70's section, you would have definitely been able to hear it in the room.
_________________________________________________________________
Other Observations:
Bus service: The busses were easy to find and we only had a couple of long waits the entire trip. A few of the bus stops at the park were a bit of a hike, Epcot to be specific, but on the whole, they were not a significant distance further than some of the moderate or deluxe resorts.
Lobby: The layout was a little different than I imagined, but I liked the setup. I also loved looking at all the shadow boxes. When we arrived, we were the first group off the Magical Express bus. That said, there was still a LARGE line in the lobby (I'm guessing due to the time of day we arrived.) However, the line moved quickly and everyone was in a great mood.
TV Room: This was very crowded when we arrived, but the girls still enjoyed it. Other times, the place was deserted.
Laundry Rooms: I pretty well covered this in the TR, but to recap, they were small, lacked seating & themeing and a washer had a leak. This room was probably the most disappointing feature of the resort.
Fast Forward Arcade: I'm not much of an Arcade junkie so I really don't know whether this place had the latest and greatest games or not. I know it was a bit too advanced for our two, but I'm sure teens would love it.
Refillable Mugs: Others have quipped that only at Disney will you consider spending $50 for a weeks worth of a soda a bargain. I did several refills here and would probably go ahead and do the mug thing again, but ONLY if I flew and did not have a way to get to a grocery store and grab some two liters. Next time I MAY try bringing the crystal light pouches and a water filter / pitcher. We'll see.
Final Thoughts: I really enjoyed this resort. I am so glad we went ahead and chose it. If we wind up doing a value resort again (which at this point seems likely) I would hands down choose this resort again. For us, it works. I think maybe when girls are in their teen years and we require more space to maintain my sanity, we'll look at upgrading to a mod or dare I say a deluxe. But for now, it's fun, they love it, Tracy and I loved it, Nana & Papa and Preston & Aunt Janna loved it, so I would DEFINITELY recommend it highly to anyone considering a value resort. Just know what to expect before you go and you'll be golden.
Coming Up - Bonus Feature 3
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Anyway, I did the same thing. When I told Scott what I was working on, I think he rolled his eyes at my dorkiness, but in the end, everyone appreciated being able to look at the photos on the big tv. 
Thanks for reading along and for your kinds words! Bonus Feature 1 was the Disney Dining breakdown which was actually on the same post as Episode 78. In hindsight I probably should have waited and posted it as its own thing.
I know better now what to expect there, and I'll just dine at off hours. 
You're a trend setter!
