Caronado Springs Vs. Pop Century????

[bella-alexander]

o.k., so we are pretty sure that we are going with pop century, but, i really would like some input by people who have stayed in both resorts. hear is a little bit about us: we are taking our trip to disney world during april spring break(yes, i know, very crowded!)this will be trip #3 for dh and i, and #2 for our young children ages 3 & 6. last year (march 2007) we stayed at the animal kingdom lodge, amazing, definately our best vacation EVER!! the trip befor that was just dh and i(honeymoon) at the boardwalk 2002. both of our vacations in disney have been incredible! but, we have always done delux resorts. after doing delux we never thought we would stay anywear else! however, this year we are doing alot of renovating on our house. we didn't think we were going to be able to go to wdw this year like we planned. but, we decided we would still go, but, we would have to let go of our beloved delux hotel (wanted to try poly this year). but, we are still going to disney world WOOOHOOOO!! so, after doing some research we were down to two, coranado springs or pop. after looking at lots of pictures and reviews we decided on pop. we needed something family friendly(also we are on the move from about 9am to midnight, never see much of the hotel) and from what i understood coranado springs rooms are more run down than pop's. anyway, we booked pop century and now i'm second guessing myself. is going from delux to value too big of a jump? should we change to coranado? is coranado's rooms run down? are the rooms at pop big enough for a family of 4? anyone prefer one above the other? and why? very confused!!

 

[laxdefran29]

speaking as someone who has been to coronado many times i would not say any of their rooms are "run down". Coronado is the newest of all the moderate hotels and has the best pool area which might be best for your young kids. Also the coronado's rooms will be a little bigger than pop's but not that that matters because u said your in the park most of the day. it really comes down to a matter of preference.

 

[jadedbeauty14304]

It is all a matter of preference like the PP said. I stayed at POP and at CSR. I stayed at POP first and absolutely loved it. Everything is close by, the themeing is very in-your-face and loud, and the kids just love it! It is an all around fun place.

That said, CSR is beautiful, and I hated it. POP got me used to being very close to the main bldg/food area, (preferred rooms yay!) and at CSR I paid extra for a water view room, which got me a view of a small pool way way way out in the Rancho's section of the resort. After a long day at the parks I might want to grab a snack, or refill my mug and hang out by the pool. I felt like I couldn't do that. Either walk for ten minutes around the lake, or go wait for a bus, hop on a bus, get off the bus at the front building, get my stuff and either walk another 10 minutes to the room, or wait for a DTD bus to get back to my room. It was nothing but a hassle.

The rooms are bigger at CSR. The pool area has a slide.

Those are the only two things I like better about CSR.

That is my personal preference. I booked my next trip at POP where I can be a one minute walk from the food court and my kid will have probably more fun. It was such a long walk to the main pool that she didn't bother going. Just swam in the little quiet pool right outside our room.

I know people love CSR and it is a great place. It just wasn't for me.
POP is where I like to go.
Personal preference.

My advice would be to stick with POP, and if you are miserable, live and learn. Try to make the best of it. Spend lots of time in the parks, and next time wait to go on vacation until you can go and stay where you want.

There is a possibility that you will fall in love though. I did.

 

[Pig Pen]

I've stayed at both, and while I personally prefer CSR, I would recommend keeping your ressie at POP. Instead of thinking of it as a downgrade from a deluxe, view it as doing something fun for your kids. It's like staying inside a cartoon! The colors and theming are over the top. It's our favorite value (they have frozen Coke at the food court)!

Just remember that it's probably going to feel more chaotic than a deluxe because of the size of the resort and number of smaller children. Be prepared for that! Otherwise the rooms aren't much different than CSR.

 

[Buzz2001]

I just returned from CSR in Feb. It was another great trip! Check out my CSR website for pics and info. Also check out the new CSR FAQ (part III).

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1725135

 

[Lilolvr]

Hands down CSR! Better pool, food and it more centrally located for quicker rides to all the parks.

 

[PatsGirl]

I agree with Jaded Beauty on EVERYTHING said. My kids MUCH prefer POP and who wants to do all that walking after a day at the park. I never felt that I could just go grab a cup of coffee or the kids could get a snack without it being an excursion We love POP! Out the hotel door and within minutes you are at the food court. Close enough so that my DD and friend (they are 11) can go by themselves now.

Now, if I wasn't going to the parks each day and was spending some real time at the resort, maybe I'd rethink this but we go to Disney to go to the parks and really all we need is a clean bed and shower -- you get that and so much more at POP for half the price of CSR.

Good luck and have fun whatever you decide.