Did anybody stay at POP last September?

[caracap]

How crowded was the resort? Did you get your room request? How was the wait for the bus? How was the food court, hard to get a seat because of free dining? How crowded were the pools? TIA We are going in Septemeber with 3 small children, and picked September thinking it would be the slowest month, never knowing a thing about free dining!!

 

[javamom]

I was there for the last weekend in September. Was there for the last days of the Anniversary promo, and the first days of the Year of a Million Dreams promo. We loved the Free Dining Promo. We got our room request, no trouble, even the fridge we wanted. With little kiddos with you, you may want to consider renting one for your stay too. You can keep milk, or whatnot in there.

We stayed Preferred View in the 60's building. The food court was fine, never had a problem finding a place to sit. Like the Pop food court better than the one at POR.

Never swam in the Hippy Dippy, but never saw it to be crowded. We spent our days in the Parks, though.

I have stayed at POP, and POR, and find the bussing at POP to be much better actually. No complaints.

The only time that it seemed TOOO Crowded was at check-in.

Remember, too, that this was the year that Disney over-sold the Free Dining promo, and had to offer other dining alternatives and perks for guests that could not get TS seatings. So, I would say that you needn't worry about the Free Dining crowds because I am not aware that such a condition exists this year. Anyone?

 

[lady_hlh]

The past 2 years we went during the last week of free dining. The pools were never crowded and we swam at all different times of the day. The buses were fine. The food court could be crowded in the AM but it was dead at lunch time. I would love to go again at the end of September but my DD started school so we will be checking out the crowds at the end of August instead this year.

 

[DarthKTrava]

Went first week of Sept. A bit of a line at check-in. AM was crowded in the food court. Bus line wasn't too bad in the morning.. Especially if you're NOT taking the first bus out to the parks when they open.. Pool wasn't crowded but then only went swimming after dark.

 

[KarlaG4Kids]

We went the third week of September last year. Everything was busy but not crazy crowded. We swam and there were plenty of lounge chairs and not huge crowds in the pools. The dining rooms were busy but we could still find seats. We DID get our room request (bldg facing Epcot, top floor). The love bugs were out if full force and it was pretty warm but otherwise it was a great time of year. Enjoy.

 

[EMom]

For those who stayed the last week of Sept., what were the crowds at the park like? The temps?

Thanks!

 

[BuzzandAriel'smom]

We were there 9/29-10/6 last year at Pop. I would say the crowds were medium... at times it was busy, it was not empty like we expected. It was warm everywhere, but it was HOT at AK. The mornings were nice and we swam in the afternoon. Waiting for a 3pm bus one day was the worst we encountered for lines. It was during MNSSHP and we needed to get to MK to get to a dinner reservation at WL and that took forever! Other than that it was not too bad.

We loved the atmosphere at Pop. I got my coffee every morning around 6:30 and the food court was empty. By 7:30 it was full. Same with dinner. 5 was good 6 was crowded.

Pools were never crowded when we wanted to swim in the afternoons. The baby pool there is so nice and shaded. The best I have ever seen!

Have a great trip!

 

[DarthKTrava]

For those who stayed the last week of Sept., what were the crowds at the park like? The temps?

Thanks!

Fairly light. Most rides I got on, I didn't have to wait more than about 5 mins. Some I could just walk on without a wait.

Temps: around 90. With a rainshower most afternoons.

 

[CathrynRose]

How crowded was the resort? Did you get your room request? How was the wait for the bus? How was the food court, hard to get a seat because of free dining? How crowded were the pools? TIA We are going in Septemeber with 3 small children, and picked September thinking it would be the slowest month, never knowing a thing about free dining!!

I was there last year from 9.23 - 10.4.

IT WAS FINE! The food court was crowded in the mornings (but they always are) and crowded after a park closing (again - they always are)

It truly is 'off season'. Youre seeing so many people HERE posting theyre going in September but HERE is a bunch of Disney nuts (myself included! )

Trust me - kick back and wait for one of the best vacation times to go!

 

[CathrynRose]

For those who stayed the last week of Sept., what were the crowds at the park like? The temps?

Thanks!

HOT!!!!!



Crowds were totally fine.

It TRULY is off season!!! It's wonderful!

 

[motofox4]

we were there the 2nd-3rd week of september last year and found the crowds to be very low. The lines for the food court were OK and finding a table (we always sat outside in the mornings) was easy. The main pool was not overly crowded, it's a very big pool so there was plenty of room and lots of lounge chairs for everyone. we also went to the smaller pools and they too weren't crowded. we paid extra for a preferred room and also requested a king bed and we got our request. also, the king bed was in a standard room (not handicap) so we had a bathtub instead of just a shower. our room was in the 70s section, right next to the oversize big wheel and near the pop jets, which was a great location. the only thing you may experience a problem with during this time of year are the love bugs. they were absolutely horrible last year, swarms of them EVERYWHERE, even getting into our room when we opened/closed the door. they're nothing more then an annoyance though - they don't harm you in any way. i wouldn't hesitate to recommend to anyone going during this time of year.

 

[Taja]

Other than arrival day (I think it was September 30th) when the computer system was down, the only places that seemed crowded were the restaurants!

We arrived the last arrival date for free DDP and stayed 10 nights. Temperature was warm to hot and very humid.

Be sure to take my views of weather with many grains of salt--I live in the low desert! I'm accustomed to 110 degrees with low humidity!

 

[twinspluscade]

How crowded was the resort? Did you get your room request? How was the wait for the bus? How was the food court, hard to get a seat because of free dining? How crowded were the pools? TIA We are going in Septemeber with 3 small children, and picked September thinking it would be the slowest month, never knowing a thing about free dining!!

We were there the second week of September last year. We hadn't make a room request, but ended up getting a really great location--I think it was 60s building, facing the lake. Anyway, it was a great spot. Food court seemed to be the most crowded in the morning, BUT the one morning we did eat breakfast there (probably around 8:00) we did find a table right away. So, it's not crowded to the point people are wandering around looking for a seat. We ate there for dinner twice; both times it was not even half full. We ate lunch there once; again, it was busy but everyone was finding places to sit.

The pools were empty the one time we went swimming. It was about 1 or 2 in the afternoon, a nice hot day. My kids and one other little boy were the only ones in the kiddie pool (which is so much fun, by the way). The hippy dippy pool had *maybe* 15 people in it. It never seemed even close to crowded whenever we walked by, either.

We loved going during September so much that we're going back this year again! . I wish we could go every year during that time, but alas, my twins start Kindergarten in a year so this will be the last year for us in Sept.

 

[jsp2000]

How crowded was the resort? Did you get your room request? How was the wait for the bus? How was the food court, hard to get a seat because of free dining? How crowded were the pools? TIA We are going in Septemeber with 3 small children, and picked September thinking it would be the slowest month, never knowing a thing about free dining!!

We stayed from the 9th to the 16th at Pop.

Room request: We booked a just a standard room. The check-in line was pretty long...it probably took us 45 minutes to check in. It may have just been a busy afternoon...it was a Saturday. At check-in, my wife asked for and got a single king-sized bed in our room (it was just her and I). It was not a problem.

Food Court & Restaurants: The food court at POP is huge, so it was never much of a problem getting a seat. It seemed like early morning and very late at night (when the parks closed) were the busiest times. Because it was free dining, the restaurants were fairly crowded at times. You would be wise to make your reservations ahead of time if you are planning on a nice sit-down meal. The table service restaurants were never that bad.

Pools: Not too crowded...we were in the parks most of the day, but the pools were never overcrowded at night.

The Parks: Amazing. The crowds were non-existant. We spent several mornings at the Magic Kingdom throughout the week, and almost always all the Fantasyland rides (your main "small children" attractions) were at 5 minute or less wait times.

When you get there, if the hotel is crowded, don't be discouraged. Free dining boosts the crowds at the Disney hotels, but that is a very small portion of your total park attendence. If it tells you anything...we wanted to go back in September SO BADLY this year so we could take our daughter during a slow period, but my wife can't take time off work that month. We are going in January because it seems to be the only other month that comes close.

HAVE FUN!

 

[PooohBear]

For those who stayed the last week of Sept., what were the crowds at the park like? The temps?

Thanks!

We had a group there the last week of September for the free dining and it was crowded, hot and humid ! weird that so many others say the crowds were light we still had a good time though !!