Freaked out about staying at POP

[iluvdizknee]

Ok, reading these message boards, I am really freaked out about staying at the POP in July. I have stayed at the POFQ 2x, ASM 2x's and we want to try the POP now. I really enjoyed the all star resorts. I have a 12 and 15 year old with me and my hubby. I just booked this 11 night trip, 6/29-7/10, but now I am having 2nd thoughts on staying there. Did anyone have a good time there? are the food courts really worse that the other all stars? are the buses more crowded than the other all stars?...let me know thanks
Dee

 

[Stitch1404]

I am a huge supporter of POP and I have not experienced the problems there that others have! I LOVE the resort. The only other value I have stayed at is All Star Sports, and I found the room to be identical, and although apparently I am alone on this, I preferred the food court at POP. I absolutely loved the theming and enjoyed a lot of time by the beautiful pool. I would highly recommend staying at POP!

 

[miller123]

I just returned from a week stay there(10 days ago). I loved noise was nothing. The food court was just that-a food court. I thought the food was fine and not too high priced for a hotle. I cant speak for a June trip but I recommend it highly.

 

[goin2disneyagain]

I have stayed at POP twice and have never experienced any of the problems that I have read about on these boards. Sometimes I think people expect a little too much and therefore they set themselves up for disappointment.

 

[*Fantasia*]

Hmmmm.... 11 nights! I think I would definitely split my stay. If you're freakin' out about staying at POP, you might split your stay, this way, if POP doesn't work out, you have a second place to stay once you're done staying at POP. I used to second guess myself (OK... I still do) and when I do that and don't feel completely satisfied with my choice, I opt for a split stay, this way, if ever I'm dissapointed with my first resort, I have a second resort to look forward too. I think split stay is your best bet, this might ease your freakin' out.

 

[Sammie]

I think for anyone planning a stay at any Disney resort you have to remember these comments about the resorts are opinions based on a stay that may or may not have anything in common with your stay.

If one is truly going to be objective about comparing a resort one would have to have similar situations at the exact same time. Almost impossible.

Certain times of the year are going to be more crowded. Right now it is very crowded at Disney due to free dining.

Secondly there is no way to predict if you will visit when there are a large number of rowdy unsupervised children running a muck or guests up all night flushing toliets. You might get lucky and go when most all the children belong to DISers and are all perfectly behaved and have guests that sleep all night and never make a potty run during the night.

I will say that I do see some complaints about the Value resorts from guests who are used to staying at moderate resorts and heaven forbid deluxe resorts and think they are going to be happy there. I just don't see that happening and blame the guest completely and not the resort. You have to have reasonable expectations for each classification of resort. Compare value to value, moderate to moderate. But even that can vary, as POFQ is very small so even when it is full it is never going to be as crowded as Pop or Caribbean Beach etc.

Go, with an open mind, make your decisions, if you don't like it, you will know for any future visits.

 

[Ali]

I started a thread a few days ago about this issue - being freaked out, scared, nervous, anxious, etc about value resorts so all I will say now is 11 days in one small room is a VERY VERY VERY long time for 4 people Especially with a 12 and 15 year old.

11 days is a very very very long time to eat the same foods at the food court.

11 days is a very very very long time to walk from the buses to the hotel room the same way every time.

Perhaps shortening the trip by a night or two and moving up to a larger room or renting points and staying in a room with a kitchen might be a good idea. Or splitting the stay at several hotels might not be a bad idea if you are not a commando type for all 11 days and can' t waste the time moving rooms.

If you are freaked out about it now, imagine your emotional state when the time comes around next year. You will not enjoy the trip if you are freaked out. Try to breathe, relax, and know you are in a safe place...... (hey, it works for me when I am freaked out)

Alicia

 

[SqueakyMouse]

Dh and I stayed at POP at the end of July. We had never stayed at a value resort but wanted to give it a try over a short trip. We LOVED it.

 

[daisyduck123]

We've stayed at POP twice & loved it....going back again next May.

I can't comment about the buses...haven't ever ridden them.

We love the food court...never any problems. I guess we don't eat during the rush.

 

[RescueRanger]

No need to freak out. We have stayed at every level of WDW resort and we love POP. In fact, if it was up to my youngest DD, we would stay there every trip. We have never had the noise issues others have described. Bottom line is that you cannot please all the people all the time. Don't worry, you will be at WDW. How bad could it be .

 

[frogfuzz]

I agree with Sammie. Everyone is different. And some are overly opinionated and defensive about their likes & dislikes.

We have stayed at Pop 3 times and going back this new years. Have stayed at all resorts except the DVC's

If we have to get 3 rooms we go value and have stayed at all many times. I like pop far more and would not go back to All Stars unless forced. I feel Pop is less tacky of Values, I like the food courts better, don't understand why people think it is worse than the stars. Much less crowded & quieter in my opinion. The big plus, by far, they have their own bus system, sharing with the 3 all stars get crowded. Pop has a better location. Maybe it is just me , but I dont see the school groups there like the All stars . I am a water person I like to look a the lake. You can see fireworks from the Pop. We go New Years, we leave the teens to the crowds go back to Pop sit by the lake with a snack and watch 3 fireworks shows at once. Cool looking at the eery tower of terror at dusk

11 days is a long time anywhere. To split up would be part of a vacation for me except the repacking part .

I can relate to you though. I get the panics over something and my family goes while I go but when it is all over I am

Just my personal outlook.

Going to Carribbean in 2 weeks Pop in Dec.

 

[frogfuzz]

I agree with Sammie. Everyone is different. And some are overly opinionated and defensive about their likes & dislikes.

We have stayed at Pop 3 times and going back this new years. Have stayed at all resorts except the DVC's

If we have to get 3 rooms we go value and have stayed at all. I like pop far more and would not go back to All Stars unless forced. I feel Pop is less tacky of Values, I like the food courts better, don't understand why people think it is worse than the stars. Much less crowded & quieter in my opinion. The big plus, by far, they have their own bus system, sharing with the 3 all stars get crowded. Pop has a better location. Maybe it is just me , but I dont see the school groups there like the All stars . I am a water person I like to look a the lake. You can see fireworks from the Pop. We go New Years, we leave the teens to the crowds go back to Pop sit by the lake with a snack and watch 3 fireworks shows at once. Cool looking at the eery tower of terror at dusk

11 days is a long time anywhere. To split up would be part of a vacation for me except the repacking part .

I can relate to you though. I get the panics over something and my family goes while I go but when it is all over I am

Just my personal outlook.

Going to Carribbean in 2 weeks Pop in Dec.

 

[goofy4tink]

Dd and I loved Pop in August. Had no bad experiences at all and would gladly stay there again. Now comes my suggestion.....if I were you, with the ages of your kids, I would split the stay between a moderate and Pop. Start at Pop for say 6 nights, then move to POR, or one of the other mods. The kids might like to have the more extensive pool areas, with slides for the end of the trip. And having table service for a few meals, without having to leave the resort is a nice plus. It will give you a change of pace and scenery. Just a thought.

 

[CheshireVal]

Why are you just focusing on the negative Pop threads? If you look, you'll find plenty of "I love Pop" threads even here on the first page.

Stop freaking.

 

[LisaRay]

We have stayed at Pop twice once for 7 nights kids 4 & 13 then the 2nd time for 8 nights the kids were 5 & 14.

We didn't have any problems. When we wanted down time at the hotel we usually spent it at the pool area. There was one evening where my DH had a bad headache and I took the kids to the arcade and pool to give him some quiet time. We also didn't have park tickets for every day but still found plenty of things to do besides sit around the room.


We are going back next month with our now 6 & 15 yr olds and are staying for 10 nights!! Can't wait!!

 

[Alicnwondrln]

I started a thread a few days ago about this issue - being freaked out, scared, nervous, anxious, etc about value resorts so all I will say now is 11 days in one small room is a VERY VERY VERY long time for 4 people Especially with a 12 and 15 year old.

11 days is a very very very long time to eat the same foods at the food court.

11 days is a very very very long time to walk from the buses to the hotel room the same way every time.

Perhaps shortening the trip by a night or two and moving up to a larger room or renting points and staying in a room with a kitchen might be a good idea. Or splitting the stay at several hotels might not be a bad idea if you are not a commando type for all 11 days and can' t waste the time moving rooms.

If you are freaked out about it now, imagine your emotional state when the time comes around next year. You will not enjoy the trip if you are freaked out. Try to breathe, relax, and know you are in a safe place...... (hey, it works for me when I am freaked out)

Alicia

i was wondering if you were gonna chime in here
LOL

 

[Magalex]

Sometimes posts about the resorts kinda do that to people. We visited POP this past April 2005. I was nervous from the reviews. But like alot of other replies we had no problems. Yes you may have to stand on the bus(I admit that was hard with a 4 1/2 yr) but it was nothing to stress about. It was wonderful. We might be going to WDW again May 2006. We would like to stay at ASMO for our 5 yr old DS. But of course I hear negative things about that resort too. Maybe we will stay at CBR thanksgiving 2007. Quess what..negative things on that one too.

HAVE FUN
Magalex

 

[ScoJo15]

We absolutely loved our stay at POP a couple weeks ago and cannot wait to stay there again! Every resort is going to have good and bad reports from it and there are a lot of variables (seems like noisy neighbours are the most common....why are you in the room so much in the first place?) to take into consideration.

The bus transportation was awesome and very quick & the food court was a food court. It's not a table service restaurant.

 

[71010]

We just got back from Pop and loved it. We ususally stay at Key West or Animal Kingdom Lodge, but this was a quick (6 day) cheap trip and we loved it. It depends on what type of vacation you are looking for. If you want an upscale, relaxed, quiet type of trip, dont go to Pop Century. If you want a fun, running from park to park, exciting trip, Pop is definately where you want to go. Just basic hot shower and comfortable bed with fun Disney Icons. It just depends on what type of experience you are looking for. I wouldnt go looking for luxury and amenities, because you arent going to get it. Just go, have a good time! Its Disney!

 

[boomhauer]

After 3 straight stays at Pop, I decided to return "home" on my last trip to ASMovies, and I won't go back to Pop anytime soon.

There is a certain Disney feel you get at All Stars that you simply don't get at Pop.

The food is much better at All Stars than Pop.
The bus service is better.

Don't get me wrong, Pop is nice and it's well kept. It's fun. But it simply just doesn't feel enough like Disney to me.