Had heart set on PO but had to add a P

[dec2901]

First let me say that I am thrilled because I booked my anniversay vacation for January.
However, my heart was hoping to stay at PO but after comparing prices I chose to stay at POP. Please tell me that I will not be disappointed. My DH and I stayed at Coronado on our last visit and we joked that we paid for a bed, toilet, and shower because we never spent any time at the resort - although it was beautiful. So in my reasoning POP should be fine. What do you think?

BTW, we do not have human kids; we have 2 Corgi kids.

 

[PrincessSuzanne]

Well, it has been 2 years since we last stayed at POP, but I think you will really enjoy it, especially if you are very nostalgic. The larger than life icons are great and they really remind you of being a kid. We were in the 70's, 80's, 90's area and it really brought back memories.

Suzanne

 

[Maine-iac]

First let me say that I am thrilled because I booked my anniversay vacation for January.
However, my heart was hoping to stay at PO but after comparing prices I chose to stay at POP. Please tell me that I will not be disappointed. My DH and I stayed at Coronado last visit and we joked that we paid for a bed, toilet, and shower because we never spent any time at the resort - although it was beautiful. So in my reasoning POP should be fine. What do you think?

BTW, we do not have human kids; we have 2 Corgi kids.

Here are a couple of threads for you to check out

http://disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1424996

http://disboards.com/showthread.php?t=698727

 

[son3disfan]

We have stayed at POP , POR, And CSR.
You will LOVE POP!
When we went , everything was so new and fresh. It really FEELS Disney!
POR had more room , and a fridge and I loved the privacy curtain, but we are a family of 5. And we needed more room. CSR is just gorgeous....but when we stayed , we were at the resort ALL DAY < and didn't do any parks.
With Two, you should be fine. And with all the money you save , you can buy more STUFF to bring home!

 

[Rudy6]

As you can see, I have stayed there a few times.

It was the place we stayed for my first trip to WDW. For that reason, it is my favorite resort.

I think it will be very similar to the Coronado Springs rooms. We stayed at POR, and the rooms were nearly identical to POP Century. The moderates are a little larger, which means a little more room to throw your junk around.

We will have an annual pass for our next few trips, which allows you to get the DDE card. You can use that at the Value Resort Food Courts, making them cheaper than eating at home.

I picked All Star Movies for our next trip, for some variety. Trip after that we will go to POP Century. I just wonder when they will get the other half done.

The buses at POP can be a little slow, but that is my only complaint. Others have been very critical of POP Century, but I will defend it.

I like the price of the POP. I think that the standard room during value season has only gone up five dollars since the resort opened in December 2003. The cheapest I have gotten the room was $49.00. I have never paid the rack rate. As a comparison, in our upcoming trip we are spending three days at the Polynesian, for my DD's birthday, and 13 nights at All Star Movies. The 13 nights at the All Star Movies (POP is the same price) is only about a hundred more than three nights at the Polynesian. For me, I would rather stay 13 nights at WDW than three nights.

I also like the pools, the food court, the store, the theming. I like it all.

Have fun.

 

[dec2901]

Thanks so much for your replies. I am already feeling better about my choice. I do love Pop culture - I even miss pop-up videos! I guess my main concern was/is that I still want to get that "Ahhh I am on vacation" feeling.

Thanks again for the comments, links, and encouragement.

This is why I love the DIS!

 

[Cool-Beans]

I don't know what Corgi kids are, but if they aren't human I'm assuming that they aren't going on the trip with you. Just two people who love each other, right?

I'm sure that Pop will be fine. The rooms aren't THAT much smaller than mods. I haven't stayed there, but I did a stint at the All-Stars and am familiar with the size.

Besides, if you're just showering and sleeping, who cares? You'll have a new experience, too.

Let us know how you liked it when you get back!! And have a great trip.

...add a P.

 

[boomhauer]

First let me say that I am thrilled because I booked my anniversay vacation for January.
However, my heart was hoping to stay at PO but after comparing prices I chose to stay at POP. Please tell me that I will not be disappointed. My DH and I stayed at Coronado on our last visit and we joked that we paid for a bed, toilet, and shower because we never spent any time at the resort - although it was beautiful. So in my reasoning POP should be fine. What do you think?

BTW, we do not have human kids; we have 2 Corgi kids.

If it makes you feel any better, I've stayed at both and though I prefer the All Stars to Pop, I would chose Pop over POR.

Not only will you feel like you are on vacation - You will truly feel like you are on a Disney vacation. Something I find the values do very well.

Am I the only one who DOESN'T like the privacy curtain? What do I need that for? I'm with my family: "Um , honey - I need to get dressed. Could you please shut the privacy curtain?"

 

[dec2901]

Thank you Cool-Beans and boomhauer. My kids, Chester and Izzy, are two Pembroke Corgis (they are the dogs that the Queen of England has, but mine do not act like royalty).

Boomhauer when you say it feels like a "disney - vacation", what do you mean? What is the difference?

Also, I requested a king size bed and noticed that the rooms with King size beds are connecting. Does sound pass through easily? The last thing I want is to hear my neighbors all night.

Thanks for your opinions, Rachel

 

[maciemouse]

POP is disney all the way! You will love it! You are going at a good time of year. The food court there has a lot to offer. We have stayed at all levels, and we love the POP. I would use some of your free time to walk around other resorts. You can still enjoy them without staying on the property. Enjoy!

 

[boomhauer]

Thank you Cool-Beans and boomhauer. My kids, Chester and Izzy, are two Pembroke Corgis (they are the dogs that the Queen of England has, but mine do not act like royalty).

Boomhauer when you say it feels like a "disney - vacation", what do you mean? What is the difference?

Also, I requested a king size bed and noticed that the rooms with King size beds are connecting. Does sound pass through easily? The last thing I want is to hear my neighbors all night.

Thanks for your opinions, Rachel

Just that there are Disney icons all over the place. It feels as if you're actually in Disney World. I didn't get that feeling from Port Orleans.

As for sound passing through rooms, I've heard that as a complaint at Pop, but in the 3 times I stayed there, I never noticed it. I had a connecting room once and didn't hear anyone next door.

 

[Mandalou]

We've stayed at All-Star Sports and Movies and POP and really love them all! We've never stayed at anything other than a value for the very reason that was sited. . . we're only there to use the bathroom and sleep, and we just can't justify spending all that money on a room when we aren't there. Don't get me wrong. . . my "Disney Dream" is to someday stay at Poly and GF. Maybe after I win the lottery -- although I hear you have to buy a lottery ticket to win the lottery, so that might be my problem.

 

[Minnie&Nana]

Have stayed at POP several times, first time just 3 mos after it opened and I was really surprised by how much I enjoyed it - thanks to the nostalgia - although do not like all the icons all over the building. LOVE Lady and Tramp and the 50's section, esp rooms facing the lake.

Our room was always immaculate until the last two (Feb 2006 and May 2007) stays - will not be returning to POP until we know the rooms have been painted, fresh carpets etc. The place was really run down: the first room we had last Feb was atrocious - flithy and with a horrible odor. We moved next door - the room was good enough, but definitely show wear and tear. It's a busy resort, so upkeep must be a full time job!

Seems more guests ignor the no smoking rules at POP than any other resort -guests smoke on the walkways (could not watch Illuminations from the walkway because there were 4 smokers outside our door every night). Guests seem to smoke everywhere at POP.

Have never been bothered by noise - only on the first visit did we once barely hear the sound of voices on the other side of the mirror. Do not even notice the loud flushing many have mentioned here. Food court is great and the frozen drinks delicious! Inside lounge and poolside bar Funny, because I rarely drink alcoholic beverages, but enjoy the frozen drinks at POP

Can no longer recommend POP until either the housekeeping improves or it the rooms undergo some refurbishment.

BUT if you are lucky and get a room that has been recently painted, carpets cleaned, you'll have a fun stay

 

[Ish&DrJones]

We stayed at the POP four years ago and had a nice time. We were still in college so we could only afford a value, but considering how little we were there, it was nice to not spend a lot. The decor was cute and besides the abundance of screaming children, it wasn't bad at all.

Besides with the money you save, you can buy your "kids" lots of cute Disney Tails stuff. I know we'll be spending a good chunk of our "souvenir" money on our kitties!

 

[DarthKTrava]

We've stayed at All-Star Sports and Movies and POP and really love them all! We've never stayed at anything other than a value for the very reason that was sited. . . we're only there to use the bathroom and sleep, and we just can't justify spending all that money on a room when we aren't there. Don't get me wrong. . . my "Disney Dream" is to someday stay at Poly and GF. Maybe after I win the lottery -- although I hear you have to buy a lottery ticket to win the lottery, so that might be my problem.

That's me! If I win the powerball, I would stay at the GF just to see what "livin' it up" is like...

But that's all we do too, sleep and shower.... I pay more in Atlanta for the same thing.... crazy...

Heck. I've bought 4 and so far, no luck....

 

[dec2901]

Well, you guys had me feeling great about my decision, but then I listened to this week's podcast. The podcast team did not seem very high on POP. However, everytime I go to the pic thread I get excited.

One quick question, I had read many complaints on another site about loud plumbing. Have any of you experienced this?

Thanks again!

 

[Minnie]

Now the POP is nice for a quick trip. However, it is a "value" resort and it is very different from a deluxe or even a moderate.

We found it louder, more "running" children, small rooms with small beds, and the food court was not at all what we enjoy.

However, if your just going for a quick trip, spending most of your time away from the resort, then it would probably be just fine.

However, with your heart set on a moderate be very careful to adjust your expectations so that your not disapointed.

 

[disnut8]

I've stayed at both Pop Century and Port Orleans French Quarter. Yes, the French Quarter is very romantic in a traditional sort of way. But I love Pop with my husband. Why?

Because it's perfect to get to know each other just a little bit more. We've been married 25 years but when we go to Pop Century, we spend a lot of time looking at the shadow boxes in the lobby. There's a lot of items from the last half of the 20th century. We'll go through everything and say (well, yell usually), "my mom had one of those!" or "my grandmother had one of those!" or "remember that?" and then we'll start talking about old times, our family, and things that you normally wouldn't talk about.

Add to that, the walk around the lake (half the lake). There are signs for each year of the last half of the 20th century and an event that happened in that year. That triggers memories as well. My husband and I have had a long talk about Three Mile Island and everything that happened back then - before we knew each other.

And then there are the icons all over the place. Get silly and play the life size game of Twister. There's a ping pong table somewhere (we didn't know that or we would have been on there every day) and I intend to use it frequently on our next trip with our parents, our son, and our grandkids.

Pop Century is just such a nice place for remembering things and finding out things about each other.

French Quarter has the romantic walks and things like that. Pop Century has FUN!

 

[Wishes]

We just got back from a week stay at Pop - our first time staying there. We chose Pop this time because we brought my DS20's girlfriend with us and needed two rooms. The resort is really cute with all the big icons. I loved the palm trees around the main pool. I wish there were more of them spread out around the resort. The rooms weren't too small and ours was always clean. The noise level was my only complaint. We could literally hear the people next door washing their hands in their sink! We could hear every toilet flush and their shower running - you'd think they were in our bathroom! We tried keeping our bathroom door closed as suggested by some on the DIS but it never helpled. Also, to Boomhauer - I don't know if you have any children or if you do whether you have any the opposite sex as you but that is why we like the shower curtain. Like I said - I have a 20 year old son. As his mom, I obviously don't feel comfortable just getting dressed in front of him and it's a tight squeeze to change in the bathroom/shower room. The curtain allows me plenty of room to change in private. It's not a have to thing - just makes things a little easier.