Just back from our 1st stay at Pop

[Jasminetigger]

We just returned Saturday night from our 1st stay at Pop. Overall it was very nice. Previuosly we have stayed at Poly, WL, AKL and POR. It was me, DH, DD14 and DD9. We had 2 rooms in the 50's building. The room location was fantastic. We were in 1228 and 1229, 2nd floor, 1st building. It was about a 2 minute walk to Classic hall and the bus stop. The grounds were nice. The kids liked all the big icons. Only ate at the food court for breakfast and it was good. The rooms were very clean. We had to stand on the busses a few times, which was a first for us, but it was not bad. We usually didn't have to wait long for the busses. Overall we had a good trip and I would not hesitate to stay there again for a budget trip. I did miss some of the amenities of the Deluxes, but I went there knowing what to expect and had a fabulous time.

 

[teachingmykids]

Glad you liked it. This trip will be our 3rd POP adventure. We love it ~ the rooms are small, but we don't spend much time there anyway. This is our first trip in the summer so we'll get to check out the pools.

 

[disneydreamin247]

Glad to hear you had a magical trip! I wish it was October already so I could be going on my own trip

 

[DisneyBride'03]

I want to go for F & W this year...have VWL for Sun night...and just got qouted $$65 with an AAA rate....I think that is a deal...

Nice to hear you enjoyed your trip, and especially to see all the other places you have visited...
Have stayed at POp before and Liked it....but was teetering on the idea pf booking POFQ...
Thanks for your post

 

[DisneyGirlie]

I'm glad you enjoyed it. Previously I've stayed at Pop 3 times and always loved it and I still do. However, after a first time stay at the Poly in February, it's going to be hard to go back to value. I've been eternally spoiled!

 

[n3rf]

glad to hear your trip and stay at POP was great, we will be staying at POP in April for our first trip ever and glad to know I didnt pick a dud when selecting the resort

 

[karemore]

Thanks! We have less than a month until we'll be there.

We previously stayed at the GF, and POFQ, so we're hoping to have a positive experience at Pop.

 

[jmtf2004]

We just returned Saturday night from our 1st stay at Pop. Overall it was very nice. ...Overall we had a good trip and I would not hesitate to stay there again for a budget trip. I did miss some of the amenities of the Deluxes, but I went there knowing what to expect and had a fabulous time.

I am curious, based on your comments, would you mind describing more specifically what it was that you missed in the way of amenities comparing Pop to the Deluxe resorts?
I am a DVC member, there is a reported change in policy for the studio villas in the DVC resorts - they are supplying these villas with plastic glasses and foam cups, rather than glass glasses and ceramic mugs. This change is getting me thinking about the amenities provided at the non-DVC resorts...I am concerned about cutbacks affecting the quality of stays onsite. At Pop were you provided with plastic or glass glasses? (Seeing that there are no coffee makers in the rooms, it would make sense that there are no mugs provided.) I have read conflicting reports as to what is provided at Pop, so I was hoping to benefit from your first hand experience.

 

[The Lion King]

Glad to hear you had a nice stay at Pop. We will be checking in exactly 2 weeks from today. This is our first trip so we don't have anything to compare it with so I'm sure we will have a great time.

 

[Jasminetigger]

I am curious, based on your comments, would you mind describing more specifically what it was that you missed in the way of amenities comparing Pop to the Deluxe resorts?
I am a DVC member, there is a reported change in policy for the studio villas in the DVC resorts - they are supplying these villas with plastic glasses and foam cups, rather than glass glasses and ceramic mugs. This change is getting me thinking about the amenities provided at the non-DVC resorts...I am concerned about cutbacks affecting the quality of stays onsite. At Pop were you provided with plastic or glass glasses? (Seeing that there are no coffee makers in the rooms, it would make sense that there are no mugs provided.) I have read conflicting reports as to what is provided at Pop, so I was hoping to benefit from your first hand experience.

It was the little things I noticed. No ceiling fans. Towels seemed smaller and thinner. Plastic glasses. Bus stops were way more crowded than the deluxes. Bus stop at the parks also seemed the farthest away possible. And of course, the bus was the only mode of transportation. Double beds. We had two rooms so it wasn't that big of a deal. We each got our own bed. The gift store at Pop didn't have the snack variety that the deluxes do. Especially the 2 liter bottles of coke. The toiletries provided at Pop were not the same as the Deluxes. The brand was different. And all that was provided was shampoo, nothing else.

Don't get me wrong, we had a wonderful time. We were there for 3 days. I believe that would be my limit for staying there. Any longer and I would want to stay elsewhere. But for the kind of trip we took this time, we were at the parks most of the time, Pop was perfect . And I would stay there again for a short trip. Hope this helps. If there is anything else I can answer, ask away.

 

[luvmylittleboy2003]

It was the little things I noticed. No ceiling fans. Towels seemed smaller and thinner. Plastic glasses. Bus stops were way more crowded than the deluxes. Bus stop at the parks also seemed the farthest away possible. And of course, the bus was the only mode of transportation. Double beds. We had two rooms so it wasn't that big of a deal. We each got our own bed. The gift store at Pop didn't have the snack variety that the deluxes do. Especially the 2 liter bottles of coke. The toiletries provided at Pop were not the same as the Deluxes. The brand was different. And all that was provided was shampoo, nothing else.
Don't get me wrong, we had a wonderful time. We were there for 3 days. I believe that would be my limit for staying there. Any longer and I would want to stay elsewhere. But for the kind of trip we took this time, we were at the parks most of the time, Pop was perfect . And I would stay there again for a short trip. Hope this helps. If there is anything else I can answer, ask away.

They don't provide soap

 

[wdwlvr629]

I'm glad you enjoyed it. Previously I've stayed at Pop 3 times and always loved it and I still do. However, after a first time stay at the Poly in February, it's going to be hard to go back to value. I've been eternally spoiled!

I know how you feel, we did AKL our last trip, Poly before that, AKL before that and POP was our previous trip. We are now going back and staying @ POP! I would prefer a dlx, but we're doing a grand gathering and trying to watch the $$$, so we are staying there. I agree about being spoiled! I have to say that the Poly is now our favorite!

 

[lizzyb]

Glad you liked it.

 

[Jasminetigger]

They don't provide soap

I'm sure they do, but there was none in our room. Probably just an oversight. I had brought some from home, so it wasn't a big deal.

The over thing I noticed and forgot to mention, was the water pressure. The water presuure in the shower was very low, and the water didn't stay hot very long. Again, these are not things I am complaining about, just little things I noticed. We still had a wonderful time. In fact, it was one of our best trips yet.

 

[Shelly888]

We just got back from Pop and there was definitely soap, two kinds(facial and body) every day. It felt like the mousekeepers were asking us to take some home because they kept giving it to us. I ended up takng home 4 of them.... we had plenty of hot water, never ran out. Just another POV.

 

[Bev J]

We stayed for the first time at POP last summer (2 adults only, kids stayed home), previously we have stayed at the Contemp, POFQ, POR, WL. We wanted a quick budget trip so picked POP really not expecting anything except a clean place to sleep.
We were very pleased with our stay, room was very clean, bed comfortable. we were put in a handicap room since we wanted a king bed, no problem- the shower was huge!
Mickey Soap (bath and facial) and H20 shampoo/conditioner was provided. Plastic wrapped cups for drinking, we were fine with all of this.
Very friendly CM, food court with plenty of seating and loads of food choices.
Grounds were well kept and the huge icons were a hoot.
Our favorite resort is POFQ and yes we do enjoy staying at a Deluxe sometimes with the price is right and when we stay Deluxe we expect more out of the hotel because we paid a heck of alot more for it.
We really did not expect alot out of POP but you know we were just as happy there as deluxe, we did miss the coffee maker in the room but the food court was steps away and we could fill our mug whenever we wanted.
We saved big $$$ and still had a magical trip to WDW- can you guess where we are staying in December?
If the resort is our main reason to take a trip then we will spend more, but at WDW the resort is secondary to our reason for comming, it's really about spending every available moment in the parks!!

Bev

 

[Daisie]

I totally agree.....we also would not hesitate for a return trip to Pop. We have stayed there twice, also have stayed at deluxes, moderates and the all stars. We have always been happy at Pop.

 

[donac]

I can't wait we are staying there in Aug and we are all excited about it.

 

[jmtf2004]

It was the little things I noticed. No ceiling fans. Towels seemed smaller and thinner. Plastic glasses. Bus stops were way more crowded than the deluxes. Bus stop at the parks also seemed the farthest away possible. And of course, the bus was the only mode of transportation. Double beds. We had two rooms so it wasn't that big of a deal. We each got our own bed. The gift store at Pop didn't have the snack variety that the deluxes do. Especially the 2 liter bottles of coke. The toiletries provided at Pop were not the same as the Deluxes. The brand was different. And all that was provided was shampoo, nothing else.

Don't get me wrong, we had a wonderful time. We were there for 3 days. I believe that would be my limit for staying there. Any longer and I would want to stay elsewhere. But for the kind of trip we took this time, we were at the parks most of the time, Pop was perfect . And I would stay there again for a short trip. Hope this helps. If there is anything else I can answer, ask away.

We have been fortunate enough to have stayed at POR, POFQ, AKL, SSR, BCV and VWL. A value resort has always been a consideration, but haven't done it yet. I was already aware that the transportation is buses only, and that they tend to be more crowded and the stops were furthest out. However, it is news to me that value resorts do not have ceiling fans. The rooms in the mods also have double beds, and I can live with the smaller bed for a while (but DH not so much), but like you, I think I would definitely miss the ceiling fan.
I am sure I had read somewhere that glass glasses were provided in the values - maybe it depends on their Mousekeeping supplies (i.e. at busier times they switch to plastic), or maybe they have switched to all plastic now. I would be interested to know what they provide at the All Stars.
Based on other posts in this thread, it looks like it was an oversight that you were not provided with soap. I have read that the soap/conditioner/shampoo is H20+ in the deluxes, but not in the values. Last trip (March 2007) we split our stay between AKL and BCV - we received the H2O+ at both, but at AKL we received soap, shampoo and conditioner and lotion, while at BCV we got soap, shampoo and conditioner only.
I'm happy that you enjoyed your stay at Pop. For me, I have to say I would rather stay somewhere on vacation that when I'm leaving, I will miss the place rather than feeling we have had enough....it seems less likely now we will be trying out the values any time soon. Jasminetigger, I do want to thank you very much for taking the time to elaborate on the differences you noticed. I found your comments very helpful!

 

[disneydreamin-gang]

I'm glad your trip went well. We are staying for the first time in Sept. My DH and I stayed at CSR in 2006 and loved it. But with DD12,DS9 and grandma we need to cut some corners. I am really looking forward to this trip. I have reviewed everything I can get my hands on about the resort and I'm really loving it. I think the kids will have a blast.