My looong review of Pop Century! w/ Pics!!!

[DisneyDork712]

We (meDGrandma, DD, DGDs (9+13) are staying at POP Aug 22-28. We did not pay for a preferred room. Which non-preferred blg. is closest to the bus/food court. Which would be the furthest?

http://www.willcad.org/maps/resorts/resort_pop.jpg

Here is a map of the resort. We found that even in the 80's section it wasn't a long walk to the Classic Hall (food court, check-in, etc.). Other that the 60's, the closest rooms are in 70's B and 50's C and A buildings.

 

[DisneyDork712]

Yeah! Thanks for your review DH and I will be there in a little over 2 weeks. No kids yet so it is just the 2 of us! We are getting very excited for POP!

That sounds just like DH and I! We've been married for 1 1/2 years with no kids yet and we love Pop Century!!!

Our past two trips it has been just the two of us, but next year we're hoping to take some friends along!

 

[Matthews4Disney]

Great review and especially great pix! Did your room have a hair dryer and iron? I've read conflicting info online about whether they were in room or you had to request.

I would also love to know this! Thanks for such a great resort review. I, too, am on the fence about Pop or POFQ, but you are making it much easier and more exciting for me to go ahead and try something new AND save $600+ by booking Pop! Thank you!!!!!

 

[DisneyDork712]

What a great review!! I am booking a surprise trip for me and my 14 yr old daughter, and were considering the this place. Can you compare this to the other value resorts? Would you stay here over the All Stars?

TIA....Lucy
9 days and counting!! SURPRISE!!

I have stayed at the All Stars before, and I would definitely recommend Pop Century over them. It isn't that I didn't like the All Stars, I just liked Pop a little bit more. POP doesn't share a bus with anyone else; all three All Stars share buses with each other. So you have to stop at all three of them before heading out to your destination. The food court at POP is better - more variety, better food in general. I also like the theming better at POP. I love the 80's section with Pac Man!! That said... I do like the All Stars!! I wouldn't mind staying there again at all! But since I have a choice, I would always go with POP. Unless someone else in the group wanted a theme that was found at one of the All Stars.

 

[DisneyDork712]

Great review and especially great pix! Did your room have a hair dryer and iron? I've read conflicting info online about whether they were in room or you had to request.

Both were already in the room when we arrived! We never asked for them at all. They were just there! I never use a hair dryer, and I'm allergic to ironing! The hair dryer is mounted on the wall next to the bathroom area with the shower and stuff. The iron is over in the closet area I think. HTH!

 

[DisneyDork712]

Great review. Very informative. We're heading down February 9 for 8 nights at Pop. We've never stayed at a Value before, but I just thought the theming was cool and wanted to try it out. I'm glad you had a good time.

Did you use your car much or was Disney transpo sufficient?

I know you liked the 80's, but what other areas/buildings would you suggest to someone who wanted a quiet room and wasn't particularly concerned about the walk to anywhere? (DD12 would like to be in the 50's or 70's.)

I think you arrived during the day. We're driving in from Sanford at about 11:00 p.m. Are the signs good even in the dark? (I'm going to get lost!)

Thanks for your help. Loved your post!

We never used our car! That's one of the reasons why we will always stay at a Disney resort. All the transportation at POP was very efficient. We didn't have any complaints about the bus service.

I think a quiet room would be in the 70's section, building A. The 70's section doesn't have it's own pool, so there is no reason for 'extra' people to be in that section. And if you want to swim, it's just a quick walk to the Hippy Dippy pool or the computer pool!

Hehe... I think the signs are good in the dark as well. You may want to have a general idea of where you are going. I suggest MapQuest directions. At night when we were coming back from the parks we could see the signs clearly out the bus windows. I think as long as you have someone to drive and someone else to give directions or just read off the signs, you'll be fine! The signs are really big and the exit numbers and arrows are very easy to see and understand!

 

[luvpalmtrees]

Thanks for a great review and pictures!! We are staying at POP in July and requested standard in the 70's building. We stayed at all-star sports and movie before and last year at CBR which we LOVED!! My mom and brother stayed at POP so we wanted to try it! We can't wait!

 

[alldiz]

Awesome review.....thanks so much...

I'm leaving for the world on sun with a split stay
between pofq and POP....very excited....
thanks
kerri

 

[DisneyDork712]

I would also love to know this! Thanks for such a great resort review. I, too, am on the fence about Pop or POFQ, but you are making it much easier and more exciting for me to go ahead and try something new AND save $600+ by booking Pop! Thank you!!!!!

I'm so glad my review helped!! We actually visited POFQ on our trip, and it didn't do much for us. We're still at the stage where we want the larger-than-life icons and the in-your-face Disney theming and magic. The POFQ was more of a quiet, romantic resort. Not that that's bad! It was a lovely resort, and we would love to stay there later on - probably when we start going on trips that don't involve so much time at the parks. POFQ is a resort that needs to be explored; you need to use the amenities, and walk around and see what's there. And I would want to stay there when we would have more time to do that. Pop Century is a wonderful resort to explore as well, and like you mentioned, you saved $600 by booking POP. There are so many little Disney touches that we found at POP, the magic is not lacking there!

 

[Princessbaby]

Reading reviews like this make me even more anxious for my trip-come on August!! Thanks for posting!

 

[lynn46356]

Thank You, Thank You, for such a great review. We will be there 2-11 for 6 days and we can't wait. This will be our first stay at Pop and I can't wait especially after seeing your photos and reading your review. Did you specify a certain decade or just take what you got. I'm haven't requested anything other than no smoking and I'm wondering what I should do. I really don't care where we are put except I don't want to be out in the boonies (did I spell that correctly) haha. Again, thanks for taking the time to post your photos and reviews.

P.S. We are driving too from Northwest Indiana. Wish our drive was more like yours. We'll probably drive to Valdosta, Ga, then the remainder the next.

 

[DisneyDork712]

Thank You, Thank You, for such a great review. We will be there 2-11 for 6 days and we can't wait. This will be our first stay at Pop and I can't wait especially after seeing your photos and reading your review. Did you specify a certain decade or just take what you got. I'm haven't requested anything other than no smoking and I'm wondering what I should do. I really don't care where we are put except I don't want to be out in the boonies (did I spell that correctly) haha. Again, thanks for taking the time to post your photos and reviews.

P.S. We are driving too from Northwest Indiana. Wish our drive was more like yours. We'll probably drive to Valdosta, Ga, then the remainder the next.

We (I) requested the 80's section because of my love of Pac-Man. When we got there I asked if we could have a room facing the pool and they gave us that as well. Honestly, sometimes I thought we were the only ones in the whole building! I never saw anyone else in any of the rooms along that hallway the whole time. Actually, I don't remember seeing any one in any of the rooms in that building!

 

[tinkhoney]

Ty for the report. i loved it and i am soooo much more excited. We leave in 18 days and 17 hrs from SC to Disney staying at pop for 12 nights for the first time.. I agree if u have more pics i would love to see. you have some wonderful views i have never seen.

 

[REL1203]

Does POP offer only double beds, or do they have rooms with Kings or queens? My wife and I (no kids yet) are going on our one year anniversary in Aug and am aobut to book one of the value resorts, leaning towards pop...

Thanks

 

[byoung]

Nice review and great pictures.

 

[DisneyDork712]

Does POP offer only double beds, or do they have rooms with Kings or queens? My wife and I (no kids yet) are going on our one year anniversary in Aug and am aobut to book one of the value resorts, leaning towards pop...

Thanks

I'm pretty sure they have rooms with king beds, but I'm not positive. We had two double beds and we loved it! We have found that king beds are way too big for us. And we liked having a bed to throw all of our souvenirs and other stuff on during the trip, instead of the floor. We slept on the bed closer to the bathroom area, and put our stuff on the one closer to the door. I laid out all of our stuff for the next day on that bed as well. It made it really easy to just grab as we went out the door!

 

[MomofCKJ]

Thanks for the review and pics! A nice walk down memory lane as we stayed there in December and loved it too!

Allyson

 

[Matthews4Disney]

Pop Century is a wonderful resort to explore as well, and like you mentioned, you saved $600 by booking POP. There are so many little Disney touches that we found at POP, the magic is not lacking there!

I really appreciate your advice. You are definitely helping me to get excited about possibly staying at Pop. (Now if only they will offer free dining again so we can actually book this trip!) I was so worried that the theming would not be nearly as nice, but it sounds like it is! I would also love to see more pictures if you can post them. Your pictures are awesome!

 

[Kdog]

Thanks for a great review. I stayed at Pop for the first time over Christmas break, and it was the best vacation ever. My DH and I can't wait to plan another trip. Your pictures put me in a good mood for the rest of my morning!

 

[kaysmommie]

We actually drove from Knoxville to Jacksonville, FL, then from Jacksonville to WDW this time. Last year when we drove straight to WDW from Knoxville it took about 9-10 hours, leaving around 9AM on a Friday. It depends on the traffic, rest stops, how fast you drive, etc. We love driving and taking road trips. We'll definitely drive again next year. Having a portable DVD player and some car games helps a lot. It's also nice to switch drivers every couple of hours to break up the drive down.

Thanks, that doesn't sound too bad if we left really early in the morning. We have a dvd played in my car and I'll bring alot of games for DD & DS. Glad you had a nice time at Pop.