Need Opinion on Pop Century!

[dina7]

In the past we have stayed at the Dolphin & at all of the moderate resorts at WDW. We are really trying to save $ this trip & are thinking about PC. I would love some opinions from people who have stayed at the Moderates & Pop. I am worried about crowds waiting for buses & long walks to the bus stop & food court. (I know you can pay extra for a preferred room location, but I would rather just request that at check-in & see if we can get it w/out paying the extra fee.) Anyway, desperate for some opinions!
Thanks!

 

[dina7]

forgot to subscribe!

 

[elan]

We belong to dvc and had stayed in deluxes before. We love POP. We will be there again in nov before checking into okw. I can't help with the buses because we have a car. The food court had a lot of variety.

 

[kandmwedding]

I've stayed at Pop several times and at POR once. Here's my feeling:

Buses - while Pop did have longer lines at the bus stop, the mods have several bus stops each, so it amounts to the same thing. I can't recall waiting more than about 25 minutes at Pop, and that was only early in the morning during the busiest times.

Distance to Main Building - every room I've had at Pop was either as close, if not closer, to the food court and gift shop than it was when I stayed at POR. The resort is fairly compact compared to most mods, so the walk won't be too much. I'd request a 50s or 70s building though, since they're the closest, non-preferred buildings.

As elan said, the food court at Pop is awesome. Tons of variety!

 

[blessedby3]

I have stayed at all 3 levels- deluxe, mod, value. Of course I prefer deluxe, but cant afford that every trip. We stayed at POP in 2005 and have it booked again for our Jan. 2008 trip. I would say the main thing I hated about the bus service was that it seemed like the POP busses were the farthest bus stops when leaving the parks. There were always lots of people waiting for the value busses too. At the actual hotel we never experienced too long of waits or people. It was mainly leaving the parks when we noticed the long trek to the bus stop and the long lines of people.

 

[KimWDW]

Crowds for buses depends on the time of year, just like at all resorts. I've only been to Pop in the off-season (two Octobers and one January) and the bus service was AWESOME. Most waits were 5 minutes. Always got on the first bus. Always got a seat except one time coming home from the MK right after closing. What's great about Pop is that they don't share buses and don't make multiple stops. Nice straight ride to the parks.

I've never had a long walk to the food court/pool/buses. We stayed in the 70's or 50's each time, not preferred. Again this was all off-season, though. In a busy time you could be stuck in the outermost corner of the 90's with a long walk.

 

[ziggystardust]

I've stayed at POP 2x. I actually enjoyed it more than my stay at POR. I wouldn't hesitate to go back. I didn't have a preferred room- I requested the 50s section, which is really close and got it both times.

My ONLY complaint about POP is that during the busy seasons (my experience was late late aug early sept) was the transportation at park closing. The lines were just ridiculous.

 

[G&J's Mom]

I've never had a long walk to the food court/pool/buses. We stayed in the 70's or 50's each time, not preferred. Again this was all off-season, though. In a busy time you could be stuck in the outermost corner of the 90's with a long walk.

We loved POP our first trip last year and are headed back the same time this year. We requested 50's last year or even something reasonably close to the food court. It was early evening when we checked in and the place was packed. We got 90's! UGH!! We were seriously in the weeds. With a tired 4 and 6 year old, it was tough. I brought stuff to decorate my window and didn't even bother, because the only living things that would have seen it are the anoles and the love bugs This year, I paid for preferred.

 

[motofox4]

i've stayed at CSR and Pop in the past. At Pop last September, we paid extra for a preferred room and were put in the 70s section (some of the rooms are preferred). The walk to the food court/main building/main pool was a very short distance, the lines to the parks were "okay". Sometimes they were long and sometimes they weren't. It was kind of hit or miss. However, one night coming home from the MK, the line for Pop's bus was EXTREMELY long. We waited for approximately an hour and 15 minutes to get on a bus and then it was standing room only. Other then that, that would be my one and only complaint. The food court was nice, good selection of foods, room service was great, got towel animals every day but one, the grounds are very well kept, landscapers/maintenance was always working on something. I highly recommend Pop and wouldn't hesitate to stay there again!

 

[BeNJeNWaFFLe]

I stayed at Pop two years ago in September. It was great! I was in the 70's building closest to the main hall. It was a 5 minute walk to the food court and the bus stops. Any of the 50's, 60's or 70's buildings are pefect. I would definitely stay there again.

Buses: Catching a bus at Pop in the mornings wasn't bad. I always tried to get to the park early so the line was almost non-existant and the wait was short. As a PP said, the bus stops at the parks are the furthest away, so be aware of that. It's not a mile hike, but it isn't right next to the enterence either. Overall, the bus situation for Pop is very reasonable.

Leaving MK for the night was a little crazy! Usually the line fills the corral and some extra. Usually though, Pop would start loading one bus, another bus would pull up beside it and start loading...all the while a 3rd bus was pulling around the horseshoe. So you weren't waiting on line very long. I found it best to wait a bit after the fireworks end (30-40min) before I started heading out of the park. It helped to alleviate that get-outta-the-park-quick mad-dash to the bus stop junk.

Food: The food court has pretty good food. I always found something to eat. I got to the food court shortly after it opened and it was always empty. I ate dinner there once or twice at an off time and tables were available. I don't know what it's like at a peak meal time but I can guess it's very crowded. But hey, if you time it right, they do the twist for you in the morning, and the hustle in the evening!

This story is not to scare anyone, but it was a site! One night leaving MK, the line for Pop was horrendous! When just turned the corner around the information booth (the far side of bus stops) and we saw the end of a line, but we assumed it was for another resort. We followed the walkway down towards Pop and soon realized Holy Moly that line is for us!! After we picked our jaws up off the floor , we parked it on a bench near the Pop bus stop and just waited it out. In about 10 minutes the line was small enough to fit into the corral. We hopped on, waited a few and a bus pulled up. We realise that we didn't wait inside MK very long after Wishes. That night was the only problem we had with Pop buses.

 

[NUguyinCrew]

We stayed at POP last year and I will not go back. This year we are at POR which I wanted last year but didnt want to pay the extra $$. We were there in mid-sept and it was still very crowded. The parks were empty but that hotel seemed to be full. Albeit, it was free dining. The buses took a very long time to arrive, the que lines are not covered (it is nice there are que lines to begin with though). I was not very impressed with the food cooked at the food court (packaged meals not included) as I was at other resort food courts we have ate at previously and on this trip. I could go on with other things that I can nit-pick about but in a few words...

...spend the money for a moderate!

 

[ILVPOOH]

We went the last week in August last year and had no problem with waiting long for the bus. They came very quickly and there were always one after the other showing up after a park closed. My only complaint is that the Pop bus stop is the LAST bus stop at every park, but something has to be last right?

The food court was great. There was so much variety. The gift shop was great too. The children liked the arcade and won some nice prizes. We stayed in the 60's building (preferred) and it was close to everything. One thing I saw that turned me off was seeing a mother tell her little one to pee into the pool. I know that can happen anywhere, but it bothered me.

I like the moderate and deluxe hotels better, but Pop wasn't bad. Our next trip we are going to POFQ, but my children wanted to go back to Pop.

 

[goofy4tink]

I've stayed at AllStar Music, POR (DxL), S/D, BC, CR, own at BW. I love POP. I have to tell you...the walk to the bus stop at all of my rooms at POP (50's, 80's) was shorter than the walk at BC, BW, and the S/D!! Granted, I was inside the resort for a lot of those steps at the deluxes, but they were steps none the less! I don't think it ever took more than 5 mins to get to the food court or bus stop, and I was on the hind side of the resort all three times!!

Bus lines...yes, there can be a ton of people in line. But, the lines are much more organized than at other resorts...there is actually a que. Of course, it can get hot standing there in the summer. The buses come very regularly...never had to wait more than 20 mins for any bus.

The food court is wonderful.....I really miss it when I'm at BWV. Plenty of variety and seating. Yes, again, it can get crowded, but I tend to try to eat at off peak times.

I will continue to stay at POP when I can't be at BWV (or other DVC resort). You can't beat it for the price.

 

[msteddom]

Like you I usually stay at Mods., but last summer I stayed at Pop due to budget constraints. I liked it but I didn't love it. The busses seemed more crowded, and I missed the tranquility of POR and POFQ.

Having said that though it really wasn't bad. My standard room was a two minute walk to the main building, the room was clean and attractive, the food court fufilled my every dining need, and the staff was wonderful. And the best part was that I saved enough monry to allow me to return to POR later that year.

So the moral of the story? It's not a mod, but it should fufill all of your needs, so go and have a wnderful time!

Melissa

 

[I Love Pluto]

We prefer Pop to the Mods due to its compact size in walking to the food court & bus stops. You will love it there!

 

[lynn46356]

We've stayed at PO-R and PO-FQ and BC twice. This past February we took the plunge and stayed at Pop. We LOVED it. In fact, I just got done booking a return visit for next February. We're staying at Pop again. I don't see a reason to spend the extra $$ for a mod. I loved Pop. The bus lines were never a problem. Maybe one night after the fireworks at MK. But three buses showed up at the same time. What I was really surprised about was how short the trip by bus to the other parks were. I'm sure we were never on the bus for more than 10 minutes and I bet it was 7 or 8 minutes at the most. Maybe it was just me but I didn't feel like I got to rest up enough on the bus before I was back to Pop. We loved the food court although it can be somewhat busy. It took a few days to get the handle on it but I think I'd say the same about any new resort I stay at. Seems like everyone else here loves Pop too. I was scared about trying it but after reading most of everyones good reviews I felt I made the right decision. Besides we really don't spend tons of time in our room. We're at the parks all day so we're only in the room to sleep. I didn't book preferred either. At check in I was asked what section I preferred and I said just not somewhere out in the boonies! I ended up with the 70's section, second floor, bldg. 9 I think. I don't have a map and my brain doesn't always function correctly. It was a great room. Close enough to the pool, food court and buses. Have fun making your decision and driving yourself CRAZY over your decision.

Lynn

 

[MickeyNicki]

We have stayed at POP and ASMu, POR and CBR multiple times. We liked them very much, the food at the CS places were very good for breakfast and dinner and a few snacks here and there.

POP and CBR have their own buses so that was not an issue. When we stayed at POR and ASMu the buses were shared with other resorts so we were standing at times or had to wait on an empty bus.

I would stay at these resorts again if the price was right...we have AP and FL resident discounts so if the cost is low (we used to get value for $49 and mod for $89) I would stay there in a heart beat.

 

[Wingedheart]

I've never stayed anywhere but POP...however I have studied all the pricing and room capacities for all the WDW hotels.

First of all I LOVE POP! I think, with the giant icons and all, it's about the most Disney you can get in a Disney hotel! The grounds are beautiful, the rooms are adequate, the food court is good, the pools are nice, the buses are buses, but the price is right.

Much as I love staying on property I can't see paying what I would have to, to stay anywhere but a value resort. We have a family of 5 and more often than not Grandma comes with us too. The accommodation options for us are slim to none in the affordable category.

But, it's all good since we LOVE POP!!

 

[jenseib]

I loved Pop too. I agree with others about the buses at after Wishes at the MK. Do not leave till closing (an hour or so after the fireworks. We had the park to ourselves that last hour. We jumped on every ride with no wait. It was great, and then by the time we went to the bus stop it had died down a bit.
We went in March and I must say though the buses were always busy and packed. We always had standing room only, which sucked for me carrying a stroller and a 2 year old. DH was with me, but he seemd to have trouble with the stroller most of the time, plus we had a bag of her belongings. And then half the time she didn't want to stand or sit next to DH. I suddenly became her favorite parent. One night I had to stand the whole way back, holding her and leaning against the stroller to make sure it didn't fall in the doorway. And we had a wild bus driver and I swear my arms were burning trying to hold her and hold on for dear life! But we had alot of fun and really enjoyed POP!

 

[hmmchowell]

THE POP ROCKS!

The food court is great! Lots of variety.
The bus wait was minimal! The Pop buses were the last bus at the bus stop though.

The people were nice there. Everything Pop Store was great too. Lots of variety. Pools were cool as were the Goofy Pop Jets.
You won't go wrong there.