Pop Century Prefered Room or POR Royal Guest Room

[disnmooner2013]

We will be coming in 2021 to celebrate our daughter's 6th birthday/Kindergarten and previous year pre-school graduation in one. She currently loves princesses. We will be coming in mid-august 2021 for 6 days 5 nights. Is it worth the extra approx. 70 sq foot by staying moderate vs. value. Are teh royal guest rooms at POR really worth the extra cost or should we stay at POP prefered room which now has the added transportation option of the Gondalas? This trip is all about our daugther's achievements so geared around her preferences. But, just not sure paying the extra $120 more a night is worth it. What are the travel times from each resort to the parks? Please help.

 

[babyruth]

I was looking at that royal room until I heard it was the farthest room away from the amenities! My husband hates extra walking once we get back to the hotel.

 

[kaytieeldr]

I was looking at that royal room until I heard it was the farthest room away from the amenities! My husband hates extra walking once we get back to the hotel.

What you heard is wrong. See portorleans.org for resort maps. The two princess room buildings are a single footbridge away from Sassagoula Steamboat Company. Here, look https://www.portorleans.org/riverside-info.php

 

[starrysky]

We have stayed at both POP and POR and they are very different resorts. POP is big and bright and colourful and POR is more subdued and peaceful. As for rooms we found POP ones to be small and feel rather cramped and we were in a preferred room which was close to the amenities. I’ve not stayed in the Royal rooms but I know they are not that far from the main hub at POR. It’s two years until your trip I would say play it by ear for a while yet as your DD might not be as into princess by then and you might find that the extra money might be better spent on character dinning or another special experience. My other thought it while it’s nice to have a nice room your at WDW do how much time is spent in the actual room.
One other idea is maybe do one night or two nights in the Royal room and the rest at POP.

 

[toonaspie]

Keep in mind that the prices for POP might go up by a lot once the Gondola opens up and might go up even higher by the time of your trip. The price differences between that and POR will likely be smaller by then. I too would recommend splitting between the two resorts if it can be managed and stay at POP for your Epcot/DHS days so you can use the Gondolas to your full advantage.

 

[mickeymom22]

I am a big fan of split stays! You could totally do 2 nights at one resort and 3 nights at another. We loved our stay in a royal room. We were in the Oak building. Our room was steps from a quiet pool and we literally walked out of the building around the pool and crossed a little bridge and we were at the main building. It was a great location. I would do 3 nights at Pop first and 2 nights in a royal room. I think it would be a great birthday present for your daughter and you to stay in a royal room! My daughter's and I loved our stay there!

We have had no issues with travel times at either resort. We relied solely on the buses.

Our stay at Pop was tainted by fellow guests. While we were there we saw 2 people bump and scrape their cars into other cars in the parking lot and just keep going. There were sports teams staying there and the kids were running around unsupervised while the parents were all hanging out in one room drinking and there was always trash in the stairwells. We did see CMs constantly trying to stay on top of it, but it was there. We have never seen behavior at a Disney resort like that before. The actual resort and CMs were fine...just the other guests...

 

[babyruth]

What you heard is wrong. See portorleans.org for resort maps. The two princess room buildings are a single footbridge away from Sassagoula Steamboat Company. Here, look https://www.portorleans.org/riverside-info.php

Wow ok thanks I’ll look into it again. I literally just listened to the passporter moms podcast say this.

 

[disnmooner2013]

How far walking time wise are the Royal Rooms to POFQ main pool and Sassagula Floatworks, main pool at Riverside, bus depot for the parks and Riverside CS restaurant?

 

[mbdavidson]

I have stayed at both Pop and POR. They are very different experiences. Pop is bright, busy and a little crazy at times, but it suited my kids. POR was beautiful and much more quiet away from the pool. The theming is amazing .

 

[starrysky]

How far walking time wise are the Royal Rooms to POFQ main pool and Sassagula Floatworks, main pool at Riverside, bus depot for the parks and Riverside CS restaurant?

I would say about 10minutes walk. We loved POFQ it’s really sweet resort and nothing is too far from any of the rooms.

 

[TOBS2010]

If your husband isn't a huge fan of walking to and from the room. I would actually recommend looking at a preferred room at POR. That is where we opt to stay there now. POR is wonderful---great variety at the food court, nice pool options with the main pool (which is my kids favorite with the water slide) and the quiet pools scattered around property, boat transportation to Disney Springs (which is a great switch to the usual busses a few times) and then the grounds themselves are beautiful.

 

[roydavid7771]

I've stayed at both. Hands down, spend the extra money. The Royal Guest Rooms are a little girl's dream, and POR itself is such a beautiful resort that it's the one moderate that truly makes me feel like I'm in another time and place. Enjoy!

 

[verleniahall]

if ur waiting till aug 2021, it might be worth it to wait a little longer until our 1st 2021 since that is the 50th anniversary of wdw

 

[Selket]

I've stayed at both and I don't think it's worth the extra money. I've stayed at Pop a lot lately and I LOVE the room remodel - the rooms feel very fresh with tons of storage and queen sized beds. Now when I look at pictures of the older rooms at other resorts that haven't changed over they look dated. I've never had trouble at Pop with rowdy kids or unruly people - really that is luck of the draw and can happen anywhere. The Royal rooms are pretty but for the extra money - $120 a day - you could really add some amazing experiences for her if you wanted to put the money all towards here and princess themed add ons....all the meals and boutique experiences... maybe mom and daughter spa experience, etc. You could also have a princess themed basket ordered for your room to be there when you arrive, etc.

We stayed in a Royal room several years ago now when they were newish and they have to be looking dated at this point - unless they've remodeled and I'm not aware. If you want to be at POR I'd pick a regular room and use the money elsewhere. I think you could get more princess "bang for your buck" that way lol

 

[unrequited23]

I would keep both on your radar and watch price & discount trends. We had amazing luck with the buses at Pop and it seemed like trips returning from the parks at POR took a lot longer (multiple bus stops.) The food court at POP was much more chaotic and the resort had a lot more activity and people in your sight lines. The landscaping at POR seems to reduce the amount of people you see and after a busy park day that is relaxing to me. $600 in savings is a good chunk of change and could be used toward a CRT breakfast and a dessert party.

 

[disnmooner2013]

Which bus stop at POR is for the Royal Rooms when coming back from the parks and going to the parks?

 

[kaytieeldr]

Either East or South. East definitely from the far side of Oak Manor.

 

[Raven01]

I just stayed at the Royal Room in POR. It is close to the front (POR is huge, I would pay for a preferred room no matter what if staying there). However, the Royal Room was not worth the extra money IMHO. I was very underwhelmed. It seemed worn. We didn’t touch the pool since it was December.

I would save the extra money and spend it on BBB for your daughter. I also agree with PP that her tastes may change - my DD2 recently traded a Sofia obsession for Rapunzel. I would also encourage you to consider your touring style - if you do not spend much time at the resort, the little decorations won’t matter much.

We have always done 5 day trips, so were typically gone from open to close and we’re rarely in the room. Values worked fine with no hopper tickets, since we did a park a day. However, I’m planning a longer trip at the Boardwalk, so I’m considering more half days, walking to Epcot for dinner, etc. - which meant the specific hotel mattered.

Have you considered Art of Animation? I have never stayed there but I wonder if she would like the Little Mermaid rooms?

 

[disnmooner2013]

I already have money budgeted for character meals, BBB, and a special surprise of Princess Tea Party.

 

[kaytieeldr]

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