POP or Music?

[pta-mom]

I'm booked for POP in August for ten days but now I'm second guessing my choice of hotel. My boys are ten & twelve & it will be just them & I. Any thougts on which place to stay & why? Observations about hotels in general, rooms, pools, restaraunts on site & bussing? Thanks!

 

[jadedbeauty14304]

I have stayed at both ASMu and POP, and I would recommend POP. There is a great arcade that your boys would love, much bigger than the one at Music. The kids will also like the theming at the resort, and you can take quiet walks by the lake and enjoy the little fun fact signs. Also, the way the resort is laid out, there are no rooms that are extremely far away from Classic Hall and the buses. At ASMu, there are some rooms, especially the Country buildings where it is an extremely long hike to get to Melody Hall. I also like the buses at POP, it is nonstop service to the parks, and back to your resort. They don't stop anywhere else. I also really like the frozen Coke machines in POP's food court. That is all my Dd ever wants in her refillable mug! Last time I stayed at POP, there was an artist doing caricatures of the kids in the Lobby of the resort. It was great. There is also a ping-pong table by the Hippy-Dippy pool that kids can enjoy. I think it is a dollar to buy a ball or something like that.

That is just my opinion, I loved my stay at POP and have my next two trips scheduled to stay there again. I think if it even sounds remotely like something you and your kids would enjoy, try it out. You can't beat the price, and it is a Disney resort, with all the perks that come with that. It is clean, safe, and fun.

 

[maggs]

i have stayed at both as well and really didnt enjoy Pop at all. in fact I was very unhappy with my stay there. The walls seemed much thinner than at Music and the echoes and noise were awful. Smoke came through the vents day and night and the staff did nothing about it. Mousekeeping was very poor in our section with our room being left uncleaned twice.
The bus service which we heard was great was a real shocker. We had to wait for 30 - 40 mins on two occasions. Pop knew they had a problem but maybe that had something to do with the hotel being crowded at the height of free dining. They managed to sort it out eventually.
The choices in the food court are good but the fact that the shop and food court are together means that there is always a bottleneck. Laundry - well, I never managed to get it done until after midnight as the place was so busy. I prefer a much more leisurely and slower pace, so for us, Music fitted the bill perfectly.
I would never go back to Pop, but I know I am in the minority.

Maggs

 

[PudgetteD]

We (DH, DD, DS, and I) stayed @ Pop in 2004, 2005, and 2006 and LOVED it every time. DH and I stayed @ ASMu in a family suite (happy anniversary free upgrade from Disney!) in 2007. ASMu was O.K., but we both decided that we liked Pop better. The food court @ Pop has more choices and we like the Pop pools better. We also liked the gift shop much better and felt that it had more choices. ASMu was a much calmer atmosphere and we missed the upbeat air at Pop. We also felt that Pop had more to offer for the kids as far as theming. Not to say that our stay at Music was bad, far from it, we just like Pop better. We did enjoy walking to the other All-Stars to take pictures.

 

[Herewecomeagain]

I have stayed at both as well. I would stay at POP because it is a newer resort. Food courts, pools, service, etc. are basically the same. You get what you pay for of course. However, the bus service at POP is better…Good Luck
______________________

2008 POFQ, 2008 ASMo, 2007 Off Site, 2007 Off Site, 2006 PC, 2005 CBR, 2005 Off Site, 2004 Off Site, 2003 WL, 2002 ASMo, 2002 Off Site, 2001 AKL, 2000 Off Site, 1999 AS Sport, 1998 POR, 1997 Off Site, 1995 ASM, 1991 Off Site, 1990 Off Site, 1988 Off Site, 1985 Off Site, 1983 Off Site, 1982 Off Site, 1981 Off Site, 1980 Off Site, 1974 FW, 1972 Off Site.

 

[minnie61650]

All Star Music is my favorite resort. It tends to be the quietest and has the nicest landscaping of all the values.


All Star Music just underwent a refurbishment of all of the rooms and was completed in June 2007.


Here is a website with photos of the newly refurbished rooms at All Star Music.

Look at the Jazz Inn section with new posted:

http://allearsnet.com/acc/g_asmu.htm

Have fun at WDW wherever you choose to stay!

 

[LadyDulcinea1]

I've stayed at both resorts and Pop is definitely my favorite Value. The themeing is great for kids, there are three big pools, GREAT selections in the food court (I've never had a problem getting a table, even when I went at Christmas), and the arcade is great! The layout of the Pop is much better than the ASMU, where almost everthing is so far away from the foodcourt/buses. I've always found the rooms to be great considering the point of a WDW trip isn't to spend all day sitting in the room, but that being said I think they're a little bigger than the AS rooms.

Another plus is that the Pop has a completely separate bus, while I'm pretty sure the All Stars have to share a bus for certain destinations.

Definitely stick with Pop!!

 

[HopperFan]

POP
They will have a great time there. We have been 3x and heading back for 4th this fall. They will love the big arcade, three pools, giant icons like the fooz ball, big wheel, very good food court....buses run very well.

I have been twice with my DS alone and always felt very safe and comfortable there. Even at 2am after a party there were CMs walking about, folks quietly floating in pool.....I think you will be happy.

Stayed at ASMu in January, and wanted badly to have been at POP. Lots of differences but a big one to me traveling alone with kid was the resort is dimly lit and very "dead". No CMs really milling about. It did not feel comfortable out with him once dark.

 

[Crystal824]

We stayed at Pop 2 years ago and found it to be very loud and crowded. I have not stayed at the All-Star but I have visted others there and found it to be a little more calm.

 

[DisneyFan32WI]

We loved POP the last time we went, so we are going there again on April 30th. The biggest selling point for me was that there is only 1 bus stop unlike the other places I have stayed at (movies, CBR)
CBR had a nice tropical feel, but we had to stop like 5 times throughout the resort to pick up/drop off guests. If someone had a wheelchair.....add another 10 minutes! I didn't realize that there was going to be so many stops. That is why I wouldn't return to CBR again.

 

[vellamint]

Wow - I am actually staying at both this summer - 4 nights at in a Family Suite at Pop followed by 6 nights at Pop........

I really should have just made a continuous reservation for Pop but got such a great rate at the Suites that I cant bear to give it up!!! So we will be trying both this time.

 

[christophfam]

I've been to Pop numerous times, but after my last visit last September I wanted something different. The parks are great in September, but the resorts are not! With free dining, the resorts are packed, and I just didn't like all of the craziness at Pop. After reading all of these posts, I think I've made a good decision. I am all for a quieter resort!