bobcat
<font color=magenta>I had a horrible case two year
- Joined
- Aug 19, 1999
- Messages
- 4,158
Returned yesterday from our ten night stay at Pop Century. All I can say is the resort is wonderful! They took what we liked best about the All Stars and made it even better.
Check in - had a short wait to check in on a Sunday afternoon and everything was handled very pleasantly and efficiently by a college CM. I decided to use the room charge option and as I hadn't used it in a few years I had asked alot of questions here on the DIS before I left. I used my debit card with the Visa logo without a problem. I now know why it is so easy to use the room charge because I spent more money that way.
I did get a printout of my charges during the trip and it was handled very quickly. Our room was ready, and it was before 3pm yipee!, so we were able to drive the car up and drop off our luggage. We kept our swim suits with us and went to find our room.
The room- we were in the 50's section so we drove over to the parking area and went to find our room. The directions are confusing since they put the room and building number on the map for you at check in but not the building letter. The signs on the building are lettered which is where the confusion is. Not a big probelm and we found our building just fine. We were in building A or 1 which ever you want to call it on the second floor, on the end closest to the parking lot and the stairs. It was very convienient and would have been even more if we actually used our car while on vacation. There is a path to the front of the building from here so it was easy to go to the buses or the lobby. We used the stairs most of the time as it was easier.
The room was quiet and we had efficient maid service. No towel creatures this trip but our room was cleaned by afternoon when we returned from the parks which was more important to us. I love the decorations of the rooms, especially the chairs. Anyone know where I can get some like that for my dinning room table? I also liked that the curtain was on an overlapping track to keep out the light.
The only thing I didn't like about our room was that the sign for the building was right outside our window so in the evening the lights that illuminated it would shine in our window. Even with the curtains closed the room wasn't as dark as I like it. Not a big deal and it didn't disturb my sleep but wanted you to know in case it is a concern for someone.
Layout of the hotel - Even though there are a lot of rooms at Pop with the 4 floors and having the buildings arainged the way they are it doesn't seem overwhelming. Our first day we walked around the resort looking at everything. Even though I had seen pictures I was still very pleased and suprised. My least favorite sections were the 80's and 90's, nothing wrong but I see those items everyday so I didn't want to look at them on vacation. I really enjoyed the Big Wheel! Am I showing my age? LOL
We walked on the path by the lake, we would call that a pond in Ohio, and it was a nice stroll. We enjoyed reading the trivia for each of the decades as we walked. The bridge is beautiful and there is a lot of seating. Seeing the incomplete legendary years was kind of sad however. Pop was full while we were there so hopefully they will finish this area. It will be a nice complement and make a very cool unique resort area.
Walking around really made me realize just how big the resort is and I was glad for my room location. It can be quite a walk from the outer areas.
My favorite part about our walk was the music. As we walked from each area to the next the music changed to that time period. Little touches like this are what makes the magic. I also had fun embarrasing my kids as I sang and danced along.
Water - the pools were great! We spent a lot of time in the pools so that is important. The Petals pool is larger than it looks and I like the way it is laid out. There are more tables and shade than at the All stars. Important for me because I like to read by the pool and can't stand to sit in the sun for long periods of time. The petal pool has a small ledge along the sides of the steps that is perfect for sitting. Nice touch. The flower spray was a bit harsh. They need to change the nozzle because it stung. Music at this pool was a combination of all the decades.
We visited the bowling pin pool only once. Would have visited it more but it closes at 10 pm and we like to swim for a bit after we get back from the parks. That was a disapointment. I thought it would just have lifeguards off duty at 10pm but they hade huge signs saying pool closed and had lounge chairs blocking the walk ways. Plenty of chairs and tables. Loved the bowling balls and the lane markers on the pool deck.
The pop jets are lots of fun! My son could have stayed there all day! I am glad we didn't have to walk by it everyday.
I continue to be impressed by the lifeguards at WDW pools. They change shifts often to keep them fresh and alert and they are very professional. Many times I watched as they scanned the pools. No relaxing for them! I hope they get paid well because they are the best I have ever seen. Did have the pool closed one afternoon for "fudge". A lifeguard was so alert that they actually followed the family to ask about it and the pool was closed imediately.
Food - I was really impressed buy the food quality at the food court. There were lots of options and I wish we could have sampled more. My favorites were the sloppy joe's and the nachos. Ymmmm! I had people coming up asking about the sloppy joes they smelled and looked so yummy. My daughter and I had a kids meal portion and it was huge! More than enough to eat. The nachos were also huge. My kids liked the slushies but as others have mentioned they weren't real slushy on many days.
I like the layout of the food court area. There is a lot of seating and you can sit by the flat screen tvs or in the lounge area where it is a little quieter. They have enough drink areas so it is not too crowded. My only complaint is that they had all but one shut down in the evenings about 30 minutes before they closed so that everyone was crowded around one area. Very annoying. They had things sarran wrapped so they would stay clean on the other areas. I know they want to get things cleaned so they aren't late getting off work but having to fight to get a drink was annoying.
Arcade - my kids loved the arcade. There are lots of games that give tickets and lots of junk, I mean treasures, they can buy with the tickets. It was pretty easy to get lots of tickets and we saw many people hitting the jackpots many times, meaning 200-500 tickets. My son even hit one. Wish Vegas had these odds. It was also open to 11 pm. Take lots of quarters.
Laundry - did laundry once and the dryers seemed more powerful than other resorts. Could be because they were new.
Cleanliness - Even though the resort is new it is packed so gets a lot of use. I never once saw any trash. They were powerwashing my building the last couple of days we were there and everything was very clean. Someone even came around the edge of the pool wiping off the edge on afternoon while we were swimming.
Staff - The staff here is wonderful! From the moment we pulled up to the moment we checked out we were treated wonderfully. The front desk staff was the best and very friendly. The staff in the store were very helpfull and even offered to find an item for us if they didn't have it in stock in the back. A+ service!
One sad exception was the food court cleaning staff. I have worked in restaurants so I understand their job but I was disapointed in their attitude. Everything was very clean but they were not friendly and even down right rude. They would cut customers off, glare at them until they moved out of their way so they can clean, clean around them. I was waiting to refill my cup and saw them lean way in front of the person refilling their mug to clean around them. On the last day I went in to refill my mug before we hopped in the car and there were three people standing around gosipping about guests. One happened to be about me and something about my physical appearance and I was so shocked I thought I must have misheard them. That was a sad way to end my stay and I am going to write to the manager about it. Definatly not good customer service and most especially not Disney service.
Other than the above we really enjoyed our stay at POP. We will return again! I will try to add my pictures to this post in the next day or so. Any questions please ask!
Check in - had a short wait to check in on a Sunday afternoon and everything was handled very pleasantly and efficiently by a college CM. I decided to use the room charge option and as I hadn't used it in a few years I had asked alot of questions here on the DIS before I left. I used my debit card with the Visa logo without a problem. I now know why it is so easy to use the room charge because I spent more money that way.
I did get a printout of my charges during the trip and it was handled very quickly. Our room was ready, and it was before 3pm yipee!, so we were able to drive the car up and drop off our luggage. We kept our swim suits with us and went to find our room.The room- we were in the 50's section so we drove over to the parking area and went to find our room. The directions are confusing since they put the room and building number on the map for you at check in but not the building letter. The signs on the building are lettered which is where the confusion is. Not a big probelm and we found our building just fine. We were in building A or 1 which ever you want to call it on the second floor, on the end closest to the parking lot and the stairs. It was very convienient and would have been even more if we actually used our car while on vacation. There is a path to the front of the building from here so it was easy to go to the buses or the lobby. We used the stairs most of the time as it was easier.
The room was quiet and we had efficient maid service. No towel creatures this trip but our room was cleaned by afternoon when we returned from the parks which was more important to us. I love the decorations of the rooms, especially the chairs. Anyone know where I can get some like that for my dinning room table? I also liked that the curtain was on an overlapping track to keep out the light.
The only thing I didn't like about our room was that the sign for the building was right outside our window so in the evening the lights that illuminated it would shine in our window. Even with the curtains closed the room wasn't as dark as I like it. Not a big deal and it didn't disturb my sleep but wanted you to know in case it is a concern for someone.
Layout of the hotel - Even though there are a lot of rooms at Pop with the 4 floors and having the buildings arainged the way they are it doesn't seem overwhelming. Our first day we walked around the resort looking at everything. Even though I had seen pictures I was still very pleased and suprised. My least favorite sections were the 80's and 90's, nothing wrong but I see those items everyday so I didn't want to look at them on vacation. I really enjoyed the Big Wheel! Am I showing my age? LOL
We walked on the path by the lake, we would call that a pond in Ohio, and it was a nice stroll. We enjoyed reading the trivia for each of the decades as we walked. The bridge is beautiful and there is a lot of seating. Seeing the incomplete legendary years was kind of sad however. Pop was full while we were there so hopefully they will finish this area. It will be a nice complement and make a very cool unique resort area.
Walking around really made me realize just how big the resort is and I was glad for my room location. It can be quite a walk from the outer areas.
My favorite part about our walk was the music. As we walked from each area to the next the music changed to that time period. Little touches like this are what makes the magic. I also had fun embarrasing my kids as I sang and danced along.
Water - the pools were great! We spent a lot of time in the pools so that is important. The Petals pool is larger than it looks and I like the way it is laid out. There are more tables and shade than at the All stars. Important for me because I like to read by the pool and can't stand to sit in the sun for long periods of time. The petal pool has a small ledge along the sides of the steps that is perfect for sitting. Nice touch. The flower spray was a bit harsh. They need to change the nozzle because it stung. Music at this pool was a combination of all the decades.
We visited the bowling pin pool only once. Would have visited it more but it closes at 10 pm and we like to swim for a bit after we get back from the parks. That was a disapointment. I thought it would just have lifeguards off duty at 10pm but they hade huge signs saying pool closed and had lounge chairs blocking the walk ways. Plenty of chairs and tables. Loved the bowling balls and the lane markers on the pool deck.
The pop jets are lots of fun! My son could have stayed there all day! I am glad we didn't have to walk by it everyday.
I continue to be impressed by the lifeguards at WDW pools. They change shifts often to keep them fresh and alert and they are very professional. Many times I watched as they scanned the pools. No relaxing for them! I hope they get paid well because they are the best I have ever seen. Did have the pool closed one afternoon for "fudge". A lifeguard was so alert that they actually followed the family to ask about it and the pool was closed imediately.
Food - I was really impressed buy the food quality at the food court. There were lots of options and I wish we could have sampled more. My favorites were the sloppy joe's and the nachos. Ymmmm! I had people coming up asking about the sloppy joes they smelled and looked so yummy. My daughter and I had a kids meal portion and it was huge! More than enough to eat. The nachos were also huge. My kids liked the slushies but as others have mentioned they weren't real slushy on many days.
I like the layout of the food court area. There is a lot of seating and you can sit by the flat screen tvs or in the lounge area where it is a little quieter. They have enough drink areas so it is not too crowded. My only complaint is that they had all but one shut down in the evenings about 30 minutes before they closed so that everyone was crowded around one area. Very annoying. They had things sarran wrapped so they would stay clean on the other areas. I know they want to get things cleaned so they aren't late getting off work but having to fight to get a drink was annoying.
Arcade - my kids loved the arcade. There are lots of games that give tickets and lots of junk, I mean treasures, they can buy with the tickets. It was pretty easy to get lots of tickets and we saw many people hitting the jackpots many times, meaning 200-500 tickets. My son even hit one. Wish Vegas had these odds. It was also open to 11 pm. Take lots of quarters.
Laundry - did laundry once and the dryers seemed more powerful than other resorts. Could be because they were new.
Cleanliness - Even though the resort is new it is packed so gets a lot of use. I never once saw any trash. They were powerwashing my building the last couple of days we were there and everything was very clean. Someone even came around the edge of the pool wiping off the edge on afternoon while we were swimming.
Staff - The staff here is wonderful! From the moment we pulled up to the moment we checked out we were treated wonderfully. The front desk staff was the best and very friendly. The staff in the store were very helpfull and even offered to find an item for us if they didn't have it in stock in the back. A+ service!
One sad exception was the food court cleaning staff. I have worked in restaurants so I understand their job but I was disapointed in their attitude. Everything was very clean but they were not friendly and even down right rude. They would cut customers off, glare at them until they moved out of their way so they can clean, clean around them. I was waiting to refill my cup and saw them lean way in front of the person refilling their mug to clean around them. On the last day I went in to refill my mug before we hopped in the car and there were three people standing around gosipping about guests. One happened to be about me and something about my physical appearance and I was so shocked I thought I must have misheard them. That was a sad way to end my stay and I am going to write to the manager about it. Definatly not good customer service and most especially not Disney service.
Other than the above we really enjoyed our stay at POP. We will return again! I will try to add my pictures to this post in the next day or so. Any questions please ask!
bobcat...AWESOME review. DW and I are staying at the PC in Dec. and you covered everything I was concerned about. You were even in the 50's sction we'd like to request. Thanks for the in depth review.
