POP vs AOA

[ajspring00]

Any suggestions as to which would be best? We are planning on going in June.. DH, Myself, DD9 and DD11. We have never stayed onsite before. I have read where Pop beds are very uncomfortable. Trying to decide between POP, AOA LM room or LK suite.. Also, QS dining?? Would it be worth it? Not sure we would benefit but kinda like the idea of having it paid in advance. Thanks for any suggestions!

 

[gluvsmickey]

We just stayed at AoA in dec and loved it! The food court was really nice and had some different selections which we enjoyed. I would price out the dining plan and go from there, see if it saves you money or if it's close in cost sometimes convenience wins! Have a great trip!

 

[AndiSlamberg]

I love POP! The beds are pretty comfy, nothing out of the ordinary though. I haven't had a chance to stay at AOA yet so I can't say anything to their beds. Both hotels seem to be very similar in layout/food court stuff so either choice you can't go wrong!

 

[JennyDrake]

The mattresses are the same I have not had issues at either resort--I was at both last year. You dod not say if you are looking at a family suite @ AoA or LM room. If room- _I_ would go with Pop. Smaller resort, better food court, not such a HIKE to the food court and bus stop.

 

[GrandCalifornian]

Geographically, the resorts are right next to eachother and it is pretty easy to walk between them. AoA is actually what was originally planned to be the second half of POP. Since AoA is newer it has some nicer features like underwater sound in the pool and the option of more bigger family suites.

We visited both resorts during our last trip and they both seemed nice. Our opinion was that once the newness of AoA wears off they will probably be similarly priced, so in the mean time we probably wouldn't pay the extra for AoA.

The bed complaints you see are probably mainly because they are Full beds at the value resorts, where upgrading to a Moderate or Deluxe gets you Queen or King beds. No matter where you decide, staying on site is a lot of fun, enjoy!

 

[carly chloe]

We thought POP's beds were terrible. Will not stay there again. As for the QS plan. Figure out how many meals you will eat a day. Figure around $10 a person for QS. Plus drink. And snacks-(around $4 a piece average). it is nice not have to worry about cost.

 

[GrandCalifornian]

We enjoy having the dining plan on our trips. There is a neat spreadsheet on another thread that helps calculate the value of the different dining plans. You can check it out at:http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3050182

Besides the potential cost savings, we enjoy not having the sting of paying out of pocket for each Disney meal, so we get to enjoy better dining options without being concerned about cost.