POP vs. AOA

[GenGen22]

I have only been to WDW once as I am a DL Veteran. We went in Dec 2011 and stayed at POP and loved it especially because at the time they were the only resort that had their very own buses. AOA was being built when we went and DD20 is a HUGE Little Mermaid fan and I promised her we would stay in a Mermaid room if we ever visited again. So, I am planning on booking a little mermaid room however, I can't decide if we should just stay at AOA the entire stay or do a split stay with POP. I'm not sure what the difference is besides at POP you can reserve a preferred room which is closer to the lobby/on site restaurant/bus stops. Can anyone who has stayed at both resorts tell me what the pros and cons are or anyone who has stayed at AOA tell me what they liked about this resort. We are planning to go in May 2017 I'm thinking 5/11-5/15. The dates are pretty set because I have a week long payroll seminar near by and DD20 will fly home and I will transfer to the hotel where the seminar is after she leaves.

Our visit where we stayed at POP was our very first stay at a Disney hotel and we just loved being in the Disney bubble. Loved the out door movies, customer service etc. So, any info would be great. TIA!

 

[mickeygirl78]

I have stayed at pop several times and at AOA in a little mermaid room once. I enjoyed both resorts. I like theme and food court better at AOA but I like the room location better at pop. I don't think the suites are worth the cost and the little mermaid rooms are the furthest out. They also don't have a lot of discounts for LM AOA rooms. Last trip we chose pop and requested a room in the 50's lakeside, it was a short walk over the bridge to AOA so it was like having two food courts. For a short trip I wouldn't do a split stay. If you like pop you will like AOA.

 

[GenGen22]

I have stayed at pop several times and at AOA in a little mermaid room once. I enjoyed both resorts. I like theme and food court better at AOA but I like the room location better at pop. I don't think the suites are worth the cost and the little mermaid rooms are the furthest out. They also don't have a lot of discounts for LM AOA rooms. Last trip we chose pop and requested a room in the 50's lakeside, it was a short walk over the bridge to AOA so it was like having two food courts. For a short trip I wouldn't do a split stay. If you like pop you will like AOA.

Thanks for the info. We're not interested in a suite just a regular room with two beds as it is just me & DD. How far of a walk would you say it is from AOA to POP? And what about the food court would you say the food is about the same? We liked the variety and the fact that they had nightly specials and ice cream sundaes made to order.

 

[mickeygirl78]

Thanks for the info. We're not interested in a suite just a regular room with two beds as it is just me & DD. How far of a walk would you say it is from AOA to POP? And what about the food court would you say the food is about the same? We liked the variety and the fact that they had nightly specials and ice cream sundaes made to order.

I like both food courts. I prefer the breakfast burger and make your own pasta at AOA but I like the sundaes at pop better. The nice part about either resort is that you can use both food courts. The length of the walk depends on where your room is. We were in building 3 of the 50's and it took about 5 minutes max to walk to the AOA food court. Our family joked it was a shorter walk to the AOA food court from our room at pop then when we stayed in the little mermaid rooms.

 

[GenGen22]

Thanks! i think we are just going to book AOA for our entire stay. I really appreciate your info.

 

[Tattylou]

I stayed at POP in 2014 (50s section). We ate in the AOA food court several times...I'd guess it was a 7 min walk from our POP room. I was booked for this Dec over at AOA in a LM mermaid room, but I just changed my reservation to POP bc AOA wasn't included in the holiday season sale and I figured it was worth saving money. I think you'll be happy with either and AOA has an awesome looking pool, however you can get non-preferred rooms at POP much closer to food, busses, etc than the LM rooms at AOA are to those things.

 

[GenGen22]

I stayed at POP in 2014 (50s section). We ate in the AOA food court several times...I'd guess it was a 7 min walk from our POP room. I was booked for this Dec over at AOA in a LM mermaid room, but I just changed my reservation to POP bc AOA wasn't included in the holiday season sale and I figured it was worth saving money. I think you'll be happy with either and AOA has an awesome looking pool, however you can get non-preferred rooms at POP much closer to food, busses, etc than the LM rooms at AOA are to those things.

Thanks for your input. I understand what your saying about discounts. The time of year I'm going I have read and it looks like the best possible discount I would get would be 10% if I stay stay at POP but at AOA there won't be any discounts as they don't usually discount the Mermaid rooms and 10% isn't a huge amount of savings for my short stay. When we stayed at POP we stayed in a preferred room as well so, I do get that there is quite a bit more walking at AOA than POP as no preferred rooms and the Mermaid rooms are much farther.

 

[DisneyMom2000000]

We stayed in the Mermaid rooms this year. The walk to the food court/bus area wasn't too bad. We made it several times with us and our two kids (at the time, ages 4 months and 2.5 years). We did the food court walk every day, but didn't take the busses much. We were able to park our car close to our room, and we prefer taking a car to the parks because of all of our baby stuff, so it worked out well for us.

The rooms are nothing fancy, but our daughter loved the theming in the room and around the resort. We enjoyed the food court quite a bit.

 

[Mickey's Best Girl]

I kept hearing about the walk from the rooms to the buses/main building before our stay which was shortly after the resort opened and I thought folks were exaggerating - they are just media people who are used to perks and high end resorts. I work on my feet 40-46 hours per week and I also walk an additional 5-6 Kilometres every night, surely the walk won't affect me as much as the people mentioning it on the boards or discussing it in news articles/podcasts.

I was wrong.

And we weren't even in the farthest building.

Our refillable mugs were a complete waste of money.

By day 3 (of our 10 day stay) I found myself looking longingly at our "home" across the lake.

YMMV.

 

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

I do think it is a nice resort, great theme and the rooms were very clean and impressive offering good value for money. The staff were very friendly and I enjoyed the store. The food court was ok but it wasn't my favorite of the Disney resorts. But the distance from LM rooms to the main building for us did wear thin. I am disabled so we had the closest LM rooms. At least at the other values you can do preferred option. At the end of a long day a long journey from the front of the hotel where the bus drops off to your room is a bit much. Just my view though. Shame because a charming resort.

 

[DisneyMom2000000]

It's so funny how different people can have different perspectives. We used our refillable cup every day. My husband got coffee every morning and I used it for soda or Powerade in the afternoon. We only got one cup and shared it so that worked out.

I kept hearing about the walk from the rooms to the buses/main building before our stay which was shortly after the resort opened and I thought folks were exaggerating - they are just media people who are used to perks and high end resorts. I work on my feet 40-46 hours per week and I also walk an additional 5-6 Kilometres every night, surely the walk won't affect me as much as the people mentioning it on the boards or discussing it in news articles/podcasts.

I was wrong.

And we weren't even in the farthest building.

Our refillable mugs were a complete waste of money.

By day 3 (of our 10 day stay) I found myself looking longingly at our "home" across the lake.

YMMV.

 

[Disneylover99]

I've stayed at both resorts and I think a split stay would be a great idea. I know your trip isn't that long, but it's so easy to walk across the bridge and transfer resorts. I'd stay at LM for the first two nights so your daughter can get her LM fix and then head over to Pop in a preferred room for 3 nights to give your tired feet a rest.

 

[GenGen22]

I do think it is a nice resort, great theme and the rooms were very clean and impressive offering good value for money. The staff were very friendly and I enjoyed the store. The food court was ok but it wasn't my favorite of the Disney resorts. But the distance from LM rooms to the main building for us did wear thin. I am disabled so we had the closest LM rooms. At least at the other values you can do preferred option. At the end of a long day a long journey from the front of the hotel where the bus drops off to your room is a bit much. Just my view though. Shame because a charming resort.

May I ask what building you stayed in?

 

[GenGen22]

What about the Wi-Fi in the Mermaid rooms? How is it? I have a little bit of work I have to do the night I arrive and I need access to the internet.

@Disneymon2000000 I agree some people like the refillable mug & some don't. When we went last time I used mine quite a bit so, it was worth it but my DD not as much. Everyone is different. I drink a lot of diet soda so that's why I used mine.

 

[to102981]

We were at Disney October 2015 and are planning again for October 2017. We stayed at Pop and loved it! But with the refurb going on, we are considering maybe AOA for the next trip. Input?? We were spoiled last year being in the '60s building and close to everything, I'm a little nervous for AOA and the LM rooms. There's only 3 of us so no point in getting a suite at AOA.

 

[DisneyMom2000000]

What about the Wi-Fi in the Mermaid rooms? How is it? I have a little bit of work I have to do the night I arrive and I need access to the internet.

@Disneymon2000000 I agree some people like the refillable mug & some don't. When we went last time I used mine quite a bit so, it was worth it but my DD not as much. Everyone is different. I drink a lot of diet soda so that's why I used mine.

Wifi was fine, we used it to watch movies on the iPad.

I think if we had each gotten a cup I would have thought it wasn't worth it, but my husband drinks his weight in coffee... And I liked getting soda... because I never get soda!!

 

[DisneyMom2000000]

We were at Disney October 2015 and are planning again for October 2017. We stayed at Pop and loved it! But with the refurb going on, we are considering maybe AOA for the next trip. Input?? We were spoiled last year being in the '60s building and close to everything, I'm a little nervous for AOA and the LM rooms. There's only 3 of us so no point in getting a suite at AOA.

I think if you're going to be walking back and forth to the busses more than once a day, get a suite so you're closer. But if its just once a day its probably fine. Or, park by your room and drive to the parks. I always like having my own car at the end of a day.

 

[GenGen22]

I think if you're going to be walking back and forth to the busses more than once a day, get a suite so you're closer. But if its just once a day its probably fine. Or, park by your room and drive to the parks. I always like having my own car at the end of a day.

Thanks for your input. It will probably be only once a day so, that will probably work out fine. We're coming from California so, we will be flying and using MDE & public transportation our entire stay since its of no cost to us. In not the best driver anyhow so, probably best for all that I stay off the road.

 

[GenGen22]

Wifi was fine, we used it to watch movies on the iPad.

I think if we had each gotten a cup I would have thought it wasn't worth it, but my husband drinks his weight in coffee... And I liked getting soda... because I never get soda!!

Thanks for your response this is good to know.

 

[DisneyMom2000000]

Thanks for your input. It will probably be only once a day so, that will probably work out fine. We're coming from California so, we will be flying and using MDE & public transportation our entire stay since its of no cost to us. In not the best driver anyhow so, probably best for all that I stay off the road.

Funny!!