pro's and con's of all the All-Stars and Pop Century

[mickey4ever]

We are planning a trip there in March and we are wondering which of the value resorts are the most fun, clean, and enjoyable. Any help or comments would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

[chrysdrew]

I have only stay at Pop, but that's because we have had great experiences there. We have always found it to be clean and have never had any real problems. Occassionally, waiting for a bus can be a little long because the lines can be really long, but usually as one bus would fill, another would be behind it. We enjoy the theming and the food court as well.

 

[silverarrowknits]

I have stayed at all the All-Star Resorts and just recently stayed at Pop Century. All four of the resorts are great, but I find Pop to be the best.

1. Pop is newer and it shows.
2. The three All-Star Resorts share buses, but Pop has its own buses.
3. I personally found the food options better at Pop than the All-Stars.

With that said, I found the theming fun at all the resorts and would stay at all of them again.

 

[TnTWalter]

Values are great! Main reason of course is the savings. We are family of 5 and we were able to book TWO rooms at POP for $100 more total than 1 room at POR. To us that was well worth it!

It was perfect theming for the kids and the kids in us. POP has it's own bus, is newer and has a walking trail [although you cannot go all the way around the lake, which was a bummer for morning runs]. The bridge at night is romantic to walk along. 2 Quiet pools plus a groovy pool and a pool bar!!

Trish

 

[hopelea]

We loved POP. If you are going in March.......remember that is the time when school teams start showing up. I know that a cheerleading squad from here is going to DW before Easter and they are staying at ASSP....it is a major competition and there will be lots of teams.

I don't think big groups stay at POP, but I could be wrong.....and if I am, someone here will correct me.

POP all the way!!!

 

[Eeyore's My Favorite]

Another vote here for POP. We love it. Going again in just a few days! Love the huge food court, shopping area & this year plan to take time out for the pools & the pool bar - and possibly just to wander around the resort for a change.

With regards to sports teams, cheerleading, etc. - most of those groups stick to the AllStar Resorts with some spillage over to POR. Never really minded them at the AllStars, but they drove me absolutely nuts at POR.

Wherever you choose - I'm sure you'll enjoy it - after all - you're going to be at Disney!!

 

[honeyb4]

we just got back from all star music and never shared a bus...
in fact all the all stars had their own- and they were located closer than the pop bus (all star music was #13 at mk and pop was #18)

 

[lynnebla]

I've stayed at ASMu (96), Sports (04 & 06) & most recently, Pop (8/07). I was really excited to try Pop, as so many people on the boards rave about it being the best value. I was extremely disappointed. For my group (Mom 63, DS 7, DS 2 & DD 4 Mos), the size of Pop was a problem. We drove to WDW & actually ended up using the car to go up to the main building from our room in 90's. Also, having 4 floors (we were on the 4th) made it more difficult for us. 4 floors is just to much to walk up with 3 tired kids and the elevators were incredibly slow and not air-conditioned. There's also no easy way to get from the parking lot to the elevators as they're in the center of the building and you can't cut straight across because of the landscaping.

We didn't use the bus service, so I can't comment on that.

Personally, I just found the All-Stars, especially Sports, easier to get around and the food court much less crowded. Also, we had requested 1st floor near parking and they were unable to accomodate us at Pop. I've never had a problem with requests at AS and they've even found us a different room when I mentioned my request. Maybe the fact that Pop is so much more popular has an effect on that.

Just thought I'd put my thoughts in, since so often all the comments on Pop are overwhemingly positive and it's nearly always recommended over AS.

 

[PittypatBR]

I have stayed at ASMu and ASMo and at Pop. Anything at WDW is great, but I much preferred Pop. None of the rooms were as far away from the main building as the back buildings at the All-Stars, and I thought they were quieter. I also haven't had a problem with my requests. Some of that depends on how busy they are and how early in the day you arrive. I found the bus service at Pop better than expected. Have a great time wherever you stay!

 

[mickey4ever]

thanks for all of your inputs. We've stayed at pop before and loved it also, but we heard that they remodeled some of the All Stars. Does anyone know which one that they did remodel?

 

[bigbabyblues]

thanks for all of your inputs. We've stayed at pop before and loved it also, but we heard that they remodeled some of the All Stars. Does anyone know which one that they did remodel?

ASMusic has been remodeled, and they are currently working on Sports.

We've stayed at ASMo once and Pop twice. We prefer ASMo, but Pop was ok. We liked the food court much better at ASMo, and we had better bus service at ASMo. Next year we're staying at ASMusic.