Sad to downsize from POR to POP

[pamluvsdisney]

We leave in a week. I have been planning our trip for months now. Yesterday I had to downscale from POR to value resort POP. I know nothing bout POP and I will check our the POP thread ASAP. We have never stayed at either one.

Please tell me that I will like POP. We have stayed at Movies before and kids loved it. Not so sure about POP. Was so looking forward to Alligator Bayou at POR.

family of 5. me, DH, DD9, DD5, DD2
any suggestions?

Thanks. Glad and thankful that we can still go to WDW!!

 

[GOOFYFREEK]

Ive seen 50/50 on the pop. I personally dont like it all We stay at AS all the time. Its 3 times as many rooms sharing one main building. Yes the cafeteria is bigger and the gift shop. But they need it cause so many people are using it. If you are out in one of the outer rooms seems you have to walk forever to get to the main building. Its easier just to cut across the parking lot and weave through the cars.

Have fun and enjoy your trip. The crowds arent that bad right now so you might be alright.

One thing good about POP is they have a better selection of food in the Cafeteria area and some real good desserts.

Doug

 

[Pkdcoastrs]

POP rules! You will LOVE IT!!! My family said you can't even compare the All-Star's vs. POP, because overall it's just better in every category. It's fun, new, great bus service, great cast members, overall awesome place. Go have a GREAT TIME!!!

POP is more like a moderate-lite, in that it is definetly better compared to the first value resorts, but doesn't have some of the amenities of a moderate.

 

[Luv2Roam]

I would not feel bad about not staying at POR. But that is just me. I think you will enjoy Pop. Esp with kids.
Have a good time.

 

[chesirekate]

We had a great time at Pop. My daughter loved it, especially the huge Mickey phone in the 70's section. It is a huge place though and there are a lot of people. We stayed in the 60's preferred buildings and had a short walk to dining hall and parking lot across from the buses. Our room was very quiet and the mousekeeping was great. I've never stayed at POR, but I would definitely stay at Pop again (and plan on it!).

 

[bridgettesmom]

Don't worry.. We have stayed at the All Stars,POR and POP and we loved POP. POP is waaay better than the All Stars.. The decor is nicer, you get Mickey Soap and shampoo,the TV is bigger and your girls will love the kid's pool and the Goofy splash area. We did not have to wait more then 3-5 minutes for a bus..there was always one waiting for us. I know POR is nice, but, POP is FUN!!

 

[F1Julie]

I'm relieved to be reading this thread. I have switched resorts for my December stay many times now and have settled on Pop. I started with Pop, then POFQ, then AKL and now I'm back to Pop again. I thought about it and realized I'm going to be spending very little time at the resort this trip, so spending more $ for the hotel doesn't make much sense. My only reservations about Pop have been the buses and speed of check in (since it will just be me and DD4). I think it will all work out for the best though. Keep singing the praises of Pop please!!!

 

[gigi1313]

POP ROCKS

truly, we loved it! our check-in was speedy (actually dh got on check in line, i got on guest services line, figuring we could kill two birds w/one stone as i had to get our HDDR tix and had ps questions and stuff) and when i got to the front of my line first (it was 11am and ALOT of people were checking out... not a good time to check in anywhere!) the cm offered to do everything! she was very nice and extremely accomodating!

the food court was excellent! selections were fresh and plentiful... we learned by the second day that we needed to share our meals (typically dh and each kid would select their meal and i would graze on all that they chose!)... we also bought mugs 'cause the unlimited drinks (and frozen coke and blue stuff) were great!

the resort is big in that it has a lot of buildings/holds a lot of guests... but it is also quite compact in its layout and even the non-preferred sections were super-convenient! all our requests were met (A/1 building, 50s section, non-smoking, etc) and we had a great stay (in spite of hurricane frances... another place pop cm's excelled! kept us safe, informed and entertained during the hurricane)

although the pools do not have slides (moderates do) we found them to be fun! kids loved 'em! the music poolside was great!

last but not least, the kids loved it! the arcade was great and winning tickets was "easy" and they were able to get lots of "loot!"

 

[Chip 'n Dale Express]

Originally posted by GOOFYFREEK
Its 3 times as many rooms sharing one main building.

Actually, it's 50% more rooms (2880 versus 1920) sharing a main building that is twice as large. It all works out to be the same.

 

[hrh_disney_queen]

Oh, you and your kids are gonna love Pop Century! I just got back a couple of weeks ago from my solo trip there. I stayed at PC because I was by myself, and wasn't going to be in my room except to sleep. I had booked the AKL for my family's trip in October.
As soon as I got to PC, I knew I had to change my ressies for the October trip. I even visited AKL to make sure. Aside from the astronomical difference in price ( AKL savannah view with AP-$168/night before taxes-this is really extravagant for us!!) I knew that my DS4 and DS6 would enjoy this colorful, funfilled resort more than the AKL. Maybe we will go to AKL when they are older, but when I got home, I quickly switched the ressies. Even though I didn't get the cheapest room available at AP rates, I still got it for half the price of the AKL. The kiddie pool has shooting fountains, and the flower shaped main pool has squirting flowers in it too. I loved the background music playing-oldies but goodies, and the overall atmosphere was just great. The food court didn't seem crowded, but I wasn't there at a busy time, either.

One great thing about the PC vs. the All Stars is that PC has it's own busses. I remember being at the ASMo last year, trying to get on a bus for the MK at 9:00 a.m. The bus had already filled up at the ASMu and AS sports(how do you abbreviate THAT one? LOL) and we barely got on it standing room only. I would be very upset if I had to watch several busses go by me because they kept filling up at the two other All Star resorts..

F1Julie, your quest for the perfect resort sounds like mine....I started in April with a AAA discount at CBR (moderate because of the slide issue), then when AP discounts came out, switched to AKL pool view, then played with that ressie for about a week, switching one day at a time to Savannah view. Then after my solo trip to PC in September, (which I stayed at for bus service convenience and because it was new), went home, switched my AKL ressie that I had worked SOOOOO hard for to PC, and saved about $350, and possibly my marriage-as DH would have had a fit about spending $725 for 4 nights ANYWHERE!! I decided that the pool slide will not be missed, as we are planning 2 days at the water parks with plenty of water fun and slides.

I love PC!! Can't say enough about it!

 

[Janet2k]

Pamluvsdisney, I stayed at Pop in May and really enjoyed the resort. However, my stay there was too brief, but I hope to return again soon. As a matter of fact, I debated staying there for my upcoming vacation this month, but since I haven't experienced any of the All Star resorts yet, I had to choose them (I have stayed in 17 of the WDW resorts so far, and that total will be 18 after my All Star stay). I will be back at the Pop again soon, you can count on it.

I hope you have a wonderful vacation.

 

[lisajl]

Hey! Downsizing from POR to POP..big deal...at least you get to go!! Look at it that way/slant to the positive.

I stayed at POR two years ago and really liked it.
We are planning to stay at POP in Dec. I can't wait! It will be nice to stay in a newer Disney hotel!

Lisa

 

[hannahryan]

All I can say is my kids loved POP and if the kids are happy , we are happy! We stayed at the Poly last trip and they are still very willing to go back to POP. Enjoy!

 

[pamluvsdisney]

You guys are great!! I need to focus on all that POP does have not what is doesn't have. I am sure the kids will love it and we saved 40% of what we would have paid at POR.

Hopefully my almost 3 yr old will not mind squeezing into that pack n play one more time. She has always loved it but 2 months ago I noticed her head and feet touch the ends but it didn't bother her for the one night. Hopefully it won't bother her for these 5 nights.

thanks so much!

 

[DMRick]

Hubby and I love POR. I especially love it in the hot months because of the quiet pools. We have also been in all the values, and will be at POP in Dec, because it was an unexpected trip, and the savings is substantial. We don't spend a lot of time at the resort, so I'd rather use the savings elsewhere.
We stayed at POR last time our grands came with us, and we had to go visit the All Stars. They were very disappointed in POR. Except for the slide in the pool (which they didn't use that much anyway) they really really prefer the values. They didn't see the "Disney" in POR..Disney as it pertains to kids. We stayed in January at POP, and except for a few "just opened blues (way too puffy pillow and not enough air conditioning)", it was a fun place to stay. We waited very little in the food court, excpet when the parks had just gotten out. Our next trip with grands will be POP, as I just know they will love it.

 

[SRUAlmn]

I know it's really hard to hear other people's opinions and know how to take them. Everyone has different tastes. Some are more extravagant, some are more basic. I had the same reservations prior to our trip 2 weeks ago about Pop. I have never stayed in a value before and I was very concerned that we were just 'settling.' I was worried it would be crowded and tacky and dirty. I am pretty particular about hotel rooms. I have to say that I was thoroughly overjoyed! My BF and I are a 'fun' couple, and this resort has fun written all over it. Some of the resorts make it hard to feel like you are at Disney once you return to your resort, but we were engulfed in the magic 24/7. We never once found the food court, the check in/out lines, or the store to be overly crowded except for Sat the 25th right before Jeanne struck. We actually toured the Y & B Club and the Boardwalk because they are both places my family would like to stay in the future. It was strange to realize that the people in those resorts were paying 3-4 times what we were paying just to sleep in a larger room. I see that you have 5 in your family, so I don't know if the POP rooms will be a tight squeeze, but we found them to be larger than we had anticipated. Have a great time, and let me know if you have any more questions. POP is awesome!!!

 

[DMRick]

Hopefully my almost 3 yr old will not mind squeezing into that pack n play one more time.

I'd bring a blow up bed..and then put it on it's side next to the furthest over bed during the day.

 

[4theloveofdisney]

My Dh said that we would never stay in a value again (mainly because our family is growing). However, our last trip was messed up due to Dh's work schedule and we had to go NOW or not at all. The only rooms available were at POP. We had ressies for POFQ for half the trip and WL for the other half. Anyway, we went a little disappointed but also excited about WDW's latest resort creation. I can say that 1) We had a great time! 2) We got a huge kick out of this resort and 3) We would definitely consider staying here again. The food court was bigger and had a few extra surprises, the rooms and furnishings were nicer, and it was just a fun place to hang out. Our kids loved the zero entry kiddie pool and splash fountains! The buses ran quickly and efficiently, and were plentiful at the end of a long night at the parks. The only thing I would not recommend is staying in the 90's section as it's far from everything. We personally did not mind since we enjoyed our morning stroll but for those of you who like convenience, 90's would not be for you. Last hint - if you should get stuck here, just cut across the 70's parking lot to the bus stop. It 's not that far if you do this! HTH!

 

[hrh_disney_queen]

Originally posted by DMRick
I'd bring a blow up bed..and then put it on it's side next to the furthest over bed during the day.

Or how about buying her a Princess sleeping bag before you leave, and let her sack out on the floor? My DS4 and DS6 love to sleep on the floor in their sleeping bags, and since I usually sleep with DS4, "the kicker", I am all for that. DH and I each get our own double bed, and everyone is happy!!