Switching resorts

[Amazynglydisney]

Hey there! My family and I have been patiently waiting to book our trip since we got back from our first family trip in February 2015! We are planning on going back the same time as last year and wanted to stay at AKL savanna view again because it was just amazing and the kids loved the animals outside our room! We don't book until about two weeks prior to going. Right before Christmas our car broke down and it ended up costing us a total of about 1600.00. After thinking that was the end of our car troubles just this past Friday our car wouldn't start and its in the shop with another 300$ in repairs. We just purchased this car right before our last trip about a year ago. So now we are thinking of going the value route and staying at pop century. With AKL and CSR being the only other Disney resorts we've stayed at were a little worried. Of course staying at a value resort would mean having more spending money in the parks. But we're just nervous going from deluxe to value. Does anyone have any experience with this kind of thing. I'm a little excited for the fact that it looks more family friendly I just don't want our kids to be disappointed not having giraffes off the balcony. I suppose we could take a trip over to AKL to see the resort again. TIA

 

[Bishoparc]

Pop Century is a wonderful resort and has one of the best food courts IMHO. There are definitely different levels of items from value to deluxe right down to the texture of the toliet paper and towels. There is absolutely nothing wrong with Pop other than being large so you do have to deal with a lot of people.

 

[Quellman]

We are DVC members at BLT. Every year we have a 2 bedroom theme park view. Last year we also stayed at Pop for 3 nights for a quick Mickey's Not so Scary Halloween Party trip. I can only guess that your kids are 3-6 years old by your photo. Sure they might miss some animals, but Pop is a great fun resort for kids for sure. The transportation situation from AKL to Pop is similar, you will be taking a bus everywhere. What is nice about Pop is they have the double long buses that run that line as well, so it can move people more quickly. You will notice that Pop does not have a full sit down restaurant like Boma, but they do have a large quick service restaurant. You can also walk over to the Art of Animation and try their food area (or go explore the very well themed wings). AKL also has interior hallways, while Pop does not. For that reason we do not book a category or request a pool room. They have DJs in the afternoon and movies at night. If you actually want some sleep, yikes!

When we went to Pop there was only 3 of us, and the room was adequate. It had 2 beds and a small bathroom area. It was kept up well but it certainly wasn't as stylish as Bay Lake! Would we stay there again? Yes we would.

The location of the Pop Century thread is located HERE.

 

[Sue M]

The main difference between value & other resorts is double beds vs queen, room size, & bathroom. At value you only get 1 sink, and in value & mod, closet is open and in sink area.
Value rooms are tiny. There's barely clearance between bed & door, also no coffee maker in room.
If it's in your budget, I'd stay in a moderate. But if it isn't, There's nothing wrong with Pop. It's clean, food court is good, and so is transportation.
Although I prefer the mods and deluxe, I would have no problem staying at Pop. I'd just have to get a travel coffee maker

As for seeing animals, there's plenty at AK. There's the Safari, and the trails. The kids can see plenty of animals at the park. And at that age they'll be happy staying anywhere. So stay where you'll be more comfortable.