The GROOVIER New Pop Century FAQ Thread Chapter 3! ~ Posts #1 & #2 are MUST sees!

[ShelsGoingToDisney]

I am reading, reading, reading as much as I can and I stumbled across the bedbug/snake threads! Has anyone had either of these things at POP? I know all about how to check for them now. And after feeling itchy , I am reassuring myself that we can have a great vacation and not be bit by a cottonmouth/water moccasin or bring home a bed bug infestation that will cost us thousands of dollars.

Thanks!

We just returned last night from Pop. Did not see any snakes at Pop. We did see a black snake (I think black racer) on hole 2 of the summer side of Winter/Summerland mini golf. It was the middle of the afternoon and it was out for a leisurely slither around the hole! We were up on the bridge above it so it was kind of cool for the kids to see without it being too close! I mentioned it to the CM and she blew it off as no big deal so I am guessing it is a resident harmless snake.

As for bed bugs I checked my room very carefully (room 7227 in the 80's). It appeared to be bed bug free. No bites on anyone during the stay either. I kept my luggage in the garage as a precaution because they could hitch a ride during the airplane ride too from another person's suitcase. I have encountered bed bugs in the past but it was at a deluxe, not value.

 

[Jalva22]

deleted

 

[TinkerbellsMom0923]

we stayed at Pop the first trip then All Star Sports and vowed never to return there and stick with POP...we LOVE it there...we are only there ot sleep and shower and the pools are great there too. Always has been nice and clean and has a great food court.

We had booked in September as All Star Sports as Pop was full. But when I checked the other day they had availibility at Pop so I switched. I am so excited, Pop is myall time favorite. I love the layout and watching the kids. We always get a preferred room too. In January my whole family went and we stayed at CBR. I didn't hate it but it wasn't Pop. In September we are traveling to celebrate my birthday. Just my 20 yr old son and I-husband and daughter staying home. Sorry guys...

 

[cuches]

Thanks everyone, I am booking POP!!!! ASMo does look cute but the fact that pop has its own bus and does not share is such a +. I google-earthed the area and pop is so close to EPCOT and HS so the bus trip must be pretty fast. You guys are awesome, thanks for the advice and info!

Tina

 

[KELLY]

Thanks everyone, I am booking POP!!!! ASMo does look cute but the fact that pop has its own bus and does not share is such a +. I google-earthed the area and pop is so close to EPCOT and HS so the bus trip must be pretty fast. You guys are awesome, thanks for the advice and info!

Tina

You will love POP. I stayed at ASMO once and we said we would never stay at another value. But we stayed at Pop last year and had a great experience.

 

[englishrose47]

I am sure this has been asked before but I haven't seen anything recent on this topic....what are the positives and negatives of these 2 value resorts. We priced out a moderate and we can swing it but I would rather save the 500+ dollars and stay at a value . Our attitude is that we are only sleeping, showering and changing in the room and the rest of the time we are in the pool or parks. We are not picky at all! My DD is 11 and speical needs (autism) and we prefer a place with a pool with no slides (she tends to hang out at the end of the slide where the water comes shooting out and half my time is spent getting her away from there). From what I see both places have decent pools (yay no slides ) and the rooms are about the same sized. I guess what I really want to know is:

*Bus service, which place is better (if either)
*which has the better food court
*which is the most crowded (going in the end of Oct 2010)

Also, anyone know if the free dining has been extended this year like last year?

Thanks in advance,
Tina

Pop Pop POP!!!!!!Buses are MUCH better !!Expect the occasional wait and some crowding at Peak times !But I have no complaints with Pop's Bus service

POP<POP,PO<. Food court is awesome !!Expect crowding at breakfast time till 6:30 - 9a.m
Other than breakfast time I never found Pop crowded !!

Free Dining is extended till December but at a value it is QSP which can be upgraded to DDP still a 32 aday per adult savings !! Not sure on the kids savings !!!

 

[ShelsGoingToDisney]

READY TO HEAR HOW YOUR TRIP WENT!!!!!!!!!

Overall we had a great trip! I had stayed in Pop for one night only once before. This was my first full visit in a value resort. Other trips we've done the BC, Poly & CR due since we are a family of 5 but dh stayed home this trip so it was just me and the kids. The room was plenty big enough for the 4 of us. AS I said in the previous post we didn't get our requested room in the 50's but were in the 80's building 7 instead. It was nice to be near the computer pool for a night swim but other than that I would have preferred to be a little closer to the Main building and I wasn't thrilled with the them. Preferred the 50's or 70's.

We used ME and there was NOBODY at the airport, and I mean nobody! Got right on a bus. The downside of that is that since there weren't very many people they loaded lots of different resort people on 1 bus. Pop was the last stop so it took a lot longer than I had hoped, almost 2 hours from the gate to check-in. Our bags were delivered quickly and the RAC at the end of the trip was very easy.

We swam nearly every day and used all 3 pools during the trip. All were fun. One thing I wanted to note that is different from info here is there ARE towels at the pools for you to use. They are in a cabinet at the base of the lifeguard stands and there are towel return bins all over. Wished I had known since we packed our own taking up a lot of suitcase space!

We really enjoyed Pop but there is a much more crowded feel there than the deluxe resorts. Nothing that ruins a trip but I noticed it.

Food Court: Pluses are there are a lot of selections, minuses are they are all at different stations! Since I had to get the food for everyone I ended up standing in several lines. It also seemed that there was never kid's pizza available. Always had to wait 5-10 minutes for that. We always went at the "off times" but it was always busy in the food court. I wish they had a system like at CR and Poly where you order from the kiosk screen, get a receipt, pay and get a pager. Would be smoother IMO.

Buses: For the most part buses were readily available. We avoided the lines at park closing by shopping and taking our time leaving so they weren't too bad at night. For the most part we were able to catch a bus from the resort quickly with 2 exceptions. One night when we had a Chef Mickey reservation we waited for over 30 minutes for a Magic Kingdom bus to come. One afternoon we were at the Blizzard Beach stop waiting for a Pop bus for over 40 minutes. Other than those 2 times buses were plenty available. We did miss being on a monorail resort though but not worth the $$$$ for this trip. If I stayed at Pop again I would rent a car.

Mousekeeping/Room: Was okay. The room (#7227) was clean but seemed a little beat up for being refurbished. The plug-in by the table didn't work, the bathroom door did not latch, and there were burns (cigarettes?) in several places on the vanity.

We had a towel animal upon arrival but nothing after. Kids were a little disappointed because they saw several in other windows. We got no mousekeeping service on our last full day and I'm not sure why. We were out of the room between 10-2 and again from 3PM-1 AM. When we returned from Epcot that night I was really surprised to see they hadn't been there. Was a pain the next morning since we were checking out and had no towels! We got some from the pool the night before so we'd have some!

The biggest problem I had was I brought my stroller in its box. I checked it as baggage so I wouldn't have to take it in the airport. I only needed it for the parks. I had luggage tags on my box and it was nice with a handle and everything. It was clearly marked as baggage. I tucked it in a corner of our room for the stay by the table. It had the instruction manuals inside and some other papers. I had my packing tape roll, scissors, and return labels sitting with it. The last night after returning from Epcot I went to get the box to pack the stroller so I could check it and my box was GONE! The mousekeeping had thrown it out sometime during my stay!! I was NOT happy! I left a note for them letting them know they really should ask first before taking stuff and throwing it out! It was not in or near a garbage! I had to take my stroller through the security etc at the airport which was a pain when taking 3 kids alone but I managed. This was really a small negative in the grand scheme of things but take note if you have anything like that that you want to keep. You may need to leave a note or something telling them to leave it there!

Overall we had a great trip and Pop was fun. I would consider getting 2 rooms in the future when all 5 of us travel and renting a car.

Feel free to ask any questions!

 

[Mindy5767]

wow... I can't believe they threw your box out! I too would have been mad!

We too have had towel animals in our room when we arrived, but never had them the rest of the trip. I wonder why?

 

[KELLY]

wow... I can't believe they threw your box out! I too would have been mad!

We too have had towel animals in our room when we arrived, but never had them the rest of the trip. I wonder why?

I have never gotten a towel animal. Last year at POP we had one most every day.

 

[disneyfreak7]

We just returned tonight from a week at Pop. I'll report more tomorrow but I wanted to comment on refurbishment.

I requested:
Upper floor, Building 3 (50's), Lake View.

I got:
2nd floor, Building 7 (80's), tree view.

I inquired about switching to something closer to my requests and was told nothing was available. One day we swam in the bowling pin pool and I could see all the workers painting and working on Building 3 in the 50's. This could be why I wasn't placed there! I'm not 100% certain my TA even added my requests though so I can't say for sure.



I do have to say I preferred the theme in the 70's or 50's more so than 80's. Also the walk was a bit much to everything. Normally that wouldn't be a big deal but I was traveling alone with 3 kids under 10 and when coming back after EMH it was longer than I wanted! Close to the computer pool so we enjoyed that most nights. Did the Hippy Pool during the days.

So to answer the refurbishment questions they are working on Building 3 (50's) as of 7/28/10!

Well that means I was given the wrong info about renovations! I called Pop Century directly and was transferred to someone who I thought knew what they were talking about. She told me that they were now working on Building 4 and 5 in 60's 1st and 2nd floor. She told me they had finished 90's, 80's , 70's and now were on the 60's. I said "then the 50's aren't done yet?" and she replied "no, that would be after the 60's".

So they are working on Building 3? I wonder if building 4 and 5 are done?
We really want to try building 4 or 5 lakeview 4th floor

 

[davids68girl]

Hi All
Love this thread! We just changed our ressies from December to the first week of September and we are suprising the kids with this earlier trip! We'll tell them as we get ready to leave for the airport.
I just have a few questions.
1. When and how do I make a request for a room? Can you do it during the online check in process?

and
2. I am hoping for a quiet room..perhaps facing the lake, on a top floor. Does anyone know where to request a room?
Thank you!

When I want to request a room location I just call and request one. They note your request on your reservation. Simple. I haven't ever faxed in a request but others have. If I were you I would call and tell them exactly what you put here-a quiet room, facing the lake, on a top floor.

 

[szvers]

Well that means I was given the wrong info about renovations! I called Pop Century directly and was transferred to someone who I thought knew what they were talking about. She told me that they were now working on Building 4 and 5 in 60's 1st and 2nd floor. She told me they had finished 90's, 80's , 70's and now were on the 60's. I said "then the 50's aren't done yet?" and she replied "no, that would be after the 60's".

So they are working on Building 3? I wonder if building 4 and 5 are done?
We really want to try building 4 or 5 lakeview 4th floor

Just stayed in 4466 and 4467. Definitely not done.

 

[kyl]

Overall we had a great trip! I had stayed in Pop for one night only once before. This was my first full visit in a value resort. Other trips we've done the BC, Poly & CR due since we are a family of 5 but dh stayed home this trip so it was just me and the kids. The room was plenty big enough for the 4 of us. AS I said in the previous post we didn't get our requested room in the 50's but were in the 80's building 7 instead. It was nice to be near the computer pool for a night swim but other than that I would have preferred to be a little closer to the Main building and I wasn't thrilled with the them. Preferred the 50's or 70's.

We used ME and there was NOBODY at the airport, and I mean nobody! Got right on a bus. The downside of that is that since there weren't very many people they loaded lots of different resort people on 1 bus. Pop was the last stop so it took a lot longer than I had hoped, almost 2 hours from the gate to check-in. Our bags were delivered quickly and the RAC at the end of the trip was very easy.

We swam nearly every day and used all 3 pools during the trip. All were fun. One thing I wanted to note that is different from info here is there ARE towels at the pools for you to use. They are in a cabinet at the base of the lifeguard stands and there are towel return bins all over. Wished I had known since we packed our own taking up a lot of suitcase space!

We really enjoyed Pop but there is a much more crowded feel there than the deluxe resorts. Nothing that ruins a trip but I noticed it.

Food Court: Pluses are there are a lot of selections, minuses are they are all at different stations! Since I had to get the food for everyone I ended up standing in several lines. It also seemed that there was never kid's pizza available. Always had to wait 5-10 minutes for that. We always went at the "off times" but it was always busy in the food court. I wish they had a system like at CR and Poly where you order from the kiosk screen, get a receipt, pay and get a pager. Would be smoother IMO.

Buses: For the most part buses were readily available. We avoided the lines at park closing by shopping and taking our time leaving so they weren't too bad at night. For the most part we were able to catch a bus from the resort quickly with 2 exceptions. One night when we had a Chef Mickey reservation we waited for over 30 minutes for a Magic Kingdom bus to come. One afternoon we were at the Blizzard Beach stop waiting for a Pop bus for over 40 minutes. Other than those 2 times buses were plenty available. We did miss being on a monorail resort though but not worth the $$$$ for this trip. If I stayed at Pop again I would rent a car.

Mousekeeping/Room: Was okay. The room (#7227) was clean but seemed a little beat up for being refurbished. The plug-in by the table didn't work, the bathroom door did not latch, and there were burns (cigarettes?) in several places on the vanity.

We had a towel animal upon arrival but nothing after. Kids were a little disappointed because they saw several in other windows. We got no mousekeeping service on our last full day and I'm not sure why. We were out of the room between 10-2 and again from 3PM-1 AM. When we returned from Epcot that night I was really surprised to see they hadn't been there. Was a pain the next morning since we were checking out and had no towels! We got some from the pool the night before so we'd have some!

The biggest problem I had was I brought my stroller in its box. I checked it as baggage so I wouldn't have to take it in the airport. I only needed it for the parks. I had luggage tags on my box and it was nice with a handle and everything. It was clearly marked as baggage. I tucked it in a corner of our room for the stay by the table. It had the instruction manuals inside and some other papers. I had my packing tape roll, scissors, and return labels sitting with it. The last night after returning from Epcot I went to get the box to pack the stroller so I could check it and my box was GONE! The mousekeeping had thrown it out sometime during my stay!! I was NOT happy! I left a note for them letting them know they really should ask first before taking stuff and throwing it out! It was not in or near a garbage! I had to take my stroller through the security etc at the airport which was a pain when taking 3 kids alone but I managed. This was really a small negative in the grand scheme of things but take note if you have anything like that that you want to keep. You may need to leave a note or something telling them to leave it there!

Overall we had a great trip and Pop was fun. I would consider getting 2 rooms in the future when all 5 of us travel and renting a car.

Feel free to ask any questions!

Thanks so much for your very informative report. It was great to read such an in depth review Did you tell the front desk that you had made the request and what they were? I would of and asked if any of them could of been granted We are travelling from Australia so knowing about the towels is great thank you so much! Saves a tonne of space now, because there is six of us What time did you use ME? We are using it at around 5.30am on a Sunday morning and I to am worried we will be stuck on a bus for hours with three young children after 24hrs of flying. I guess at least if they start mucking up maybe the bus driver will decied that POP should be the first stop Anyway I really just wanted to thank you and I to would of left a note for the cleaners....far out I will tape everything down

 

[ShelsGoingToDisney]

Thanks so much for your very informative report. It was great to read such an in depth review Did you tell the front desk that you had made the request and what they were? I would of and asked if any of them could of been granted We are travelling from Australia so knowing about the towels is great thank you so much! Saves a tonne of space now, because there is six of us What time did you use ME? We are using it at around 5.30am on a Sunday morning and I to am worried we will be stuck on a bus for hours with three young children after 24hrs of flying. I guess at least if they start mucking up maybe the bus driver will decied that POP should be the first stop Anyway I really just wanted to thank you and I to would of left a note for the cleaners....far out I will tape everything down

I did ask at check-in if I could get moved to something that I requested. He did some messing with his computer and told there was nothing available. Oh well!

We flew into MCO at 5:05 PM on a Wednesday afternoon.

Have a great trip!!

 

[englishrose47]

We asked to be moved as DD did NOT like the 50's she is stuck on the 60's and they did move us a ssoon as a room was available !!From now on when the family goes we will get Preferred and request the 60's !!!

 

[littlepeppers]

We too have had towel animals in our room when we arrived, but never had them the rest of the trip. I wonder why?

No towel animals? We had one 6 of our 7 days last year. We left Mousekeeping tip envelopes every day. We printed the ones off ot Mousears. That may help.

 

[Mrs Grumpy]

No towel animals? We had one 6 of our 7 days last year. We left Mousekeeping tip envelopes every day. We printed the ones off ot Mousears. That may help.

That doesn't always work either. I also had the mousekeeping envelopes and left a tip everyday and we didn't receive any either. The prior trip we received several. Guess it just depends on who you get as your mousekeeper.

 

[DisneyMom5]

I don't think either resort will be more crowded than the other. I did notice however, that when you work up a quote on the Disney World website, for some reason, the AllStars are usually less expensive than Pop. Not a lot. Just some. I have no idea why. I know they have family suites at the All Star Music. Pop has none. However, they're building the Animator's Palette in the other half of the Pop resort that was never finished. That will be mostly family suites. Note to the future though. Won't be done til 2012 I think.

The price difference could be if they are in different counties, as I know different resorts have different tax rates depending on which county they are in.

We swam nearly every day and used all 3 pools during the trip. All were fun. One thing I wanted to note that is different from info here is there ARE towels at the pools for you to use. They are in a cabinet at the base of the lifeguard stands and there are towel return bins all over. Wished I had known since we packed our own taking up a lot of suitcase space!

Buses: For the most part buses were readily available. We avoided the lines at park closing by shopping and taking our time leaving so they weren't too bad at night. For the most part we were able to catch a bus from the resort quickly with 2 exceptions. One night when we had a Chef Mickey reservation we waited for over 30 minutes for a Magic Kingdom bus to come. One afternoon we were at the Blizzard Beach stop waiting for a Pop bus for over 40 minutes. Other than those 2 times buses were plenty available. We did miss being on a monorail resort though but not worth the $$$$ for this trip. If I stayed at Pop again I would rent a car.

We had a towel animal upon arrival but nothing after. Kids were a little disappointed because they saw several in other windows. We got no mousekeeping service on our last full day and I'm not sure why. We were out of the room between 10-2 and again from 3PM-1 AM. When we returned from Epcot that night I was really surprised to see they hadn't been there. Was a pain the next morning since we were checking out and had no towels! We got some from the pool the night before so we'd have some!

The biggest problem I had was I brought my stroller in its box. I checked it as baggage so I wouldn't have to take it in the airport. I only needed it for the parks. I had luggage tags on my box and it was nice with a handle and everything. It was clearly marked as baggage. I tucked it in a corner of our room for the stay by the table. It had the instruction manuals inside and some other papers. I had my packing tape roll, scissors, and return labels sitting with it. The last night after returning from Epcot I went to get the box to pack the stroller so I could check it and my box was GONE! The mousekeeping had thrown it out sometime during my stay!! I was NOT happy! I left a note for them letting them know they really should ask first before taking stuff and throwing it out! It was not in or near a garbage! I had to take my stroller through the security etc at the airport which was a pain when taking 3 kids alone but I managed. This was really a small negative in the grand scheme of things but take note if you have anything like that that you want to keep. You may need to leave a note or something telling them to leave it there!

Overall we had a great trip and Pop was fun. I would consider getting 2 rooms in the future when all 5 of us travel and renting a car.

Feel free to ask any questions!

No need to EVER bring your own towels, nor to go hunting for them!
Pick up the phone in your room, push the number for housekeeping, and tell them you'd like more towels. I have asked for EIGHT towels (we have two rooms of 4) and been brought them right to the door without the CM even batting an eye!

I have even left notes for them to leave extra towels when they come in to clean, and several times they have remembered this for the rest of the trip and just automatically left them. But even if it's evening, you can call and request more!
I feel bad that people have been taking up precious (and now expensive!) luggage space for towels when they are so readily available!

RE: buses, you can also send someone to a CM to ask them for a bus. Sometimes they are able to radio for one. We had an unusually long wait for MK one morning, and the CM standing out with a clipboard radioed for a bus so they'd speed up the process. Sometimes it works, depending on what the hold up is!

Re: box, that stinks! I think that will be part of the reason I will miss the high tv stands/dressers. I would always put things I didn't want touched up on top of it.

 

[KELLY]

The price difference could be if they are in different counties, as I know different resorts have different tax rates depending on which county they are in.



No need to EVER bring your own towels, nor to go hunting for them!
Pick up the phone in your room, push the number for housekeeping, and tell them you'd like more towels. I have asked for EIGHT towels (we have two rooms of 4) and been brought them right to the door without the CM even batting an eye!

I have even left notes for them to leave extra towels when they come in to clean, and several times they have remembered this for the rest of the trip and just automatically left them. But even if it's evening, you can call and request more!
I feel bad that people have been taking up precious (and now expensive!) luggage space for towels when they are so readily available!

RE: buses, you can also send someone to a CM to ask them for a bus. Sometimes they are able to radio for one. We had an unusually long wait for MK one morning, and the CM standing out with a clipboard radioed for a bus so they'd speed up the process. Sometimes it works, depending on what the hold up is!

Re: box, that stinks! I think that will be part of the reason I will miss the high tv stands/dressers. I would always put things I didn't want touched up on top of it.

I know I have posted this before. But my biggest issue is going to be the new dresser if we get a refurbed room. We are 4 people for 10 days. We usally go 14 but dh started a new job so 10 was all we could do this year.

 

[serene56]

I requested:
Upper floor, Building 3 (50's), Lake View.

I got:
2nd floor, Building 7 (80's), tree view.)

boy that really does suck- We booked over a year ago and requested 60's and I am well aware that it is just a request. With checking in past midnight-I am afraid that is what will happen to us.