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

[scoot241]

Hey everyone! This is such a great thread! I am so excited we are going to be staying at POP! We are taking our very first trip to WDW in Jan of 2011...(Feels like forever!) I am in the early early planning stages...(Just an excuse really to look up WDW stuff!!)

I am a little overwhelmed by Disney Transportation right now. I am wondering if anyone has or knows if there is a list out there somewhere that tells you exactly how to get from one place to another (By bus or boat or what have you) and how long it takes.

Ex:

POP to Epcot:

Epcot Bus (12 Min)
or
Bus to DHS, then Boat to Epcot (62 Min.)


I want to put this in my planner that I am taking with me so I can use it as a refrence once we are there. I found a great site that tells you how to get from point A to point B but you have to enter it one at a time. If I can't find one made already, I am planning on making on just for POP and the Parks. Let me know if anyone wants a copy.

I am just so afraid I am going to get lost while there!!

I have this link: http://www.ourlaughingplace.com/asp/twiz.aspx

This will show you all the different routes from place to place when you select your starting point and your destination. I don't know of a list though.

 

[Alesia]

I have this link: http://www.ourlaughingplace.com/asp/twiz.aspx

This will show you all the different routes from place to place when you select your starting point and your destination. I don't know of a list though.

Be careful of using this. It is not very accurate. Some of the routes included don't exist.

 

[Minnie&Nana]

Originally Posted by Mommy2cody
I am just so afraid I am going to get lost while there!!

As Alesia wrote, try not to worry.

Every bus has the destination on the front, and every resort and park has very clear signs where to find the bus for every resort....you'll just walk until you find your resort stop.

POP is especially easy because there is only one place the buses stop. And one area where you wait - same area, with signs and roped off lines. It's right outside the Gift Shop, Food Court and Lobby area, and within a day you'll feel like old pros!

If you want to visit another resort, just take the bus to that resort from whichever park you are at. From POP, you could take a bus to the nearest park, then hop a bus to the resort you want to visit.

If you are at the MK, and want to visit a monorail resort you can hop on the resort monorail, clearly marked where to walk/go, or some even have a water launch - which is fun and a different experience. For FW, (Hoop-Dee-Doo) there is a water launch from the MK.

It is nice to visit the EPCOT resorts by walking to the International Gateway in World Showcase - it is between the UK and France. You can stroll right over to the Boardwalk, Beach Club area resorts - it's easy and very pretty.

If you don't want to walk back through EPCOT to return to POP, cabs are not expensive and in front of every resort. You can ask any CM outside how to find a taxi.

Hope this helps!!

 

[Mommy2cody]

Thanks everyone. You guys are great. I am sure we will be able to figure it out!! Just the OCD in me, LOVES lists! LOL!! I like to be prepered! Thanks again! Plus I thought it would help in planning our ADR's. When my husband is hungry he gets cranky really fast and he has already said he doesn't want to be going all over the place for food! LOL!

Which resorts have boat transportation? My son would LOVE this!

 

[Minnie&Nana]

Thanks everyone. You guys are great. I am sure we will be able to figure it out!! Just the OCD in me, LOVES lists! LOL!! I like to be prepered! Thanks again! Plus I thought it would help in planning our ADR's. When my husband is hungry he gets cranky really fast and he has already said he doesn't want to be going all over the place for food! LOL!

Which resorts have boat transportation? My son would LOVE this!

I would chose your park for the day based on your ADR's, unless the ARD is later and you have hoppers and plan to go over later anyway. Otherwise it can take a long time to get between parks!

Some monorail resorts have a water launch to/from the MK: Grand Floridian, Polynesian and The Wilderness Lodge. You can also get water launch from the Magic Kingdom to Ft Wilderness. There is a water launch from FW to the Wilderness Lodge and the Contemporary Resort. All of these are my very favorite boats because most are open. The signs will tell you which boat to catch by the color of the flag.

Hollywood Studios has a boats that goes between the Swan/Dolphin, Boardwalk Inn and Beach and Yacht Clubs.

Port Orleans resorts have a boat to Downtown Disney - if you take a bus to DTD from POP and you'd like to visit the Port Orleans resorts, you can hop the boat from DTD.

If possible, be sure to have a day or two of down time so you can visit other resorts - especially the monorail resorts. it's fun and you get to use the monorail or water launch or both!

Remember to allow time to relax and swim on your lists!

 

[OatsZoo]

I've read through a lot of posts over the last 6 months of planning, but I don't remember seeing this specifically addressed. I know most people are saying most wait times for busses are 20 minutes or less, but how long should I allow for travel times from POP? All of our ADRs are either in the park we plan to tour that day, monorail resorts, or AKL. I've read the UG, done a few "transportations wizards" but I wanted input from those that have BTDT.

have you tried ourlaughingplace.com they have a transportation wizard with approximate times and it is good cause they sometimes give you different opinions to think about.

 

[Alesia]

have you tried ourlaughingplace.com they have a transportation wizard with approximate times and it is good cause they sometimes give you different opinions to think about.

Please keep in mind, though, that some of the routes that they suggest don't actually exist. It's a decent tool for getting a general idea, but I would double check before using any routes they suggest.

 

[VAYankee]

We, me DS(15) and DS(21) returned home Saturday from our first stay at POP. We were there for a week and I thought it was a great resort. I had requested a room in the 50's building, 4th floor, lake(fireworks) view and that is exactly what we got. Our room looked like it might need some refreshing, but nothing drastic and the room was immaculate - I was a little worried after reading some other posts about dirty rooms, but ours was very clean. The beds weren't new but the pillows were nice and fluffy (which led to some relaxing naps in the afternoon!). We had the quickservice dining plan which was still too much food for us. The food court was busy at times, but we always could find a place to sit. Loved the pools and the Petals Bar! Bus service was really good, better than I expected. Crowds at the park were heavy, but not as bad as I remember in the past. Rain was the only thing that was not on my schedule! I'm not talking about the usual afternoon showers, we had rain Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday but it didn't really stop us. Overall it was a good trip for us aside from a problem with my foot that made walking painful, but I would definitely stay at POP again, although I would forego the fireworks view and pick something closer to the food court/buses.

 

[OatsZoo]

Rain was the only thing that was not on my schedule! I'm not talking about the usual afternoon showers, we had rain Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday but it didn't really stop us.

Ya I know what you mean. We had a nice day planned in the World Showcase for some "country specific" drinks and it decided to rain 3 countries into our tour. Man, I was so upset I teared up and got a bit upset. Then when the rain would just not give up, we decided to just go for it and continue on with our "worldly" plans. Sure we got soaked, and got lots of funny looks from people standing under the trees/buildings, but it ended up being pretty fun and funny too.

Now I know that even if it rains, you can still enjoy WDW if you go with mother natures flow and have fun with it.

This trip I am bringing the small rain ponchos for everyone as they wanted $10 each for them in the parks and you can get them here at the dollar store.

 

[VAYankee]

we really didn't let the rain stop us too much - we were in MK when it started to pour, but we kept on going until about 3:00 in the afternoon. The only time we quit was the morning we went to AK for early morning hours to ride EE and they shut the ride down because of thunder and lightening, then we were really bummed and they never reopened it while we were there, we ended up leaving by 10:00 and didn't go back; but otherwise, put on the ponchos and keep on going! My older son also enjoyed trying the different beers from the different countries at World Showcase - I was happy with a frozen margarita at Mexico!

 

[MelanieC]

Trust me, you will not get lost. I know it seems overwhelming while you're planning, but WDW transportation is very easy to navigate.

Agree - It's not that bad You get used to it quick !

 

[WDisneyMom]

So excited to stay at POP in November....just changed it from free dining in aug/sept. Anyway...we did not choose the preferred room so hopefully we will still be ok...looking forward to the gift shop which looks really cute and the pool bar!!

 

[penni520]

Could someone please tell me what the weather will be like...Rain? Hot? Crowd level? anything else to help me get ready.

 

[ZeroToHero]

Could someone please tell me what the weather will be like...Rain? Hot? Crowd level? anything else to help me get ready.

Rain - it will at least rain a little while probably every day... no idea on if there will be a lot of rain. It is hurricane season, so it's always a possibility.

Heat - shorts and tee-shirts weather. it may get a little colder during the night, but it will still be hotter than Ohio at that time. Check weather.com or a site like that for average temperatures & rainfall.

Crowd level is going to be relatively low - check touringplans.com for exact numbers for dates, but it's estimated to be around 4-7, usually 4 or 5.

 

[onelilspark]

Hi all! My boyfriend and I just decided on a trip down to Disney for Food & Wine and Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party I have a 40% off pin code (commence dancing!) so I can get a room at a value really cheap...

We're going down over his 25th birthday, so we're relying on Disney transportation (since you know, he's not quite responsible with a rental car yet ) and my understanding is that Pop is the best out of all the values when it comes to bus transportation. I stayed at All Star Music back in '03 before Pop was an option and I don't really remember the bus situation all that well. Any help?

Also, I haven't booked the room yet, we just talked about it yesterday. With the pin code the difference between a preferred room and a standard room isn't going to be huge. I'm thinking though that since we're 2 adults with no kids, it might almost be better for us to not have a preferred room since it'll be quieter. Is my thinking right, or will it be worth the convenience?

Thanks! I'm super excited!

 

[VAYankee]

we just got back from our trip last week, it was our first stay at POP and I thought the buses ran great, I don't think we waited more than 10 minutes for any bus to and from the parks - we did not go to other resorts so I don't know if that makes a difference. We stayed in a standard room in the 50's building, fourth floor overlooking the lake and it was very quiet - an occasional excited little kid running back and forth, but no noise (I think rooms overlooking the pools would be the noisiest) and from what I have read in these posts from people who have stayed at POP, the only difference between a preferred room and standard is location -the preferred rooms are closer to Everything POP and the food court.

 

[onelilspark]

Thanks. Think when I call to book we'll just request a top floor overlooking the lake. That's what I thought, just wanted to make sure my marbles were rolling around alright before I went to call

 

[englishrose47]

Yes the prefereed rooms at Pop are just closer to the Foodcourt!! I like the 50's 60's or 70's ! I have stayed in the 50's a couple of times both poolside and lakeside ad had no problems with noise !! It is a bt of a walk !!

 

[onelilspark]

When I stayed at the All Star Music we were back in the Broadway section, which is just about the furthest you can be. I didn't find it too bad, so I'm hoping we'll be okay Thanks for the input!

 

[VAYankee]

I have a question for the photographers out there - I just downloaded my vacation pictures onto my computer and was going to print them out on my printer, but realize that doing it that way can cost more, who do you use to print out your digital photos and who has the best price? I noticed a couple of offers (since expired) from Kodak for 15 cents a print (they had offered free shipping on orders over 4.99) - is that the usual cost?