Value Resorts... How to choose which one?

[DanaHesson]

I have been trip planning since I got back from my last trip in november. I had my heart set on the Wilderness Lodge, but for financial reasons, we have decided that we will experience our first On Property stay at a value resort.

It is just my husband and I, no children, and we usually stay in the park from whatever time we can drag ourselves out of bed, until the last monorail or boat departs. We really want a king size bed, but I have been told they do not guarantee room types. It is also pretty important to have a food court readily accessable as we are late night snack kind of folks. So my question is:

Based on the requirement of a good food court, a king size bed, and the best bus service, which value resort would you recommend for a DINK couple?
Also, if you pay for a Premium Room location, what exactly are you getting?

 

[cbusby]

I have been trip planning since I got back from my last trip in november. I had my heart set on the Wilderness Lodge, but for financial reasons, we have decided that we will experience our first On Property stay at a value resort.

It is just my husband and I, no children, and we usually stay in the park from whatever time we can drag ourselves out of bed, until the last monorail or boat departs. We really want a king size bed, but I have been told they do not guarantee room types. It is also pretty important to have a food court readily accessable as we are late night snack kind of folks. So my question is:

Based on the requirement of a good food court, a king size bed, and the best bus service, which value resort would you recommend for a DINK couple?
Also, if you pay for a Premium Room location, what exactly are you getting?

Try for POP it has its own buses....food court and they do have king size beds
if you request it (may be a preferred room).
This will be our first trip to POP and we have a 13 yr DS....I have heard a lot of great things about POP.

 

[MouseMan]

I agree the POP is the way to go if you are staying value.

 

[Disney Cakers]

My mom and I stayed at Pop Century in December and had a great time. The decor is fun and "retro" and the bus service is just one bus stop and direct to all places - so it was pretty quick. We had a preferred room location which means we were in the '60s with the Hippy Dippy Pool - close to the main building. But many people say that the 70's and 80's rooms are also just as close to the bus stop and the main building. If you go to http://www.allearsnet.com you can click on accomodations and see slide shows of the value resorts including Pop Century - and read reviews as well. There are a lot of pictures to check out. It was a lot of fun.

Brandy

 

[DanaHesson]

Do any of you remember how late the food court is open at POP?
We are going to do the dining plan, but still plan to buy the refillable mugs, and will probably have breakfast, and maybe a late night snack at the resorts.

 

[cbusby]

I think from what I have read on the other threads the food court is open
til like maybe 12 or 1 in the am. I know the arcade is open late

 

[Amy&Dan]

I would go with the theming that appeals to you the most. If you are huge 101 Dalmations or Toy Story fans, choose Movies. If the funky theming of Pop speaks to you, choose Pop. I have stayed at Movies and Pop and found them to be almost identical in service and amenities. I know a lot of people have horror stories about the All Stars bus service but our experience was the opposite. We never had to share buses with Music or Sports. That was in October during MNSSHP and Food and Wine Festival so maybe crowds were too high for bus sharing. We actually had inferior bus service at Pop but not so bad it made our stay unpleasant or that we would not return. Preferred service gets you closer to the food courts and pools. At Movies for example we paid the regular rate and got the 101 Dalmations building which was just as close as a preferred so we lucked out. At Pop we were in the 80's section and it felt like a long walk, so on that visit I might have been happy to pay the $10 a night. It was mostly just no fun walking back to the room from the pool on those cool January evenings. As far as rooms and the food courts, they are all pretty much the same. Pop is newer. The things about the rooms that do make Pop a little nicer are: larger televisions, nicer dressers, small shelf in the bathroom (very nice for all of your toiletries). Also the food court at Pop had a bar inside and at the pool. At Movies I am pretty certain there was just the pool bar. I liked the food court at Movies better because they had this Asian chicken salad I loved. My kids liked the food court at Pop better. We really enjoyed both resorts and will probably just take turns from now on! The values are a lot of fun and while there are a lot of families with kids, I saw a lot of couples without kids at both resorts.

 

[Mellie0119]

We're staying at the AllStar Sports, we loved it our first trip. Our bus service was worse at AKL. One thing to keep in mind if you chose the All Stars, if for some reason you do have to share a bus, they drop off at Sports first (a big deal with tired kiddos). We actually requested a room with a parking lot view over a pool view or preferred room. It was always quiet for us (first floor, baseball building), there was little walk to the buses and food court, but honestly, you'll be walking all day anyhow, a few more steps never made a difference to us.

 

[MouseMan]

I agree the POP is the way to go if you are staying value.

 

[DanaHesson]

Ok, I noticed that ALL the king rooms are adjoining rooms to a room with two doubles.

Have most of you had good luck getting a king when only one room was needed?

 

[DisneyJen0504]

I would try POP. We are considering it for a quickie trip we are hoping to do. Its the newest which is always nice and I have heard a lot of good things about it.