What resorts shocked you?

[Son of Gadsden]

We just got back from our Christmas vacation at WDW. We had a split stay at three resorts: Art of Animation, Coronado Springs, and Pop Century.

We've stayed at AoA before, so we knew what we were getting. We LOVE AoA. The majority of our stay was at Coronado Springs, which we had never stayed at before. It was out of our price range, but because of a discount at Orbitz, we could barely afford it. We were super excited to stay there, as it was one of my wife's "must try" resorts. The point of our three way split stay was because we originally planned a 7 night stay, but because of the holiday, we found out we actually could extend our trip. We tacked a day on the beginning, and a day on the end. Coronado couldn't be booked. AoA had availability for the first day but not the last, so we got the cheapest option, which was Pop Century. I'm not going to lie, we were seriously dreading Pop Century. We watched the videos, read the reviews, and we just hated the idea of it. When we stayed at AoA, looking across the lake, we cringed. We just thought it looked super tacky.

When day one came, we didn't want to leave AoA, but it was booked for the whole week anyway, which is really what pushed us to book Coronado in the first place. However, we were excited to head over to Coronado. However, we were disappointed with it. We didn't like the themeing. The rooms were nice, very nice. However, we didn't like the lack of themeing. The whole stay felt like a Marriott. Very nice resort, but it just didn't feel like we were onsite. The Pepper Market was so-so. The food was good, but I just didn't get the stamp thing, and I felt like I was in a jail cell eating. Landscape of Flavors was MUCH better. The resort is HUGE. However, I already knew that going in. This resort has, by far, the WORST bus service I have ever witnessed. It wasn't just me either...everyone we talked to at the resort went on and on about the bus service. More often than not, we had to ask a bus driver to radio dispatch and ask for a bus where we were going. Average wait times totaled over half an hour for us. The bus stops were confusing. We got the hang of it eventually, but stop 1 is actually called stop 2. The bus stops at Stop 2, then 3, then 4, then 1...unless you're on a Downtown Disney bus, which stops 1, 2, 3, 4. Bus drivers do not tell you which route they are on, and we ended up going to Downtown Disney when we were trying to get to stop 1, and ended up going to Blizzard Beach on the Internal Bus once...somehow. The resort felt like a motel 8 as far as layout. The CM that checked us in pretty much summed it up when we asked to get a room close to the center hub. "I can't get you but so close because of preferred rooms, but I'll get you close to a bus stop. You really have no reason to come back here once you check in." We didn't get the feeling of a resort with a lobby and a central area to do things. The main pool is way away from the lobby, the gift shop is lacking themeing and just isn't as exciting as the Ink and Paint Shop at AoA, nor is Pepper Market comparable to Landscape of Flavors. I went into Rix on Sunday Night at about 6 to ask about the football game. When I asked the bartender "Hey, are you guys showing the game tonight?" The bartender looked like I just slapped her and said "Which one?" I smiled at the idea of a bartender not knowing about Sunday Night Football...and said "...the NFL one." She still had no idea what I was talking about. "The Skins game." Nope. "Skins, Giants." Still silence. In the awkwardness of it all I just kind of mumbled "football....Sunday Night...." And she finally just kind of rolled her eyes and said "eh, I don't know, I guess" like I was asking a ridiculous question. The moment was so awkward I just didn't return. Okay, maybe I'm nitpicking, but it just didn't seem like a very fun or welcoming place to go watch the game, and since it's a long walk anyway, I just decided to stay in the room and watch the game. On the first night, our shower was broken, so we had to call maintenance to come fix that. Every time I went to the concierge help desk, I got someone who could not speak English. Like MyMagic+ needs any help being complicated, the people I'm asking questions can barely understand the question, much less the issue.

Coronado Springs was just a bad experience all around, if you can't tell. I could go on complaining and complaining, but I've really said enough about it. It was not a miserable trip, we had fun, and it really is a nice, clean resort. It just didn't feel Disney, and I thought the Values were just better. My wife and I agree, we won't be returning.

Then we began the dreaded trip to Pop. WE LOVED IT! We walked in dreading it and trying to find things wrong with it since we had already made up our minds. On the way to the room, our complaints lessened, we kept making comments to each other, which started to turn into sour grapes, and eventually I dared to say "You know what....this isn't all THAT bad..." and from there my wife said "Yeah, it's alright", and eventually it turned to "This is way better than Coronado. I'd stay here again. And now we are to the point that next trip will either be AoA or Pop vs monorail resorts. The rooms were clean, and we liked the themeing. We still didn't care for the tacky "stapled on" themeing, but we really like the Lady and the Tramp parts and the Jungle book parts. We stayed in a preferred section in the "Lady" building. We got it for like $80 a night as compared to $160 for Coronado. It got up to like 90 degrees while we were there so we got to try out the pool. We loved that as well. Much better vibes from Pop than Coronado. The concierge was very helpful (we left some things in the room at Coronado, and they got them delivered to Pop for us). The bus transportation was much better than Coronado as well. So, maybe it's not that hard to believe we would love this resort since we love AoA and this is essentially AoA with different paint colors, but it really shocked us.

Never in our wildest dreams would we have imagined we would have disliked Coronado so much and loved Pop. Anyone else had similar experiences? Ever stayed at a resort that you thought would be your favorite and ended up hating it...or dreading a resort and ended up putting it on the "to do" list for next stay?

 

[daannzzz]

For some people "Disney" themeing means taking you to other places and other times, like their movies and TV shows did. The Florida seacoast at the turn of the century, Southern Plantation homes, Polynesian or Caribbean tropical islands.
For other people "Disney" themeing means cartoons and characters so a beautifully resort may not seem Disney to them unless Cartoons are glued onto the the buildings.
You will find loads of people who find the PoP and AoA not really themed just decorated.

 

[Son of Gadsden]

For some people "Disney" themeing means taking you to other places and other times, like their movies and TV shows did. The Florida seacoast at the turn of the century, Southern Plantation homes, Polynesian or Caribbean tropical islands.
For other people "Disney" themeing means cartoons and characters so a beautifully resort may not seem Disney to them unless Cartoons are glued onto the the buildings.
You will find loads of people who find the PoP and AoA not really themed just decorated.

No, that's not what I mean at all. We love Poly. Polynesian is themed great, as is Grand Floridian, Wilderness, and AKL...all of which are resorts we visited and will consider next time. I don't know if it's just a moderate thing, but we weren't impressed. We've stayed Value and Deluxe, and we found both to be better experiences. Maybe it has something to do with the idea of saving money at Values, and getting the over the top values that make paying the money seem worth it at deluxes....and the moderates having neither of the two.

Coronado, we just didn't feel it. I don't know how else to say it. It was pretty. It didn't take me to another area or time. Like I said, felt like a Marriott with a mexican theme. The themeing just wasn't on par with what I consider Disney to do, especially for the money.

I can totally see people being incredibly happy with this resort, we're just not those people.

 

[DebbieB]

We just got back from our Christmas vacation at WDW. We had a split stay at three resorts: Art of Animation, Coronado Springs, and Pop Century.

We've stayed at AoA before, so we knew what we were getting. We LOVE AoA. The majority of our stay was at Coronado Springs, which we had never stayed at before. It was out of our price range, but because of a discount at Orbitz, we could barely afford it. We were super excited to stay there, as it was one of my wife's "must try" resorts. The point of our three way split stay was because we originally planned a 7 night stay, but because of the holiday, we found out we actually could extend our trip. We tacked a day on the beginning, and a day on the end. Coronado couldn't be booked. AoA had availability for the first day but not the last, so we got the cheapest option, which was Pop Century. I'm not going to lie, we were seriously dreading Pop Century. We watched the videos, read the reviews, and we just hated the idea of it. When we stayed at AoA, looking across the lake, we cringed. We just thought it looked super tacky.

When day one came, we didn't want to leave AoA, but it was booked for the whole week anyway, which is really what pushed us to book Coronado in the first place. However, we were excited to head over to Coronado. However, we were disappointed with it. We didn't like the themeing. The rooms were nice, very nice. However, we didn't like the lack of themeing. The whole stay felt like a Marriott. Very nice resort, but it just didn't feel like we were onsite. The Pepper Market was so-so. The food was good, but I just didn't get the stamp thing, and I felt like I was in a jail cell eating. Landscape of Flavors was MUCH better. The resort is HUGE. However, I already knew that going in. This resort has, by far, the WORST bus service I have ever witnessed. It wasn't just me either...everyone we talked to at the resort went on and on about the bus service. More often than not, we had to ask a bus driver to radio dispatch and ask for a bus where we were going. Average wait times totaled over half an hour for us. The bus stops were confusing. We got the hang of it eventually, but stop 1 is actually called stop 2. The bus stops at Stop 2, then 3, then 4, then 1...unless you're on a Downtown Disney bus, which stops 1, 2, 3, 4. Bus drivers do not tell you which route they are on, and we ended up going to Downtown Disney when we were trying to get to stop 1, and ended up going to Blizzard Beach on the Internal Bus once...somehow. The resort felt like a motel 8 as far as layout. The CM that checked us in pretty much summed it up when we asked to get a room close to the center hub. "I can't get you but so close because of preferred rooms, but I'll get you close to a bus stop. You really have no reason to come back here once you check in." We didn't get the feeling of a resort with a lobby and a central area to do things. The main pool is way away from the lobby, the gift shop is lacking themeing and just isn't as exciting as the Ink and Paint Shop at AoA, nor is Pepper Market comparable to Landscape of Flavors. I went into Rix on Sunday Night at about 6 to ask about the football game. When I asked the bartender "Hey, are you guys showing the game tonight?" The bartender looked like I just slapped her and said "Which one?" I smiled at the idea of a bartender not knowing about Sunday Night Football...and said "...the NFL one." She still had no idea what I was talking about. "The Skins game." Nope. "Skins, Giants." Still silence. In the awkwardness of it all I just kind of mumbled "football....Sunday Night...." And she finally just kind of rolled her eyes and said "eh, I don't know, I guess" like I was asking a ridiculous question. The moment was so awkward I just didn't return. Okay, maybe I'm nitpicking, but it just didn't seem like a very fun or welcoming place to go watch the game, and since it's a long walk anyway, I just decided to stay in the room and watch the game. On the first night, our shower was broken, so we had to call maintenance to come fix that. Every time I went to the concierge help desk, I got someone who could not speak English. Like MyMagic+ needs any help being complicated, the people I'm asking questions can barely understand the question, much less the issue.

Coronado Springs was just a bad experience all around, if you can't tell. I could go on complaining and complaining, but I've really said enough about it. It was not a miserable trip, we had fun, and it really is a nice, clean resort. It just didn't feel Disney, and I thought the Values were just better. My wife and I agree, we won't be returning.

Then we began the dreaded trip to Pop. WE LOVED IT! We walked in dreading it and trying to find things wrong with it since we had already made up our minds. On the way to the room, our complaints lessened, we kept making comments to each other, which started to turn into sour grapes, and eventually I dared to say "You know what....this isn't all THAT bad..." and from there my wife said "Yeah, it's alright", and eventually it turned to "This is way better than Coronado. I'd stay here again. And now we are to the point that next trip will either be AoA or Pop vs monorail resorts. The rooms were clean, and we liked the themeing. We still didn't care for the tacky "stapled on" themeing, but we really like the Lady and the Tramp parts and the Jungle book parts. We stayed in a preferred section in the "Lady" building. We got it for like $80 a night as compared to $160 for Coronado. It got up to like 90 degrees while we were there so we got to try out the pool. We loved that as well. Much better vibes from Pop than Coronado. The concierge was very helpful (we left some things in the room at Coronado, and they got them delivered to Pop for us). The bus transportation was much better than Coronado as well. So, maybe it's not that hard to believe we would love this resort since we love AoA and this is essentially AoA with different paint colors, but it really shocked us.

Never in our wildest dreams would we have imagined we would have disliked Coronado so much and loved Pop. Anyone else had similar experiences? Ever stayed at a resort that you thought would be your favorite and ended up hating it...or dreading a resort and ended up putting it on the "to do" list for next stay?

I stayed at CSR once about 10 years ago and didn't care for the themeing either or the Pepper Market.

 

[Freezing Cold B]

I've never stayed at Coronado, AoA or Pop. I've always been curious about Pop or AoA, but we've never stayed there. I've looked at Coronado a few times, and it just doesn't seem like somewhere I'd want to stay. I'm thinking of trying PO-Riverside next time with a split stay. We LOVE WL and Poly, and it doesn't feel like a WDW vacation if we don't stay at one so I'm preferring to split stay between a new hotel I've never tried and my tried and true.

I will say I was a little disappointed in AKL at our stay. The food wasn't great. The theme was beautiful, and I liked the animals. I would stay there again, but it wasn't the experience others had gotten my hopes up for.

 

[mickeynut1]

We have loved every resort we've stayed at and wouldn't hesitate to go back to any of them, but I can see how one might not feel as "Disney" as another. With that said, we've never stayed at CSR so I can't comment on that one in particular, but the reason we haven't stayed there is because the theme/decor has no appeal to us. We like trying different resorts, but CSR is not on our list of resorts to try. It's good, though, that you did give it a try because now you know it's not a resort for you. I'm sorry you didn't enjoy CSR, but glad you had a good time at AoA and Pop .

 

[Babsy]

No, that's not what I mean at all. We love Poly. Polynesian is themed great, as is Grand Floridian, Wilderness, and AKL...all of which are resorts we visited and will consider next time. I don't know if it's just a moderate thing, but we weren't impressed. We've stayed Value and Deluxe, and we found both to be better experiences. Maybe it has something to do with the idea of saving money at Values, and getting the over the top values that make paying the money seem worth it at deluxes....and the moderates having neither of the two.

Coronado, we just didn't feel it. I don't know how else to say it. It was pretty. It didn't take me to another area or time. Like I said, felt like a Marriott with a mexican theme. The themeing just wasn't on par with what I consider Disney to do, especially for the money.

I can totally see people being incredibly happy with this resort, we're just not those people.

I think you missed daannzzz's point. Obviously, you didn't like the theme at Coronado Springs.
My Mom would agree with you, CSR doesn't do it for her. She loves the All Stars.
Others LOVE the theme at CSR (like I do) and find the movie style decorations at AS, Pop and AoA to be LESS themed, just externally 'decorated'.
For her, if you are going to save money stay at value, if not, go to the luxury resorts. The moderates, for her, aren't worth the money.
I disagree. I love the theming at the moderates, while the value resorts seem like they are decorated for kids or teenagers. There is a 'plastic' or 'cheap and tacky' feel to the rooms at values, IMO.
AoA is much better done than AS and Pop, but it still isn't quite what I am looking for. The moderates are the least expensive option that provides an adult 'theme' that makes me comfortable and truly happy. I can, and have, stayed at AS and Pop but they are my last choices of places to stay in WDW. Again, JMO, but there is a reason that values are the least expensive choice. For some, it's worth the extra $$ to move up to mods or luxury. For others, they wonder why anyone would unnecessarily waste all that money for a bed.

It all comes down to personal taste, background and expectations.

 

[ADisneyQueen]

Oh my gosh your post is making me laugh! We had a split stay at AOA and CSR this summer and we hated AOA and loved CSR! CSR was so great we hated to leave. Loved the food, the pool, the slide, the beautiful theming and vegetation! Had a great check in and b/c we didn't like ranchos they upgraded us to a poolview room in cabanas. I could stay there and not even go to the parks. Bus service was good and loved the comfy queen beds and the room.

AOA just wasn't for us. No shade, food was bad, and no pool slide. Rooms were small and beds were too (and hard) The icons were cute, but I'd rather have more palm trees and growing things. We had a very rude CM check us in. I can't even believe he is allowed to work there. We had actually visited AOA last year while staying at POP and thought we would love it. I liked our lakeview room at POP last year better.

A few years ago we stayed at CBR which we thought we'd love but didn't. I guess everyone has there own experience and preferences.

 

[Son of Gadsden]

Oh my gosh your post is making me laugh! We had a split stay at AOA and CSR this summer and we hated AOA and loved CSR! CSR was so great we hated to leave. Loved the food, the pool, the slide, the beautiful theming and vegetation! Had a great check in and b/c we didn't like ranchos they upgraded us to a poolview room in cabanas. I could stay there and not even go to the parks. Bus service was good and loved the comfy queen beds and the room.

AOA just wasn't for us. No shade, food was bad, and no pool slide. Rooms were small and beds were too (and hard) The icons were cute, but I'd rather have more palm trees and growing things. We had a very rude CM check us in. I can't even believe he is allowed to work there. We had actually visited AOA last year while staying at POP and thought we would love it. I liked our lakeview room at POP last year better.

A few years ago we stayed at CBR which we thought we'd love but didn't. I guess everyone has there own experience and preferences.

Yeah, like I said, I can definitely see people absolutely loving CSR. It has a lot of good qualities, it just wasn't for us. It is a super nice place. The food at pepper market was awesome, I just didn't like the whole idea of the pepper market. It wasn't a bad system or anything, just not my type. The whole resort just wasn't our type. Haha.

 

[daannzzz]

See how different peoples tastes are. I enjoyed my time at All Star music. It is fun and colorful but when I moved over to Caribbean beach the feeling was so much better, relaxed, beautiful. I get the same feeling at CSR. I love the moderate resorts a lot except for the price which is getting too high for what they are but I feel that way about all the Disney resorts icnluding those at Disneyland.
I understand about not liking a theme. Frecnh Quarter is pretty and I understand what they were intending. Parts of it are neat but it just doesn't do it for me. It is the last of the moderates that I would choose.

 

[saskdw]

Yeah, like I said, I can definitely see people absolutely loving CSR. It has a lot of good qualities, it just wasn't for us. It is a super nice place. The food at pepper market was awesome, I just didn't like the whole idea of the pepper market. It wasn't a bad system or anything, just not my type. The whole resort just wasn't our type. Haha.

I won't pick apart your review (I'm a CSR lover...lol) because most of it is personal taste and vacation style. However CSR is generally regarded as consistently having the best bus service of any of the resorts at WDW. DIS boards is full of comments to this regard. Even people who didn't like the resort have said the bus service was the best they had experienced. So, it sounds like you just had a string of bad luck in that regard.

 

[saskdw]

See how different peoples tastes are. I enjoyed my time at All Star music. It is fun and colorful but when I moved over to Caribbean beach the feeling was so much better, relaxed, beautiful. I get the same feeling at CSR. I love the moderate resorts a lot except for the price which is getting too high for what they are but I feel that way about all the Disney resorts icnluding those at Disneyland.
I understand about not liking a theme. Frecnh Quarter is pretty and I understand what they were intending. Parts of it are neat but it just doesn't do it for me. It is the last of the moderates that I would choose.

I agree with all of this, sounds like we have similar tastes and vacation styles. I find the pricing ok as long as there is a FD promo attached to it. At full rack rate it is over priced.

 

[Son of Gadsden]

I won't pick apart your review (I'm a CSR lover...lol) because most of it is personal taste and vacation style. However CSR is generally regarded as consistently having the best bus service of any of the resorts at WDW. DIS boards is full of comments to this regard. Even people who didn't like the resort have said the bus service was the best they had experienced. So, it sounds like you just had a string of bad luck in that regard.

My luck, I guess.

Our first bus to MK mid day took 45 minutes to arrive. The bus driver to Epcot had to radio a bus driver, and when he got there he didn't even have his sign on and said he came from the bus depot...that they had to put another bus into service because all the others were busy.

Another time the same thing had to be done, a bus came from the depot and four hollywood studios and 4 epcot buses went by, most came and left empty.

The times that buses came on schedule, it normally took at least 3 buses to get to us in the line, while we heard pretty often in the crowds "Coronado Springs, worst bus system in Disney."

We've never had issues with buses before ever. Maybe they just had an off week...a couple broken down buses or something.

 

[GovieMom]

Coronado Springs ... This resort has, by far, the WORST bus service I have ever witnessed. Average wait times totaled over half an hour for us. The main pool is way away from the lobby, the gift shop is lacking themeing and just isn't as exciting as the Ink and Paint Shop at AoA, nor is Pepper Market comparable to Landscape of Flavors.

I absolutely agree with everything you wrote! CSR was by far our least favorite resort, and we've stayed at most of them. Talk about no "Disney feel" compared to the other ones, picture dozens of business people walking around everywhere with name tags on, which is what we experienced. Too weird!

CSR is a beautiful resort, but we also didn't feel like we were on Disney property. And our bus service was the pits! We always waited "at least" 20 minutes for whichever bus we needed for the park we were headed for, every day. We'll never stay there again.

 

[Smiles4DW]

We have only stayed at 2 resorts...Pop & PORS. We loved both!! Loved Pop's food court, pools, gift shop, & bus service. I was shocked the first time we stayed at PORS at how beautiful & how relaxed we felt walking the grounds. We also loved the pool & different resort activities. However, we do not care for PORS food court or their bus system. We loved it so much, we overlook those things.

 

[saskdw]

I absolutely agree with everything you wrote! CSR was by far our least favorite resort, and we've stayed at most of them. Talk about no "Disney feel" compared to the other ones, picture dozens of business people walking around everywhere with name tags on, which is what we experienced. Too weird!

CSR is a beautiful resort, but we also didn't feel like we were on Disney property. And our bus service was the pits! We always waited "at least" 20 minutes for whichever bus we needed for the park we were headed for, every day. We'll never stay there again.

I'm always puzzled by comments of business suits and no Disney feel. However all of our trips have been mid-late December and there is no conventions at that time so that could be why the difference. We love the theme and the feel. Very relaxed and looks amazing at night when it's all lit up!!

As far as busses, we've spent a total of 30 days at CSR and have 12 nights more booked starting in 3 days. I have never waited longer than the 20 mins that Disney states and most times waits were under 10 mins at the resort. Anytime a wait was longer than 10 mins it was at the park going back to the resort. This is at Christmas time, the busiest time of year.

 

[rcraw45425]

we've also been underwhelmed with CSR. Have only spent arrival night there but it just didn't do anything for us. Horrible bathrooms.

 

[Robbi]

I absolutely agree with everything you wrote! CSR was by far our least favorite resort, and we've stayed at most of them. Talk about no "Disney feel" compared to the other ones, picture dozens of business people walking around everywhere with name tags on, which is what we experienced. Too weird!

CSR is a beautiful resort, but we also didn't feel like we were on Disney property. And our bus service was the pits! We always waited "at least" 20 minutes for whichever bus we needed for the park we were headed for, every day. We'll never stay there again.

If business suits bother you, stay away from the BW, YC, CR, and GF as these are all convention resorts.

 

[klmall]

Never stayed at CSR but was terribly disappointed with AKL in the past. That resort has the longest hallways and we found that several savannah view rooms have less than desirable views of other sides of the hotel etc. We also hated the noise generated at times from other balconies around us. Our second savannah view room offered some animal viewing but also gave us a view of the McDonalds' arches and a four lane road not exactly what I expected for deluxe prices even with a PIN code. And other than going to the Animal Kingdom we found the bus rides very lengthy.

Surprising to us, we found Port Orleans French Quarter very lovely and quiet, even during Spring Break with good bus availability.

All Star Sports was acceptable in every way and the buses were the best of any I have used on property (except for the Epcot pick-up point location).

Wilderness Lodge buses have also been a problem every time we've stayed there but we do like the decor and access to MK by boat even though the rooms seem tiny.

 

[ArwenMarie]

We stayed at Beach Club this summer. Other than the proximity to Epcot, which was awesome, I was shocked at how underwhelming it was. The theme was minimal IMO and I loathed Stormalong Bay, which was the reason we picked it in the first place. That was my "negative shock" resort.

My "positive shock" resort was Old Key West this past November. Loved loved loved it and went into not expecting to even like it. Loved the theming, loved the villas, loved the main pool, loved Olivia's, loved the landscaping, the interior design, the QS, everything.