Why does everyone love POP so much?

[1GR8DISNEYFAN]

Why is this resort so polular? I decided on ASMU just because it seemed smaller and easier to get around. But besides that, all the values look so similar so I am just wondering what POP has to offer that the others don't.

 

[Mariep26]

I have never stayed at Pop so I don't doubt it is wonderful but before AoA many people rationalized staying there over any of the All Stars because the All Stars share buses and Pop does not. I have stayed at ASMo and I didn't find the sharing buses situation to be that bad. We will stay in Pop eventually just because we want to try each resort at least once!

 

[Mousemommy1]

Why is this resort so polular? I decided on ASMU just because it seemed smaller and easier to get around. But besides that, all the values look so similar so I am just wondering what POP has to offer that the others don't.

We liked POP over the other values due to the dedicated bus service, we thought the theme was cool, and the food court had a much better selection than the other values (in our opinion).

 

[Missytara]

I love moderates, but I have always said if I went with someone that couldn't afford it, I would stay at POP.

I think for a lot of reasons for me:

Dedicated buses

Food court is as good as POR

Room configuration

Theming; would love to stay in the decade that I grew up in the 60's.

I like the layout and close promixity to the lake as well; I love my water/riverview at POR.

 

[spiceycat]

this place also plays music alot - the music is from the late 50. 60, 70, 80, and 90's - so for us born in those years - lots of memories.

pop also has a lake - that is a plus for me

 

[Kay1]

I strongly prefer ASMU, but I must say, the food court at POP is really great, though the one at AoA is, IMO, even better.

Enjoy ASMU.

 

[DisneyFamily123]

Bus Issue -- Just stop the insanity, please!
Pop Century's bus service is not faster or slower than the All Star resorts. Pop Century does NOT have dedicated or it's own bus service. Disney changes the routing of buses based on demand. It's true that buses to/from Pop do not stop at other resorts. It's also true that Pop has a LOT more guests than each All Star resorts. So does it really make a difference? At All Star Resorts, the buses often only stop at 1 resort (your destination)... and when it does stop at other resorts.. it's quick.

Food
The food is basically the same. We usually eat in the parks or other resorts anyway. We did like the asian noodle specials at Pop with shrimp, chicken, etc.

Rooms
Identical to All Stars. But you might have to walk a LOT further to the main building if not in a preferred room. The All Star Resorts have less of a walk.

Theming
To each his/her own. But from Pop, you can now walk over to Art of Animation (not to use pool).

Pools
More Pools at Pop. But all the same to us. None have water slides. If I stay value again, we will get the water park fun and more option to make up for the lack of water slides. Actually... we will probably get that and park hoppers anyway.

 

[spiceycat]

Bus Issue -- Just stop the insanity, please!
Pop Century's bus service is not faster or slower than the All Star resorts. Pop Century does NOT have dedicated or it's own bus service. Disney changes the routing of buses based on demand. It's true that buses to/from Pop do not stop at other resorts. It's also true that Pop has a LOT more guests than each All Star resorts. So does it really make a difference? At All Star Resorts, the buses often only stop at 1 resort (your destination)... and when it does stop at other resorts.. it's quick.

no wdw resort has it own bus system - they all share. but the one from and to pop - only goes to POP.

most of time (when I have been there) - when one bus is full at Pop another arrives before the first bus leaves.

unless you go in the morning and come back in the evening - you are sharing one bus with 3 resorts at All stars - that more than makes up for the more guests at Pop

why are you so negative on Pop???

Pop did have stuff in its food court that were not available at other resorts including All stars - that may have changed but don't think so. relating to the 60 and 70''s.

the pools are different at Pop - instead of one sets of steps to the pool - Pop has 4 (in the quiet pools) - which at my age is a big PLUS. Now Pop's pool is not as deep as the all stars - so that to me is a negative - but for parents with small kids it is probably a plus.

pop did have a lifeguard (generally 2 or more) at each pool.

the OP asked why so many of us liked Pop.

 

[HM]

Personally I've always preferred ASMu over PopC. I've stayed in each of them three times. This last trip I stayed at ASSports and it's my new favorite.

 

[Sandi]

Bus Issue -- Just stop the insanity, please!
Pop Century's bus service is not faster or slower than the All Star resorts.

I can only go based on my personal experience from staying at both ASMU and Pop, but Pop's bus service was far superior to ASMU. A few times at ASMU, the bus was coming from one of the other AS stops and was completely full, so couldn't stop for the ASMU passengers. We would see a few full buses go by and a CM would call for another bus. It took quite awhile and was frustrating. (This was during Spring Break, so a very busy time of the year; but we've stayed at Pop during several Spring Breaks and didn't experience anything like that.)

Also, like Pat said, after Wishes at MK, Pop would be loading two buses simultaneously. During Spring Break this year, they were loading luxury motor coaches to handle guests from MK to Pop. That happened on two different nights. Those were the nicest, most comfortable bus rides I'd ever had to the resort from a theme park!

I love Pop, in part, because I really feel I am getting value for my money. I have stayed at Deluxe resorts and enjoyed them a lot. But, we rarely spend time at the resort because we like to be at the parks as much as possible. With the money I save at Pop, we can get the park hopper plus water park tickets, have wonderful dining experiences, and book a backstage tour or two. We've had nothing but good housekeeping service at Pop and wonderful interaction with CMs. I'm totally high on Pop.

 

[FlyingBelle]

I don't think we'll ever stay at POP again after our trip there!

We had a preferred room (we usually do, so we're closer to the food court since I grab breakfast for the family and bring it back to the room, and we like being closer to the bus).

We had a problem with noise - at all hours of the night from the pool. Seriously, the first night I called the front desk at 2am to find out what time the pool closed. They said midnight - I told them they might want to walk out there because there were dozens of people in the pool screaming and making all kinds of noise. It kept waking my daughter up. We had the same problem our entire stay. (We tried switching rooms, but they didn't have another preferred room that wasn't facing the pool)

The crowds at the food court - holy moly! There were lines everywhere at all times! It was craziness. Quite overwhelming for our family.

We've stayed at ASMu several times and it's restored my faith in values. It's not too crowded, we've never had a problem with the buses. At times, where there are the large Brazilian groups, the food court can get overwhelming, I learned to go a little earlier and it was fine.

And funny thing - pp mentioned a lake at POP? I've never seen it, although I do see it on the map!

 

[disnut8]

We had a problem with noise - at all hours of the night from the pool. Seriously, the first night I called the front desk at 2am to find out what time the pool closed. They said midnight - I told them they might want to walk out there because there were dozens of people in the pool screaming and making all kinds of noise.

That's kind of funny because we had the same problem just two weeks ago at All Star Sports so it's not limited to Pop Century.

We prefer Pop Century for the nostalgia of the place. Walking along Memory Lane next to Hourglass Lake and reading all the things that happened from 1950-1999 and talking with your partner where you were or what you were doing. Looking at the shadowboxes in the lobby area and pointing out the things you or your parents or your grandparents actually had and used. Someone else mentioned the music playing. Each decade of buildings plays music from that ten year period.

As I said, we just stayed at All Star Sports and while it was fine (shared buses aside) and we were in the Touchdown building and we love football, there was just something missing.

 

[Sandi]

And funny thing - pp mentioned a lake at POP? I've never seen it, although I do see it on the map!

Sorry you had such a bad time at Pop. The lakeview rooms, most (if not all) of which are standard rooms, are quieter than the preferred rooms. They are farther from the main building, pools, and transportation, but it's totally worth the walk for the quiet. The lake is actually quite big -- sounds like you never walked over to Memory Lane. It's about a 1.4 mile walk around the lake, so it's no insubstantial -- certainly not like Bay Lake more like Crescent Lake; it's not a little fishin' hole.

 

[rznhal]

We stayed at POP a few years ago.....liked the energy!

I have to ask...tho....did anyone near the lake ever have a problem with the bugs? We had to have a hurry up defense play ready to open the door to keep the bugs to a minimum! And they were still everywhere!

To answer your question tho (kind of), i think there is so much POP love on Dis bc of the sheer size....it is a huge resort! Therefore, i think it logically would have more fans ??!?!?!

 

[ThroughLookingGlass]

Why is this resort so polular? I decided on ASMU just because it seemed smaller and easier to get around. But besides that, all the values look so similar so I am just wondering what POP has to offer that the others don't.

I have no idea honestly. I don't like the food, it's always crazy crowded, the buses are just as slow as every other place. I don't like the setup of the giftshop and how it opens into the food court. I stayed there for the second time in May and did really enjoy being in the very back of the 70's building facing the lake/art of animation. It was nice and quiet back there and the lake was pretty

There are lots of things I appreciate about it like the themes, movies and trivia by the pool, but the other resorts offer the same things. I don't hate it and it's not like I'd never stay there ever again, it's just the cons outweigh the pros. Not my first choice. Movies is my favorite to be honest.

 

[Nairnyn]

People need to stop using the "one bus stop" line for Pop vs. the All Stars.

I think in the several trips I've stayed at the All Stars, I've only stopped at all three stops less than a dozen times. Between all my trips combined.

Also, very rarely have I had to stand on a bus to/from the All Stars. But I would say that 90% of my bus rides to/from Pop involved me standing for the trip.

Pop may have one stop, but I'd rather chance having to stop once or twice while sitting than standing the whole ride after a day at a theme park.

Plus, I hated the Pop food court (personal preference) and I didn't like how big and spread out Pop was. I much prefer ASMusic and ASMovies.

Actually, I much prefer POR....but you know....values are sometimes necessary.

 

[princessallegra]

Food court is good, theming is fun. That's about it for us! We stayed there once and the beds were literally rock hard. I will never forget those beds! Have they changed the beds since 2006?

 

[Chaoticsweetness]

Why is this resort so polular? I decided on ASMU just because it seemed smaller and easier to get around. But besides that, all the values look so similar so I am just wondering what POP has to offer that the others don't.

I really liked it when me & my sister stayed there. It wasn't as loud as ASMU & ASMO. The theming is wonderful. Only complaint is how crowded the food court was in the morning.

 

[AlohaAnnie]

We like POP but honestly, we have never stayed at any of the Allstar resorts, so we can't compare.

We stayed at POP because it was a newer resort compared to the others. It was also in our budget. No other reasons. If we had not bought DVC we would still be staying at POP, or the moderate resorts. It would depend on our budget each year.

Now that AoA is open, if we had not bought DVC we would be staying there in a little mermaid room every year.

I would love to stay there.

I have nothing against any of the value resorts, moderate, Deluxe, or DVC. I love them all.

 

[Cinderumbrella]

People need to stop using the "one bus stop" line for Pop vs. the All Stars.

I think in the several trips I've stayed at the All Stars, I've only stopped at all three stops less than a dozen times. Between all my trips combined.

But in all my bus trips with Pop, I've only ever gone to one stop

While it may not seem like a valid reason to you, it is indeed a valid reason for us (and clearly for the other people who use that as a reason to stay there).

In all seriousness, every resort has their fans and their detractors, for whatever reason. Just because one family likes a resort and another family doesn't still doesn't mean it will or won't be a fit for your own family. All anyone can do is read others opinions and then make up your own mind about what works best for you.