All-Star Sports or Pop Century?

[fyn]

Hey folks,

I've never stayed at any of the value resorts before (we've always done Fort Wilderness growing up, or moderates later on) and it looks like I need to choose between the All-Star Sports and Pop Century for a trip this May. This will be a quick pre-wedding jaunt down to the 'World with my best man. I'd say the things I'm interested in hearing about are the buses (how crowded, # of stops, distance from parks), food court, and overall quality of each resort.

Also, I know some will probably suggest renting a car, but that's out of the question. I've always relied on Disney transportation, and it's actually an important immersion factor for me, even if it wastes some time.

Thanks for the help!

 

[WDWmazprty]

We like Pop. It does have its own busses and the resort in general we think is better. Both resorts will have kids and be very occupied. But its never seemed to be a problem for us.

 

[SpoonOfSugar]

Here's what I think about each one after staying at both.

Buses
I think busses will vary everytime you go but this is our experience:
At Pop Century we found them to be a lot more crowded, I think we got a seat maybe once the entire week. Sports were crowded leaving the parks, not as much when going.
At Sports we only picked up Sports, not the other all stars, same with Pop so they are about equal there.
Pop is a farther bus ride because of where its located but still really close to DHS and EPCOT, about a 7-10 minute ride. All Stars is closest to DHS and Animal Kingdom, only about a 5 minute bus ride.

Food Court:
Honestly, Its a matter of opinion. My DH likes Sports cafe. He thinking the options as better and he likes how its not connected to the gift shop. I personally like Pop's Food Court better. I feel like it is in better condition, bigger and I like the desert options better. I would look a pictures/menus and decide which one you think you would enjoy more.

Overall:
We really enjoy both. However, I like Pop Century more. I feel like the rooms and resort as a whole are cleaner. I like the theming more too. They also have 3 pools instead of 2 which is great! the computer pool is never full. I also think pop is nicer to walk around with the lake right there .

 

[wendysue]

We definitely like Pop better. Last Nov. we rode the All Star Sports bus from AK so that we could walk to McDonalds. When it dropped us off, it continued to the other two All Star resorts and when we got on the bus to head back to AK, it also stopped at the other two resorts. Don't know if that makes any difference to you, but with strollers and kids, it was really crowded.

 

[WDW-Crazy]

Here's my take on the two:

We like the All-Stars better, period. The phrase about "Pop having its own bus service" is getting waaaay too old and I'm not sure how long this will last once Art of Animation opens. The parking lot at Pop was constantly crowded, thus why we didn't go mini golfing on our last trip as we didn't feel like giving up a prime parking place we would've never have gotten back during the remainder of our trip. The place was also too large and confusing (the first place my parents actually got lost on a Disney trip). We've never had problems navigating around the All-Stars, as well as having parking problems, out of the various times we've stayed there. I also swear that everyone in the parks was heading to Pop's bus stop at closing thus having the longest line ever. At Epcot after Illuminations, while the All-Stars were busing their people out without a problem, we had to wait almost an hour until we even got on to a Pop bus (and that was after they brought in an extra bus to help allieviate the problem). By that time, the All-Star's lines almost vanished. We also like the atmosphere at All-Stars better, although I did like the music and memorabilia that Pop had going over in the main building.

Overall, it looks like we'll be staying back at All-Stars on our upcoming September trip.

Which resort you decide to choose, hope you have a great vacation!

 

[FLRick]

We prefer Pop Century. It seems brighter and more open than All Star Sports. Quieter, too. As far as food courts go, I avoid them as much as possible.

 

[ThinkTink721]

We have stayed at POP & we really enjoyed it.
One advantage is that it has its own buses, which makes transportation to/from this resort more efficient.
Although I do prefer the moderates over the values, POP is a good choice.
POP & the other value resorts are a little further away from the parks than the moderates & deluxes, but travel is usually not bad - depending on what time of the year you visit.
The food court is large, but usually very crowded.
I would rate the overall quality of POP are Very Good.
:wave:

 

[smk]

POP, it's okay. The food court is way crowded and loud. I found it hard to find a table for us to eat, a party of four, shouldnt be that hard. The food may be slightly better in selection but just barely. The dedicated bus question is getting old too, but Yes, POP has a dedicated bus that is crowded. I never got a seat, waited forever at a park closing. POP is spread out too and lets not forget about that great view of the bridge, it is pretty. However, on the other side of it is an abandoned property that my or may not be under construction while you are there.

Sports, it's okay too. The food court is smaller but does not have music blaring all the time like POP. I have never had a problem finding a table at Sports. The food is okay, it is food court food so how good or bad can it be? I actually had a great pasta/chicken dish last year but I hadn't eaten all day and was starving, so keep that in mind. We never shared a bus going to the parks last year, only to DTD. The nice thing about Sports is that if you wait forever for a bus back from a park you can hop on a Music bus, if one is there, and walk thru a small parking lot back to Sports.

My pick is Sports, hands down.

 

[Tinkerbell 8]

We have stayed at Pop 3 times and we LOVE it. We love the theme, we have never had to wait long for a bus, the food court is great and I love the pool bar. We have stayed at the 50's, 60's and 90's and we haven't had to walk more than 5 minutes to get to the bus stop, food court or anything else on the property. We were in one of the renovated rooms this year and even though there were only small changes they were great (new tv, curtain between bathroom and bedroom, coat hooks on the wall, new carpet). The only all star I've stayed at was music back in 2005 and it was okay, I was there with my schools marching band and other bands were staying there that week so it was loud to say the least.

 

[plaz10]

We love it at POP...but I do agree that the bus system at closing is horrendous. It's always crazy long. Plan to stand on the way home every night.

 

[lbrad]

I stayed at ASSp many years ago....will never stay there again! Cheerleaders in the courtyards till all hours! LOUD! And I love cheerleaders as my DD is a cheerleader.
Busses crowded & food court overridden with teens!!!

Stayed at POP 2008....LOVED it!!!
Pool bar was nice esp. in the evenings. We used the Bowling Pin Pool during the day...refreshing & not many wee ones :0
Food court crowded in am so we got are continental breakfast to go!
Busses...hit or miss...HOT waiting for one that has no shade...but thats how it is at all Value Resorts

We will be staying at ASMu this summer (we need a suite)...hoping for the best.

Good luck with your decision:wave:

 

[PartOfYourWorld]

As most people have said, it is a matter of opinion. I have stayed at both.

Sports-Its the best of all the all-stars because its the first stop on the buses. (At least last time I stayed there). Speaking of buses, hate how all 2 resorts are on the same bus theres just way too many people for that. Foods pretty good from what I remember, atmosphere okay. Doesn't do anything spectacular for me, but didn't mind it.

POP-LOVE this resort. Been staying there since its opened. Love the atmosphere of the place. Food court is really good, yes there is alot of people but I honestly never really noticed except at breakfast time. Yes, there is always alot of people going on the POP bus at closing, but I honestly have never had to wait that long at all. And I don't mind standing going home on a bus, so not having a seat doesn't bother me at all. (Once the Art of Animation comes along, I'm guessing POP won't have its own bus system anymore but oh well) And the layout I did not find confusing at all, the All stars are set up in almost the same way if I'm not mistaken. And the walk to the main building is a little bit longer depending on what decade you stay in, but I've stayed in the 90s and 50s the times I have gone and took less than 5 minutes to walk everywhere like someone said. I would definitely sad POP is the better one out of the two!

Good luck!

 

[disneygirl1]

We have stayed at both resorts and I have to say I like POP simply b/c it is a newer resort and has it's own bus system. Sports was nice and the layout doesn't seem as big as POP. I think both resorts have it's pros and cons. Even though POP has it's own bus system, it's stop at all the parks is the furtherest away from the entrance! It seems to me with the All-Stars even though they have a shared bus system, buses come more frequently at park closing time.

 

[JillC LI]

Having stayed at AS Movies and Pop, we will definitely return to Pop but not to All Star. We felt the location was better, the ambiance was nicer, the food court was better, and the walk to the food court was shorter (and that's comparing a Preferred room at ASMovies to a standard room at Pop).