Any tips, advice, or opinions for staying at Pop Century?

[Soarin2u]

I am going to likely staying at the Pop Century Resort this upcoming trip. Normally, we are used to staying at the Coronado Springs. I know there will be differences in buses, crowdedness, appearance and distance. And I just wanted to know, for those who've stayed at pop century, or the like, if they have any suggestions to how to make most of the trip at PC. It is going to be around mid-may to early June, so not as crowded as other times.
How great is the benefit to preferred rooms here, even though it pushes our budget a wee bit? What section should we ask for? How should I take the buses? Should I opt for an Epcot bus In order to get to MK by monorail? How bad can it get with the noise? Any Recommendations at the food court? Best time to do eat there? Anything else you would like to inform me of?
I am rather excited to change things up a bit for us but, I am only well acquainted the Coronado and don't want to expected something I'd get there and not at Pop. I also just want to maximize our quality of stay there as we are taking someone who's never even been to Disney World and want them to leave with the best experience possible. Thanks!

 

[StarWarsGirl]

I stayed at Pop two years ago. My parents are DVC members, so I'm used to staying at the Deluxe resorts. Pop's bus service was actually better than at some of the deluxes. They have it down to a science over there. We never had to wait more than 20 minutes, and usually, the bus was waiting for us. So in answer to some of your questions:

We got a standard room, and it was fine since we were just sleeping there.
We requested a room close to the buses. We got the 70s section, and it was nice. My recommendation is that you ask for a room close to the bus stop (which you can do on online check-in)
No, I wouldn't take the bus to Epcot to get to MK. Usually, if the buses are crowded, they run the MK buses one behind the other. They also have the larger buses for MK. Since you don't share a bus stop with any other resorts, they run pretty quickly. If you go to Epcot, it'll likely take you another 30+ minutes to take the monorail to MK. Like I said, they have the buses there down to a science, so you shouldn't have to wait very long for the MK bus, and they run quickly.
It wasn't bad when we went with the noise. I would, however, request an upper level room. If you're on the ground, you'll likely get more noise from people coming back/leaving early in the morning.
The food was very good at the food court. Plenty of selection. Although we didn't use the food court very much; we ate at the parks and at other resorts. Same general rule about food in the parks likely applies here: avoid peak hours.

I took a friend that trip who had been to WDW but had never stayed on property, and we had a fantastic time. We honestly didn't spend a lot of time at Pop. We had ADRs at Poly and AKL and BC, so we ended up spending a good amount of time taking breaks and enjoying those resorts. I would advise showing your friend some of the deluxe resorts, even if you don't have ADRs there (the QS food at AKL, Poly, and Contemporary is all really, really good). If you're not going back to your room but would like a break (and some air conditioning) you are welcome to go to any

The pool area isn't as nice at Pop as at Coronado (lacks a water slide and hot tub), but if you're just looking to cool down, it does the job.

 

[Lisa Boisjoli]

Pop Century is a great resort! We have stayed in a preferred room in the 70's building and standard rooms in the 70's section as well. We asked for standard room/lake view on our last two stays and our walk to the main building was very short. Also the food court and bus stop are on that side of the resort as well. Also you can see the fireworks from DHS with a lake view room! Lots of fun! I would not stay on the 50's side or way down in the 80's or 90's buildings. These rooms are very far from the main building and it is nice to be closer. I would recommend just taking the bus to MK. It is a bit of a longer drive, but I wouldn't bother going to Epcot and taking the Monorail, unless taking the Monorail is a must for you. Also, Art of Animation is a short walk across the lake. It is fun to walk around the resort and see the theming there. I think the Cars area is one of the best, especially at night! Also the food court is very good as well at Art of Animation, a great change of pace if you are looking for one. Hope that helps! I know that you will have a wonderful time!

 

[Rsj88]

We love Pop! We usually stay in a standard room and request a room close to the buses. We have stayed in the preferred rooms before when we couldn't get a standard but I honestly I'm not sure what the difference is. We don't spend a lot of time in the room anyway.
The buses are great. They are usually never more than 20 min apart and most of the time they are much quicker than that. We always take a bus directly to MK.
The food court is pretty good. There are lots of good snacks and a good variety of food. We enjoy walking over to AOA for a meal somethings too.

 

[JasonDeyoung]

I've stayed at Pop a few times, most recent was this past May. I had a preferred pool room in the 60's and it was a great location. It was next to the mail pool, very close to lobby/food and bus stop, it's also close to the ridge to walk over to AoA so u can use the food court there to and if the bus coming back is really bad use that one and walk back. I have also stayed in the 80's that is about as far as I an be from those. The walk to me WASNT bad at all. Food court is good, not great but good enough. Bus wait times when i stayed were never bad. Even coming back at park close which usually the line can be longggggggggggggggggggg. I always stay in moderates or at times deluxe so you will notice a difference but it's not a bad difference to me. To me it's a place to shower and sleep. You'll have a great time and you'll e joy your stay at Pop

 

[Soarin2u]

I stayed at Pop two years ago. My parents are DVC members, so I'm used to staying at the Deluxe resorts. Pop's bus service was actually better than at some of the deluxes. They have it down to a science over there. We never had to wait more than 20 minutes, and usually, the bus was waiting for us. So in answer to some of your questions:

We got a standard room, and it was fine since we were just sleeping there.
We requested a room close to the buses. We got the 70s section, and it was nice. My recommendation is that you ask for a room close to the bus stop (which you can do on online check-in)
No, I wouldn't take the bus to Epcot to get to MK. Usually, if the buses are crowded, they run the MK buses one behind the other. They also have the larger buses for MK. Since you don't share a bus stop with any other resorts, they run pretty quickly. If you go to Epcot, it'll likely take you another 30+ minutes to take the monorail to MK. Like I said, they have the buses there down to a science, so you shouldn't have to wait very long for the MK bus, and they run quickly.
It wasn't bad when we went with the noise. I would, however, request an upper level room. If you're on the ground, you'll likely get more noise from people coming back/leaving early in the morning.
The food was very good at the food court. Plenty of selection. Although we didn't use the food court very much; we ate at the parks and at other resorts. Same general rule about food in the parks likely applies here: avoid peak hours.

I took a friend that trip who had been to WDW but had never stayed on property, and we had a fantastic time. We honestly didn't spend a lot of time at Pop. We had ADRs at Poly and AKL and BC, so we ended up spending a good amount of time taking breaks and enjoying those resorts. I would advise showing your friend some of the deluxe resorts, even if you don't have ADRs there (the QS food at AKL, Poly, and Contemporary is all really, really good). If you're not going back to your room but would like a break (and some air conditioning) you are welcome to go to any

The pool area isn't as nice at Pop as at Coronado (lacks a water slide and hot tub), but if you're just looking to cool down, it does the job.

Thank you for the very descriptive and helpful reply! I will be sure to ask for a room close to the buses as other people have recommended doing so too. I am glad to hear such great things about the resort and they're pumping us up for our trip!

 

[Disneyfreak Jen]

How great is the benefit to preferred rooms here, even though it pushes our budget a wee bit?
You didn't say if you were going with Adults/older Teens or with young children. The preferred rooms in the 70's (IMO) are not worth it, but otherwise you'll get preferred in the 60's, which is close to the dining hall, check in, food court, busses. The pool at 60's has entertainment during the day with music and kids "camp" type games. That being said it's not a quiet pool. 50's is a great area, quiet. 80's/90's are closest to busses (just across the parking lot) but you're further from the food court. I've stayed there multiple times and my favorite area is 50's, lake view. I need a quiet room, I don't mind walking a bit further for it.

How should I take the buses? Should I opt for an Epcot bus In order to get to MK by monorail?
Outside of the food court area there are bus areas for each park….MK, Epcot, AK, DS, HS, etc. You line up under the park you want to visit. They have railings to keep the lines orderly, which is better than some other resorts (POR) where it's a free for all and very unorganized. Not understanding why you'd take a bus to Epcot only to go to the MK, but yes, if you wanted to ride the monorail that's what you would do.

How bad can it get with the noise?
I prefer rooms that are a bit out of the way so I can have quiet at night….I'd rather walk farther for a good nights sleep, and I've never had any issues with noisy neighbors. I stay away from the 60's…..I figure most people there have young kids since it's close to everything.

Any Recommendations at the food court? Best time to do eat there?
It's busy at peak times, all the food is good. Staff is always friendly. They have a lot of choices, at every meal, one of the reasons I like POP. The ice cream line at nighttime can get long….they are very slow moving and only have a few people working (I always visit in Oct/Nov). That being said, the ice cream is really good.

Anything else you would like to inform me of?
Walk across the bridge to AoA and check out that resort and their food court. If the buses at POP are really long and AoA is short, jump on their bus and walk across the bridge.

 

[Soarin2u]

How great is the benefit to preferred rooms here, even though it pushes our budget a wee bit?
You didn't say if you were going with Adults/older Teens or with young children. The preferred rooms in the 70's (IMO) are not worth it, but otherwise you'll get preferred in the 60's, which is close to the dining hall, check in, food court, busses. The pool at 60's has entertainment during the day with music and kids "camp" type games. That being said it's not a quiet pool. 50's is a great area, quiet. 80's/90's are closest to busses (just across the parking lot) but you're further from the food court. I've stayed there multiple times and my favorite area is 50's, lake view. I need a quiet room, I don't mind walking a bit further for it.

How should I take the buses? Should I opt for an Epcot bus In order to get to MK by monorail?
Outside of the food court area there are bus areas for each park….MK, Epcot, AK, DS, HS, etc. You line up under the park you want to visit. They have railings to keep the lines orderly, which is better than some other resorts (POR) where it's a free for all and very unorganized. Not understanding why you'd take a bus to Epcot only to go to the MK, but yes, if you wanted to ride the monorail that's what you would do.

How bad can it get with the noise?
I prefer rooms that are a bit out of the way so I can have quiet at night….I'd rather walk farther for a good nights sleep, and I've never had any issues with noisy neighbors. I stay away from the 60's…..I figure most people there have young kids since it's close to everything.

Any Recommendations at the food court? Best time to do eat there?
It's busy at peak times, all the food is good. Staff is always friendly. They have a lot of choices, at every meal, one of the reasons I like POP. The ice cream line at nighttime can get long….they are very slow moving and only have a few people working (I always visit in Oct/Nov). That being said, the ice cream is really good.

Anything else you would like to inform me of?
Walk across the bridge to AoA and check out that resort and their food court. If the buses at POP are really long and AoA is short, jump on their bus and walk across the bridge.

The only reason I asked about the Epcot to MK is becuase we often had to do that at Coronado. Sometimes the busses would fill up by the time they got to our station and just drive right on by. Also we'd often see 4 Epcot come by within 45 minutes and no MK, so occasionaly we'd just take an Epcot bus if it arrived first as we'd rather not risk waiting a long time and at least be on the move. Doesn't sound to me like that'll be much of an issue at POP.

 

[Disneyfreak Jen]

The only reason I asked about the Epcot to MK is becuase we often had to do that at Coronado. Sometimes the busses would fill up by the time they got to our station and just drive right on by or we'd see 4 Epcot come by in 45 minutes period and no MK, so occasionaly we'd just take an Epcot bus if it arrived first as we'd rather not risk waiting a long time and at least be on the move. Doesn't sound to me like that'll be much of an issue at POP.

Oh wow, ok now I understand. I think you'll be fine. Granted sometimes some lines can be long and others short, but I never, ever, had to wait that long for a bus to any park. The nice thing is that there's only one stop at POP for busses, so you won't have to deal with multiple stops like at a large resort such as CSR, and the bus lines all have rails/ropes to keep the line orderly.

 

[SAV]

We like staying in the 60's with a Lake View on the 2nd or 3rd floor.

 

[Soarin2u]

Oh wow, ok now I understand. I think you'll be fine. Granted sometimes some lines can be long and others short, but I never, ever, had to wait that long for a bus to any park. The nice thing is that there's only one stop at POP for busses, so you won't have to deal with multiple stops like at a large resort such as CSR, and the bus lines all have rails/ropes to keep the line orderly.

Sounds great! I'm glad I won't have the fear of it skipping my station altogether.

 

[UncleMike101]

When we stayed at POP in 2014 we liked the rooms.
The bus service was very good, except for no shade in the bus queues.
A couple of times they brought out the Articulated buses for the MK run. They hold nearly double the passengers of a normal bus.
The pools were OK.
We didn't eat there so I can't comment on that aspect.
Other than the LOUD South American teenage girls on our bus from MK to POP one night it was an enjoyable stay.

 

[Timsierramist]

Stayed at POP in 2013. Going back in a few days. I stayed in a 50's, Top Floor, Lake View. Certainly longer walk, but like others have said, that peace and quiet at night which provides a good nights rest (and thus a better resort experience the next day) is worth the few extra steps.

Plus the sunrise/sunsets over Hourglass Lake are nice. Just a few steps from the bridge to AoA too!

 

[cdeev8690]

I've stayed at Pop twice over the years. I actually preferred to stay in a building a little farther away from the main pool as that area can be a little noisy, especially if you have a room facing the pool. I'd definitely try to avoid that. I stayed in the 60's, which is the first building to the left once you exit the lobby and food court but had a room along the courtyard. It was a quick walk to everything but that main pool area is just nuts. The decor was lacking in the 60's. It felt like an off-site hotel rather than providing the immersive decor you're accustomed to while staying on Disney grounds. I went this past September and it was a bit crowded during that week because of the Jewish holidays and the start of MNSSHP. Buses going to the parks in the morning were easy and not crowded but we had consistent problems waiting in long lines at the end of each park day, especially if we stayed late for extra magic hours. A small bus would come, two electric scoots were board, then 8 people with their folded up strollers, stuff as many people on board as they could, then we'd wait 20-30 minutes for another bus. At 1 in the morning, this was a little difficult to deal with. I was glad at that point that my room was so close to the bus stop haha.

I've used the pool bar and only ate inside of the food court a couple of times. Last time I sat in a lounge chair by the pool, they had to evacuate the pool because they thought a little kid went number two in it. It turned out to be a leaf but it was still a little funny to watch. This isn't criticism against the resort at all, just a funny memory from my last trip.

I should mention that I've never stayed at a non-value resort so I don't have much to compare to other than the All Stars.

 

[JohnnyDollaz89]

Pop Century is good! The bus area can be crowded at any time of the day, which sucks. But overall, for it's value, it's a pretty good hotel. I enjoyed my stay here in August of 2013.

 

[Plowboy]

We've stayed at Pop several times and have always enjoyed our stays there. We usually stay in the 50's or 60's on the lake side (top floor). It's a lot quieter than on the pool side of the buildings. Bus service is pretty good, as is the food court.

 

[square2k1]

I Love POP i have been there in 2006 / 2009 and i'm going again this year in August, I live on the very small Island of Guernsey (Channel Islands) and am getting very excited already , the buses have never been a problem and even when you leave at a park kick out the extra buses they put into service are usually back to back getting people back to the hotel.