I've been reading the various posts for value v.s. moderate resorts, and would like to know what the benefits are to upgrading. My sister and I--both in our mid-fifties--are going to WDW in September; leaving husbands and adult kids at home. I checked into the Disney packages, and with the same features, it will cost almost $400 more for us to stay at the Pt. Orleans than the Pop Century. To us, that's a lot of money; the price of one airline ticket. So what benefits would we be paying an extra $400 to get?
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Benefits of Pt. Orleans over Pop Century
- Thread starter ebjjst
- Start date
Extra space in the room. A table service restaurant. Less child-like theming.
To me and my family, we either stay at Pop Century or a deluxe (depends on what type of trip it is), usually Wilderness or Animal Kingdom Lodge - we feel that the moderates don't give us the value for the dollar that AK/WL do.
To me and my family, we either stay at Pop Century or a deluxe (depends on what type of trip it is), usually Wilderness or Animal Kingdom Lodge - we feel that the moderates don't give us the value for the dollar that AK/WL do.
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WDW 3
Well-Known Member
Port Orleans French Quarter does not have a table service restaurant.
Even without the table service restaurant I think that you and your sister would like the French Quarter. It is a very relaxing resort. The walk to your room at the end of the day is short. PO Riverside is a short walk, bus or boat ride to get to the restaurant there. I would spend the extra $400 it your vacation (unless you frequently take off without the husbands and kids) I say splurge a little on yourselves.
Even without the table service restaurant I think that you and your sister would like the French Quarter. It is a very relaxing resort. The walk to your room at the end of the day is short. PO Riverside is a short walk, bus or boat ride to get to the restaurant there. I would spend the extra $400 it your vacation (unless you frequently take off without the husbands and kids) I say splurge a little on yourselves.
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cinderellafan6
Well-Known Member
Well POP is going to be more crowded with alot of children running around. At Port orleans u dont notice all the kids as u do at POP. I have stayed at both and really u could save the money and just stay at pop. I love pop and its not so much of a stuck up atmosphere as pop. U can run around there drunk and have a good time.
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MissingDisney
Well-Known Member
If you're taking a break from the kids-POFQ. If you're trying to save $$$-POP. Or you could say you're staying at PO and really stay at POP and use the extra money you saved on yourself and not tell your husband!(But be sure to bring him a REALLY nice souvenier):ROFLOL: Either way, you're at Disney for goodness sakes and once you're there, it won't matter! Really how often do moms splurge on themselves? I'd love to be in your shoes with my sis!
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OK, I really don't understand what the big deal is about what hotel you stay at. We always stay at POP. My in laws stay French Quarter or a deluxe. I really dont see the advantage! The rooms are about the same size. How much time do you really spend at your hotel anyway. Last time i checked there wasn't a single attraction at any of the resorts. When i go to Disneyworld, I want to spend as much time in the parks as possible. If I'm in my room, I'm probably sleeping! SAVE YOUR MONEY! SPEND IT ON YOUR KIDS!
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durangojim
Well-Known Member
To me, there is no advantage to staying at Port Orleans. We stayed at PO Riverside last September, and while the theming is very nice, it's also very inconvenient and the bus service was HORRIBLE. We stayed at Pop in December (only for one night prior to a week at Beach Club) and really enjoyed it, and had no complaints. We would stay there again if we weren't staying at a Deluxe. Save your $400 and go with Pop, or pony up a lot more $ and stay at a deluxe.
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amykissangel
Member
To me, POP is fantastic. Of course there are kids everywhere - you'll find them at the Grand Floridian or at Pop Century - it's Disney! ;~)
Actually, I've really never experienced any obnoxious kid moments at Pop. The parks - another story. But it's a great resort, the bus system is, IMHO, the best on property, and it's fun to go through the different decades and read all the signs from the 50's, 60's, etc. My 48, 53 and 56 year old mom and aunts had a wonderful time in 2008 just walking around the resort!
Actually, I've really never experienced any obnoxious kid moments at Pop. The parks - another story. But it's a great resort, the bus system is, IMHO, the best on property, and it's fun to go through the different decades and read all the signs from the 50's, 60's, etc. My 48, 53 and 56 year old mom and aunts had a wonderful time in 2008 just walking around the resort!
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By staying at POFQ this year we will have stayed at all levels. We did this one because we got the discounts but two we wanted to check out the differences in the levels. If we did not have the discounts we would choose Pop. I know I would never pay regular price for a moderate or deluxe.
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I've stayed at the Pop Century, Port Orleans, and the Wilderness Lodge. The thing that REALLY bothered me about Pop Century was the bus service. Separate lines for each destination, you have to stand in line, it's not covered. And coming back at night, we rarely ever got on the first bus and had to wait for other buses.
In my experience, it isn't like that at the Moderate or Deluxe resorts.
I would stay at pop century again only if I had a car.
In my experience, it isn't like that at the Moderate or Deluxe resorts.
I would stay at pop century again only if I had a car.
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eroyee
Active Member
My DH and I are a little bit older than you and we love POP. Guess its the nostalgia for us. Yes, there are kids but they are all over disney. we go eat at the food court early in the morning and then head to the parks. I would also suggest POR if just the two of you. Its a beautiful resort. its our favorite mod. And as far as the busses go, if you stay till park closing, any resort the busses will be very crowded and take a long time to get home. doesnt matter what category resort you are staying in. If you wont spend much time in the room then go with POP. If you want to hang at the resort then POR....have fun.. wish I had a sister....
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You SERIOUSLY found the separate lines for different destinations bothersome? That's ridiculous. I'd rather be in line than have someone who arrived ten minutes after me shove their way through the crowd to get on before me. But I agree about the not being covered. There's no reason they couldn't have built covers for those lines. But I find fault with your "night return" comment too. I've seen Moderates and deluxes have to wait for additional busses as well.
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I said these observations are based on my experiences. All of which occured right around the same time of the year.
Yes, I did find the separate lines bothersome. Because at the Wilderness Lodge, there was never enough people going to a particular destination to fill a bus anyway, so someone arriving right as the bus showed up and getting on didn't bother me.
And regarding the night return, again, based on my experiences, this is what it was like. It never happened at the Wilderness Lodge, or either of the moderate resorts I've stayed at.
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corey154
Active Member
Here's my family's own opinion:
My 11 year old daughter likes Pop better because of theming, the food court but she doesn't like that there is no slide at the pool.
Me (disney lover) and my non-disney hubby likes staying at POFQ because it's beautiful grounds, seems to be less noise, less people running everywhere, the bus waiting area is covered (so when it's hot and sunny, you have shade and when it's raining you're not getting drenched) Even when sharing buses with Riverside, you're the first stop.
Now this is where people may hammer me for this comment, and I apoligize if I offend anyone....I found there were less people in a motor scooter at FQ than Pop, at Pop we felt like we were always waiting on the next bus b/c the scooters take up so much room and every bus there was always at least one or two. I have nothing against motor scooters, and I understand people need them, it just seemed that at Pop and the value resorts there were more than any of the mod's we ever stayed at. Also, just an observation based on my own opinion, when we went to the pool, the parents at POFQ seemed to supervise their kids better than the ones at Pop.
My 11 year old daughter likes Pop better because of theming, the food court but she doesn't like that there is no slide at the pool.
Me (disney lover) and my non-disney hubby likes staying at POFQ because it's beautiful grounds, seems to be less noise, less people running everywhere, the bus waiting area is covered (so when it's hot and sunny, you have shade and when it's raining you're not getting drenched) Even when sharing buses with Riverside, you're the first stop.
Now this is where people may hammer me for this comment, and I apoligize if I offend anyone....I found there were less people in a motor scooter at FQ than Pop, at Pop we felt like we were always waiting on the next bus b/c the scooters take up so much room and every bus there was always at least one or two. I have nothing against motor scooters, and I understand people need them, it just seemed that at Pop and the value resorts there were more than any of the mod's we ever stayed at. Also, just an observation based on my own opinion, when we went to the pool, the parents at POFQ seemed to supervise their kids better than the ones at Pop.
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durangojim
Well-Known Member
PO was the only resort that we've stayed at that bus service was so bad that after waiting over 45 minutes for a bus, we caught a cab to the MK. The mods have beautiful theming but seem like deluxe wannabe's without any of the benefits of deluxes:
No balcony in your room
Very spread out
Poor transportation
Far from most parks
The benefits are the theming, the nice pools, and in case of the PO resorts, the ability to take the boat to downtown disney.
Pop, to me, seems simple, but efficient. We much prefer the food court there. Bus service was excellent, and the rooms are only slightly smaller than PO, but have the same size beds. I could easily walk to the shop or food court to get a quick snack, not so at PORS. I know many people love PO, but I don't think it's worth the extra money, and in many cases is a hinderance. just my $.02
No balcony in your room
Very spread out
Poor transportation
Far from most parks
The benefits are the theming, the nice pools, and in case of the PO resorts, the ability to take the boat to downtown disney.
Pop, to me, seems simple, but efficient. We much prefer the food court there. Bus service was excellent, and the rooms are only slightly smaller than PO, but have the same size beds. I could easily walk to the shop or food court to get a quick snack, not so at PORS. I know many people love PO, but I don't think it's worth the extra money, and in many cases is a hinderance. just my $.02
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bugsbunny
Well-Known Member
Pop bus server is the best of the values, but that's like saying I'd rather drink drain cleaner than bleach. The bus service is awful and after staying at Pop, POR, CB, and WL before, I can say that the bus service is pretty bad regardless which one you stay at. I've had 45 minute+ waits from my hotel at EVERY ONE of these hotels!
I pretty much only stay at moderates anymore simply because the time of year I go to WDW. I use to stay at Pop every single time, but since I go in the first week of December, there were too many years of the Pop Warner demons running around.
I like the moderates simply because you get a bigger room and it comes with a fridge. I stay for 7-10 each time, so its well worth it for me to have a fridge and get it stocked from gardengrocer.com Values charge like $15/day for the fridge and the rooms are just way to small to stay for that amount of time. If you just want to hang out in the room, you feel like you are on top of each other.
Don't like CB, think its too big and too spaced out. I prefer POR with a preferred room and love it. Going this May and would have stayed at POR again, but staying at Pop this time since I don't have to worry about the Pop Warner this time.
I do agree that when I'm at WDW, I spend as much time at the parks as I can. But if you are only doing a 4 day weekend, its no big deal just to get the cheapest room. But if you are staying for 10 days, staying at the WL is certianly awesome. I've done that before and loved it.
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