Pop Century transportation?

[imagine_82]

So, my DH & I are thinking of changing our reservations to one of the moderates or pop century (sadness...lousy budget). I am wondering if Pop has a dedicated bus, or (like all-stars) it is shared with another resort. Anybody out there know? I'm sure someone does...

Thanks for any tips you have!

 

[Mikester71]

So, my DH & I are thinking of changing our reservations to one of the moderates or pop century (sadness...lousy budget). I am wondering if Pop has a dedicated bus, or (like all-stars) it is shared with another resort. Anybody out there know? I'm sure someone does...

Thanks for any tips you have!

I LOVE Pop Century and yes, they have their own dedicated bus. The only thing that sucks about Pop's buses is that their line-up at most of the parks is way at the end of the islands due to Pop being one of the newer resorts. Only a minor inconvenience though. Have fun and enjoy!:wave:

 

[eagles]

ditto what the previous poster said.

i did not find it to be an inconvience however, i just make it part of my trip, although i did find this part (the walk back to the bus) to be where i slowed down a lot. so i took my time getting back. and if there were too many people on the bus, i just waited for the next one.

pop has turned into my fav value resort.

 

[bauton]

We stayed at Pop earlier this month and had no major issues with the buses. At the most, we had to wait 15 to 20 minutes between buses.

One of the benefits though of being last in the waiting areas, especially at MK, is that it seemed there was a bus CM with a two way standing at our bus stop, and if the line for a bus starting getting long, this CM called for an additional bus.

 

[Eyekimore]

I think that bus-wise you would do better at the POP. (even better than at the moderate resorts) The moderate resort busses have to travel to all the stops in the loop before leaving the resort. This takes time when coming or going.

If you like to lounge by the pool on vacation- you might enjoy the more quiet moderate resort pool areas. However- if you'll be spending most of your time in the park- who cares?

 

[eroyee]

We stayed at POP because of our budget the first time but absolutely loved it so we keep going back. If you want quiet at pools you can go to the other pools that arent the main ones. the bus service is good and the food court is too. go for it.

 

[Mystic]

I stayed at POP on my last trip in October of 2007 and yes they have their own dedicated bus. And while their bus stop does tend to be the farthest away (except maybe at DHS I think) I found that they were really good with loading at the end of the night and we rarely had to wait that long for a bus, especially at MK. They were usually loading two buses at once. While one was being loaded with wheelchairs and ECVs the other was being loaded with regular guests so it would tend to fill and be out of the bus area before the first bus had filled with regular guests after the wheelchairs and ECVs had loaded. I tended to wait for the second "non-wheelchair" bus when possible as this sometimes ended up being a coach bus (like the cruise-line coaches).

 

[ilovejr71292]

I thought the busses at POP were very timely and everything. There were also convenient like most of the busses at disney since they were right beside the food court and shop. (Also nice when it waws raining.) To wake me up i normally got one of those delicious suckers in the morning.

 

[Wakkie Nu Nu]

Everyone has different experience, I suppose. We just came back from a stay at POP!, and though we really enjoyed the resort and would def. recommend it, the buses were much more crowded and had a much longer wait than CBR or POR among the moderates. Also, the "bus stop" is basically just a queue with switchbacks, no seating plazas with vending, etc. like the mods (if that's an issue for you, of course - just putting it out there). Yes, I'd agree the service is much better than the all-stars, but in my personal experience it was a big of a drag for us. We usually just hopped in the car, especially if we were going to be closing down a park... could NOT want to fight the POP buses after close..

 

[drew81]

I think it would help a lot if they covered the bus stops at the Pop. I've stayed there a couple of times and at times there was long lines. I think it depends what time you get out to the bus stop because you may have to wait for another bus before you get on and that may take another 20 mintues. In Oct 2007 it was like that at times.

 

[Mystic]

I think it would help a lot if they covered the bus stops at the Pop. I've stayed there a couple of times and at times there was long lines. I think it depends what time you get out to the bus stop because you may have to wait for another bus before you get on and that may take another 20 mintues. In Oct 2007 it was like that at times.

I guess our timing was on the good side then because we never really had that much trouble waiting for a bus. We never really had to wait more than 5 minutes for a bus at POP and we always got on and we were there in mid-Oct 2007.

The best bus trip was when we were heading to MNSSHP. We timed it just right the bus was already there when we got to the stop and was actually waiting for us. The driver saw us coming and was nice enough to wait. I guess he figured we were heading to MK since we were in costume. Course he did get a good laugh since when my friend got on all you could hear was this huge wolf whistle from the back. We were two princesses (Belle and Cinderella) getting onto a bus full of PIRATES! :ROFLOL:

 

[disneydudette]

We stayed at PC for the first time lat January... we weren't overly impressed... but was surprised at how nice the buses actually ran! We felt they were timely and efficient, and the bus rides weren't long at all.

We had stayed at several moderates before PC and I actually liked the "bus queue" better. We didn't feel like it was a free-for-all at peak times! As another poster said, it would have been nice if it was covered though.

After our stay at PC, we decided to try ASmu in September. We were banking on horrible bus service... not the case at all. ASmu rarely shared, in fact they have there own bus stop at MK, Epcot, and MGM. We never once went to ASmo after being picked up in the morning, no matter what park, and rarely did our bus stop at ASsp first. I think the only time we all shared one morning was when we went to TL. With the brand new rooms, pool side movies and games, and overall level of service, we felt we were getting WAY more for our money at ASmu than at Pop.

So yes, PC does have it's own dedicated bus, but I wouldn't base your decision on that alone.

 

[Pioneer Hall]

Pop has its own buses, but you have to remember that Pop on its own has 2,880 rooms which is half of the all star resorts (when you combine all three of them together as one). So lines at opening and closing time can be somewhat crowded and you might have to wait for a few buses to come until you get on one at the busiest times. However, they are pretty efficient and come often enough. And, as someone else said, it is usually one of the farthest away bus stops since it is a value resort.

 

[H20Babie]

Although the queue at the parks is a walk, the Pop transportation was one of the best I've experienced.

 

[raven]

We thought the transportation at Pop was good until it was time to come back from the MK where we waited over an hour sometimes to to hitch a ride back. They were always full and we always had to stand. This was most likely due to the size of the resort and their being only one bus stop.

Last September we stayed at our first moderate resort (CSR) and vowed never to go back to a value resort unless we had our own transportation. At Coronado Springs we never had to wait more than 10 minutes and we never had to stand. We actually had the same seats on the bus the whole week!

 

[imagine_82]

great advice everyone! thanks for sharing. i'm truly torn...decisions decisions.

 

[DivineMadness7]

To those of you who say Pop's transportation is the best you've experienced, I'd be curious to know where else you've stayed.

We chose to stay at Pop several times, because transportation was not our main concern; our budget was. Then after a few long waits leaving the parks at night (not during peak season, either) we switched priorities a bit.

I know that everyone has a different experience on their trips, but this happened to us more than once. We are patient people, but we've seen the queue at MK overflowing on more than one occasion. Even when they send several buses for Pop, there was a significant wait, often ending with standing on the ride back.

I think the major difference is that you will often see less people waiting in line for the deluxe buses than you will for the values. So while they may be sending the same amount of buses (maybe even more for the values) for all the resorts, the value ones will fill up faster at the end of the night. I've just never seen a queue for any of the deluxes be overrun with people at a park, at the end of the night. If there's a shorter line at a moderate and I can get a seat, I don't mind if it stops at the other resorts first. To me, it's better than standing in line or on a bus, after standing/walking all day, no matter how comfortable my mickey Crocs are!

In short, if transportation is a top priority, I would suggest considering a moderate or deluxe resort, if your budget allows.

 

[frankd1962]

I was there in June and yes there is a dedicated bus for Pop Century alone. and like Divine said one problem is getting out late from some of the Parks with long lines waiting to get back to the hotel. It can be bad but it is worht it when you don't have to go to one or two other stops before getting to your's.

I had heard that the new GPS and other system installed in the bus will help the problem. Has anyone heard how it is working now?

P.S. Go to Pop. Save money and stay there. The place is great. I had a great view of SSE when leaving my room and looking right at Building #2. Though I had a view of the lake and the unfinished building from my window but you can over look them with all the other stuff in the area. Take a romantic walk at night along Memory Lane and read both sides of the signs.

 

[CleveRocks]

Three separate thoughts ....

• I disagree that end-of-night bus lines are longer for the Value resorts than the Moderate resorts. I've never stayed at a Value, but I've stayed at a few of the Moderates, and after Wishes at Magic Kingdom it's pretty standard to wait between 45-60 minutes or more for a bus back to the resort. In other words, it would be useless and disappointing to spend more money staying at a Moderate resort solely in the hopes of shorter end-of-night bus lines.

• I also disagree that, at the theme parks, the buses for the Value resorts are farthest away and the buses for the Deluxe resorts are the closest (or that newer resorts are farther away than older ones). This is a rumor that pops up every now and then, but an objective look at the evidence will quickly disprove it. The bus slot assignments change every few months, so it's not like there are standard locations. But for anyone about to go to WDW, please pay attention to the bus slots (the pick-up slots) at each theme park, and you'll see what I mean. Just a couple of quick examples: I've stayed at Moderates, which, by the rumored formula, would be right in the middle of the pack. At MK, 18 months apart, I had the same exact closest bus slot once for CBR and once for POFQ. Last November at MGM, the stop for the Port Orleans resorts was the farthest slot from the gate. The slot next to us, the second farthest, was for Grand Floridian - Poly - Contemporary. At Epcot in 2005, CBR had the very farthest bus slot ... I'm not certain we were still in Florida.

• Disney very specifically sets up amenities among their 3 levels of resorts. It is by design that the bus stops at the Value resorts are NOT covered, but that the bus stops at the Moderates and Deluxes are covered. There are many other examples beyond room size (for ease, I'll just compare Values and Mods). Mods have a pool slide at the main pool, Values don't. Mods have a table-service restaurant (except POFQ), Values don't. Mods have free in-room refrigerators, Values don't. Mods have some sort of recreational activity (e.g., water sports or bike rentals), Values don't. Mods have ceiling fans, Values don't. Mods have 2 sinks (except CSR), Values have 1. And so on and so on. In other words, the lack of cover on the Values' bus stops is by design by Disney, not an accident or oversight.

 

[Mystic]

To those of you who say Pop's transportation is the best you've experienced, I'd be curious to know where else you've stayed.

We chose to stay at Pop several times, because transportation was not our main concern; our budget was. Then after a few long waits leaving the parks at night (not during peak season, either) we switched priorities a bit.

I know that everyone has a different experience on their trips, but this happened to us more than once. We are patient people, but we've seen the queue at MK overflowing on more than one occasion. Even when they send several buses for Pop, there was a significant wait, often ending with standing on the ride back.

I think the major difference is that you will often see less people waiting in line for the deluxe buses than you will for the values. So while they may be sending the same amount of buses (maybe even more for the values) for all the resorts, the value ones will fill up faster at the end of the night. I've just never seen a queue for any of the deluxes be overrun with people at a park, at the end of the night. If there's a shorter line at a moderate and I can get a seat, I don't mind if it stops at the other resorts first. To me, it's better than standing in line or on a bus, after standing/walking all day, no matter how comfortable my mickey Crocs are!

In short, if transportation is a top priority, I would suggest considering a moderate or deluxe resort, if your budget allows.

First off, I'll just clarify that I never stated that Pop's transportation was the best I've ever experienced. I was just stating what I had experienced in my time staying there. That was my one experience staying at Pop. If you look at my signature you will notice all my other trips have been to the Wilderness Lodge.

Secondly, as to your point about the moderates and deluxes having less people in their lines at the end of the night than the values. It's quite simply a matter of hotel size and number of guests. The Wilderness Lodge only has a 1/3 of the rooms that the Pop Century does, therefore it's going to have a 1/3 of the number of guests so yes the line IS going to be shorter and there ARE going to be less people on the bus. Generally the Value resorts are the larger resorts, having the larger number of rooms. Pop has over 2,100 and the All Stars all totalled have over 6,000 rooms. That's a lot of guests to get back at the end of the night. None of the moderates and none of the deluxes come close to having that number of rooms so yes the buses for the values are going to fill up faster than the buses for the deluxes. And for your information, I have ridden on a number of buses that were packed so full, I couldn't even stand up to give my seat to an eight year old girl who was asleep on her feet on the way back to the Wilderness Lodge after Epcot closed for the night.

Also when it comes to MK if you're staying at the Wilderness Lodge, you have more than just the bus to get you back to your resort at the end of the night. You have a large boat launch and depending on when MK closes, you can make your way to the Contemporary and take the small resort Launch.