Pop Century vs Caribbean beach club for Christmas 2019

PaulaSB12

New Member
Original Poster
I am looking into travelling to Disney next Christmas and am torn between both of these as they are on the skyliner so am looking to see what other people think of the differences between the two
 

Missing_Aria

Active Member
The goal is definitely to have the Skyliners done by mid 2019, but to rely on that would probably be a bad idea. If I had to pick between the two with or without the Skyliner I would pick Caribbean. I think the 2019 is almost certainly going to be the last year that we'll see Caribbean anywhere under $250 a night so it might be a good time to potentially take advantage of that, it should be especially awesome your you if the Skyliners happen to complete on time.

That said, Pop Century's rooms are awesome after the renovation so I don't think picking Pop Century would feel like a loss by any means so if that's more your style/budget/whatever then go with it.

Me, personally, I'm staying in Caribbean this year (definitely no Skyliners but the construction discount was too good to pass up :( ) possibly next year in the fall again to take one last advantage of the lower prices, and in the future I'm probably going to go with Pop Century quite frequently. That's me though.

Definitely check out Disney Tourist Blog though. They have reviews on all of the resorts along with a breakdown of all of the pros and cons of each. They even compare resorts to each other all the time. They also keep very up to date on things like construction progress.
 
I would have to go with Pop on this. The main reason is because in December, you just never know about weather. And if you want to use the pools at CB, it might just be too cold. This past December (7th through 10th) every night was 45 or below. We all had winter coats, hats and gloves on. The days maybe went above 75 only. Again, you just don't know, but I'm not sure if it's worth the price CB could be in Dec 2019 after all the updates they do!

Also, like Aria said the newly renovated POP rooms are pretty neat!century/
 
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Missing_Aria

Active Member
I would have to go with Pop on this. The main reason is because in December, you just never know about weather. And if you want to use the pools at CB, it might just be too cold. This past December (7th through 10th) every night was 45 or below. We all had winter coats, hats and gloves on. The days maybe went above 75 only. Again, you just don't know, but I'm not sure if it's worth the price CB could be in Dec 2019 after all the updates they do!

Also, like Aria said the newly renovated POP rooms are pretty neat!century/

I believe the pools are heated but yeah you'll still need to get into and out of them. =\
 

slappy magoo

Well-Known Member
If those are your choices...and it's December...I guess Pop. As has been said the weather might be too cold for pools, but more to the point, there's a good chance the weather will be ideal for long days in the park without getting exhausted from the heat. So there might be a better chance you'll be a park commando, so the room will more likely be a place just forsleeping and showering. But if you think you'd tour more leisurely and spend more time swimming or just enjoying your resort, that could make a difference.
 

lawdogNOLA

Active Member
The Skyliners will be up and running prior to Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge opening at Hollywood Studios. So, short of a major natural disaster, you can count on the Skyliners being accessible for Christmas, 2019.

Pop vs. CBR? There's no way to predict the weather, but CBR wins the pool competition, easily. Plus the CBR has spa whirlpools which are most definitely heated; Pop doesn't have those. If the weather's nice and you have small kids, the Aquaplay area at CBR is outstanding, and beats the fountain fun area at Pop.

Dining? CBR wins. There will be both a food court and a sit down dining area (the re-opened Shutters). Plus, Spyglass Grill is pretty sweet quick service restaurant; it is open to the elements, however.

Buses? Pop wins. Pop has one of the best bus services in WDW, plus with a bit of extra walking, you can also use Art of Animation's bus service.

Resort size? Both resorts sprawl, and while Pop isn't as spread out as CBR, CBR has an internal bus service.

Theming? It's about personal choice, but CBR wins, easily, for me. The place is lush, and really has a nice "Island Life" vibe going, and always has. Pop's theming is fun, but it's overwrought, and I can never get nostalgic for hippies, having had the misfortune of smelling them in my youth.

Rooms. Here's where it gets interesting. The last time I stayed at Pop was 2014. We enjoyed it, but we missed the roominess of the CBR. We're just back from the CBR, which has had a room refurbishment, just like Pop. Everything I've seen about Pop's rooms says that Disney has done an outstanding job in maximizing the utility of the 260 square feet of a Pop room. With the Murphy bed up, you get a decent chunk of useable space back, and both rooms have coffee makers, mini-fridges and make-up mirrors. Only one sink at Pop vs. two at CBR, but 2 showerheads at Pop vs. 1 at CBR. I give a narrow edge to the CBR. At the end of the day, Pop still has 260 sq. feet to play with, while the CBR has either 314 sq. feet, the standard moderate size at WDW, or 340 sq. feet, as a number of sources continue to insist, due to it having been the first non-deluxe resort at WDW.

And the CBR room refurbishment has produced a darn nice result. We stayed at the Beach Club for the first night before moving to the CBR, and point for point, the room at the CBR held up very well compared to the Beach Club (yes, Beach Club wins, but it was a lot closer than I expected).

All things being the same, I'd still stay at the CBR over Pop. Pop is nice, but at the end of the day, even with a fold-up bed you get more elbow-room than at Pop. Plus the pool is better, you're on the main Skyliner hub and you have more dining options. The only clear advantage for Pop is the bus service, and we don't know how, if anything, this will change after the Skyliner goes online.

Last piece of advice: Go on YouTube and search for room tours. People are constantly putting them up, so you shouldn't have problems finding current room tours.
 
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JohnD

Well-Known Member
Depends on when "Christmas" for you is. Are you referring to the season or right around Christmas Day? Make sure not to go during the Pop Warner championships, at least to Pop Century. Teenagers will be packed in the values.
 

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