Should I be worried about "quality" at Pop?

[boston2k11]

stayed at PC last trip,kids liked it all the toys from 70's,80's,90's were fun to see!had a great pool and food court rocksits awesome...room was fine and kept clean daily

[Jforrest2]

We just returned from our trip last week. Since we were arriving late the first night was at the POP before moving to the Dolphin.

The great thing about POP was the cost ($89). I hope that I don't get slammed for this and I hate to sound like a Disney snob but you get what you pay for.

While I agree that the room is more often than not just a place to sleep, that's what I want to do when I'm there...sleep. Very hard to do with the lack of sound proofing in the rooms. I don't want to wake up to people coming back to their rooms late or toilets flushing three rooms away.

The plus side is the theming, food court and the excellent Disney service!

Just my 2 cents.

[ImagiAsh]

I was in the same situation the first time I booked POP. Growing up, my parents would always book the Beach Club or the Polynesian. For my first trip with friends (outside of the family), we stayed at POP. It's natural to compare, but I was pleasantly surprised with the accommodations. My room was small, but clean and completely suitable for the amount of time (or lack thereof) that I actually spent in the room that trip.

The bus service was probably the best I've experienced in a while. We didn't seem to wait more than 5 minutes before a bus would show up and escort us to the parks.

[Crow]

we will be checking in on the 24th (as long as she is over her pneumonia) so I will let you know how this stay is. Ive stayed there a few times. anything you want me to check out let me know

[WDWdreamer87]

I stayed two nights there this week.
Everything was fine except for the beds. They were hard as a rock! My mattress at home is firm, but after a whole day of walking and riding rides, I wanted a comfortable bed.

Since I was (just transferred this week) a housekeeper @ All Star, I went in with housekeeping eyes. The bed wasn't as neat as it should be, but that is the LEAST of my worries!

Food Court was excellent! Pool was full both nights but the water was WAY to cold for us. We looked like wimps sputtering and shaking in the middle of the pool.

Don't stress, POP is a great resort!

[DisneyRN]

We just back this afternoon...

My thoughts, as humble as they may be...

The resort was pretty neat, in typical Disney fashion. The food court was great, the grounds well-kept.

The room...it was small. If it was just DD and me, it would be fine. But, with fiance added, we were getting too close, since we are used to having >2800 sq feet to roam around. By Day 3, we were getting sick of no "quiet time" without the other 2 being around.

And, I agree. You get what you pay for, including with Mousekeeping. Majority of the week, our mousekeeper never touched my blanket and pillows, as I sleep with my own on top of the room linens. Kind of obvious my bed was ignored.

But, all-in-all, it was a great deal. I will report more in trip report. But, it was worth the stay and I would recommend.

[Daisy'sMom]

Please, please stay at a deluxe! That way there is always a room available for us at POP! Seriously, POP is a very nice hotel and you are not throwing your money away on snobbery. We have never gone back to deluxes once we found out we could spend more of our money on the things we love to do and do them more often. But some people are convinced they must spend to enjoy.
It's up to you and don't let others sway you.

[WDWdreamer87]

And, I agree. You get what you pay for, including with Mousekeeping. Majority of the week, our mousekeeper never touched my blanket and pillows, as I sleep with my own on top of the room linens. Kind of obvious my bed was ignored.

If the bed has been used and personal pillows are on there, they are part of the bed. But if you use your own blankets on top of the linen, Mousekeepers are told to leave it as it is. Also, all Mousekeepers on property get paid the same, so "getting what you paid for" doesn't exactly apply here. Especially since a lot of deluxe resorts, including DVC, do not get service everyday like the Value and Moderate resorts do.

[WDWdreamer87]

...but then again, DisneyRN, if both of us stayed there recently and BOTH had irks with our beds...perhaps we had the same Mousekeeper. Hahaha.

[andmomlau]

We have stayed at many different resorts over the years, both with and without our children. This past July, (actually the 4th) my husband and I spent 3 days at POP on our way to a weeklong vacation in Naples. (Couldn't be in FL w/o stopping at WDW!) To make it affordable, we made res at POP...like others have said, it is not a moderate or a deluxe, but it got us there, affordably, and how much time do you really spend in the resort??? It was fine...small but clean. Yes, I have to say it was a bit noisy outside of the rooms, but we survived and loved the 3 days there. Bus service was fine, and the food court was amazing!!! ENJOY!

[TexasPrincessAurora]

We're just back from a week's stay at Pop a few weeks ago.

We found the rooms to be clean and quiet. We were in one of the 70's buildings so pool noise wasn't an issue.

Yes, the rooms are small. Yes, the bathrooms are tiny. But they are clean and they are serviceable.

Yes, the beds are small...and no they are not the heavenly soft beds you find at the Poly.

Mousekeeping was always done earlier in the day so when we returned for afternoon rest time the room was clean and tidy. They always had fun arranging our kids' stuffed animals.

Overall we were pleased with the resort and our stay there. For the money it was quite wonderful.

[98'cpTyphoonGuard]

I suppose its all relative depending on what you are use to. I started out staying at values and I loved them, especially Pop. We chose to stay at Pop because we are park commanods and spend little time at the resort. For my husband's first trip we stayed at CBR bc my husband loves pirates so I wanted him to get to stay in a pirate room. The whole time I found myself wishing we were staying at Pop, which we returned to last year. This week I will be staying at my first deluxe (don't usually want to spend the extra $, but with military discount it was very reasonable). But, I will have no problem returning to Pop for my next stay. It's a great, fun resort and I have never had one bad experience.

[Crow]

trip postponed til Feb, but still booked POP. due to $ for one reason. But i dont mind staying here at all.

[Dopey's Girl]

POP is my go too for short trips, when I know I'm not going to be around much. It's clean, and it doesn't share buses like the other values. Itsa good place to rest your head.

If I'm going to be spending any time at the resort POP is out for me. It can be noisey (I don't want to know about the neighbors bathroom habits) and while I love the food court, I like having other dining options in my resort.

All in all, POP is good, and I wouldn't hesitate to stay there.

[mickeys_princess_mom]

If you are an early riser take your cup of coffee down to the lake, I bring my own pot too their coffee is terrible. Almost every morning you can see about a dozen hot air balloons taking off across the lake. It's very peaceful and watching the balloons reflected in the lake is a great way to start a Disney day.

Andy

Have stayed before and never knew about this! Sounds great!~Thanks for sharing! We are looking forward to getting to stay 8 days next month, and value is why that can happen.

[megustamex]

And, I agree. You get what you pay for, including with Mousekeeping. Majority of the week, our mousekeeper never touched my blanket and pillows, as I sleep with my own on top of the room linens. Kind of obvious my bed was ignored.

Thank goodness I am not the only one! My whole family thinks I'm nuts because I bring my own sheets & blankets to hotel rooms but I feel so much more comfortable.

I personally think all hotel rooms are gross after having traveled for business for years. Even the best hotels have disgusting things lurking in the corners. So with that, why not go for the cheapest room you can that provides Disney service and theming? Nothing is going to compare to your own bed anyway. I have found everything except room size/furnishings at the values to be on par with the deluxe resorts at Disney (and I've stayed in all of them over the years). IMO the pools, shops, food courts, and service are great. I almost cried with joy when I was walking through ASMu last year and saw one of the lifeguards going around to every outdoor table and perfectly tucking in each chair so the whole outdoor area looked perfect. Yes, that kind of attention to detail exists even at the values at Disney.

I've actually had worse housekeeping at Animal Kingdom Lodge - and if you have a bad experience, just call, they are happy to remedy whatever the issue is. It might take longer than at a Deluxe, but they will take care of it.

As far as noise goes, if you request a room in the farthest buildings facing the parking lots or lakes you will not have any pool noise, which accounts for most problems. And you'll be one of the few people asking to be in the back of the resort so they'll almost always accommodate you. I have had the occasional loud neighbor - but I've had it at the deluxe resorts too. They will let you move rooms if you ask, so you're never really stuck. Stay off the ground floor - go for the top floor and you'll get less traffic noise.

Lately I've been choosing values over deluxe resorts - because I'd rather stay two weeks at a value for the same price as a week in a Deluxe. Have fun!

[debbymc4]

We just returned from a stay there this weekend. I would definately go there again. It's fun! My son LOVED it. Although there are some small drawbacks, they don't make up the difference in price between this hotel and a moderate. The only real downside was that the food court was INSANE. If I go again, I'm going to bring my own breakfast food for sure. Otherwise, we really enjoyed it. One thing that I really liked over the other hotels is that, especially if you have small children, this one really has some Disney theming. Some of the others don't at all. My son loved the giant Goofy, Mowgli/Baloo, and Mr. Potato Head statues. The room had more Disney-esqe decor also.

[disneynarula]

I agree, it's not a deluxe. It's not as nice as a deluxe and there are not as many "perks."

I have stayed at Deluxe Vlillas, Moderate Resorts and most of the values. Did I like the deluxe villa better? Of course I did. I wish I was I had the money to stay at a deluxe resort every time. The reality is sometimes you have a smaller budget.

I am grateful that Disney now has hotels on property that are affordable. I remember a time that the "monorail" resorts were all there was.

If you spend a lot of time relaxing at the resort, riding bikes and swimming in the pools it might not be for you. We spent most of our days at the parks and did not spend much time at the pool.

That being said, I had a great time at Pop. We stayed there with our two sons and there was plenty of room. The room was clean and the bus service was very efficent. My kids liked the food court, something they don't offer at the "better" resorts.

Is mousekeeping better at the higher priced resorts? Probably. The same holds true of any hotel chain. You get better service at a five star hotel that a three star motel. But you also pay for it. For me, if we are going on a whirlwind, park- hopping trip it's not worth the extra money.

I would assume that if you are sleeping on top of the covers that mousekeeping would think maybe someone was not using the bed. If that's a concern for you just mess up the bed and make it look like someone slept it it. One thing I do is take a washable pencil/crayon and make a very small mark on one corner of the sheets when I get in the room. Then I ask for a change of sheets right away. Then I check for my mark after they claimed to change the sheets and make sure they did.

[tigz9299]

I go to WDW 2 or 3 times a year for 2 days at a time....90 minute drive from my house in Palm Harbor..have stayed at POP probably 10 times the past 5 years..I never even attempt to stay anywhere else..easy access when you first get off the interstate,close to the parks..i never use the bus system..i just drive to the Contemporary and self or valet park all day.the food court is a zoo in the am between 730 and about 9..after that,it's ok....the tie-dyed cheesecake is to freaking die for..rate are great,as low as 75 per night for Fla residents the past few years..sure,the rooms are a little noisy,but I have always had great service, and no issues have ever gone unresolved..i highly recommend it...

[PinKy]

Um, no.

I love Pop. We've stayed there many times and no doubt will again. It's very cute and very nice.

I would definitely avoid the cheer leading weekends though - then ALL the resorts are loud.