Reviews of Pop Century Resort (Value Resort)
Reviewed by brittanyaricker Review Date: 09/30/2016
Rating: (3) Not Recommended
We stayed at the Pop Century resort sept. 20-26th. I have been to Disney at least 10 times since 2007 and have stayed at the Pop Century resort in 2009 with no problems, but this was by far my most disappointing experience. First our check in, we did the early check in, and although it is only a request option, we chose to stay on the first floor and in a building close to the food court and transportation because I am 6 months pregnant ( we booked the trip before finding out). We also let them know that we may arrive a little earlier ( check in is at 3). When we arrived at 2pm, we still had no confirmation about our room being ready( which wasnt too big of a deal since we only had an hour to wait until check in) so we ate in the food court, which was terrible. After driving 11 hours and getting to the resort without our room being ready, we were at least hoping to get a good meal. The food was dry, cold, and had no flavor at all. Unless you got a bottle coke, the fountain drinks were terrible. Finally after we ate we seen it was close to 3 and we still didnt have a room confirmation so we went to the front desk and asked if it was almost ready and they checked us in (redid the whole process that I already did online) We were put in room 7225 which was not close to the food court and on the second floor. But even though they didnt fill any of our requests for our room, it was at least close to the elevator and not extremely bad. The food court staff was ridiculous the entire trip. Besides the food always being cold and terrible, the food servers were always miserable looking, rushing us through the food line, and skipping our orders Also it seemed like they always had new people working the registers that had absolutely no idea what they were doing every time. So the service at this resort was just terrible.
This entire trip was just a let down, it was our first time back in 2 years, and within those 2 years it seemed like Disney had just lost their magic. It wasn't the same. You usually go to Disney to enjoy yourself , not stress, and be happy... because it is suppose to be the happiest place on earth, but I did not get that feeling this year. Very rarely did I see a worker with a smile on their face or trying to make the experience one to remember like they used to. The resort was a complete let down and the food was terrible. It will def. be a while before we decide to go back and spend a ton of money for a Disney vacation.
On the positive aspects of the trip, the pool area was nice, and the bar had some tasty non alcoholic pina coladas. They also provided float vests for the younger children and mosquito spray in every room, which I thought was nice.
Pros:
cheaper than other resorts, pool areaCons:
food court, serviceReviewed by Moongate Review Date: 09/29/2016
Rating: (6) Not Recommended
We stayed here for a week just recently having never stayed at the POP before, just value or moderate hotels. I agree with the previous poster regarding people smoking off their balconies or where ever they liked. We had a courtyard view, but we had to walk from the parking lot around the lake to get to our room(4th floor, 70's)...well, that is where there are designated smoking areas(around the jogging path- and wherever they felt like smoking). We did online check in and received a text with our room number prior to arrival,but we had to go to the front desk anyway for other questions we had about our tickets. We went to our room and it was fine until we pulled back the sheets and found other guests hair and then more hair on washcloths. We called and received new sheets and bedding, etc within the half hour. The room itself was ok, just in need of a refurb(which I think they are starting now);peeling wallpaper in bathroom, fridge didn't keep anything cold and kept tipping out of the cabinet they tried to shove it in. We just felt it wasn't up to Disney hotel standards. Air conditioning was great however!!! While we stayed there, the elevators were down in our building for most of the day...a little tough with a stroller. It was quiet otherwise in our building. We rented a car, so we didn't use transportation but parking space is plentiful there, just a walk. We used the laundry room one day and just be aware you can only use a credit or debit card only, NO CASH. Washers were $3 each and dryers another $3 each; very easy to use, they have a guide on the machine and next to it to show you. The food court was.....ok. Always crowded and chaotic but the cashiers were very patient and polite when explaining to everyone on the dining plan what was included. We went swimming in the "computer" pool near the 80's/90's which wasn't busy at all. Pool was clean. Overall, I think next time we will be staying at a moderate or higher hotel.
Pros:
Staff, value, quietnessCons:
Lots of Smoking, rooms need refurbishmentReviewed by featheredbuddy Review Date: 09/28/2016
Rating: (10) Recommended
We stayed at Pop Century 9/11-9/19 our room was very clean. The cast members were all very helpful. They only negative was that the food court seemed to not have enough cast members to keep up with the number of people going through there in the mornings.
Pros:
Cast members are really greatCons:
food courtReviewed by LLSS Review Date: 09/26/2016
Rating: (3) Not Recommended
We have stayed at the Pop numerous times and it is usually pretty good. This was a last minute trip just for MMNSHP, so we figured it would be a quick in and out of the hotel, no need to go all out on expenses. The room was ok. We didn't use the food court at all. However, it was not a great stay. First real problem is the other guests. It's hard to really kill a hotel based on what the other guests are like, but it really made the experience terrible. Things such as guests smoking wherever they wanted (near the busses, outside their door, etc.) with no cast members around to take care of it.
So, while I don't put that completely on the hotel, I do put the next bit on them. We did online checkin, and after taking our bags to our room (no issues getting in), I went to get our parking pass. The cast member proceeded to check me in and filled out a map for me (I had already told him we are in the room). No big deal. However, he sent me to the 80s building, room 8621. That is not where my text message (and subsequently where my family was currently at having our magic bands let us in) told us. Further, if you have been here before, you know that at the Pop, the building number is the first digit (hence he circled 80s), and the floor is the second digit (so if you were in 8212, you would be 80s building, floor 2). The Pop is all 3 stories, meaning not only does that room not exist, but it is impossible to exist at this resort. This shows me that Disney has cut a lot of training of their staff at this hotel, and that is unforgivable to me. For those wondering what happened, we had reservations starting the next day at a different hotel and that is the room he was pulling up. Once again, I don't so much fault the actual cast member as I do the management and what I can only attribute as a complete lack of training. In the end, I will just pay the extra $50 and go to a good moderate.
Pros:
Cheap, decent accomodationsCons:
GuestsReviewed by Peggyf Review Date: 09/19/2016
Rating: (1) Not Recommended
We just returned from Disney, staying at Pop Century...never again! Room smelled, food court beverage station had horrible tasting drinks. Customer Service is non existent. Very rude at Front Desk! I will spend a little extra and go for a moderate. Just a note..I have been to Disney World 36 times, staying on property, and this was the worst ever.
Pros:
—Cons:
—Reviewed by jkkd Review Date: 05/02/2016
Rating: (9) Recommended
We've stayed at Pop Century in the past, but it has been quite a while. Frankly, I do not think you can go wrong with any of the value resorts. They are all clean, cutely decorated and fun! We stayed at Pop for 3 nights in April 2016. Absolutely no issue with our room. It was very clean and neat. Service was great. We had a good check in experience. We went to concierge desk a couple of times for questions and we were also served well there. The resort is lovely and so cute. The food court is great - plenty of choices. The shop was also cute and good. We utilized both the shop and the food court.
Bus stop often would lend to extra waiting and/or full bus with the need to stand. That can happen at any resort, yet it does seem that the value resorts are where you'll find the most crowded bus. Maybe just perception. Anyway, not a huge problem.
The only slight issue we had with this resort was pertaining to our transfer to the Beach Club Resort. We have never moved from one resort to another - this was the first time. We were told that Pop would transport our luggage from there to the Beach Club. They told us a time frame of 1-3 pm. However, at 4:00 then 5:00 no luggage was received at the Beach Club. The Beach Club told us that the bags hadn't yet arrived at the resort, so obviously they couldn't deliver what they didn't have.
I am just not sure what happened or why our luggage was not transported when they said it would be, but we did eventually get it later on that night. In the future, I may consider just bringing my own bags should we change resorts mid-trip.
Otherwise -the POP century is a great resort. We love it and would return.
Pros:
CUTE!Cons:
No frillsReviewed by schmamm Review Date: 04/05/2016
Rating: (5) Recommended
We stayed at Pop Century 4/2-4/5 for our anniversary. We previously stayed there Thanksgiving of 2012. Our previous trip there was wonderful, no complaints. This trip we had noisy neighbors 2 different nights. Not the hotel's fault, but the sound travels well through the resort. The room itself was great, I requested a king room in the 50's and that's exactly what we got. The room was clean and taken care of every day.
Our only other complaint was the food our last day. We ate lunch the first day it was great. Our second day we did the make your own omelette station and it was delicious. We did not eat breakfast our 3rd morning. Today, we had breakfast and it was mediocre at best. We both had the bounty platter with French Toast. The eggs were not thoroughly cooked, the french toast was soggy, the sausage was inedible. We were disappointed. All in all if the price is right we will stay here again, but if we can find a moderate for a good price we will probably pay more to stay there.
Pros:
Clean room, close to Classic HallCons:
Food and noisy neighborsReviewed by shellbates Review Date: 03/23/2016
Rating: (8) Recommended
We stayed the first week of February, which I thought was supposed to be lower crowd levels. This resort was pretty busy with cheerleading and dance groups, so was pretty loud in the food court most evenings. Room was pretty small, but worked for my sister and I, especially when we weren't in the room much. The atmosphere is good and definitely a good themed hotel for families. I would probably bump up to a moderate if I had the choice to do over, but it served its purpose for this trip.
Pros:
cheap, great gift shop and food courtCons:
loudReviewed by antsassey Review Date: 03/16/2016
Rating: (8) Recommended
The resort was decorated nicely. Food court a little crazy in the morning which was expected. Large groups of people as it was the princess marathon weekend. Not a lot of noise in room from the groups. Only draw back to resort was where the smoking section was located near our room. We had to walk through a hazy of smoke to get into our room. We were in building 10 of the 70s section. Bus service was good. Didn't wait long at the end of the day.
Pros:
PriceCons:
Smokers, lack of cell service in roomReviewed by colemamma Review Date: 03/13/2016
Rating: (9) Recommended
We stayed at Pop in December 2015 for 4 nights. Two adults and 12 and 17 yr old. This was our first stay at a value resort, having previously stayed at PO Riverside (moderate). We were expecting to be disappointed but were thrilled with Pop. We were in the 70s section (by the giant Mickey phone) and it was ideal- very close to the main pool, food court/gift shop, laundry and the bus stops. The bus system at Pop was a million times better than at Riverside. We had a surprise of welcome balloons in our room the and staff were very knowledgeable and helpful. Food court was always clean and there was a big variety. Yes, the rooms are small and without any frills, but we spent most of our time in the parks anyway. I would choose Pop again.
