Mouse Extra

The Pop Century Resort is the latest in the collection of “value” resorts offered at Walt Disney World.  It is an enormous and sprawling collection of buildings themed in much the same over-the-top gaudy manner as the All-Star resorts, with huge lettering on the buildings and oversized statues spread throughout the grounds.   The point to the “value” level is to allow guest who could normally not afford to stay on property to be “in the bubble”.  I only wish that this resort would deliver a bit more quality.

I understand one should not expect the Grand Floridian here, but one should expect quality and service at a high standard.   At the Pop Century the standard is certainly not terrible, but it can also not be confused with the type of standard other Disney accommodations have been known for.

The rooms are clean and large enough to be comfortable.  This means less to some and more to others.   Many Disney World guests spend a very small amount of time in their room, instead using every hour possible in the parks.  If you are one of these folks, and the room is nothing more than a bed and a shower, the Pop Century is adequate. 

One issue is that the walls are very thin to be sure.  The best example comes from my most recent trip to the Pop Century earlier this year.   On our first morning, we were awoken by the most enthusiastic version of “Yo-Ho, Yo-Ho a Pirate’s Life for Me” that one can possibly sing.  It was so loud that my wife thought it was me singing in the shower.   It was not.  It was the gentleman next store, or maybe somewhere down the hall, and he wasn’t singing all that loud, but it seemed as though he were lying next to me.

The food court is also not bad at all.  In fact, it is better than some offered at the higher priced “moderate” resorts.   It’s loud, crowded and the waits can be long, but that’s true of food courts in general.  The variety here is decent and the food quality is up to Disney’s standards for such things.   The problem is what is coming in the future.  The Pop Century is slated to expand, and you can see the new buildings going up.  When this expansion is opened, how crowded will the food court get?  In fact, how crowded will the entire hotel get?   It already seems to be getting overwhelmed all too quickly. 

For example, on the same trip as the infamous singing walls, our check-in was a complete nightmare.   It was a Friday in November, not an overly busy season, and we waited on line to check in for almost 45 minutes!  Just about every desk was used, so it was not a staffing issue.   There were just too many people checking-in for the front desk to physically handle it.  To make matters worse, when we had to check-out because of an accounting error the line was just as long.   Can you imagine waiting this long to check into any hotel, no less a Disney hotel?

Having said all that, one can not deny the benefits of staying on property.  There are many hotels off-site that offer similar rates, but if the priority is to be in the Mouse 24-7, then the Pop Century is at least a clean and decent option.   But that is all it really is.