Disney’s Pop Century Resort

During my most recent trip to Disney World, I was staying in a room by myself and I had no kids to cart around, so I decided to not overthink my resort stay. Instead, I checked out the travel agent discounts to see where I could stay that I’d never stayed before. I was deciding between spending some extra money to explore a moderate or deluxe resort that I’d never stayed at, or really saving by staying at a Value. I decided to go for the value, and ended up staying at Pop Century. 

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I am happy to say that I very quickly fell in love with this resort. The room was just as nice if not nicer than the rooms I stayed in at Yacht Club (Deluxe) and Port Orleans: Riverside (Moderate). Many of the Value Resorts, Pop Included, have been recently updated, and it shows. And I must mention the shower doors. Every single other room that I saw on this trip (11 resorts total, at all three price points, but most of the actual rooms I saw were in Deluxe resorts) had shower curtains. But not Pop. Pop had beautiful glass doors, and having just designed my own bathrooms for our house renovation I can tell you these were not even the bottom of the line basic doors. They were really nice sliding doors. This is a huge plus for me. Also, there is a sliding door between the sink area and the toilet/shower area so more than one person can be using the bathroom at the same time.

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I also really liked the layout of the room itself. When I’ve quoted Pop in the past for clients, it’s always come with the following disclaimer: There is only one real bed in the room, so it may be great for two people but a little uncomfortable for 3 or 4. I have to admit that I was wildly misinformed on this. The second bed, which is listed as a “table bed” or a “pull down bed” actually has the EXACT same mattress as the “main” bed, and having slept in the main bed I can say with confidence that these beds are very comfortable. SO much better than a pullout couch. It is a pulldown table bed because, obviously, you pull it down from the wall like a murphy bed, but when it’s up it is a table with two chairs. It is such a nice way to create more space in the room for a family, and the table is a great addition to add some sitting room. It’s also really easy to pull the bed down for sleep and put it back up to have space when you’re awake. Text me for a vide of this in action. Seriously, I cannot say enough good things about this room.

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Okay enough about the rooms. If you go to Disney, there’s a pretty good chance you’re not there for the rooms, and you won’t be spending much time indoors. So let’s talk about the resort itself. The theming of Pop Century is really fun for kids and adults. There are 5 sections of rooms, each based on a different decade over the 20th century (50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s). 

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This is fun for kids because, Disney, so it’s all of course very bright, colorful, and over the top. There are three pools – the Hippy Dippy Pool in the 60s section of the resort is considered the main pool. It’s shaped like a giant flower with flower shaped water jets (because, Flower Power, duh). There is also a kiddie area with pop jet water fountains close by and a snack bar.

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There are two smaller pools, the bowling pool in the 50s section shaped like a giant bowling pin, and the computer pool in the 80s/90s section. Check out some of the detailing in the decor at these pools. Disney clearly knows what they’re doing.

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This is also so fun for adults though, because you get to relive your childhood through the theming and decorations at this resort. I had so much fun checking out all of the decades, but the 90s was especially fun for me because it’s the only decade that I was really a part of and remember (being born in 1988 I cannot claim to remember or understand the 80s although I wouldn’t be opposed to bringing back some of the clothing – judge me all you want, I don’t care, it was cool AND comfortable). Here’s a little something from each decade:

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Another nice touch is the fun facts the resort provides you about each year throughout the decade. You won’t really see many of these unless you explore the running path, but it’s definitely worth it if you have time to go for a walk (or run!). I really liked finding my birth year and those of my family members, and also just learning some general fun facts!

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And then of course there is the skyliner. This is Disney’s newest form of transportation, which opened in September 2019, and very much resembles a ski gondola. Except you don’t have to take off your skis to ride it and run on in ski boots while dragging your kids along as it moves across the platform hoping the doors don’t close without them (based on true events). You can read more about why this is my favorite form of Disney transportation here, and let me tell you I have not changed my mind. This is really and truly the best way to get around Disney World, and it happens to be right outside of Pop, giving you easy access to Epcot and Hollywood Studios. Easy access to multiple parks like this is something that most moderate resorts do not have, so getting it in a Value is really amazing. Have I mentioned that I love the skyliner? If I’m not staying at a resort walking distance to some parks, I may never stay at a NON skyliner resort again. (We toured them all so look out for some posts on the rest soon!)

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Before I stayed at a Value myself I honestly didn’t see myself wanting to bring my family to one. However, I was completely blown away by this resort and how great it was. The only downsides to staying at a value are: 1) there are no water slides at the pools. Moderate and Deluxe resorts ALL have water slides. This may be a downside depending on your trip and the age of your kids, but if you’re planning on mostly park days this is totally fine. The pools are still big and bright and super fun. And you can definitely explore all three of them if you want to change it up a bit. And 2) there is no table service restaurant. This may also not be a big deal, because it’s so easy to eat at other resorts or at the parks, but if you’re interested in a sit down breakfast you’ll probably have to uber. Not such a big deal though. The lobby area does have a quick service restaurant, so I promise that if you stay at a value resort you will not starve. I actually had breakfast there one morning and got myself my one and only Mickey waffle of the trip, so sometimes cafeteria style breakfast is just what you need before a long park day.

Thanks for coming. I’ll leave you with this giant Mickey phone.

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