POP vs ASM

[DriftingInStars]

My main question is about the bus rides. Are the busses from POP quicker? Is it worth the added cost to move from ASM to POP? Also, how do the cafeteria's compare?

 

[strike4]

I enjoy Pop more than the All Stars. The bus service when I went was great and we didn't have to stop at
the other resorts to fill the bus. Also, I enjoy being able to walk to AOA to use their food court.

The only downside is that the bus stop is a far walk from the parks.

 

[HopperFan]

POP is more centrally located so efficient rides, but the bus ride would never impact my choice among values.

Best bet is to compare the menus at the two to see which you like better. The plus for POP is the ability to walk over to AoA which has a much better food court and menu than all the other values.

Depending on your dates ........... POP may be fully renovated with completely gutted and new rooms with QUEEN beds while ASMovie is just now starting it's room renovations.

POP is our favorite value - for a regular room.

 

[maxiesmom]

My main question is about the bus rides. Are the busses from POP quicker? Is it worth the added cost to move from ASM to POP? Also, how do the cafeteria's compare?

I didn't find the bus situation at the Pop to be any better than that at the All Stars. I'm also odd in that I like the food courts at the All Stars better than Pops, though I am in the minority with that one.

 

[WeLoveDisneyAlways]

Pop is far superior then movies IMO. The food court at pop has much more selection. Unless something has changed the all stars share buses so yes pop is much faster and convenient. We found it very annoying having to stop at the other 2 resorts when we stayed at movies and it all meant the buses fill up way faster making you sometimes having to wait for a 2nd or 3rd bus before you can even board. You can also add the pop rooms have now been renovated where movies has not. You can see by my signature pop is our Disney home

 

[maxiesmom]

Pop is far superior then movies IMO. The food court at pop has much more selection. Unless something has changed the all stars share buses so yes pop is much faster and convenient. We found it very annoying having to stop at the other 2 resorts when we stayed at movies and it all meant the buses fill up way faster making you sometimes having to wait for a 2nd or 3rd bus before you can even board. You can also add the pop rooms have now been renovated where movies has not. You can see by my signature pop is our Disney home

Most of the time each All Star has it's own bus. I find that to be a huge plus and each All Star is also much smaller than Pop, so you have less people fighting for seats on the bus.

 

[DriftingInStars]

Most of the time each All Star has it's own bus. I find that to be a huge plus and each All Star is also much smaller than Pop, so you have less people fighting for seats on the bus.

I hadn’t thought about resort size. I knew POP had dedicated busses and was wondering if it made them quicker over all. But resort size would play a role. Thanks

 

[maxiesmom]

I hadn’t thought about resort size. I knew POP had dedicated busses and was wondering if it made them quicker over all. But resort size would play a role. Thanks

No problem. I've actually enjoyed my stays at Pop and at the different All Stars. It is not like you can make a bad choice.

 

[loves to dive]

The buses are the buses and are the same at every single resort at every single level, some good some bad. The times I've stayed at All Stars, they have not shared a bus. I've stayed at Pop and Sports. The renovated rooms are nicer at Pop but that is the only difference I've noticed. The food courts are the food courts, certain times of the day noisy and crowded. I always just stay at which ever one is less.

 

[Tiki_Sara]

Stayed at ASMu a few weeks ago, no sharing of buses with other resorts or even other AS resorts. Never waited too long for a bus at either end and there were always plenty of them so minimal lines at any point. Buses didn't seem to take long to anywhere as they use dedicated bus lanes, but from looking at the map, POP seems nearer so am guessing it might not take as long (though I might be totally wrong). The food court was pretty basic but for what it was, it was fine. Grabbed a pastry and a coffee on the way out every morning and the pastries were fresh and delicious. Had dinner there once and it was alright, nothing amazing. Standard QS food, I'd say.

Staying at POP for our next trip. Honestly we would have done ASMu again but it was booked out for an event.

 

[Huff]

Food court is of little importance for us. We rarely eat at the resort. We use Garden Grocers to stock the room with snacks and simple breakfast items. Lunches are in the parks, dinners are either in the park or one of the DLX resorts. Buses have always been fine for us at POP. Sometimes we've waited a long time to get to a park but thats happened at other resorts too. Returning from the parks at closing has resulted in very long lines for POP. Usually after 10-15 minutes 2 or 3 buses show up at the same time and the line clears.

 

[Disneyhanna]

I have never stayed at ASM, but I just returned from Pop and the refurbished rooms are definitely a huge upgrade from Pop's old rooms, which I assume are more comparable to ASM's. For me it was like staying at a cheap motel vs. a decent hotel. If you could not care less about the room, I'd say save the money and stay at ASM. If you like a little more comfort and new rooms, I'd go for Pop.

Pop lists the arrival times for buses at the stop and they were always very accurate. I never waited more than 20 min, and I'd say on average I waited 10 minutes at the resort. When I left the parks mid-afternoon I usually waited max 10 minutes. At park close I usually looked around shops for about half an hour to miss the rush for buses and I usually waited 10-20 minutes and always made it onto the next bus (although usually standing).

The cafeteria food is so-so, you can see the menus online. It's definitely very American and not a lot of healthy options other than the make your own salad. I liked the food at AoA a lot better, and it's only like an eight minute walk from Pop so we did that a few times.

 

[JennyDrake]

Another vote for ASM, although I have multiple stays in each of the values--love them all!

With the All Stars having 1,000 fewer rooms there are fewer people to add to the chaos and noise. At Pop, it is far from a deal breaker but I dislike going thru the gift shop to enter the food court (through the main entrance).

You may have noticed that the Pop room rates have SOARED with the addition of the air tram thing...That makes it a "no go" for me. For my May trip, Pop was only $16 less than a moderate.....

 

[DriftingInStars]

Another vote for ASM, although I have multiple stays in each of the values--love them all!

With the All Stars having 1,000 fewer rooms there are fewer people to add to the chaos and noise. At Pop, it is far from a deal breaker but I dislike going thru the gift shop to enter the food court (through the main entrance).

You may have noticed that the Pop room rates have SOARED with the addition of the air tram thing...That makes it a "no go" for me. For my May trip, Pop was only $16 less than a moderate.....

Thanks for the insight! I think we will plan on AS Music

 

[buzznina]

The buses are the buses and are the same at every single resort at every single level, some good some bad. The times I've stayed at All Stars, they have not shared a bus. I've stayed at Pop and Sports. The renovated rooms are nicer at Pop but that is the only difference I've noticed. The food courts are the food courts, certain times of the day noisy and crowded. I always just stay at which ever one is less.

This is what I always post as well Transportation is one of the last things we look at when deciding on a resort. ASMO and then POP are our favorite value resorts. With everything even, we would pick ASMO over POP, BUT since POP has queen beds now, we would pick POP until ASMO gets queen beds. I would look at resort photos and You can check the FC menus online to see the choices each offer.

 

[maxiesmom]

This is what I always post as well Transportation is one of the last things we look at when deciding on a resort. ASMO and then POP are our favorite value resorts. With everything even, we would pick ASMO over POP, BUT since POP has queen beds now, we would pick POP until ASMO gets queen beds. I would look at resort photos and You can check the FC menus online to see the choices each offer.

Keep in mind that one of the queen beds at Pop is a fold out. That makes a difference to some people.

 

[buzznina]

Keep in mind that one of the queen beds at Pop is a fold out. That makes a difference to some people.

Agree, the issue we have with the murphy is that it takes away the table, that we use a lot of the time As for feel, there should be no difference between the 2 beds.

 

[dreamit]

When we stayed at ASMu in December, we had no issues with transportation, and we had dedicated buses. It was my first time at a value resort, and I loved it!