All Star Movies Resort vs Pop Century Resort

Earlier this year I took a mini vacation and stayed at Disney’s Pop Century Resort. Recently I toke another mini vacation and I stayed at All Star Movies. Both of these resorts are considered “Value” Resorts. Don’t let the title of  ” Value Resort” fool you, both of these hotels are very reasonably priced but they are very well-kept and clean and you get the same level of service that you would in any other standard room on Disney property.

Both of these resorts have a great theme to them and are very child friendly. Children and alot of adults will love the larger than life replicas of your favorite Disney movies at All Star Movies and you can travel thru time at Pop Century.  They also have different activites scheduled for everyday so if you want to take a day off from the parks you will still be able to find something to do. Something I thought was funny and a tad bit ironic, the other 2 All Star Resorts show movies at night by the pool but the All Star movies Resort does not.

Here are some of the good and bad from each resort:

• Pop Century is located near Epcot and Hollywood Studios. Pop Century has 5 different theme buildings. 50’s, 60’s, 70’s, and 90’s. We stayed in the 80’s room and I loved being that I am a child of the 80’s. When you check in be sure to check out the wall in the lobby they have toys and different memorabilia from each decade. Alot of the things you will see will bring back some awesome memories and make your vacation a little more magical.
• All Star Movies is at the very end of the All Star Resort section so it is kind of far out there. It also has 5 different themed buildings. Toy Story, 101 Dalamations, Herbie Love bug, The Mighty Ducks, and Fantasia. I did like the food Court here because it looks like a movie premiere. We stayed in the Toy story room, which does cost extra because it is a “Prefered Room”, I will explain more about that later on. I loved the courtyard of our room because it had larger than life figures of Buzz Lightyear, Woody and Rex and Little Bo Peep. I also love how they have Andy’s window and door which are also larger than life so you can get the feel of how a toy sees things. Fun fact: Buzz Lightyear stands at 35 feet tall and Woody stands at 25 feet tall.

Tip: A prefered room means that you are closer to the lobby/food court/gift shop. It doesn’t mean you get a better view. I know this because my Toy Story room overlooked grass and trees. Some people feel this worth the extra $15.00 or so per day and soem do not. If you drive there then it may not be neccesary for you but if you will not have a car then you may feel it is worth it because I hear it can be a fairly long walk from some of the other buildings to the lobby.

• The preferred building in All Star Movies are, Toy Story, Fantasia, and 101 Dalamtions. The prefered buildings at Pop Century are, 60’s, part of 70’s and part of 50’s.
• All Disney resorts have the option of buying the resort refillable mug or if you get the dining plan this will be included. For around $15.00 you can get a mug that you can refill as much as you want with soda, tea, coffee. The free refill offer is only good in your resort. You can not use it in the parks for free refills.
• Each standard room in each of these resorts is 260 square feet. They are the smalled of all the rooms on Disney property but if you will just be sleeping and showering then what more do you need?
• Both food courts we equally as good they both had typical and some not so typical food court food. Ofcourse the food is a little pricey but it is good and that is coming from a picky eater.
• A big downfall of the All Star resorts is that they all share a bus which means that when I stay there I have to drive to the parks. All Star Movies is also the last stop so by the time the bus gets to you it can be beyond full. I have complained about this and I am sure many other people have too. It really doesn’t make sense considering these are all huge resorts and due to the price they are usually pretty packed.
• Pop Century has its own bus line but that is no guarantee that you will find a seat. It does mean that you will proabably less of a wait for a bus.
• Pop Century also has the infamous tie die cheesecake, which is really good and if you have never tried it you must if you will be there.
• Both resorts have themed pools, which I can not elaborate much on because I am not a pool person.
• All Star Movies rooms we recently refurbished so it is nice to get a fairly new room.
• Each resort has an aracade which my daughter loves. The aracades use a swipe card system, which does make it much easier than carrying around a ton of change like when I was a kid.

Tip: Be sure to do online check in 10 days or less before you arrive. You can make requests as far as what building you prefer or any other special requests you need and it makes your check in time much shorter when you arrive.

Overall I would reccomend Pop Century for a few reasons but one big reason, the bed at All star movies was horrible. I could not sleep because I kept waking up in such pain. My mom and daughter agreed. I should point out that I have arthritis and several back problems. I have heard some people love these beds so everyone is different. I loved the Pop Centurys beds. they are pillowtops and let me tell you, you can feel the difference. I like the layout of Pop much better. Another big selling point about Pop is the dedicated bus service, that is big one for me.

Tell us what is your favorite value resort and why?

Sunshine is a Disney fanatic. You will find her counting the days unitl she goes back to Disney, while annoying her daughter with everything Disney.

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