Disney pop or Disney all stars?

[UK_Disney_Dopey_Hopeful]

Hi guys,

so I’m trying to book my next holiday and basically I have a choice between the above 2 and I’m looking for people’s thoughts and opinions on the 2 hotels.

what do they offer (are then any advantages to one or the other) what are the food options like etc….

any thoughts or advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[KristaZ]

They're pretty equal in most areas. Rooms are exactly the same as both, both resorts feel like they're about the same size to me. Pop, of course, has the Skyliner, but that can also be its own hassle depending on the time of year (it goes down more frequently in the summer, buses are supposed to run when this happens, but then those tend to be infrequent when that's the case). Food is about the same for both - pretty standard theme park fare, but Pop has easy access for AoA food court, which is slightly better IMO. You can also easily Skyliner over to CBR or Riviera for more options.

Overall, both resorts will leave you with a pretty similar experience. It mostly comes down to the Skyliner being the biggest difference, which, when running efficiently, is huge and why most of the time I personally would choose Pop over All Stars.

 

[fla4fun]

Overall, both resorts will leave you with a pretty similar experience. It mostly comes down to the Skyliner being the biggest difference, which, when running efficiently, is huge and why most of the time I personally would choose Pop over All Stars.

I agree. For example, I booked my January trip a couple weeks ago, and the dates just happened to coincide with the Skyliner being down for refurbishment. Normally, I do not mind paying a little extra for Pop because I like the Skyliner. But I booked at All Star and saved $40 per night since I would be taking buses everywhere anyway. That’s enough savings to pay for my food!

I have stayed at All Star Movies since their refurbishment, and the rooms are almost identical to the rooms at Pop, so I don’t feel like I give up anything room wise by staying there. From what I have been reading, everyone expects the All Star Music refurbishment to be completed when the resort opens this fall, so I would avoid All Star Sports until they do their refurbishment, but be willing to stay at Movies or Music.

 

[ArielRae]

We like all star sports, not for the theming but for other reasons. It is usually the cheapest out of all the values. It is the first to be picked up and dropped off when the all stars happen to share buses. You can easily walk to the 24hr McDonald’s that is at the entrance to the all star resorts.

 

[BlancheNeige7]

We've stayed at Pop and all 3 All Stars. We prefer Pop for the Skyliner. As others have mentioned, this is one of the main reasons to pay a premium for this resort.

All Star Sports tends to be the go to resort for sports groups amd can get quite loud. Music and Movies tend to be quieter with more families.

 

[heresabe]

"Food is about the same for both - pretty standard theme park fare, but Pop has easy access for AoA food court, which is slightly better IMO. Y

I agree with everything you wrote KristaZ, except that in my most recent experience, the Pop and the AofA Food Court were almost identical. In other words, the AofA Food Court had deteriorated a bit in terms of options offered.

 

[heresabe]

I have stayed at all 3 All-Stars and I have stayed at Pop. I really prefer Pop- the theming, the access to other nearby resorts, the Skyliner. However, if the All-Stars display at a meaningfully lower rate, I would do AS.

 

[mom to minnie&mickey]

I have stayed at Pop 4 times and All Stars Music twice. With the refurbishments at All Stars the rooms are identical in size and look/beds. I absolutely did find Pop more noisy and just more "busy" in general as it is a much larger resort than any one of the All Stars. For my next stay Pop is $42 plus tax more per night. I would pay it if the skyliner was absolutely essential to me. It is not so I will be staying at one of the All Stars and saving $250 for some special splurge. It really comes down to your preferences.

 

[Darklord77]

Pop Century without a doubt. Skyliner access puts it way over the All-Stars.

 

[DeeSee]

You can easily walk to the 24hr McDonald’s that is at the entrance to the all star resorts.

Ha! Yes, I came here to say exactly this. We are staying at ASMusic our next trip and my husband is just a little bit cranky that we have to walk slightly farther for McDonald's than if we were staying at AS Sports. lol

I have stayed at Pop and All Star Sports. Other than the Skyliner, there's not much difference. I actually love both resorts. But if you choose an All Star Resort, I would recommend Movies or Music because of the recent refurbishments, as others have said.

 

[KittyKitty]

Let me know if I am wrong, but right this minute, All Stars Movies/Music have the same rooms like Pop. So my vote would be to choose Pop because of the Skyliner.
Update: I just saw a Music refurb room video. I corrected myself!

Here is a video of the Music Family Suite

 

[heresabe]

Let me know if I am wrong, but right this minute, only All Stars Movies have the same rooms like Pop. So my vote would be to choose Pop because of the Skyliner.

Someone correct me if I am wrong, but I did notice one difference between the refurbished Pop room and a refurbished A-S room; the Pop shower has two showerheads, the A-S showers have one. Am I correct?

 

[dreamtripper]

Room wise, there is not much difference. Similar size, similar set up.

Pros of Pop - Skyliner access, which gives you a lot of options as far as visiting other resorts, as the skyliner can be taken to Caribbean, Riviera, AoA, Boardwalk, and YBC. Cons - Pop is VERY Busy! I found it to be the most congested resort and the noisiest. The food court was like times square in the morning, If you're afraid of heights you WON'T like the skyliner at all and they kind of force you to use it for Epcot and HS. There is a bus for both but they really only run it steadily if the skyliner is down.

I've stayed at both Music and Movies, never Sports. For Disney theming I would choose Movies over Music, but as far as noise and crowding Music wins. It has a much calmer pace to it. Recently the All-Stars got renovated rooms. All of Movies has been completed. Not every room in Music has been. Those NON renovated rooms are really outdated! The biggest CON of the All-Stars is you are away from everything except Animal Kingdom. Once you're on a bus, (not even factoring in how long you have to wait for it now) it still takes about 15-20 mins to get to the MK. If time is money to you, it may not be ideal.

Personally, when I know I am going to be in the parks every day, all day, All-Stars are a great bargain, because like I said, the rooms are not much different from Pop (with the exception of the un-renovated rooms in Music)

 

[DaniMoon]

Our favorite park is AK, so AS is about a 7 minute bus ride. We love both, but for our $ Sports is our favorite. We are a sports family and love the Home Run section. Maybe it's the time of year we go, but we've never had an issue with loud groups at AS, we have at POP. I think all the values get groups, so it's hit or miss.

I also think the AS are closer to the parks by bus than POP, but the last couple times at POP there was a ton of construction so maybe if that is done, there's not as much stoppage. We truly felt like we were very close to AK, EPCOT and HS. With MK being at 15-20 minute ride.

OH and the line for buses are always much shorter than POP because they are much smaller resorts, so less people in line. We also would grab whichever bus came first if there was room and walk back to Sports. You can do this with AOA buses for POP. We would much rather walk, than wait.

 

[Blondie58]

I have never stayed at All Stars but have stayed at Pop once (May 2019) and loved it. Would have no issue staying again. Loved the morning walks/runs around Hour Glass Lake. Excellent laundry area so I needed half the clothes. And now on the gondola line. The last point would be a deciding factor in my opinion.

 

[TheEvilQueen24]

I always booked Allstar Movies. I always go for budget friendly. When Covid happened they moved me to POP. I’ve stayed there five times now and I just prefer it. The rooms are the same basically but I don’t know... it just feels different. I did book All stars in May but they magically upgraded me to a Nemo suite at AOA. (That was amazing) I really love the skyliner and the overall theme of POP. Plus I can walk to AOA.
This September I booked a five night stay at POP. I had the option to do movies and the price wasn’t too different.

If the next trip POP isn’t as budget friendly I’ll go back to All stars.