d. Where to Stay at Walt Disney World - 47/75

(For the first page of this review of Disney’s Polynesian Resort, see this)

THE DISNEY VACATION CLUB AT DISNEY’S POLYNESIAN VILLAGE RESORT

Note: Guests in the Disney Vacation Club spaces at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort are eligible for Disney World’s Early Entry program, and have the ability to pre-book as early as seven days before check-in Lightning Lane Multi Pass and Lightning Lane Single Pass rides. They are also eligible for its Extended Evening Hours.

Disney Vacation Club Studios and Bungalows at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort opened to the general public in April 2015.

There’s two types of spaces here, Studios and Bungalows. These spaces can be booked by anyone like any other DIsney World offering–you don’t have to be a DVC member to book them.

Studios at the Polynesian are a little different than other DVC studios. The Bungalows are unlike anything else except the Cabins at Copper Creek.

There’s no traditional one or two bedroom villas present at the Polynesian or in any announced plans.

I have photo tours of both Polynesian Village offerings on this site, so you could just skip to those:

Otherwise, here’s some thoughts on them.

STUDIOS AT DISNEY’S POLYNESIAN VILLAS & BUNGALOWS

Studios at Disney’s Polynesian Villas & Bungalows (“PVB”) sleep five in a queen bed, fold-out couch, and fold-down bed.

Besides normal deluxe room accoutrements, they—like other DVC studios—also include a mini-kitchen, with the same coffee-maker and mini-fridge as in other deluxe rooms, but also with a small sink, toaster, microwave, and a few eating utensils.

There’s a couple of distinctive features of these studios compared to other DVC studios.

First, you can book them as connecting rooms—most other DVC Studios only connect to (more expensive) One Bedroom Villas.

Second, their capacity for five is currently rare among studios—but becoming more common. Right now, only Studios at Disney’s Riviera Resort, the Villas at the Grand Floridian, BoardWalk Villas, Beach Club Villas, and Boulder Ridge Villas at the Wilderness Lodge also sleep five.

Third, the baths are distinct. Like the Studios at the Grand Floridian and Riviera, there’s both a sink and shower space and also a separate tub and toilet space. However, the baths at PVB add a sink to the tub and toilet space, yielding one full bath and a second bath with shower and sink. Add the third sink just outside in the mini-kitchen area, and your family will have every chance to be very clean.

Fourth, at 465 square feet (the size of the rooms they were converted from), these Studios are the largest among the DVC Studio offerings.

This is a mostly a function of extra width—about 14’ 3” compared to, for example, the Studios at Grand Floridian at 12’ 9” wide. About 50 square feet comes from that difference.

Much of the rest of the extra space is dedicated to the bath and hallway, rather than to the living space, which is wide but short.

As a result of these and other design choices, there’s no room for a dresser. Work at it and you can find probably enough storage in various points across a Studio…but less bath and more dresser would have been a good choice.

So who should stay in these rooms? Well, those renting points should definitely consider them.

Families paying cash instead will find prices most nights of the year in standard view Studios between 102% and 110% of what a standard view room at the Poly those nights would cost.

The Studios are in what used to be my most highly recommended longhouses at the Polynesian—Pago Pago (which most recently was Rapa Nui), Moorea (recently Tahiti) and Tokelau (whose name has not changed).

I used to recommend these longhouses for three reasons: balconies or patios in every room (standard second floor rooms at the rest of the Poly are missing balconies), nice positioning between the Magic Kingdom resort monorail and the walkway to the Epcot monorail, and an extra 50 square feet compared to rooms in the rest of the Poly longhouses, which extra space used to be all dedicated to the living area.

The first two reasons still hold. However, since now most of the extra square footage is now dedicated to the bath and mini-kitchen area, the third reason morphs a bit—at the Studios, for nearly the same amount of money you get a divided bath and the microwave/toaster, and a smaller overall living space.

I go with Tokelau as the best standard view choice among the Studios at the Polynesian.

A full photo tour of a Studio at The Polynesian is here.

BUNGALOWS AT DISNEY’S POLYNESIAN VILLAS & BUNGALOWS

Bungalows in the Polynesian DVC offering are unlike any other accommodations at Disney World except the Cabins at Copper Creek. They hold eight people in two bedrooms—like many DVC Two Bedroom Villas. But the differences are so profound that they should be thought of as their own thing, not as an option among the standard two bedroom choices.

I’m tempted to start with prices, but let’s first focus on the positive.

Each bungalow is its own little building built on pilings in the Seven Seas Lagoon, just away from the Polynesian beaches, and reached from over-water walkways. There’s twenty in all—collectively, the “Bora Bora” area.

You enter into the bedroom wing (on the right of the floor plan) and at the far end (on the left) is a deck with views of the Magic Kingdom and its fireworks, sunbathing spots, and a little “cold water” pool in which to refresh yourself on hot sunbathing days.

Note on this deck lounge chairs, table and chairs (shown above), and the smaller set of chairs accessed from the master bedroom (shown on the floor plan). There’s nothing like this outdoor space anywhere else at Disney World.

Just inside, accessed from two sets of sliding glass doors, is a great room with a full kitchen and dining area on one side, and a living room on the other. The dining area seats all eight this room will sleep—something you won’t find at other two bedroom villas—but the living area, as is common, seats fewer. There’s room here to drag some dining room chairs over.

The living room sleeps three—two on a fold-out couch, and one on a fold-down bed.

Back down the entry hall on the right you’ll find the master suite, with a king bed and private bath. It’s similar to what you’ll find in other DVC master rooms.

Across the hall from the master bedroom is the bath for everyone else, which, after the washer/dryer and closet, is divided into two areas.

Beyond it is the second bedroom, sleeping three on a queen and a fold-down bed. Other second bedrooms at DVC villas are much bigger than this, and typically sleep four on two queens.

So what have we got?

An astonishing deck, likely pretty darn uncomfortable in the sun and humidity even with the little pool from later May through September, but charming the rest of the year, and in early mornings and evenings all year
A kitchen/dining/living space that in sum is clearly better than the eight person equivalents elsewhere except in Copper Creek and perhaps in Old Key West
A fine master bedroom and bath
A very small second bedroom

For this you will pay (including tax) between $3,000 and $5,200 a night.

That number is so big it makes my head hurt. This is around twice what a Two Bedroom Villa at the Villas at the Grand Floridian would cost, and comparable to what a Grand Villa at the Villas at the Grand Floridian—which sleeps four more in almost twice the space…

So Disney is clearly attributing a lot of value to that deck and little pool…or seeing the Bungalows as an alternative not to Two Bedroom Villas elsewhere, but rather to suites at the Polynesian or the Four Seasons.

Most of the highlights of a Bungalow have been covered, but for a full photo tour of a Bungalow at the Polynesian, see this.

PHOTO TOUR OF A STUDIO AT DISNEY’S POLYNESIAN VILLAGE RESORT

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THEMING AND ACCOMMODATIONS AT DISNEY’S POLYNESIAN VILLAGE RESORT

There are currently 8 Disney owned and operated deluxe resorts at Walt Disney World. In the order I recommend them for first time family visitors, they are

All of these except the Yacht Club in addition offer Disney Vacation Club studios and villas, which are also for rent to the general public–see this for more on the Disney Vacation Club resorts. The Polynesian offers DVC Studios and Bungalows. There’s more on DVC at the Polynesian here.

Disney’s Polynesian Resort is described on Walt Disney World’s website as “a relaxing tropical paradise, featuring lush vegetation, thatched roofs, koi ponds and white-sand lake beaches, and offering a warm, welcoming world that celebrates the spirit of the South Pacific and ensures “Ho’Onanea”—the passing of time in languid tranquility.”

The resort opened in October 1971, at the same time Walt Disney World was opened, and since has been expanded three times.

The latest room refurb was completed in 2013, and major other construction was completed in April 2016.

The resort contains 11 longhouses. All of the longhouses have elevators except for Niue, which shares the elevator in Rarotonga.

See the map.

Tuvalu, Aotearoa, and Fiji are the westernmost (left on the map) longhouses, and are closest to the building where the “Spirit of Aloha” luau dinner show operates–noise from which can be annoying, and which itself is not recommended for first time visitors.

These buildings are the least convenient to the Epcot and express monorails at TTC.

The walkway to the spa and exercise area at the Grand Floridian, which Polynesian guests are welcome to use, can be found between Fiji and Aotearoa.

Tonga is next, just west of the Great Ceremonial house, and is where the five suites at the Polynesian are located.

On the marina side, these include the 2 bay, 5 person One-Bedroom Princess, the 3 bay, 9 person Two-Bedroom Princess, and the 6 bay, 8 Person King Kamehameha Suite.

On the monorail side, there’s two 4 bay, 8 person Ambassador Suites.

Also in Tonga is the “Honeymoon Room”–not a suite, but a 1 bay king bed space. Until the Poly’s 2013 renovation, this was the only single bay space at the hotel with king beds. After the renovation, other longhouses offer king rooms as well.

The walkway to Shades of Green can be found between Aotearoa and Tonga.

Four longhouses are just east of the Great Ceremonial House–in order of their nearness to it, they are Rarotonga, Niue, Samoa, and Hawaii. All these longhouses border the Oasis pool.

All rooms in Hawaii are club level.

Samoa and Niue are between the two pools–the volcano-themed Nanea Volcano pool, and the smaller Oasis pool. As a result, these buildings can be noisy, but are the favorites of many families.

The three easternmost longhouses–closest to the TTC–are Tokelau, Moorea (formerly Tahiti), and Pago Pago (formerly Rapa Nui). These longhouses, the most recently constructed, have all been converted to DVC Studios.

The walkway from the Polynesian to the TTC is just east of Pago Pago.

The final area at the Polynesian is the DVC Bungalows in the Bora Bora area on the Seven Seas Lagoon. The Bungalows, which you can’t afford, come in “Ferry Noise” and “Boat Noise” options.

For more on the longhouses, see this.

All Disney World deluxe resorts have

Standard rooms with various names
Preferred rooms, also with various names–rooms similar to standard rooms, but for which more is charged, because of better views, closer proximity to a resort’s central services, or both
Concierge rooms, which Disney calls “club” rooms, and
Suites

At Disney’s Polynesian Resort, standard, preferred and club/concierge rooms sleep five, in two queen beds and a day-bed (some omit the day bed and sleep four. King bed rooms are also available).

Note: rooms in the Polynesian re-opened in July 2021 with a new Moana theme. The basics of the rooms are similar. I will update this review with images from them after I stay in one of these rooms! In the meantime, there’s more on these new Polynesian rooms on the Disney Parks Blog here.

The floor plan of a standard room is above; an image is below. A complete photo tour of a standard Polynesian room is here.

Preferred rooms include “Lagoon View” and “Magic Kingdom View” rooms. While this site generally recommends that first time family visitors should avoid preferred rooms (as the value is not there, since you won’t be in your room much) it makes an exception for the Animal Kingdom Lodge, where you should always pay for a savanna view.

Magic Kingdom view rooms at the Polynesian are also worth it, but only if you can afford the substantial extra cost–on average about 45% more per night.

The image is of the fireworks from my Magic Kingdom view room in July.

Club rooms–which the rest of the world calls concierge rooms–are not worth the extra cost for most first time family visitors, since they won’t be in their rooms much.

The image is from one of the evening offerings in the Club Lounge in the Hawaii Longhouse.

However, they may be well worth it for families intending to spend more time at the Polynesian than implied by this site’s itineraries. TikimanPages.com has a great discussion of the value of concierge rooms here. Tom Bricker takes the other side of this argument here. Co-author Josh reviews a club stay at the Polynesian on easyWDW.com here.

Suites sleeping 5 to 9 people are available at Disney’s Polynesian Resort for families seeking a particularly comfortable visit–see this for more on suites at Walt Disney World.

(To each of the capacity figures above, you can add one more kid under 3 at time of check in who sleeps in a crib.)

Bungalows and Studios in the Polynesian Disney Vacation Club program are also available to the general public–see this for Polynesian Studio and Bungalow floor plans and photo tours.

The DVC conversion has taken away what used to be the best longhouses at the Polynesian (although you can stay in one of the studios in these longhouses even if you aren’t a DVC member. A photo tour of such a studio is here.)

Of what’s left, Rarotonga would be the recommended longhouse as it is convenient to everything, and Samoa next.

PHOTO TOUR OF A STANDARD ROOM AT DISNEY’S POLYNESIAN VILLAGE RESORT

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DINING AT DISNEY’S POLYNESIAN VILLAGE RESORT

Disney’s Polynesian Resort has some of the best dining at Walt Disney World, most of it in the Great Ceremonial House.

The counter service offering is the first-floor Captain Cook’s–also with outdoor seating…

…which you can see through the windows.

You’ll find the most up-to date menu on Disney’s site, but above is the lunch/dinner menu as of my last visit.

You order and then use a pager to actually get your food when it is ready.

The well-known Polynesian treat, a Reuben sandwich.

The breakfast menu.

There’s a number of dining items at Disney World that are considered must-trys, but to me the one that most consistently lives up to its billing is Tonga Toast (above).

Outside of Captain Cook’s is a spot where you can grab a Dole Whip or Pineapple Sundae.

The first floor bar, Trader Sam’s, is based on the famous one at the Disneyland Hotel. On my visit it was too crowded for me to get in to the indoor part of this bar other than for a quick, out-of-focus shot. I promise do better soon!

There’s also an outdoor section to Trader Sam’s–an image of it is at the top of the page.

The Trader Sam’s review from our book, The easy Guide to Your Walt Disney World Visit 2019:

Upstairs there’s two table service restaurants, the family-friendly ‘Ohana and the Kona Cafe.

‘Ohana (review here) does a breakfast meal with Mickey, Lilo and Stitch, and a no-character evening meal with skewered meat.

Here’s the review from our book, The easy Guide to Your Walt Disney World Visit 2019:

‘Ohana gets booked up in advance and its staging area gets quite crowded.

Kona Cafe, around the corner from ‘Ohana, has two areas. One serves as a coffee bar in the morning and a sushi bar in the evening.

The other is the restaurant proper.

The Kona Cafe review from our book, The easy Guide to Your Walt Disney World Visit 2019:

‘Ohana is best loved by families; Kona Café is an under-appreciated gem, best known for its Tonga Toast. Neither is a truly distinctive adult dining experience–for that, you’ll need to go to another Disney World deluxe resort.

Also on the second floor floor you’ll find another bar, Tambu Lounge.

If getting to the second floor seems like too much work, you may find this bar cart downstairs in the lobby area.

Outside and towards the Grand Floridian you’ll find the luau dinner show. Our lukewarm review from our book, The easy Guide to Your Walt Disney World Visit 2019:

There’s also a bar at each pool, and the smaller Oasis pool has a limited-hours grill with an interesting menu (click it to enlarge it):

THE POOLS AT DISNEY’S POLYNESIAN VILLAGE RESORT

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PHOTO TOUR OF A STANDARD ROOM AT DISNEY’S POLYNESIAN VILLAGE RESORT

Note: rooms in the Polynesian re-opened in July 2021 with a new Moana theme. The basics of the rooms are similar. I will update this review with images from them after I stay in one of these rooms! In the meantime, there’s more on these new Polynesian rooms on the Disney Parks Blog here.

Standard rooms at Disney’s Polynesian Resort are among the largest on property.

As you enter the room, on one side you’ll find the bath and the other two closets separated by a cabinet with a mini-fridge below and coffee service above.

Each is good-sized, and overall there’s plenty of space with multiple hanging levels. This image is of the one closer to the door…

…and this one the one closer to the room. Note the ironing board, safe, and small drawers, and the space at the left for hanging longer dresses. (Most rooms do not have the robes.)

The mini-fridge is below the coffee maker, and has plenty of room.

The bath is on the other side of the entry hall. It retains the old-fashioned design of not being divided–the toilet, tub and sinks all share one space. See the floor plan at the top of the page.

As you enter the Polynesian bath, you’ll find two sinks on one side…

…a tub/shower combo on the other…

…and a toilet at the back.

Further back in the room, one side has two queen beds and a chair.

A closer view of a bed.

Between the beds is this small bedside table.

The beds from the window end of the room–you can also see the easy chair.

At the end of the room are three large windows–rooms with balconies or patios will access these from this space as well.

Here’s the view from our balcony in the Hawaii longhouse, theme park view!

The theme park view is best at night during the evening fireworks.

The other side of the room…

…and from the back.

This side of the room includes a desk…

…with a table on wheels underneath that can serve either as a better typing position for a laptop, or be rolled elsewhere in the room to as a place to dine or play with the kids.

Next to the desk is a dresser with a TV on top.

There’s six smallish drawers here.

The last item on this side of the room is a couch…

…which flips down into a bed.

The bed is ~33 inches wide by ~72 inches long, but sleeps longer than that as the frames have 75 inches clear between them. I’m about 6 feet tall, and was quite comfortable in this bed–both in length, and in its cushioning.

The bed side of these rooms has fine proportions, but in rooms with a connecting door, the desk/dresser/sofa side has everything jammed a little too closely together. Overall these are among Disney World’s most livable rooms.

AMENITIES AT DISNEY’S POLYNESIAN VILLAGE RESORT

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OVERVIEW: DISNEY’S POLYNESIAN VILLAGE RESORT

Note: guests at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort are eligible for Disney World’s Early Entry program, and have the ability to pre-book as early as seven days before check-in Lightning Lane Multi Pass and Lightning Lane Single Pass rides. They are also eligible for its Extended Evening Hours.

Our most recent stay in January (my seventh stay here out of my more than 160 stays in Disney World) confirms what this site has recommended since the day it was launched: for those who can afford it, Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort, a monorail resort, is the best place for first time family visitors to stay.

You can have a wonderful visit at any Walt Disney World resort hotel.

However, this site recommends that first time visitors to Walt Disney World who can afford it should stay at Disney’s Polynesian Resort, a deluxe resort, and that those who can’t should stay at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort, a value resort.

(It also suggests that first time visitors should avoid the moderate resorts, while noting that these resorts are wonderful for visits after the first. See this for why.)

Compared to other Walt Disney World owned and operated resorts, the deluxe resorts are distinguished by having (on average) the most amenities, nicest views, best dining options, best transport options, largest rooms, best service, and highest prices.

(See this for much more on resort distinctions by price class–value, moderate, deluxe, etc.)

This review of Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort includes

ACCOMMODATIONS AT DISNEY’S POLYNESIAN VILLAGE RESORT

Note: rooms in the Polynesian re-opened in July 2021 with a new Moana theme. The basics of the rooms are similar. I will update this review with images from them after I stay in one of these rooms! In the meantime, there’s more on these new Polynesian rooms on the Disney Parks Blog here.

Standard rooms at Disney’s Polynesian Resort are particularly nice.

The rooms sleep five–two each in two queens, and a fifth on the couch, which converts into a daybed. You can add to this capacity of five a child younger than three who sleeps in a crib. A photo tour of one of these rooms begins here.

King bed rooms are also available. These rooms come with several view options, with “Standard” (e.g. parking lot) views the least expensive, and “Theme Park” (Magic Kingdom) views the most expensive.

Concierge rooms and suites are also available.

Also here are Studios and Bungalows–part of the Disney Vacation offering, but also bookable by anyone.

More on accommodations at the Polynesian Village is here.

THE POOLS AND BEACHES AT DISNEY’S POLYNESIAN VILLAGE RESORT

Both of the two pools here are marvelous.

The main Lava pool (above) includes a hot tub, water slide and kids play area, and the smaller Oasis pool (below) has a bar and grill.

There’s more on the pools and beaches at the Polynesian here.

DINING AT DISNEY’S POLYNESIAN VILLAGE RESORT

The Polynesian Village has three table service restaurants and several bars (including the remarkable Trader Sam’s) and quick-service options. More great dining is a monorail ride away.

I’m not keen on the Luau, but the much-loved ‘Ohana has strong family-friendly dining, and Kona Cafe, while not wildly distinctive, is one of the better Disney World dining venues.

There’s more on dining at the Polynesian Village here.

KID APPEAL AND CONVENIENCE AT DISNEY’S POLYNESIAN VILLAGE RESORT

Resorts are ranked on this site for first time visitors based first on their kid appeal, and then on their convenience.

On this basis, Disney’s Polynesian Resort, a monorail resort, is far and away the best resort for first time family visitors to Walt Disney World.

Kid Appeal.

Three of the deluxe resorts–the Wilderness Lodge, Animal Kingdom Lodge, and Polynesian Resort, in that order–have spectacular kid appeal.
None of the moderates do.
All of the value resorts–Disney’s All-Star Sports, All-Star Music, and All-Star Movies, and its Pop Century Resort and Art of Animation Resort–have strong kid appeal.

The kid appeal of the Polynesian Resort comes from its sense of exotic adventure.

The architecture of the resort recalls the villages of the South Pacific.

It is reinforced by touches such as flaming torches, spectacular gardens, leis-festooned staff (and guests!), hula lessons, etc.

Convenience.

Disney’s Polynesian Resort is the most convenient of the Disney Resorts–especially for trips centered on the Magic Kingdom and Epcot, as they are on most first visits.

It is one of three “monorail resorts” on the Magic Kingdom resort monorail line.

It is more convenient than the other two because it is also the only resort within easy walking distance of the Epcot and express monorails.

This means that the Magic Kingdom is two stops away when going there, via the resort monorail, and one stop back, via the express monorail.

This better than either of the Contemporary (4 stops to, 1 from) or Grand Floridian Resorts (1 and 4), the other two resorts on the resort monorail.

Moreover, at the Contemporary and Grand Floridian, going to Epcot means taking the resort monorail to the Transportation and Ticket Center (TTC), and then the Epcot monorail.

From the Polynesian, you simply walk to the TTC and the Epcot monorail.

There’s also a boat from the Polynesian to and from the Magic Kingdom. Shared with the Grand Floridian, it’s more fun than fast.

BEST PLACES TO STAY AT DISNEY’S POLYNESIAN VILLAGE RESORT

This site suggests that first time visitors stay in standard rooms, not preferred rooms. This is because they won’t be spending much time in their rooms. The single exception is visitors to the Animal Kingdom Lodge, who should always pay for savanna views.

That said, theme park views at the Polynesian are worth the money if you can afford them (about 45% more)…the image is of Happily Ever After from the balcony of my theme park view room.

Rooms in Disney’s Polynesian Resort are found in eleven two or three story “longhouses,” each with an elevator (or access to an elevator in a nearby building).

What used to be the best longhouse options–Pago Pago, Tokelau, and Moorea–are now DVC rooms. Anyone can book these three longhouses–you don’t have to be a DVC member–and their location and the studios in them have some real merit. A photo tour of a Studio at the Polynesian is here.

Among the rest, the most conveniently located is Rarotonga–close to the Great Ceremonial House and its restaurants, pool, and resort monorail, to the quiet pool, to the bus stop, and to the walkway to TTC and the Epcot monorail. Like the rest of the non-DVC longhouses, second floor rooms at Rarotonga don’t have balconies. First floor rooms have patios, and third floor rooms have balconies.

Next best is Samoa.

Ideally, you’d request a third floor room for the balcony, better views, and more quiet.

BEST FOR:

Any first time family visitors who can afford it.

WORST FOR:

Families too large to fit into even its 5 person rooms. See this for more on large families at Walt Disney World.

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THEMING AND ACCOMMODATIONS AT DISNEY’S POP CENTURY RESORT

Disney’s Pop Century Resort is one of 5 value resorts at Walt Disney World:

Disney’s All-Star Sports Resort, opened in April 1994
Disney’s All-Star Music Resort, opened in November 1994
Disney’s All-Star Movies Resort, opened in January 1999
Disney’s Pop Century Resort, opened in December 2003
Disney’s Art of Animation Resort, opened in May 2012

Each of these five has four-person standard rooms. At Pop Century, All-Star Movies and shortly in All-Star Music, you get two queen beds and a coffee maker. In the not-yet refurbed rooms at Music, and in All-Star Sports and Art of Animation, you get full beds and no coffee makers. Queen beds in All-Star Sports are possible soon.

For most families looking for standard rooms and not worried about full beds or coffee makers, Art of Animation is the best choice, followed by Pop Century. Art of Animation rooms are also the most expensive–especially in the summer, when they approach moderate-level pricing. The All-Stars are all priced the same, and are the least expensive. Pop rooms average $40 more per night than the All-Stars, and $40 less per night than Art of Animation.

Disney’s Pop Century Resort officially salutes “many of the 20th-century popular culture crazes—including toys, gadgets, music, movies, fads and catch phrases.”

Pop Century’s theme is to recall the later decades of the twentieth century, through enormous statues of toys, games, Disney characters, and other stuff relevant to the decades. You’ll find scattered around the resort a Mickey Mouse Telephone, Roger Rabbit, a Big Wheel, bowling pins, Baloo and Mowgli, Lady and the Tramp and more…all 30 to over 60 feet tall!

Elsewhere you’ll find Play-Doh, Mr. Potato Head, a more than life sized foosball game, a pool designed to look like a bowling alley, a four-story laptop, and more.

ACCOMMODATIONS AT DISNEY’S POP CENTURY RESORT

There are 2,880 rooms at Pop Century, evenly divided among ten accommodations buildings, each with elevators.

They are available in four booking classes, basically preferred or standard, with each of these available as pool view or not. The least expensive rooms are standard without a pool view, and most expensive are preferred pool view.

Preferred rooms are scattered in wings of several buildings and in general are a shorter walk to the main pool, the gift shop and food court, and the bus stops. Pool view rooms overlook one of the three pools, and will be louder than others.

Once you’d booked your class, during online check in (or over the phone) you can further request particular areas, a lake view, upper or lower floors, near transportation, and near elevators.

These rooms a refurb completed in 2018 now have two queen beds–the second is a fold-down bed that makes the table disappear when it’s down. Refurbed rooms also have more storage, more power points, bigger TVs, more bath privacy, and coffeemakers. A full photo tour of a refurbed room begins here.

Also available are rooms that sleep two on one king bed. There’s fewer than 200 of these, and they too are not directly bookable, nor do they show up on the on-line forms.

My general recommendation is an upper floor lake view room. These will be quietest and loveliest. Here’s some lake views:

THE AREAS AT DISNEY’S POP CENTURY RESORT

A quick look at the map tells you a lot about Disney’s Pop Century Resort.

The key points to notice are Hourglass Lake, at the top, the Disney Skyliner gondola station here, circled in black, and the central resort services, circled in red and orange at the middle.

Rooms facing Hourglass Lake will have the best views, and many will be close to the Skyliner station. Rooms closer to the central resort services will have the shortest walks to concierge services, dining, and the bus stops.

Pop Century’s ten buildings are nominally divided into five areas–1950s, ’60s, ’70s, ’80s and ’90s–representing the icons and memories of each decade, each area with a different set of larger-than-life Disney characters, toys from the era, and other decorations, with a particular focus on music playback tools.

However, there’s just one ’90s building, grouped in with the ’80s buildings, so in fact Pop Century really has just four areas.

The three ’50s buildings, grouped around the Bowling Pin pool
The two ’60s buildings, grouped around the main Hippy Dippy pool
The two ’70s buildings, the only ones without a pool in their center–making them quieter–and
The two ’80s and one ’90s buildings grouped around the Computer pool

THE 50s AREA AT DISNEY’S POP CENTURY RESORT

The three buildings in the 50s area– Buildings 1, 2 and 3–take dancing at a sock hop and bowling as their overall theme, with a bowling pin shaped pool and bowling pins hiding the stairs. While bowling was more popular in the 60s, its popularity began to take off in the 50s.

A jukebox decorates the center of one of the buildings…

…and Lady and the Tramp (1955) the other two.

The 50s buildings are reasonably good places to stay, with their principal negative being distance from the bus stops.

THE 60s AREA AT DISNEY’S POP CENTURY RESORT

The 60s area, with Buildings 4 and 5, is themed to flower power and other more innocuous 60s themes and has the most centrally located of the Pop Century rooms. Many of them surround the main pool at Pop Century, the Hippy Dippy pool.

These rooms have become even more convenient with the new Disney Skyliner gondola station opening on the bridge between Pop and Art of Animation, with service to the Caribbean Beach hub, from which you can re-board the gondola lines to Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

Stairs are themed to yo-yos, which resurged in the 60s.

The movie theming is the Jungle Book (1967).

You’ll also find here Play-Do–invented in the 30s as a wallpaper cleaner, and repurposed in the 60s as a creative toy.

THE 70s AREA AT DISNEY’S POP CENTURY RESORT

The 70s has buildings 6 and 10, and is the only area at Pop Century that does not surround a pool, making these rooms generally Pop’s quietest. Still close to buses, the Skyliner, and the central services and main pool, and with plenty of lake views, it’s the area at Pop Century I recommend the most.

Stairs are themed to 8 track tapes, frankly a dull and forgettable choice.

In a testament to the state of Disney animation in the 70s, this area is the only one at Pop Century with no Disney movie highlighted…

The overall theme is active play, and the courtyard of buildings 6 and 10 is dominated by a larger than life foosball court.

Smaller play areas are also here–e.g. Twister, which nowadays is a prima facie venue for sexual harassment.

You’ll also find an enormous Micky phone which sets a Disney connection that makes up for the absence of a movie reference in the 70s area.

The Mickey phones were part of an AT&T program of “Design Line” phones that launched in the early 70s.

Across the foosball court is a Big Wheel–launched in 1969.

THE 80s AND 90s AREA AT DISNEY’S POP CENTURY RESORT

Two 80s buildings–7 and 9–and one 90s building, 8, make up a three building group surrounding a pool that works more as a unified area than as two separate themed areas, which is why I consider them together here.

These buildings are most distant from the main pool and central dining, gift shop and other services, but some rooms, especially in Building 9, are not far from the bus stop.

Stairs are themed as Rubik’s Cubes, invented in the 70s but licensed to be sold in the 80s…

…and to 90s-style cell ones, which are almost life-size.

The pool area in the center of the three buildings is laid out like an early laptop, with the keyboard on one side and the screen on Building 8. The green item at the left of the screen is a floppy disk, which were central to computing until they weren’t.

The Disney movie referenced here is Roger Rabbit (1988).

Across from Roger is probably the weakest principal icon at Pop Century, a Sony Walkman–introduced in Japan in 1979.

Adding some playfulness to what other than Roger Rabbit is pretty dull theming is this charming couple, found near Hourglass Lake.

Category — d. Where to Stay at Walt Disney World

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