Have you ever wondered what it was like to go back in time? To relive the magic of yesteryear and experience the joys and pleasures of going down to the local disco or trying to figure out that intricate and complicated Rubrics Cube. Well, even if you have experienced that magic you can now share it with your family and friends’ with Disney’s POP Century Resort. The resort pays homage to the icons, dance moves, and phrase of the 50s-90s. The Resort has over 2,800 rooms for you delight; each room is decked out with styles represented of their respected period.

The Rooms
Room sizes run about 260sq feet about the normal size of your standard Disney Value Resort. I have found the rooms fit COMFORTABLY about four people. The rooms have two double beds or one king size bed that can be requested for handicap guests.

Also, you will find your room to have a table and chair set that makes it a great place to relax and go over your theme park “game plans.” Like most Disney resorts POP Century has a vanity area aside from the toilet and shower, which make those EARLY theme park mornings a breeze. Rooms also contain an in room safe for your convenience along with an iron and ironing board. Since this is a new resort the size of the TVs are bigger POP TVs’ run about “27 inches in size as opposed to other Disney resort.

If you are traveling with little ones and you want to keep their juice and milk cold you can rent a refrigerator for approximately $10 (plus Florida tax) a day. However, this can become costly if you are staying for five nights or more. So think carefully if you really want those drinks cold. Most folks I have talked to bring their own coolers or for a personal tip I just load up on ice from the FREE ice machine and put my water bottles in their to chill for the evening (they hold up to about three water bottle), the rooms are so cold from the a/c anyways that your drinks will be nice and refreshing in the morning.

The Magic & Ambiance of the Resort
POP Century is reminiscent of your standard All-Star Resort. However, POP really puts the All-Star Resorts to shame, I would consider POP a little more “upscale” in terms of location and size but be forewarned this resort is ENORMOUS, when I was their in August their was always a line at the check-in, but Cast Members seem to expedited guest fast and quickly to their appropriate room. Since this resort is across the street from Disney’s Wide World of Sport Complex I would not be surprised to see a lot of sports team lodging at POP during those peak seasons.

Classic Hall (Pop’s Check-In) is your gateway to your retro journey back to the past. As soon as you step foot into the resort you will hear pop hits from the past and present like the “twist” from Chevy Checker and “Last Dance” from Donna Summers, these songs will have you ‘hoping’ and ‘bopping’ as you begin your day at Walt Disney World. Be sure to take a gander at all the shadow boxes on the wall, each box has memorabilia from each respected decade. Don’t know what period it came from? Look up at the wall and a timeline will help you out. Disney Imagineers searched flea markets, antique shops, and auctions to collect memorabilia from each decade. I have to tell you it’s pretty impressive to see items like a huge cellular phone from the early 90s and an Elvis Presley A-Track from the 70s. Classic Hall also acts as the “hub” for all your resort needs, the Fast Forward arcade is NO ordinary hotel game room this arcade is stocked with games galore. You earn tickets for the games that you play the games run the gamut from ski ball to pin ball and at the end of your stay you can trade in your tickets for prizes like whistles to even a Mickey Mouse phone if you collect enough tickets. A caricature artist is on hand in the lobby to create artistic cartoon caricatures of you or your family, I must say the artist does great work and for a fee you will surely be impressed.

Everything POP
Everything POP is your gateway to food and shopping the Everything POP store has all your Disney goodies and souvenirs. I must say however, be FOREWARNED the gift shop is in a spot that is accessible to the busses and food court so you seem to pass by it or go through it at least 3-4 times a day. So if you or you children have a bad case of the ‘gimmies’ I would strongly suggest finding alternative routes. However, if shopping is your thing then the Everything POP store is your place! It has a great selection of pins, clothing, and sun dries and what’s unique to this gift shop is it has a wonderful assortment of Disney Bowling ball, Rubrics Cubes, and Mood Rings.

Food Fun
After long day at Walt Disney World you might have developed a voracious appetite, the Everything POP food court offers a selection of ok foods to choose from the food court serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner. My Friend and I had eaten breakfast and dinner at the resort and I would highly recommend the cheese omelet for about $5.89 you get a good size omelet, biscuit, and home fries (there are also other omelet choices)I do not recommend however, the bagel sandwich it is way to greasy! You will be sick all day.

As for dinner you will be reminded of the foods that mom use to make like fried chicken, meatball subs, and meatloaf and the cool thing about dinner is that meals are served in TV tray containers for you enjoyment and nostalgia. If you do not like what you see don’t forget to venture to the back of the food court where you can find croissants and pastries in the morning and salads, fruits, and other goodies throughout the day and the prices are reasonable.

Now if you have stayed at a Walt Disney World Resort before you will know what I’m talking about: REFILLABBLE MUGS. Mugs can be purchased in two sizes a travel size (long and slender) or jumbo size (fat and round) the mugs will run you about $11.99 and they can be a value if you like to drink a lot of soda or even coffee in the morning. When I was there I did notice a lot and I mean a lot of guests had resort mugs from different Disney Resorts this practice is discouraged by Disney but I did not see any Cast Member enforcing this rule so I SAY GO NUTS!

Be sure to be at the food court around 8AM and 6PM at 8AM Cast Members do the twist and at 6PM they do the hussel a must see! If you want a refreshing beverage in the afternoon check out The Classic Concoctions bar which offers mixed drinks and snacks in the afternoon for your enjoyment. Be sure to look around the food court, you will find cool icons hanging from the wall like rollerblades and rubrics cubes and flat panel TVs on the wall offers a great selection of your favorite Disney cartoons, it surely will keep the kids entertained while their feasting.

A little taste of the Resort Layout
Each building is spread out along the POP Century property and when Legendary Year’s (the second ½ of the POP Century Resort) opens in the coming years POP Century will become a the largest resort in the Disney Value Category. I would recommend requesting a room in the 60s building it is the closest to Classic Years where the food court and bus stops are, the 1990s building is a little more quiet and relaxed but it is the farthest on the property. When you stay at POP be sure to have plenty of film on hand.

I have to say the icons are quite impressive for the 60s buildings you will find Duncan/Imperial Yo-Yos, Play do, and Mogli and Baloo from the Jungle book be sure to take advantage of the Hippy Dippy pool and alongside the pool the Petals pool bar offers great mixed drinks and other snacks. In the 50s building you will find Lady and the Tramp, bowling pins, juke boxes and the bowling pin pool which is great for an evening or afternoon swim. The 70s building offers A-Tracks, a Big Wheels Bike, Mickey Phone and a huge Fuse Bowl Court. Also, there is a twister game set up for you to enjoy. The 80s building offers Roger Rabbit, Rubrics Cube (that lights up at night a true spectacle!), Packman and Mr. & Mrs. Potato Head offers an eccentric touch to the 80s building. The 90s building has cell phones and the computer pool which is truly cool!

Bus Service
As with any Disney Resort, POP Century offers bus service to all the four theme parks and water parks plus downtown Disney and Pleasure Island. For peak season the buses were very prompt. Give yourself enough time to get to each park due to the fact that sometime buses can get full. If you are going to Animal Kingdom for instance the bus makes a stop a Blizzard Beach before going to the Animal Kingdom so be forewarned, because that can really delay your AK arrival time. Bus drivers are very amusing and they always keep you entertained. Sometime you will get lucky and they will provide you with park tips and other Disney fun facts.

Well there it is folk, the magic and wonder of Disney’s POP Century Resort so if you’re eight or eighty-eight this resort is beyond a doubt FAR OUT!! You will not be disappointed when you stay at here and you will just be amazed at the nostalgia and memories that you can now share with your friends and family. POP Century is next to Disney’s Caribbean Beach so it’s close to EPCOT, MGM STUDIOS AND ANIMAL KINGDOM. The only long trip is the Magic Kingdom which is a little further away. So what are you waiting for? Get on those dancing shoes and polyester jump suits and head down to Disney’s POP Century. This resort is located on 1050 Century Drive and their phone number is (407) 938-4000.