Pop century vs Caribbean Beach Resort

[Surfaccifilms]

Single father here.
I can’t decide between PC and CBR for my next trip with my son. We’ve stayed at All Star movies , art of animation and shades of green and we’re having a tough time choosing our next resort for next spring 2021. Any suggestions? FYI my son will be 9 by the time we travel next to Disney (hopefully travel ). Will a 9 year old enjoy pop? Are the pirate rooms (at cbr) near the skyliner?
Side note - I’m a front line healthcare worker (RCIS) - planning/ thinking about something fun is a great distraction. Thx guys

 

[Sue M]

My preference would always be a moderate above a value. CBR was our first WDW on site resort! Quite a few years ago now. We were in Jamaica and I’d request that location again. It’s pretty central. The problem with pirate rooms is they may be close to the Skyliner but far away from the rest of the resort amenities. Have a look at the resort map. You'll see Jamaica is pretty convenient too.

We loved the lush landscaping, Theming, pretty little tucked away areas, the pool and nice quiet pool areas too. Also the hammocks on the beach! Nothing like swaying in a hammock under the palm trees at the end of the day with a beverage!

As a Front Line Responder you’ll be ready for a nice relaxing resort and your son will love the Pirate Fort pool with slides.

 

[Surfaccifilms]

My preference would always be a moderate above a value. CBR was our first WDW on site resort! Quite a few years ago now. We were in Jamaica and I’d request that location again. It’s pretty central. The problem with pirate rooms is they may be close to the Skyliner but far away from the rest of the resort amenities. Have a look at the resort map. You'll see Jamaica is pretty convenient too.

We loved the lush landscaping, Theming, pretty little tucked away areas, the pool and nice quiet pool areas too. Also the hammocks on the beach! Nothing like swaying in a hammock under the palm trees at the end of the day with a beverage!

As a Front Line Responder you’ll be ready for a nice relaxing resort and your son will love the Pirate Fort pool with slides.

Awesome advice! Thank you

 

[dmband]

IMO if you have stayed at AoA, no other value will compare.
CBR all day. It is big and you could have a hike to stuff but it is very nice

 

[MomOTwins]

CBR, but I wouldn't pay for the pirate rooms. They are so much pricier than the standard, and further from the main area.

 

[JenBush]

There’s no question that there are more amenities at CBR. It has a nicer main pool and more dining options. However, if you only use the hotel as a place to sleep at night and don’t plan on exploring the resort/having a pool day/eating many meals there, maybe staying at Pop and putting the extra money towards an after hours event, fireworks dessert party, or something else would be the better option.

 

[Kevin355]

Have stayed at CBR quite a few times. The one benefit that CBR has is the quiet pools around the resorts. They have the main pool which gets pretty crowded, but we liked the quiet pools. Kids had more room to themselves and closer to the room when you want to escape.

 

[kmartin]

We have stayed at both POP and CBR and liked both. When we stayed at POP we did not have our son with us, and we just really spent our time at the resort as a place to crash. We were with a large group who were all staying at AKL, which was way out of our budget at the time! It was cool though, because this was in 2013 and we were the only people in our group with Magic Bands since they were pilot testing them with POP guests at the time. I think a 9-year-old would think the theming at POP is kind of fun, but he probably won't recognize a lot of the cultural references. If you think he'd enjoy the colorful kid-like atmosphere, I'd choose this resort. You'll save money to spend on other things, have more pool options, and get more of a Disney atmosphere. It's smaller than CBR and you've got the Skyliner now, which is closer to most of the POP buildings than some of the CBR buildings are from its Skyliner station. If you think you'll eat a few meals at the resort, he may like the menu options at POP better than the offerings at CBR.

HOWEVER, we LOVED staying at CBR back in 2017 before all the remodeling. We had two teenage boys in tow on that trip, and having the extra room and two sinks was a plus. Since it'll just be you and your son, the double sinks and extra space might not be as important for you. They loved the pool area and the food court, and my husband and I loved relaxing at Banana Cabana. We can't wait to go back and check out the new and improved Banana Cabana since we enjoyed it so much before. Since the kids were older and could go off on their own, we enjoyed more time to ourselves at the resort, so the atmosphere of CBR (a less in-your-face Disney color blast decor of a value resort) was appealing to us adults. With the Skyliner offering more transportation options as well, this is a great option. I really think it would come down to money if I were choosing, but you may find it a bit more relaxing as an adult to stay at CBR. Your son is going to love this trip either way, so I think either resort you choose will offer you guys a great stay.