Disney has many value resorts across thier massive property at Walt Disney World. Though, none quite compare to Pop Century for me. As a child, when my family visited, we commonly stayed at the resort. Fun oversized props and decorations adorn the resort from end to end on the rightfully named houglass lake. On one of my trips I got to thinking about something strange. The resort had sections themed to the 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s. This leaves me scratching my head wondering: Where is the first half of the century? As dumb as the question may be to some, there’s a much more interesting answer to this than some would think.
In my years of taking vacation after vacation to Walt Disney World, I have continued to find out new things about the resort. When I was younger, my family and I would always stay at the Pop Century Resort. This resort was newly built when we first visited, and it looked amazing! The main pool was huge, the oversized props were cool, and transportation between the parks couldn’t be beaten. But something remained unclear to me. “Where was the other half of the century?” They had the 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s. Where was the 40s, 30s, 20s, 10s, and 00s? Did they just lose half the century? I later found out that was not the case.
Disney
In the mid 19
It all started in the mid-1990s when Disney decided to build the All-Star Resorts. When the All-Star Sports Resort opened in 1994, Disney came to a realization that the value-sector resorts were a great moneymaker for the company. This is why, after 5 years, they began construction on Pop Century.
The Pop Century Resort Complex was going to be the largest resort on the property with over 5,760 standard rooms. The whole theme would be a showcase of the 20th century and would be decorated as the All Star Resorts had been, with oversized props and decorations.
The Complex would include 2 resorts. The first resort was to be called The Classic Years, the second The Legendary Years. The Classic Years was to be finished sometime in late 2001 and was going to be themed from the 1950s to the 1990s. The Legendary Years was to be finished sometime in 2003 and be themed to the 1900s to the 1940s. The two resorts would be connected with a jogging path and a bridge called the Generation Gap Bridge going around or across the artificially made hourglass lake.
After two years of construction of the Classic Years and the Legendary Years, Disney had some concerns that the property was incomplete. In response, they delayed the Classic Years opening till March of 2002. Following that announcement, 9/11 occurred. Disney decided to postpone both properties and did not give them an opening date. Soon though, Disney resumed the construction of the Classic Years side of the resort. The Legendary Years side was left untouched as Walt Disney World didn’t need another 2,800 standard rooms with the tourism recession post-2001.
After two years of construction of the Classic Years and the Legendary Years, Disney had some concerns that the property was incomplete. In response, they delayed the Classic Years opening till March of 2002. Following that announcement, 9/11 occurred. Disney decided to postpone both properties and did not give them an opening date. Soon though, Disney resumed the construction of the Classic Years side of the resort. The Legendary Years side was left untouched as Walt Disney World didn’t need another 2,800 standard rooms with the tourism recession post-2001.
After two years of construction of the Classic Years and the Legendary Years, Disney had some concerns that the property was incomplete. In response, they delayed the Classic Years opening till March of 2002. Following that announcement, 9/11 occurred. Disney decided to postpone both properties and did not give them an opening date. Soon though, Disney resumed the construction of the Classic Years side of the resort. The Legendary Years side was left untouched as Walt Disney World didn’t need another 2,800 standard rooms with the tourism recession post-2001.
Finally, in 2007, after 6 years of abandonment, Disney announced they were opening the Legendary Years site. They planned to continue construction where they left off. Unfortunately, again, that year came and went. This left many people wondering: “When will this resort finally be completed?” Three years later, in 2010, we finally got our answer.
On May 12, 2010, after 9 years of the site being untouched and abandoned, the Art of Animation Resort was announced. The resort was going to be themed around classic Disney Animation, and themes included: Cars, The Little Mermaid, Finding Nemo, and The Lion King. The themes would be conveyed again with oversized props and décor; however, the difference between other value resorts was the rooms.
On May 12, 2010, after 9 years of the site being untouched and abandoned, the Art of Animation Resort was announced. The resort was going to be themed around classic Disney Animation, and themes included: Cars, The Little Mermaid, Finding Nemo, and The Lion King. The themes would be conveyed again with oversized props and décor; however, the difference between other value resorts was the rooms.
To save money on converting the 3 pre-existing buildings built for the Legendary Years, Art of Animation was going to use the 2 guest buildings. This includes 576 of the 864 standard rooms in the Little Mermaid section of the Resort. Disney’s Art of Animation Resort opened on May 31, 2012, and people loved the resort. They loved the pool, and the food court got fantastic reviews. Fast forward to today, nothing has really changed. Art of Animation (or the Legendary Years) is still the newest value resort, and the resort has had no major altering refurbishments to date.
For more content, stay tunned to RideRover!