Walt Disney World Resorts: Intro to Value Resorts
Here comes another informative series, like the rides and attractions series where we described and rated all rides at Walt Disney World. This time, we're going to take a deeper look at resorts. And, yes, rate them....sort of (We'll tell you our top picks in each category)
We wrote a general blog post about resorts that describes categories and, in general, what you can expect from each resort category here. In that post, we called the Skyliner the "Skyway" and we deeply regret it. To be fair, it was still under construction at the time. Despite that, check out that post before moving on if you don't know anything about Disney resorts.
Now that we've cleared that up, here's how this is going to work: We will take things category by category, starting with value, then moderate, then deluxe, then DVC, and then oddballs like campgrounds and non-Disney Disney resorts. You'll see what we mean when we get there. First, we'll post a general narrative about resorts in that category, and then the following week, we will provide you with at-a-glance breakdowns of each resort including quick synopsis, recreation options, transportation options, resort area, how large the resort is, in general, and what's good and bad about each resort, which is strictly our opinion.
So without further ado, let's start with our first category....
Walt Disney World Value Resorts, Explained
As you've probably guessed, value resorts are the least expensive Walt Disney World resorts to stay at. In fact, quite often, the price is very comparable to a hotel off-property. But, by staying at a Walt Disney World resort, you get the same benefits all guests of Disney resorts get, which include:
Early theme park entry
Complimentary Walt Disney World transportation from your resort to the theme parks
If you have a Magic Band, keyless entry to your resort hotel room
Earlier ability to make dining reservations (at 60 days out from the FIRST day of your stay, you can make reservations for your entire length of stay up to 10 days)
Earlier ability to make Lightning Lane reservations each day if using Genie+ (at 7am rather than at park opening)
Staying inside the "Disney Bubble" and being served by Disney Cast Members for your entire vacation
In addition to that, EVERY Disney resort is going to have these amenities:
Pools
Quick service food on resort property
Laundry (you pay, but there are facilities)
A gift shop
Wifi
There are five Value resorts:
Pop Century
Art of Animation
All-Star Sports
All-Star Movies
All-Star Music
Pop Century and Art of Animation are right next to each other, in the Disney Hollywood Studios area. The All-Star resorts are also all right next to each other, this time in the Blizzard Beach/Animal Kingdom area.
Photo credit: Undercovertourist.com - All-Star Movies resort
Our Take On The All-Star Resorts
The All-Star resorts were the first Disney Value resorts ever built, starting with All-Star Sports, then All-Star Music, and finally All-Star Movies. We lump them together because aside from the very obvious theming in the large icons around the resort, the room decor, the shapes of pools, and the names of lobbies and food courts, they all follow a very similar formula.
At each of these resorts, you will encounter several motel-style buildings. They are painted in really fun ways and very well themed to either (you guessed it) sports, music, or movies. In each building area (usually grouped by two buildings at a time) you will also find large props that really bring the theme to life. For example, at All-Star Sports, you'll find a large football, and even a tag football field in the football area. Kids LOVE these huge icons, so these are fun places to stay when you have kids, provided the room can fit your hoard.
Rooms are accessed by exterior corridors, and there are no private balconies. Like other value resorts, the rooms are the smallest at Walt Disney World, at about 260 square feet. You can request adjoining rooms ahead of time at any of the All-Star Resorts, and at All-Star Music, you do have the option to book a family suite, which is like having two adjoining rooms, with the associated two full bathrooms, but also a small kitchenette between the rooms. Rooms at all All-Star Resorts are either two double beds or one king bed (with the exception of the family suite which wraps both kinds of room into one). All king bed rooms are ADA accessible, so will not have bathtubs and instead have showers. Because the bathroom is larger in ADA accessible rooms, there is also not room to fit a crib, so if you need a crib, you're looking at a two double-bed room at least.
Each All-Star resort has two large pools. One pool is designated the "main pool" which basically means it is the pool where all the activities happen during the day, and movies under the stars are shown at night. The main pool also has a pool bar. Because of these amenities, and the activities, another way of looking at the main pool is that it is the boisterous and fun pool, whereas the other pool becomes known as the "quiet pool". Pay laundry facilities are located near each pool.
There is also an arcade in the lobby building of each All-Star Resort, a gift shop, and a food court. Food courts consist of anywhere from four to six stations of quick service foods, cafeteria style. There is also a small selection of convenience items in the food courts (such as milk and cereals). In addition to the food options in the lobby, all All-Star resorts offer pizza delivery to your room.
Theme park transportation from the All-Star resorts is only via busses. Sometimes that bus is dedicated to your specific resort, and other times, especially busy times, the bus will be shared among all three All-Star resorts. When busses are shared, this adds to the transportation time significantly, so always, always allow extra time when planning your route. Within walking distance are the other All-Star resorts, and a McDonalds, though All-Star Movies, being at the back of the All-Star complex, is going to be a very long walk to McDonalds whereas with All-Star Sports, it's basically across the street.
Like other value resorts, the All-Star resorts are large, sometimes noisy, and during times of conventions, sports competitions, or cheer competitions, quite crowded with tour groups. There will be a lot of children at these resorts because they love the obvious theming, and their parents love saving money by staying at a value resort. If you are looking for a quiet vacation, All-Star resorts may not be for you.
Skyliner over hourglass lagoon
Our Take on Pop Century and Art of Animation
Pop Century and Art of Animation are only being grouped together here because they are basically neighbors. While some amenities are shared, other aspects of these resorts couldn't be more different, so we'll start with what is shared.
One MAJOR bonus of choosing one of these value resorts is that they are served by a shared skyliner station which is THE quickest way to get to Disney Hollywood Studios or EPCOT. For both rides, guests will need to transfer at the Caribbean Beach skyliner hub, but really, the ride couldn't be easier or more pleasant to either of these theme parks. The other two theme parks are served by busses, and Pop is known to have pretty snappy bus service which is always dedicated to just that one resort.
The skyliner station sits in the middle of a bridge that connects Pop Century to Art of Animation across hourglass lagoon. Interesting fact: the bridge is still sometimes referred to as "generation gap bridge" since originally Pop Century's expansion into the early half of the 20th century was meant to sit where Art of Animation now sits. As it is, Pop Century only goes from the 1950s to 1990s in terms of theming.
Speaking of Pop Century, expect another motel-style resort here with separate buildings, similar to the construction of All-Star Resorts. This time, however, the theme is the 20th century, so you'll find giant props like an 8-track cassette or a Rubiks cube. The design of the rooms here show some learned lessons from the first value resorts built and incorporate some space-saving furniture. Room configurations come in either 2 queen beds (note the upgrade in size), or 1 king bed. In the 2 queen bed rooms, one bed is a murphy bed that pulls down from the wall, affording more room during the day when the bed is folded up. Once again, adjoining rooms can be requested in advance.
At Pop Century, there are three pools, one of which is again the "main pool" with the pool bar, the pool activities during the day, and the movies under the stars. There is also a splash pad for little kids, and a playground. In the main building, you will find a large arcade (appropriate for a resort that honors that century), a gift shop, and a food court with four quick service stations and a grab-and-go station for grocery-like items. There is also pizza delivery available to the rooms, and of course, paid laundry available.
Some extra perks of Pop Century (aside from the obvious perk of skyliner access) is a partial fireworks view from the top floors of certain buildings, and a beautiful 1.3 mile walking/jogging path around the hourglass lagoon (if the 10 miles you walked in the theme parks just isn't enough for you). One major drawback of Pop Century is that it is HUGE consisting of about 2800 rooms (about a thousand more rooms than any one All-Star resort). It also attracts tour groups, especially teens and young adults. If you stay here during cheer week, be prepared for mind-numbing cheer chants to haunt your days.
Theming in the Cars area of Art of Animation resort
Turning our attention now to Art of Animation, this is the newest Disney value resort, and it has some very important differences. The standard hotel room style room can be found in PART of this resort. Specifically, in the Little Mermaid rooms. But the majority of this resort is built around family suites. While a family suite is certainly more expensive than a standard hotel room, this concept allows larger families the room they need to spread out. Family suites consist of a large main room with several bed options (a chair, a couch, and a table turn into beds), and a separate master bedroom (with a door! that closes!) with a queen bed. There is also a kitchenette area and two full bathrooms. Oh, AND the resort is pet friendly. The main reason guests stay here is because they are bringing the hoard.
As you may guess from the name, Art of Animation celebrates some of Disney's most popular animated films, including Little Mermaid, Lion King, Cars, and Finding Nemo. We find the props here to still be fun and attractive to children, but to also be a little bit more sophisticated. For example, in the Cars area, the landscaping reflects the desert like in the movie, and you'll find sheriff hiding behind some reeds to catch cars that are speeding.
This resort also boasts three pools. The main pool here is the Big Blue Pool, in the Nemo area, which is the largest pool on Disney property, period. Not only is it huge, but underwater, swimmers will hear sounds of Nemo and friends. The main pool, like other main pools, is where activities happen, where the pool bar is located, and where movies under the stars are shown at night. There is also a playground and splash pad near the main pool.
Much like Pop Century, the main building hosts a large arcade, a gift shop, and a food court with several quick service stations and a grab-and-go area for grocery-like items. The food court is worth a mention here because many are delighted at how this particular food court focuses a bit more on international flavors and healthy cuisine than has been expected from value resort food courts up to this point. Case in point: There are 4 on-site tandoor ovens used for naan bread, and roasting meats. And lest we forget, though this is standard among Disney resorts, there is paid laundry available near each pool.
The biggest pros of this resort are the huge pool, the thoughtful food court, the family suite style rooms, and the skyliner access. Like Pop Century, the other two theme parks are served by dedicated bus, however one major drawback of this resort is that there is only one bus stop near the main building, and if your room is in a building further away from the main building, it can be quite a walk to and from the bus.
Theming at Art of Animation near the Big Blue Pool
Our picks for best and worst in the value resort category:
The value resort we most DO NOT want to stay at is All-Star Sports. It is the oldest of the value resorts, and while this doesn't mean it's run down by any means as Disney keeps their stuff nice in general, it just hasn't benefitted from what Disney has learned about what the value resort guest wants like the others have. Also, the theme is not for us. But mostly, we have experienced the shared bus situation, and it's not something we enjoy, especially at the end of a very long day after the closing nighttime show, when all you want to do is get home.
The value resort we most recommend is Art of Animation. It's the newest, but it's not just that it's new that attracts us. Disney has learned how to create an experience over time at value resorts, and the result is a food court with interesting and healthy options, great, playful theming, and fun magical extras. But mostly, the skyliner brings it home for us. We can't overstate the convenience of the skyliner. It surprises and delights us that unlike other modes of Disney transportation aside from busses, Disney has allowed the skyliner to serve value, moderate, and deluxe resorts (for comparison, only deluxe resorts are served by monorail). We even prefer the skyliner to the monorail, and find this to be an amazing value-add for any kind of resort, but especially a value resort.
Next week, you will see the handy-dandy fact sheets on each of the value resorts for convenient reference. If you like this sort of thing, come follow us over on our Facebook page so you can see when new articles are posted each week. Until next time...
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