Disney's Art of Animation Resort Info Thread! Mouseketeers welcome!

[myneverland]

We checked in on 9/30 early and went straight to the park. Came back after 9 pm to our 3 LM rooms to find we did not have 2 that connected - were supposed to because one reservation was for 2 rooms with more kids than adults, so when we made the reserv. they told me we would have a connecting room. Anywho, without the ugly details we were upgraded from 3 LM rooms to 2 CARS suites.

We were originally in LM 8710, 8711, 8712. Those are all 2 double bed rooms, 3rd floor, no connector door in any of them and in the farthest building out, plus about the farthest from the parking lot in that building... On the corner where you can see the lake when you step outside your room and walk by the pool in that section as you get there. Even saying all that, they were not all that quiet, thin walls for sure.

The CARS suites we have are totally fab. We are in 1811 and 1812. They are right across the hall from each other, on the end closest to the food ct/lobby, 4th floor, and close to parking too. From the bedroom, with the door mostly closed, we still heard kids going down the hall, so still thin walls here too.

Agree with several others that the CARS theming is the best. The main pool, Big Blue Pool, and splash pad are so fun!

Prob would not book a LM room again, but would definitely consider the family suite, depending on the price/discount we could get.

 

[myneverland]

No problems with phone or Internet in LM building 8. Small break ups in cell service in CARS building 1, no prob with Internet.

We have AT&T.

 

[TSM]

Is there any parking near the LM bldgs - if so what bldg?

Building 9(king Triton) is right beside parking lot.I think the beet area to be.it seemed closest to the bus stops and that is where we stayed.

 

[momjeeps]

No problems with phone or Internet in LM building 8. Small break ups in cell service in CARS building 1, no prob with Internet.

We have AT&T.

Thanks a bunch for all that input! We are in a Cars Suite after thanksgiving and I was wondering about room location. I'm going to note the room info for requests. Is that Building 1? You may have said. I'll look again at your post.

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[Neesy228]

We just got back from our stay in Nemo and for the most part we had a great time. I didn't request any specifc room and we ended up with a view of the playground and lake toward the back of building 5 (Crush), second floor. It was really an ideal location and we didn't hear any outside noise at all.

I'll summarize the highs and lows like other posters, but feel free to ask me something if you don't see your answer here!

Pros:
Fantastic themes. I agree with the other who said the exterior of Cars is AWESOME! IMHO, LK was a little blah, but I can see how it would appeal to some people. LM was a hike!

The Big Blue Pool was so much fun! Between the underwater sound, sprayground area, ping pong tables (my youngest DS was in heaven) and jellyfish sprinklers the kids and I were busy for hours. The mug refill station by The Drop Off bar was wonderful!

Easy rides to most of the parks. Decent bus service (although we did have to wait for a while on two occassions, we also had a few experiences where they were loading two buses at the same time, so it all evened out.

Good food/selection at the food court for adults. It was nice to try some new things. We had the veggie burger on a few occasions, the caprese sandwich (it came with yummy potato chips), pasta and pizza. We also tried several desserts. For the most part it was all great!

We had no problems with the a/c turning off when we were there.

Mousekeeping was exceptional. Our room was clean and well stocked every day. My only complaint was that on some days they would close the couch and murphy beds...it was just an extra step that I didn't want to deal with at the end of a long park day.

Loved that the bridge was open to Pop! The benches are a great place to sit and take it all in. I walked across the bridge a few times during our stay. It's really wonderful to see it all finished.

Along those lines, on my evening strolls with my kids we stumbled across all sorts of interesting animals on the walkways near the lake - including baby turtles. Someone told me they were snapping turtles?!

I have AT&T and had no problem with cell reception unless I was in the interior walkways of the building.


Cons:
We had problems with our RFID lock not working properly and that took about 2 hours out our first day. A manager finally managed to code our keys correctly and all was well, but that was after 4 attempts by other CM's and an engineer they called to the room.

The bed was creaky and stiff! Anytime anyone sat on the bed or laid on the bed it sounded like the the box spring was rubbing against the frame. It was annoying, but not the end of the world. And the blankets were so stiff and uncomfortable that it was tough to sleep. My kids had no complaints about the other beds!

The Food Court. Limited selection for kids for the most part...and it's so chaotic and time-consuming. By the time we got what we ordered (the burger and pasta stations were very slow), picked a drink and a dessert and paid we had easily wasted a half hour. I think the layout and speed need improved.

The "playgrounds" are horrible. Not much to play on and there are signs all over the place that say "no climbing" on anything. The elephant bone graveyard has ONE tunnel and you can't actually climb on any of the bones. They missed the boat on this one.

The wifi was spotty and difficult at best.

Not that this is a direct reflection on the resort itself, but we noticed a lot of wear and tear already! It kinda made me sad that people are so rough on things...Our coffee tables were cracked and broken, the paint in the hallway near our room was scraped off, there was a chip taken out of the storage area in the living room etc. Just a bummer after only a couple of months...

Overall, we really enjoyed our stay. They have some kinks to work out, but otherwise, it was fun and relaxing (or as relaxing as it can be with three kids!)

Ask away if you have any questions!

 

[CareHeartsDisney]

I just got back and have Sprint, and the service thoughout WDW was generally horrible. My suggestion is to turn off data for most of your trip to save your battery, as otherwise your phone will be struggling when you go in and out of buildings and it'll really destroy your battery life. This worked wonders for me. I would turn off 4g and 3g, only turning it on a few times a day when I checked the Lines app (which as an aside, you MUST get).

I have a Galaxy SII (Epic Touch), for what it's worth.

Thanks for the info and advice. I have the Lines app along with a few others. I'll be sure to use them.

 

[cp'ersmom]

We stayed in LK building 10. Great location, closest to main building and big blue pool.

We loved, loved, loved the theming and the size of the rooms. Our beds were comfy tho the Murphy was a little short for my 5' 10" DD.

The showers were awesome and beautiful

The food court was good with interesting choices (especially for vegetarians )but it was so crowded and the cashiers were so slow that the food was cold by the time we got to our table.

I must have had poor timing because I found the waits for the buses too long.

Verizon cell service was poor, I had to go outside to make a call. I agree about free wi-fi, nice gesture but they need to work out the kinks so it actually works.

From the bedroom with the door closed I heard NOTHING!! From the other rooms you could hear hall noise but what hotel is totally soundproof?

I am a hotel snob, I admit it, and I only stayed here because it was a suite and new. I would certainly stay here again and would highly recommend it to others.

 

[disneymom88]

is there any way to see the october activities calendar/movie schedule?? TIA

 

[Good Morning Dewdrop]

Hello everyone. We'll be at AoA soon... Wondering if anyone can confirm if there are full size Mickey Waffles available in the food court for breakfast?

Thanks!!

there are not at least not ones I could find. They had the little ones for kids but the full sized waffles were round.

Note we were only there for breakfast twice so *maybe* we hit off days but I didn't see them listed anywhere either

 

[Good Morning Dewdrop]

Is there any parking near the LM bldgs - if so what bldg?

Buildings 8 (Ariel) and 9 (Triton) both have sides that face the parking lot. The only LM building that isn't really anywhere close to a parking lot is Building 7 (Ursula).....it faces the courtyard and the lake.

 

[myneverland]

Thanks a bunch for all that input! We are in a Cars Suite after thanksgiving and I was wondering about room location. I'm going to note the room info for requests. Is that Building 1? You may have said. I'll look again at your post.

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

Yes. Building 1 on the end of the hall closest to the main building. Very close, we r on the 4th floor, so that means 4 flights up the stairs at the end, other you have to walk to the middle of the building to use the elevators. We don't mind, but want to be specific...1800s would be 4th floor building one. And 1811 Wn 1812 are the second rooms in from the very end. 1813 an 1814 would be the last ones in our hall. Great spot!

Enjoy! Very fun.

 

[TJDisneymama]

We just got back from our stay in Nemo and for the most part we had a great time. I didn't request any specifc room and we ended up with a view of the playground and lake toward the back of building 5 (Crush), second floor. It was really an ideal location and we didn't hear any outside noise at all.

estions!

were you way at the end of the building and how long of a walk to AH? (looking at this map) or were you in the section that juts out to the left?

http://photopost.wdwinfo.com/disney-27s-art-of-animation-resort/p73537-art-of-animation-resor.html

 

[fizbobunny]

is there any way to see the october activities calendar/movie schedule?? TIA

This is the closest I could find. I'd like to find a .pdf of the activity schedule, so I'll keep looking.

Art of Animation Poolside Movie Schedule ~ 8:00PM

Sunday
Pocahontas

Monday
Halloweentown

Tuesday
Lady and the Tramp

Wednesday
Hocus Pocus

Thursday
Monsters, Inc.

Friday
Cinderella

Saturday
Tangled

http://www.*********************.com/activity-outdoormovie.php

 

[jdcthree]

is there any way to see the october activities calendar/movie schedule?? TIA

This is for September, but it should be updated for October within a few days.

AoA activities

 

[myneverland]

Hello everyone. We'll be at AoA soon... Wondering if anyone can confirm if there are full size Mickey Waffles available in the food court for breakfast?

Thanks!!

I think they were just regular-shaped waffles. Can check again tomorrow morning. Sad since the Homewood Suites we stayed in before we came here had them (as part of their free breakfast)!!!!!! Doh.

 

[Neesy228]

were you way at the end of the building and how long of a walk to AH? (looking at this map) or were you in the section that juts out to the left?

http://photopost.wdwinfo.com/disney-27s-art-of-animation-resort/p73537-art-of-animation-resor.html

No, not on the part to the left, but right along the path near the playground and the bridge. I could see the bridge out my window to the left and the playground to the right. Does that help? The walk was mimimal. We went thru the hotel hallway and came down the stairs at the side of the building closest to AH, instead of taking the elevators in the middle. The walk was under 5 minutes when we strolled.

 

[sixkristy6]

Does anyone know how much games are at the Pixel Play Arcade? We have a voucher (I think for 100 credits or something) as part of our AAA package.

 

[bdoyledimou]

Does anyone know how much games are at the Pixel Play Arcade? We have a voucher (I think for 100 credits or something) as part of our AAA package.

100 points will get you 1 or 2 games ---- but you can get 2500 game points for $22 or so $$$

I bouth the 2500 point card for my kids, and they played the skills games and made out like bandits -- scored big on pretty much every game and got about 11,000 points to cash in for prizes.

 

[sixkristy6]

100 points will get you 1 or 2 games ---- but you can get 2500 game points for $22 or so $$$

I bouth the 2500 point card for my kids, and they played the skills games and made out like bandits -- scored big on pretty much every game and got about 11,000 points to cash in for prizes.

We won't buy any points since DD is only 4. I figured we would use the free ones and leave it at that. Thanks!

 

[Good Morning Dewdrop]

Does anyone know how much games are at the Pixel Play Arcade? We have a voucher (I think for 100 credits or something) as part of our AAA package.

we got 2 Wheel of Fortune games with our free voucher. They were 50 credits each.