Disney's Art of Animation Resort (Part II)

[Disneyforus]

I am wondering if a gallon size (full) freezer bag will fit in the freezer section of the fridge? Or actually a couple.
Does anyone know?
I saw the picture of the inside of the fridge and while I can see that it is decent sized compared to others.... I can't sense if the freezer is big enough to fit a couple frozen entres that I plan to freeze in gallon freezer bags.

Thanks for any insight you might have!

 

[luvthemouse71]

Okay, so I did not know the elevators are in the middle. THAT is helpful. I think I'll ask for nearest Animation Hall, first floor, building 9.

I was in building 9, first floor, closest to the front last December. I liked it. I had a king bed, and a huge bathroom! The view looked out on the parking lot, but I didn't care about that. The walk from LM to Animation Hall is not bad anyway. You'd think from listening to people here that it was like trekking across the Sahara.

If the person is sickly,old, handicapped, I could see a problem. But, an average person should be able to walk 5-7 minutes without feeling like they're going to croak.

Personally, I welcome the walking. I have to burn off all those Disney goodies one way or another.

 

[hidmickey:myantidrug]

Has anyone had any luck getting a cancelation on a Little Mermaid room?

Yep! Our family was going back and forth on whether we were going to stay at AoA or Pop--it really didn't matter to us. We finally decided on giving AoA a try and, of course, it was booked up. And, like many of us know, nothing makes you care about something you didn't care about before than not being able to get the thing that you picked.

Anyway, I checked online probably about three times a day after we booked at pop for an opening in LM. It was about five days of doing this before I found an opening. Very lucky. This was probably 2-3 months ago for an August trip.

Good luck!

 

[mom2rtk]

Yep! Our family was going back and forth on whether we were going to stay at AoA or Pop--it really didn't matter to us. We finally decided on giving AoA a try and, of course, it was booked up. And, like many of us know, nothing makes you care about something you didn't care about before than not being able to get the thing that you picked.

Anyway, I checked online probably about three times a day after we booked at pop for an opening in LM. It was about five days of doing this before I found an opening. Very lucky. This was probably 2-3 months ago for an August trip.

Good luck!

We also got a cancellation last December. You just have to be persistent and check online for availability every day. We had a week booked and were looking to add a few days at the beginning. We booked the Pop as a fallback and would have changed resorts if needed, but it was really nice to just check in and stay for 10 straight nights. It was an awesome feeling when that last night finally showed up for us.

 

[jenjie]

I am wondering if a gallon size (full) freezer bag will fit in the freezer section of the fridge? Or actually a couple.
Does anyone know?
I saw the picture of the inside of the fridge and while I can see that it is decent sized compared to others.... I can't sense if the freezer is big enough to fit a couple frozen entres that I plan to freeze in gallon freezer bags.

Thanks for any insight you might have!

I don't know if you've seen this picture yet, but it shows it with the freezer open and you might get a better idea. You might want to ask your question on the blog link, the author may be more able to help you.

http://www.disneyfoodblog.com/2012/06/07/art-of-animation-resort-kitchenettes-and-room-service-menu/

IIRC it seemed to me there wasn't much more room than for water bottles but the picture seems like you might be able to slide in maybe one freezer bag, maybe two, if it's relatively flat. Good luck

 

[Disneyforus]

I don't know if you've seen this picture yet, but it shows it with the freezer open and you might get a better idea. You might want to ask your question on the blog link, the author may be more able to help you.

http://www.disneyfoodblog.com/2012/06/07/art-of-animation-resort-kitchenettes-and-room-service-menu/

IIRC it seemed to me there wasn't much more room than for water bottles but the picture seems like you might be able to slide in maybe one freezer bag, maybe two, if it's relatively flat. Good luck

Oh thanks, I hadn't seen that picture yet. There was a picture with the ruler in the freezer section, and it looks like it will be big enough for a couple freezer bags/entrees.

Getting excited for our August trip. I have all our meals planned out, and if it goes as planned I will be saving enough to pay for our splurge meal at BOG, and the Dessert Party!

 

[ADisneyQueen]

For any of you having trouble booking LM rooms, I thought I'd share my advise about how I got our rooms. Back in April, I tried to book 2 rooms for a week in August but the online reservations kept giving me a not available answer. I tried calling, too but no luck. What I did then was try to book 10 nights instead of six and I was able to book! It took some playing around with dates but it worked. Then I called wdw reservations and told them I needed to take off a few nights of my stay.

I don't know why they have this set up this way. I guess they are trying to get guests to stay longer, but it doesn't seem fair. Hope this helps someone and don't wait too long to book like I did! There was availability back when I called in Oct., but i didn't want to commit to a trip yet. I should have just done it anyway.

 

[esdot]

Booking for February 2014 as soon as package rates are released! We've stayed at Pop Century the last 2 times we've been (2006 being the most recent). I'm going with my wife, daughter (4yo), mom, and dad, so 5 in total. We'll most likely be doing 2 individual rooms instead of a suite.

Anything special I should ask for when booking AoA rooms? Any other advice you guys can share with me about the resort would be welcomed (even if it's unsolicited )

 

[ADisneyQueen]

esdot- if you like a lakeview, ask for building 7 facing the lake. We had a lakeview at pop last year and loved it so that's what we requested for aoa. Those rooms tend to be quieter, too.

 

[esdot]

Excellent advice! Thank you! Our 4yo prefers quiet when we can have it (as does my wife) so lake view sounds like it would be a good choice for us!

 

[mom2rtk]

Booking for February 2014 as soon as package rates are released! We've stayed at Pop Century the last 2 times we've been (2006 being the most recent). I'm going with my wife, daughter (4yo), mom, and dad, so 5 in total. We'll most likely be doing 2 individual rooms instead of a suite.

Anything special I should ask for when booking AoA rooms? Any other advice you guys can share with me about the resort would be welcomed (even if it's unsolicited )

First off....... welcome to the DIS!

If you are booking 2 separate rooms, then I assume you mean the LM section. If that's the case, then what are you hoping for? Quiet? Convenience? Will you have a car along? Are you going with 2 separate room versus a suite so each family can have more privacy? Or because you have a LM fan in the group?

It really is a stunning resort. I'm sad we'll never have a reason to justify booking a suite. The LM section is gorgeous. And for a short stay the walk wouldn't be an issue. But we were there 10 days and are park commandos. So while the walk wasn't bad in the morning, it was really a challenge after a long day in the parks. If you aren't park commandos, you might have a different take on it. But we often stay in the parks from park open to park close, sometimes longer. We have done early entry through the end of a hard ticket party on more than one occasion. That really does take a toll on one's feet by the end of the night.

But the aesthetics of the resort really were worth staying at least once. In spite of the down sides, I still feel tempted to try it again on a shorter trip.

 

[esdot]

We were thinking about 2 rooms for privacy sake. If possible, we wanted to see about having adjoining rooms so that someone could take a nap in one room and everyone else congregate in the other. I've also considered a suite, but just not sure if we can do 8 days in a row of non-stop family interaction with my parents. I think they probably could use a break from us and the other way around after a few days.

Of the themed areas of AoA, our little girl would likely prefer the LM section. She's seen Cars, Finding Nemo, and The Lion King but if there's not a Disney princess in it, it doesn't keep her attention as much!

We likely to make the walk a couple of times a day. I could definitely see us leaving in the morning, coming back in the afternoon for a couple hours rest, then heading back out a couple of nights during the week. The long walk would probably be bothersome, but is not the end of the world. Is there another resort we should be considering instead that might fit our needs better? We liked Pop Century a lot for us, but it was before we had a kid. I'm just not sure what the best option is for 5 people that want a little privacy but also good value. If I need to rethink where we're staying, maybe I should be posting on another thread? I'm sure there is one dedicated to figuring out where to stay.

Thanks again for all the feedback!

 

[mom2rtk]

We were thinking about 2 rooms for privacy sake. If possible, we wanted to see about having adjoining rooms so that someone could take a nap in one room and everyone else congregate in the other. I've also considered a suite, but just not sure if we can do 8 days in a row of non-stop family interaction with my parents. I think they probably could use a break from us and the other way around after a few days.

Of the themed areas of AoA, our little girl would likely prefer the LM section. She's seen Cars, Finding Nemo, and The Lion King but if there's not a Disney princess in it, it doesn't keep her attention as much!

We likely to make the walk a couple of times a day. I could definitely see us leaving in the morning, coming back in the afternoon for a couple hours rest, then heading back out a couple of nights during the week. The long walk would probably be bothersome, but is not the end of the world. Is there another resort we should be considering instead that might fit our needs better? We liked Pop Century a lot for us, but it was before we had a kid. I'm just not sure what the best option is for 5 people that want a little privacy but also good value. If I need to rethink where we're staying, maybe I should be posting on another thread? I'm sure there is one dedicated to figuring out where to stay.

Thanks again for all the feedback!

I don't blame you one bit for going ahead with the LM rooms. If I had a 4 year old girl, the draw would be too much to resist.

And I'd feel the same way about a week with my parents. A suite would definitely be out. Having that door that locks would be a must!

The reason I asked your reasons was to help determine what you might want to ask for. If you have a car, then you'd want building 9 nearer the parking lot. If quiet is more important (as in the case for an afternoon nap) then the back side of building 7 would be better as it overlooks the lake.

You CAN get a closer room at the Pop, as we have on many occasions. But your little girl will only be 4 once, so in this case I would not be able to pass up staying in the LM section.

And my philosophy is that it's always better to make an informed decision and know the ups and downs of all the options going into it.

I'm sure you'll have a great trip! There are tons of AoA photos in my December trip report linked in my signature.

 

[esdot]

Thanks! Unsure if we will have a car, most likely not but it depends on if we fly to MCO or SFB ( if we go to MCO then we will do DME again). Good info on the building choice! I'll check out those pics too! Thanks!

 

[Hoodie]

Is the Cars section as noisy as some of the other value resorts? I'm debating between a Cars suite and a DVC studio rental. DS would LOVE the Cars theme, but I'm concerned about the "value" aspect. My only experience with value resorts is All-Star Movie in July - height of summer season AND Brazillian tourists led to a VERY noisy and hectic stay.

We'll be going last week of February.

 

[Hoosier37]

Booking for February 2014 as soon as package rates are released! We've stayed at Pop Century the last 2 times we've been (2006 being the most recent). I'm going with my wife, daughter (4yo), mom, and dad, so 5 in total. We'll most likely be doing 2 individual rooms instead of a suite.

Anything special I should ask for when booking AoA rooms? Any other advice you guys can share with me about the resort would be welcomed (even if it's unsolicited )

DON'T take a room in Building 8 on one of the wings facing the pool. There is no good way to get to your room. The stairs open onto a walkway that heads behind the building to the parking lot. The elevator and central stairs are in the center of the building and you have to make two turns in the exterior hallways to get to it.

In fact, avoid Building 8 (Ariel) entirely. The only way I would ever want to stay at LM again would be if I could be in the King Triton building on the end closest to the LK section. But again, due to weird placement of stairs, walkways, and landscaping, it is awkward getting to and from your room. We saw people tromping through the landscaping out of desperation.

Personally, I would never want to go back to AoA for any reason, but if you are sure you want to stay in the LM sections, that's my advice.

 

[mom2rtk]

DON'T take a room in Building 8 on one of the wings facing the pool. There is no good way to get to your room. The stairs open onto a walkway that heads behind the building to the parking lot. The elevator and central stairs are in the center of the building and you have to make two turns in the exterior hallways to get to it.

In fact, avoid Building 8 (Ariel) entirely. The only way I would ever want to stay at LM again would be if I could be in the King Triton building on the end closest to the LK section. But again, due to weird placement of stairs, walkways, and landscaping, it is awkward getting to and from your room. We saw people tromping through the landscaping out of desperation.

Personally, I would never want to go back to AoA for any reason, but if you are sure you want to stay in the LM sections, that's my advice.

I continue to be amazed at the bizarre way they set up that landscaping. Did it not occur to them that while people want it to be pretty, they also want the quickest access to the main walkways? It was vastly different from Pop for that reason alone. On our way to the room the first time, I saw a mom and her daughter plucking their way through the landscaping and thought "My, isn't that odd. Who would do that?" By the end of the trip, I understood. We didn't DO it, but I totally understood why someone would.

We were in building 7 near Lion King but walked back to Ursula every time we wanted to come or go.

 

[jenseib]

Is the Cars section as noisy as some of the other value resorts? I'm debating between a Cars suite and a DVC studio rental. DS would LOVE the Cars theme, but I'm concerned about the "value" aspect. My only experience with value resorts is All-Star Movie in July - height of summer season AND Brazillian tourists led to a VERY noisy and hectic stay.

We'll be going last week of February.

The noisiest place I have ever stayed was Beach Club Villas.
Actually I did some reading and the Values have the most soundproofing because of the outside doors

 

[Hoosier37]

I continue to be amazed at the bizarre way they set up that landscaping. Did it not occur to them that while people want it to be pretty, they also want the quickest access to the main walkways? It was vastly different from Pop for that reason alone. On our way to the room the first time, I saw a mom and her daughter plucking their way through the landscaping and thought "My, isn't that odd. Who would do that?" By the end of the trip, I understood. We didn't DO it, but I totally understood why someone would.

When we were loading and unloading our car, we saw that there are no direct sidewalks from the parking lot to Building 8 on the end closer to the lake (the end our room was on). It was insane - people have walked through the grass enough that they have worn paths in it, and I'll be honest, we went through the grass as well.

 

[im4kycats]

Is the Cars section as noisy as some of the other value resorts? I'm debating between a Cars suite and a DVC studio rental. DS would LOVE the Cars theme, but I'm concerned about the "value" aspect. My only experience with value resorts is All-Star Movie in July - height of summer season AND Brazillian tourists led to a VERY noisy and hectic stay.

We'll be going last week of February.

I was in a Nemo suite in Oct. and didn't hear anything from neighbors or the Big Blue Pool. I was in Boardwalk last week and heard our neighbors talking and the folks outside, 5 floors down, talking. I'm sure the Cars suites will be similar to the Nemo ones when it comes to noise! I love the resort - I hope you enjoy it if that is what you choose!