POP (again) or ALL STARS ?

[zookeeper]

What would you do?

OK, now that it looks like Free Dining is back again I think I've made the decision to go back this summer. Last year we went and stayed at POP. We really liked it there, but I'm wondering if we should try one of the ALL STARS just to try something different. I have 2 boys (9,8). The only thing that stops me from tryng the ALL STARS is that I've heard the buses can be a bit more of a pain. Would that still be an issue at the end of Aug. when the crowds are lower? Anyone have advice???

 

[minnie61650]

What would you do?

OK, now that it looks like Free Dining is back again I think I've made the decision to go back this summer. Last year we went and stayed at POP. We really liked it there, but I'm wondering if we should try one of the ALL STARS just to try something different. I have 2 boys (9,8). The only thing that stops me from tryng the ALL STARS is that I've heard the buses can be a bit more of a pain. Would that still be an issue at the end of Aug. when the crowds are lower? Anyone have advice???

The All Stars are my favorite resort.B]

I am 55 years old and travel several times a year. I often stay at 4 star hotels.
So the deluxe resorts do not have anything special for me.
All Star is like being in the heart of the Magic and that is where I want to be.

All Star Music is my favorite.It is quieter because more couples stay there. I love staying at the Clypso building. It is closer to the pool,food court and bus stop.

Here is a site with a map of All Star Sports and All Star Music.
http://www.wdwinfo.com/resortmaps/allstarmap.htm
Scroll down.All Star Music is at the bottom of the page.
The Calypso buildings at All Star Music are #1 and #10 are nearest to the food court and bus stop.

The Calypso pool at ASMU has Donald Duck.

Here is the map of All Movies.
http://www.wdwinfo.com/resortmaps/allstarmovie.JPG
The Fantasia Buildings are the preferred buildings.
The All Star Movie Fantasia pool has Mickey.
It is a great place to stay .
Preschoolers love it.
It is like being in the middle of a Disney Movie Fantasyland.

The buses are wonderful.

Bus rides are quite short from the ALL Stars according to PassPorter.com

All Star Buses-CBR buses---POPbuses--PO buses--- Contemporary
MK 20 min---- 20 min-----25 min------10 min---20 min(mono)
Epcot 10 min-- 15 min-----20 min------10 min---15 min
MGM 10 min----12 min-----15 min------15 min---20min
AK 10 min------20min-------15 min----15 min---20 min
DTD 15 min----20 min------20 min-----15 min---35 min

It only takes 10 minutes to get to Epcot,MGM and AK from All Stars.
MK is 20 min away. That's the same amount of time it takes on the monorail from the Contemporary.


A WORD ABOUT BUS SHARING

To me Bus Sharing at the All Stars is really a non issue.

It is usually just our stop and maybe one more on the way to the parks. On the way back sometimes it is all 3 but often Sports and Music share and Movies has it's own bus back.

I guess some people who stay at POP see all 3 All Star names on the return sign of our bus stop when they head to the POP bus stop and think All Stars also has 3 stops on the way to the park.
(Even when we stop at another AS resort to load up it has not taken more than 5 minutes and we are on our way!)

Have fun wherever you choose to stay.
The gift shops are seperate from the food court at the All Stars.
When staying at the All Stars you can use any of the All Star pools. that means 3 main pools ,3 quiet pools and 3 kiddie pools to chose from.

Pop has 2,880 guest rooms. 4 floors in each building.
All Stars has 1,960 rooms. 3 floors in each building. That means more people in the food courts,in the pools and waiting at the bus stop at POP than at the All Stars.
I have visited WDW more than a dozen times with the 1st time in Oct. 1971. It was brand new. I've stayed at FW, Disney Inn, a few the of Hotels on hotel Blvd., CBR and the towers at the Contemporary. I got to see the MK from my balcony at the Contemporary and I'm happy I got to experience it once. I just prefer the All Star Resorts.
The theaming is pure Disney.
My last 5 visits have been at The All Stars and this fall when we took dd,dsil, and our grandson age 3 for 8 nights we stayed at the All Stars Music. I thought about AKL and even though we can well afford AKL I just wanted Alex to experience the Disney Magic at the All Stars on his first visit.
Where else can one find Donald Duck or Mickey Mouse at the pool?
Have a great time at Disney!

For info about Disney's New Family at All Star Music visit my FAQ thread



http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1072409

 

[formernyer]

I just got back from ASSp yesterday. I loved it! If your boys are into sports, I'd say this is the best place to stay.

My son wanted to stay at Sports and my daughter preferred POP. We ultimately decided on Sports because I thought it looked nicer in the pictures here http://www.wdwfun.com/allstarsports/index.htm It actually looks BETTER in person than it does in the pictures. My son wanted to stay in the baseball buildings, so that's what we did. If I had it to do over again I would have stayed in the football section. It's a shorter walk to the buses, food court, lobby, etc.

The bus rides are not a problem at all. Yes, the rides are shared with other All Star resorts, but only during non-peak hours and even then the ASSp is the first stop.

I personally don't care for looks of the ASMu resort as much as the other value resorts. I think ASMo looks awesome, but since my kids are 9 and 10 now they prefer an "older" theme.

If I had it to do again I would probably either choose POP or ASSp again. One advantage of POP (which is minor, but a big deal for most kids) is that they offer slushies as an option for the refillable mugs.

 

[EeyoreFan1]

Pop! I personally prefer Pop. I have not heard about anything bad about buses at All Stars though.

 

[pezpam]

We've done All Stars and Pop and had a great time either way. Since you've stayed at Pop, I'd say try an All-Star just for something different - a new resort with new "bits and pieces" to see.

Enjoy!

 

[mjatgoofy]

We have stayed at Pop and each of the All Star Resorts. We much prefer Pop over all of the All Stars.