All Star Family Suite/other Resort Opinions & Info. Please!

[mickeystoontown]

Okay, we got back from a 10 day stay at the CBR during the wee hours of Sunday morning. Yep! Last Sunday, the 10th. And....I am already planning next year's visit (our 13th trip in 11 years)

For the first 10 trips, we stayed in a suite offsite. Our 2006 trip, we stayed at the Caribbean Beach Resort and immediately fell in love. We enjoy the beaches, the quiet pools, the marina, food court, etc. So, when I planned our June, 2007 trip, we didn't even consider staying anywhere else. We stayed another glorious 10 days at the CBR.

Well, next year, our daughter may be bringing along her boyfriend. This means, we will may need to step up to accommodations for 5 people.

I know that the Port Orleans resorts sleep 5 and we've kinda looked into them but we are from Louisiana and we want something different from what we see at home all the time.

We are jostling around the possibility of staying at the All Stars Family Suites. While we would really like the extra space the suite will provide, I am hesitant about the bus service, food court, noise levels, extracurricular activities, etc.

Are there suites in EACH of the All Stars resorts? If not, where are they located?

We like to take a couple of days to just sleep in and mill around the resort. The CBR is perfect for this 'cause it has beaches, a full service restaurant, the food court has a wide variety of foods to choose from, we could rent boats at the marina, etc. etc.

So.......I need some honest opinions about:

1) Bus service? Do you have to share with all the other All Stars resorts or does each resort have their own bus? For example, we are staying in All Stars Music, does our bus go to All Stars Movies and All Stars Sports too?

How long are the averages waits for a bus and how long does it take to reach your destination? At the CBR, the buses ran every 15 minutes (or less) and we were at our destination in 20 minutes or less.

Are the bus stops covered?

2) Noise level? Can you hear your next door neighbors? The CBR is one of the quietest resorts we have ever stayed in and I loved the fact that you never heard your next door neighbors.

3) Food court? I can live without a full service restaurant but I really like the food court at the CBR. There were about five different stations serving fresh sandwiches, burgers, pizza, pasta, rotissiere chicken, etc. There were also microwaves and toasters.

If we were situated in the furthest building from the food court, how long would our walk be?

4) Are there any activities we would do at the All Stars besides swim?

I know that the post is long but I am really trying to get as much information as possible on the All Stars Suites. I am a big planner and want to book as soon as the 2008 rates come out in August.

Thanks a bunch, Lisa

 

[laceemouse]

Well, the 5 person rooms at POR have a little trundle that pulls out from under one of the beds. It is best for little kids. We stayed there with three little kids and the whole room was crowded IMO. What are the ages of your gang? The family suites are only at ASM at this time, but they may build more at some of the other resorts, including Pop, in the future. We will be staying in 2 rooms at Pop in September. We have stayed in DVC units and Wilderness cabins in the past. The only problem I can see with the family suites is there is only one real bed, the rest are fold-outs. Many people love the suites, but I think we would be more comfortable in two rooms. How much do you like this boyfriend? I have two teen girls and I can't imagine a boyfriend that I would want to take on a family vacation. Seems like an awful lot of togetherness for a non-family member to me!
I can't answer your other questions as we have not stayed at a value resort before, although I have to say I am not at all worried about activities and the food selections at the resort because even when we are having a slow down day we generally resort hop, go to DTD, etc. HTH

 

[mickeystoontown]

Since this is not our first trip, we don't mind taking along another person. We also won't have a problem with them splitting from the group and meeting up with us later.

The boyfriend is 19 and our daughter is 20. My son is 10 and my husband and I are both 41.

The fold out sofa sleeper is not a big deal. The kids usually slept on a Murphy bed when we stayed off site.

The boyfriend said he has no problem with the fold out sleeper chair.

We will hit the parks first thing in the a.m. and not return until very late in the evenings so we'll all hit the sacks as soon as we get back to the room.

Like I said before, we'll have a couple of down days to spend at the resort.

Hope someone who has stayed at the suites can provide the details.

 

[Lizzie-in-Texas]

We just returned from a 7-night stay and enjoyed the family suites at the All-Star Music Resort. There was plenty of room for all 6 of us – 3 adults, 2 teens and 1 child. Everyone said that all of the foldout beds were very comfortable. The two bathrooms really came in handy in the morning “rush hour”.

This was the first time traveling to Disney with my brother and his family, so we did not want to have separate rooms – much easier to get his wife up and moving knowing she did not have her own room to hide in.

We had our car with us but I did use the buses to return for afternoon breaks. The bus stops at the resort are not covered and the other All-Star Resorts do share buses with the exception of the Magic Kingdom. The only wait I experienced was one day leaving the Animal Kingdom. Due to a very large high school group, I had to wait for about 45 minutes (3 buses).

Our room faced a wooded area with the parking lot beyond on the third floor, so we really did not have any noise level to deal with and never heard either one of our neighbors.

We had breakfast each morning and one dinner at the food court. It is typical food court offerings at various stations. We had two picky eaters in the group and they discovered the chocolate chip pancakes and had them each morning.

Each afternoon during pool time, the lifeguards would get some of the kids together and play games with them – a dance contest, etc.

Over the years, I have stayed at just about all of the resorts on property and I would definitely stay at the All-Stars again. The suites are really a nice size for a family of 6 and having the small kitchen area (refrigerator and microwave) came in handy for midnight snacks after returning from a park.

Enjoy planning your trip.

Lizzie

 

[mickeystoontown]

Thanks Lizzie!

Anybody else?

 

[minnie61650]

DH and I stayed in a Family Suite at All Star Music ( a value resort) last Sept. (2006)

We really enjoyed the Queen size bed, the kitchenette with the microwave, having a sofa and cushioned chair to sit on and relax after a day at the parks before retiring for the evening.

I thought the pullouts are very comfortable in the Family Suites.

They are designed so the back cushion and seat cushion of the pullout support the pullout. There is no metal bar to hurt the sleepers back.

These are same make of foldouts they putting into the DVC resorts.

AKL Villa will also have a fold out chair in their new Studios so they can sleep 5.

Here is the photo of the fold out I took:

Here is photo of the foldout from the DVC room. ( the DVC fold out is the same type of pull out the Family Suites has but the DVC ones are prettier and have a nicer fabric.

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a175/minnie61650/2jesbjq.jpg


Notice the seat and back of chair support the foldout bed.



Info thread--Pullouts in Family Suites at ASMU with photos of how the pullout is supported.

http://disboards.com/showthread.php?p=18100990#post18100990



Here is the layout of the Family Suites:

Here is my review of the Suites:

www.disboards.com/showpost.php?p=17640774&postcount=7

For more photos and info please see this info thread:

http://disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1392879

Have fun at Disney wherever you choose to stay!