AllStar Music...how is it for 1st timers....

[bamamom]

Tell me everything good and bad you experienced about ASMu, we are going in Oct and are considering changing from Pop to ASMu because of free dining plan. We have 2 kids DS 9 and DD7, this being our first family trip we plan on spending most of our time at the parks (will be in WDW for 6 days) and little time in room, mainly sleeping and swimming some. How are the rooms, cleaniness is my main concern. How are the pools? Which building would you recommend? TIA




WDW October 2005

 

[thelionqueen]

Tell me everything good and bad you experienced about ASMu, we are going in Oct and are considering changing from Pop to ASMu because of free dining plan. We have 2 kids DS 9 and DD7, this being our first family trip we plan on spending most of our time at the parks (will be in WDW for 6 days) and little time in room, mainly sleeping and swimming some. How are the rooms, cleaniness is my main concern. How are the pools? Which building would you recommend? TIA




WDW October 2005

I would say that you probably will be able to switch to ASM (although I don't think so, they were full during 1st offer of free dining and have been consistently full since, but you can always get lucky..we always seem to).

Personally, I would stay at POP. 1st of all there is absolutely NO availability at POP and hasn't been since early June for the free dining pkg. The reason, is that POP is a very popular destination and more desirable. The rooms and everything is newer (much newer) than any other value. Everything Pop (food court and shops) is far superior to any other value. Best of all the bus transportation. POP doesn't share with ANY OTHER RESORT, thus making bus transportation Much faster....time is $$ at the World, you spend less time waiting, and more time playing. There are a lot of Disney icons @ pop (Lady & the Tramp + more) so you will not be "losing" any Disney ambience, POP is loaded with it.

It's your decision, but whichever you choose, you will probably not be able to get back to where you were, due to the massive people going to both resorts. Hope this helps..

 

[matt&jakesmom]

We stayed at the ASMU 2 years ago and enjoyed our visit there. We were in the Rock n Roll section in the back. Was a distance from the food court and busses but we found out it was quicker to walk thru All Star Sports get food and busses. The pool was nice. The kids swam in the piano pool which was by our building and they also swam in main pool I think called the Calypso.

We had good mousekeeping service. Everyday we had some type of "character" made out of the towels. It was a very enjoyable stay.

The only downfall is the bus sharing. After a while you just accept that you make other stops and life goes on.

I think you will have a nice stay at ASMU. Sometimes we can analyze a trip too much (I know I have). Just go and enjoy.

 

[slimplaw]

We have stayed at ASMu, ASMo and POP. I like AS better than POP. If you do have a car, parking is better at AS. I liked the food area better at the AS resorts. I liked the gift shop being separate from the food area. The POP room did seem to be just a bit larger than AS, not sure if it is. As far as transportation, both resorts will have standing room only bus service. However, by going in October it will be less crowded. I think I would take advantage of the free dining offer and make the move.

 

[HappyDwarf]

Three of us (including DS6 1/2) stayed in Music and loved it. This was my first visit in 16 years. I would stay there again in a minute. We spent most of our time in the parks with some afternoon breaks at the hotel. We got the preferred room in Calypso so we were close to food and buses. Having the pool right there was also very nice for the 7 days we were there. On the evenings we did stay in (which were very few), I was able to take DS on walks around the All-Stars, to the arcade, and to the food court for a snack. The room was very clean, and CM's were very friendly.

 

[TheBeast]

Free dining is available at any resort, so not sure why you're saying ASMu instead of Pop to get free dining? Unless Pop is full and ASMu isn't? We're staying at Pop and getting free dining in August.

Anyway, we've stayed at both and like them both equally. Pop has advantage of being newer and so maybe a little nicer, but Music is real nice too. And if you're staying at value resort to keep costs down, how can you pass up free dining as major cost savings!!

Good luck, whatever your choice. You'll just be happy to be at WDW!

 

[bigbabyblues]

Free dining is available at any resort, so not sure why you're saying ASMu instead of Pop to get free dining? Unless Pop is full and ASMu isn't? We're staying at Pop and getting free dining in August.

Anyway, we've stayed at both and like them both equally. Pop has advantage of being newer and so maybe a little nicer, but Music is real nice too. And if you're staying at value resort to keep costs down, how can you pass up free dining as major cost savings!!

Good luck, whatever your choice. You'll just be happy to be at WDW!

There is a limited # of packages with the free dining plan available for each resort, and it appears that for the OP's dates, they booked after all the packages for Pop were gone.

 

[Jockaroo]

Our first on-site trip was in early November 2002 and we stayed in ASMusic in the Jazz section. Hubby and I stayed around 10 days and we had a great time. We did not use the bus system or use the pools, so I can't comment on those.

Our room was clean and well-stocked with towels. We overlooked a nice courtyard with children's play equipment and were close to a parking lot we shared with Movies guests. We were on first floor and would hear footsteps outside our door in the morning, but these never woke us up. One day we heard a child playing on the playground equipment--but a laughing child having a good time doesn't bother me!

The food court had a good selection of food, served large and tasty portions. We ate supper 3 nights and were pleased. Portions are large enough to share if you are not starving. During major meal hours it was packed--especially breakfast when we stopped by to refill our mugs before heading to the park. One evening, it was messy, but employees were cleaning as quickly as they could. They made sure everyone coming out of the line had a clean table. When crowded, it was noisy.

During our last 2 evenings a large tour group of jr. high or sr. high school students came and the resort did get more active and the noise level rose considerably in the early evenings. The students were happy and enjoying their trip, but I saw no questionable or unacceptable behavior. We had no trouble with noisy neighbors and it was typically quiet by 11 p.m. Of course this is a variable.

We enjoyed our trip to Music and would stay again.

 

[helenk]

I just came back from a 4 night stay at the ASMU. The bus service was actually pretty good. The Sports is picked up first then the Music and the Movies. Usually those of us in Music got a seat, but the people at the stop at Movies were standing to go to the parks.
The two times I went to the AK it was just an ASMU bus, the bus to Epcot was shared and so was the bus to MK and MGM. Generally, later in the afternoon the buses were just for the one resort. Coming from the parks at night each resort had its own bus, except for MGM. The bus lines were long, for the Allstars, POP and even POR and POFQ, but once a bus was filled another one came within a few minutes. My longest wait time was 20 minutes and that was leaving MK after Spectro and Wishes.
The resort was filled to capacity during my stay, but housekeeping was great and surprising the resort was kept up well, no trash any where. The pool was pretty full, but it is a big pool so you still had plenty of room to move around.
I was in Jazz building #2, second floor facing away from the courtyard. The Jazz section is the next buildings after Calypso, and a great location.

 

[dawgfan]

We stayed at ASMu in 2002 in July for our first trip. I did not want to go to WDW then. I thought the kids were too small and considered it way out of our budget. I felt that WDW was a once in a life time trip for our family. My kids were 3 and 6. My wife insisted that we go and that their ages were perfect. I bought a book to help me plan and made reservations at teh All Stars a they were budget. I probably could have swung a moderate but thought that I did not want to spend that much if we had a bad time. We booked ASMu. We were in Country Fair wayyyyy in the back. We drove down so we had a car. We still used Disney trans but drove from the back of ASMu everyday to the front parking area to catch the bus or eat at the food court. I had my in laws with me and it was just more convenient that way. It worked out well. The Disney transportation was no problem and we never went to another resort after the stop at ASMu. The bus immediately went to the parks. Just lucky I guess. THe food court is okay and served us well. The rooms were always clean. ASMu is the perfect place for small kids and the first Disney trip. It allows you to see and experience eveerythiong wothout spending a fourtune and helps plan future trips where you may spend more on a resort. We stayed 5 days and never hit the pool. We stayed in the parks most of the trip. ASMu is great in my opinion.

 

[NewEnglandDisney]

There is a limited # of packages with the free dining plan available for each resort, and it appears that for the OP's dates, they booked after all the packages for Pop were gone.

Not anymore.

I was in the same exact situation, but FREE DINING has been brought back, and new availability has come with it. I got back into Pop no sweat. AFAIK, none of the resorts are sold out for free dining yet with the new offer.

N.E.D.

 

[Cookie Princess]

We have stayed at ASMu a handful of times and actually prefer it over POP. We waited longer for buses and in the food court lines at POP then we ever did at any of the All Stars. We also noticed that we could hear more noise from our neighbors at POP. This got frustrating at night.