Disney's ART OF ANIMATION RESORT Thread

[Becca0711]

We're staying in a CARS suite in September! Honestly, there weren't a lot of options for a family of six (we aren't comfortable having two rooms with our kids being so young) but this is such a perfect fit for our Carburetor County-loving family. I am SO excited--I think our kids (3 little boys & a girl, ages 7-3) are going to LOVE it!

This is one of the surprises I'm going to *try* to keep so the kids get the full magical experience! Wish me luck. LOL.

With that said, which building is best for us? Mater? Is that closest to the bus stops? I imagine our little-legged people will appreciate a shorter trek to our suite at the end of a long day of walking!

Thank you!

 

[mom2cgj]

With that said, which building is best for us? Mater? Is that closest to the bus stops? I imagine our little-legged people will appreciate a shorter trek to our suite at the end of a long day of walking!

Either building 1 or 3 should be about the same walk to the buses, depending on where your room is. The walk to the Cars section isn't bad at all! You will love AoA! Have a great trip!

 

[DSNY4ever]

Anyone have any news on how they are doing with the fridge situation? Have they gotten the new fridges into the LM rooms yet? We really want to do a grocery delivery, but I'd hate to set one up not knowing 100% if we are going to have a fridge or not.

Oh and just so I can do the happy dance...only 50 more days till our trip~

 

[Becca0711]

Either building 1 or 3 should be about the same walk to the buses, depending on where your room is. The walk to the Cars section isn't bad at all! You will love AoA! Have a great trip!

Eeeee! Thank you! I'm getting EXCITED!

 

[Martini Mom]

yes, I would like to know about the fridge situation too. Anyone in a family suite right now? I have read that the family suites at the AoA are exempt from the fridge issue. When I called guest services yesterday they couldn't confirm this. They said all the fridges were being replaced, including the ones in the Nemo Suites. We have planned to have our driver stop at a grocery store to pick up water, milk, yogurt etc. but obviously won't do this if we can't get confirmation on whether or not we have a fridge. We leave in 5 days, it would be great to get this figured out! Also, I heard that people who have booked rooms that normally include a fridge were receiving a refund of $15 per night of their stay. Can anyone confirm this? Fridge or no fridge we are so excited...it is already affecting my sleep!!

 

[Running Babeck]

yes, I would like to know about the fridge situation too. Anyone in a family suite right now? I have read that the family suites at the AoA are exempt from the fridge issue. When I called guest services yesterday they couldn't confirm this. They said all the fridges were being replaced, including the ones in the Nemo Suites. We have planned to have our driver stop at a grocery store to pick up water, milk, yogurt etc. but obviously won't do this if we can't get confirmation on whether or not we have a fridge. We leave in 5 days, it would be great to get this figured out! Also, I heard that people who have booked rooms that normally include a fridge were receiving a refund of $15 per night of their stay. Can anyone confirm this? Fridge or no fridge we are so excited...it is already affecting my sleep!!

Just got home from a split stay (Poly, then Nemo- checked out yesterday) I had heard about the fridge issue and called abt 5 days before our trip to request a fridge for both stays. The CM noted my request (for non medical purposes) on my Poly res. & commented that we would be fine @ our AoA suite as those weren't affected. We had refrigerators at both .

 

[hidmickey:myantidrug]

I have been surprised that the parks don't feel really crowded. We did MK EMH yesterday and as we left at 11:00 I expected it to be crazy. But it was only a little crazy, not crazy crazy.

That's awesome to hear. We had always gone over Easter except these last few years we've done January, so I've been a little nervous about going back to the big crowds when we head out on Wednesday.

Did you happen to notice the hot chocolate at the food court? I read on another thread that ASSp went from the dispenser to regular packets, and the thought that AoA has followed suit is causing somewhat of an uproar at my house!

 

[Running Babeck]

Did you happen to notice the hot chocolate at the food court? I read on another thread that ASSp went from the dispenser to regular packets, and the thought that AoA has followed suit is causing somewhat of an uproar at my house!

Just checked out yesterday & AoA still had the hot chocolate dispensers (although I did notice that they seem to be having a bit of trouble with them getting clogged & not working correctly).

 

[threebeesatdisney]

Hello fellow AoAer's:
I will be at Art of Animation in 2 days. If you have any questions while I am there and you post them on here I will try my best to answer them. I am staying in a LM room so I won't know any answers about the suites (sorry). So get your questions ready.

 

[PMart]

I am here in a cars suite now . Today we had our in room celebration which turned out great . We love this place



Pmart

 

[chrystalc77]

I am here in a cars suite now . Today we had our in room celebration which turned out great . We love this place

Pmart

What is an in room celebration? Glad to hear you are loving the Cars suite!!! We are booked for a Cars suite November 2014. Which building are you in?

 

[DocFourFour]

Besides renting a car, you could see about a town car from the airport to your hotel that offers a free stop at a grocery store. Another option is heading over to a DVC resort to pick up these items. Or contact We Go Shop or Garden Grocer for a food delivery.

Thanks. By 'town car' do you mean a taxi or the ME bus? And the DVC resorts have grocery stores? We've decided to bring over supplies for the first morning and figure something out when we get there.

 

[Desnik]

Thanks. By 'town car' do you mean a taxi or the ME bus? And the DVC resorts have grocery stores? We've decided to bring over supplies for the first morning and figure something out when we get there.

I know you didn't aske me, but I can help with the DVC question. DVC resorts offer a larger amount of small grocery items at their resorts than non DVC resorts. You can get things like microwavable meals for B/L/D. Stuff like frozen pizza, frozen meals in a bag. Also things like bagels, english muffins, Entemans donuts, cookies & muffins, cereals, soups, Lunchables, eggs, milk, juices, wine, chips/dip, bread, pancake mix, syrup, mac n cheese, icecream.

The items are a little more expensive than going to a grocery store, but it sure is more convienent to grab what you need there if you are staying at the resort.

And I think by "town car" the person meant just that. A town car. (yes an actual Lincoln Town Car) You can hire a town car like you can hire a limo to pick you up from the airport and drive you to your resort. They will usually do a free grocery store stop for you.

Or you can take a taxi, which will not do a "free" stop at the store. They'll take you there, but you'll still be on the meter.

Or you can just stick with your free ride on DME, and order your groceries from Garden Grocer or We Go Shop.

 

[Desnik]

Pardon me while I scream out:
4 MORE DAYS TILL AoA!!!

 

[yellowfish78]

Thanks. By 'town car' do you mean a taxi or the ME bus? And the DVC resorts have grocery stores? We've decided to bring over supplies for the first morning and figure something out when we get there.

I know you didn't aske me, but I can help with the DVC question. DVC resorts offer a larger amount of small grocery items at their resorts than non DVC resorts. You can get things like microwavable meals for B/L/D. Stuff like frozen pizza, frozen meals in a bag. Also things like bagels, english muffins, Entemans donuts, cookies & muffins, cereals, soups, Lunchables, eggs, milk, juices, wine, chips/dip, bread, pancake mix, syrup, mac n cheese, icecream.

The items are a little more expensive than going to a grocery store, but it sure is more convienent to grab what you need there if you are staying at the resort.

And I think by "town car" the person meant just that. A town car. (yes an actual Lincoln Town Car) You can hire a town car like you can hire a limo to pick you up from the airport and drive you to your resort. They will usually do a free grocery store stop for you.

Or you can take a taxi, which will not do a "free" stop at the store. They'll take you there, but you'll still be on the meter.

Or you can just stick with your free ride on DME, and order your groceries from Garden Grocer or We Go Shop.

What they said. Small 'stores' that tend to carry the basics: bread, milk, frozen pizza...LOL You can also check out a few towncar companies on the DIS (they sponsor one of them) and there are also some recommended on All Ears and Mousesavers if you're looking for price comparison.

 

[ChrissyLady]

Hello fellow AoAer's:
I will be at Art of Animation in 2 days. If you have any questions while I am there and you post them on here I will try my best to answer them. I am staying in a LM room so I won't know any answers about the suites (sorry). So get your questions ready.

I will be staying in November, I am really looking forward to the LM room!!! Let us know when you're there, I already have some q's lined up!

 

[yolie912]

Great thread!
I'm having a hard time if I should go with the little mermaid or a suite.
What do you guys think? Why must we have so many choices!!
Lol...

 

[freckles04]

Joining in here! I am planning a mini-trip with several family members. Just booked AoA for 5 nights in January. We are one person too many for a suite, so we are doing 3 LM rooms. It still worked out cheaper than a suite and an extra room, plus my niece will love LM rooms. She will be 5 at travel time. It will be her second Disney trip but her first on-site and I'm really excited about it!

The pictures of the exterior look so fun. I can't wait just to walk the whole thing and check it out.

 

[CuseWazowski]

So are they selling the new mugs yet or still the ole blue, black and pink ones at AoA?

Still the old ones as of Friday.

 

[CuseWazowski]

Getting back to real life after our Monday-Friday stay at AoA. We really loved it! The resort was very nice and we found the CMs to be very helpful. The food court was fine and not as swamped as I had imagined. We were there every day at 8:00-8:30 AM and never had trouble finding a table or waiting in lines. The walk wasn't bad to the farthest Cars building and we never had to wait long for a bus either at the resort or at the parks. Both pools that we visited -Nemo and Cars- were very nice. The Nemo pool was a bit crowded during the evening movie times.

The Radiator Springs atmosphere and the Cars suite were great. Very cool if you are a fan of the films. We were thrilled by the spacious suite and all beds were reported to be comfortable. It was great having the two bathrooms and separate sleeping areas.

Having stayed at the Contemporary for three recent visits, we were happy with the accommodations at AoA, especially considering the value. I don't think you'll be disappointed staying at AoA. We enjoyed it very much!