Family suites at value resorts

[4leobeans]

I'm starting to plan our trip (no official booking yet) for the fall of 2017. We've gone in 2013 (Feb) and 2015 (Sept) for our girls' 5th birthdays. Our son's 5th birthday isn't till Oct 2018, but we can't wait that long, so we are planning to celebrate his 4th birthday at Disney .

I was originally thinking Art of Animation (with fingers crossed for FD), and if we were lucky enough to get it, I'd still upgrade to the regular dining plan. That ends up with another $60 or so per night on top of the room costs....so now, I'm estimating the room will cost about $450/night. That is significantly more than family suites at the other value, any moderate resort, and even seems to approach costs for Wilderness Lodge....

Would we be disappointed in "cheaping out" to stay at ASM? My kids are already excited about the rooms at AofA .

Thank your for your comments!

We are from Canada, and the exchange rate really ups the cost of a trip for us, so we need to keep it less than $5000 to make it a reality, especially since we have another $3500 for flights to get us there.

 

[Disneyland1084]

I've never been to WDW, so my opinion probably won't matter. It sounds like you're a family of five. If I we're going to spend $450 a night, I'd get a standard room at a deluxe resort. But if you're kids really want to stay at AOA, maybe it would be worth it.

 

[HopperFan]

If you don't mind all being in one room, and want to save money, I would look at booking a moderate (POR or CBR) or deluxe you fit in. If you get FD, no upgrade needed. And for that kind of money, I'd want the nicest hotel my money could buy.

PS Not a fan of ASMu and I certainly think there is no comparison in the suites, the pools, playground, food court or "Disney" theme your kids are excited about.

 

[DanInMN]

With only 5 people, 3 of which are children, look at POR or CBR. Much nicer resorts, great pools for the kids, and so much more for 1/2 the price of AoA suite.

ASMu might be an ok option too, but we have not stayed in one before.

In our experience the values have tiny rooms, small beds, and paper thin walls. You will hear your neighbors conversations clearly - which may or may not be interesting!

We stayed at AoA last spring for a week with 4 teens in a suite. Similar to the other value resorts it is like a cheap motel with garish decorations, no hot tub, no pool slide... Although it was ok, it really is grossly overpriced for what you get and we will not stay there again.

 

[maxiesmom]

I have to disagree with others, I would stick with a family suite. You could pack all in to one room, but you would also be giving up a second bathroom, a separate sleeping space for the adults, and a kitchenette. I would go with the suite at the All Star Music. It is substantially cheaper than a suite at AoA. And the kitchenette is off in a nook instead of right next to one of the fold outs.

My last 2 stays at a value I had no problem with neighbor noise at all. My worst trip for that was actually at a deluxe resort. That more depends on the neighbors than the level or resort.

 

[4leobeans]

Yeah....everyone had good points....it can be tough trying to find the best option !

We do have five people, two adults and three kids. We've stayed at POR, and wouldn't be against staying at any of the mods. I wonder if we could book two connecting rooms? I priced it out again, and booking at WL is only a $200 difference (assuming we can get the FD promo)

As for the family suites...pricing it out with the dining plan takes it to nearly $6500. Not as much a value as I originally thought.

It's hard to get an idea of the ASMu suites either from the Disney website....the rooms certainly don't seem to compare to AofA.

Thank you everyone for your comments so far......

 

[maxiesmom]

You can't book connecting rooms. They are not a bookable category. You can request them, but you may not get them.

That price you got for the family suites, is it from AoA? If so run the numbers again with one at ASMu. It should be around $80 a night cheaper.

 

[dansdad]

Yeah....everyone had good points....it can be tough trying to find the best option !

We do have five people, two adults and three kids. We've stayed at POR, and wouldn't be against staying at any of the mods. I wonder if we could book two connecting rooms? I priced it out again, and booking at WL is only a $200 difference (assuming we can get the FD promo)

As for the family suites...pricing it out with the dining plan takes it to nearly $6500. Not as much a value as I originally thought.

It's hard to get an idea of the ASMu suites either from the Disney website....the rooms certainly don't seem to compare to AofA.

Thank you everyone for your comments so far......

You can't book connecting rooms. You can book 2 rooms and request that they be connecting but there's no guarantee.

We thoroughly enjoyed our stay in a Family Suite at Music and would not hesitate to stay again. We have enjoyed our stays at all 3 of the All Stars.

 

[EvilQueenLiz]

I've stayed at AoA and ASMu suites. I actually preferred the layout of the ASM suites better. Also, depending on the location of your room at AoA it might be a trek to Animation Hall and the buses. ASMu you are in the closest buildings to everything. That being said, the themeing of AoA is VERY cool. The pools and play areas are amazing and we loved Landscape of Flavors for quick meals here and there.

 

[Tigerlulu]

We loved our stay at AofA and absolutely will stay there again. The bathrooms are large and bright, the resort theming is awesome and we loved the food court. Only the little mermaid rooms felt like they were a mile away. We stayed in the cars area and loved it. The room wasn't overwhelmingly themed like I thought it would be too. Everything was clean and nice.

 

[maxiesmom]

Umm, my definition of "overwhelmingly themed" must be way different from yours:

http://allears.net/acc/g_artanimation_cars.htm

I think the suites at AoA are THE definition of "overwhelming themed".

 

[DisneyWishes14]

I would price out POR and CBR (I prefer POR). If you aren't against staying in one room at a mod, this will be your most economical bet. I've stayed at AoA and never will again. It was very loud and the food court was really chaotic. Yes, you get more space, but it definitely feels like a value resort. The room and amenities at the mod are so much nicer than the values IMHO.

Unfortunately, you can't fit 5 people in a standard room at WL. You would need to book a Deluxe-CL room there and that will be quite more expensive, I think, than AoA.

Have you considered a cabin at Ft. W? It may price out less than the AoA suite!

 

[PatMcDuck]

I have stayed at all 3 suite sections, and Cars is definitely the lightest in theming! It also is the most amazing outside, IMHO. It is our favorite of the 3. Nemo and Lion King are VERY bright and garish. (but fun! we liked all 3, I liked LK the least because with no pool closeby, it was hardest to do laundry. At Cars it was easy to do laundry at Cozy Cone pool).

I say stick with AoA. I would rethink the dining plan, and maybe do the QS one, and pay OOP for a character meal or table service meal, here and there.

 

[DanInMN]

2 rooms will be expensive, and comparable in cost to the family suites. And two rooms at WL will be even more.

I won't do a value resort again. "Value" means "what you get for what you pay", not just the price alone. I don't find the values to provide a good value, especially AoA.

We are fortunate enough to afford to stay where we want, but I'm cheap and want both good value and a fun experience. POR/CBR or an offsite condo work for us.