I'm not terribly good at writing my experiences, but after seeing a nightmare report regarding All Star Sports, I had to report on my stay.
Cast:
Pam (45), Keith (46), DD Kim (18),best friend Melissa (18), DD Lisa (11), My mom Phyllis (70)
We began talking about spending New Years at Disneyworld about a year ago, but didn't start booking until August. We wanted to have 3 rooms, so the most economical way seemed to be All Stars Resort. I began checking the web site for Walt Disney Travel Company on a daily basis, and was thrilled when All Star Movies became available. Keith, Lisa and myself in one room, Kim and Melissa in another, and Phyllis in another. I had been very leery about booking All Stars after reading some of the comments on the boards - we have stayed at the Contemporay, Yacht and Beach Clubs, Boardwalk, Poly, Wilderness Lodge and OKW and loved them all, and I was thinking this was a big step down for us. I was wrong.
Our flights to Orlando turned into a nightmare after a mechanical problem caused us to misconnect in Salt Lake City. Of course there were no open seats to Orlando that day on any flight, so we were flown to Denver and overnighted at a hotel near the airport. Actual snow on the ground! We were not ready for this. We were flown first class (big thrill for the kids) the next afternoon to Orlando, so we lost a full day. Big blow for someone like me who over-plans these trips. We had missed dinner on our first night at Yachtsman Steakhouse, and our day at MGM with dinner at the Brown Derby.
Arriving at All Star Movies in our rented Astro van about 7:00pm, we were pleasantly surprised at the lack of a huge check-in line. I had faxed our room requests in on Dec 22, but none had been put into our record. All was fixed by the front desk and we ended up in Fantasia 5 with 2 connecting rooms and my mom a little further down the hall. Check-in was a breeze and the girl helping us was very friendly and knowledgeable. We moved our van to the parking lot by our room and made the short walk to our room. The grounds of the hotel are worth seeing even if you are not staying at the hotel. While the rooms are smaller than the deluxe properties, they are real cute and I really enjoyed it! The staff was all very friendly and helpful and I have no complaints with them. We were on the 3rd floor, and never had to wait for the elevator. The food court had o.k. food, nothing special, but not terrible. We never encountered large crowds, and never had a problem getting a table. The floor around the drink area was a little sticky, but if that's all there is to complain about, you've got it pretty good.
Kim and Melissa were off to Downtown Disney as soon as they could ditch us. We were a little slower, but took a bus intending to get dinner at Downtown Disney or the Marketplace. By the time we got to the Marketplace stop, it was 9:30 and the thought of eating that late and getting up early didn't appeal to any of us, so we just rode the bus back to the resort and picked up a snack at the food court and called it a night. Kim and Melissa made it back about 1:00am after spending some time at Disney Quest and eating at Rainforest Cafe. Time for a few hours of sleep.
Cast:
Pam (45), Keith (46), DD Kim (18),best friend Melissa (18), DD Lisa (11), My mom Phyllis (70)
We began talking about spending New Years at Disneyworld about a year ago, but didn't start booking until August. We wanted to have 3 rooms, so the most economical way seemed to be All Stars Resort. I began checking the web site for Walt Disney Travel Company on a daily basis, and was thrilled when All Star Movies became available. Keith, Lisa and myself in one room, Kim and Melissa in another, and Phyllis in another. I had been very leery about booking All Stars after reading some of the comments on the boards - we have stayed at the Contemporay, Yacht and Beach Clubs, Boardwalk, Poly, Wilderness Lodge and OKW and loved them all, and I was thinking this was a big step down for us. I was wrong.
Our flights to Orlando turned into a nightmare after a mechanical problem caused us to misconnect in Salt Lake City. Of course there were no open seats to Orlando that day on any flight, so we were flown to Denver and overnighted at a hotel near the airport. Actual snow on the ground! We were not ready for this. We were flown first class (big thrill for the kids) the next afternoon to Orlando, so we lost a full day. Big blow for someone like me who over-plans these trips. We had missed dinner on our first night at Yachtsman Steakhouse, and our day at MGM with dinner at the Brown Derby.
Arriving at All Star Movies in our rented Astro van about 7:00pm, we were pleasantly surprised at the lack of a huge check-in line. I had faxed our room requests in on Dec 22, but none had been put into our record. All was fixed by the front desk and we ended up in Fantasia 5 with 2 connecting rooms and my mom a little further down the hall. Check-in was a breeze and the girl helping us was very friendly and knowledgeable. We moved our van to the parking lot by our room and made the short walk to our room. The grounds of the hotel are worth seeing even if you are not staying at the hotel. While the rooms are smaller than the deluxe properties, they are real cute and I really enjoyed it! The staff was all very friendly and helpful and I have no complaints with them. We were on the 3rd floor, and never had to wait for the elevator. The food court had o.k. food, nothing special, but not terrible. We never encountered large crowds, and never had a problem getting a table. The floor around the drink area was a little sticky, but if that's all there is to complain about, you've got it pretty good.
Kim and Melissa were off to Downtown Disney as soon as they could ditch us. We were a little slower, but took a bus intending to get dinner at Downtown Disney or the Marketplace. By the time we got to the Marketplace stop, it was 9:30 and the thought of eating that late and getting up early didn't appeal to any of us, so we just rode the bus back to the resort and picked up a snack at the food court and called it a night. Kim and Melissa made it back about 1:00am after spending some time at Disney Quest and eating at Rainforest Cafe. Time for a few hours of sleep.
