Help--best All-Star resort?

[anneofgreengables]

Hi! For those of you who have stayed here--which is the best All-Star--Movies, Pop Century, Music or Sports. And which building do you recommend? Thanks.

 

[dyna]

Pop Century is a budget hotel but not a part of All Stars resorts.

I prefer Sports as in the middle of the day when the buses share a bus the bus stops there 1st as a rule.

I prefer building 7 or 10 with 7 being my 1st choice but a room not facing football field or what ever it is they call that thing lots of kids plays there and if there is a group doing any practicing say cheerleaders they practice there so it's noisier there than other side of building and there is a short cut to the buses as well.

Not tried POP yet will do that next week but I'm hoping DH will be ready to move back home to Sports after this visit.

 

[boomhauer]

Stayed at all3 of the All Stars and Pop Century. Personally, I prefer All Star Movies the best. It has the best theming, best gift shop, best pools, best food court, and the bus service is very efficient.

 

[milmore104]

POP it's newer and doesn't share buses.

 

[minnie61650]

All Star Movies
is a great place to stay if you have .
preschoolers. They love it!
It is like being in the middle of a Disney Movie Fantasyland.

Here is the map of All Movies.
http://www.wdwinfo.com/resortmaps/allstarmovie.JPG
The Fantasia Buildings are the preferred buildings.
The All Star Movie Fantasia pool has Mickey.

I am 55 year old and travel several times a year. I often stay at 4 star hotels.
So the deluxe resorts do not have anything special for me.
All Star is like being in the heart of the Magic and that is where I want to be.

All Star Music is my faveroite.It is quieter because more couples stay there. I love staying at the Clypso builing. It is closer to the pool,food court and bus stop.

Here is a site with a map of All Star Sports and All Star Music.
http://www.wdwinfo.com/resortmaps/allstarmap.htm
Scroll down.All Star Music is at the bottom of the page.
The Calypso buildings at All Star Music are #1 and #10 are nearest to the food court and bus stop.
They are the preferred buildings and cost about $12 extra per night.
The Calypso pool at ASMU has Donald Duck.

The buses are wonderful.

Bus rides are quite short from the ALL Stars according to PassPorter.com

All Star Buses-CBR buses---CSR buses--PO buses--- Contemporary
MK 20 min---- 20 min-----15 min------10 min---20 min(mono)
Epcot 10 min-- 15 min-----15 min------10 min---15 min
MGM 10 min----12 min-----15 min------15 min---20min
AK 10 min------20min-------10 min----15 min---20 min
DTD 15 min----20 min------35 min-----15 min---35 min

It only takes 10 minutes to get to Epcot,MGM and AK from All Stars.
MK is 20 min away. That's the same amount of time it takes on the monorail from the Contemporary.

The All Star resorts have 1960 rooms each.
Pop has 2,880rooms.
That means more people in the pools,food court and in line waiting for the bus at POP.
When phase 2 of POP is built it will be 2 bus stops at POP and the 2 POPs will have the same # of rooms as the 3 All Stars.

Also All Star is closer to the main road to get to parks and thats why bus rides are shorter from there than from POP.

A WORD ABOUT BUS SHARING:

It is usually just our stop and maybe one more on the way to the parks. On the way back sometimes its all 3 but often Sports and Music share and Movies has it's own bus back.

I guess some people who stay at POP see all 3 All Star names on the return sign of our bus stop when they head to the POP bus stop and think All Stars also has 3 stops on the way to the park.
(Even when we stop at another AS resort to load up it has not taken more than 5 minutes and we are on our way!)

I love the All Star Resorts --they can't be beat. I have visited WDW more than a dozen times with the 1st time in Oct. 1971. It was brand new. I've stayed at FW, Disney Inn, a few the of Hotels on hotel Blvd., CBR and the towers at the Contemporary. I got to see the MK from my balcony at the Contemporary and I'm happy I got to experience it once. I just prefer the All Star Resorts.
The theaming is pure Disney.
My last 4 visits have been at The All Stars and this fall when we take dd,dsil, and our grandson age 3 we are staying at the All Stars Music. I thought about AKL and even though we can well afford AKL I just wanted Alex to experience the Disney Magic at the All Stars on his first visit.
Where else can one find Donald Duck or Mickey Mouse at the pool?
Have a great time at Disney!
Linda

 

[keishashadow]

Of the three AS Resorts, my vote is for Music, Calypso Bldg. (preferred). I wouldn't want to take my chances on a standard and be stuck way in the back by the piano pool (it's quite a hike from the lobby/bus service).

Movies would be ideal, unless it's booked to capacity - especially with the youth groups - chaos. It took over 1/2 hour to get though the food court line, then nearly impossible to find a table, as the kids were more or less using the dining room as a lounge area every time we were there.

Initially, I was irritated to be "stuck" in the Mighty Ducks building (we wanted the Toy Story). It turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Very close to the AS Movies bus stop & food court.

The Sports seemed to have young men as their main occupants - think Spring Break crowd.

It's been posted that the Pop doesn't book groups - diverts them to the AS. Not sure if this has been confirmed.

All the resorts are magical, if you select the AS you can easily tour all the resorts to see the incredible giant icons, IMO Toy Story is the best. good luck.

 

[bcinohio]

We have stayed at all three AS and Movies is our favorite. We just got back and stayed at the Pop this time. We also really liked it. At the Movies we like the Toy Story section. It is close without being loud. We also like the way it is decorated.

At the Pop we stayed in the 70's section and really liked it. It was close like Toy Story and quiet. A short walk to everything.

Have a great trip!!

 

[boomhauer]

All Star Movies
is a great place to stay if you have .
preschoolers. They love it!
It is like being in the middle of a Disney Movie Fantasyland.
All Star Movies has pop up fountains now also.
Here is the map of All Movies.
http://www.wdwinfo.com/resortmaps/allstarmovie.JPG
The Fantasia Buildings are the preferred buildings.
The All Star Movie Fantasia pool has Mickey.

I am 55 year old and travel several times a year. I often stay at 4 star hotels.
So the deluxe resorts do not have anything special for me.
All Star is like being in the heart of the Magic and that is where I want to be.

All Star Music is my faveroite.It is quieter because more couples stay there. I love staying at the Clypso builing. It is closer to the pool,food court and bus stop.

Here is a site with a map of All Star Sports and All Star Music.
http://www.wdwinfo.com/resortmaps/allstarmap.htm
Scroll down.All Star Music is at the bottom of the page.
The Calypso buildings at All Star Music are #1 and #10 are nearest to the food court and bus stop.
They are the preferred buildings and cost about $12 extra per night.
The Calypso pool at ASMU has Donald Duck.

The buses are wonderful.

Bus rides are quite short from the ALL Stars according to PassPorter.com

All Star Buses-CBR buses---CSR buses--PO buses--- Contemporary
MK 20 min---- 20 min-----15 min------10 min---20 min(mono)
Epcot 10 min-- 15 min-----15 min------10 min---15 min
MGM 10 min----12 min-----15 min------15 min---20min
AK 10 min------20min-------10 min----15 min---20 min
DTD 15 min----20 min------35 min-----15 min---35 min

It only takes 10 minutes to get to Epcot,MGM and AK from All Stars.
MK is 20 min away. That's the same amount of time it takes on the monorail from the Contemporary.

The All Star resorts have 1960 rooms each.
Pop has 2,880rooms.
That means more people in the pools,food court and in line waiting for the bus at POP.
When phase 2 of POP is built it will be 2 bus stops at POP and the 2 POPs will have the same # of rooms as the 3 All Stars.

Also All Star is closer to the main road to get to parks and thats why bus rides are shorter from there than from POP.

A WORD ABOUT BUS SHARING:

It is usually just our stop and maybe one more on the way to the parks. On the way back sometimes its all 3 but often Sports and Music share and Movies has it's own bus back.

I guess some people who stay at POP see all 3 All Star names on the return sign of our bus stop when they head to the POP bus stop and think All Stars also has 3 stops on the way to the park.
(Even when we stop at another AS resort to load up it has not taken more than 5 minutes and we are on our way!)

I love the All Star Resorts --they can't be beat. I have visited WDW more than a dozen times with the 1st time in Oct. 1971. It was brand new. I've stayed at FW, Disney Inn, a few the of Hotels on hotel Blvd., CBR and the towers at the Contemporary. I got to see the MK from my balcony at the Contemporary and I'm happy I got to experience it once. I just prefer the All Star Resorts.
The theaming is pure Disney.
My last 4 visits have been at The All Stars and this fall when we take dd,dsil, and our grandson age 3 we are staying at the All Stars Music. I thought about AKL and even though we can well afford AKL I just wanted Alex to experience the Disney Magic at the All Stars on his first visit.
Where else can one find Donald Duck or Mickey Mouse at the pool?
Have a great time at Disney!
Linda

I agree with everything except for this:

That's the same amount of time it takes on the monorail from the Contemporary."

I don't think it takes 20 minutes to get to the Magic Kingdom from the Contemporary by Monorail.

 

[Buzz2001]

I don't think it takes 20 minutes to get to the Magic Kingdom from the Contemporary by Monorail.

Pretty close. We stayed at the Cont for halloween in 2002 (I think) and by the second day, we just walked to MK because the monorail from the Cont to MK had to make so many stops and actually have to stop at times to wait for other monorails to clear certain parts of the track or a station. Was not impressed. Quicker to walk.

All Star Movies Fantasia 8

 

[WillCAD]

Of the three AS Resorts, my vote is for Music, Calypso Bldg. (preferred). I wouldn't want to take my chances on a standard and be stuck way in the back by the piano pool (it's quite a hike from the lobby/bus service).

Ah, I'm just the opposite!

Music is my favorite Value resort, and I prefer being stuck way back in teh Broadway section, Bldg 8 or 9. I always have a car with me, and Bldgs 8 & 9 are close to the parking lot, so I don't worry about the long walk to the bus stops or food court. But I do enjoy the peace and quiet of those buildings.

 

[keishashadow]

Ah, I'm just the opposite!

Music is my favorite Value resort, and I prefer being stuck way back in teh Broadway section, Bldg 8 or 9. I always have a car with me, and Bldgs 8 & 9 are close to the parking lot, so I don't worry about the long walk to the bus stops or food court. But I do enjoy the peace and quiet of those buildings.

The relative quiet sounds great. We always bring a car too, but I hate to drive to the parks, especially the MK, think the bus service is extraordinary. Guess I could always drive to the lot by the bus stop and retrieve the car @ the end of a long day Maybe they'll start renting golf carts ala Fort Wilderness?LOL

 

[henrylovespooh]

I love All Star Movies. We never had bus problems last March, and the kids loved the theming. We stayed in one of the Toy Story Buildings on the top floor. The area was quiet, a quick walk to the food court, pool and bus, and the kids also liked the playground. I definitely felt like we were at Disney with the huge Buzz and Woody outside our hotel. The food court had something for everyone and ven had a tv with Disney shows to keep the kids still while we finished eating.

We are going back in October and might try Fantasia this time.

 

[lonegungirl]

Ah, I'm just the opposite!

Music is my favorite Value resort, and I prefer being stuck way back in teh Broadway section, Bldg 8 or 9. I always have a car with me, and Bldgs 8 & 9 are close to the parking lot, so I don't worry about the long walk to the bus stops or food court. But I do enjoy the peace and quiet of those buildings.

I'm with you. I was in Rock last time, and I only loved being a < 5 minute walk to the car. This next time I'm going with people who are perfectly capable of walking but get very grumpy at long distances, so I'm hoping for a repeat. I would have liked to try Pop (they were sold out,) but since I've heard it's a little longer walk to the car, perhaps it's for the best.

 

[BBGraph]

I have stayed at all star sports and from what i can tell the all stars are a good value but each one has it pluses

All star movies Beter theming on Buildings and pools but more crowded

All star Music Quite less people

All star sports Best transportation always got a seat to the parks and were the first stop back from the parks so on those packed buses after parks close it didn't bother me to stand near exit so I could just jump off the bus.

 

[aubriee]

Just a note: POP will be just a little cheaper than the AllStars as they are in different counties (Orange and Osceola) and Pop has cheaper tax. Not much, but a little.

Personally I prefer POP--love the 50's Section. It's newer and doesn't share buses like the All Stars. It also has a lake to walk around which the All Stars don't and if you're on the back side of the 50's or 70's you can see parts of Illuminations. CMs are very friendly and I got several towel animals when I was there this past May.