No refrigerators in updated value rooms?

[Disneyland1084]

This morning I watched a recent new video on YouTube of All Star Sports resorts. When they went in the room, they showed a cooler that was ideal for drinks, but not perishable food. Am I missing something? I loved All Star Sports in 2017 and hope to stay there again in 2025, but I want a refrigerator in my room.

 

[gottalovepluto]

Do any non-DVC rooms at Disney have a proper refrigerator? I thought they were all beverage cooler types not suitable for food storage.

 

[DLgal]

Do any non-DVC rooms at Disney have a proper refrigerator? I thought they were all beverage cooler types not suitable for food storage.

There are still some actual mini fridges out there. Beach Club still has them, although they have just begun room refurbishments there so they will likely be replaced.

They are doing this so that people CANNOT keep perishables in their rooms, so they have to buy those on-site. There is no other valid reason.

 

[DizneyFamof4]

FYI; We were at Pop in March and once we turned the cooler up to its highest setting it actually froze the drinks that were up against the back and we kept leftovers in there and they were fine.

 

[Anthony1971]

DVC one and Two bedrooms will have a full size.
Any DVC room that has been refurbished which is most and likely very soon to be all will have a beverage cooler. They do get cold enough for some items I could see cold cuts being ok for a period of time but I am not sure I would put a lot in it maybe what you can use in few days and definitely nothing that would take up a lot of space smaller things that have room for cold air to surround them it should be ok Especially stored towards the back. Think a small amount of water bottles on one shelf and a QTR pound of sliced ham on another

 

[RoseGold]

Just get some ice and a plastic bag.

 

[DisneyCowgirl]

I put ice in ours and everything stayed cold. I stuck the ice bucket in there last time, but next time I thought I would bring ziplock bags to put ice in. Make it more like an ice chest.

 

[Tomaso12]

Was at AS-Music a few weeks back; there was a mini fridge; dont recall if it had the integrated freezer section not...was kinda cool it had a glass door...to remind you left food in there. I believe as-music just got renovated; room looked very new.

 

[musicguy856]

There are still some actual mini fridges out there. Beach Club still has them, although they have just begun room refurbishments there so they will likely be replaced.

They are doing this so that people CANNOT keep perishables in their rooms, so they have to buy those on-site. There is no other valid reason.

They also probably save on electricity if they aren’t cooling as much as the mini fridges were.

 

[DizneyFamof4]

Was at AS-Music a few weeks back; there was a mini fridge; dont recall if it had the integrated freezer section not...was kinda cool it had a glass door...to remind you left food in there. I believe as-music just got renovated; room looked very new.

Those are the beverage coolers and no they do not have any freezer.

 

[DLgal]

They also probably save on electricity if they aren’t cooling as much as the mini fridges were.

Probably not any savings that would move the needle. Mini fridges use a TINY amount of electricity as is. The new coolers likely use the same amount.

 

[maltdizzy]

Probably not any savings that would move the needle. Mini fridges use a TINY amount of electricity as is. The new coolers likely use the same amount.

I was curious and tried to compare.

215kWh/year per 2.6cu. ft mini fridge x 36,000 hotel rooms 7.74 GWh/year. Florida average 15¢/kWh. $1.16M per year powering mini fridges.

But beverage coolers are neither energy star rated nor regulated beyond UL certification, so I can't find information make a direct comparison. But mini fridges must maintain ≤40°F, whereas beverage coolers fluctuate between 35-60°F.

Nerd trivia: It only took 1.21 Gigawatts to send Marty to 1955.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Many of the “beverage coolers” on property have this sticker on the door:



Personally, they have always been cold enough for things like drinks and yogurt for me. They tend to feel warmer at first but once you put stuff in and give it some time it seems fine, at least for me.

As always unit age and environmental conditions (air flow, etc) can impact things so YMMV.

 

[HopperFan]

This morning I watched a recent new video on YouTube of All Star Sports resorts. When they went in the room, they showed a cooler that was ideal for drinks, but not perishable food. Am I missing something? I loved All Star Sports in 2017 and hope to stay there again in 2025, but I want a refrigerator in my room.

Have stayed in POP and Sports with the new beverage coolers. I bring food. I have never had any issues with my food. I'm talking turkey, cheese, yogurt, mustard, butter, creme cheese, drinks. Last trip I even brought a couple pasta meals.

And with the photo above showing 41 temp, that is only a degree warmer than recommended for fridges.

If that isn't going to work for you I suggest you bring your own mini fridge. I brought my own one trip when fridges were not in rooms.

 

[maltdizzy]

And with the photo above showing 41 temp, that is only a degree warmer than recommended for fridges.

But, unlike a fridge, which must maintain 40 or less, the beverage cooler could go from 41°F to 55°F to 36°F to 52°F to 60°F throughout the day.

The danger zone for meats growing bacteria is 41°F to 139°F. I'm less cautious over many other things. I mean dairy and cheese will usually give fair warning.

 

[Mle8308]

For the coolers, make sure they are not flat up against the back wall of the cabinet they are placed in. They need air circulation to help cool. Move it out a few inches and leave the cabinet door open while not in the room. It will help it maintain a colder temperature. We have stored all sorts of food items in them with no problems.

 

[kwdw]

I've stored milk, creamers, hard cheeses or individually wrapped slices, jam, mayonnaise, yogurt, hard-boiled eggs for a few days with no concern in the cooler. I'm not sure I'd do this for things I expected to keep for 5-6 days though.

I would be hesitant with deli meats, though. As someone mentioned above - it's not the proper temperature for storage of those.

I've also done the trick mentioned above and added bagged ice to keep a container of cottage cheese a bit cooler. I also did that with some left-overs I kept in there.

For important medicines that must be stored at 40 degrees or lower - ask Disney for a mini-refrigerator and hope they have one.

 

[Grace&Carolinesmom]

For the coolers, make sure they are not flat up against the back wall of the cabinet they are placed in. They need air circulation to help cool. Move it out a few inches and leave the cabinet door open while not in the room. It will help it maintain a colder temperature. We have stored all sorts of food items in them with no problems.

This is so true! We do this every trip whether it is a mini-fridge or a beverage cooler. We leave the cabinet door wide open and our stuff gets nice and cold. One trip, our fridge did not get cold so we called maintenance and they swapped ours out for a new fridge.

I just will never understand why they design the cabinets that house the fridges/coolers with solid doors. They need good air flow to work properly.

 

[jimmymc]

Most resorts have started swapping the fridges out for these during recent refurbs. If you have medicine then I believe they can still provide you with a fridge. I've only used the coolers for sodas, and the results have varied.

 

[midwestdee]

The “beverage cooler “ we had at POFQ last June, was so pathetic DH got out the collapsible cooler we had packed for our 2 day Florida road after WDW days. Me without COLD diet cola is not a pretty picture.