Please help me with resort dilemma

[aprincess'smommy]

My DH, DD3, and I have been planning the trip we are taking in December since March, and I am so looking forward to it. Everyday I have to do something Disney!!! Now after reading some of the threads, I am starting to doubt my resort choice. We chose ASMo for several reasons. We wanted more money to spend on awesome souvenirs, we won't be in the room for the majority of the time, and I thought...hey this is Disney, value there has to be like a Mariott courtyard or hampton inn anywhere else . Now after reading all the threads, I am wondering if i should change to CSR or CBR. Those are really the only two left that are in our budget. Please help me I would appreciate any feedback.
PS Keep in mind that I am a neat freak and can't even walk barefoot on hotel carpet at the Ritz or The Plaza. I know something is wrong with me
Thanks y'all

 

[Snow_White]

I personally love the All Stars. We have stayed at Animal Kingdom Lodge, Contemporary, Grand Floridian (etc.), but since my husband genuinely prefers the All Stars to these (and I sorta do too!) that's where we stay. The food courts at the All Stars kicks serious butt. I think All Star Movies is the best resort choice for little kids, especially! All of the rooms at All Star Music were recently renovated, so if you want a brand spankin' new room, check that out. I believe the rooms at Sports are being renovated now.

 

[Aliceacc]

This will be my first time staying on site in several decades, so take it for what it's worth.

The only real problem with forums like this is information overload. Every single resort, every single restaurant, every single everything, had a huge variety of opinions, both pro and con. Reading too much will make you lose your mind.

You made your decision. You did your homework, checked into the options, and made a solid decision. I say you stick with it, and decide to have the time of your life. The little things that inevitably go wrong could go wrong anywhere. And someone else's experience from last week or last month or last year may or may not be anything else like yours anyway.

Otherwise you're bound to play "shoulda, coulda woulda" the entire time.

 

[powellrj]

I would say that the value isn't really like a Couryard, I would put it more in line with a Super 8 with great theming! I have also stayed at CBR and I don't think its that much better. The rooms are really small, the beds are really small and you enter from the outside not an inside hallway like you would at a Courtyard, and other than theming, the rooms are really bare bones. We paid $15 more a night to stay at CBR than we do at the values and it was worth the money, now that the cost is closer to $50 more a night, there isn't $50 difference.

I can't answer CSR but I do think it might be a little more like a regular hotel.

We accept the Values for what they are and just don't spend much time in the room!

 

[aswift]

I never walk barefoot on hotel carpet anywhere! But back to the resort question. We have done all 3 levels and to be honest the value resorts are just as nice as the middle grade without the slide at the pool and they have a better food court. The walk from the bus may be a bit longer but sometimes it is a bit quicker. Pop Century is my favorite. I just like the theming better. CBR and PO has ceiling fans in the rooms and a double sink in the room. All Stars and POP do not. Hope this helps you decide, but I would stay with the All Star.

 

[hezreck]

Just my two cents here. I had originally booked Pop Century for our last trip and kept having reservations about staying at a value resort. We changed to coronado Springs resort and I am SO glad we did!! We loved the resort. The best part was that the resort doesn't share busses with any other resort. That alone was worth it in my opinion! We also were hardly ever in our room, but did get to use the pool once and DD really liked it. The whole resort is beautiful, can't say that about the Value resorts. Like I said, at All Stars you share busses and Coronado Springs you don't. That was the selling point for me. Whatever you decide, you will have a great time. By the way, our trip was the first week of December last year. Maybe the same time you are going.

 

[Magic2000]

We've also stayed at all levels of the Disney hotels, and the All Stars are really neat!! We've stayed at All Star Movies twice and All Star Music once. In fact, when we stayed at the Contemporary, my youngest DD kept asking about All Star Movies!

It is such a cute hotel - all the huge icons of the Disney movies! My DD LOVED 101 Dalmations!!! Right outside the icon of Pongo (or Peridita) is a big TV with one of the little dogs "watching" TV. Every time we passed going to or from our room, Allison would have to stop and play like she was on TV!

We never had a problem with any of our stays at All Star Movies! Food court was OK for a quick bite to eat, and the bus service was fine. The lines do look long at park closing, but they usually have several buses waiting!

Have a great trip! Your daughter will LOVE the All Star Movies! There's also a really cute section with Buzz & Woody! Enjoy your stay!!!!!

 

[PJinNYC]

I stayed at the All Star Movies a few years back. It was a nice basic type hotel. Not a Marriott, but maybe a Hampton Inn style.

It was clean, inexpensive, and fun! We didn't spend much time at the hotel itself, but we did go swimming and they have a nice fountain play area for the kids (looked cute at least, I didn't have a kid back then). The theming was really cute too!

I would stay there again if I was on a trip that we were mostly in the parks.

 

[LuvOrlando]

The Trip advisor site is a great source of info from non biased people from all over the world. They have great candid photos and will give their honest opinion on almost any hotel you can think of...

That said, every family, even every family member, will have their own list of 'must have's' and 'no way's' so its hard to say what someone else might like. In my opinion, listen to all the pros and cons and then decide which issues reported would most influence your enjoyment of a hotel... then go with your gut.

For us DH HATES crowds so we avoid the bigger, less spread out resorts simply because they hold more people in apartment building style and that would drive DH up a wall. He's also a very light sleeper so again, crowded is a problem. As for me, I don't care as long as the place is clean but since he is more picky I always choose with him in mind.

Have a great time

 

[MinMouse]

Agreed --- no barefeet in hotel rooms (YUCK!). Back to the topic at hand . . . Youngest DD's first trip (at age 4) we stayed at the Grand Floridian . . . it was less than 6 mos following 9/11 and Disney upgraded us from CBR for $10 more per night . Our next trip (about 11 mos later) we stayed at ASMu. Had a great time but the first stay really set our DDs expectations high (ie our room at the GF was lagoon view --- castle in the background . . . . amazing)! They had a great time on this trip too but did say they liked GF better (no duh!) Bottom line, they still talk about staying at the All Stars again sometime. It was clean and the cafeteria was a nice feature. I would advise staying in a building close to the entrance (I think they consider that preferred and it's usually $10 more per night). At least at ASMu is was a long walk from the bus stop to our building in the back. I know you'll have a magical time wherever you decide to stay!

 

[aprincess'smommy]

Thanks a bunch for all of your advice. In the end, DH made the call and it's CSR for us (still won't walk barefoot though). I loved hearing everyone's opinions though. It will be nice in a couple of years (saving every last penny) when we will be in the DVC and the decision will be much easier.
Thanks again

 

[disneyneighbors]

There are lots of vacation rentals as close as 2 miles from Disney. A vacation condo in a newer resort will be a much better value. If you must stay on property I would try any one of the mid priced resorts

 

[all4fun]

Thanks a bunch for all of your advice. In the end, DH made the call and it's CSR for us (still won't walk barefoot though). I loved hearing everyone's opinions though. It will be nice in a couple of years (saving every last penny) when we will be in the DVC and the decision will be much easier.
Thanks again

I don't think you will regret changing. You sound a lot like me actually. We stayed at ASMo last year and really didn't like it at all. The rooms were too small, the beds too small and too hard, plus we are used to DVC where we at minimum have a wet bar and small fridge to keep food in (but we usually do get a 1BR w/full kitchen). So I think a lot of it had to do w/what I am accustomed to. After that stay, dh and I have both decided if we ever pay cash for reservations again, it will be at a mod like CSR or CBR, at minimum. I know a lot of people do like the Values and there's certainly nothing wrong with that! I'm happy that there's something for everyone at Disney. Hope you enjoy your trip!

 

[Juliet25]

You'll be fine! I think Movies is the most "Disney" of the AS. I stayed in the Mighty Ducks section for the first two nights of my honeymoon (it was over NYE and all we could afford, lol). It's a cute resort.

My only suggestion would be to spend the extra $$$ per night to get a preferred room to be closer to the food court and bus stops.

Have fun!