Art of Animation, All Star Movies, or Pop?!

[kimberlymautz]

Hello everyone! I'm planning my trip for the spring and I'm trying to figure out which value resort we should stay at. The trip will most likely be just me and my 4 year old daughter, but my best friend might be joining us. I'm planning to stay at a value resort partially because I can save money and partially because the theme is perfect for my munchkin.

I have really wanted to stay at Art of Animation since it opened, and it isn't THAT much more expensive then the other resorts (in total about $150 more for my stay), but is it worth it? I could use that $150 for food, souvenirs, gas, etc. My daughter LIKES the Little Mermaid, so I'm sure she'd like the theme of the rooms, but I don't know if it's enough to justify spending the extra money.

Has anyone stayed there? What do you think? Is it worth spending the extra money?

Also, when I went in December 2012, my ex and I stayed at Pop (which I loved). The food court food was really good, the buses were fast and consistent, and the rooms were very nice and comfortable. I'd be happy staying there again, but I want to look at my options.

Has anyone stayed at Art of Animation or All Star Movies? I think the themes at those resorts would fit with my daughter's likes a little more. I've hear that because the buses are shared between the All Star resorts they can sometimes be a little slower. Is this true? What are your experiences staying at these (or any of the other) value resorts?

 

[WillCAD]

You can't go wrong with any of the three you mentioned.

In my experience, Pop has better bus service than the All-Stars, mostly because the All-Stars share busses during slow periods of the day. I haven't stayed at AoA yet, but historically, bus service at the newest, most popular resorts does seem to be better, so I imagine that AoA probably does have bus service that's as good as Pop.

As to theming, well... You expressed two things of relevance in your question - the extra cost of AoA, while not pennies, seems within your budget, and you really want to stay there. Having visited AoA several times, I can tell you that the theming there is the best of any of the Values. Whether you stay there or not, it's worth a visit and a walk around the grounds.

So, adding those things together, my vote is that you stay at AoA. You'll love it, your munchkin will love it, and as long as the extra $150 doesn't break you, you can maybe gradually squirrel away the extra over the course of the next six months to compensate for it, and you'll never miss it.

 

[JasonDeyoung]

If I go value, my first option is always Pop. I've always had good experiences and never a complaint. I've only stayed at AoA once when it opened and I liked it a lot. I always walk over there when I stay at Pop as well. Tough choice. Guess it all comes down to really is how much will you be at the resort? If it's just to sleep, I'd do Pop every time. If you're going to spend a bit more time at the resort, I'd consider AoA

 

[Disneyfreak Jen]

I haven't stayed at AoA, but I have stayed at POP multiple times and I have walked across the bridge to check it out. (POP and AoA are linked together you just have to cross the bridge over the lake and you can go to the other resort). Your daughter will probably really like it. Lots of character statues similar to the ones at POP and the theming of AoA is great, but it's definitely more "little kid" like than POP is….POP has the character statues but it doesn't have a toddler type vibe to it like AoA does.

The nice thing about the POP/AoA proximity is that you can stay at one and always eat a meal at the other hotel by crossing the bridge. I liked the food court at AoA too, they had good food choices. The pool at AoA is gated, so you can't stay at POP and then pool hop over at AoA. I do believe AoA has their own bus like POP does. All Star resorts share busses…so they will go from Music to Movies to Sports, then go to the parks….so yes, they are much slower.

 

[Tuvalu]

One complaint I have heard about the Little Mermaid rooms at AoA is since they are the furthest from the main building and bus stop, the walk to/from the room can be tiring, especially after a long day at the parks.

 

[wdisneyw2000]

We have stayed at all 3 that you have mentioned. We enjoyed all 3, but as you said your looking for a resort that the DD will like. My opinion yes if you can do it i'd stay at AOA TLM resort. My DD's loved it, & we enjoyed as well. Tuvalu does have a point the walk can be tiring to the front. Our solution to that was we drove our vehicle to the front & parked it & went to the parks. But the theming is great, as well as you have the other AOA resorts as well that you can get great pix of or just to go for a stroll if you have time. I will agree with you that pop does have better food, but if you want it's close enough to drive to ,, the walk can be tiring to go there to eat. Either way your getting out of PA which i love as well leaving PA to go to WDW lol. We are driving & checking in on 10/1 in a few weeks. Happy travels good luck & have a great time

 

[Cosmic Commando]

Stay at Pop, request a room in the 60s (some of them are standard). You'll be close to the main building for Pop, and you can walk across the bridge to eat at AoA and walk around there. Buy yourself something cool with the $150 you save.

 

[Kman]

I haven't looked really carefully but it struck me that AoA was quite a bit more w expensive than the other value resorts. Perhaps it has some thing to with time of year? Not sure but it seemed to me that it was close to moderate pricing than value. Makes sense to me based on the extensive theming. Much more immersive than any of the other values.

 

[bee]

I haven't looked really carefully but it struck me that AoA was quite a bit more w expensive than the other value resorts. Perhaps it has some thing to with time of year? Not sure but it seemed to me that it was close to moderate pricing than value. Makes sense to me based on the extensive theming. Much more immersive than any of the other values.

This happens when The Little Mermaid standard rooms are sold out and all that's available are the family suites. TLM rooms run about $10-$20 more than standard Pop rooms per night while the suites are double or more the Pop rates. If you want a standard TLM room at AoA try being flexible with your travel dates and book as far in advance as possible.

To OP: I would go with AoA or Pop, depending on what's more important to you: the theming or the $150. Both have excellent bus service in my experience (much better than the All Stars) and as others have mentioned you can always cross the bridge and explore the other resort.

 

[SyracuseDisneyFan]

Art of Animation

 

[Tinkerbell 8]

I've stayed at Pop 4 times and AS Music once (I will be staying at AOA TLM section in Feb). I would eliminate AS as they often share busses and that can add a significant amount of travel time. Last November I stayed at Pop and walked over to explore AOA and I LOVED it, the statues and overall theming was amazing so I'm sure your kiddo would love it, especially the pool area! If the extra $150 isn't breaking the bank than I would do AOA to experience a new resort.

 

[Baltar]

I've stayed at all three and I'll choose Pop Century. If you love the theming of AoA you can walk across the bridge to see it from Pop. We have taken the kids to see the Cars before. Both are much better than AS

 

[disneyfirstLJ]

I have only stayed at AoA so I guess I am biased but I would pick AoA. We have stayed in the LM rooms twice and I would highly recommend the resort. My daughter was age 10 and then 11 when we stayed there and she loved the theming. The food court was awesome and the bus transportation was excellent. If you decide to stay there request building's 7 or 9. That will get you closer to the main building. I have heard building 7 with a lake view is nice but we have always stayed in building 9.

 

[SAV]

Will you be spending any time at the resort to make it worth the extra $$ spent?

If it is just to look at while walking to and from the room, then I think she'd appreciate it if you bought her a LM souvenir with that extra $150. You can always stay at POP, then walk over to check out the theming.

 

[Kosmo1986]

One complaint I have heard about the Little Mermaid rooms at AoA is since they are the furthest from the main building and bus stop, the walk to/from the room can be tiring, especially after a long day at the parks.

This ^. I LOVED staying at AOA and I would recommend it to anyone. The buses were fast and everything was great EXCEPT that walk from little mermaid was pretty far. I am young and in good shape and it is just me and DH and we like using the buses (even though we have a car) but I would sometimes drive over to the main building just to take the bus

 

[britdaw]

It really depends on your family's wants and needs for the trip. We looked at ASM and AoA, and decided on AoA because of the size of the family suite (I'm soooo excited to have two bathrooms and an actual bedroom this time! LOL), and because of my son's love of "Cars". If your daughter really likes Little Mermaid, I'd say she'd LOVE AoA.

 

[MotherofaPrincessLover]

I've only stayed at AoA of your choices, but I enjoyed it. I really enjoyed the pool area of AoA, which might be another point to consider.

 

[kimberlymautz]

You've all given me so much to think about! I love the Little Mermaid rooms at AoA, but trying to make that walk after a long day at the parks with a (probably cranky) four year old makes me nervous.

I think I'm going to see how she feels about the Little Mermaid once it gets closer to booking.

Thanks everyone!

 

[pixiesteno]

I have stayed at Pop and ASmu resort, please don't let the fact that others say the AS share buses. Yes, that does happen at times. I have had several stays at ASMu and only had to share a bus a couple of times. The nice thing about the AS resorts is they are close together, many a time one of the buses for the other AS resorts has pulled up at the parks and we have hopped the bus thinking of just walking to our resort to have the drive say, "just stay on board and I will stop at the other two resorts" even though it was supposed to be a dedicated bus. Yes, Pop and AoA have their own buses but you can easily be left waiting for another bus to come or that bus to return from the trip to the park because there were more people waiting than what the bus could hold.
I guess I am saying don't discount the All Stars on just the bus issue. We enjoyed the dining hall at ASMu more than Pop because it had a great variety of choices.

 

[tor29c]

I've stayed at POP and AoA with different size and age groups. The real only advantage of staying at AoA is the opportunity to use the Big Blue pool, which is lovely. I really enjoyed hearing the music underwater. But when we stayed at POP we were moments away from AoA (and a smaller group) so I would take the baby over every day to play at the play area at the Big, Blue pool. He loved seeing the giant Mr & Mrs Potato Heads, the Mickey phone. and all the other oversized decorations at POP. In my mind, the room just isn't that important. Either way you're still at Disney!!! Have a wonderful time!