Which value resort?

[epcot2004]

OK - last month I posted about staying in Swan/Dolphin or Port Orleans. Now I am back for another round. The budget has changed and we are considering staying at a Value. No disrespect to those who stay at the Values but I am not sure about this as it has been years since we stayed at POP and that was only three months after it opened so everything was shiny and new - we were not terribly impressed. I just get the impression that the Values are just not given the attention that the Deluxe properties are - please correct me if I'm wrong. Any thoughts as to which Value is in the best condition? I know AoA is probably still looking new but I think the room theming might be a little too much for us. Just 2 adults and dogs (staying at Best Friends on property) - already have the dogs booked but we don't have palace to stay yet!

 

[Plowboy]

I think that either Pop or AoA may have superior theming compared to the AS's. We stayed at AS Sports before and I wasn't that impressed (maybe it was the hundreds/thousands of cheerleaders running around 24 hours a day). Can't speak to the current condition as it's been years.
We (the two of us) stay at Pop and have had no complaints trip after trip. We ask for a top floor looking out onto the lake and it's nice and quiet compared to being on the pool side. The overall condition of the resort is just fine.
In the end it's all about what YOU want. I'd rather spend a little (or a lot!) less and stay at a value especially when all we use the room for is sleep and a shower. If the room itself was the destination I'd probably look at it quite differently.

 

[Tuvalu]

Stayed at POP in February. Very nice room (recently "refreshed") and food court was fine. Minimal wait for buses.

We usually stay deluxe and did not feel slighted by staying at POP. And one night we walked across the bridge and ate at AoA food court, which was very good.

 

[belledream]

Pop, as others have mentioned, usually receives more praise than the All Stars. I find Movies to be pretty fun though. It's the most DISNEY! resort I feel. The Toy Story section is pretty darn cute

 

[EricJ]

Pop, as others have mentioned, usually receives more praise than the All Stars. I find Movies to be pretty fun though. It's the most DISNEY! resort I feel. The Toy Story section is pretty darn cute

I remember (during the years of Pressler frustration) when it was first built, we called Pop "the Big Purple Monster" for its garish color design--
It's redeemed itself since then, and I was that close to staying there if I couldn't change my CBR to free dining, but having "Groovy!" and "Way Out!" on the side of my building just held me back somewhat.

Loved All-Star Movies, though--Disney wanted to beat I-Drive at its own motel game, and they did, with all the classier in-room amenities of the Mods, the bus service that doesn't drop you off at the parking lot, and still getting the feeling of an old-school motel commando trip.
The Fantasia pool was down the week I was there, so we all (cheerleaders included) had to cram into the Ducks hockey pool on the most humid week of the year, but it was still comfortingly immersive to see Pongo, Herbie and Noah's-Ark Donald statues on the way to and back from the lobby.
I still like to use the "Lucky watches you on TV" photo spot as my desktop wallpaper.

 

[CheshireCat12]

ASMu was great! Stayed twice and had no crowds, good food at food court, quiet and pool was nice. I would recommend it.

 

[seahawk7]

We like Allstar Movies although A of A has a great food court.

 

[slappy magoo]

OK - last month I posted about staying in Swan/Dolphin or Port Orleans. Now I am back for another round. The budget has changed and we are considering staying at a Value. No disrespect to those who stay at the Values but I am not sure about this as it has been years since we stayed at POP and that was only three months after it opened so everything was shiny and new - we were not terribly impressed. I just get the impression that the Values are just not given the attention that the Deluxe properties are - please correct me if I'm wrong. Any thoughts as to which Value is in the best condition? I know AoA is probably still looking new but I think the room theming might be a little too much for us. Just 2 adults and dogs (staying at Best Friends on property) - already have the dogs booked but we don't have palace to stay yet!

IMHO, all of the Values' rooms look like the bedroom of a recently adopted child with reasonably well-off parents looking to compensate for years of not being there by making everything as colorful and WOW as possible.

Considering how small the rooms are, I'd imagine they get lived in fairly quick, and the demand is so great it's hard to take them offline for a refurb unless they get so destroyed by certain guests that they must be tended to urgently and immediately. I'm sure AoA is in the best condition, but based on the pictures I've seen the rooms that look the least childlike would probably be the Broadway or Jazz sections of AS Music. The negative with AS resorts in general is that they seem to be the resort Disney herds most tour groups into, versus Pop or AoA. Thus I'd probably recommend Pop in the 90s section, a decade for which there seems to be the least nostalgia (thus far) so it might be less crowded.

 

[Communicore]

I love Pop although the food sucks now. Haven't been to the All Stars in years.

 

[HollyAD]

Pop is always my "go to" value resort when I need to save some cash. I have stayed at AS Movies recently but still preferred Pop by far! The theme is better and it has it's own bus system. The AS resorts share and extend your bus time a little bit.

 

[seahawk7]

Pop is always my "go to" value resort when I need to save some cash. I have stayed at AS Movies recently but still preferred Pop by far! The theme is better and it has it's own bus system. The AS resorts share and extend your bus time a little bit.

Sometimes the Allstars share buses but sometimes not. I have gotten on empty buses before at the Movies. Even the Deluxe hotels share buses sometimes. We have stayed at all the tiers, and I think the value resorts are the best deal if you are going to spend the majority of your time in the parks or out and about.

 

[cbettua]

POP or AOA, with that said, I just stayed at POP and I do not want to stay at a value anymore. Im just tired of the lack of space and the amount of people. As well as the bus wait.

 

[HollyAD]

Sometimes the Allstars share buses but sometimes not. I have gotten on empty buses before at the Movies. Even the Deluxe hotels share buses sometimes. We have stayed at all the tiers, and I think the value resorts are the best deal if you are going to spend the majority of your time in the parks or out and about.

You are right. The Swan/Dolphin, Yacht/Beach, and Boardwalk all shared and I was a little disappointed by that during my last trip. So did Poly and GF. Pop never shared when I was there so that's why I liked it the most so far.

 

[epcot2004]

Thanks for all of your responses! Was on a popular travel site last night reading the 'Terrible' reviews. Obviously some can be discounted but some were pretty scary for both Value and Mods. My issue is that if I walk in to a room that is not to my liking (clean and not beat up) it will ruin my entire week. We have run in to that at Values and Mods (POFQ last year). But...I guess I should not agonize too much as we are fortunate enough for this to be our second trip from the frozen north this year. Just a little spoiled I guess... Some part of me wishes we never stayed at BC or WL now my expectations exceed my budget.

 

[G8rchamps]

Checking into Music on Friday, have been to AOA and POP in the last 12 months. For budget reasons and shorter trips we really don't mind the values. Have always had a clean room, friendly staff, and the food court and buses are all about the same. Pick the best rate and have a great trip!

 

[slappy magoo]

Thanks for all of your responses! Was on a popular travel site last night reading the 'Terrible' reviews. Obviously some can be discounted but some were pretty scary for both Value and Mods. My issue is that if I walk in to a room that is not to my liking (clean and not beat up) it will ruin my entire week. We have run in to that at Values and Mods (POFQ last year). But...I guess I should not agonize too much as we are fortunate enough for this to be our second trip from the frozen north this year. Just a little spoiled I guess... Some part of me wishes we never stayed at BC or WL now my expectations exceed my budget.

Look, if you walk into a room that looks like a band of rabid monkeys just had an orgy in there, you complain to management, their job is to make it right one way or another. As long as you're not the type of Screaming Meemie who demands a full refund and a free stay if a light bulb is burned out, if you're kind about the criticism but firm that you think something ought to be done about it, they'll handle the problem and perhaps even be grateful that you didn't go full-on crazy on them.

 

[epcot2004]

Look, if you walk into a room that looks like a band of rabid monkeys just had an orgy in there, you complain to management, their job is to make it right one way or another. As long as you're not the type of Screaming Meemie who demands a full refund and a free stay if a light bulb is burned out, if you're kind about the criticism but firm that you think something ought to be done about it, they'll handle the problem and perhaps even be grateful that you didn't go full-on crazy on them.

I can't 'un-see' that in my head!!! You are correct about the rest.

 

[cbettua]

I have never walked into a Disney resort room and it was unclean. That includes value. I think you will be fine.

 

[NMBC1993]

If you can afford the little extra, I'd recommend the Cars suite section at AoA. It's very nice over there! If the suites are out of your price range, I'd go with Pop. The resort has their own bus system and I do enjoy the food court. I had a bad experience at Sports the last time I stayed there. The front desk staff (including management) was very unhelpful and acted like I was bothering them into doing their job.

 

[EricJ]

Thanks for all of your responses! Was on a popular travel site last night reading the 'Terrible' reviews. Obviously some can be discounted but some were pretty scary for both Value and Mods. My issue is that if I walk in to a room that is not to my liking (clean and not beat up) it will ruin my entire week. We have run in to that at Values and Mods (POFQ last year). But...I guess I should not agonize too much as we are fortunate enough for this to be our second trip from the frozen north this year. Just a little spoiled I guess... Some part of me wishes we never stayed at BC or WL now my expectations exceed my budget.

I try to read travel reviews, but they all polarize into either 5-star guest reviews that were all just happy to be there at all, and 1-star reviews from folks who, well, would demand a refund for a burned-out lightbulb.
I can assume the truth lies somewhere in between, but it won't be there in the Rashomon world of user-submitted reviews.
I dreaded staying at a Disney Value for my first trip, just from their ads of big colorful goofy statues, and found ASMusic's Broadway section--designed like a big Beauty & the Beast theater--very nice, with its own quiet pool nearby. (Despite being at the far secluded end of the resort, and having a scenic view of AS-Sports out the back.) But then, I have good memories of Holiday Inns as a kid, and I'm pretty easygoing on motel accommodations.

I went into my current trip originally hoping to stay at AoA's value-only Little Mermaid rooms, but those were also at the far frontiers.