Category — Large Families at Disney World

Review: The Family Suites at Disney’s All-Star Music Resort, Continued

by Dave

For the first page of this review of the Family Suites at All-Star Music, click here.

THE FAMILY SUITES AT ALL-STAR MUSIC FOR FIRST-TIME VISITORS

Resorts are ranked on this site for first time family visitors based first on their kid appeal, and then on their convenience.

On this basis, the Family Suites at All-Star Music are the second-best choice for larger families seeking value pricing, after the Family Suites at Art of Animation.

Art of Animation has much more kid-appeal than All-Star Music, and a bit more convenience. (For more on All-Star Music, the overall resort within which the Family Suites at All-Star Music are found, see this.)

However, the Family Suites at Art of Animation are not just a clone of those at All-Star Music. There are differences in floor plans and livability that may make a difference to some families, and Art of Animation is on the order of 20% more expensive.

So I’ll do a space by space comparison by means of a photo-tour of the All-Star Music Family Suites. To avoid confusion, all the images on this page will be of Music; you can find the equivalents from Art of Animation here.

PHOTO TOUR OF ALL-STAR MUSIC FAMILY SUITES

Starting outside the room itself, the corridors at Music are outside, and the corridors at Art of Animation are inside. This means heated and cooled, so in general that’s a plus for AofA.

However, the design also means that any corridor at Art has twice as much traffic as at Music (because there are half as many of them…), and there’s more reason for people to use them (since they are heated and cooled).

This results in much more corridor noise at Art in general, and particularly on the first floor corridors that lead from the elevator bank to the direction of the main building, main pool, and bus stops.

Inside the rooms, Music has a larger and more livable living space than Art of Animation.

The smaller chair (the red one) is much larger than the equivalent chair at AofA, and as a result the chair and sofa together can seat 5, compared to 4 at AofA.

The two large, cushioned ottomans have no real equivalent at AofA. Overall, the living room Music can comfortably seat a family of 6, while the living room at AofA can seat six, but not comfortably.

The other side of the Music living room has an area with drawers and a TV, and a small table and chairs.

The table is much smaller than the equivalent at Art of Animation, which has a real dining table, and Music has only chairs for three (the third chair coming from the desk in the master bedroom).

The Art of Animation dining table will fit six–though two will be uncomfortable, as only four of its seating spots have knee space.

Art of Animation has a little more drawer space than Music, but this is a little deceiving, as Music has more overall storage space, with much larger closets, and many more storage shelves and cabinets in its mini kitchen than AofA.

The baths at Art of Animation win over those at Music in every way but one. They have actual doors for privacy and quiet, and decor that’s both lovelier and more kid-appealing.

The dimension where some families may find a difference is that one of the two baths at AofA is entered from the master bedroom, while both baths at Music can be accessed without entering the parent’s room.

Some parents will prefer the AofA private bath; others, on the theory that the kids will use both regardless of their wishes, will prefer that at Music, where the kids don’t have to come into their room to use either bath.

The mini-kitchen at Music is much better than that at AofA.

At Art of Animation, it’s a 4×2 foot space in the corner of the living room; Music has an alcove mini-kitchen with much more counter and storage space.

For first time family visitors–who won’t be using this space much–it hardly matters, and both spaces have the same equipment. But for families intending to really work out their microwave and store a lot of food, All-Star Music prevails.

Overall, the master bedroom at Music is better than at Art of Animation.

The beds are equivalent, but Music adds a desk and easy chair, both of which AofA lacks.

This lets the master bedroom serve better as a retreat from the kids than the equivalent space at AofA.

The master at Art of Animation has more in-room storage than Music, has closet rods in the room itself (at Music they are in the bath area) and, as noted above, has “private” access to the second bath.

So here’s where we are so far: compared to those at All-Star Music, Art of Animation Family Suites have MUCH better kid appeal, and slightly better convenience; the dining space at Art of Animation is much better and the baths largely better. Music Family Suites have more livable living rooms and master bedrooms, and a more flexible mini-kitchen.

THE FAMILY SUITE BEDS AT ALL-STAR MUSIC

This review continues here.

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September 9, 2012 No Comments

Review: The Family Suites at Disney’s All-Star Music Resort

by Dave

THERE ARE FAMILY SUITES AT ALL-STAR MUSIC TOO!

With all the deserved hoopla around the opening of the Family Suites at Art of Animation, Disney World’s original family suites at All-Star Music are still worth considering by any family thinking about Art of Animation.

In general, Art of Animation will be a better choice for most, but there are some specific features of the Family Suites at All-Star Music that will make them a better choice for some.

REVIEW: THE FAMILY SUITES AT ALL-STAR MUSIC [Read more →]

September 5, 2012 8 Comments

News on Art of Animation Opening, 2012 Bookings, and Armed Forces Salute

by Dave

Lots of important news over the last few days…

DISNEY WEBSITE OPEN FOR BOOKING 2012

You can now book most 2012 dates on Disney’s website.

This is a couple of months earlier than Disney has made this possible in past years.

You still can’t book Disney World more than 500 days ahead, so the website only lets you book (as of today) through late October 2012.

This means that most 2012 Disney World prices are out as well–I’ll update this site over the next few weeks based on these prices. You can see the new Disney World 2011/2012 ticket prices here.

YOU CAN BOOK THE ART OF ANIMATION RESORT

Disney’s Art of Animation Resort is open for booking, for arrival dates beginning May 31, 2012.

See this on MousePlanet.com for more details.

DISNEY MILITARY SALUTE TICKETS: UNLIMITED USE?

Update 7/7: only a total of 12 tickets can be used over the 2011-2012 period, wth no more than 6 activated at a time.

Steve at MilitaryDisneyTips.com is reporting here, based on new instructions to Disney ticket window staff that he has seen, that the discounted Military Disney ticket offer can be used multiple times–“unlimited” times–so long as no more than 6 tickets are purchased each time.

The details of the extension of this deal to 2012 are still not on Disney’s website; MilitaryDisneyTips.com has a lot of the specifics of them here.

June 14, 2011 No Comments

Bed Types and Sleeping Space Layouts at Walt Disney World Resort Hotels

by Dave

Large Families: Value Prices Large Families: Deluxe Spaces Beds and Sleeping Spaces

WALT DISNEY WORLD BEDS AND SLEEPING SPACES

Larger families simply seeking the best Walt Disney World resort option for their family size should see

However, as a recent email-er reminded me, many families figuring out where to stay at Walt Disney World are concerned not only with the capacity of rooms but also bed sizes, and how beds are distributed among rooms.

This way, Aunt Eileen isn’t forced to sleep in a bunk bed, in the same room as her nephew…unless that’s the plan going in!

Click the graphic for details on beds and sleeping spaces in the various larger room options at the Walt Disney World Resort. The details include room type, price class, and descriptions of each sleeping area. (“DVC” means Disney Vacation Club Resort–see this for more on the DVC resorts.)

Note that more data about room types–such as baths, kitchens, and square footage–is available in the links for large families above, and reviews with even more can be found from the links on this page.

Example floor plans tied to the details in the graphic are below.

EXAMPLE WALT DISNEY WORLD FLOOR PLANS

Four person DVC Studio floor plan.

BoardWalk Villas example.

One sleeping area. Two queens, or a queen and a pull-out couch, all in one space.

Four person DVC One Bedroom Villa floor plan.

Beach Club Villas example.

Two sleeping areas. One king in a private bedroom, and a fold-out full couch in a second space, the shared living/dining/kitchen area.

Five Person DVC Studio floor plan.

Villas at the Wilderness Lodge example.

One sleeping area. Queens, pull-out couch, and fold-down bed, all in one space.

Five person DVC One Bedroom Villa floor plan.

Animal Kingdom Villas Kidani Village example.

Two sleeping areas. As in 4-person villa above, but also with a fold-out chair added to the shared space. Note also the second bath.

(Available in Bay Lake Tower, most Animal Kingdom Lodge villas, and in Old Key West villas. Grand FLoridian Villas also sleep five, the fifth on a fold-down shorter bed)

Five person room, Port Orleans Riverside Alligator Bayou Section.

One sleeping area. Two queen beds and one 66″ x 31″ fold-down bed in one space.

Five person room, Caribbean Beach example.

One sleeping area. Two queen beds and one 64″ x 30″ fold-down bed in one space. Expected to be bookable for 5 soon

Six person Family Suites at All-Star Music floor plan.

Two sleeping areas. One queen in a private room, one fold-out full couch, one fold out single chair, and one fold-out ottoman in another space. The ottoman bed is uncomfortable for taller or heavier kids.

Note the two baths.

Six Person Family Suites at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort floor plan.

Two sleeping areas. One queen in a private room, one full fold-out couch, and one near full Murphy bed.

Note the two baths.

Six person Cabin at Fort Wilderness Resort floor plan.

Two sleeping areas. One full and two 70″ bunk beds in a private room. One pull-down full “Murphy bed” in shared living/ dining/ kitchen space.

The couch in the shared space is long enough for most kids, and still usable as a bed when the Murphy bed is down, presenting the option of having three people in each of the sleeping spaces.

A few cabins have a pull-out full couch instead of the Murphy bed, eliminating this option.

Eight person DVC Two Bedroom Villa floor plan.

Villas at the Wilderness Lodge example.

Three sleeping areas: One king in a private space; two queens, or a queen and a fold-out full couch, in a second private space, and a fold-out full couch in the shared living/dining/kitchen space.

Nine person DVC Two Bedroom Villa floor plan.

Bay Lake Tower example.

Three sleeping areas: as in Eight Person Two-Bedroom above, but with a fold-out chair added to the shared space. Note also the third bathroom.

(Available in Bay Lake Tower, most Animal Kingdom Lodge villas, and in the renovated Old Key West villas. Grand Floridian villas also sleep 9, but replace the chair bed with a shorter fold-down bed. Third bath only in BLT and AKL-Kidani Village )

Nine person DVC Saratoga Springs Treehouse Villa floor plan.

Four sleeping areas: One queen in a private space; another queen in a private space; two 70″ bunk beds in a private space; a fold-out full couch and a fold-out single chair in the shared living/dining/kitchen space.

Twelve person DVC Grand Villa floorplan.

Animal Kingdom Villas Jambo House example.

Four to five sleeping areas. One king in a private space; two queens in a private space; two queens in another private space; one or two fold-out full couches in shared living space. (At the Grand Floridian, the fold-out couch is in the media room, with its own door.)

Note that although you can sum to 14 sleeping spots in some Grand Villas, WDW will sell MagicBands, tickets, meal plans, and linens only for up to 12 people.

See also Erin Foster’s post on TouringPlans.com.