Category — q. Reviews

For the first page of this review of Disney’s All-Star Music Resort, click here.

THE POOLS AT DISNEY’S ALL-STAR MUSIC RESORT

Each of Disney’s All-Star Resorts has two pools.

There’s a larger one between two accommodations buildings just outside of the central lobby/dining/shops area, and a smaller one back in a different area.

At All-Star Music, the larger main pool is between the Calypso buildings, is themed as a guitar, and is accompanied by Donald Duck and the other two Caballeros.

Here you’ll also find pool games played with Disney cast members and evening movies.

The smaller one is in the center of the other four themed areas, is themed as a piano, and is accompanied by Ariel.

The larger Guitar pool.

Closer.

The Three Caballeros.

From another angle.

And another.

In the evening.

Movies are shown here some nights.

The head of the guitar serves as a kids pool.

You’ll also find at the main pool ping pong…

…and a cornhole set.

Between the pool area and the food court you’ll find this bar.

On cooler days it may have outdoor heaters.

Further back in the resort is the second pool, the Piano Pool, with Ariel.

The Piano Pool.

Another view of the Piano Pool.

The Piano Pool in the evening.

None of the pools at Disney’s value resorts have slides, and they also traditionally don’t provide towels–you are to bring your towels from your room. But if you look closely at my photos, you’ll see that towels were provided on my last visit.  The first time you go to the pool, bring towels, and change your future behavior if the pool provides them!  (Call housekeeping if you need more.)

MATERIAL IN THIS REVIEW OF DISNEY’S ALL-STAR MUSIC RESORT

• Overview of All-Star Music
• Accommodations and Theming at All-Star Music
• Photo Tour of a Standard Room at All-Star Music
• The Family Suites at All-Star Music
• Amenities at All-Star Music
• The Pools at All-Star Music

OTHER KEY PAGES FOR WHERE TO STAY AT DISNEY WORLD

• Where to stay–the Basics
• Where first-timers should stay
• Reviews of all the Disney World resorts, based on my 150+ stays in them

Follow yourfirstvisit.net on Facebook or Twitter or Pinterest!!

(For the first page of this review of Shades of Green, see this.)

If you are military folk and don’t know Steve Bell, you should.

He writes Military Disney Tips and its blog, is the author of an ebook on Shades of Green, and is an expert on and advocate for military families making the best of their Disney and Orlando trips.

Steve is also the military moderator for this site.

For all these reasons, but especially his unmatched expertise on Shades of Green, I asked him to write about which Shades of Green amenities can be enjoyed by military families who aren’t even staying there.

Military folk aren’t staying at Shades for one of three reasons: they prefer an alternative; one of Disney’s deals is just too attractive; or they didn’t find out about Shades until it was too late.

But whatever the reason, there’s still much at Shades of Green open to them wherever they are staying!!

SHADES OF GREEN AMENITIES AVAILABLE TO ANY ELIGIBLE PERSON

By Steve Bell

Photo: Steve Bell

At Shades of Green you will find all of the amenities that you’d expect at the best Disney resorts such as a wide selection of restaurants, recreational options, valet parking, bellhop service, spa, fitness room, two pools, free Wi-Fi, and self-service laundry facilities, plus a military discounted ticket sales office and mini Exchange.

Did you know that you can use many of Shades of Green’s amenities even if you are not staying at Shades?

You may be a WDW day guest, staying at a Disney owned resort as yourfirstvisit.net recommends for first time Walt Disney World visitors who may never return, or you may be doing a “split stay” between Shades and a Disney resort. In all cases as a Military/DoD member you are always welcome to stop by Shades of Green. At least one member of the party must have a military ID, CAC or DoD CAC to use its amenities.

Exactly which amenities are non-Shades guests allowed to use?

• Shades of Green’s Ticket Sales Office
• The AAFES Store
• All of the restaurants at Shades
• The Magnolia Spa

All of these cost less than the comparable services at the Disney resorts and there is no sales tax added!

Other amenities such as pool and fitness center use are reserved only for those actually staying at Shades.

SHADES OF GREEN’S TICKET SALES OFFICE

With the introduction of WDW’s FastPass+ it has become best to purchase your Disney tickets well in advance. Those staying at Shades can do so ahead of time through its ticket office.

Those who do not care about FastPass+, and day guests, can stop by to buy their Disney World tickets here.

The ticket office doesn’t just offer Disney tickets–you can also find military discounted tickets for all of the major (and many minor) Central Florida attractions here. You’ll find tickets for:

• Universal Orlando
• SeaWorld Orlando
• Legoland Florida
• Busch Gardens
• Kennedy Space Center
• Wet n’ Wild
• Gatorland
• Many Orlando Dinner Shows
• And Disney World’s minor parks: Disney Quest, WDW’s Water Parks, and WDW’s Mini Golf Locations

The line for service can be long in the morning, so drop by in the afternoon for a shorter wait.

SHADES OF GREEN’S AAFES STORE

The Army Air Force Exchange Service operates what is essentially a shoppette at Shades of Green. Here you will find all of the sundries that you might need during your vacation. Some of the offerings are: all kinds of snacks and quick food options, a wide range of beverages (general consumption and adult -beer, wine/liquor), toiletries and medicines, Disney, Orlando and the various services souvenir items.

A military ID is required for the sale of liquor and tobacco products. [Note from Dave: Liquor is MUCH cheaper here than at the Disney resorts.]

Photo: Steve Bell

This is a great place to stock up on snacks and drinks for the room and theme parks at good prices.

SHADES OF GREEN DINING

You are always welcome at Shades of Green’s restaurants.

Photo: Steve Bell

Breakfast options are the Java Café and Express Café, both quick service (grab and go) locations, and the Garden Gallery buffet, which often has long lines for breakfast.

For lunch your options are the Java Café (Starbucks pastries), the Express Café which has great sandwiches, On the Greens Grill offering hot dogs and brats by the Magnolia Golf Course, Manginos Italian Restaurant (table service), and Evergreen Sports Bar on the weekend.

If you are around for dinner you can choose from the Garden Gallery which offers a regional/international buffet with daily rotating items, Manginos Italian Restaurant, the Java Café (Starbucks pastries), the Express Café, and Evergreen Sports Bar.

Shades of Green’s dining locations are cheaper to considerably cheaper that the corresponding Disney venues, so drop by here to get filled up.

Shades offers a handy chart indicating what is open when during your visit.

SHADES OF GREEN’S MAGNOLIA SPA

The Magnolia Spa is a full service spa operated by Niki Bryan Spa, which operates the WDW Spas.

They offer a full range of services at prices 15-25% lower than the Disney Spas:

• Massage
• Facials
• Manicures
• Pedicures
• Salon and Barber Services
• Packages, and
• Princess Makeovers

The full list of services and prices is here.

HOW TO GET TO SHADES OF GREEN

If you have your own car the easiest thing to do is drive yourself.

Follow the signs to the Magic Kingdom. When you arrive at the parking toll booth get in the furthest right lane that you can [Dave: where the camping trailer with its subtle Hidden Mickey is in the photo]–the very far right lane is reserved for Disney buses). Then tell the parking cast member that you are heading to Shades of Green. They’ll let you pass without paying for parking.

Merge right then drive straight ahead following the single lane, rather than the multiple lanes curving to the left to parking. Get into the left lane and turn left at the first stop light. Follow this road past the Polynesian Village Resort on the right and then turn right at the “T.” Shades will be just ahead on your left.

At the guard shack just show your ID (military ID, CAC or DoD CAC) and tell the security host what you are there for i.e. “I’m going to the ticket office to buy tickets.” They’ll then direct you to parking.

If you are depending on Disney Transportation you have a couple of options.

You can take Disney transportation to the Polynesian Village Resort or Transportation and Ticket Center and walk to Shades. From the Poly, it takes about 10 to 15 minutes depending on your walking speed. Add another 5 to 10 minutes from the TTC.

Or, with a military/DoD ID for everyone in your party, you can use Shades of Green’s transportation.

You’ll first need to get to one of the Shades of Green drop off/pick up spots (at the TTC, Disney Hollywood Studios, Animal Kingdom, both water parks, and Downtown Disney). The Shades bus will then take you right to the resort to run your errands. When finished just take the Shades bus to your desired destination, or walk to the Poly or TTC to use the transport options there.

EXTRA SAVINGS FOR YOUR DISNEY WORLD VACATION

Using these extra benefits available at Shades will help you save a little extra on your vacation.

You are eligible, so if you have the time to stop by, you should definitely use them. Drop by to pick up supplies, buy any tickets you still need, and grab lunch.

*  *  *  *  *

Thanks, Steve! This is great info for military folk not staying at Shades!

MORE RESOURCES FOR SHADES OF GREEN RESORT

• e-book on Shades of Green
• Military Disney Tips
• Shades of Green Website

PAGES:  Previous |  1  |  2  |  3  |  4  |  5

TOPICS IN THIS REVIEW OF SHADES OF GREEN

• Overview of Shades of Green
• Photo Tour of a Standard Shades of Green Room
• Amenities at Shade of Green
• The Pools at Shades of Green
• Using Shades of Green’s Amenities Even if You Aren’t Staying There

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(For the first page of this review of Disney’s Polynesian Resort, click here.)

PHOTO TOUR OF A STUDIO AT DISNEY’S POLYNESIAN VILLAS AND BUNGALOWS

The Studios and Bungalows opened at the Polynesian in April 2015, and I had the chance to stay in a Studio late that month, and stayed in one again in January 2019.

At 465 square feet, the Studios at the Polynesian are the largest DVC studios, are among a currently small group of DVC studios that sleep 5 (all Polynesian standard rooms sleep 5), and are alone in having one and a half baths. They are also the only DVC studios that can connect to another studio.

However, the extra square footage largely comes from not-useful extra width, and the half bath comes at the expense of living space and convenient storage. So for families paying cash (as opposed to using DVC points) the pros and cons of a studio and a standard room are a bit difficult to tease out.

The entry to my Pago Pago longhouse had fun stuff tied to its theme.

My Moorea longhouse room also had a fun and vibrant entry.

The corridor walls and carpet are fun and colorful, and hint at the orange color scheme you’ll find in the rooms–frankly, more fun than the green of the Polynesian’s standard rooms.

You enter the Studio into long hallway–half of its total length.

One side has the connecting door, closet and kitchenette. This is the outside of the closet…

…and this is the inside.

I did not measure the safe, but my book is six inches by nine inches. Note the small shelves under the safe.  Storage is probably adequate in total, but is widely distributed in these Studios (there is no dresser), so I’ll be calling out all the storage options as we tour it.

Next to the closet is the kitchenette.

All Disney deluxe rooms have a mini-fridge and coffeemaker. Studio kitchenettes add another sink, a toaster and microwave…

…and some basic utensils and supplies. Note that you can probably gain a shelf for storage by consolidating some of this stuff…

…especially if you use the cabinet above the microwave.

The other side of the entry has the two bath areas. The first is a full bath with no interior walls–with a sink…

…with these toiletries…

…and some storage drawers and shelves…

…and a tub/shower combo and toilet next to it.

On the side wall there’s this charming art.

The second bath has just a large shower and a sink.

Note the blue accent wall. There’s one in each bath, and they really add a lot to the overall playfulness of the space.

Toiletries in this bath…

…which also has storage.

I also really like the lighting in the shower.

The showerheads.

The living/sleeping area takes up about half the square footage of the Studio–I think this is means less living/sleeping space than you’ll find in a standard Polynesian Village room, but Tikiman disagrees. I’ll sort that out on my next stay in a regular Polynesian room, but regardless, the bed space in a Studio is just a tad more than 16 feet long. This has to be less than standard rooms, as they fit two queens and an easy chair along their bed side–hard to do in 16 feet…

On one side is the queen bed and couch…

This side from the back of the room. The colors are vibrant and fun, but I find this whole wall to be cramped.

A closer view of the bed. Note that–at least as of January 2019–these rooms have not lost their bed skirts!

A bedside table on either side adds a storage shelf with powerpoints, and a storage drawer.

The drawer is large enough for your important books.

On either side of the bed, built in below it, are long, large drawers. The one on the bath side is awkward to access…

…as is the one on the couch side, when the couch is folded out into a bed.

The bed is raised, platform style, enabling storage of rolly bags and similarly proportioned luggage underneath, even slob luggage like mine.

Between the bed and the bath wall is this fun art.

Next to the bed is this couch and chest that serves as a coffee table or place to prop up your feet (when mom isn’t looking). The couch is pretty tight to the queen bed–this side of the room would have worked better with another 12 or 18 inches. The total length of this living and sleeping area is 16 feet 2.5 inches–that’s two feet shorter than the longer wall in the bedroom space of a value resort room…

Above the couch there’s more fun art.

The top of the chest is hinged, yielding access to a large storage area within. Two large drawers in this object would have been more practical than a top-opening chest.

The couch unfolds into a bed that I measured as 76 inches by 59 inches–just a bit less than a queen–with a six inch cushion.  I slept fine on it.

On the other side is a fold-down Murphy bed under a large 54 inch TV, and a table and chairs.

The TV side from the back. There’s no dresser.

The Murphy bed pulls down from the enormous object underneath the TV. I measured it as 72″ by 30″, but it sleeps a little shorter than that because of the way it is framed.  The cushion is 6 inches. I napped on it fine, but it’s really not suited to anyone over 5′ 9″ tall for a full night.

Note the charming picture of a sleeping Lilo and Stitch revealed when the bed is pulled down.

In the back corner of the room is this table and chairs. Note the different chair colors–a fun feature. Above the table is a power point with one normal outlet and two USB power jacks.  There’s another regular outlet below the table, and more in the kitchenette.  This room is short on dressers but not on power!

The balcony extends the full width of the room.

All Studios have balconies or patios–in the longhouses with standard Polynesian Village rooms, second floor standard rooms have no balconies.

Views vary, not just by longhouse and longhouse side, but also by the season. Compare the view from my Pago Pago room in April (above) with the foliage you can see from my Moorea room in January, below.

More specifically, among the three Polynesian longhouses with Studios:

• Tokelau has the best overall location, and all of its rooms have fine views.  Half face the Oasis pool, so may suffer from noise.
• All Moorea rooms have fine views. Half face the Seven Seas Lagoon, but likely all these will get scarfed up by DVC members.
• Half of Pago Pago rooms have fine views, and the other half face a parking lot that while handy to all three of these longhouses is not worth looking at.

Compared to a standard room, Studios get you a toaster and microwave, a half bath, and guarantee a balcony or a patio.

They trade the desk for a table and chairs, and a queen bed for a pull-out sofa, at the expense of a smaller living space, a bit of cramped space along the bed/couch wall, and no dresser. You also lose an easy chair.

If you use it all and creatively, you’ll likely find enough drawers, shelves, chests and such for all your stuff, but it’ll be spread around more than if you had a dresser.

Most Polynesian Studio rooms have a better location than most Polynesian standard rooms, and, at least to my eye, have lovelier baths and a much more charming color scheme in the living area.

PHOTO TOUR OF A BUNGALOW AT DISNEY’S POLYNESIAN VILLAGE RESORT

This review continues here.

TOPICS IN THIS REVIEW OF DISNEY’S POLYNESIAN VILLAGE RESORT

• Summary and overview of Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort
• Theming and Accommodations at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort
• Photo Tour of a Standard Room at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort
• Amenities at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort
• Dining at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort
• The Pools at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort
• The Disney Vacation Club at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort
• Photo Tour of a Studio at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort
• Photo Tour of a Bungalow at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort

OTHER KEY PAGES FOR WHERE TO STAY AT DISNEY WORLD

• Where to stay–the Basics
• Where first-timers should stay
• Reviews of all the Disney World resorts, based on my 150+ stays in them

Follow yourfirstvisit.net on Facebook or Twitter or Pinterest!!

As of yesterday I’ve fully published my re-review of Disney’s Art of Animation Resort.

The first page of the re-review is here, and the full set of pages in the review is this:

• Overview of Disney’s Art of Animation Resort
• The Little Mermaid Area and Rooms
• Photo Tour of a Little Mermaid Room
• Overview of the Family Suites Areas
• Accommodations in the Family Suites
• Photo Tour of a Finding Nemo Family Suite (plus bed dimensions, storage, etc.)
• Photo Tour of a Lion King Family Suite
• Photo Tour of a Cars Family Suite
• Amenities at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort
• The Pools at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort

Normally I don’t put up an “announcement” post like this, since the new material will show up in my “Most Recent Stuff” box on the right sidebar. But this time, instead of posting all-new pages, I (mostly) re-did pages that already exist…and thereby hangs a tale.

(Note that most of you won’t care, and should go straight to the new review.)

MY LIFE AT ART OF ANIMATION

The old material on Art of Animation was literally scattered over 11 pages from five different visits, and it was figuring out what to do with the material from my sixth visit that led me to rewrite rather than post new pages.

• We stayed in a Finding Nemo Family Suite in June 2012, the week that Art of Animation opened, and I published a three page review shortly after.
• We stayed in a Little Mermaid standard room in September 2012, shortly after these rooms opened, and I published a three page review of these rooms shortly after.
• A few weeks later, I realized that to be parallel to the other reviews on this site I needed an overview of the whole resort, so I did three pages on that—with a lot of overlap with the first two sets of reviews.
• In August 2013, three things happened: I got a new camera, stayed in a Lion King suite, and stayed in a Cars suite. I updated many (but not all) of the exterior photos in the nine pages I’d already published with stuff from the new camera, and published new pages with photo tours of each of the Lion King and Cars suites.
• In February 2014 I revisited a Little Mermaid room with the new camera, and updated the room and area photos from that visit.
• In December 2014 we re-visited a Finding Nemo suite, and I got updated Nemo and resort images on that trip.

Now, my initial thought had been simply to rewrite everything from scratch, killing a lot of redundancies and providing a flow from topic to topic that better matched the rest of the reviews on this site.

Almost all my reviews have gone through two or even three revisions (as I revisit hotels either after refurbs or to get better pix) and this is what I’ve always done in the past. Technically, what I do is once the new material is out, I use a 301 redirect to send all the old pages to the first page of the new review. This way I keep most old links (internal or external) still useful.

For Art of Animation, though, this didn’t quite work, as the room types are so different and my original posts so distinct in their topics that many links appropriately go just to the Family Suites, just to the Little Mermaid rooms, or (for example) just to the Cars suites and not to the Nemo or Lion King ones.

So what I did instead was keep mostly to the same topics of the old pages, but updated the material and photos on them, killed most of the redundancy (since people don’t always begin on page 1, there’s always gonna be some redundancy), and posted only two new pages (on amenities and pools) to fit the structure of most of my other recent reviews.

This kept the integrity of the old links while giving me complete freedom (so long as I stayed on the topic of the old page!!) for re-writes and new images. As it turned out, of the old 11 pages, 8 could keep their same topics, and only 3 needed redirects.

This also had the virtue of preserving the comments (450+), pins (1500+), Facebook likes (130+, must do better) etc., still to the topics where these were initially created.

New posts with redirects would have lost every one of these. Since Art of Animation is still a new and hot topic, this is good—especially when you note that on this site 450 comments typically means 225 questions from you and 225 answers from me…

A NEW TREND…

I have similar problems/opportunities with my All-Star Music and Port Orleans Riverside reviews.

On Music I have separate reviews of the standard rooms and the family suites, and a bucket of (much better) updated photos of the exteriors and of a standard room from my January visit.

On Riverside I have one main review, but also separate reviews of the 5 person Alligator Bayou and 4 person Royal Rooms—plus much better photos of a standard room from my February visit.

So for each I’ll be re-crafting THEM into single integrated reviews, but like I just did for Art of Animation, I’ll be putting the new material on top of the old pages so that the specific links and shares and pins—e.g. to a Royal Room, or a Family Suite comparison—still work.

In other words, yes I am behind on my reviews again…and tomorrow I depart to Disney World to stay in 3 more resorts!—for an updated review of the Fort Wilderness’s campsites, a stay in one of the new Poly Studios (and review of the refurbed pool, Trader Sams, etc.), and a stay at the Swan! Oh, well…

SOMETHING ELSE, WHAT DO YOU THINK??

Another new thing I did in the Art of Animation update was to revise how the flow of links across the review worked.

Traditionally you’d find something like these numeric links (from my Grand Floridian review):

This time, instead on each page I did text links that show the topic of each page:

• Overview of Disney’s Art of Animation Resort
• The Little Mermaid Area and Rooms
• Photo Tour of a Little Mermaid Room
• Overview of the Family Suites Areas
• Accommodations in the Family Suites
• Photo Tour of a Finding Nemo Family Suite (plus bed dimensions, storage, etc.)
• Photo Tour of a Lion King Family Suite
• Photo Tour of a Cars Family Suite
• Amenities at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort
• The Pools at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort

I think the new version is uglier, but much more helpful.

Since I am the former, and my goal is the latter, I’m OK with that!

But those of you who have paged through my other reviews using the old numeric link structure—what do YOU think??

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For the first page of this review of Disney’s Art of Animation Resort, see this.

THE POOLS AT DISNEY’S ART OF ANIMATION RESORT

There are three pools at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort

• A small pool centered within the three accommodation buildings in the Cars area
• A large pool, the “Big Blue Pool” between the two Finding Nemo accommodations buildings
• A good sized pool in the center of the three Little Mermaid buildings

There’s no pool between the two Lion King buildings. I view this as a feature, not a bug, as it means suites there don’t get pool noise, but are still just a short walk from the pools in the Little Mermaid and Nemo areas.

THE CARS POOL AT ART OF ANIMATION

The Cars pool is meant to represent half of a tire.

It is unique among the value resort pools in having cabanas–the traffic cones shaped thingies in the image.

Curiously small even for a secondary pool, there’s not remotely enough room here for the guests in the three Cars buildings–but the Big Blue pool isn’t far.

THE BIG BLUE POOL AT ART OF ANIMATION

The Big Blue Pool between the two Finding Nemo buildings is the main pool at Art of Animation, and is where you’ll find most pool-related amenities.

Its claims to fame include that it’s the largest single-tank pool at a Disney owned resort (the three tanks at Stormalong Bay are collectively larger) and that music plays under the water.  Since I sing “Born to be Wild” all the time in the tub, not that big a deal for me–but the underwater music really delights kids!!

Besides the main pool, you’ll also find a kids splash play area dominated by an object that you may recognize from Finding Nemo.  Otherwise, you will wonder if McDonald’s is sponsoring the pool…

At poolside is Art of Animation’s bar…

…with a refillable mug station.

Movies are shown at the pool in the evenings.

Longtime readers of this site will know I love night shots of pools:

THE LITTLE MERMAID POOL AT ART OF ANIMATION

The third pool at Art of Animation is in the Little Mermaid area.

It has no amenities in particular, but is large enough to be a sound option for those who don’t want to walk the extra five minutes from the somewhat-distant Little Mermaid area to the Big Blue Pool.

At night.

MATERIAL IN THIS REVIEW OF DISNEY’S ART OF ANIMATION RESORT

• Overview of Disney’s Art of Animation Resort
• The Little Mermaid Area and Rooms
• Photo Tour of a Little Mermaid Room
• Overview of the Family Suites Areas
• Accommodations in the Family Suites
• Photo Tour of a Finding Nemo Family Suite (plus bed dimensions, storage, etc)
• Photo Tour of a Lion King Family Suite
• Photo Tour of a Cars Family Suite
• Amenities at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort
• The Pools at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort

OTHER KEY PAGES FOR WHERE TO STAY AT DISNEY WORLD

• Where to stay–the Basics
• Where first-timers should stay
• Reviews of all the Disney World resorts, based on my 150+ stays in them

Follow yourfirstvisit.net on Facebook or Twitter or Pinterest!!

For the first page of this review of Disney’s Art of Animation Resort, see this.

AMENITIES AT DISNEY’S ART OF ANIMATION RESORT

Most amenities at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort except the pools and Skyliner station are in its central “Animation Hall” area.

Here you’ll find the loveliest lobby, by far, among the value resorts. The check-in area…

…the side wall that separates it from the gift shop…

…and note the art on the back wall.  On one visit, characters from Winnie the Pooh were greeting as we checked in!

Outside you’ll find the bus stops. With one stop, and no bus sharing, Art of Animation has the best bus service among the values.

On the topic of transportation, Art of Animation shares with Pop Century the distinction of being the only values on the new Disney World Skyliner gondola system to Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

It shares a Skyliner station with Pop Century, on the bridge connecting the two resorts over Hourglass Lake. From this station, you ride to the main hub, at Caribbean Beach, and re-board there for either the Epcot or Hollywood Studios lines.

Back inside, between the lobby and the food court you’ll find the large gift shop.

More from the gift shop.

Next is the food court, “Landscape of Flavors.”

At opening, this was the best food court among the values or moderates, combining traditional food court fare…

…with fresh and interesting selections–my favorite was the Mongolian Grill Beef Stir Fry, being prepared here…

…in a setting that is, mostly, warmer and more inviting than the other food courts of its size. This sky light fixture is from the ceiling in the “Lion King” area of the food court.

However, the menu has been dumbed down over the years, so while this is still a fine food court, it is less distinctive than before.  Current menus can be found here.

Perhaps best of all–real plates and utensils!!

If you are lucky and win a bet from a guy who looks like this (like I did)…

…you might even get a free breakfast (like I did)!

THE POOLS AT DISNEY’S ART OF ANIMATION RESORT

This review continues here.

MATERIAL IN THIS REVIEW OF DISNEY’S ART OF ANIMATION RESORT

• Overview of Disney’s Art of Animation Resort
• The Little Mermaid Area and Rooms
• Photo Tour of a Little Mermaid Room
• Overview of the Family Suites Areas
• Accommodations in the Family Suites
• Photo Tour of a Finding Nemo Family Suite (plus bed dimensions, storage, etc)
• Photo Tour of a Lion King Family Suite
• Photo Tour of a Cars Family Suite
• Amenities at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort
• The Pools at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort

OTHER KEY PAGES FOR WHERE TO STAY AT DISNEY WORLD

• Where to stay–the Basics
• Where first-timers should stay
• Reviews of all the Disney World resorts, based on my 150+ stays in them

Follow yourfirstvisit.net on Facebook or Twitter or Pinterest!!