Category — w. Most Recent Stuff

DISNEY WORLD NEXT WEEK: OCTOBER 5 TO OCTOBER 13, 2013

The material below details operating hours, Extra Magic Hours, parades, and fireworks.

The same stuff is in the image, but organized by park, not by topic.

(And for more on September 2013 at Walt Disney World, see this, and more on October, this.)

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Update 10/8: These deals are out!! See this.

My bud Joe Black’s disboards post here has the details on a Disney Visa room-only offer for 2014 at Walt Disney World that came out this morning.

I expect a general-public deal to come out October 8 that’ll be very similar.

Here’s the scoop he’s reporting, slightly edited and re-ordered…

Dates: January 5 – April 12, 2014 (certain dates may vary slightly, especially between March 6-13 where discounts will be  less.)

Value Resorts:

• 20% off: All Star Music, All Star Sports, Pop Century Resort
• 15% off: Art of Animation Family Suites
• 5% off: All Star Movies
• Excluded:  Art of Animation Little Mermaid Standard Rooms

Moderate Resorts:

• 25% off: Caribbean Beach, Coronado Springs, Port Orleans Riverside, Fort Wilderness Cabins
• 5% off: Port Orleans French Quarter

Deluxe Resorts:

• 35% off: Animal Kingdom Lodge (Standard & Pool View), Beach Club, Yacht Club, BoardWalk Inn, Polynesian Resort, Contemporary Resort, Grand Floridian Resort & Spa , Wilderness Lodge (Standard & Woods View)
• 25% off: Animal Kingdom Lodge (Club Level & Savanna View), Wilderness Lodge (Club Level & Courtyard View)
• Excluded (or perhaps 5% off): Other view types

DVC Resorts:

• 35% off: Saratoga Springs, Old Key West, Beach Club Villas, BoardWalk Inn Villas
• 25% off: Villas at Wilderness Lodge and Animal Kingdom Lodge Villas
• 5% off: Bay Lake Tower
• Excluded: Grand Floridian Resort & Spa and 3-bedroom Villas

There’s also a “Stay Play Dine” Disney Visa offer, but I don’t quite get its terms yet, so I’ll add that later.

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WDW MAGAZINE DEBUTS WITH SOME GREAT ARTICLES, PLUS MINE

My bud Carl Trent, founder of Dad’s Guide to WDW and a real friend of this site over the years, has just launched the brand-new WDW Magazine available for iPads (and soon iPhones) here.

Carl rounded up a stable of terrific writers, articles, videos, and photographs…plus me.

Carl asked me–out of desperation, no doubt–to be the lead columnist on issues first-timers face, so I’ve got an article in there on how old your kids should be on their first visit.

Check out WDW Magazine if you have an iPad–and if you don’t, isn’t this a great reason to buy one?

And by the way, I have nothing to disclose here, as I have no financial relationship with WDW Magazine other than being a writer.  But Carl does still owe me breakfast…

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

PHOTO TOUR OF A STANDARD ROOM AT DISNEY’S ALL-STAR MOVIES RESORT

Note: Rooms at All-Star Movies are being refurbed.  What follows describes a not-yet-refurbed rooms.  For a photo tour of a refurbed room, see this.

Rooms at Disney’s All-Star Movies Resort have the same basic floor plan as you’ll find in the other two All-Star resorts.

When you enter, you’ll find two full beds on one side.

The bed side from the back.

There’s a small table between the beds, with room enough only for the most essential of books.

Here’s a closer shot of one of the beds…

…and of the art on the wall between the beds and the bath. This is from a Toy Story room…

…and this from a Mighty Ducks room. This art is the only ways the standard rooms differ among the themed areas.

The other side of the room has a table and chairs, and a dresser/mini-fridge/TV combo.

The TV side from the back.

Some value resort rooms have square tables, some round.  I don’t know why…must be magic, I guess.

Here’s a close-up of the dresser…

…and one of its three large drawers.

Here’s the mini-fridge with a scaling object.

Except for Art of Animation, there’s not a lot of visual difference among the rooms in the value resorts.  At All-Star Movies, besides the wall art shown above, there’s also a wallpaper border re-capping the movies highlighted at the resort.  Note also the coat-rack below it.

There’s als0 some kinda-interesting movie-film themed decor in the tub…

…although the space is more fun with the shower curtain closed than open.

This tub is a separate space in the bath/clothes hanging area at the back of the room, which also includes a sink…

…and an open closet area.

The sink-closet area is separable from the rest of the room by a fabric curtain.

PHOTO TOUR OF A REFURBED ROOM AT DISNEY’S ALL-STAR MOVIES RESORT

This review continues here.

TOPICS IN THIS REVIEW OF DISNEY’S ALL-STAR MOVIES RESORT

• Overview of All-Star Movies
• Photo Tour of a Standard Room at All-Star Movies
• Photo Tour of a Refurbed Room at All-Star Movies
• The Themed Areas at All-Star Movies
• Amenities at All-Star Movies
• The Pools at All-Star Movies

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

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Crack commenter DisneyDiningAgent just reported here three changes to the Tomorrowland Terrace Fireworks Dessert Party:

• The booking window for the Tomorrowland Terrace Fireworks Dessert Party now goes out 180 days
• The cancellation policy is now five days
• The name on the reservation needs to match the credit card, and be the same as one of the people who shows at the party.

I’m not that keen on this party for first-time visitors–the site is too off-center.  But those interested in it and used to the old, much shorter booking window may be glad to hear that they can now book the Tomorrowland Terrace Fireworks Dessert Party 180 days ahead!

This was officially confirmed on 10/2!

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The Basics: Where to Stay

The Value Resorts   Art of Animation   Pop Century    Movies    Sports   Music

OVERVIEW: DISNEY’S ALL-STAR MOVIES RESORT FOR FIRST-TIME VISITORS

Note: Guests at Disney’s All-Star Movies Resort are eligible for Disney World’s Early Entry program, and have the ability to pre-book as early as  seven days before check-in Lightning Lane Multi Pass and Lightning Lane Single Pass rides. They are NOT eligible for its Extended Evening Hours.

Among my 160+ stays (so far!) in Walt Disney World resort hotels, I’ve stayed at Disney’s All-Star Movies five times, most recently in September.

This last stay confirms that for those who can’t afford a deluxe resort, Disney’s All-Star Movies Resort is the third best place to stay among the value resorts (the best value resort choice is Disney’s Art of Animation Resort).

And All-Star Movies is the best choice for those on a budget, as on average it is $90/night less than Art of Animation, and $45/night less than Pop Century, the second-ranked value.

You can have a wonderful visit at any Walt Disney World resort hotel.

However, this site recommends that first time visitors to Walt Disney World who can afford it should stay at Disney’s Polynesian Resort, a deluxe resort, and that those who can’t should stay at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort, a value resort. (See this for more on the value resorts at Walt Disney World.)

Compared to other Walt Disney World owned and operated resorts, the value resorts are distinguished by having the lowest prices and smallest rooms.

I’ve stayed at all five of Disney’s Value Resorts thirty times. These visits confirm the order in which the value resorts are recommended:

• Disney’s Art of Animation Resort is number one among the values.
• After  Art of Animation, the rank is, in order, Pop Century, All-Star Movies, All-Star Sports, and All-Star Music.

These last three All-Star Resorts are very close. Of these three,

• All-Star Sports is the most convenient, but kid appealing only if your kids are into baseball, football, basketball, surfing, or tennis, It still mostly has full beds, but queens will be increasingly common, and likely everywhere by mid 2023.
• All-Star Movies is the most broadly kid-appealing of the three, and has queen beds and coffeemakers in every room
• All-Star Music is the most compact, loveliest, and the only one of these three All-Star with family suites (Art of Animation also has family suites). All-Star Music has queen beds and coffeemakers in every room.

Compared to other Walt Disney World owned and operated resorts, the value resorts are distinguished by having the lowest prices and smallest rooms.

You likely will never stay in a hotel with smaller two-bed rooms.

Refurbed rooms sleep four plus one more child younger than three in a crib, in a fixed queen bed and a second queen bed that folds down from the wall, eliminating the table when it is down. A floor plan is above,  and an image of the room with the second queen folded up is below. A full photo tour is here.

However, if your family will fit, the values have much more kid appeal than the moderate resorts, the next higher price class (about twice as expensive, but with much bigger rooms and nicer landscaping.)

(See this for much more on resort distinctions by price class–value, moderate, deluxe, etc.)

Compared to staying off-site, the value resorts are distinguished by their higher kid appeal, convenience, and access to certain key perks that off-site hotels can’t provide.

DISNEY’S ALL-STAR MOVIES RESORT

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

On this basis, Disney’s All-Star Movies Resort is the third best value resort for first time family visitors, after Art of Animation  and Pop Century.

Kid Appeal. Several of the deluxe resorts–notably, the Wilderness Lodge, Animal Kingdom Lodge, and Polynesian Resort–have spectacular kid appeal. None of the moderates do.

All of the value resorts–Disney’s All-Star Sports, All-Star Music, and All-Star Movies, and its Pop Century and Art of Animation Resorts–have terrific kid appeal.

This appeal comes from the approach to theming they all share: bright and vibrant exteriors, framing much larger than life objects of interest to kids.

These objects reinforce that these resorts were designed for the sake of kids…and not necessarily for adults!

Of these, Disney’s All-Star Movies is the third-most kid-appealing. Art of Animation has the most kid appeal.

All-Star Movie’s theme is…movies.

Its ten three-story buildings (all with elevators) are grouped into five areas, each area themed after a movie (two buildings each): Fantasia, the Mighty Ducks, the Love Bug, Toy Story, and 101 Dalmatians.

You’ll find scattered around the resort three story high statues of Pongo and Perdita, Buzz Lightyear and Woody, a pool shaped like a hockey rink, and more!

The kid appeal of All-Star Movies is based on its theme: because it is about movies, it presents more richly Disney’s visual world.

That said, of all the movies ever released by Disney at the time it was built, the resort taps into only a few with widespread, multi-generational kid appeal.

In a bit of bad synergy, the movies showcased were released, or had theatrical or made-for-television sequels released, between 1996 and 1999–when All-Star Movies opened.  As a result, the only reliably kid-pleasing themed areas are the Toy Story (buildings 9 and 10) and 101 Dalmatians (buildings 1 and 4) areas.

Your kids may differ–and be particularly charmed by Fantasia, the Mighty Ducks, or The Love Bug.  But most aren’t. Disney does much better at Art of Animation, which showcases Cars, The Lion King, Finding Nemo, and the Little Mermaid.

Convenience. Disney’s All-Star Movies Resort is the fourth most convenient of the Value resorts.

During some less busy periods, the three All-Star Resorts share buses, except for the Magic Kingdom, to which each has its own bus.

Shared buses stop first at Sports, second at Music, and last at Movies.

What this means for Movies is that you have a shorter trip to the parks, but a longer trip back, than Sports.

For me, a shorter trip out is more valuable than a shorter trip back.  On the other hand, shared buses may fill up before they even get to Movies, or, more likely, have standing room only.

This is why I rank Movies after Sports in convenience.

Best places to stay at All Star Movies. This site suggests that first time visitors stay in standard rooms, not preferred rooms (because they won’t be spending much time in their rooms, or going to the main resort food area often.)

The single exception is visitors to the Animal Kingdom Lodge, who should always pay for savanna views.

Disney’s All-Star Movies Resort is divided into five areas.

Click the map to see the general layout.

Of these, a third floor room in buildings 1 or 4, in the 101 Dalmatians area, or 9 or 10 in the Toy Story area, is the best place to stay.

Movies has the same problem the other values do: it can be packed with teenagers who are at Walt Disney World as part of a tournament or other sports event.

As a result, the resort can be very loud and boisterous. Buildings around the pools are particularly so.

At All-Star Movies, buildings 2 and 3 (Mighty Ducks) and 5 and 8 (Fantasia) frame pools, and should be avoided

This leaves buildings 1 and 4 in the 101 Dalmatians area, 9 and 10 in the Toy Story Area, and 6 and 7 in the Love Bug area. Of these, buildings 1, 4, 9 and 10 are closer to the dining area, bus stops, and main pool, and have themes more broadly appealing, and are hence recommended.

Ask for the third floor because it is also the top floor, which makes it quieter.

BEST FOR:

Families than cannot afford a deluxe resort, or who are otherwise on a tight budget, who can fit into its small rooms, and find the movies noted an attractive theme.

WORST FOR:

Families who have more than two adult-sized people, or who will be using a crib.

The long-time travel agent partner of this site, Destinations in Florida, can help you book your Disney World vacation at All-Star Movies or anywhere else–contact them using the form below:

A PHOTO TOUR OF A REFURBED ROOM AT DISNEY’S ALL-STAR MOVIES RESORT

This review continues here.

TOPICS IN THIS REVIEW OF DISNEY’S ALL-STAR MOVIES RESORT

• Overview of All-Star Movies
• Photo Tour of a Refurbed Room at All-Star Movies
• The Themed Areas at All-Star Movies
• Amenities at All-Star Movies
• The Pools at All-Star Movies

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!!