Deep Dive on Disney's All Star Movies Resort - Episode 199

This week, Danielle is giving you all the deets on Disney World's All Star Movies Resort.

Want help planning your own adventure? Reach out today at DanielleGriggs@fantasticalvacations.com to get started!

Mickey with Minis podcast outro music

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 1:03

Hello there. It's Danielle. I'm flying solo today. Haley is not feeling awesome, so she's uh taking a little breather. Apologies for missing an episode last week. We had a crazy weekend last weekend, a really good weekend, but really, really busy because Haley's youngest was baptized in one church, actually a church that I used to um sing at all the time. And so it's nice to be back there. Um that was Saturday morning, and then there was a reception after that. And then the next day, her oldest got his first communion um in the morning, and then there was a reception after that too, with like a lot more family and stuff. So um they kind of try to cluster their big family events together so that their in-laws who are um Haley's in-laws who are in Ohio are able to come out for all of it. And there were two different churches for various reasons, and that is just how it shook out. So um we were running around like crazy and just didn't have time to record. And then I had a super crazy work week too. So I could usually, if that happens, I'll record something solo on a week bank. But um, that just did it was not in the cards for last week. I am very sorry. But thank you for sticking with us and for coming back. Um I'm gonna record right now, or I'm gonna do right now, like an episode that Haley and I were planning to do together, um, which is a deep uh deep dive on the All-Star Movies Resort, which we just recently stayed at. Um and yeah, we were like honestly pleasantly surprised. I think I I really remember disliking all-star sports when I stayed there. But is it possible I just don't like sports? It is true that I don't like sports. That is true. So maybe that's it. Maybe it just doesn't speak to me. But we stayed at All-Star Movies and it honestly was great. It really worked out. It reminded us a lot of pop um in terms of the room setup and just like the hardware and like the you know, textiles and stuff like that was all very similar. Um, and yeah. Um so one thing to know uh this resort is about to undergo some refurbishment. So if you're staying here in uh 2026, the second half of the year, you're gonna see some construction. They're doing a bunch of refurbishment starting a little bit later this month, um, and they're planning for that to go through the end of January 2027. So, you know, six-ish, seven-ish months, and um not quite sure. I haven't actually checked what it is that they're working on, but there'll be some construction going on. So that is just something to know. Um, the vibe is very similar to all of the other all-stars. It's like very bright, there's very big statues. Um, at this particular one, it's movies, so um there's uh like larger than life kind of icons around and on each building to help identify um the building. Um and yeah, lots of like high-energy music by the pool and like as you're entering and stuff like that. Um, but it's all Disney movie themed. So um at this uh hotel, you have um just two options for room type. Um, there's a standard room, which is either one king bed or one queen bed and a queen size table bed. Honestly, the table beds, they're great. Haley kept like trying to be nice and like give me the regular bed, but it actually doesn't matter at all, in my personal opinion. I found the table bed there and at every other Disney hotel I've stayed at. Those pull-down beds are sweet. It does not feel like a sleeper sofa at all, so that's good. Um, and then also you have your preferred room options, which can also be one king bed or one queen bed and one queen-sized um table bed. We were in a preferred room. Um, and uh these hotels are huge. So, I mean, if you if you can't swing it, it is like a little upcharge. Um but if you can't swing it, it's fine. Your room is still gonna be nice, you're just gonna be further away from like the pool, the main like building that has all the stuff in it, kind of thing. Um, and honestly, you might want to not be super close to the pool because those things are hopping forever. It goes on until later at night than you would think, and um, you know, there's just like a lot of foot traffic and that kind of thing. Um, I will say for um standard rooms, they are on the outer edges. So that's gonna be building two and three, uh, which is mighty ducks, and there is a second pool over there that I would assume is the quiet pool. We never made it that far, frankly. Um, and then seven, which are Jovebug themed. Um for preferred rooms, that's gonna be um buildings one and four, which are 101 Dalmatians, um, or buildings five and eight, which are on either side of the main pool. Um, those are Fantasia themed. Um, and I the theming, I believe, was mostly on the outside. Like, I don't think our room was Fantasia themed. We were in one of the Fantasia buildings. The building was Fantasia themed. I don't remember what the mural was on the pull-down bed. There's always like a nice reveal of the picture behind the pull-down bed. I honestly don't remember. Um, and then the other two preferred buildings are Toy Story. That's buildings nine and ten. Um, and those are a little bit like on the other side of the main hall. So they're kind of in like a loop around the main hall and the pool. And then the other one, the other buildings, the standard ones, are like a little further back from the main pool or closer to the quiet pool on the outside of that same loop. So that's what we're dealing with uh for rooms. But um, things that I loved about the room, um, plenty of space. I mean, it was just two grown adults and we were barely in there, other than when we were napping after the race. Um, but it doesn't, it didn't feel you know cramped at all, especially if you're a family of four, I think this would be fine for you. Um, I really appreciate uh when the bathroom, so the the toilet and the shower are in one small bathroom that has its own door, and then the vanity is open to the room, but there is a pocket door that you can pull closed. So um, you know, if you're traveling with little kids, trying to get ready in the morning before they're up or trying to get ready for bed and they're already asleep, you do have that um option to close the pocket door, not have the light like in the room the whole time. Um and yeah, so that I I super appreciate that. Um, just like most kind of standard hotel rooms at Disney, it has a little mini beverage cooler, which we used primarily for beverages, but um, you know, it doesn't get quite as cold as a standard fridge would, but um, it's kind of okay in a pinch. Um, and then there was a coffee maker, I think it was like coffee pods. Like it wasn't like a K cup situation, I think it was like a pod. Um, and they give you, you know, your standard like uh plastic cups for uh beverages, and then you've got your your coffee cups. I will say this the cups for that were like meant not for the coffee were pretty teeny. Um so you know, I guess depending on what you're using them for, I just wound up using the coffee cups, and we ran out pretty quick because Haley actually drinks coffee from the rim, so I wound up just requesting more, and it was no problem to have those run over to us. Um yeah, and then you know, there's a TV and there's um a dresser. I want to say it had six drawers maybe. Um and uh it that was, I mean, that was plenty for us. Um, I will say that the the drawers are um soft closed, which I like in theory because you don't want little fingers getting stuck. Um, but they also had a tendency to not quite stay closed. And so you'd think you'd close it and then you'd get up and like walk away and it turn around and it would be open. So I almost tripped on the bottom drawer a couple times. So just something to double check, make sure it's closed. Um there's also a decently sized closet that is in inside of the vanity area, so um, you know, there it doesn't actually have a door on the closet itself, but um we stuck, you know, suitcases in in there and then hung some things above. Um, and then I want to say there was also another cabinet inside the main part of the room, but that had all of your like extra sheets, your extra pillows, that kind of thing for the pull-down bed. So that's not really usable space, I don't think. Um, but yeah, worked out uh room worked out just great. Um so let's see. Um for dining here, it is value resort. So, you know, no sit-down meal available here, but um it was the food was like surprisingly really like it was better than I thought. So the food court is in the main building, it's called World Premier Food Court. Um, and they do breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Um, lunch and dinner are pretty similar. Um, the breakfast that I got there was like really quite good. Um, it was a tacho situation. They've got different stations um around like the main part of the food court. Um they have your standard kind of like bounty platters, which is either a waffle or a pancake with like some eggs, some tater tots, and bacon and sausage. Um, they've got some omelets, they've got this really good tacho bowl. Um that well, let's see, they've got two tacho bowls, actually. They only call one of them tacho bowls. One of them is like eggs, cheddar, sausage, gravy, bacon. Um, but I got the avocado breakfast bowl, and that's tater tots with eggs, cheddar, southwest style beans, avocado and salsa fresca, and it was awesome. I do travel with my own hot sauce because I'm insane. Um, and so I added that, and it was just it was really good. Um, and then they've got like your bagel sandwich options and um your Mickey waffle or a pancake. So lots of options there for breakfast. Um, and then they all though they do have some like um plant-based options, like a veggie uh quesadilla with plant-based eggs or overnight oats, um, and uh, you know, kind of your standard grab-and-go stuff, like bagels and croissants, and they've got some hard-boiled eggs, they've got some yogurt, like parfait kind of situation. So lots of grab and go stuff, and that was available basically as like demand. Like it was out all day until they kind of ran out, but they had that out for breakfast for lunch and dinner. It's basically the same stuff. Um, they do have a couple of things that are only available for dinner, like a mojo, mojo, mojo, moho, roasted chicken, uh, stir fry, um, meatball bowl that's plant-based, some nachos, and that kind of thing. But most stuff is available all day, including a really satisfying salmon. It was a it was a citrus basil salmon uh with some veggies and a steamed rice. That was great. There was also a sesame chicken that looked pretty good. I never got it. And then they have like your more standard food court fare like there's burgers, there's chicken tendies, there's hot dogs, there's some subs, some sandwiches, um, they've got a pizza station, um, they've got some pre-made salads. I did not enjoy the pre-made Caesar salad as much as I did at the boardwalk because they didn't keep the croutons separate. And so they were a bit soggy by the time I got to eat them. Um, but they've got all of that stuff, all of your standard beverage things. I will say we definitely noticed that the um the waters at the like the little, you know, when you go to like a soda machine and it's got like a little thing that will do water, a lot of those were not working. So we were trying to use those to fill up our water bottles, and a lot of that was a lot of those were not um working at all. So that was a little bit of a bummer, but we worked around it. We were fine. Um, so that's your that's your standard like food court situation. They do also have um a pool bar, um, which honestly does not have much in the way of food, if I remember correctly. I'm gonna pull that menu up here. Um I wound up getting the thing that I usually end up getting, which is like the captain's Mai Thai. It's pretty strong for like a pool bar beverage, so that's what I tend to go for. Um, I hate paying top dollar for sugary watered down drinks. So um that's what I went for. But um it's not actually inside the pool area, it's more like on the back end of the main building facing the pool. So if you wanted to get something, you did need to like leave the pool area and come get a beverage over there. They have some stools kind of set up around it, and that's kind of where we wound up hanging out. Um, yeah, for food here, they've got like there's a Greek salad, there's like a pre-made turkey sandwich, there's a Caesar salad, um, and then they've got some like charcuterie kind of stuff, a Mickey pretzel, that kind of thing. Um and you know, it's fine, but there's just like not a lot on offer there. And they kind of have your standard, like what you expect to find at a Disney pool bar. As you go around, you're gonna see a lot of the same drinks kind of everywhere you go. The pinna colava for some reason, that's a word we're using. And um, there's uh there's a standard margarita, there's uh banana cabana, I always get the Caffin Smy Thai. They didn't have a hibiscus margarita. I don't remember if that's if I've seen that elsewhere, but I I didn't get it. Um, so yeah, just kind of standard what you'd expect. Um and uh serves its serves its purpose, you know, and there's a little bit of seating on off to the side as well, um, outdoor seating. So if you had gotten food at the food court and you wanted to bring it out and sit outside, that is there for you. Um as far as the pool goes, so the main pool is Fantasia themed. There is a sorcerer Mickey in the middle of it, which I love because we love Sorcerer Mickey. Um, it's again value resort, so there's no water slide. There wasn't a ton of shaded options, I will say. Um, so you know, just be prepared for that. Um, a decent amount of seating, you know, a decent amount of lawn chairs, but um very few of them with umbrellas. So just something to know. Um, and then there's uh right next to that, there's like a little kitty pool and a splash play area for littler kids. So um that's there as well. And then yes, there is a second pool out by um the the I forget theme of those outer standard rooms, but um there's two of them that are kind of around it, and it's called the Duck Pond Pool, and it's based on the Mighty Ducks. Oh, so I would assume it's the Mighty Ducks, huh? Um, and it's supposed to, I guess it's supposed to look like a hockey ring. So I probably should have checked it out since my kid just signed up for hockey. But uh this is like your quieter um pool area. So there is definitely a lot of activity going on at the main pool. We weren't there for a ton of time, we just didn't have a ton of time to be in the pool. So um I don't know how frequently they do all of those activities, but um, you know, it's it's what you'd expect for sure. Um, and then they also have so there's a gift shop in the main building. Um, it was pretty cute. They had some good stuff in there. Um, kind of like again, the same kind of stuff you sort of see around elsewhere. Um, but that is there for you. And then um they also do like campfire activities. Um, there's a s'mores situation. Um they uh I didn't see this happen, but they did do movies. Um and they do it at a place called the Real Spot, R-E-E-L, which is outside of the food court. Um, there is a jogging trail. Didn't get there because we had this big ol' run to do. Um, so that's good to know. Um, there's also a playground, which we also didn't get to, but that's between Fantasia and Toy Story um areas. And then they do have an arcade, which is right inside the main building as you're headed out towards the pool. Um, so that is very good to know. Um, there is no gym here, which I found interesting. Um, there's no gym. I don't know if that's all the values. I haven't gone back to check, but uh there is no uh fitness center at the All-Star Movies, much to my dismay. Kidding. We did plenty of fitness, I really didn't need it. Um and yeah, so that's kind of that's kind of the gist of it. One thing I do want to point out, uh we made a really big deal out of the fact that there's uh not a bathroom closer to the pool area, and like I was hauling my butt like in a very teeny towel, like through the lobby to get to an into an indoor bathroom inside the like lobby area. Uh Nicole, who is also an agent with Fantastical Vacations, she's wonderful, kindly pointed out that there is, in fact, a bathroom near the pool. It's right, it's in the laundry area that's out right outside of the pool area. So there isn't like a bathroom building inside the pool enclosure, but you do not need to like take your wet self in through the lobby or your wet children in like constant rotation through the lobby to a bathroom. So that is thank you very much for pointing that out. That like makes a huge difference in what a family's experience would be. So that is really good to know. Um, one thing that we also I should mention that we were also like really surprised by with this resort, I hadn't stayed at a value in a long time. And other than we did pop for like one, so it, you know, it had been a bit, it had been a minute. And uh I don't remember if this was the case at Pop when we were there, but they have a very civilized lining up for your buses situation. So this is a bus-only resort, there's no Skyliner or monorail or anything like that, which is like true of a handful of places. Um, we never found waiting for the bus to be a problem. They have the they have the switchbacks, so it's a line that you get in, almost like you would if you're getting on like an attraction at the parks. And it just like makes it very clear who is here first. And I would imagine that some mornings it's wacky over there. It's probably bonkers, it's probably like a bajillion people because it's a big resort, lots of families, everybody's waiting for the the bus. And you know, at some of the other hotels, bus pulls up and it's like who was who is here first, who gets to get in the bus first? And it can be kind of a not a crush, but like it can just be a little chaotic. So at all-star um movies at least, they have stations for each destination that you'd be trying to get to via bus, and like each one has its own little switchback. Um, I guess my only complaint about that is that they were not in the shade at all. So like there was, I forget which day it was, but we were headed to a park and uh it was already quite warm and sunny. And so we decided to hang back like under the awning of the hotel instead of getting in the line right away, which, you know, maybe if you were there with a whole bunch of people and you really needed to be on the first bus or something like that, maybe you would have stuck it out. But we didn't find it to be a problem at all. And I thought it was nice they have a bit of an organized um system over there. So yeah, all in all, like this is solid hotel. I, you know, there it's lacking some of the amenities that you get at a um, you know, a moderate or certainly deluxe. Um, but you know, for a certain kind of trip and if you have certain priorities, this is like this is great. The rates are not bad, um, especially if you can catch a deal or something like that. Um, I think that it's uh it's was I was pleasantly surprised with our experience. Um, we were also, again, we were in a preferred room. We what I would probably do if you're worried about pool noise, what I would probably do is book a hotel room, book a preferred room. Can deal with the upcharge and then just call or have your agent like me call and request to not be facing the pool for quietness reasons. Um, and we, I mean, we were on the back side of the Fantasia building directly next to the pool, but not we were on the other side of the building from the pool, and it was great to be that close to everything, it was great to have access to the pool easily. It was great to not have to go very far to get to like the main building, but it was perfectly pleasantly quiet on that back side of that building. You weren't getting pool um ambiance uh in your room at night or anything like that. So that worked out really well. So that'd probably be my recommendation, especially if you're not traveling with kids or you have kids that go to bed early or that kind of thing. Um, so yeah, so as I said, I would be happy to make those requests for you. Um reach out. I am Danielle Griggs at fantasticalvacations.com. Um, I typically don't cost any extra to you. It's already built into what you pay um for Disney anyway. I'm able to apply lots of deals, including retroactively typically. So um if you see something and you're pondering it, I would just love to help you reach on out and uh let's get you booked. So hopefully Haley will be back next week again. Thanks for your patience. I had a couple weird weeks here where I like released, I released an episode with like a double episode number. I accidentally released the same episode twice. I spent it's been a little, it's been a little hectic, friends, since we, especially since we got back from the race, just like being shot out of a cannon. And um, so thank you again for your patience and sticking with us during this difficult time. And uh we really appreciate you listening. Um, so hey, if that's all for now, see you real soon.