Let’s be honest, Disney World is an an expensive holiday. Whether you’re visiting from thousands of miles away like us or vacationing in Florida from within the United States, it’s going to cost you a lot of money. Although it is possible to do Disney on the cheap by staying offsite, there’s nothing quite like being in that Disney bubble. And luckily for us, it is possible to do that without breaking the bank. How? By staying at a Disney World value resort!
Value resorts at Disney World are the lowest priced resorts available on property. There are 5:
⦁ Disney’s All-Star Sports Resort ⦁ Disney’s All-Star Movies Resort ⦁ Disney’s All-Star Music Resort ⦁ Disney’s Art of Animation Resort ⦁ Disney’s Pop Century Resort
We have stayed at both All-Star Sports & Art of Animation and had a fantastic time at both. If we were ever to do a budget trip again we would not hesitate to stay in any one of these hotels. Here are 5 reasons why…
Cost
The main reason we considered a Disney value resort was the price; it is significantly cheaper to stay at one of these hotels compared to a moderate or deluxe. Looking at 2020 prices on the Walt Disney Travel Company website show that you can stay in a standard room at any of the All Stars resorts for just £99 per night.
Now if we look at Animal Kingdom Lodge (the cheapest deluxe hotel), one night in a standard room is going to set you back £273. So if you were staying onsite for 7 nights that is a staggering difference of £1218! That’s a whole lot of merch you could be buying… Pop Century & Art of Animation come out at around £25 per night more expensive than All Stars. But again, comparing the price to even the cheapest hotel in the moderate category (Coronado Springs at £178 per night) shows that big savings can be made.
On-site Benefits
You may be looking at those prices thinking “I can find offsite hotels that are much cheaper than that”. And yes, there are many hotels on International Drive or the Lake Buena Vista area for around £50 per night. But you miss out on those great onsite benefits Disney offers to guests who are staying on property. As well as the convenience of booking your fast passes 60 days in advance, Disney also offers perks that can save you money. Let’s start with the complimentary Magical Express. Disney provides a free shuttle service both to and from Orlando International Airport. That, along with the free transport between parks and resorts, means that you can do your Disney holiday without the added expense of a hire car.
The Disney buses are so efficient and frequent – we never hire a car during our onsite stays and manage just fine with Uber/Lyft when we want to venture out of Disney World. If a hire care is important to you that’s fine – onsite guests get free parking at the theme parks. It’s important to note that value resorts do charge $15 per night for parking. But compared to the $25 a day it’ll cost you to park at the parks as an offsite guests, it’s still a decent saving over your whole trip. All Disney resort guests are also given free magic bands. These are so useful – as well as being your park ticket & room key, magic bands allow onsite guests to charge purchases back to your room. Not having to take your wallet or purse out with you all the time is a definite positive!
Skyliner
Our favourite thing about our stay at Art of Animation Resort was the Skyliner! Like we mentioned before, Disney offer free transport between onsite hotels and parks. At value resorts this used to be solely buses. But in September 2019 Disney launched the Skyliner – a gondola style transportation system. Pop Century and Art of Animation are the only value resorts with a Skyliner station. It’s a shared station located between the two resorts which takes you to Caribbean Beach Resort, the main transfer station. From here you can board a Skyliner to either Hollywood Studios or Epcot (via Riviera Resort).
This made getting to both those parks so quick and easy! Even at busy times like park closing when the line looked a little long and daunting, it was constantly moving and we were back in our room so much quicker than it would have taken on the bus. It’s also useful to note that strollers don’t have to folded down on the Skyliner line they do on Disney buses. That’s really useful if you’re leaving in the evening with sleepy children! As well as the convenience, it’s just a fun thing to do and there are some great views to look at on your journey. If you’re planning on spending a lot of time at Epcot and Hollywood Studios. I would 100% recommend staying in either Pop or AoA.
Family Suites
You might have a bigger family, or just want more space. 4 people in one hotel room can be tough, especially if you’re on a long trip. Disney World value resort Art of Animation offers family suites which can sleep up to 6 guests. During our stay at Art of Animation last year we stayed in a cars suite and thought the rooms were amazing!
With two bathrooms, a separate bedroom, a kitchenette, a living area and a dining table which doubles as a murphy bed there is plenty of room for a family to be comfortable here for a long stay. All family suites include a fridge, toaster, microwave, coffee maker & a sink. Plastic cutlery and paper plates are also provided. This gives you the choice of eating breakfast in your room or making lunches to take out to the park. If you’re trying to save money this is a great option! Deluxe resorts also offer 1/2/3 bedroom villas for larger families, but they will set you back a lot more money.
Theming
The theming at the value resorts is in your face Disney. Some people will love it and others will hate it. Each one has a different theme and a very “Disney” feel to them. And if you’re at Disney World you want to feel like you’re in Disney, right? The design of these hotels are more aimed at kids – the theming is so well done and full of characters, your kids are sure to love it! Although we have stayed as 2 adults and didn’t feel out of place at all. If you’re planning on spending most of your time out at the parks or Disney Springs and aren’t particularly bothered about how your resort looks then I would seriously consider staying at one of the values.
Is it really worth spending (potentially) thousands more to stay in an expensive hotel when you’re not going to get the chance to enjoy it? The big blue pool at Art of Animation is considered one of the best onsite pools, so don’t assume that the amenities will always be significantly better at the more expensive hotels. . In fact, the newly refurbished rooms at Pop Century resort are nicer than some of the rooms at more expensive resorts!
So, there you have our top 5 reasons why you should stay in a value resort at Disney World. Many people think staying onsite will be too expensive and don’t really give it a proper thought. The first few times I went with my family were offsite stays; believing it was cheaper and not realising the value of the benefits you received as an onsite guest. Now that we do, I don’t think we’d ever stay offsite again! Whenever we want to do a budget trip or save a little money we will 100% stay in a value resort.
For more information visit https://www.disneyworld.co.uk/resorts/#/value
Have you stayed in any of the value Disney resorts? Let us know what you think!
See you real soon
Josh & Becky
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