We recently returned home from a 6 night stay at Disney World. When we planned our trip several months ago, we decided to stay at a Value resort. We assumed we would be spending most of our time in the parks and would only be in the room for sleeping, so we didn’t feel the need to splurge on a Moderate or Deluxe resort. We selected the All Star Movies resort due to its Toy Story area. Turner (almost 4 years old) is a big fan of all things Toy Story, so we knew he would love it.

The standard check-in time is 3 PM at the hotel, but our flight arrived much earlier in the day, so we arrived at the resort around 11 AM. We made our way to the food court to find a snack, and while we were eating, I checked the Disney World app around 11:30 AM and noticed that we had already been assigned a room number, which meant we were officially checked in and could enter with our magic bands. Our bags had not been delivered yet, but we still went up to the room to check it out and freshen up before we went out exploring. We had not specifically requested early check in, but it was a welcomed surprise.

I didn’t take any pictures of the room because the pictures on Disney’s website of the room are completely accurate. The room we stayed in looked exactly what you see here. The standard room and preferred rooms are identical, with the only exception being the proximity to the dining hall/buses. Our preferred room was in the Toy Story area, and it was just a short walk from the main building.

The theming was fabulous, especially if you have a Toy Story fan. We entered through a door to “Andy’s room” to get to our building, and were surrounded by HUGE Toy Story figures. Turner loved it! The rooflines were lined with army men and it really was a fun atmosphere. Turner posed for pictures with Woody and Buzz a couple of mornings because he had to show them his PJs!

Besides the theming, the rest of our experience at All Star Movies was just….okay. The room itself was clean, but appeared a bit dated. It was definitely small (I believe 264 square feet). There were 2 full-sized beds, and we also brought a toddler sized air bed for Turner to sleep in because he wanted his own bed (#spoiled). With the addition of the air bed, the room definitely felt tight. All of the typical amenities were included, such as a small refrigerator, hair dryer, iron, etc…I noticed the toiletries provided didn’t include any hand soap, so I had to use the face soap to wash my hands. (Not really a problem since I brought my own facial cleanser, but I wouldn’t want to wash my face and hands with the same soap).

The food court was standard and unimpressive. There was a good variety of fast food available, but nothing stood out as a “must have” meal. We only ate in the food court once, and honestly, that was enough. We got a meal with chicken nuggets and french fries because we knew Turner would enjoy it. They must have given us 20+ chicken nuggets! Our family of 3 shared that meal! The fries were standard, but the chicken was sub-par. I got a milkshake that actually was enjoyable. The staff was friendly, but given the choice, I would not eat there again.

Transportation to the parks from this resort was strictly by bus. We did have to wait in line to board a bus several times, but the bus service was fairly quick and reliable. One perk of staying at an All Star resort is that if you’re returning back from the parks and the line to board the bus to your particular resort is long, you can always hop on a bus to one of the other All Star resorts if the line is shorter, as they are all within walking distance. We did this a few times and saved quite a bit of time.

Overall, our experience at All Star Movies was just average at best. There was nothing particularly bad about it, but when we go back to Disney World (yes, we’re already planning our next trip!), we will definitely splurge on a resort with monorail access OR a suite at another value resort (Art of Animation). If I were given the choice to stay at a hotel off-property or a Disney All Star resort, I would stay at an All Star resort again, only for the perks (extra magic hours and access to transportation), but we will choose a different resort for our next visit.