Disney’s All Star Sports Resort Review
All Star Sports is a Value Resort at Walt Disney World that’s one of three cheapest hotels in the lineup. This review shares photos of the refreshed rooms here, thoughts on whether it’s is worth booking, with pros & cons, info about amenities and more.
One thing you might notice if browsing our Rankings of ALL Walt Disney World Hotels from Worst to Best, All Star Sports is not at the top of the list. To the contrary, it’s near the bottom. This says more about the strengthes of the other hotels than it does the weaknesses of All Star Sports.
In fact, we are actually big fans of the All Star Resorts. If you also read Are Walt Disney World’s Cheapest Hotels Actually Good?, you’ll see that the answer is an emphatic yes. Or you could check out My Favorite Hotel for Cheap Disney World Weekend Getaways, which is specifically about All Star Sports.
It’s true that All Star Sports is not for everyone. And it’s true that, as it turns out, the cheapest hotels at Walt Disney World are not the nicest hotels at Walt Disney World. Who would’ve guessed?! But it’s also accurate to say that All Star Sports is great for some guests or trip types, and that there’s truly no such thing as a bad Disney resort.
So if you came to this review because you’ve already booked All Star Sports or would like to book it, but are apprehensive about negative reviews or its ranking relative to other resorts, hopefully that puts your mind at ease. We would not hesitate to stay at All Star Sports–and in fact, we’ve stayed there a lot.
In terms of the general pros and cons of Value Resorts, if you’ve read our All Star Music Review or All Star Movies Review, there probably isn’t much new here for you to learn. Like I mentioned in both of those reviews, there is a love-hate relationship with Value Resorts among the Disney fan community.
Some people think they are dated, offering worse accommodations than a with poorly-made rooms, some people think they offer a cheap alternative to Deluxe resorts while still allowing Guests to take full advantage of on-property benefits. Although the Value Resorts are far from our favorite resorts, Sarah and I come down on the side of liking the Value Resorts for what they are.
Whether the Value Resorts are right for you comes down to the nature of your visit. If you’re taking a “the room is only for sleeping” type trip during which you want to be in the parks as much as possible, the Value Resorts are great because they’re often under $150 night after discount.
Equally as importantly, they offers access to on-site perks such as free Disney transportation, Early Entry, advance Lightning Lane booking windows, priority Advance Dining Reservation booking windows, and other advantages that are only available to on-site guests.
If you plan on spending a lot of time at your resort, and would like to be able to use a nice pool, eat at nicer restaurants, and enjoy other nice amenities, the Value Resorts may not be the best fit for your touring style. This goes for all of the Value Resorts.
All Star Sports will always hold a special place in my heart because it’s the resort at which Sarah and I stayed when we first went to Walt Disney World together, but the theme is not quite as good as the other Value Resorts, at least as for us. If you have kids who love to toss around a football, things like the football field or baseball diamond pool at All Star Sports make it a great choice.
Another thing to keep in mind when booking, is that if there are youth athletic tournaments at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, chances are that the participants are staying at All Star Sports. This can mean loud and rowdy groups at All Star Sports.
For this reason alone, we would strongly recommend consulting the ESPN Wide World of Sports Calendar before booking a stay at All Star Sports. Especially on weekends in the winter and spring, there are often youth cheer, dance, softball, and volleyball competitions. Be sure to avoid All Star Sports–or any of the All Stars, for that matter–if there’s an event at ESPN WWoS.
On the flip side, a big consideration that can make All Star Sports more appealing is that it’s the first stop on the bus loop when the All Star Resorts combine buses. This usually happens in the slower seasons of the year; if you’re visiting during one of these times of year, this is a really big deal, especially during early morning hours.
All Star Sports can completely fill up buses heading to the Magic Kingdom or Epcot, making All Star Movies and Music Guests waiting and waiting on buses. We’ve never stayed when the bus systems have been combined, but I have heard it’s not always pleasant for Guests of All Star Movies and Music. Just something to keep in mind.
All Star Sports, like the rest of the All Star Resorts, has a lot of larger-than-life set pieces. Attached to the buildings, there are huge football helmets, tennis rackets, and baseball bats. Giant cones, Coke cups, and other things enclose stairwells. In courtyards between buildings, Disney characters engage in sporting activities. As mentioned above, there’s a very cool football field, complete with turf (no cleats, please!).
Despite the cool set pieces, All Star Sports has a decidedly early-90s feel. Photos of athletes in the lobby are heavily faded, and advertisements in the elevator are decidedly dated by the attire Cast Members are wearing in the ads. Why Disney doesn’t make the insignificant effort to update these telltale signs of aging is beyond me. It wouldn’t be costly.
Personally, I’d love if Imagineering played it tongue-in-cheek with an update to All Star Sports. Instead of paying tribute to current greats, honor true American heroes like John Kruk. Heck, maybe have a “GOAT Mullets of Sports” gallery. They could even invite Jose Canseco and his Iron Man tortoise to the dedication for some nice synergy! 😉
The resort has a decidedly mid-90s vibe to it, particularly in the lobby and other common areas, which have not received the kind of attention as some other areas of the resort over the years. Additionally, there are far fewer amenities than any Moderate or Deluxe Resort, and is fairly far away from the Magic Kingdom, Epcot, and Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
Here’s a look at the remodeled rooms, which are the same across all three of the All Star Resorts:
Notably, All Star Sports was the last to be finished with the room overhaul. This means the rooms at Sports are 3-4 years newer than those at Movies (first to finish) and Music (second).
These reimagined guest rooms are a huge upgrade from the previous design, which was more minor leagues than all-star caliber. The functional improvements are tremendous, with a variety of space-saving upgrades that make the rooms feel larger.
They also look bright and airy, which is a sharp contrast to the old style. There’s more space for storage, one of the beds converts into a table, and much more. Some fans have complained about the new rooms, calling them sterile and hospital-like.
Respectfully, we think that’s mostly the rose-colored glasses of nostalgia. The design could be more interesting, but these are budget hotels at the end of the day–and they’re still a marked improvement over the old look, which was stuck in the 1990s.
While I may not want to cram a family of 4 in here for a weeklong stay with a lot of resort time, they’re fine and functional for shorter stays. Especially if you won’t be spending a lot of time in your room because you’re focused on Walt Disney World’s theme parks. In which case, why overspend on a higher-tier hotel?!
Some parties will actually prefer the fold-down bed that converts into a table (as opposed to two queens) because it serves a dual purpose and frees up room space. We’re big fans of this style; it makes the room feel more spacious!
As with other Value Resorts, the pools are also generally fairly large and spacious. This is partly offset by the fact that a lot of people use them, but kids seems to love these pools.
Another upside is that the End Zone Food Court has improved a lot in the last few years. The food courts at Walt Disney World’s Value Resorts used to be awful. They’re still not the pinnacle of fine dining, but they’re much better.
Another positive is that All Star Sports is generally really cheap, particularly if you are visiting at a time when there’s not an event at the ESPN Wide World of Sports. In that case, PIN codes (read more about Walt Disney World’s Unique Offer Codes–and how to get them–here) and other discounts are routinely offered that bring the price of All Star Sports to around $100/night.
That might not seem particularly cheap for a basic motel, but when you factor in its on-site location, plus Disney bus transportation (meaning no rental car!), plus Early Entry and priority Lightning Lane booking, there are a lot of perks that come bundled in with that room price.
In combing through my costs for the last few years, the lowest amount I’ve paid for All Star Sports is $88 per night and the highest is around $149 per night (both after Annual Pass discounts). If you’re going by general public discounts, expect to pay $100 to $175 per night.
There are cheaper hotels in Central Florida. Doing a quick search, I see options for around $50 per night. After eliminating the shady options where I wouldn’t be comfortable staying, there are $70 to $90 hotels. If I wanted to stay at Flamingo Crossing or the Disney Springs Resort Area, I’d actually be paying about the same cost as the All Stars–in many cases, more!
Regardless, the problem is that none of these are apples to apples comparisons. These are not the “all in” costs of something comparable to the All Stars. You’re going to pay for some combination of parking and transportation (potentially both), and then there’s the value of Early Entry–and what an alternative to that will cost you.
The bottom line is that the off-site alternatives are not as efficient and often end up costing more once you account for everything. If you’re concerned with saving money or even time, it’s difficult to beat the All Star Resorts at Walt Disney World.
Overall, All Star Sports Resort features a fun design that kids will love, especially those who love sports. The Value Resorts are for everyone, as they certainly aren’t the “best” resorts at Walt Disney World.
However, if you’re looking for a cheap place to stay while you’re at Walt Disney World, and you don’t want to rent a car or you do want to take advantage of Extra Magic Hours, All Star Sports is a solid choice. For the price and perks, you really can’t go wrong with All Star Sports if you primarily want to spend time in the parks.
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
Your Thoughts…
Are you a fan of All Star Sports, or is it too basic for you? Have you stayed at All Star Sports during Pop Warner or another event at ESPN Wide World of Sports? Any other tips to share concerning All Star Sports? Where does it rank for you in terms of hotels at Walt Disney World? Do you prefer staying off-site? Hearing from readers is half the fun, so please share your thoughts in the comments!
This is a great compilation! It sounds like you really have it all together! Making sure your little athlete has everything he or she could possibly need while they’re playing and practicing is really important and certainly alleviates their stress. Nice work! Thanks for posting!Basketball
First trip to All Star Sports. As a business traveler who stays at Hilton Properties on business i wasn’t looking for a five star resort. I have stayed in five star resorts that were not clean and the food was overpriced and lousy. You get what you pay for most of the time. It is a value resort with value rooms and value food. The food was fine and the rooms were clean. They proved all the benefits we were looking for with passes and extra hours and a great meal plan.
The only complaint, do not stay on the in building three on the 345-354 side. The loading dock for supply trucks is directly under room 354 and the trucks start delivery’s around midnight and continue until @ 4:30 am. Spoke to Lamar at the front desk and received a rude I don’t care attitude. Registered a complaint on the Disney app and received a marginal we will look into it. Lost sleep all week.
I wish I could post photos. This room is disgusting!!! Paint chipping off the front door and on multiple surfaces in the room. The sofa in the “suite” looks like it was picked up of a curb. The walls are covered in dirt…as are the doors inside the room. The floors look like they have never been cleaned. The shower heads are covered in soap scum. This is GROSS. If you have the money, spend it on a moderate resort. I really cannot believe they would let anyone stay in a room in this condition.
We just got back from a 4th of July vacation at All Star Sports. We had a total of 4 rooms between all family members in our party. I was worried after reading so many negative reviews but we had a wonderful time! All rooms were clean and comfortable! Staff was friendly and helpful and the bus system ran pretty smooth (never waited more than 20 minutes for a bus). It was basic but really all of my time was spend it the parks! Great value. I would stay again.
DO NOT STAY. We experienced BED BUGS, Awful Smell in room, Ants. There is no microwave if you have infants you have to go to food court which is not very close unless you request room closer to food court.
Housekeeping was not upto expectations. I could see dust on the furniture. Please look for another option than staying in All Star. Sport, music and movies. Please do not expect more than 1 star resort.
Just returned from a quick four day trip and booked All-Star Sports because we needed a room for sleeping only. I knew it would be basic and adjusted my expectations. Wish I would have used my Hilton points and booked a rental car instead. The smell in the room completely over-powered us-so musty! It was awful! The thermostat programmed to 68 didn’t help either. Hated the food court. It was a zoo. The beverage station was in complete disrepair (i.e. Buttons missing on the fountain unit, parts exposed that shouldn’t be, filthy). The food was inedible and I’m not a picky eater! How do you screw up a chili cheese dog? Check-in took way too long. We couldn’t use the online check-in because we needed to provide a military ID since we booked a military ID. Thankfully there weren’t any sports groups and the buses were frequent and could accommodate the crowds. The longest we waited was fifteen minutes. The room was also clean despite the smell. Having stayed at Deluxe resorts too (pros and cons here too) I can honestly say that this will likely be my last time at a Disney resort. I just don’t see the value for the price tag-deluxe or value. All-Star Sports was below my expectations.
I live in Florida and frequently go to Disney World. After experiencing stress with Hurricane Irma, my family and I decided to go to Disney and have fun. Staying at the All Star Sports was a big mistake. We were given an adjoining room. We stayed there from 9/14/17 – 9/16/17. The first day after going to the park, we returned to our room at 10:30pm. We heard frightening sounds from the room next store. Someone was grunting and screaming while another person was slapping and yelling shut up. There was also a dog barking. We called the front desk and they put us on hold and never answered . With this horrible yelling and beating continuing, we feared for our safety and took all our belongings and ran out of there. We went to the concierge and spoke with the manager. He said they would investigate, but they were booked. Only when I said that I refused to go back to the room did he find me another room. This room wasn’t adjoining but had a horrible musty odor that not even the ac could minimize. We were too exhausted to complain and move again so we just endured the horrible smell. The worst hotel and experience. We came from Irma to relax, not have more stress. I believe Disney should compensate me for this horrible and fearful experience. My hotel stay at All Star Sports should be refunded . I’ll never stay there again!!!
I have no problem with the Value resorts in general, but I definitely would never stay at All-Star Sports again for the reason mentioned in this review: sports group, specifically cheerleaders. My parents and I stayed here about 10 years ago and were unlucky enough to be there at the same time as a cheerleading competition. I was a college freshmen at the time and was particularly grumpy and easily annoyed by the large groups of loud and annoying teenage girls. The bus rides were particularly terrible, especially when you were headed back to the hotel after a long day in the parks and they were still all jazzed up and talking/singing/yelling loudly across the bus at each other. It’s been over 10 years and I am still annoyed just thinking out it! In my experiences, school groups seem to stay at the All-Stars, so even though Pop and Art are slightly more expensive, they will always win out in my book!
Sometimes I have less money than others but with my love of Disney I would pick a all star resort everyday of the week and twice on Sunday than not go at all. I’m not saying they are deluxe resorts but I am saying they are more of a God send than the deluxe resorts are. When I have money there is no problem, but when I don’t I’d really be in a load of hurt without my Disney fix
I definitely agree. The All Star Resorts mean my sister and I have been able to take sister trips that last two springs. With an unlimited budget, I’d go for a different tier, but the Value resorts have a special place in my heart (5 out of 7 of my trips were Value, 4 were All Stars). And a special place in my wallet. lol
I definitely agree with this! We have a friend who goes to Disney every few years and always stays deluxe. He likes to turn his nose up at the values, but we are able to visit multiple times a year by staying at them! The deluxe resorts are undoubtedly nicer but I will take quantity over quality if it means I can spend more time at the parks!!
We dreamed of our Disney world vacation for many years. The opportunity came at last my granddaughters cheer competition at the all star sports resort.
Me my wife, daughter son in-law, and grandchildren. However on the second day became ill out of the blue was taken to celebration hospital and spent 2 and a half days of our trip in hospital. But I’m writing not to say what we lost but what we gained.
From the moment the emergency on staff person came up to my room and waited in support with my family, for the ambulance
To the manager who walked my beloved wife out to the ambulance and told her not to worry everything would turn out ok and assured her transportation to and from hospital, this I was told latter due to being out of it at the time. As we finally made it back to the hotel the evening before the flight back to Los Angeles my wife began to tell the cab driver of our so called ruined vacation and he in turn kindly interupted her and, said don’t look at it that way God has everything under control look he is doing better and now you can have many more vacations. Good to know in such a huge globle organization, in all-star Orlando people care and act on that compassion.
P.S. kids had a blast
Thanks for sharing your story! 🙂
We stayed at All Star Sports 2 years in a row. Each time, checking in was a nightmare. The first year we bought on line and checked in at night and did Disney the following day. Check in was an hour of “can’t find us…your package doesn’t include…bracelets not registering. And the line was long. Lots of fun with your child and wife. The buses take forever
This year we bought on line. We checked in on time with the system saying we will be emailed to us letting us know what was our room number and the bracelets will let us in after we do Disney. During the ride to Disney, we called the 800 number because email hadn’t come yet. That operator confirmed we had a room and would resend the notice AND text it. At 10 pm after another godawful bus ride, no email/text had come. At 10pm I’m very pleasant to be near after a day of Disney. 45 minutes and a pull to the side of a different help desk I got our room number. We drove close to our building but half the lot was blocked off for an event. We had to park at bldg 8 and walk to bldg 4 with. We went up the 3 flights of steps instead of walking further in hope of finding the elevator (no sign assured us that an elevator was close)
We get in the room, my wife and I are not speaking at this point. I went to lower the temperature but the thermostats are controlled to 68. In Florida. I called down, he explained it was controlled and they could send someone up to bring it to 65. 20 minutes later maintenance came. They said this goes on every night. Insane.
We stayed at the All Star Sports last October. I have 14 and 9 year old sons who both play football, so naturally we stayed in the football building. It was our first trip to Disney, the kids LOVED the sports theme, The larger then life Helmets and football and field were really impressive. We did plan a trip that was primarily spend all day in the parks, so the lack of great pool etc wasn’t too big of a deal. (I didn’t think we were going back so i tried to jam it all in) We actually only had about 2 hours of downtime the whole trip, which i spent by the pool and the boys spent laying down. The food court was packed with long lines, but we didn’t have much use for it other then our early morning coffee and hot chocolate fix’s. We utilized the pizza delivery to our room in lieu of waiting in lines one evening , and even with a 30 min delivery wait it was worth it, and how fun to have pizza delivered to you at Disney. I would certainly stay here again if that was what the budget allowed. We have a second trip planned for May (silly me thinking I could just go once) where the boys have requested more downtime, so we are staying at the Boardwalk Inn , which is about double in price when you use the 30% off room special, but comes with queen size beds instead of the All Stars full, which is important when one man in your party is 6’3 and one teenager is 5’11, and has what looks to be a fun pool and great atmosphere. I would recommend the All Star Sports to any sports family on a budget, get a room that’s not overlooking the football field and the crowds of athletes wont bother you. Its fun and reasonably priced (for Disney) Have a great trip Everyone!!!
It’s was an absolute nightmare staying at all star sports. I go to Disney once a year and try to experience different hotels each time. This was the last of the value hotels and personally I don’t care if they give it to me for free I would text go back. They didn’t have enough staff ANYWHERE on the resort to accommodate the 1500 cheerleaders that showed up. The lines at the food court for 30 min long so food was cold. The girls were up and running by 5 am and up past 11 practicing with music. Bus lines were horrendous and the crammed people into the bus that I had panic attacks because I knew there was no safe way out if there was an emergency and unfortunately there was no waiting for the next business because it was always packed. I’ve never had an experience like this at any disney resort there’s so many other things I could mention like having to move rooms because of a mold issue, smelling like smoke in a non smoking rooms, air not working properly , etc…. but the list could go on.
I’ve always stayed at Caribbean Beach, this year we are going early December and decided on All Star Sports as it is cheaper. I think Caribbean Beach is a fantastic hotel but I never really take advantage of the pool and such cause I’m always at the parks. This year we wanted to a value resort, and my boyfriend loves sports so we picked this one. This review has made me nervous that I”ll be fighting through gaggles of cheerleaders and high school football players, hopefully it won’t be that bad when we get there.
My daughter and I stayed at the All Star Music last year during the first week of February. There was some kind of cheerleading competition going on at Disney and while the Sport resort may have been full as well, out resort was filled with loud, noisy and inconsiderate cheer squads. Aside from that, the resort surpassed my expectations for service and friendly staff.
I have stayed at Pop Century and found the service just as good at the All Stars. We are booked to stay at the sports resort this fall and am looking forward to it. We are the commando style “the room is just a place to sleep and shower” visitors so the All Stars fit out style and budget perfectly.
It was probably spillover from Sports. Sports is the worst when it comes to groups.
Its funny you mentioned that you stayed here in August 2009, I took a trip and stayed there at the exact same time and I saw you walking through the lobby into the food court as I walking out of there and I told my buddy… that looks like that Tom guy from WDWMAGIC (at the time I didn’t know what Sarah looked like b/c I probably would have said hello if I was sure it was you).
As you mentioned, I’m one of those “sleep in the room only” types so I generally will stay here due to it being the first bus picked up and first one dropped off out of all of the all star resorts… standing isn’t much fun on those crowded buses.
stayed here in november 2013 and went in with medium to low expectations and was pretty pleasantly surprised! rooms were by no means big but its a value resort. pools and pool bar were nice, theme and decorations were great.
only downside was that the dining hall was under repair/renovation so breakfast was the only meal they served on site and was continental at best. you had to go to all-star music for the full variety.
if you’re trip to disney world is 90% focused on getting to the parks early and staying late into the night, the value resorts are perfect for you (i LOVE pop century). of course i would always prefer to stay at my favorite resort POFQ, but, money can’t always be no object!
great review!
We have stayed in All Star Sports the last 3 trips and have been completely satisfied. We stay 10 days with from 9. To 19 in our family group. The only issue I have is with the whole Disney, parks and all. We can see that each year they eliminate people and the cleanliness of all things Disney are not as good as in the past.
Totally agree with your last sentence, unfortunately. That’s what happens when you try to maximize profits anyway possible.
Came here to celebrate my boyfriends birthday and our anniversary. We arrived with lots of bags to unload. There were 4 young adults at the front building talking amongst each other hoarse playing and using profanity. Neither of them welcomed us or tried helping with our bags. Then we waited in line for a while for check in. Once we had our keys we went to the room only to find out our room key didn’t work and couldnt get in. So we called front desk for maintenance to let us in. We waited 30min in the heat by this time I had called 3times to see what was going on. What was worst was maintenance came slowly. He walked slow taking his time knowing that we saw him helped a lady first then came to us. Never apologized for the inconvenience and was rude and stand offish towards us. We finally get in the room and it smells not only that my suprise cake for my bf that I had in our cooler melted and I had to throw it out. Horrible service, horrible place old paint job didn’t even look nice on the outside. Not only did we have a bad time other guests were looked out waiting over an hour to get in their room bc the battery died on the door and thier key didn’t work. They also told us how there was rotten food left from previous guests that was never cleaned when they checked in.
I got to the Disney Sports Resorts on June 26-30,2013 this was a non-smoking hotel their were people smoking the whole time I was there outside their room. You will not get any rest people were in the swimming pool all night. I contacted the front desk their response was we will sent someone to check it out. My son has Asthma and we had to deal with smoking outside on the patio I was in room 8304 in the baseball side.The hotel was over crowd my children had never been to Disney World I will never stay here again. Their were a lot of bugs in the room.
Jennifer i agree with your comment that If you are a sports fan the All Star Sports Resort is the way to go. I have stayed at the All Star Sports Hotel and it was not my favorite hotel either. I am planning to run a marathon at Disney World sometime soon and I will probably stay at the All Star Sports Hotel just because it has to do with sports and the hotel is at a location where the Disney World parks are not that far away. I have been craving a mickey mouse ice cream lol.
We’re staying at Sports next week. While it isn’t my favorite value resort, Pop Century is but wasn’t a host hotel for the 1/2 Marathon next weekend. My son likes baseball, and I knew that the resorts would probably be sharing buses so we chose Sports over movies. It’s not a horrible resort, but I agree if you don’t like Sports it’s really not the resort for you. Hopefully they will have done some updating to it since your last visit.