Value Resort Rankings at Disney World
Which Walt Disney World Value Resorts are best & worst? This list ranks Art of Animation, Pop Century, and All Star Movies, Music & Sports. Our #1 hotel might surprise you, but we’ll cover why it’s our top pick–plus pros & cons, photos, transportation, and other info about each! (Updated April 1, 2022.)
Walt Disney World’s Value Resorts are great hotels for people who won’t be in their rooms much, families with small children who enjoy Disney animated films, and guests doing WDW on a budget. To be sure, the Value Resorts are more expensive than off-site accommodations, but the added perks like park transportation and Early Theme Park Entry can tip the scale in their favor from a money-saving perspective.
Let’s start by discussing the single biggest differentiator among the Value Resorts, which is transportation. Previously, this simply focused on bus transportation, which tends to be better at Pop Century and Art of Animation. This is the case because the three All Star Resorts sometimes (but seldom) share buses. However, now there’s a much bigger reason…
That’s the newly-opened Disney Skyliner gondola transportation. This offers aerial transportation from a shared station between Pop Century and Art of Animation to Caribbean Beach, where guests transfer for either Epcot or Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Total Skyliner transit time from Art of Animation or Pop Century is under 10 minutes to DHS or under 15 minutes to Epcot. This is a considerable improvement over buses.
We’ve already used the Skyliner countless times, including from Pop Century to rope drop both Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Epcot. In our view, this transportation system is an absolute game-changer. Instead of relying on inconsistent and unpredictable buses–which can be frustrating if you’re in a hurry–you can take the smooth Skyliner for efficient transportation to two of Walt Disney World’s most popular parks, plus a whole bunch of hotels.
With that said, the Skyliner hasn’t been free of problems. It goes down regularly between the months of June and September due to storms, and bus transportation often is not efficiently deployed as a backup. Due to this, and the nature of the transportation, those with fears or heights or other concerns may not wish to use it.
For those guests, it’s less of a perk and more of a drawback for both Pop Century and Art of Animation. The Skyliner is built into the cost of both hotels, and is a huge advantage that justifies the premium pricing…but only for those who will use it. If you will not use it, you’re paying extra for no reason. (Moreover, Pop Century and Art of Animation have scaled back their bus frequency to Epcot and DHS, doubling disadvantaging those who don’t use the Skyliner.)
Now, let’s cover some commonalities of the Value Resorts. All of Walt Disney World’s Value Resorts are large and spread out, and don’t have internal transportation. We don’t consider it that long of a walk, but if you are trying to herd a slew of kids, you might disagree. At every Value Resort except Art of Animation, preferred rooms are available that are located closer to the lobby, but they have an additional cost.
Standard rooms are all fairly similar, too. It cannot be stressed enough that the Value Resorts are very basic accommodations in terms of the rooms. These rooms are small and along the lines of what you’d find at a nicer Best Western or Motel 6.
Disney fans may gasp at that comparison, but we feel it’s true–at least to an extent. The big way Disney’s Value Resorts deviate from other budget accommodations is that they include Disney decor, which alone is probably enough for the average Disney fan or guest to consider them a great deal superior to those other brands of hotels. The point is, at their core, these are not high-end hotel rooms.
Design, in general terms, is pretty consistent among the Value Resorts. All are very plain buildings that are dressed up with oversized icons that relate to the hotel name. They’re decorated, not themed. While the Moderate and Deluxe Resorts attempt to transport you to another time and place, the Value Resorts look more cartoonish. Their style is very divisive, with some Disney fans finding them garish clutter tacked onto low-rate motel buildings and other fans finding them to be fun and whimsical ways to experience a Disney hotel on the cheap.
If you are in the former camp, you probably already know Value Resorts are not for you, and there’s little point to this list of rankings for you. Regardless of how you feel about the Value Resorts, the fact is that they have plenty of fans. Many people, especially small children, prefer this larger-than-life style to the more elaborate and nuanced design of the higher-tier hotels.
We’ve stayed at each of the Value Resorts on numerous occasions, most recently in Spring 2022 with a stay at Pop Century. (A return visit to Art of Animation is next up, at the start of Summer 2022). While their style isn’t our favorite, we can understand why they appeal to kids. We find the criticism to be a bit over the top and cynical. Different strokes for different folks, and all that.
The All Star Resorts have more in common, too. They also used shared buses most of the year, which can be a big issue and time drain. While kids who are fans of sports, movies, or music may disagree, we feel that the decor is pretty much the same across the three resorts.
Movies and Music seem very similar to one another (most Disney movies are musicals, so this makes sense), with Sports differing more. The All Star Resorts are also older than Pop Century or Art of Animation, and in many places, the age difference really shows.
With that said, let’s take a look at the rankings!
5. All Star Sports
There are two big downsides to All Star Sports that ultimately puts both of the other All Stars ahead of it. First, it has not yet received the new room upgrades (more on these below) that are huge improvements in terms of utility and aesthetics. This was supposed to occur during the hotel’s extended closure, but upon reopening in Spring 2022, none of the rooms have been remodeled. (Meaning they still look like what’s pictured above, minus the bed runners.)
Given that, it’s likely that this project has been postponed indefinitely. At some point, All Star Sports will need a room overhaul. The current look is incredibly dated, and Walt Disney World is trending away from this. However, between pent-up demand and hotel projects elsewhere, this is unlikely to occur anytime soon.
Second, All Star Sports is frequently the home base for groups attending ESPN Wide World of Sports events. This used to be primarily during Pop Warner in early December (which has since been moved to Universal), but now there are scattered events throughout the year. If you consult the ESPN Wide World of Sports Calendar and you’re completely sure there are no groups, you might decide to opt for it. Otherwise, speaking from experience in having stayed at All Star Sports during these events (THREE TIMES!), we just don’t think it’s worth it to stay here during an event.
The biggest upside to All Star Sports is that when the All Star Resorts are sharing buses, it’s the first stop the buses make. During busy hours, the bus will often fill up completely at All Star Sports, skipping All Star Music and Movies completely. For this reason, the bus service at All Star Sports is the best of the three. However, buses are almost never shared in scenarios where they could fill up completely, almost totally nullifying this “advantage.”
Given all of the above, All Star Sports is last place–and by a wide margin. You should only stay here if no other All Star Resort is available, and if you don’t want to pay extra for an upgrade to Pop Century.
4. All Star Movies
All Star Movies was the first of the trio to receive the new rooms. Above is a photo of the new room from the opposite perspective as the new room (below that) at All Star Music. We’ve stayed in these new rooms several times, and find them to be huge upgrades. They’re not perfect–you can read about the pros & cons in our Photos & Video: Newly Reimagined Rooms at the All Star Resorts post.
These new rooms are definitely a step in the right direction, but All Star Movies could still use some more help. The Mighty Ducks are still heavily showcased, despite no longer being relevant. Photos in the lobby are faded, as is hotel signage. However, the new rooms are such a significant improvement that we’re willing to overlook all of that and can’t find availability at All Star Music.
3. All Star Music
All Star Music has now been totally updated with the new rooms, pictured above. These are a significant upgrade from the old rooms (and what still exists at All Star Sports), as they have numerous functional and space-saving improvements. All of that is incredibly useful given the small size of Value Resort rooms.
Other upsides to All Star Music are that it’s less expensive than Pop Century and Art of Animation, it has a refurbished food court, it’s rarely (if ever) overrun with pre-teen athletic groups, the decor is good and not too dated (by All Star standards), and it’s the middle bus stop. All Star Music gets the job done in pretty much every regard, without excelling at anything.
It’s not really better by a wide margin, so if your kids are more interested in movies than music, you might consider opting for All Star Movies instead, especially if decor is a big deal. We also prefer the guitar-shaped Calypso Pool to Movies’ pool, but again, it’s not by any wide margin. With that said, preferring sports is insufficient justification for booking All Star Sports over either Music or Movies. The difference in room quality between old and new is simply insurmountable for All Star Sports.
2. Art of Animation
For the sake of this comparison, we’re only looking at the common areas and standard rooms in Art of Animation, all of which are in the Little Mermaid section of the hotel. The family suites are incredibly nice and worthy of consideration for families who want more space, but they arguably don’t even belong in the Value Resort category. Their nightly rate is considerably higher, making them more comparable to the Fort Wilderness Cabins and other unique room categories.
When it comes to rooms, the Little Mermaid rooms fall short of the newly-redesigned rooms at Pop Century and All Star Movies. The Little Mermaid rooms have received a light refresh recently, but nothing on par with Pop Century. You can read all of our quibbles with these in our Little Mermaid Room Review. Suffice to say, these are minimally decorated, a long walk from the lobby, and way overpriced.
However, the common areas make Art of Animation winners among families and push it close to the #1 spot. This is especially true of the Cars wing, which is the best area at any of the Value Resorts. The Nemo, Lion King, and Little Mermaid grounds have fun decor and some interesting design touches, but they don’t have the depth of the Cars wing, which feels like a low-budget Radiator Springs.
Art of Animation also scores points for the Finding Nemo pool, which is the best pool at any Value Resort, and one of the better pools at Walt Disney World (if you don’t mind the noise). For a quieter option, the Cars pool is also exceptional, and has a Cozy Cone Motel vibe to it.
Landscape of Flavors, the food court at Art of Animation, is one of the better counter service restaurants on property, which is another strong selling point. However, it’s literally as easy to dine at Landscape of Flavors if you’re staying at Pop Century as it is if you’re staying in the Little Mermaid rooms.
That’s ultimately what weighs Art of Animation down to the #2 spot for us. You’re paying a significant premium for inferior rooms (unless your kids are diehard Little Mermaid fans), and for being just as far from Art of Animation’s main amenities as you would be if staying in some rooms at Pop Century. Why not just pay less, have a better room, and walk over to Art of Animation Resort to enjoy it?
1. Pop Century
In the course of discussing the other Value Resorts, we’ve more or less touched upon the biggest upsides of Disney’s Pop Century Resort, which has been the long-time top pick for Value Resorts among Walt Disney World fans. To reiterate: new rooms, Skyliner transportation, lower price points, and convenience to Art of Animation via Generation Gap Bridge all make Pop Century a winner and our #1 pick.
Pop Century’s biggest downside is that the cartoony, oversized icon style simply works better in the context of Disney animation. This style appeals primarily to kids, and Disney characters will resonate with them more than pop culture references.
Personally, I think in terms of overall ‘value’ (not simply what’s cheapest), Pop Century excels. It is worth the slight premium for superior dedicated bus service, better dining options, and far superior rooms. If you’re a couple without kids simply looking for the cheapest way to stay on-property at Walt Disney World, Pop Century should be your top pick.
So there’s our take. Whether a Value Resort is right for you in the first place is something you should also consider. If money is no object and you don’t have kids, we will say with almost complete certainty that you’re likely better off in a Moderate or Deluxe Resort. If money is an issue or you think your kids will prefer the Values, give them serious thought.
If you’re somewhere in between these two extremes, we’d advise you to give serious thought to the Moderate Resorts (check out our rankings here), but cost more but offer more immersive theming and quality while still not breaking the bank. If you want to splurge or money doesn’t matter, check out our Deluxe Resort Rankings post.
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
Is it worth it to you to stay at a Value Resort, or would you rather just splurge and stay at a Moderate or Deluxe Resort? Which Value Resort is your favorite? Do you agree or disagree with our WDW Value Resort rankings? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
We’ve been big WDW fans for over 30 years and are quite knowledgeable regarding what’s available there.
Your review of the Value Resorts was spot on and I commend you!
As a Florida resident and passholder I will continue to visit WDW, despite their woke philosophy,
So glad I saw this! What’s a bad thing for you is actually a good thing for us. The military-discounted rooms are far and few between this year and AS Sports is one Disney keeps pushing. We’re doing a split stay and I’ve been back and forth on this resort until I saw your blog post. Knowing AS Sports hasn’t refurbished to the new-style of the AS Music and AS Movies makes us look at it in a whole new light now. The murphy beds are too hard for me to pull down for the kiddo. When we stayed at AS Movies in 2018, they told us someone would come to the room and pull it down for us, but they didn’t. We got it down & planned to just leave it down during our stay, but mousekeeping put it back up every time they cleaned the room. We avoid the rooms with murphy beds in them now. So I’m in the minority here, but I’m glad AS Sports hasn’t done a refurb!
There’s not much Mousekeeping to be had, so I don’t think anyone will put the bed up. You also could put a note on the bed asking to leave it down. No one touched ours at All Star Music.
I agree, when I seen the photo I was like.. ok. this is where I will stay. I find the Murphy beds harder than the regular bed.
We have stayed at Pop Century twice and absolutely love it. The skyliner is awesome. We were there during the busiest week in February and even with lines the skyliner moved quickly! We didn’t wait longer than a few minutes. My kids love the theming and the pools. The only thing that would keep me from returning to Pop is the food. The food court is really limited, especially for vegetarians.
Stayed at Movies in September 2021 due to 25% off room rates booked 3 weeks prior to arrival thinking how bad could it be. We have always stayed at a moderate for the last 20 years. Never again at values. Our favorites, (Riverside & previously CBR – before the Riveria and Skyliner changed the whole vibe of CBR) are our go to resorts Movies was horrible. From the food and lack of extra activities except for pool games that was an overload of kids there is nothing to do. There wasn’t even a decent outdoor spot to enjoy a drink. However we did have good luck with the buses back and forth to the parks. So if you are used to moderates stay away from values. Can’t wait … arriving at Riverside in 34 days!
I have stayed at the value resort’s and love them coming from England we love the door straight out into the sun ,we stayed at fort wilderness it was nice to sit on balcony but not my favourite (sorry Tom) next holiday booked for music
We stayed at Pop in early February, our room was in the 60’s building which afforded us a short jaunt to the Skyliner. My husband got in line for the Skyliner by 7 each morning; by 7:20 the line was snaking around on the Pop side almost to the 50’s building. While the Skyliner is operating (moving) at that time , they don’t let guests board until 7:30 on the dot. The line moved quickly and we were at DHS for RoTR early entry before 8:00. Knocked out both RoTR and Millenuim Falcon before early entry “officially” began at 8:30.
We were in line for busses to MK and AK by 7 too, so we snagged seats on first busses to the parks and rope dropped Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and Flight of Passage.
Bussing back to Pop, however, took forever as we stayed until close… we saw 2 or 3 busses come and go for Art of Animation before one even came for the Pop guests. In retrospect, wished we had just jumped in line for an AoA bus and then just walked back over to Pop. That would have saved us time despite walking more at the end of the night – by that time we were DONE with standing in line. 😉
I will never pay extra for Skyliner use again. I was absolutely not impressed with it (and I wanted to love it!)
Last time we stayed at Art of Animation we waited 30 minutes to get on the Skyliner and ride it to the transfer point. When we got there, we waited another hour to get on the transfer Skyliner. After 90 minutes of waiting, we got to the platform and they shut down the Epcot Skyliner- which meant we could either follow the mass exodus and get a bus, or take the liner to HS and walk the 20-30 minute walk to Epcot from there. In the end, it took us 2 full hours to get from AoA to Epcot. Other times it was back in the 90 minute wait times (when it was working properly).
We would have gotten there in 30 mins-most likely less- if we had just taken the bus. The liner is fantastic to get from the parks back to the hotel, but from the hotel to the parks isn’t worth it at all.
Honestly, my husband and I are grateful for the three value resorts and, though prices at them have really gone up, it is still worth the immersive experience. We need to be frugal, so I think they are fantastic choices for on-site hotels, in our happy and humble opinions. We just love being there, always need two rooms for six kids and us, and love the Disney atmosphere, though we are “parks all day” people. The only bad experience we’ve ever had was when the cheerleader squads came and completely took over every space…line jumping at the food courts to a “place holder” 20+ at a time and leaving no room to sit. Otherwise, just glad to be in the world. Can’t wait to go in May! Staying at All Star Movies.
I’m not sure how prices will be affected from COVID-19, but last I saw this spring, prices at Pop Century had gone up significantly. I assume that’s due to the Skyliner.
One thing I appreciate about moderates over value is that moderates generally have more actual themeing, as opposed to just Disney decorations. The value resorts tend to have “louder” decor (brighter, and in your face). However, that said, that’s what many families WANT when they go to a Disney hotel. It’s easy to get your kids excited if you tell them something like, “Hey, we’re staying in a Lion King room!”
For that reason, All-Star Movies actually moves ahead of the other All-Stars, and even Pop Century in my book. I get that the Mighty Ducks is no longer relevant. I don’t think Love Bug is, either. However, we have always paid to stay at Toy Story. It’s fun walking through the door to Andy’s room and seeing the enormous Buzz, Woody, and Bo Peep statues! My kids love Toy Story, so that’s a huge perk. They also love Mickey, and so the Fantasia pool is fun for them, too. Another perk to remember from All-Star Movies is stuff like the secret menu and also the crazy shakes (which I think you can only get at All-Star Movies at Beach Club). Also, it’s a short walk over to Music if you prefer the options there.
We have never stayed at Art of Animation, but I assume my kids would be thrilled for the movie character rooms there, too. It sounds like they also have better food than Pop. We have not eaten at Pop, but we’ve heard they have the most disappointing food on property. It sounds like you might disagree with that though.
I don’t think Pop just is as exciting for families with children, though. I don’t even know if my kids would recognize a juke box or cassette decor. I don’t think they’d get excited about bowling pins. The Skyliner probably keeps Pop near the top in terms of value resorts, but the Skyliner seems to be its only redeeming feature, especially if its price jumps to match that of Art of Animation. I haven’t stayed at the Little Mermaid rooms at AoA but I imagine they will get more love as the prices of Pop increase.
AoA Mermaid rooms are adorable- but once you walk the marathon to get to them, you’re too pooped to notice them! My family all agreed we’d never stay there again unless we needed the extra beds of a suite.
My wife and I along with our daughter at different ages have stayed at All Star Music 3 times over the years. We find it to be excellent . The only downfall is the long walk from basic rooms to the front. Otherwise the rooms have been great the pools are the best of any of he All Stars . Have always found the food at the food court acceptable . They even have room service fur pizza witch was nice on the first day. For the amount of time actually spent in the room we feel it’s great.
I actually stayed with my husband in value resorts BEFORE we had kids because we would barely be in the room. Now that we have small kids we like to stay in some moderate or deluxe because we aren’t at the parks as late and therefore spend more time at the actual hotel. When the girls are older and we are closing down the parks then we will just do Value. And THEN when we retire and it’s just the two of us again, back to deluxe!