Disney’s All Star Music Resort Review
Disney’s All Star Music Resort is a value hotel in Walt Disney World that is one of three All Star hotels, along with Sports and Movies. This review features room photos, observations about the hotel, and who might prefer staying here during their Walt Disney World vacation. Music generally seems to us like the least popular of these (based upon our highly unscientific observations), and is also quieter as it generally sees fewer groups (this doesn’t mean it sees no groups).
The All Star Resorts are typically the cheapest way to stay on-property at Walt Disney World, which many guests like because it allows them to take advantage of on-property perks. As you will read in this review, this comes with some trade-offs, but we are generally in favor of All Star Music, so long as you have reasonable expectations for it and are comfortable with what you’re getting–or aren’t getting.
Whether the All Star Resorts are right for you comes down to your goal and expectations. If you’re taking a commando-style, “the room is only for sleeping” trip during which you want to be in the parks as much as possible, the All Star Resorts are great because they’re often less than $100 night. Essentially, the Value Resorts are all standard rooms that cater to parties looking to experience Walt Disney World on a tight budget while still enjoying the full on-site experience, including benefits like Disney’s Magical Express, Extra Magic Hours, and “free” Disney transportation.
The All Star Resorts are each also good for those with kids who will be intrigued by the concept of the resort (music, movies, or sports) and will like the larger than life icons. As is the case with all Walt Disney World on-site hotels, All Star Music is fully integrated in the MyMagic+ system, which means that guests receive MagicBands and can make FastPass+ reservations. Learn more about this in our MyMagic+ FAQ.
By contrast, 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. Likewise, if you want to save money and will not utilize those perks mentioned above (especially true if you’ll be renting a car), you will likely save more money in accommodations of similar quality off-site. This is true for all of the Value Resorts. For more on what might be right for you, check out our comprehensive On-Site v. Off-Site Hotels at Walt Disney World article.
If you’ve read our Disney’s All Star Movies Resort Review or Disney’s All Star Sports Resort Review, this review doesn’t really bring much new to the table, besides showing some minor differences. Like I mentioned in that review, the Value Resorts are incredibly divisive in the Disney fan community. Some people think they are tacky and cheap, offering worse accommodations than comparably-priced off-site hotels, while other people think they offer a cheap alternative to Moderate and Deluxe Resorts that allow Guests to take full advantage of on-property benefits.
Although the Value Resorts are far from our favorite resorts, we come down on the side of liking the Value Resorts for what they are. We frequently stay at them on short trips when the parks are our main priority and we want the perks of being on-site. We also think they’re fairly fun in terms of their style, especially for kids.
With all of that said, let’s take a look at All Star Music…
In terms of the grounds themselves, Disney’s All Star Music Resort is my favorite of the All Star Resorts. For one, I really like the main Guitar Pool, with this Three Caballeros centerpiece.
With that said, it doesn’t compare to Disney’s Art of Animation Resort, which we consider to be the #1 Value Resort at Walt Disney World. Check out our full Walt Disney World Value Resort Rankings for more details on that.
Beyond this Three Caballeros thing in the Guitar Pool, I like the layout of All Star Music, some of its icons, and the background music (which is unsurprisingly more prominent at a music resort than the other Value Resorts). I really love walking around All Star Music late at night or early in the morning when no one else is around. It feels more peaceful and relaxed than the other All Stars. This may seem like a little thing, but the Value Resorts are so comparable to one another that it takes “the little things” to separate them in terms of quality.
As far as other amenities go, there’s the Intermission Food Court, which has a variety of stations for different types of food (plus the ever-popular RapidFill refillable mugs), a small playground, a game room, and shopping. So basically, it’s exactly like the other All Star Resorts in this regard. Intermission Food Court was overhauled a couple of years ago and now offers more variety, better quality, and nicer seating. It’s still not the paramount of Walt Disney World dining, but it’s better than it once was.
Walt Disney World transportation is always hit or miss, and this is especially true at the All Star Resorts, which share buses with one another and usually have high demand. All Star Music is the second bus stop (after All Star Sports and before All Star Movies), so usually buses won’t skip it, but they sometimes will if they fill up at All Star Sports. Many times they are standing room only when they arrive at All Star Music; this occurs mostly during busy hours.
Here’s a view of the room from the far side. As you can see, it’s very…basic. It has some Disney flourishes, but let’s not kid ourselves, this room is about on par with a mid-tier roadside motel. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. If you want to stay on-site for minimal cost, or don’t plan on being in your room much, it gets the job done.
When we are on a quick weekend trip that is park-centric, this is absolutely all we need. However, I would not recommend it for a weeklong Walt Disney World honeymoon where you…uh…might want to enjoy the room a bit more.
A look at the TV and table. The All Star rooms were refurbished fairly recently, so now they have in-room mini-fridges and LCD televisions.
The bedding also received an upgrade during the last refurbishment. It’s still fairly standard, but the shift from a very busy comforter to the textured white is a nice change.
A look at the bathroom area. Fairly standard Value Resort setup here with the toilet, tub and shower separated from the single sink.
The shower curtain reminds guests of where they are staying. Otherwise, a very utilitarian, but perfectly serviceable bathroom.
This little fountain and garden-ish area is fairly nice, and to my knowledge, atypical of the Value Resorts. If you sit on the right bench here and ignore the giant drum set in the distance, you almost feel like you’re at Port Orleans Riverside instead of an All Star Resort! 😉
Overall, Disney’s All Star Music Resort basically “is what it is.” The Value Resorts are divisive to begin with, and you will probably know right away by looking at the photos in this review–and not even reading a single word–whether All Star Music is down your alley or not. To be sure, the Value Resorts are not for everyone, but they do serve a role, and are especially popular with families and commando vacationers. With the opening of Art of Animation Resort and the superiority of Pop Century, the All Star Resorts are now mostly overlooked. However, that should not necessarily be the case. All Star Music is typically cheaper than both Pop Century and Art of Animation, and usually has better discounts, too. There’s a lot to be said for that, and if you’re looking to spend as little as possible but want to stay on-site at Walt Disney World, All Star Music is a good option for you.
Not sure which Walt Disney World hotel is right for you? Check out our Walt Disney World Hotel Reviews page, which offers quick-hit capsule reviews of the strengths and weaknesses of every Walt Disney World hotel, plus links to our reviews and photo pages for every hotel we have reviewed.
Looking for comprehensive Walt Disney World vacation tips? Make sure to read our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide.
Your Thoughts…
Do you love Disney’s All Star Music Resort or are the larger than life icons of the Value Resorts not your style? If you’re a fan, why do you like it? If you’re not a fan, why not? Planning on staying here? Share your thoughts in the comments!
Sorry, one more (important) question– I usually won’t stay at cheap m/hotels because when I walk into the room they smell like the clientele has been smoking in the rooms or had sneaked their pets into the rooms. In addition to the smoke smell, usually there is some weird chemical smell on top of it, like some kind of cleaning agent has been used to try to get rid of the smell. Any issues like this in these rooms? It’s been about two decades since I’ve stayed in a cheap room… but considering it for this trip because of the overall total cost.
Thank you for the helpful review. You mentioned these rooms are often under $100/night. I’m trying to book a stay in September and can’t find anything less than about $130/night. (Looking at 4 nights). Is there a trick? Do you book directly these rooms directly through Disney or through another site/service?
They’ve gone up. $120-140 is average now
we stayed at Pop Century for 2 nights then switched over to All Star Music for 3 nights during a recent Run Disney weekend. It’s been 22 years since I stayed at the All Star Music and I had never stayed at Pop Century. We are DVC owners and have stayed mainly at the various villas and Riverside (my favorite moderate). I actually liked the All Star Music resort better than Pop Century. The room was better at Pop Century having been refurbished recently, but when swimming at the computer pool at Pop Century, it felt like a cement compound of sorts. If it wasn’t for the giant Roger Rabbit, it would not have felt very warm or “Disney Like”. The All Star Music did not have a refurbished room but it was still comfortable and roomy for two adults on the go at WDW. I noticed while swimming at the Piano Pool that when looking toward the fountain and lobby, that the landscaping was beautiful and it did remind me of Riverside. The resort has a straight forward layout and none of the buildings are far from transportation or the lobby. The buses ran more frequently than they do for the Polynesian or Old Key west and we had no problem. Overall, this is a nice resort and I will stay there again.
My boyfriend and I stayed at All-Star Music for 11 days at the beginning of August. We loved it and had no problems whatsoever. We’re both in our 20s and we were definitely on a budget, so All-Star was the best option for us – we compromised on the hotel to save our money for food and souvenirs. We only had to share buses with the other All-Stars a couple times, and that was mainly very late at night coming back from MK after the park was closed. We were barely in the room, so the quality of the amenities didn’t really matter to us. We also were given the option to bypass Mouse Keeping, which we accepted, and we were given $100 Disney gift card in exchange! Clearly we are very bare-minimum travelers, and we’ve never stayed at the deluxe resorts, so I really don’t have anything to compare this to. But if you’re looking to save money and don’t care too much about all the frills, All-Star is good for you!
We absolutely love AS Movies and AS Music. 🙂 The busses were nothing but reliable for us and we ended up only sharing for park closings. The busses ran continuously that way though so it worked out nicely.
We are staying here in April for a quick weekend trip for Flower and Garden. Don’t plan to spend too much time in the resort. This will be a park focused trip. I prefer Deluxe resorts for long trips that are slower and more relaxed. Eyeing the Poly for Christmas this year. Thank you for your helpful reviews. I use your blog frequently before trips to help me plan. Thanks for all the work you do.
This is THE most helpful blog I’ve encountered in planning Disney trips! Fabulous reading and photos 🙂
Does anyone know specifically which, if any, buildings at All-Star Music have connecting rooms?
Planning my second trip, and for our first I had excellent luck using the Touring Plans room finder tool to request specific connecting rooms (at POFQ). I know they’re never promised, but it doesn’t hurt to try 🙂
all-star music and sports had connecting rooms when I stayed there last time. It was 7 years ago so I’m not entirely sure if that changed
We stayed there last week and we had a connecting room!
No one has mentioned this: do the family suites at ASM have a refrigerator (if so, dorm size or normal), a cooktop, cookware, silverware, plates, etc.? IMHO the advantage of the suite (as opposed to two adjacent rooms) is having the kitchenette for making minimalist continental breakfasts, packing up sandwiches, drinks and snacks to munch on in the parks, and, for grownups, an adult beverage late in the evening so granny doesn’t have to go bar hopping.
The buses from Hollywood Studios to All Star Music are few and far between. Be prepared to wait and wait and wait! Very subpar, considering we watch bus after bus for the other parks come and go. Total waste of time waiting. I expect more from Disney….
I typically do Pop Century if I am staying at a value resort. On a recent trip I spent 2 nights at all star sports, and that might be my new go to value resort. The reason? Disney transportation. I noticed significantly less people on wheel chairs and scooters than Pop Century. The all star resorts are also much smaller, so the lines at the end of the night were much shorter as well. Both if these facts add to much less stress due to much more efficient transportation than Pop Century. I think Pop Century is a nicer resort but I might choose all star for the intangibles
Because the ASMu is snuggled between the other AS resorts, you can catch any of the AS buses if you don’t mind a bit more walking. Likewise for the food courts and pools.
We stayed at All Star Music last week and loved it. We had a family suite with 5 of us (kids 12,9, 6) and it was great to have our own space. The sleeping beds were fine for all of them, the kitchenette was handy, and I really liked having the 2 bathrooms and 2 closets. I was very glad we were assigned to Calypso because it was so convenient to the pool and Melody Hall to fill our mugs. We know before booking that the food court wasn’t open- this was an inconvenience, but the walk to Sports or Movies wasn’t too bad. Not very noisy, but we went at a “slow” time of year. Overall, with kids, I was very pleased with ASM and would definitely stay here again.
My family is going at the end of Aug 2017 and staying in the family suite at the all star music. What kind of coffee maker is in the kitchenette?
Hi Kari, we are a family of 3 adults and 2 children, 7 and 9 years. We are from South Africa and know little. We are thinking of staying in the music resort for 2 weeks. Will this include all the park tickets if we book at the hotel? If we get a family suite, would we need to get a dining package, or could we prepare our own foods?
Our high school band had their trip to Disney World last November and we stayed at All-Star Music. I loved it! Since I have never stayed at any of the resorts, my husband and I stayed “off campus” when we went in ’95, I was totally amazed at what was offered and would not hesitate to stay there again. The only drawback was that we were to have the wristbands issued to us but they were not loading correctly so we had the cards issued to us instead. Very minor detail in my book. Our room was always clean when we came back at night and it was very quiet. The staff was also very friendly.
I love the Boardwalk for its atmosphere and easy access to the 2 parks and great food!
You pretty much typed out my review of ASMu. We stayed there many times on our earlier trips to the World. It is most certainly the most relaxing of the All Stars. And for what it’s worth we very rarely shared a bus with other resorts. As for a comparison of the suites to AoA (I noticed your comment above), I much prefer ASMu suites to AoA’s. Sure, AoA has the theme, plus it’s new and has nice furniture and fixtures but ASMu are larger. It doesn’t have the same sleep set up, though. Instead of two double pull outs in the main sleeping area, it has one double sleeper sofa, a chair sleeper, and a small ottoman sleeper (only suitable for a child IMO). So this could be a pro or con depending on your party and the sleeping arrangements you need. It has two full bathrooms (not just a shower stall but tubs with showers) with the vanities outside in a separate space (like all other AS resorts). This essentially gives you four private spaces to change and get ready – two bathrooms plus two vanity spaces with the privacy curtains. There are also two closets included in the two vanity spaces which greatly increase the storage and clothes hanging area. As well, the kitchenette is much larger with more counter and storage space. It’s tucked in a corner by the master bedroom and is out of the way of the main living area. The only con that I personally have with the room is both bathrooms are accessed from the main living area. So you don’t have an entrance from inside the master bedroom. Not a huge issue as it’s literally steps from the bedroom door but for those who like to have a private bath off the master it might be an issue. You also lose the kitchen table at ASMu. This was never an issue for us. The small table with two chairs was fine for the kids and the rest of us ate on our beds or standing up to the counter in the kitchenette. Unless someone has small children that are bent on the theme of AoA I would recommend ASMu suites anyday!
I stayed here once several years ago before I got married and had kids. I remember enjoying that stay but don’t remember much about the details of the resort. Our family will have outgrown family suites by our next trip so we’ll be getting two value rooms. I love your photos of this resort. When it comes to Disney I’m pretty easy to please but from the photos this looks like a resort I’d actually like to spend time in.
I remember when the Disney website used to do a better job with the hotel webpages. There used to be many more and much better resort photos and each page played music that set the tone for what each resort theme was like. I miss it and don’t know why Disney made the switch. I love looking at your resort photos. I may not get the music anymore but I feel like your photos capture the experience of the resorts in a way that Disney’s current photos do not.
Thanks for the kind words about the photos. I think Disney’s photos are on the upswing in the last couple of years–at least in some areas. If you like these photos, you do too! 😉
We tried the all star movie resort for a quick get away last year. We were put in a handicap accessible room, which we did not need, but was all that was available that has a king bed. The room needed remodeled badly. The bathroom had mildew and had areas that “mouse service” had not cleaned in sometime. We found mildew on the paper tag on the toilet and the wood frame of the door was expanding. There was also what looked like blood on the door frame. We took pictures to the reservation desk on check out but the manager was too busy to look at them. I was not happy with the way the situation was handled. The shower did not drain properly or there would not have been a mildew problem. I am glad to see they have renovated. We have been to Disney 6 times. All visits on site.
I stayed at the All Star Movies and Music both and while they served my purpose as needing a cheap place to stay for a few nights, I enjoyed my stays at Pop Century and Art of Animation much more. My biggest complaint about the All Star Resorts, they tend to fill up with large groups, Pop Warner Football, Cheerleaders, etc…. so at 11pm at night after a long day at the parks, last thing I want to hear are kids running up and down the hall screaming. I have not had that issue at the other resorts.
I haven’t stayed at the All-Star resorts yet, but the advantages in counter service and transportation at Pop Century seem like a no-brainer for me when I can’t splurge.
Pop Century is typically more expensive than the All Stars, so if you were on a SUPER tight budget, you might not want to even “splurge” for that.
For us, Pop Century (and even Art of Animation) are well worth the extra money.
I have stayed at All Star Music twice with a big family group of 10 people. Both times we stayed in two family suites. I thought this resort was perfect for a big family stay like that. With two vanities and two showers, all separated, getting ready in the morning was easy. We only used the cafeteria for breakfast and to fill our mugs at night. We spent little time at the resort, but it met all of our needs. The pool is pretty large. The transportation was reliable. And even the pull out beds were comfortable. All in all, a great stay for the price!
Have you seen the family suites at Art of Animation? Any thoughts on those as compared to the All Star Music suites?
I’ll let you know after our stay in a Nemo family suite at the end of August!