Photos & Video: New Rooms at All Stars
All Star Movies Resort has reimagined room designs that are coming soon to the Sports & Music hotels as part of Walt Disney World’s comprehensive overhauls. In this review, we’ll cover everything from our experience staying in these new rooms, and whether you might want to book here for your next WDW vacation. (Updated March 22, 2021.)
This is one of the projects we’ve been tracking in Hotel Refurbishments & Renovations at Walt Disney World in 2021 & 2022. Currently, work is entirely finished at All Star Movies, in progress at All Star Music, and has yet to begin at All Star Sports. It’s unclear how far along All Star Music is with the overhaul, since that resort is presently closed. The room reimagining could be entirely finished or stalled.
The other good news is that All Star Movies has reopened as of March 22, 2021 after being closed for just over a year! We haven’t done a stay at All Star Movies yet in 2021, but you can check out our Hotel Health Safety Protocol & Changes at Walt Disney World for a general idea of what’s different. Basically, lots of warning signs, plexiglass barriers, and “please wait here” markers for physical distancing. Of course, there’s also these new rooms, but this project was completed shortly before Walt Disney World’s closure last year, so they’re not really new-new…
With all the rooms at All Star Movies and half of the rooms at Disney’s All Star Music Resort now finished, we’d highly recommend those resorts over All Star Sports. The difference between a refurbished and non-refurbished room is so stark that we’d recommend avoiding All Star Sports at this point.
Well, our actual Value Resort recommendation would be Pop Century, but if room rates are more attractive at the All Stars, there’s absolutely no reason not to book Movies at this point…
I was excited to get back to All Star Movies to stay in one of these new rooms. In part for the room itself, but we had already experienced pretty close to the same thing at Pop Century. More so because the All Stars make me nostalgic, evoking old memories of our past commando touring, long weekend visits.
The last time we had stayed at All Star Movies was several years ago, when we attended the “Destination D: Walt Disney World 40th” event only a couple months after launching this blog. Tickets for that were a major splurge for us, so we stayed at the cheapest on-site hotel we could find: All Star Movies. I think we were at the resort for a total of about 5-6 hours per night.
We like nice hotels, but we’re pretty far from “luxury or die” hotel snobs. All you have to do is survey a few of the sketchy places we’ve stayed in Anaheim to know that isn’t the case. We find hotels of all tiers really fascinating, and it’s interesting to see how budget-friendly accommodations try (or don’t) to resonate with guests.
Another thing we enjoy about All Star Movies is World Premiere Food Court, which is surprisingly solid and offers great shakes and dinner specials. Obviously, this is not the epicenter of fine dining at Walt Disney World nor does it hold a candle to the undisputed champion of Value Resort food courts, Landscape of Flavors. However, it does have some tasty, comfort food meals at relatively reasonable prices.
The All Star Resorts do this pretty well for hotels of their tier via the oversized decor, pools, and landscaping. Some Walt Disney World fans are quick to criticize these are overpriced and sketchy motels–as someone with a lot of experience staying at actual sketchy motels, I’ll can say with some authority that these people have no clue what they’re talking about.
Like them or not, the All Star Resorts offer a slate of amenities far superior to what the average motel offers in a setting that’s also dramatically better. People can quibble over the ‘thematic’ quality of those oversized icons, but even that appeals to some families.
The most legitimate criticism of the All Stars has long been the guest rooms, which are small, dingy, and have little redeeming qualities or character. Thankfully, with this All Star Movies room overhaul, that’s finally being addressed, too…
Suffice to say, the new rooms are an unequivocal upgrade from the old rooms at All Star Movies. Thanks to our experience in this new room, All Star Movies will once again be in our regular Walt Disney World hotel rotation, particularly during long weekend ‘rope drop until park close’ trips or when deals are lacking elsewhere.
Before we get going with our thoughts on this experience, here’s a video tour of the new room we stayed in at All Star Movies to provide some context for what we’re describing:
The biggest change is a new configuration with a regular bed flanked by nightstands and Murphy bed that doubles as a table. Both of these beds are queen-sized, versus the double beds previously in these rooms.
There’s a lighter color scheme, dominated by white with hints of red, orange, and lime. There’s Mickey & friends art above the queen bed, plus Huey, Dewey, and Louie Duck art above the Murphy bed.
There’s also a ton more storage space, including a dresser under the television, room for luggage under the bed, and a variety of random cubbies around the room. There are also a boat-load of USB-charging ports and outlets around the room, which is a huge plus.
In the corner, there’s a kiosk with drawers, a mini-fridge, and a coffee maker. This is debuted with the new rooms at Pop Century as a Walt Disney World Value Resort first, and thankfully continues at All Star Movies.
In the bathroom, you have a vessel sink, illuminated bathroom mirror, and make-up mirror.
There’s also an actual sliding door separating the bathroom area from the main room (instead of a thin curtain), glass door in the shower, and rainfall shower fixture in addition to the standard one.
All of these things, to us, are upgrades to the room with zero downside. Each individually might be a minor thing, but collectively, they make for a room that is significantly “plussed” over the Value Resort defaults.
One of the biggest complaints that we’ve heard about the rooms is that they are sterile and thematically lacking. We can understand the sterile complaint, as a few more splashes of color (cough*bed runner*cough) would’ve done wonders.
However, these All Star Movies rooms being less themed than their predecessors is not really a valid critique. These have always been low on theme. In looking through my old photos of these rooms, the only thing that could arguably pass for “theme” are framed Mighty Ducks movie posters, film strip wallpaper border, and bed runners with stars on them. That’s it.
Setting aside how laughably dated two of those things are, the old rooms felt dingy and claustrophobic. They were “All Star” in about the same sense that a 1987 Chevrolet Celebrity is “Hollywood.” I get that Walt Disney World fan opinions about literally everything are colored by nostalgia, but there’s no good reason to be sentimental about the old rooms. They are not good.
Now, you have the character art, chairs with various symbols from the All Stars, and vaguely star-looking curtains on the window. It’d be nice if there were a bit more, but at least the rooms are nicer now.
The biggest valid criticism, I think, is the aforementioned lack of color. Even having one red or some other colored wall would go a long way in giving the room warmth and a bit of flavor. As it stands, the complaints about this room looking clinical, sterile, or “hospital-like” have a degree of validity.
If I had to choose this or the old look, I’d pick this in an instant. I feel Value Resort rooms have always been too dark and drab, and this brightens them up. Perhaps it was an over-correction to the old style, but I’ll take a hotel room that looks crisp and clean over one that’s dark and drab any day. Still, I can appreciate the desire for something of a happy medium.
Another complaint is that the removal of carpet and addition of laminate flooring makes the room louder. This has yet to be an issue for us with any of the new rooms (here or at Pop Century), but perhaps we’ve been lucky.
If you end up on a lower floor with a herd of cheerleaders, football players, or bison above you, perhaps you won’t be as forgiving of this change. Noise aside, we prefer the new floors. They are easier to clean and keep clean; in a budget-rate motel, we’re down with as little bodily fluid-retaining surfaces as possible.
The space that the pull-down Murphy Bed opened up for us was huge. It made the small room feel less claustrophobic, and that plus the brighter look of the room made it easier for us to spend time in the room without going stir-crazy. We think this change makes the new rooms at All Star Movies a significantly better option for couples and solo travelers.
For families, the layout with the Murphy bed not be ideal, especially since it means not having any table in the room when the kids are sleeping. That’s really the only downside for families that immediately jumps to my mind. There’s always concern that Murphy beds will be less comfortable, but we did not find that to be the case. I’m sure there are other changes that could be legitimate negatives for some parties, but I suspect that’ll largely be on a circumstantial basis.
Overall, we view the new rooms at All Star Movies as significant upgrades. This should be somewhat unsurprising given that these are essentially a clone of the Pop Century rooms, which we also really liked. While nothing that’s done here is going to revolutionize the hotel industry or earn accolades as the pinnacle of themed design, the new rooms at All Star Movies are a considerable improvement over their predecessors. In addition to visually looking better, they now feel more spacious, which is a huge victory given how small the Value Resort rooms can feel.
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Your Thoughts
What do you think of these new rooms at All Star Movies? Excited for the room redesign, or are you not a fan of the Murphy bed style? Do you agree or disagree with our take on the changes being appealing to couples or solo travelers? Any thoughts of your own to add? Have you stayed in one of the new rooms? Share any questions, tips, or additional thoughts you have in the comments!
I personally really like what they did. This is especially nice when just my wife and I stay. The table is nice and there is a lot more room now that an unused bed is not in the way. The All Star Music is my personal favorite All Star Resort and I am looking forwÁrd to staying there when they get refurbished. Great review Tom!
Love the new rooms. Just got back from staying at All Star Music. Will be staying at
All Star Music in November again, hoping rooms are remodeled by then, if not, next time
probably. Thanks for all your great posts! Really enjoy your site.
Tom – thanks for the review… our biggest complaint with the all star resorts was the quality of the bath towels and toilet paper. Did they make any upgrades in that area?
Quick question: I just called to see if I could be upgraded to a new room and they said I have to call back 10 days out. Just wondering if this sounds right?! I just didn’t want to miss my chance to get a new room.
Thank you for all the information!
It seems like I may be in the minority on this – but, I love the changes! My family stayed in an updated Love Bug room when we visited in October for MNSSHP – we actually didn’t know we were going to be in one of the new rooms and were pleasantly surprised upon checking in. We thought the upgrades were LEAPS AND BOUNDS better than the old room.
I LOVE the lightness and brightness of it – it made the room not feel so claustrophobic. We liked all the white with just small pops of Disney. We felt it made the room appear more relaxing and clean.
We actually really liked the murphy bed, which our two littles slept on with no issues. In the morning, we would just pop it up (we didn’t make the bed up or anything) and then use the table for breakfast before heading to the parks. By the time we returned to our room, mousekeeping had cleaned and made the murphy bed for us to pop back down again at bedtime.
We loved all the additional storage – which we felt was a huge issue in the old rooms, especially for families with small kids. The storage and counter space in the bathroom vanity was incredible! I would agree that the one negative was the added shower door. A curtain was much more conducive to bathing small kids.
We had no issues with noise in our room. Carpet being gone was wonderful. Let’s all agree – the carpet in the old rooms is disgusting. Sticky, dirty, stained, worn…disgusting. Not seeing that carpet was the best gift Disney has ever given me.
We have stayed in both the old room and new room now with two small kids, and I feel that there is NO COMPARISON. New rooms win HANDS DOWN. 1000 times improved. I would definitely stay in the new rooms again – the old rooms…never.
My son and I stayed in a renovated room late January/early February 2019. We liked the new room better than the old. We appreciated the brightness and found the wall décor above both beds provided enough “Disney” for us. Sometimes after a full day at the parks, you need somewhere quiet to decompress. I have never considered staying at Art of Animation because the rooms are too “busy” for us. We liked the new door between bedroom and bathroom, and found the dresser under the television provided us with enough space that we didn’t miss the table. Most of the time we didn’t even fold up the Murphy bed during the day. And there were lots of places to charge our devices. We also felt that the large bottles of shampoo, conditioner and shower gel were tidier and easier than dealing with all the little bottles.
My favorite hotel is definitely Pop Century (due to the bus system, and the larger food court), but All Star Movies was very comfortable for the two of us. While we had no difficulties with the buses, we found the food court was becoming repetitive for us, and the food was good (but not great).
I haven’t been to Disney in over 385 days–longest absence in 22 years! I really like the accessible rooms at the Disney resorts because they are truly wheelchair accessible. Has anyone seen the new revamped All Star accessible rooms? (Accessible rooms, not just ground floor). Any info would be great
The good for me after having visited: The bathroom renovations are amazing! I am a big fan of the additional outlets and USB ports!!
There’s a lot of downsides in my opinion: I know I’m probably in the minority on this again, the beds on the slat are rock hard now, which assures I’ll not book any of the renovated rooms for a long, long time. In addition, while the hard wood floors look nice, they’re not comfortable for walking around or lounging, even if they are easier to clean. They also have a strong smell for the first few months (or longer)–so beware if you have allergies or asthma. They are also louder, so if you have multiple people in your room and some get up during the night, you’re far more likely to hear them now versus when there was carpet. In general, there’s less noise deadening through the walls too, I think for the same reason. The Murphy bed option for space is a great feature-if it weren’t too hard to use as a bed. I also agree it’s too sterile looking and that they should use color comforters (that aren’t just like sheets) or AT LEAST a bed runner. These new fridges seem must less able to seal and don’t keep items cold-a major downside for those who find the fridge important (for keeping insulin cold or important food). We are only a couple that travel, but we like to have a second bed to spread out on to watch tv and we want a table-having to chose between those is miserable.
I have a trip booked for July in Pop Century but wow, I would totally stay here now! I had no idea they were renovating! Chose Pop because of the updates! Love the look 🙂
We were just there and were lucky enough to get an upgraded room. But not all rooms were upgraded. Any news on if the whole resort will be done or if they’ve stopped?
I really like the new rooms. My only complaint, which is not a complaint at all, is now the rooms don’t offer any individuality or uniqueness. NBD, but just an observation. Maybe they want them uniform so there aren’t any undesirables. I can see the other commenters concerns about it being harder to help bathe the littles. Idk how to get around that inconvenience.
Thanks for the review! I’ll now be considering “Movies” for our next trip.
Thanks for the review! I will consider this on for our next trip.
Any ideas what the family suites at music will look like after the remodel? Also wondering if any will be ready when we arrive for our trip in late Sept.
Thank you for the review and video. These look so much better ! I’ve stayed in these resorts for business travel and at times, just to give our “wallet” a break from the deluxe resorts when it’s a short trip of a day or two. It’s nothing new that they are noisy – always have been. But they look good and they definitely where in need of an update! The shower is a huge improvement and looks like it has a closet too. Not a huge fan of a Murphy bed but it looks good for the price. And you are right could use some color. A bed runner would make a difference !
We loved the redesigned rooms at Pop this summer. Family of 4- daughters 17 and 9. It does look very small when you first walk in but the organization is so efficient that it’s easy to keep everything out of the way. We had quite a bit of food but it into the fridge and the shelves above it with no problem. We eat our breakfasts on the run and brought lunches into the park to eat so we didn’t really need the dining table in the room and therefore didn’t miss it. My youngest and my wife used it once one night when my older daughter and I were out at the parks. That was it. I’m not sure, but for those with kids who still need help with showering, you might prefer a room with a standup shower rather than the bathtub. We had this and the door goes almost all the way down to the floor. I don’t guess this would work for youngers who definitely need the bathtub.
I’m not sure on the new rooms yet, would love more color, does look nice but does anyone know if you can still fit a cot in there ?
We always have one for our daughter who doesn’t like sleeping on the same bed as her brother, from what I see it doesn’t fit since they now have the two furniture pieces on the wall where we normally set her up.
I think it would be hard to fit a cot in the room with the Murphy bed down. Might be possible for two cots with the Murphy bed up. Put one under the table and one next to the table. But it depends on the size of your cots and how high they stand.
I stayed there for a long weekend trip last week and my only complain is the noise. I could literally hear the neighbor’s alarm go off. It woke me up before them! I could also hear conversations in the next room though they weren’t being particularly loud. I would likely not stay here again. It made me uncomfortable at the thought of my neighbors being able to hear conversations in my own room. I have never had such an issue at any other property. Also, I could see the lights coming from underneath the door into their room. I had to throw a blanket under the edge so that the light coming through wouldn’t illuminate the room! Very nice upgrades, but siginificant downgrade sound-wise.
The lack of a permanent table is a huge deal. When you have kids and bring groceries for meals a place to sit and eat without folding up the person laying on the bed resting is a plus. They should have consulted the families using these value hotels before making any remodels.
I have stayed in the new Pop rooms twice and would definitely stay in one of these rooms at All Star. However, my biggest complaint is the sliding glass door on the shower. The size of the opening and the raised tracks on the side of the tub make it uncomfortable and more challenging to bathe small kids (mine was 5 months and 1 year on our visits). With a curtain, you have access to the entire tub as a parent wrangling a slippery baby. The door kind of limits that. Not a deal breaker, but one of those things that I didn’t love dealing with at the end of a busy day when I just wanted to get bath time over with and bedtime started.
Jessica – I totally agree. Even showering my older children is a pain with the glass door. Trying to reach in and wash their hair around the glass door is irritating (not to mention I end up almost as wet as them!) Give me a curtain any day. Plus, I feel for the poor cleaners keeping those doors looking good
I hope the new beds are not as high as the ones at Coronado. You have to mountaineer to get up onto them! They could be lower and still have space for luggage. Also, do All Stars have a luggage rack? Coronado lacks one.
Yes, there is a folding luggage rack next to the refrigerator.