Disclosure: I attended an expenses paid media trip with Walt Disney World. All opinions are my own.
When you stay on Disney property, you have so many choices on where to rest your head at night. That’s one thing I love about Disney—there is something for everyone. There is also something for every price range, which makes my heart happy because as if having a child wasn’t expensive enough, now I have to take her to Disney? HA! I’m getting off track. I had the privilege of touring Disney’s Art of Animation resort a few weeks ago on a press trip, and I kept saying to myself over and over “Emma Kate (my two year old) would LOVE this!” That being said, I wanted to give you five reasons to stay at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort with your family on your next vacation.
1.) Price: Art of Animation is considered a value resort by Disney categories, but it is what is called a “value plus” resort as it seems a bit of a step up from the other values in several ways (some which are bullet points in this post!) The grounds are spacious and beautiful with great Disney detail I have come to know and love, there are interior hallways, a great gift shop, food court, and more.
You can stay in a “family suite” (I know, the word suite makes me think of thousands of dollars a night!) for a decent price for a larger family. You still get all the perks of staying onsite like access to the Disney bus system, free magic bands, and access to daily extra magic hours, but for a fraction of the cost of some of the deluxe resorts.
2.) Space options: Family suites were designed with larger families in mind that can’t fit in a regular value resort room (which sleeps 4). These babies sleep six, and there are three themes: Cars, Finding Nemo, and the Lion King. I’m fairly certain my two year old would flip out over any of these themes! There is a bedroom/bath combo with a queen bed, as well as a living room with fold out sofa bed, a table that turns into a bed, a kitchenette, and a second bathroom (HUGE plus!)
3.) Great food court: If I’m being honest, the food courts at the other value resorts don’t thrill me. However the food court at Art of Animation (called Landscape of Flavors), has taken things up a notch with delicious options like gelato, create your own pasta bowl, and many others. Not to mention it’s really beautiful inside!
4.) Great pools: At value resorts, pools are pretty basic, but not here! Not only are there multiple ones to choose from, but the Finding Nemo pool has a splash pad area, and you can even hear music underwater! Be sure to stop by the bar, adorably named the drop off, for your favorite adult beverage to sip poolside, or grab a first come first serve cabana at the Cozy Cone Cars themed pool.
5.) Life Size characters: Every little kid (ok and big kid, too) loves life sized Disney characters. Thankfully, there is no shortage of them at Art of Animation! Each themed area is scattered with your favorites like Mufasa, Tow Mater, and Prince Eric. (PS: there are standard sized resort rooms in the Little Mermaid section if you don’t want to stay in a family suite).
No matter your reason for staying, there is a lot to do and see at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort. Be sure to take a look at the options there on your next Disney vacation!
QOTD: Have you stayed at Art of Animation? What is your favorite Disney resort?
I have always been curious about this resort and it looks awesome. However, after staying at a Deluxe resort (Wilderness Lodge) its hard to jump down to a value. When choosing a hotel for our last Disney trip (March), I did research the value options. I just felt they were “motel” like and if I was going to Disney I wanted “more”. I looked in to Art of Animation but felt like for not much more money I could gonthe moderate resort instead and that’s what we ended up doing. We stayed at Port Orleans Riverside and it was AMAZING. I absolutely loved it! I really liked the moderate option since we still got a table service restaurant along with the quick service food court. That being said I am curious how everyone else has felt about the value resorts. I agree with you the AOA is different then the rest but I’m still nervous to make that jump. It probably doesn’t help that I stayed at a deluxe resort first lol. I wish we could go to Disney more than we do but it is expensive (and we are only a family of 3)! Our next trip is planned for 2020 after Star Wars Land and Toy Story Land have been open. How can I wait that long?????
Families that have 4 kids unfortunately cannot stay at the moderate resort b/c they only sleep 4 or 5 so unless they got two side by side rooms, the family suites are their only option (and a great one!) I agree, of course I would much rather stay in a deluxe resort than a value, but unfortunately a lot of people cannot afford wilderness lodge, so for the money, I think AoA is the very best value resort. I think it’s better than most of the moderates (Port orleans is the exception and my favorite moderate). Especially if you have little kids, the theming in the rooms and around the resort is like nothing else you will find at Disney. I can’t wait to show my two year old, she will be in heaven! I hate that the deluxe resorts don’t look as “disney” as a place like AoA. If you have never been I suggest at least stopping in and walking around the grounds, it’s really a fun place! 🙂
I totally want to go and see AoA, because I am such a big Disney fan and had wanted so badly to be a Disney Animator back in high school (I should have pursued it (since I can draw anything Disney :)…). I need to go check it out next time I am there. I do agree that the Deluxe resorts love some of that “Disney”ness that the Values have. All the value resorts seem awesome in their theming for children (and those of us adults that are huge into Disney, like me, lol), and the pools…..WOW!). This last visit I let my 11 yr old son decide and he was all about the pools that had slides, lol, hence the reason Riverside was choosen…of course that week it was FREEZING at Disney during spring break, but he did get to at least swim the last day, haha.
oh no! Glad he got to swim one day!
This looks like such a wonderful resort!! I have heard great things about the Disney Art Animation Resort.
It’s really fun!
Great review! We are going in September to take my 3-year-old to Disney for her first time! I can’t wait. We are staying at one of the ones that have the monorail going straight to the Magic Kingdom. I know it is a little more, but due to my mother’s health, we wanted to have the easiest/fastest transportation available for her. I really like the AoA family suites and pool options! This resort would be a great option for me to go with my sister and niece! Thanks for sharing.
You will love staying on the monorail, but you are right it is pricey!
I’ve never stayed at AoA but I have eaten in the food court! It looks like such a fun place, especially for the kiddos!
agreed!
I’ve been thinking of taking my daughter to Disney sometime in the near future, so I appreciate the tip. This place looks awesome!
Anytime!
This couldn’t have come at a more perfect time. We’re in the midst of planning our Disney occasion. Thanks for sharing!
So fun!
We’ve been to Disney several times. We have another trip in the planning stages. Hopefully we make it there before summer ends, or maybe early in the fall. Thanks for letting me know about the Art of Animation. I will include that in our itinerary.
No problem!
The only value I’ve stayed at is the Pop and that was about 10 years ago — totally fine for an 18 year old kid never in the room! As I’ve aged I appreciate a nice room with great amenities. We are staying at Port Orleans Riverside in November and I’m looking forward to it, but I have wanted to try out Art of Animation since it was being built!
You will love Port Orleans Riverside!
My husband and I go to WDW every fall, and we almost always stay at Pop Century. Even though it is a value resort, we love the fact that there is a beautiful lake to run around. The rooms do have a “motel” feel, but it’s perfect for resting/sleeping at the end of a fun filled day. We always make reservations for our favorite restaurants, so the generic food court isn’t a problem either. We’ve stayed at moderate resorts before, but Pop is our favorite…more money to spend on souvenirs, food, and fun!
Have you seen the renovated rooms? They look nice!
Yes! 🙂
This looks so fun, I will keep it in mind for a future trip 🙂