For many Disney World guests, the happiest place on earth is more than just a theme park — it’s home.
Figuring out where to stay on your Disney trip can be both exciting and exhausting, and sometimes your trip can be a bit… different than you were expecting. With so many resort hotel options on Disney World property, we wanted to know if there were any resorts that were just not up to par — so we asked our readers!
After the end of a long park day, the moment your head hits that hotel pillow can feel like the most exciting thing to happen to you in the past 24 hours. But, Disney Resort hotels come in all shapes, sizes, and costs, so we took to our Facebook page to ask:
What Walt Disney World Hotel do you regret staying in?
When it comes to Disney World hotels, most guests have an opinion. There are so many benefits to staying on property, but no two hotels are the same in terms of benefits, amenities, and of course, theming. Value resorts offer lower priced rooms, but they’re also smaller and don’t necessarily feel like a luxurious hotel experience. In reference to one popular value resort, one of our readers said, “Art of Animation, The Little Mermaid [rooms]. Beds are too small.”
On the flip side, deluxe Disney Resort Hotels feature the most amenities and benefits, all with that elegant and fancy hotel vibe — with the fancy hotel cost, too. In fact, for many Disney fans, staying at a deluxe resort can be a “bucket list” experience. One AllEars reader didn’t necessarily feel that way about their trip, though, and responded, “Grand Floridian – not worth the money at all.” Grand Floridian is known for being the fanciest hotel in Disney World, so this is truly a hot take!
Many guests sing the praises of Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge due to its incredible African theming — not to mention those unbeatable Savanna views. But, Animal Kingdom Lodge only offers bus transportation to and from the parks, which can mean long wait times even before you get to your favorite attractions. That was enough for one reader to cross this resort off their list for good. They stated, “Animal Kingdom. Too far away from parks. It was beautiful but it didn’t feel Disney enough for us. Glad we did it off our bucket list but never again.”
Speaking of Disney bus transportation, some resort hotels have an internal bus loop as well, meaning multiple stops within one hotel. Disney’s Old Key West Resort is one example, and that caused another reader to chime in, “[Old Key West.] We were out in the middle of nowhere and had to walk half a mile down the main road just to refill our drinks.” Being in a large, spread out resort can be inconvenient, especially if you’re relying on Disney transportation throughout your trip.
But, at the end of the day, there are some guests who don’t have any regrets when it comes to Disney Resort Hotels. One replied, “None of them! They‘ve all been great for different reasons! And, I mean, you’re in Disney so it’s all good!!!” while another stated, “None…I’ve loved them all, just because I get to be there!” We like that attitude.
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Do you have any Disney World hotel regrets? Let us know in the comments!
We have just come come Disney world ,we stayed all star music.The food is constantly, the pool is not much fun there is nothing for kids to do.
The bus service is very slow to how it was when we last visited.
I do not spend much time in my room. I would rather save the money and eat at nicer restaurants! My room is for sleeping, showering and basically, that is it.
I agree. I just need a place to shower and sleep.
Is the Art of Animation hotel worth staying there
For our family of 6, YES, we love AoA family suites. We prefer Lion King section for closeness to main building. Last time we stayed there, Pre Covid, it was in the $425 per nite range, so not cheap, but it provides enough room for our more grown up family. If you are a small party of 3 or less, I’d probably recommend it’s sister resort across the lake, Pop Century. We like the food court there just a bit better and I have had only 2- personal reviews of AoA’s standard rooms and neither review was great. We’ve not experienced either resort since the SkyLiner so can’t attest to how well the bus service works now.
We were a party of 3 adults, 2 children(6,9)
And stayed at AOA Cars Suite for 6 nights and Port Orleans Riverside. AOA had a separate bedroom/ bathroom. This resort offered more room than a standard. At POR we had a 5th sleeper with 2 beds and a pull down small bed. The 9 yr old loved it! . The kids loved the big blue pool at AOA and the slide at POR. We used the sky ride and it was awesome. We went to all 4 parks and Disney Springs. Loved it!!
Most of the moderates have too many bus stops for my liking. POFQ is my favorite moderate. One bus stop and the resort is small. AK Lodge I agree is beautiful, but I wish it would have a boat or something “special” to get to AK Park at least.
We stayed at Art of Animation on our first trip. My family absolutely loved it. The bus lines can be a bit confusing at times when there are a lot of people there but overall a wonderful hotel.
Disneyland is the Happiest Place on Earth