Are the value resorts worth it?

[verleniahall]

We love the values - we did two weeks at POP last year and it was great

 

[zobow02]

All comes down to how you plan to use your time at Disney.

Like what @Scar1199 said, if you are spending most of your time in the theme parks, Values are the way to go. When we stay at the Values of course we use the pool, and their food court (The value resorts food courts typical bigger than mods and deluxe) but 70% of our day we're normally in the parks. The rooms aren't HUGE but since you have young ones ya'll will fit in the rooms just fine. We stayed at POP for just one night last year and fit four in one room except all of us are pretty tall (my family height is between 5' 2''-6'3'') but we still managed to sleep well and fit in the room I think your kids would love the theming at any of the value resorts. Each building is different so it makes you want to stay there more often and pick a different section to stay in every time you stay there

 

[Shellyb84]

I can't really speak to all the values, but we love Pop! It's one of our favorites. I love the over the top theming and the new rooms are so cute. Really the only thing I miss when at Pop is a hot tub, and DD9 likes a pool slide but it's not a deal breaker. For our long summer trips we've been doing split stays to keep the cost down, and for next year I was considering POFQ (never stayed there) and AKL. Yesterday I was at home sick and spent more time than I would like to admit just watching Disney Youtube videos and I think I've decided that we'll just go with Pop for the first part of our stay. The pool at POFQ looks cute but it seems like it would be really hard to keep up with DD unless we're in there with her and the slide looks pretty small (she would probably say boring), so it really doesn't seem worth the extra cost for us. We usually only go to Disney Springs once in a trip so the boat doesn't hold a lot of value for us.

 

[Helvetica]

I think it all depends on you and your family. Values are good for me because I'm just there to sleep. With two small kids, you may want to spend more on a moderate or get a family suite at All-Star Music or Art of Animation. You can get two queens at Pop or the Toy Story section at All-Star Movies (more coming soon). I'd probably stay away from Carribean Beach since it's so huge.

The moderates have more amenities than a value and they're definitely nicer. The values don't have table service, the moderates have nicer rooms and nicer pools. When my sister and her husband took their 5-year-old daughter they stayed at Port Orleans -Riverside and they loved it.

If the amenities of a moderate would be a benefit to your family, then I'd consider a moderate. If you're not going to be at the resort a whole lot, then values are perfectly fine.

 

[dlavender]

I've stayed at Sports and Music in the past. They are fine for what they are, IF you can catch them at around $100/night maximum. More than that, and I would implore you to reach out for a mod and look for deals, or go offsite and really save some money. There are TA's out there that can save you some money, on mods its usually about 20% better than you would get through WDW at their best rate.

So it comes down to budget. If you could stay at POR for $180/night vs an All Star at $140, I would go POR every time if you could swing the difference.

 

[familyman123]

It's worth it to know that we're hoping to go in Dec of 2019 when they usually have free dining so we're hoping to make it when that goes on.
TIA

Most people expect Star Wars land to open sometime in December of 2019. So I personally would not count on free dining. I would guess there will be no promotions for December of 2019.

 

[Disneylover99]

One thing you should consider is location. The values are the farthest from the parks, so if you're going to go back to the room in the middle of the day for a nap, it can take longer. Moderates are a tad closer and deluxes even more convenient.

This is not necessarily true. The monorail resorts are obviously closer to the MK, but further away from the other parks in comparison to the values/moderates.

 

[Disneylover99]

Most people expect Star Wars land to open sometime in December of 2019. So I personally would not count on free dining. I would guess there will be no promotions for December of 2019.

Surprisingly, free dining is bookable as a bounceback for December 6-24, 2019 right now.

 

[LSUmiss]

I know this is such a broad question but are the value resorts worth it or should we spend more money for moderate?

There's going to be 4 of us on my next trip. 2 adults and 2 kids aged 5 and 2. So we will need 2 queen sized beds. It'd be nice to save the money with the value resorts but I just don't know the quality of them at all or if they even have 2 queen beds.

It's worth it to know that we're hoping to go in Dec of 2019 when they usually have free dining so we're hoping to make it when that goes on. Any help would be great. We're thinking of either of the Port Orleans resort vs any of the value resorts.

TIA

My opinion is that moderates aren’t worth it unless you want the nicer pool. We either save $ & do value or stay deluxe.

 

[familyman123]

Surprisingly, free dining is bookable as a bounceback for December 6-24, 2019 right now.

Huh. That surprises me. Thanks for pointing this out.

 

[my_ears]

I love Pop!!! I dont know if I was there at a good time or what but it was not busy at all. I love the computer pool, it was quiet. The queen beds are super comfy, I slept like a baby. I'm not a snob about hotels, honestly. I'm just beyond excited to be in Disney and staying on property. I know plenty of people who want to take their families and at the moment can't financially so I truly value the experience regardless of the resort.

 

[Disneylover99]

Huh. That surprises me. Thanks for pointing this out.

Yeah, it makes me think there is a decent chance it could be offered to the general public next spring.

 

[sunflowerfields]

We have always stayed at all star music. Really we are only in our room long enough to sleep and shower and then spend every moment we can in the parks! We have only stayed in the family suites and like that they are close to bus stop and food court. The values offer everything we need. Now if for some reason I ever get the chance to spend like a month or so at Disney, then I would try some other resorts for sure!

 

[ExpatDisneyLover]

In my mind there is not that much difference between values and moderates - but I often travel alone so room size isn't an issue for me. For some families an upgrade to a moderate is needed for more room. You could always start with a value resort and if you find it way too cramped or lacking go up a level for your next trip. In my mind deluxe resorts are in a whole different category. Moderates do have pool slides whereas values don't- so if that is important to you then mods may be a good choice.

 

[e mcduck]

i think what everyone says is correct. it depends on the way you visit disney. for me im an adult solo traveler who spends a lot of time at the resort and wants a lot of sit down restaurants, so values dont make sense for me. but if i had kids and wanted to spend most of my time in the parks id totally go value.

 

[Mome Rath]

I know this is such a broad question but are the value resorts worth it or should we spend more money for moderate?

There's going to be 4 of us on my next trip. 2 adults and 2 kids aged 5 and 2. So we will need 2 queen sized beds. It'd be nice to save the money with the value resorts but I just don't know the quality of them at all or if they even have 2 queen beds.

It's worth it to know that we're hoping to go in Dec of 2019 when they usually have free dining so we're hoping to make it when that goes on. Any help would be great. We're thinking of either of the Port Orleans resort vs any of the value resorts.

TIA

I've stayed at all levels of resort, and it all just depends on what you want from a resort. I love Pop and I love both Port hotels. Pop will offer you more "in your face" Disney themes, and a livelier experience, lots of choices in the food court. Port is more laid back (and FQ is the smallest hotel on property with short walks anywhere you want to go), the Ports also have the boat to Disney Springs. Port gives a little more room. Both have queen size beds. Pop has one of the best bus services, IMO. So, there are pro's to each.

 

[Miffy]

One thing I was unaware of before staying at ASMusic a few years ago was that the walls there are paper thin. I don't know if this is true of other Values or even the other All Stars. I heard everything--and I mean everything--that was going on the room next door, often from midnight until 3 or 4 a.m. And then around 6 a.m. the rolling suitcases and enthusiastic guests in the corridor right outside the door would start up. Two hours of sleep a night did not make for a happy WDW vacation for me, so I would never stay at a Value again.

And, btw, since someone always says that I must be used to the quiet of living in a house when I mention the room noise--I live in an apartment in a big big city. I'm used to a certain amount of noise both from my neighbors and from outside. This was far beyond that. This was as though the people next door were in the room with me. It's possible that the connecting door in the room and the location of the room, at the end of a corridor, contributed to the noise level. And, incidentally, I've never experienced this kind of noise in any Mod or Deluxe where I've stayed at WDW.

So, was the Value resort worth it? Not to me, and at the time I think it was about $55/night.

 

[Shellyb84]

One thing I was unaware of before staying at ASMusic a few years ago was that the walls there are paper thin. I don't know if this is true of other Values or even the other All Stars. I heard everything--and I mean everything--that was going on the room next door, often from midnight until 3 or 4 a.m. And then around 6 a.m. the rolling suitcases and enthusiastic guests in the corridor right outside the door would start up. Two hours of sleep a night did not make for a happy WDW vacation for me, so I would never stay at a Value again.

And, btw, since someone always says that I must be used to the quiet of living in a house when I mention the room noise--I live in an apartment in a big big city. I'm used to a certain amount of noise both from my neighbors and from outside. This was far beyond that. This was as though the people next door were in the room with me. It's possible that the connecting door in the room and the location of the room, at the end of a corridor, contributed to the noise level. And, incidentally, I've never experienced this kind of noise in any Mod or Deluxe where I've stayed at WDW.

So, was the Value resort worth it? Not to me, and at the time I think it was about $55/night.

A lot of this does depend on your neighbors. In all our stays at Pop we've not really had any issues with noise, even when we've had connecting doors, however at a couple of Deluxe resorts we did get noisy neighbors.

 

[Disneylover99]

A lot of this does depend on your neighbors. In all our stays at Pop we've not really had any issues with noise, even when we've had connecting doors, however at a couple of Deluxe resorts we did get noisy neighbors.

Totally agree.

Room location can make or break your experience as well. The lakeside rooms at Pop have always been quieter than any moderate or Deluxe we've stayed at.

 

[WDWFan0813]

For us, absolutely. We have stayed with our girls at both AoA and Pop. In a LM room at AoA, the space for storage can be tight, but this has been resolved to an extent with the redesign at Pop. Because our girls are young, we prefer the in your face theming. The noise can be a little bit of a factor, but it wasn't too bad for us, and it wasn't occurring at all hours either.

As others have said, it all depends. Hopefully we have given you enough info to make the best choice for you!