Originally Posted By sjhym333 We decided to head out to WDW and get some exercise by walking around some of the resorts. Decided to start our walk at the new Art of Animation Resort. I have not been the biggest fan of the value resorts, but AOA has changed my mind. The themeing is great. The Cars area is wonderful and the Finding Nemo area very cute. Even my wife, who tends to not like the value resorts at all, was impressed. We walked over to the Lion King section, which is not open yet, and found the courtyard area was fenced but mostly finished and it is equally as impressive. The food court offered a nice variety of food. And with all the discussion of dumbed down menu's, we found some nice surprised including a section that offered several Tandori meals. We also stopped at the Polynesian and walked over to the Grand Floridian. Not a great time to be a guest at the GF. The beach pool is surrounded by construction fences because of the addition and the area was noisy and loud with construction going on and the other pool was closed for maitenance. I wouldn't be happy if I was staying there. Next week we are planning to do a walk thru Fort Wilderness and the back gate of EPCOT to the front gate of the Studios. Two of our favorite walks. Nice distance and lots of things to see.
Originally Posted By jkayjs Thx for sharing. We booked AoA LK family suite for the end of Sept. taking the Grandfellas. Good to hear everything looks so good!
Originally Posted By sjhym333 It is really a step up from the other value resorts. I am sure you will enjoy it
Originally Posted By LadyandtheTramp Another nice walk is to take the new (or at least newly marked) trail from the Wilderness Lodge over to Ft. Wilderness (or the reverse). Most of it is under trees, and you get to see some of the birdlife around.
Originally Posted By jkayjs I'm sure we will. We usually stay at a mod or deluxe but when we take everyone we hit the value. Last time we took them we stayed at POP.
Originally Posted By Kennesaw Tom Each of the WDW resorts have are pleasant to stay at. My experience is that most people have difficulty trying to deciding which one to actually stay at. Come to think of it I don't think I have ever had a bad Disney resort experience.
Originally Posted By Disney Joy Excited heading there end Nov..staying in standard Mermaid room. I tried to book Dec 6-8 Mermaids rooms are booked. I am glad I at least got one night before we cruise.
Originally Posted By danyoung >AOA is what Pop century should have been.< Hey, Pop is far above the other value resorts. Seems like Disney is improving with each iteration.
Originally Posted By jkayjs We added another nite on the end of our trip. The Grandfellas are getting pretty excited. I like the idea of having an inside entrance, feels more like a hotel. The play area in the courtyard looks super cute with the Boneyard. Looking forward to seeing folks pictures after it opens next month.
Originally Posted By FerretAfros Anybody know if AoA and Pop share buses? I know that the All Stars often are on the same bus route, meaning that guests may stop at 2 other hotels (and have to deal with the associated crowds on the bus) before getting to their destination. Given how close the two are, would make sense (on paper, at least) for them to do it here too.
