In 1994, Disney World triumphantly broke into the low-end market with its first giant (1,920-room) All-Star Resort, charging as little as $77 a night for standard-level accommodations practically in the shadow of Cinderella’s castle. It was no surprise that Disney’s experiment with budget pricing turned out to be an enormous success, and by 1998, another All-Star Resort had joined the ranks.
Now there are three giant All-Star Resorts (All-Star Sports Resort, All-Star Music Resort and All-Star Movies Resort) situated on 246 acres of Disney World, for a total of 5,760 budget-priced rooms. The rooms are nothing fancy, but to give the sensation of that much-promoted Disney “magic,” the exterior of each resort is adorned with gigantic kid-pleasing icons, including 50-foot-high football helmets, size-270 cowboy boots and a four-story-tall statue of “Toy Story’s” animated astronaut Buzz Lightyear.
For such outrageous set dressing–and for close proximity to the theme parks–penny-pinching families are still paying considerably more than the lowest prices outside the Disney grounds, which are currently between $35 and $60 a night per room. But nonetheless, families of modest means are flocking to stay in the All-Stars. So much so that Disney is now slapping bright paint on a new project that will double its budget-bedroom inventory. The first 10 288-guestroom buildings of the new budget-priced Disney’s Pop Century are scheduled to open in March 2002 southeast of Disney-MGM Studios.
As of winter 2002, Disney’s “value resort” category will be its biggest, with a nightly inventory of 11,520 rooms–more than entire cities have–for $77 to $99 at all times other than Christmas and mid-February through April.
The lowest prices ($77) are available from January to mid-February, most of September, and from November to just before Christmas–otherwise, rates are usually near $99. Each All-Star resort includes two big, busy pools and a colorful motel-style room with two queen beds (some have a king bed), suitable for families of four. There’s also a do-it-yourself laundry ($2 per machine). Their quality, obviously, is not as high as in other Disney-run hotels. Shampoo comes not from bottles but out of industrial-feeling wall-mounted dispensers, and room service will bring only pizza. But if you have a car, you can escape the All-Star’s meager provisions by beating a quick 10-minute path to U.S. Highway 192, where bargain eateries crowd the highway. If you stay at a Disney resort, parking is free in the World, saving about $6 each time you go to a theme park.
The budget-oriented All-Stars are also handy for people without cars, since stays include free use of Disney World’s comprehensive bus system.
Reservations at the All-Star Resorts or at Disney’s Pop Century can be made at 407-934-7639 or www.disneyworld.com.