AS Sports vs. off-site. Please help with pros and cons!!!!

[lalasmomallie]

We are leaving for our first Disney trip in 10 days. We currently have ressies at HI Maingate East but I am seriously considering changing over to AS Sports. We would have a smaller room and no microwave or frig but we would be on site and have reliable transportation. (currently the HI is only offering a shuttle every 2 hours and we would need to be on the 7:15am shuttle to make opening. This would mean getting up around 5:30 or 6:00 to be at breakfast by6:30 and on the bus by 7:15)

Also, does anyone know at what age the disney restaurants at the resorts start charging for meals? We have a 2y/o and 4 y/o. At HI kids eat free. Do kids under 3 eat free at Disney?

I would also love to hear from anyone who has stayed at AS Sports. Good and bad reports? Any tips?
Thanks for any help!

 

[Selket]

I was there with my 2.5 yr old and I don't remember him dining for free anywhere but he also could share some of our meals so we didn't always buy him a separate meal. It is also easy to bring along some breakfast food that he liked and just buy milk, etc. We stayed at the PO-FQ and I really liked it for small kids - small resort, good bus service and great pool.

I wonder if trying Priceline would work for you? You wouldn't get a disney hotel but if you bid in the "resort" area you'd certainly be close by - perhaps in downtown disney or at the Dolphin or Swan which is walkable to Epcot. I think all the hotels in that category run shuttles if they are farther away - there are only a few so it is easy to check. I don't know what you're paying but priceline for that category would prob run you $65-80 plus fees. Might be worth a check.

Enjoy!!

Carol

 

[AspiringCindy]

Stayed at ASMu and thought it was a great value for the money. Rooms were clean and had the nice Disney touches that we love so much. As for kids eating free at WDW...usually 3 and under can eat free at buffet style restaurants.

 

[Barb D]

I don't think I would even consider staying offsite without a rental car. The ASSp bus will drop you right at the entrance to the MK, and ths buses run frequently. If you stay offsite, you get dropped at the TTC and then have to take a monorail or ferry to the MK entrance. At least if you have a car you can control your schedule more.

That said, if we go again we probably will stay off site. We spent one night at the Magic Castle last trip ($25 night and we could have 5 in a room.) It wasn't beautiful and it wasn't Disney, but it sure was cheap. But again, I wouldn't do it without a car.

 

[robinb]

I would recommend that you stay at All Star Sports. We had a great time there with out 2 year old.

No, your kids wont eat free at the ASSp Food Court, but how many times will you really plan to eat at the HI Food Court? Is "Kids Eat Free" really an advantage to you? I think that the reliable and frequent bus transportation is the #1 reason why you should stay at ASSp instead. If (no, when) your 2 year old loses it in the middle of the park you can always hop on the next ASSp bus and go home then and there. You will not have to wait for the next "scheduled" pick up. Can you imagine waiting for 2 hours with a melting toddler because you just missed the HI bus? {{shudder}} The other advantage for young children like yours is that Disney allows you to borrow free life vests for pool use for your entire stay. You just sign them out at the Arcade. Then, your 4 year old can paddle around the pool with confidence while you're with the 2 year old. My 2 year old loved her life vest .

As for food, the 2 year old will eat from buffets free but of you order her a meal you will have to pay for it. Depending on the appetites of your children they may in fact happily spilt a meal. Also, if you are taking a limo service from the airport some of them will make a short grocery stop with you (check the Transportation board for more info). You'll be able to pick up breakfast things, snacks and even sandwich makings. The All Star Sports resort has a microwave and an industrial-type toaster for guest use. We would toast our own bagels in the morning and bring juice in sippy cups to the food court to save money. I recommend bringing a collapsible cooler or buying a styrofoam cooler at your grocery stop to keep things cool in your room.

 

[Jordan's MOM]

You will be so much happier at the AS resort. In the past we have been at the ASMo but this trip are staying at sports. They are very much alike. The transportaion is great and worth staying there just for that. You will also get EE by staying on site.
As far as food goes your two little one can often share your plate or share a kids meal between them. We too do breakfast in the room. A cooler and the free ice from the resort work as well as a frig. Take zip locks to keep things dry. We too also used the toaster to toast my DS's poptarts and that was not a problem. We also sometimes at night just got a samdwich at the food court and had drink and chips we brought from home in the room to save money.

Hope your trip is great.

Jordan's mom

 

[LMHB]

This is such a hard decision, I know! You want to stay inside the magic so much, but practically it doesn't always work out! I know exactly where you are. We went October before last with our 4 & 2 year old boys. We LOVED the AS (Movies - Woody) but this time are opting for off-site with a kitchen. The boys loved the resort, and have asked to go back there,, but it was so small, and the lack of being able to prepare any meals was too tough. Their food court is expensive, and my second son doesn't do well in restaurants anyway. The room table is barely big enough to eat on...and bagels from a cooler just didn't do it for us. We figure that we will be going to Disney for many years to come, and there will be plenty of years when the children are easier to handlie without a kitchen, and also we when we will have more spending money for either restaurants or an on-site Disney condo! And by the way, don't consider the transportation at AS too hot. We wound up driving to every park. There were too many people in line to fit on the busses. HI does have a great deal going with that kids eat free plan. I also hate spending all my $ in restaurants when my children don't even eat the food...when they are 10 it will probably be easier to convince them to eat than when they are 2. Good luck!

 

[LMHB]

Kids under 3 do NOT eat free in a food court setting, only in a table service place, and the AS do not have those. You do wind up paying for both their food and drinks.