[Disneyfever]

Hi everyone. I missed you all at DC while I was on my trip! Well, here we go - We were planning on leaving at 4 pm Thursday, but got to leave at noon instead. The drive takes about 13 hours from Memphis. We got there in the middle of the night. There was no line at the check-in (of course!). They were able to put us in a room that night, but told us that we would have to check out the next day and check back in. We stayed at the All Star Sports. Even though there were many good reviews on the All Stars, I was still worried because of the negative comments I read. So, my expectations were not very high. Boy, was I surprised! The lobby was much bigger than I expected. The walls were all painted in bright colors. It was very Disney! We got to our room (in the Touchdown building) and I was again surprised. I expected a tiny, little room. The room was fine. The beds looked small because they were only doubles. But they were fine to sleep in - very comfortable. There was a large dresser with six very large drawers. There was a small table with two chairs. The bathroom had one sink. There was an iron and ironing board. The toilet and tub were in a separate room. The bathroom are was small. You won't have much privacy there.
We brought a small ice chest with our own water and drinks (instead of paying $10 per day for a fridge - I think they are free in the mods and deluxes). We were so exhausted from our drive that we fell asleep quickly.

Day 1 - We woke up at 10 am and took our showers. Then we went to the lobby to check out/in. There was no line at all. We checked in and got a room in the Surf's Up building. We paid $10 extra per night for a premium room. The rooms in the two Surf's Up buildings are premium because they are close to the food court and buses. However, we had one of the farthest rooms in the Surf's Up building. The other buildings were much closer than I thought they would be, so next time I think we will save the money and just take our chances.

We then took the bus to the MK. The wait was only 5 minutes. The buses pick up at the All Star Sports first, then the AS Music, then the AS Movies. We always got a seat. But I felt sorry for the people at the AS Movies. A lot of the time they had to stand. And some of the time they couldn't even fit on our bus, so they had to wait for another one.

When we got to the MK, we walked to Adventure Land and got a FP for SM. Then we rode PoC, then TM (only a 15 min wait), then SM. Got another FP for SM, then ate at the food court there ($22 for two adult meals & 1 child's meal). We then walked over to the other side of the park and rode the People Mover. Got FP's for Space Mountain. Walked around, then rode it. Then went back to PoC and got toy for DS. Took train to the front of park. Too bus back to hotel (only 5 min wait). After 3 or 4 pm, each All Star resort has its own bus back. Ate at food court at resort ($24). DS swam in pool. Then took bus to DTD at 8 pm. Had to wait 20 min for bus. By the time it picked up people at AS Movies, it was PACKED. Went to DQ for two hours. DS had a blast. We all created (then rode) our own coaster. Took bus back to resort. The bus pulled up right away. Went to bed.

[mickaholic4077]

Sounds like a great start. The buses is why I avoid the All-Stars if I can help it.

[Disneyfever]

Day 2 - Got up at 8:30. Left for BB at 9:30. We drove our car. We took a small ice chest with drinks. The day was warm and sunny. When they opened the park (at 10:00), we got a locker and put some of our stuff in it. Then we set our towels and drinks on some chairs near the kid's Ski Patrol area. DS played in that are awhile, then we took the chair lift up to the top. We all rode the family raft ride. It was great!! When we got to the bottom, we walked through this long cave and picked up a double raft and a single raft. We walked up a lot of steps and rode down these rapid slides. We did it again, only we went down the slide that was totally enclosed in a tunnel. DS then played in the waves at the beach area. (That's where we should have put our stuff down).

Then we rode the lift up again. DH wanted to ride the Summit Plummet. It is the tallest, fastest (55 mph) slide. DS didn't want to do it just yet, so DH rode it by himself while DS and I rode the dipped slide. We had to slide flat on our backs for the dipped slide. Because of the dips, it really hurt our backs! We decided not to ride that one again. DH told us the Summit Plummet was great, so we all decided to ride it. It was great! It was so fast.

Then we moved our stuff to the beach area with the wave pool. DS played with a raft there. Later we rode the family raft ride one last time. We then went in the lazy river. We left at 1:00 pm. Although it was a warm day, it was still a bit chilly to run around in the water all day.

We drove through McDonald's for lunch. We went back to the resort to get changed. We then took the bus to Epcot. (10 min wait) The bus was not full. We got a FP for TT. There is no reason to get a FP for MS, because the wait is only 5 min. The TT always has a long wait. The FP is usually good for 2 1/2 hours later, so we always get it when we first get there. We went on MS. Then walked around the Innoventions. Went on Spaceship Earth. Then used our FP for TT. We then had to hurry to make our PS for Chef Mickey's. We took the monorail. Changed monorails, then arrived just in time. The meal was great. DS had his picture taken with Goofy, Chip and Dale. The meal for the three of us was about $80.

Then we took the monorail to MK. Took train to Adventure Land. Rode SM twice because there was no line. Rode TM (no wait). Went to PoC and got DS a toy. Rode People Mover (because we were tired). Watched Wishes. The castle was beautiful! Headed for bus at 9:30. The lines for all of the buses were packed. Especially the line for AS Pop. That line was all the way down the sidewalk. But in the time it took for three buses to come for the AS Sports, there were 6 or 7 Pop buses. We got on to a packed bus at 9:55 and headed back to the resort. We made it on the third bus.

[Disneyfever]

Mick - The buses weren't too bad for us. We always got a seat. But being on a packed bus most of the time was not too fun. We did end up driving for most of our trip. It was just easier for us. The longest wait we had was when we watched Wishes and headed out of the MK. The second longest wait was to go to DTD at 8 pm. The rest of the time the waits were only five minutes. The buses were full going to the parks, and usually not full heading home.

[Disneyfever]

Day 3 - Got up at 8:30. Headed for AK around 10. Went to Dinoland and rode the Dinosaur ride with no wait. Then rode the spinning coaster with not wait. Got FP for the Safari. Rode the train to the petting zoo area. DS had a great time petting and brushing the animals! Then went inside the building and saw all of the other creaters (spiders, bugs, etc). Then rode the train back. Went on the Safari. DS wanted to take pictures, so I nervously handed our very expensive camera to him. I wish I brought a cheap camera for him to use because I was so worried he would drop it on the road! We got a lot of great pictures. Then we ate at the Flame Tree ($30). We thought the food wasn't very good. It could be because we are from TN and have great BBQ here, so I don't think anything can really compare.

We then rode the river raft ride. Then we all walked around a bit. There was a lady on stilts dressed up like a tree! Very cool. We went back to the room to rest (only a 5 min wait for the bus).

BTW - We bought the park hopper option (for about $35 each for the entire stay) and also added the DQ/Waterpark option. DS and DH get bored at the same park all day, so we end up doing two per day.

Also, in order to go to the Extra Magic Hours in the evenings, you either need to be at that park for the day OR have the park hopper option. If you are at one park, and want to go to the extra hours at another park, you MUST have the park hopper option.

Then we drove to Walgreens for camera disks. Then grove to MGM at 5:30. Right after we entered, we walked up to a table and got our wristbands for the extra hours that evening. We then went to the RnR for get FP's, but the wait was only 15 min, so we rode it. Then rode ToT (only a 10 min wait). Wanted to go on the Backlot Tour, but we found out it was closed. In fact, they closed a lot of stuff. We went to get FP's for the RnR, but you can't get FP's during the Extra hours. The wait was really long, so we rode the ToT again. We left the park at 8 pm. Drove to McDonald's for dinner. Went back to the hotel and noticed they left out two dessert items. We were too tired to go back, so we went to the food court and got a couple of desserts. (I know, ALWAYS check your bag). Called it a day.

[Disneyfever]

Day 4 (Monday) - We went to Islands of Adventure this day. So, if you ONLY want to read about Disney, you can skip this

Got up a 9 am. Went to IofA around 10:30. ($178 for two adults & 1 child for one day/one park). We decided not to add the Universal to it, because we only had one day. I made the mistake of leaving our ponchos at the resort. Although the day was warm and sunny, you will get SOAKED riding some of these rides! I found that out on the log ride. You get wet through the entire ride! Of course, DS loved it. The lines for all the rides were very short (except for the Hulk and Spiderman). Went on the JP ride, got wet again. DS was not tall enough (you have to be 54 inches) to ride the Hulk and the Deuling Dragons. DH & I took turns to ride the Hulk once. Went on the Spiderman ride. It was great. They make the characters seem like they are right there with you. 3-D. Rode the river ride (ponchos for DH & me). Went to the Voyage of Sinbad show. It was really good - very funny. We on a Tomb Raider tour/show through a big cave and a series of rooms.

The entire park was like being in a big cartoon. Everything is very colorful and larger than life. There are characters everywhere for picture-taking. DS had a great time have a water fight with other kids. The water guns were attached to walls in this fort. DS wanted to come back the next day, but we told him that we couldn't. We ate at one of the food courts. The food is very expensive. It was $30 for 2 meatball subs, one child's pasta, and 3 drinks. We walked around a bit and rode some more rides. Then we got a funnel cake and left at 6:30 pm. I think our day at IofA was great. The park was clean and not very crowded.

When we got back to the hotel, I did laundry

[Disneyfever]

Day 5 (Tuesday) - The weather was warm and sunny again! We were so lucky to have 5 warm, sunny days.

Drove to MGM. Rode RnR and ToT twice. Went on the Backlot Tour, which was fun. We also got to see the area where they are building the Stunt show. There were people practicing for the stunt show during our tour. We rode ToT & RnR once more, and walked around a bit. Then we drove to Epcot. Got FP's for TT. Rode MS twice, because there was not wait. Went through Innoventions. Went on the Universe of Energy. This was the first time we did this. You go into a large room and watch a short movie clip. Then you go into another room where you board a very large ride. The seats are in three sections, with ver long rows. We managed to get in the first row of the first section. All of the sections move through the building. There are dinosaurs and others things that make the ride fun.

Then we went to the Sea of Life and walked around looking at all of the fish. We ate at the food court. Then we rode the TT. Then we walked around the countries. There is a ride in Mexico. There is another ride in a country near Mexico, but I can't remember which country. There is a film in France, but we didn't watch it. We finally got to Canada. We walked around to the left, through walkways that led to a cave. When we got to the cave, a girl told us that the show would begin in 13 min. We didn't even know there was a show. It was really neat though. There were screens that circled the theater 360 degrees. So, it was like you were really there. The movie lasted about 18 minutes. It was all about Canada.

We were going to stay for Illuminations, but DH was getting cold. He was in shorts and a T-shirt. We looked for a jacket, but everything was so expensive. We decided to drive back to the resort and get his jacket. But by the time we got back we were so tired we just stayed there.

[CathysCAT]

Great TR Disneyfever. Looks like you did ALOT! How old is you DS? Looks like he was OK with all the fast rides. You either type really fast, or you had this pre-typed, which is what I plan to do on my laptop every night we're there. Love all the details!

[Disneyfever]

Day 6 (Wed) - Well, the weather finally turned against us.

There was a constant sprinkling of rain the entire day. The temp started in the high 50's and got colder throughout the day. We drove to Epcot, intending to end up there and watch Illuminations that night. So, we took the monorails to MK. We got FP's for Space Mountain. Rode the People Mover. Walked on SM (20 min wait standby), then rode it again with our FP's. Went to Haunted Mansion. Then TM, then Splash Mountain. There were no lines for any of those rides. So, we rode them again and again. Rode PoC. Ate at the food court. The salad was great! ($20 for the three of us). Walked around a bit. Rode train to the front. By that time (4 pm) we were so cold and wet, even with our ponchos, that we called it a day.

Went back to the resort and got a large pizza from the food court.

Summary - I would stay at the All Star Sports again. We enjoyed it. If you are looking for a romantic, lush resort, then the All Stars aren't for you. If you have kids and are looking for a fun, colorful resort, then you would like it. The refillable mugs are a deal. I saw people everywhere with them. There were lots of teenagers there. We really liked the food court. There is a lot of acitivity at this resort. We found the room fine. The beds were comfortable. There was plenty of space for the three of us. If I were a teenager, I would much rather stay at the All Stars in my own room than at a more expensive resort in the same room as my parents. That's just MHO though. We have stayed at the Contemporary and POFQ. The Contemporary was very convenient. The monorail was such a time saver. POFQ was very pretty. The All Star Sports was fun and colorful. We saved a lot of money staying there. There are two pools (no slides though). All in all, I am very glad we stayed there. We had a wonderful time at Disney!!!

[DisneyTeacher]

Awesome trip report, thanks for sharing your trip with us. Thanks for the heads up with the busses at the All Stars. We are thinking about adding a night to the end of our trip this summer and thought AS Movies would be the best for our 6 year old.

[Disneyfever]

CathysCat, my DS is 9. He loves fast rides. He isn't thrilled with the ToT though, but he's a trooper and rides it with us! I didn't have any of this pre-typed, but I did write down notes at the end of each day.
Disneyteacher, the AS Movies looks like a fun resort, but since it is always the last stop on the ride to the parks, there often aren't enough seats. I really felt sorry for those people who were waiting there. Sometimes, SOME of them got to sit down. But usually they had to either stand or wait for another bus. The buses to the parks later in the day were less crowded.

[jodilt]

Sounds like you had a great time! Thanks for sharing!

[missy H]

A great trip report! Glad you had a good time. I can't wait to go back..

[kizzmitt]

I'm glad you guys had a great time. I can't wait to get there!

[jk8]

Great trip report! I can hardly stand not being there.