I recently stayed in a family suite at All-Star Music with a group of 6. I was actually very impressed with the value level suite, and would absolutely stay in this accommodation again. It is important to note that All-Star Music is the only All-Star resort that offers a family suite, and suites will not be found at All-Star Movies or All-Star Sports. Here is my review and thoughts of the family suite offered at All-Star Music.
1) Space
The first and most notable plus of staying in a suite, whether it be at a deluxe resort or a value resort like All-Star Music, is there is much more space to spread out. Walt Disney World family suites comfortably fit 5-6 adults and feature multiple rooms and bathrooms, making it feel like a more "homey" stay for larger groups who wish to all stay together.
The family suite at All-Star Music features a main room and bathroom, along with a kitchenette, and a separate bedroom with connecting bathroom. The main room that you walk into from the front door has 2 pull down murphy beds and a tv. They are both queen sized beds that can comfortably sleep 2 adults per bed. One of the beds folds up to reveals a wooden table to eat at or put items on, while the other bed folds up to reveal a couch. The use of the murphy beds does a lot of add to space conservation. Attached to that main room is the main bathroom with double sinks and a slider door to separate the sink/mirror room from the toilet/shower room. This area is what would comprise a "normal" All-Star Music room.
However, the family suite offers much more. There is a separate kitchenette off of the main room which has a full-size fridge, coffee maker, microwave, and sink. The full-size fridge really is a plus for longer trips because you can fit so much more inside it than the standard mini-fridge in normal Disney rooms. That was definitely a plus in my eyes.
Off of the kitchenette, there is a separate "master suite" which has a queen bed, a tv, and an ottoman chair. Attached to the bedroom is a separate master bath, practically identical to the other bathroom but slightly elevated in elegance. It more resembles the sink/vanity areas in a Moderate resort rather than the textbook sink areas found in the Value resorts. It is extremely nice to have 2 bathrooms, as that speeds up getting ready for bed at night when everyone is exhausted as well as getting to the parks in the morning. The master suite is presumably where the parents would sleep on a family trip to afford them some privacy, while the kids stayed in the main room.
While the family suite does offer much more room to spread out, there are a couple of awkward features to the room. First, one of the murphy beds in the main room is lowered to sit on what would normally be a table, surrounded by wooden chairs. Once the murphy bed is lowered, there is no logical spot to put the wooden chairs. We ended up lining them up in the kitchenette, which took up a lot of space and made it hard to move around in that area.
Second, if you need to use the second murphy bed in the main room, apparently you are supposed to instruct the maid to unfold it for you prior to arrival. When we arrived to our room at 9:30 at night after a full day at EPCOT, we discovered that the 2nd murphy bed was not pulled down for us to use. We struggled to pull it down and upon calling the front desk we learned that we had to request the maid pull it down for us in advance. I do not know why that would be a requirement, seeing as our reservation was clearly for enough people to need usage of both murphy beds. Let this be your warning to request both murphy beds be set up for you, in advance, so you don't have to wait an hour for the maid to show up late at night.
2) Price
The next major plus of staying in a family suite, particularly at a value resort like All-Star Music, is the price. An average night stay at the All-Star Music family suite is $400. While this may give an initial sticker shock, remember that this price is split amongst a large group. Diving $400 among 6 people like we did, only came to $66 a night for each person. In the end, it adds up to much cheaper than if you were to book multiple standard rooms at the All-Star Music resort to accommodate your large group. It really is a great way to save money on a Disney vacation, and you all get to stay together as a group.
3) Amenities
Now, as with any stay at an All-Star resort, you are going to get value amenities regardless of if you stay in a standard room or a suite. This means no Table Service restaurants on site, less impressive pools, more basic room types without the thoughtful theming found at Moderate and Deluxe resorts, and only bus transportation. For our trip, we were not planning on spending any time in the room or the resort, so these did not matter very much to us. It was very much a get back late, leave early kind of trip, centered around time in the park.
Also, while bus transportation and the food court may bother some guests, I actually considered these a plus whilst staying at All-Star Music. I think it is so nice that the All-Star resorts only have 1 bus pickup site, in front of the main lobby building. It is not a far walk from any of the buildings and is conveniently located right near the food court. You can stop at the food court to fill your water bottle or grab a snack on the way to the parks or when you return to the resort late at night. At other resorts with multiple bus stops, you are almost never in the main lobby building, as that is rarely the bus stop you will use. Also, with only one bus stop, you are brought directly to the park rather than circling the resort and making stops at multiple bus stops throughout. That in my eyes is a major advantage of the All-Star resorts and probably one of my favorite parts.
4) Theming
The level of Disney theming in the family suites is exactly the same as the theming in a standard All-Star Music room. There are little touches of classic Disney seen in the room, with pictures of Disney characters hanging on the wall and on the backboards of the pull-down murphy beds. The majority of All-Star Music's theming will be outside of the room itself, with giant Disney characters and music themed statutes scattered throughout the resort's campus. Overall, this resort's theming is not great and would be more impressive to young children than adults, but that is on par for a Value resort. If theming is important to you, you would be better off splurging to stay in a Moderate or Deluxe.
All in all, I would absolutely stay in the All-Star Music family suite again. It is perfect for a trip with a group where you do not plan on spending a lot of time in the room or at the resort. The suite offers a cheap price for a good amount of space that allows your group to fully enjoy their vacation together without splitting up into separate rooms. We had a great stay, and I don't have any substantial complaints about this accommodation! I highly recommend checking it out on your next group trip to Disney World!
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