Disney’s Art of Animation Resort Review
Since it opened in 2012, I have been extremely excited to check out the Art of Animation Resort! Because it is SO popular, it’s been difficult to find a reservation. In May 2021, I was finally able to stay in a Finding Nemo Family Suite with my husband, mother-in-law and 3 year old daughter.
For some tips on travelling to Disney during the pandemic, click here.
ABOUT THE RESORT
Disney’s Art of Animation Resort invites you to become a part of your favorite animated films. Each one of the resort’s 3-story buildings is designed to make you feel like you are part of one of 4 beloved animated films. Buildings are themed to The Lion King, The Little Mermaid, Disney·Pixar’s Finding Nemo, and Cars animated films. Kids and kids-at-heart can romp through one of the 4 courtyards—one for each film—where there are icons and sculptures to interact with and play around. This value resort features room types for nearly every party size and preference—including 1,984 themed standard rooms and family suites. Disney’s page for the resort details room for up to 6 in the family suites, and even dog-friendly accommodations.
CATEGORY
Art of Animation is in the Value category, but it sets itself apart with family suites as the majority rooms in the resort. The theming goes above and beyond other resorts in this category, and I loved to just walk around these beautifully designed areas. The resort’s close position to the skyliner also adds a level of convenience when traveling to and from the parks.
Click here to see a comparison of Disney’s Value Resorts!
Art of Animation is a HUGE hit with the kids! The family suites are themed to Lion King, Finding Nemo, and Cars, leaving the standard rooms to have a Little Mermaid theme. For many adults, it’s tacky, loud, and abandons traditional means of nuanced Disney theming in favor of using garish representation of Intellectual Property.
The room is about 565 square feet, which is just over twice the size of a standard room. We really enjoyed the two bathrooms and separate sleeping areas, but found the space wasn’t used well. There wasn’t a lot of storage, which made the room feel constantly messy. The furniture seemed cheaply made and the tile floor made me extremely nervous with a young child.
I had heard such great things about the Landscape of Flavors, the quick service location at Art of Animation, but I was not impressed at all. As I mentioned, we did visit in May 2021, so the menu was limited and only available through mobile order. Once the effects of the pandemic lessen, I plan to give it another try.
The Big Blue Pool at Disney’s Art of Animation resort is adorable. It is Disney’s largest resort pool, and swimmers can hear music and their favorite characters while they are underwater. The drawback here is that it is always PACKED. So much so, that we did not feel comfortable going to the pool and removing our masks around that amount of people during our trip.
The playground is also cute and my daughter enjoyed playing hide and seek in the tunnels. There were also a few slides, but they were metal and unshaded, which made them too hot to use.
The biggest amenity of all is that Art of Animation is on the skyliner system. The easy access to Disney’s Hollywood Studios and EPCOT really makes this hotel a great option. Another huge benefit is that it does not share bus transportation service with any other Walt Disney World hotel and there is only one bus stop! This is great for avoiding extra contact with travelling crowds during your trip.
Click here for a guide on Disney Transportation.
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