Resorts Gal Review: A Slam Dunk Stay at Disney’s All-Star Sports

Disney’s All-Star Sports is a value resort located within the Animal Kingdom Resorts area at Walt Disney World. It is one of three All-Star Resorts, the other two of which are themed to music and movies. Theming at this resort represents popular sports like baseball, basketball, football, tennis, and surfing.

We have stayed at Disney’s All-Star Sports several times over the past ten years. Longtime readers might remember our previous review cautioned guests against staying at the resort until the last refurbishment was complete. Thankfully, those outdated rooms are long gone, replaced by the same modern updates we’ve grown to love at other value resorts.

In this review of Disney’s All-Star Sports, we’ll discuss our latest experience at the resort, what’s changed since our last stay, and how we feel about staying there now. Spoiler: It was so much better than our last stay!

Our room wasn’t ready when we arrived at Disney’s All-Star Sports. Although, we received a text with our room assignment within 30 minutes of our arrival. So, after a quick visit to Magic Kingdom, we returned to the resort and located our room in the Hoops Hotel. It almost felt like deja vu because our last stay had been in this same basketball-themed area.

Our room was on the second floor of the Hoops Hotel in building two (2). We were only a few steps away from building one (1) in the Surf’s Up section of the resort. Buildings 1, 6, 7, and 10 all offer preferred rooms, which are an upgraded room category because of their proximity to the Stadium Hall lobby, food court, dining, feature pool, and bus transportation. So, while this wasn’t a “preferred room,” it was about as close as you could get without paying for the upgrade.

When I opened the door to our room, I was happy to see how fresh and new everything looked. It was a welcome change. All the rooms at Disney’s All-Star Resorts are identical, even the preferred ones. So, you won’t find any special view categories or upgrades other than the room’s location. However, there’s always an exception. Disney’s All-Star Music is home to an area with family suites that sleep up to six guests.

Rooms at Disney’s All-Star Sports sleep up to four guests. They have two queen-size beds. One of those beds is a table bed that pulls down from the wall. When not in use, it doubles as a table and chair.

Here is a view of the room with both queen beds.

The bathroom is standard, with one sink, an open closet area, an iron, an ironing board, a hairdryer, and other toiletries.

The water closet has a tub with a shower combination and glass shower doors. Other room amenities include an in-room safe, beverage cooler (not a mini-fridge), and coffee maker with accompaniments. We have a formal photo and video tour of the rooms at All-Star Sports if you want to see more details of the room.

If you need a luggage cart, they can be pretty difficult to find. Your best bet is to retrieve one from Bell Services. While the All-Star Resorts have a few cast members to assist with these things, the overall tone is self-service. We’ve often stayed at these resorts and always see guests managing their luggage.

Thankfully, you don’t have to tackle getting your luggage up the stairs. Each building has a pair of elevators. I mention this because each building at the resort offers exterior entry. These resorts do not have interior hallways, nor do rooms have private balconies.

Each section of the All-Star Sports is themed to a particular sport. Since we were in the Hoops Hotel, our entire area was themed to basketball. Sections have two buildings with a courtyard in between them. The courtyard is where you’ll find the significant theming elements.

The rooms facing the courtyard in the Hoops Hotel all have goals, hoops, nets, and basketballs. These larger-than-life elements are popular with children.

Staircases are positioned at the ends of each building. The ones at the Hoops Hotel are wrapped in cheer megaphones.

Next, we have Center Court, which is themed to tennis. However, Donald’s nephews are trying to play a game of baseball in the center of the court.

Donald is not too happy.

The staircases in Center Court are wrapped with tennis ball containers made by Spalding.

At the back of the resort, we find the Home Run Hotel, which represents all things baseball.

This section will be a little further walk than the other buildings at the resort. However, it’s not a terribly long distance. The railings feature Louisville Slugger baseball bats, baseballs, and American bunting.

The resort’s secondary pool, the Grand Slam Pool, is in the center of the courtyard. The entire area looks like a baseball field with a diamond-shaped pool.

These staircases are designed to look like stands with giant Coca-Cola cups in the center.

Touchdown! sits between the Home Run Hotel and Surf’s Up. This section has preferred rooms toward the front of its buildings. The courtyard resembles a giant football field with goals.

Look out for team Mickey!

Staircases in this section resemble footballs. I don’t know who came up with these staircase wrap ideas, but they are a fun way to incorporate safety with incredible theming.

Lastly, we have Surf’s Up, which consists of all preferred rooms. These rooms will cost slightly more than the average room rate, but they are an option for anyone who might need or prefer to be close to the resort’s main amenities.

This section of the resort features surfboards and shark fins in the courtyard. The resort’s wave-shaped feature pool sits in the center of the pool.

Staircases are made to resemble lifeguard stands like you would find on the beach!

Here is a photo of the resort’s feature pool that sits between the Surf’s Up buildings. The entrance to Stadium Hall, the resort’s lobby, is underneath the giant silver star.

Inside Stadium Hall, you’ll find a large hallway that leads to the resort’s main amenities. A skylight allows light to flood the space.

Each of the All-Star Resorts is represented by a unique color. All-Star Sports is blue. These walls also make for a fun photo backdrop.

Stadium Hall is lined with photos of famous athletes.

A couple of displays feature an All-Star Sports Hall of Fame.

Game Point Arcade is a few steps away.

It has plenty of games, and it’s not the worst place to spend time on a rainy day.

Across the hall from the arcade is the End Zone food court. This is the only dining option at Disney’s All-Star Sport, aside from the pool bar, which mainly serves beverages.

A market area with various grab-and-go items sits toward the back of the food court. We have a separate article that discusses dining options at the All-Star Sports Resort. It also has photos of the menus and pantry items that were available during this stay.

Sport Goofy Gifts and Sundries sits between Stadium Hall and the bus stop. This gift shop features souvenirs, apparel, personal items, sodas, and snacks. We have a post with photos of available items at the All-Star Sports gift shop.

The resort’s bus stop sits at the front of Stadium Hall. Buses at Disney’s All-Star Sports travel to and from the following locations:

• Magic Kingdom
• Epcot
• Disney’s Hollywood Studios
• Disney’s Animal Kingdom
• Disney Springs
• Blizzard Beach and/or Typhoon Lagoon

If you would like to learn more about how transportation works during your stay, be sure to check our guide to transportation at Disney’s All-Star Sports. It goes into detail about using the buses and what to expect. We had excellent bus service during this stay. But from time to time, you might have to wait longer than expected when using the complimentary system.

Disney’s All-Star Sports has two pools, the Surfboard Bay Pool and the Grand Slam Pool.

Since All-Star Sports is a value resort, you won’t find a water slide feature or a hot tub. But the pools are both fun, and I doubt most kids will notice that the pool doesn’t have a slide.

A kiddie pool is available behind the Surfboard Bay Pool. A playground is also available nearby.

Make sure to notice the theming elements around the pool. This one has fun sea life elements stamped in the concrete.

Grandstand Spirits pool bar sits behind the pool. They offer a variety of cocktails, beer, wine, and other beverages. A few snack items are also available. But if you’re looking to enjoy a meal at the pool, you’ll do better to order something from End Zone, which is only a few steps away.

You will not lack for seats at the pool. We have always been able to find a seat at the pool, even on a crowded day. That’s not always the case for some of the nicer resorts.

Laundry facilities are available near each pool.

Here is a photo of the pool area at the Home Run Hotel. Guests of the resort can use either pool. This pool is shaped like a baseball diamond. Goofy sits on a pitcher’s mound in the center.

The Home Run Hotel’s laundry room sits on the pool’s far side.

Here is a look inside. For more information, we have a post that discusses our experience doing laundry at Disney’s All-Star Sports.

Now that we’ve taken a tour of the resort and what to expect, I wanted to discuss a few things we noted during our stay. Overall, we enjoyed our time at Disney’s All-Star Sports. Since the resort has been refurbished, I would gladly return for a stay. Granted, many of our stays at the value resorts are typically 2-3 nights, and we stay in hotels monthly.

Most people looking at spending a week or longer at Disney’s All-Star Sports are either budget-conscious or this is the only hotel that fits your budget on Disney property. We have fallen into both categories over the years. If you are budget-conscious and don’t travel often, I almost always recommend upgrading to Pop Century or a moderate resort over the All-Stars. Pop Century will give you access to the Skyliner and nearby Art of Animation. You will also be within a short distance of nicer resorts with more dining options.

If All-Star Sports is the only hotel on the property that meets your budget, it will do just fine. My biggest issue with the All-Stars is that the rooms have thin walls. If you have noisy neighbors, this can be an issue. When we stayed at All-Star Movies a few months back, someone next door to us had a terrible cough that prevented us from sleeping well!

Since these are “value” resorts, you could stay when a large school group is there. Two major dance and cheerleading competitions took place throughout our stay. Other than seeing the groups around the resorts, this was no issue. But when you have a tremendous group of mildly chaperoned young people, you can expect them to be a little louder. They are young and having fun, and from what I’ve witnessed, most of these groups are exceptionally well-behaved.

Another warning is to be prepared for what to do when it rains. If you have to walk back to your room, take advantage of the overhangs on each building. You’ll have to walk through open spots between each building, but if you have an umbrella or poncho, you should be able to stay pretty dry. Often, I see guests walking through the middle of the courtyards in the rain, and I don’t think they realize they can walk near the rooms.

When dining, try not to rely on the food court too often. They do have a variety of options. But you’ll get burnt out pretty quickly. Plan some meals in the parks and other resort hotels during your stay. You do not want to have food court pizza or chicken nuggets every single day of your stay.

If you are reading this review and think you would like the comforts of a nicer hotel in the same price range, you might prefer to stay off-property. However, you’ll want to weigh the differences and account for any extra expenses of staying at an off-site hotel. We have an article that discusses the benefits of staying at Walt Disney World Resort Hotels that may provide some guidance.

If you stay at All-Star Sports, you will receive access to early theme park benefits, which allow you 30 minutes extra in the theme parks each morning. You can also take advantage of complimentary transportation to and from the resort. Complimentary parking is also provided for resort guests at the hotel and theme parks.

I hope this review of Disney’s All-Star Sports gave you an idea of whether or not the resort is right for you. If you decide to stay here, we recommend reading over our resort coverage. Our articles for the resort are listed in this guide to Disney’s All-Star Sports Resort.

Or you might enjoy reading our other Disney Value Resort Reviews:

• Disney’s Pop Century Review
• Disney’s Art of Animation Review
• Disney’s All-Star Movies Review
• Disney’s All-Star Music Review

What Do You Think?

What do you think about this review of Disney’s All-Star Sports? Did you find it helpful? Would you consider a stay at this resort? We would love to hear your thoughts, experiences, or questions. Let us know in the comments section below.