Disney's Art of Animation Resort is a Value Plus Resort that most prominently features family suites themed as Finding Nemo, Cars, and The Lion King. However, hidden at the back of the Art of Animation property is the Little Mermaid section which features standard value rooms that will immerse your family in Ariel's world under the sea.
We recently stayed in the Little Mermaid rooms at Art of Animation on a weekend getaway and were extremely happy with our suites. Here's a look at our room:
All Little Mermaid Rooms feature a table with two shell shaped chairs and a shell mirror. The papers on the tale are not actual paperss, but are designed into the table.
The room also features a nice sized dresser with a TV with cable, and an area that features charging ports for electronic devices.
All Little Mermaid Rooms feature either two full size beds or one King size bed. Our room featured two full size beds. To be honest, these beds are not the most comfortable. We have stayed at several different resorts on Disney property and these were the worst of any the beds we have dealt with. While they weren't my favorite, they were something that could be dealt with. You will also notice the sterile look of the sheets on the bed, Disney is currently going through a phase where it is removing all bed runners and comforters from the bed. This is a plus for many as these are usually the dirtiest parts of the room but it does take away from the look of the room in some ways.
The room features plenty of Little Mermaid themed artwork on the wall to help carry out the Little Mermaid theme.
The bathroom in the Little Mermaid room is laid out like most Disney resort bathrooms, there is a sink area with a closet that is separated from the sleeping portion of the room by a curtain.
The bathroom area continues the Little Mermaid theme with the shell shaped mirror.
The rest of the bathroom is separated behind a closed door.
The bathtub is beautiful with it's under the water scene on the tiles.
And if you look really close there is a hidden Mickey in the scene. I won't show you where so that you can find it for yourself on your visit.
Pros:
Price - The Little Mermaid rooms are a good value with rates that are $118 to $215 per night depending on the season. Room discounts that are offered throughout the year can bring that price down even further.
Size - The Little Mermaid rooms offer just a little bit more room than the average value resort with 277 square foot.
Theming - The theming of the Little Mermaid rooms are amazing. They are the best themed among the value rooms and are the most likely to appeal to kids.
Pool - The Art of Animation Resort has one of the most sought after pools in all of Disney's resorts with The Big Blue Pool. The Little Mermaid rooms are laid out around The Flippin' Fins pool which is perfect for a quick swim or a more relaxed alternative to the Big Blue Pool.
Transportation - As with all Disney resorts Art of Animation offers bus transportation to all parks. The bus line to Art of Animation has a dedicated bus line to the parks with one stop. We had no issues with bus transportation during our stay and were extremely happy with the transportation. Art of Animation is also one of the resorts included in the rumored gondola system that is coming to Walt Disney World that will service Art of Animation, Pop Century, Caribbean Beach Resort, Epcot and Hollywood Studios.
Transportation - As with all Disney resorts Art of Animation offers bus transportation to all parks. The bus line to Art of Animation has a dedicated bus line to the parks with one stop. We had no issues with bus transportation during our stay and were extremely happy with the transportation. Art of Animation is also one of the resorts included in the rumored gondola system that is coming to Walt Disney World that will service Art of Animation, Pop Century, Caribbean Beach Resort, Epcot and Hollywood Studios.
Hollywood Studios fireworks - We were in Building Nine and were able to see an obstructed view of the Hollywood Studio fireworks each night. It was not unusual to see families outside the rooms watching the fireworks. While this isn't a huge perk it is a nice treat for the kids.
Cons:
Location - The Little Mermaid rooms are the furthest from the main building and transportation of any of the rooms at Art of Animation. The walk to these are bearable and did not pose a big downside to us.
Beds - As I mentioned earlier the beds are not the best on property and are smaller than those offered at Moderate or Deluxe resorts.
Overview:
Beds - As I mentioned earlier the beds are not the best on property and are smaller than those offered at Moderate or Deluxe resorts.
Overview:
Art of Animation was our first experience with a value resort and we were very pleased. The Little Mermaid rooms were a good fit for us and the weekend we had planned. I think these are great if you are on a budget, looking for a value, or are not going to be spending a lot of time in the room because you will be in the parks the majority of the time. The theming at the hotel is amazing and the rooms will hold the most appeal to families with small kids.
