We love Disney, but some of our hotel experiences have made us question our sanity.
Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort
You can plan the perfect trip, score the dining reservations, and even time your park days like a pro — but none of it matters if your hotel stay turns into a full-on disaster. Over the years, we’ve had a few downright awful experiences at Disney World resorts, and today we’re sharing five that we still haven’t recovered from. These are the stories that live rent-free in our heads anytime someone says “it’s worth the splurge” or “you should try it one more time.
The Grand Floridian
This one still stings. For one of our team members, they were celebrating their son’s birthday and decided to go all out at Disney’s flagship resort. When they opened the door to our room, the first thing that hit them was the smell, like wet dog that had been living in there for a week. The carpets were stained, the furniture was scuffed beyond repair, and there was an actual chunk missing from the headboard. They took pictures and went straight to guest services.
Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort
The response? “What do you want me to do about it? We’re booked full.” That came from the manager. They eventually “found” them another room, but it was hours later, well after they got back from the Magic Kingdom. They left milk and cookies as some sort of apology (because it was December), but the damage was done.
Grand Floridian Front Desk
The same team member gave the resort one more chance on a short trip — a one-night stay. Big mistake. They didn’t get their room assignment until after the fireworks. That’s right. Nothing until almost 10PM. The Cast Members blamed them for not doing online check-in, even though they had. Three times. It “just didn’t take,” apparently. At this point, the Grand Floridian is permanently off their list.
Caribbean Beach: Beautiful, But Not Worth It
Caribbean Beach Resort has charm. The Skyliner access is great. The pool is gorgeous. But none of that helps when a Cast Member walks into your room without knocking while you’re bathing your kids.
Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort
This happened to one of our team members on check-out day. The kids wanted one last swim before we left, so they were getting ready in the room. It wasn’t even close to check-out time yet — they had at least an hour left. They’d put the “Do Not Disturb” sign on the door. Still, someone just walked right in while they were still bathing the kids. No knock. No warning. Just opened the door and came in. And that was the last time they stayed there.
All-Star Resorts During Cheer Season = No Sleep Ever
We get that Disney hosts a lot of events and competitions, and we don’t fault the cheerleaders for being excited. But if you’ve ever booked a stay at one of the All-Star Resorts during competition season, you already know where this is going.
Crowds
There is yelling. The constant noise. Inside the rooms. Outside in the walkways. In the food court. At 6AM and 1AM. It doesn’t stop. We’ve had multiple stays where we got maybe three hours of sleep each night — and we’re not light sleepers. There’s just no peace and quiet when you’re surrounded by large groups of kids rehearsing routines in the hallways. Unless you’re there for the competition too, we’d suggest avoiding All-Stars during those weeks entirely.
Art of Animation: Where Are My Bags and My Bed?
Art of Animation is one of our favorite themed resorts, but one of our team members’ first stays there was rough. They checked in late one night, between 11PM and midnight. Since they’d requested a rollaway and had bags that needed to be delivered to the room, they figured they’d be able to settle in pretty quickly. That did not happen.
Art of Animation
They waited. And waited. And waited some more. Their pajamas and bags didn’t show up until around 2:30AM. The rollaway? Same deal. That night turned into a long, grumpy mess. Granted, this was back in 2018, and we haven’t had issues at AoA since, but it was still one of those nights where we wished we’d just stayed off-property and saved ourselves the hassle.
The Bottom Line
We’ve stayed at a lot of Disney resorts over the years, and for the most part, things go smoothly. But when things go wrong, they can really go wrong. Whether it’s broken check-in systems, surprise walk-ins, noise at all hours, or rooms that feel like they haven’t been deep-cleaned since the Eisner era, some stays are just not worth the price. That’s why we always tell folks to research the timing of their stay, double-check everything at check-in, and speak up when something doesn’t feel right. And sometimes, it’s okay to say “never again” and stick to it.
Art of Animation Resort
Remember, the truth is that some of these things can happen at any hotel, even at Disney. We’ve also heard plenty of great experiences at each of the resorts we mentioned — these were just our personal worst-case scenarios. Your stay could be totally different (and hopefully much smoother).
Don’t want to go through all of the stress of booking your Disney World trip alone? Reach out to our friends at Small World Vacations! Their experienced agents monitor your reservation for possible future savings, compare discounts and figure out which one works best for your travel party, dates, resort, and touring plans. And, they share expert tips and first-hand advice with you about your magical vacation.
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We’ve been at All Star Sports when the teams were there, and we’ve been at Music when the bands were there. The worst part was the parking, but that was pretty bad. One night at Music, I’m pretty sure that we had to park at what was technically another All Star resort. We’ve also received some pretty late notices that our room was ready, after yes, using online check-in, and letting the resort know as soon as we arrived in the area. We never had it disputed that we used online check-in though, but it has taken many hours at times. Luckily, once we were in our rooms, things have always gone pretty well (aside from some noise factors). We accepted an ‘upgrade’ to a poolside room on a first floor once. Never again. Humid, noisy, and you felt like you were in the middle of a crowd even with the curtains drawn and the door shut.
Disney has been really good to me, room-wise. I always stay at the Riviera, and always request a room with fireworks view, because I hate trying to leave the park at peak time after the show.
I fully understand that requests are not guaranteed, and the first three times I was accommodated, but on trip #4 none of the fireworks view rooms were available despite my adding the request to my reservation months ahead. However, they did us the next best option to give us an advantagous room right near both the elevator and the laundry facility. It was amazing because one of my party had an ECV and it was a great not to have to worry about passing anyone in the hallway when we left. And the few steps to the laundry was a godsend on the exhausting last day.
In 1994 we booked a vacation at Carribean Beach resort. We got a call from Disney saying they wanted to upgrade us to the Contempoary no charge. We thought. that would be great. They neglected to tell us it was in the garden section. We were expecting the tower and got the wing. We have been to Disney world 16 times and Disneyland twice. I can honestly say this was by far the worst vacation ever. The highlight of the trip was watching the OJ chase on tv. I learned on good lesson do your homework and do not rely on others.
I had a stay at Coronado Springs Resort last year, I was in my room midday for a bit of a break. While in my tshirt only and using the restroom, a cast member walked all the way into my room and came to talk to me in the bathroom. Needless to say I was less than pleased and let the cast member know. All I got in return was an apology phone call.
I’m surprised at the condition of the Grand Floridian. I used to do housekeeping at Disney Institute and Wilderness Lodge. We would never leave a room in the condition that they described. And the unhelpful front desk. Shameful.
I have stayed at the Grand Floridian many times over the years and can report the following: years ago I would have considered it Disney’s flagship hotel. Impeccable staff, joyful door greeters, clean rooms, immaculate grounds. Solid food choices and management hovering for execution. Since the Iger/Chapel/Iger era began, it has steadily headed downhill. Those descriptions of wet dog smells and ‘what do you want me to do’ is current Disney mentality and never would have been previously tolerated. Especially at the GF. Do better Disney.
Stayed at Caribbean in Jan. Small room. Very small bathroom. Needed painting. Ony hard backed chairs. Could only watch TV while sitting. Two nights, room was not cleaned.
I will not stay in an All-Star Resort or PopCentury without ear plugs.
Caribbean Beach resort was our nightmare resort. When we got to our room, we plugged in our refrigerator and it started smoking. We were afraid of a fire so we unplugged it and called guest service . We asked for someone to remove it from the room because it smelled like smoke and we were afraid of it catching on fire. They said we were basically on our own. My friend who I was traveling with put it outside the room door. They came and got it the next day. When we asked for a replacement they said they didn’t have any. Sorry. I will never stay there again and I haven’t been back to Disney in about 10 years.
We stayed at The Four Seasons Resort @ Disneyworld it was amazing! I scored a deal that cost $4000 less to stay there then staying at the Polynesian hotel. Plus their 5 acre lazy river ,beach front pool, waterslides, amazing food, etc. My kids got a Disney toy on their bed to keep, a bedtime story every night, cookies, chocolates, a backpack to take to disneyworld. All of those extra special touches was amazing!
Not a nightmare. We always have a great time at fort wilderness campground. We pull in to one of the premium sights hook up annual and we are ready to go. There’s plenty to do there without leaving the campground and it’s always quiet at night. Nice pools good foods and activities. We live our camper and find it’s the best place for us to stay.
Not sure any of these are anywhere near a nightmare. You’re idea of a nightmare stay is far from an actual nightmare stay.
I’m stunned at the bad attitudes you describe especially at a deluxe resort. Walt and Eisner never would have allowed! I’ve never stayed at the All Star resorts bc of the noise. We used to love Pop Century 50s top floor back side for a fireworks view but the walls are fairly thin. Not so much from people but the toilets flushing! Way too loud! My sister and I stayed at Coronado a few years ago. The room they gave us reeked of bleach and had spiders! Ick!! We asked for another room, they were very nice and gave us a brand new room by the bus stop. We were very happy! We’ve had a few bad experiences in various hotels outside Disney Springs….one gave us a room already occupied!….but we’ve mostly had good experiences at various wdw resorts. We all have our favorites: French Quarter, Animal Kingdom, Boardwalk Resort. Sadly, at their prices, every stay should be wonderful from start to finish…it shouldn’t be a gamble.
Oh wow—your recounting of those hotel mishaps is the perfect blend of drama and practical advice! It’s so helpful (and a little scary!) to see real stories of what went wrong, from cleanliness issues to booking surprises. I especially appreciate how you paired each nightmare with clear tips on what travelers can watch out for or request if they want to avoid similar headaches. Thanks for sharing your experiences in such a candid, useful, and slightly entertaining way—it’s great intel for anyone planning a Disney trip!
First time out at AoA back when magic Express was still a thing, we waited over an hour for our bags which had our swim gear. Ultimately I decided to go get the bags myself.
As for CBR, that sounds like an oblivious cast member vs adding on the resort. I’ve only had one unhelpful cast member there, but fit help from another regarding room assignment. We’ve been to CBR several times.
POP Century was our nightmare last year.
Wrong room, wrong location, we were told not to unpack they would make it right but it would take 2 days.
Came back from MK that night at 11pm and had no room and no idea where our luggage was.
The next day we were woke up early so the manager could explain and the applogy was room service every day.
Came back that night, room was never touched, no towels etc.
By the time they did anything it was time to go home.