The **New** Swan and Dolphin Resort thread ~ April 2012 ~ Please read post #1

[RachelTori]

Originally Posted by mikegood2

I though you answer was very useful, I just wanted to add on to it. Also, when I pulled the tread up you following post on town cars wasn't posted yet and I didn't refresh it before I responded. How dare work interfere with my posting on the DISboards!!!

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[Poohlovr]

We have our first alcove room with balcony booked at the Swan. Where is the best location to request based on your experience?

Thanks

[SRUAlmn]

Let me preface this by saying we've only stayed once

We were in the east (?) wing and all the food, busses, etc... are in the west (?) wing. (Someone please correct me if I reversed the two wings!) My sister and I have an amazing sense of direction and it was like a maze to get from our room down to those areas. Every hallway looks the same, and there are little mini lobbies amongst the floors that also all look the same My mom doesn't have as great of a sense of direction as we do, so she wasn't allowed to go anywhere alone! If you have directionality issues, or pre-teens who might be "on their own" to go to the pool/arcade/food areas, I'd suggest the west wing to make it easier

[Poohlovr]

Thanks. This trip is just DH, our youngest grandson and me. I've stayed at the Swan 3 or 4 times in the past, but have been at the Dolphin for that last several trips and am having a brain block about which wing we preferred in the past.

[LexiC123]

Originally Posted by Poohlovr

We have our first alcove room with balcony booked at the Swan. Where is the best location to request based on your experience?

Thanks

The alcove rooms are terrific. They're the last rooms in each of the 'wings' that jut out from the main section of the Swan. We stayed in one at the Swan in 2010 - Room 592 in the West Wing - and absolutely loved the location, and the view from the room. Besides the extra space, I really liked that the room had windows on two sides, allowing for lots of extra light and several different views.

One of the best things about the Swan (for me, anyway) is that it's much easier to navigate than the Dolphin. Even the alcove rooms weren't much of a walk from the elevator, whereas the Dolphin hallways seemed to go on forever! And once you hit the lobby, the bus stop is a few steps out the front door, and the boat launch is a short walk out the back door.

For the best views, I would request a Boardwalk/Epcot view, on a higher floor (5 through 7).

PS - I posted a few photos of the room in a brief trip summary, here.

[Dan Murphy]

Originally Posted by Poohlovr

We have our first alcove room with balcony booked at the Swan. Where is the best location to request based on your experience?

Thanks

Sue!!!! How you doing stranger??

[Poohlovr]

Hi Dan! Life's good. How about you??

[emma212010]

I have a quick question to Dolphin regulars!

Are the doors to the rooms magnetic?

We are staying there in June, and I would love to decorate our door!

Thanks!!

[Mouseteacher]

Originally Posted by LexiC123

The alcove rooms are terrific. They're the last rooms in each of the 'wings' that jut out from the main section of the Swan. We stayed in one at the Swan in 2010 - Room 592 in the West Wing - and absolutely loved the location, and the view from the room. Besides the extra space, I really liked that the room had windows on two sides, allowing for lots of extra light and several different views.

One of the best things about the Swan (for me, anyway) is that it's much easier to navigate than the Dolphin. Even the alcove rooms weren't much of a walk from the elevator, whereas the Dolphin hallways seemed to go on forever! And once you hit the lobby, the bus stop is a few steps out the front door, and the boat launch is a short walk out the back door.

For the best views, I would request a Boardwalk/Epcot view, on a higher floor (5 through 7).

PS - I posted a few photos of the room in a brief trip summary, here.

We love the Swan alcove room. Looking at your photo, we request the east wing. The wing you see in the photo. Our rooms have been on the 5th and 6th floor the last room so that you have 3 windows plus the sliding glass door. I can see "our" balcony in the photo!

[SRUAlmn]

Originally Posted by Mouseteacher

We love the Swan alcove room. Looking at your photo, we request the east wing. The wing you see in the photo. Our rooms have been on the 5th and 6th floor the last room so that you have 3 windows plus the sliding glass door. I can see "our" balcony in the photo!

That seems like a great room. 3 windows plus the slider would be awesome! For Swan regulars, is it hard having some of the things only located at the Dolphin? We stayed at the Dolphin for our trip, and while it was HUGE, it was nice to have Picabu and the candy store and The Fountain, etc... right on site. However, I love the Java Bar at the Swan... Just trying to decide if we'd maybe like the Swan better (expecially being 2 adults with no kiddos!) We stayed during a dance competition, and the hallways were like a race track I'm a teacher, so it was hard not to "correct" the behavior

[LexiC123]

Originally Posted by emma212010

I have a quick question to Dolphin regulars!

Are the doors to the rooms magnetic?

We are staying there in June, and I would love to decorate our door!

Thanks!!

I honestly have no idea. I've never seen any of the doors decorated.

Originally Posted by Mouseteacher

We love the Swan alcove room. Looking at your photo, we request the east wing. The wing you see in the photo. Our rooms have been on the 5th and 6th floor the last room so that you have 3 windows plus the sliding glass door. I can see "our" balcony in the photo!

At first I was disappointed that we weren't in the east wing, figuring that our view would be blocked, but it turned out to be a pretty view, even with just a partial Spaceship Earth.

Originally Posted by SRUAlmn

That seems like a great room. 3 windows plus the slider would be awesome! For Swan regulars, is it hard having some of the things only located at the Dolphin? We stayed at the Dolphin for our trip, and while it was HUGE, it was nice to have Picabu and the candy store and The Fountain, etc... right on site. However, I love the Java Bar at the Swan... Just trying to decide if we'd maybe like the Swan better (expecially being 2 adults with no kiddos!) We stayed during a dance competition, and the hallways were like a race track I'm a teacher, so it was hard not to "correct" the behavior

It never really bothered us. The walk across the causeway takes almost no time - 2 minutes, tops. When we stayed at the Dolphin, we were in the east wing, and it took longer to get to Picabu and Fountain from that side of the resort than it took walking over from the Swan. We don't do laundry or use the arcade, so that was never an issue. The walk to the grotto pool was slightly longer, but the Swan lap pool, jacuzzi and pool bar were so convenient and laid back, that we didn't miss the activity of the main pool all that much.

And I know what you mean about the Dolphin hallways. The times we've stayed there, there seemed to be people running up and down the hall at all times of the day and night!

[SRUAlmn]

Originally Posted by LexiC123

It never really bothered us. The walk across the causeway takes almost no time - 2 minutes, tops. When we stayed at the Dolphin, we were in the east wing, and it took longer to get to Picabu and Fountain from that side of the resort than it took walking over from the Swan. We don't do laundry or use the arcade, so that was never an issue. The walk to the grotto pool was slightly longer, but the Swan lap pool, jacuzzi and pool bar were so convenient and laid back, that we didn't miss the activity of the main pool all that much.

And I know what you mean about the Dolphin hallways. The times we've stayed there, there seemed to be people running up and down the hall at all times of the day and night!

Thanks, that's a good point! We were in the east wing too, and it was sort of far, so it's good to realize it would be similar to that. We also never used the arcade, only went to Picabu twice, and only used the laundry to dry some things since we were there during a tropical storm I can't seem to get the teacher rate to come up for Swan alcove rooms for our dates, so maybe I'll try calling. Thanks again!

[Bronte]

I think I got a good rate for the Dolphin for Dec. 30/31 (189 per night.)
We almost always stay on property and DH asked tonight if MK is closed at some point on the 30th will we be able to get in if the stage is only "off property" guests (I think they are first correct?)
I also have a room at the beach club for the 30 through the 6th ... During a really busy time like New Years is it just best to stay at a Disney resort just to be safe.
I was really looking forward to staying there but if we can not get into the Magic Kingdom for the fireworks I thing that would be just crazy.

[SRUAlmn]

Originally Posted by Bronte

I think I got a good rate for the Dolphin for Dec. 30/31 (189 per night.)
We almost always stay on property and DH asked tonight if MK is closed at some point on the 30th will we be able to get in if the stage is only "off property" guests (I think they are first correct?)
I also have a room at the beach club for the 30 through the 6th ... During a really busy time like New Years is it just best to stay at a Disney resort just to be safe.
I was really looking forward to staying there but if we can not get into the Magic Kingdom for the fireworks I thing that would be just crazy.

I 'think' (and someone correct me if I'm wrong,) that the S&D are considered on-site Disney resorts in cases like those. They use Disney transportation and share it with guests at BC, YC, and BWI, so it would be really difficult to not include them.

[Poohlovr]

Originally Posted by Bronte

I think I got a good rate for the Dolphin for Dec. 30/31 (189 per night.)
We almost always stay on property and DH asked tonight if MK is closed at some point on the 30th will we be able to get in if the stage is only "off property" guests (I think they are first correct?)
I also have a room at the beach club for the 30 through the 6th ... During a really busy time like New Years is it just best to stay at a Disney resort just to be safe.
I was really looking forward to staying there but if we can not get into the Magic Kingdom for the fireworks I thing that would be just crazy.

In your scenario, S/D guests are considered on-property and would be allowed in the park.