Walt Disney World SWAN, DOLPHIN & SWAN RESERVE RESORTS Information & Questions

[happymommy]

I didn't know about the 20% bonus! Thanks for the heads up!

 

[ahutton]

I forgot that! I think they're more than a cab, but I may be wrong.

DH and I took Uber Black from the airport to the Marriott and it was MUCH more expensive than a town car would have been. Plus we didn't get to make a stop, and we had to wait quite a while for the driver. If we can't use Magic Express on our next trip we will be back to Tiffany Towncar

 

[happymommy]

I had read Uber Black was very expensive.

 

[Dan Murphy]

I had read Uber Black was very expensive.

Compared to Tiffany, about 30-50% more expensive, not including tips.

 

[happymommy]

If any of these were available what would you do?

Dh has approx 4100 Starpoints which could be used to -

1. Convert them to American Airlines Miles which is having a 20% bonus. These would go toward points with booking a room from AA

2. Use the 50% off rack rate for 1,000 Starpoints

3. See if the Pay for one night and get the 2nd night for 40% off is available

If anyone has converted the starpoints to AA points how long did that take as we are looking at October dates for Food and Wine.

I thought it was pretty immediate, like it is when transferring Amex Membership Rewards points to other programs, like Delta. But, it can take 2 to 4 days according to the site.

There is actually a special 20% transfer bonus from Aug 1 - Sept 14 for SPG to AA transfers. It combines with the regular 5,000 bonus on a 20,000 point transfer.

I would hold on to the Starpoints and check all possible discounts I may qualify for, including seeing what comes up under "promotions and packages" on the spg site.

Thank you once again! Booked our flight to Hawaii next summer with low mileage in first class on AA (just going over, it's too far out still for a couple of weeks for the return). Coach wasn't even available! I needed another 50,000 miles so transferred from my SPG account and have the flights on hold for 6 days free. Hope the transfer and bonus miles get over there in time, or I'll call AA (I'm lifetime gold, so sometimes they can push it quicker).

Totally worth it for $6,000 worth of flights using the miles instead!

 

[luvmarypoppins]

happymommy - it's good you booked those flights now, especially since they are changing the AA program in 2017. My dh is lifetime platinum.

I am thinking just to put the Starwoods points into the AA miles because we want to stay at the Swan in Oct and December so we need the points and I can't see dh getting that many more Starpoints as when he travels his travel dept. usually doesnt book him into hotels that offer the Starpoints.

So basically they are just sitting around doing nothing and even though we dont have a lot, they can go towards something and usually most of the time if the Swan hotel rooms are not available I can get them using the AA points.

 

[happymommy]

I wasn't aware of changes in 2017 to AA!

 

[ajenks22]

Hi there. Staying at the Swan in December. I booked through Hotels.com, but my reservation number won't link to MDE. Do I need an official Disney res number? If so, how do I get one? TIA!

 

[butternut]

I can use American Airlines points for stays at Swan and Dolphin? Sorry if I am misreading this.

 

[Dan Murphy]

Hi there. Staying at the Swan in December. I booked through Hotels.com, but my reservation number won't link to MDE. Do I need an official Disney res number? If so, how do I get one? TIA!

Yes, call the Swan and ask for the confirmation number needed for your MDE.

 

[lizabu]

I can use American Airlines points for stays at Swan and Dolphin? Sorry if I am misreading this.

You could transfer starpoints to AA but it doesn't go the other way

 

[happymommy]

Woo hoo - my 60,000 Starpoints that I just transferred Saturday morning just dumped 90,000 AA miles into my account today (Monday morning). Got our flights to Hawaii on hold, so now I can book them - first class. Thanks again for the info on bonus miles!

 

[jcvalenti]

Okay ... so we've got a group of 7 folks traveling down to Epcot Food & Wine Fest from 10/9 to 10/12. We were going to rent a minivan for the duration, but frankly, all we need is (a) a ride from the airport to the Dolphin on 10/9 - 1 hour rental and (b) a car to take back to the airport via lunch in Disney Springs on 10/12 - about 3.5 hours. Best rate I can find for a 3 day minivan rental during that span is $279, plus the fairly high parking fee.

Given that there is apparently an Alamo Counter at the Dolphin, is there any way I can rent a car at the airport, turn it in at the hotel and then rent a car at the hotel on departure day and turn it in at the airport ? Seems like that could save a fair amount of money. Anyone ever do this before ?

 

[Dan Murphy]

Given that there is apparently an Alamo Counter at the Dolphin, is there any way I can rent a car at the airport, turn it in at the hotel and then rent a car at the hotel on departure day and turn it in at the airport ? Seems like that could save a fair amount of money. Anyone ever do this before ?

I have not done that before but I know many have. Check the rates.

 

[Tess]

Okay ... so we've got a group of 7 folks traveling down to Epcot Food & Wine Fest from 10/9 to 10/12. We were going to rent a minivan for the duration, but frankly, all we need is (a) a ride from the airport to the Dolphin on 10/9 - 1 hour rental and (b) a car to take back to the airport via lunch in Disney Springs on 10/12 - about 3.5 hours. Best rate I can find for a 3 day minivan rental during that span is $279, plus the fairly high parking fee.

Given that there is apparently an Alamo Counter at the Dolphin, is there any way I can rent a car at the airport, turn it in at the hotel and then rent a car at the hotel on departure day and turn it in at the airport ? Seems like that could save a fair amount of money. Anyone ever do this before ?

Have done this many times--we didn't need the car while at Disney so rent it and return it then pick it up again when needed. The price is usually a bit higher when picking up from the Dolphin but you can usually get a decent rate from Alamo at MCO. Why won't you use a transportation service and skip the rental altogether?

 

[jcvalenti]

Have done this many times--we didn't need the car while at Disney so rent it and return it then pick it up again when needed. The price is usually a bit higher when picking up from the Dolphin but you can usually get a decent rate from Alamo at MCO. Why won't you use a transportation service and skip the rental altogether?

We thought about scheduled transport but on the last day, we're doing some random touring of Disney Springs ... don't have a definite departure time and we don't want to waste time waiting for WDW busses ... so we figured this would work better.

 

[amyy]

Thanks to tips on here I was able to call and switch to 6 nights in a balcony room at the Dolphin for only $140. I had to buy the points or most of them. Crossing my fingers for a refurbished room, but figured if an old one smells funny (as I have read somewheres) we can air it out. And we aren't in the park opening to close park so the balcony will get used early in the morning and an evening or two. thanks again!!

 

[Dan Murphy]

but figured if an old one smells funny (as I have read somewheres) we can air it out.

If a room does not meet you standards, ask for a different one. Not necessarily a refurbished one if none are available, but if one smells, not your responsibility to air it out.

 

[DJFan88]

If a room does not meet you standards, ask for a different one. Not necessarily a refurbished one if none are available, but if one smells, not your responsibility to air it out.

We got here a couple of days ago, and I didn't realize about the elevator only thing. So after about 3 hours when I realized there were no stairs, I asked if they had any availability to switch on one of the only two floors with stairs access, and they happily did. A little thing for some, but made all the difference in the world. Same view, different floor.

 

[MarBee]

We got here a couple of days ago, and I didn't realize about the elevator only thing. So after about 3 hours when I realized there were no stairs, I asked if they had any availability to switch on one of the only two floors with stairs access, and they happily did. A little thing for some, but made all the difference in the world. Same view, different floor.

Does anyone know which parts have been renovated? Like are they going by floors? I would like a lower floor but if they're renovating from the top down, I'll go higher.