Dolphin or POR?

[earfulofmagic]

Dolphin all the way. If you're budgeting $70 for transportation that stills puts Dolphin's total at $402 vs POR at $462... and, as said, the Dolphin's location and pool complex is wonderful.

 

[MusicalAstronaut]

Yes for all four parks and Disney Springs.

Awesome! That definitely changes things.

 

[Karl66]

POR is our favorite moderate.

 

[gharter]

Totally different resorts.
I would go with the Dolphin onl because it is walking distance to 2 parks, has great nightlife by it and lots of very good restaurants nearby.
POR is a very good moderate resort, but much larger and spreadout. Buses also can be full by the time they get to you depending where you are staying.
Both are good options, but the Dolphin price seems very good.

 

[JerseyJanice]

Totally different resorts.
I would go with the Dolphin onl because it is walking distance to 2 parks, has great nightlife by it and lots of very good restaurants nearby.
POR is a very good moderate resort, but much larger and spreadout. Buses also can be full by the time they get to you depending where you are staying.
Both are good options, but the Dolphin price seems very good.

I really liked POR when we stayed there EXCEPT for the buses. They were so crowded, and coming back at night, you never knew which route they would take and in what order the stops would be. We called it, “Bus Roulette.”

 

[loves to dive]

All things being equal, Dolphin. As others have said, being able to walk to two parks is great. Technically you would only have to bus to AK since you have an AP and could walk through Epcot and catch the monorail to MK. I'm not saying that is the best way to do it but, the option is there.

 

[bryanb]

The Dolphin's location is wonderful. Great views and right next to everything. If you're a Starwood / Marriott rewards member you get all the perks and points of that program. It has upscale dining and amenities, a great pool, spa, fitness center, a beachfront recreation area, and 24-hour food available. The beds are Sheraton beds and comfier than Disney moderate beds. Some people are company-loyal, so they don't like that it's not run by Cast Members, but you get most perks except the airport shuttle. I've stayed at Dolphin/Swan often and would do it again.

By the way, I love POR's relaxed atmosphere, resort design, food court, and the wonderful boats to Disney Springs. I'm not as much of a fan of the motel-style moderate resort layout, where the window is at the corridor so you keep getting people walking in front of your window. I feel like the great views from the Dolphin/Swan make them really special (even if they're not Disney-operated).

You will need to book it ahead of time on-line since the desk where you buy the ticket closes at 10:00 PM.

I usually take Mears one-way ($23) on arrival, but it’s $33 round trip. I prefer to take Uber for the departing flight because I can choose the time I want to leave for the airport. If you take Mears back to the airport, they will assign you a time for pick-up because their vans usually stop at more than one hotel.

If you do arrive at MCO early in the morning or late at night, you can still get on the Mears shuttle but you might have to pay the driver cash since, since as of last visit, the driver didn't have a mobile credit card machine. The shuttle desk will have an after hours phone number posted, but when I called it, they just said to proceed to the pickup area to meet the driver.

 

[WDW_Diane]

So glad I discovered this thread! I'm holding a points reservation at the Swan for October, but also a $ reservation for POR. I can't make up my mind either!
It's just my husband and I on this trip. We've stayed at both resorts before, so I know the lay of the lands.
Being there during Food & Wine, I was excited to get a King room at the Swan for our stay....except for these transportation issues that really add up.....
He's playing golf one or two times on this five night trip, so not only do we have to factor in paying for transportation from and back to the airport with two suitcases and one set of clubs, but staying at the Swan, he would have to get back and forth from the golf courses by taxi and pay for those trips too. (I checked, it's on our dime.) From a Disney resort, it would be complimentary.
With the daily resort fee and taxes we'd have to pay at the Swan for five nights, the "free" stay at the Swan wouldn't really be free. I think it would cost us about $250 in total transportation and taxes and resort fees, which I loathe. But the Swan location is terrific, especially during October.
Of course, I'm also a huge Disney geek....why else would I be on these boards? And the Swan isn't a real Disney resort. I love the immersion feel and theming of Disney resorts. The pull of using DME, which we both love, is very attractive. We love the carefree feeling of not touching our bags from the time we check them in at our airport until they show up in our resort hotel room.
We absolutely will not rent a car.
Thanks for letting me sort out my thoughts and share, where I'm among Disney friends!

 

[WDW_Diane]

The Dolphin's location is wonderful. Great views and right next to everything. If you're a Starwood / Marriott rewards member you get all the perks and points of that program. It has upscale dining and amenities, a great pool, spa, fitness center, a beachfront recreation area, and 24-hour food available. The beds are Sheraton beds and comfier than Disney moderate beds. Some people are company-loyal, so they don't like that it's not run by Cast Members, but you get most perks except the airport shuttle. I've stayed at Dolphin/Swan often and would do it again.

By the way, I love POR's relaxed atmosphere, resort design, food court, and the wonderful boats to Disney Springs. I'm not as much of a fan of the motel-style moderate resort layout, where the window is at the corridor so you keep getting people walking in front of your window. I feel like the great views from the Dolphin/Swan make them really special (even if they're not Disney-operated).



If you do arrive at MCO early in the morning or late at night, you can still get on the Mears shuttle but you might have to pay the driver cash since, since as of last visit, the driver didn't have a mobile credit card machine. The shuttle desk will have an after hours phone number posted, but when I called it, they just said to proceed to the pickup area to meet the driver.

 

[WDW_Diane]

Great point about the beds at the Swan and Dolphin, I need to add that to my pros list.

Have you used the Mears shuttle? I'm wondering how many stops we'd have to endure before getting to our resort or back to the airport. Is their return to the airport time also three hours like DME? We are arriving at 3 in the afternoon and our flight departs at about the same time a few days later.

 

[coast2coastmickey]

So glad I discovered this thread! I'm holding a points reservation at the Swan for October, but also a $ reservation for POR. I can't make up my mind either!
It's just my husband and I on this trip. We've stayed at both resorts before, so I know the lay of the lands.
Being there during Food & Wine, I was excited to get a King room at the Swan for our stay....except for these transportation issues that really add up.....
He's playing golf one or two times on this five night trip, so not only do we have to factor in paying for transportation from and back to the airport with two suitcases and one set of clubs, but staying at the Swan, he would have to get back and forth from the golf courses by taxi and pay for those trips too. (I checked, it's on our dime.) From a Disney resort, it would be complimentary.
With the daily resort fee and taxes we'd have to pay at the Swan for five nights, the "free" stay at the Swan wouldn't really be free. I think it would cost us about $250 in total transportation and taxes and resort fees, which I loathe. But the Swan location is terrific, especially during October.
Of course, I'm also a huge Disney geek....why else would I be on these boards? And the Swan isn't a real Disney resort. I love the immersion feel and theming of Disney resorts. The pull of using DME, which we both love, is very attractive. We love the carefree feeling of not touching our bags from the time we check them in at our airport until they show up in our resort hotel room.
We absolutely will not rent a car.
Thanks for letting me sort out my thoughts and share, where I'm among Disney friends!

Lyft is cheaper than taxi for the most part.

 

[bryanb]

Great point about the beds at the Swan and Dolphin, I need to add that to my pros list.

Have you used the Mears shuttle? I'm wondering how many stops we'd have to endure before getting to our resort or back to the airport. Is their return to the airport time also three hours like DME? We are arriving at 3 in the afternoon and our flight departs at about the same time a few days later.

The number of stops varies quite a bit. They try to group people together for efficiency, while also having regular departures, so it depends on who happens to arrive at the same time.
Once, the small van made five stops and Swan was the last one. Another time, I was by myself and they gave me my own empty big bus with direct service (although that was at 6 a.m.).

 

[WDW_Diane]

The number of stops varies quite a bit. They try to group people together for efficiency, while also having regular departures, so it depends on who happens to arrive at the same time.
Once, the small van made five stops and Swan was the last one. Another time, I was by myself and they gave me my own empty big bus with direct service (although that was at 6 a.m.).

I was wondering if I'd be on a big bus or a shuttle van. I've been on the DME bus before where we stopped at three resorts before ours.

 

[bryanb]

I was wondering if I'd be on a big bus or a shuttle van. I've been on the DME bus before where we stopped at three resorts before ours.

I believe most of the vehicles are shuttle vans. They'll give you a pager that buzzes you when your seat assignment is determined. Hopefully a few parties show up going to the Swan/Dolphin at the same time to save you some wait!