Just when I thought I narrowed it down... BC vs. SandD

[MinnieMommy07]

My hubby asks me why not that one? And by that one I mean the Swan and Dolphin so I go to look at pictures and I said why not, too!

It looks great! Is there any con's besides no DME or KTTW charging? I can see a resort fee, but even adding in that it is still less expensive. It looks nice and colorful, palm trees, a great pool, nice restaurants, access to two parks, great views,... what's wrong with it?!

I was just in a great thread looking to settle on the BC finally and then this happens... Has anyone tried both and have any recommendations?

 

[ThumpersWorld]

We have stayed at the Dolphin twice and the Swan once and there is nothing wrong with them. In fact, they are beautiful hotels and some of my favorites. The only reason why we aren't staying there anymore is we became DVC owners at the EPCOT resorts. A one-bedroom at one of the villas just suits our family better. And if you have AAA, all the better because we got great discounts at the S & D with that. You get to take advantage of EMH like the Disney resorts. For us at the time the ME didn't matter much because the car service we got from the airport did a free grocery stop which we needed for diapers and some other things anyway.

 

[patty57]

We've stayed at BC & BCV, and BWV multiple times, and the Swan once this past June. I'm going in May and staying at the Dolphin. I had always thought about Swan/Dolphin before, but couldn't bring myself to book them because of the whole Disney "magic" thing. Guess what? We loved the Swan and I'm excited to try the Dolphin. The pool area is great, and the pool bars (if you're interested) are so much better than anything at the WDW resorts. You can't beat the price with an AAA or nurse's discount. The Epcot area is my absolute favorite, and I now have new favorite resorts. If the prices were the same as the Disney resorts, I might pick the WDW resorts...but they are so much less expensive. It ends up being a no-brainer for us.

 

[pixarmom]

We've stayed at BC many times and Dolphin once. Of course, they both have similar benefits, like the location and easy access to Epcot and DHS, for example.

But we thought the atmosphere at the Dolphin was different from Disney resorts. We saw far fewer kids and far more convention attendees at the Dolphin. It's set up more like a convention hotel than a resort (with long hallways to accomodate the meeting rooms.) It's not the same kind of Disney theming you usually find in Disney resorts. There were many larger groups of adults around the pool (along with the guy selling $5 shots from a spout connected to a backpack.) There wasn't necessarily anything wrong with the service - it was fine, just not the same level of enthusiasm we see from most Disney CMs. We moved over to AKL later in that trip, so the difference between Disney and non-Disney seemed more apparent to us.

But we love some of the restaurants - Picabu is a great quick service, Bluezoo is outstanding and Il Mulino is great. Our youngest son loved the playground. The rooms were fine - we had a really nice view of the water, but no balcony. If your focus is a good location at a lower price, it's a great choice.

 

[ChloroFiend]

We've stayed at S&D at least 3 times recently...its a really great option.

Magical Express is really the biggest loss; we've taken the Mears shared shuttle and it really sucks in comparison. KTTW charging is no big thing.

The beds at S&D rock, the pool and pool bar are both awesome, and the location is really nice...especially if you spend a lot of time around Epcot, DHS, and the Boardwalk. We haven't noticed any discrepancy in staff quality between there and any of the other Disney properties.

 

[MinnieMommy07]

There are some really great points here. Exactly what kind of "Disney Magic" is missing...? It seems to have as much as far as looks goes.... I was a little concerned as far as hotel security... Is this a place that is vulnerable to outside visitors using the amenities or is it reserved for guests only (pools)? I would probably go ahead and find what a previous poster did and get a grocery stop with a car.

I agree, I think I like the Epcot area better than the Bay Lake area, but just by a small margin... they are definitely both different and have their plusses and their minuses... but I am attracted to the atmosphere of the whole area being like a little village with two parks in proximity.

 

[cmusschoot]

Hi just taking a second to put my 2 cents in...

I have stayed at the Swan (twice) Dolphin (once) and Beach Club (twice).

They are all great hotels but for different resasons.

When I have stayed at the BCV it was with kids in a 2 bedroom and with a friend in a studio.

I have not stayed at the S/D with my kids...

Personally I prefer to have the seperate bedroom when traveling with my kids.

The resorst themselves are conparable as stated above, there is more of a "family" feel at the BC - as most everyone there is with their family.

S/D Beach Club and often Boardwalk are all on the same bus/boat routes so transportation will be virtually the same.

You are not able to get magical express service at S/D, so that might be an additional cost for cab/bus to - from the airport.

If it were up to me and the prices were the same, I would go BC - but I would not hesitste to stay at the S/D as they are lovely hotels

 

[Marthasor]

We just stayed at the Dolphin a few weeks ago. I have also stayed at BC, YC and BWI. I, too, never even considered stayed at S/D, but this was a last minute trip and I had missed all the Disney promos. S/D's prices were just too good to pass up and we LOVED it!!

When people say it lacks the Disney "magic", I think, for me, it means S/D doesn't carry their theming out to minute detail as Disney does. I missed it a little, but the pros of the resorts far outweighed anything I missed at BC/YC or BWI.

As mentioned, you share the same boat for EP and DHS. In fact, S/D is the first stop both going to and coming back from DHS - huge plus!

The restaurants are fantastic! Huge variety of fantastic food! Just avoid GG character meal - few characters, lots of lag time between visits.

I got a FANTASTIC rate! Started with a AAA rate, but the hotel became a "Starpick" two days before we left, so I called the hotel and they applied the new, lower rate at no penalty even though I was within the penalty phase! Our three nights total was the cost of one night, rack rate at BWI.

The rooms are big, quiet and the beds are very comfortable. We were on a high floor in the Central Tower and had a view of both the Fantasmic and Illuminations fireworks - this was a room with the lowest rate as well. It was great!

I HIGHLY recommend trying Swan or Dolphin. If you do, make sure to join SPG (Starwood Preferred Guest) - you typically get a free room upgrade! I think that's how I ended up with that view!

Also, we used ****** Transportation from the airport, which includes a grocery stop. If you mention "Magically Speaking" (The Mouse for Less's newsletter), you get $10 off your roundtrip transportation for a total of $95 roundtrip. They were great and we got to the resort much faster than ME. Pick-up was 2 hours prior to our departure flight, so we got to spend a little more time at the resort as well. (I guess I'm not allowed to mention the name of the ground transfer company. sorry. If you google Magically Speaking, you will find it, if you are interested. Lots of reputable car services in Orlando - just thought their prices were reasonable)

Love S/D!! Check out the official S/D thread on the DIS for more info!