Need help in choosing a hotel..please

[shelley3367]

Have a reservation at both the Swan and the Portofino for late March. Will be spending time at Epcot, Universal and MGM. I was only able to get a basic room at the Swan, and a Club level at the Portofino. I am not familar with either of these hotels and am looking for some expert advice on which is more luxurious. The only place I have stayed was at the GF. Thank you in advance.

 

[Indy's Girl]

First of all, I have never stayed in either of these hotels so my advice is based on what I have read and heard from others.

I am a little confused, are you staying at both (one for Disney days, then the other when you go to universal?) or trying to choose one?
If you are trying to pick just one you have a few things to consider beyond the "luxury" of the room. If you will be spending most of your time at the two Disney parks you listed, it may be worth it to stay at the Swan to get transport to the parks. Be aware however that the Swan does not have access to Extra Magic Hours or Magical Express. If you stay at Portofino, you will have teh huge advantage of Front of the Line privledges at Universal which may well be worth your time in commutting to Disney. I have heard many many good reviews of Portofino, saying it is very luxurious with nice bed linens, towels, pillows etc. plus good place to eat. I have not heard too much about the Swan either way.

You might want to look into splitting your stay, and doing several days at each so that you get the benefits of each. If you will have a car and don't mind commuting to the Disney parks, I would recommend Portofino simply for the fotl privledges.

Hope this helps!

 

[Gagebre]

I'm staying there in a couple of weeks and would like to know if they do.

 

[RachelTori]

I'm staying there in a couple of weeks and would like to know if they do.

Yes, they do!!! It's *Magical Express* Swan/Dolphin guests don't get.

 

[Indy's Girl]

Yes, they do!!! It's *Magical Express* Swan/Dolphin guests don't get.

Thanks for correcting me, I hate accidently giving wrong info

 

[2dogmom]

I have never stayed at the Swan, but I did stay at Portofino in September and I loved it. I would compare it to the deluxe resorts at WDW. I wouldn't hesitate to stay there again. Plus, the front of the line pass is awesome.

 

[knelson]

Which hotels allow you the front line pass? and Express?

 

[chasgoose]

Portofino Bay is by far the more luxurious resort. IMHO it's nicer than any hotel that Disney has to offer. While still not a true luxury resort, it comes closer to that than any resort on Disney property. The Swan is probably not quite as nice as the GF, but for what you pay it is pretty good. It is on par or better than most of the Disney Deluxes for a usually lower rate.

Which hotels allow you the front line pass? and Express?

Magical Express is the free bus service offered between MCO and any Disney owned on-property resort. So that includes everything on property except the Swan and Dolphin. It's a pretty nice perk.

The front of the line pass is something that Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure offer to all guests who stay at one of the 3 resorts on property (the Royal Pacific Hotel, the Hard Rock Hotel, and the Portofino Bay Resort). They can do that because there are far fewer guests staying on property at Universal than at Disney and they would all be considered Deluxe properties at Disney (although oftentimes they are cheaper than the moderates) so they limit their market even further.

If you are planning on visiting Universal Studios and can swing the room rates (usually if you can afford a moderate during Regular season you can probably afford a couple nights at a Universal on-site resort) you MUST stay at Universal. Do a split stay between Disney and Universal if you have to, because that front of the line pass is the best perk going and it saves both time and stress. I would also reccomend doing Universal second if you do that, because, especially if you stay at the Portofino Bay, nothing at Disney will seem as nice.

 

[minnie61650]

The Swan/Dolphin resorts are true 4 star hotels with stellar service.
(The GF and Poly have a AAA 4 diamond rating but most other sites rate them 3-3 and a half stars.)
IMHO The Disney deluxe resorts fall short on customer service.

It is my opionion that the Swan and Dolphin are best hotels on Disney property.

I travel several times a year for pleasure and often stay at 4 star hotels.

The Swan/Dolphin offen has great rates that cost about as much as a Disney Moderate.

They are deluxe hotels but not as expensive as Disney's deluxe resorts.

They have:

17 restaurants and longes
A Three-acre grotto pool with tropical waterfall and water slide
Swan paddle boat rentals
Two poolside restaurants
Water volleyball
Staff supervised pool games
Two lap pools
Spring pool
Four whirlpools
Kiddie pool
Two sand volleyball courts
Basketball hoops

The heavenly beds are ...well heavenly.

The Grotto pool and hot tubs are fun and relaxing.

Plus Epcot and MGM are just a short boat ride or walk away!

From Epcot hop on the monorail and head on over to the MK!

Have fun wherever you choose to stay!

 

[Kimberle]

How long is your trip? You might want to split your stay between the 2 resorts. WDW and US are a good 30 minutes apart. Plus, you need to add a little extra parking time. How are you planning on dividing your time?

If mostly at WDW, with just a day or 2 at US, then I'd stay at the Swan. If mainly at US, PR.

We stayed at RPR last summer for a week. We only did US. It was awsome, very relaxing. FOTL is wonderful. Plus, you are allowed to "pool hop". Besides FOTL for rides, you also get FOTL for most resturants. You can eat when and where you like, no ADR's necessary.

 

[knelson]

For our first trip we are doing the 4 day DW and day cruise. I think we stay with the Magic Kingdon Parks mostly. Our eldest daughter is an actress (not famous yet - but has done many movies and TV shows) but always gets on sets and we have Universal Studios here in CA.

I am picky about service - do not mind tipping and taking care of people who take care of us - the biggest attraction for us on the this trip is seeing the Christmas decorations - we figure the parks will be busy so we will have to make another trip to see the parks and attractions.

 

[chasgoose]

For our first trip we are doing the 4 day DW and day cruise. I think we stay with the Magic Kingdon Parks mostly. Our eldest daughter is an actress (not famous yet - but has done many movies and TV shows) but always gets on sets and we have Universal Studios here in CA.

There is much more to do at Universal Studios Florida than Universal Studios California. The Florida version has two parks: Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. The Universal Studios section alone has more stuff than the California version, there are some crossovers, but the focus is less on the whole movie studio thing (since there is no movie studio in Florida) and more on being a movie-themed theme park. Islands of Adventure combines the thrill rides of a Six Flags type theme park with the theming, cleanliness, and quality of a Disney park. The Amazing Adventures of Spiderman ride at Islands of Adventure is, in my mind, the single best theme park attraction I have ever been on and in many eyes it is the best ride in the world. The Tower of Terror ride and Dinosaur/Indiana Jones Ride at Disneyland come close, but are not quite on Spiderman's level. For the length of time you are going to be at Disney, I might not suggest doing Universal Studios Florida unless you are going to add some extra time to your trip, but I wouldn't write it off just because there is a Universal Studios in California. It's sort of like writing off Walt Disney World because you have been to Disneyland.

I realize I sound like a huge Universal Studios shill. Overall I still like WDW better, but the Universal Studios Florida complex does have the best individual hotel (Portofino Bay) and best individual ride (Spiderman) of both parks.

 

[knelson]

You actually sold my eldest children - they went online and took a look at the rides.

Thank you so much for your information. Sounds like the best park for my teenage son.

 

[ScubaCat]

If you are just going to do one of the parks, I'd do islands of adventure for sure, especially if they're into rides. I found the other (the original) Universal park to be very underwhelming.

 

[scottwhite1964]

Hey I staed in Feb 2008 it's very nice. 1 dad 4 kids we had a great time. The fast pass is worth every penny. NO lines, my oldest 2 are 12 -13 I turned them loose,very safe, it was'nt a problem. They loved it, I think they went on spiderman 20 times and the roller coasters are great. They would come dragging back around 10 happy and tired. The food was kind of pricey but not outragous. I liked it alot and would go again. My young ones 6 - 11 had fun too. There is alot for the little kids. It's not Disney but it's close.