Port Orleans vs. Dolphin??? Help!

[MCW3D]

Can anyone give me advice on PO-Riverside vs. Dolphin? We have POR preferred room booked for May (with 20% off Disney promo) but I went to AAA travel show today and a Disney catalog says they can give me 35% off at the Dolphin which can fit our family of 5. I think it may be $40 cheaper -- not a huge savings but anyone have opinions for one over the other? Does one have better proximity, transportation to parks? Also, does the Dolphin ONLY have double beds? Is it part of Magical Express? Dining plan? Thanks so much -- just wondering if I should get a quote from AAA for the Dolphin.

 

[Belle83]

Can anyone give me advice on PO-Riverside vs. Dolphin? We have POR preferred room booked for May (with 20% off Disney promo) but I went to AAA travel show today and a Disney catalog says they can give me 35% off at the Dolphin which can fit our family of 5. I think it may be $40 cheaper -- not a huge savings but anyone have opinions for one over the other? Does one have better proximity, transportation to parks? Also, does the Dolphin ONLY have double beds? Is it part of Magical Express? Dining plan? Thanks so much -- just wondering if I should get a quote from AAA for the Dolphin.

The Dolphin has double beds and king beds. The Swan has queen beds and king beds.

Dolphin is by far closer to the parks and dining/restaurants than Port Orleans. You can walk to Epcot and Hollywood Studios (or take a boat) from the Dolphin. The Dolphin is walking distance to the Boardwalk area and all the restaurants there (and at the Yacht/Beach Club). You can also walk to the Fantasia Gardens mini golf from the Dolphin. From Port Orleans, you have to take a bus to all parks (but you do have a boat to Downtown Disney).

Dolphin is not part of Magical Express.

I've stayed at Dolphin and Port Orleans French Quarter (not Riverside). We stayed at the Dolphin last year over Port Orleans Riverside because it was cheaper than the moderates (at least we thought it was, in hindsight we probably could have got free dining). We were also going to rent a car anyway, so the lack of Magical Express was a non-issue. At the Dolphin, you have a luxurious resort feel in an awesome location (with more comfortable beds, and Starbucks coffee in your room). At Port Orleans, you get to say you are in a Disney resort.

I would have a hard time paying more to stay at Port Orleans over the Dolphin.

If you want, I have lots of pictures of the Dolphin in my trip report (link is in my signature).

 

[mickeynut1]

Dolphin is not part of Magical Express.

You also can't get the DDP staying at the Dolphin.

 

[stampwithamy]

The beds at the Dolphin are soooo comfortable!!! We loved the Dolphin. It was so nice to walk to Epcot if you wanted to and the kids loved riding the boat to the parks. The Dolphin has an awesome swimming pool that is huge!

 

[Ohiodisneyguy]

Can't give much more info than has already been given. But I have stayed at both and if you don't want ME or DDP, there is no comparison, Dolphin is much nicer. Rooms, pools, restaurants, location, deluxe all the way.

 

[Ohiodisneyguy]

Sorry I forgot to mention something else to consider when pricing. Dolphin and Swan charge a resort fee and parking fee if you will have a car. About $15 and $11 if I remember correctly.

 

[siwash23]

Sorry I forgot to mention something else to consider when pricing. Dolphin and Swan charge a resort fee and parking fee if you will have a car. About $15 and $11 if I remember correctly.

Per night, so if you have a car this really adds up as a hidden cost. If you don't have a car, then you have to pay shuttle fees a limo/cab to and from the airport. These both have to be taken into account when comparing prices.

 

[Redbudlover]

I have stayed at both and found the Dolphin much more luxurious than POR. also has a much better location, better restaurants, you can see the fireworks, and you can have purchases shipped back to your room. I think ME is not magical nor fast (think not express) so don't use it anymore. So for me it is a non-brainer - in fact I am booked at the Dolphin in May. going to stay at the Beach club in September.... When I want something less expensive I don't go moderate - I go luxury at Swan Dolphin.

 

[DanPadavona]

The Dolphin beats POR hands down for park proximity. You can walk to the gates of the Epcot World Showcase in about 5 or 10 minutes. We've walked to The Disney Studios from there too, though that is more like 20 minutes and can be a little tough in the summer heat.

The Swan and Dolphin are both high on the luxury quotient. The only thing the Swan and Dolphin lacks compared to most other WDW luxury resorts is balconies. But you can often get a price there which is quite competitive with the WDW moderate resorts.

Our family is going down at the beginning of July for my daughter's national dance competition. We had to pay the "dance competition price" to register to compete, but even then it was only like $160 or so. That's cheaper than an Embassy Suites most nights, lol. We've gotten my wife's teacher's discount there for like $139. It's a great deal if you wait for a special.

Take the Dolphin. You will love it!

 

[tzolkin]

Sorry I forgot to mention something else to consider when pricing. Dolphin and Swan charge a resort fee and parking fee if you will have a car. About $15 and $11 if I remember correctly.

The parking fee was recently raised to $15 (I just got a quote). We always drive to FL, so we have to be sure to add $30/night to the cost of the Dolphin when comparing with the POR rate.

Also, even though the Dolphin allows 5 in a room do they have space for 5 to sleep without paying the extra fee for a roll-away? I believe that's $25/night so unless you're bringing an air mattress for one of the kids that would be an additional cost.

 

[PixieDustFanatic]

FYI

The Dolphin shares a bus to AK, MK and DtD with Swan, Boardwalk, Beach Club, and Yacht Club. When we stayed at the Swan, they shared 100% of the time.

POR shares a bus with POFQ, but I'd say that actually occurs 10% of the time.

The bus rides to those locations were considerably longer when we stayed at the Swan.

The boat ride to Epcot and HS were awesome though!!

 

[roar15]

We've stayed at both. The location of the Dolphin is great. But it just felt a lot more "stuffy" to me. I was much more comfortable/relaxed at Riverside.