Question about Swan/Dolphin

[Jennygt]

I know this but I am pregnant and brain damaged, Sil comming down in May for a few days for my neice who is in band, anyhow looking for resort options and I was thinking of Swan/Dolphin. DO you still get emh? Disney bus service? Thanks!

 

[LeahZ]

You don't get Magical Express or the option to add the dining plan, but you get the other perks of staying at a Disney hotel. Bus service to Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom, boat service to Hollywood Studios and Epcot, Extra Magic Hours, you can have packages sent back to your room from the parks.

We've stayed at the Dolphin several times and we love it!

 

[oc_tony]

Leah is correct. Also, your room key cannot serve as your park admission nor can it be used to make Disney purchases. Instead of charging purchases to our room, we bring Disney gift cards to pay for food and souvenirs. Plus, that's less on our credit card when we return home. We really enjoy staying at the Dolphin and will be there for Christmas. It's a nice hotel in a great location.

 

[DisneyCrazyX5]

Do they still have a teacher discount? Are they suitable for a family of five? I am trying really hard to get back to Disney.

 

[oc_tony]

Do they still have a teacher discount? Are they suitable for a family of five? I am trying really hard to get back to Disney.

Yes, the teacher rate still exists. You can also get good (sometimes even better) rates through Dreams Unlimited Travel. It's at least worth checking. DW and I are both teachers, and have taken advantage of the teacher rate.

The regular rooms are the size of a typical hotel room, so you'll have to decide if that's enough room for your family of 5. It may depend on how old your kids are and how much space your family needs. They do have suites and mini-suites, but of course, those are more expensive. We are a family of 3, so hopefully others will weigh in on this part of your question.

 

[WaltD4Me]

Do they still have a teacher discount? Are they suitable for a family of five? I am trying really hard to get back to Disney.

When I have looked at their prices recently I haven't noticed the teacher/nurse discount. I don't know if they still do that. They have had some pretty good rates lately though, I think I even saw one on Travel Zoo a couple weeks ago.

I don't know about them being suitable for a family of five. When I stayed there I had a king room, it seem a little bigger than a standard size hotel room, the double rooms are probably the same. I know they have recently done some remodeling, but the room I stayed in had the smallest bathroom I ever saw and I wasn't thrilled that the room didn't have a refrigerator. I think they have added them now though. The bus service was pretty good and being able to walk over to The Boardwalk and Epcot was awesome!

 

[DisneyCrazyX5]

Disney was much cheaper before we had a bonus twin
We have stayed at the Polynesian twice, the Contemporary once and one night at Riverside. We have always made the long drive from Ohio in the past so we could stretch to afford the deluxe resorts and the twins were younger, so it was cheaper. Now the oldest is almost 15 and the twins are 10. I loved Riverside, but think it may be too small for all of us.

Our last trip was in Nov. of 07 (we went when the twins were 3, 5 and 7) We are all really missing Disney. We will be flying the next time we go, due to not wanting to spend so much time on the road. We need to find good price and trips during the school year are probably out since oldest DS plays HS sports. We have done the food plan in the past which worked out great for our kids, Les Chefs de France was one of our favorites. I am trying very hard to try to get us back to the world early June 2011

 

[newmouse2008]

When I have looked at their prices recently I haven't noticed the teacher/nurse discount. I don't know if they still do that. They have had some pretty good rates lately though, I think I even saw one on Travel Zoo a couple weeks ago.

I don't know about them being suitable for a family of five. When I stayed there I had a king room, it seem a little bigger than a standard size hotel room, the double rooms are probably the same. I know they have recently done some remodeling, but the room I stayed in had the smallest bathroom I ever saw and I wasn't thrilled that the room didn't have a refrigerator. I think they have added them now though. The bus service was pretty good and being able to walk over to The Boardwalk and Epcot was awesome!

They do still have the teacher discount. it is just available for select days. and the rate is different during different seasons.

T.

 

[mjaclyn]

DH and I just returned from a weekend at the Dolphin. The hotel is very nice, has a lot of great dining choices, very nice pool and large rooms with SUPER comfortable beds. The great thing about the hotel was that it was only a tad more expensive than a Disney Moderate but we had the great location of an Epcot Resort. Swan & Dolphin guests are entitled to Extra Magic Hours as well as Disney transportation to and from the theme parks. However, that's where the similarities end. You don't get Magical Express, Airline Check In or the option to use the DDP. Also, when we checked in we didn't receive our usual Disney schedules which details all of the theme park hours, Extra Magic Hours and other events throughout the Disney resort. I found this very frustrating because I'm accustomed to planning out my day and using those materials given at check in. I also found it MUCH more of a hassle to have to do Airline Check In at the airport. The lines were huge, we had to return a rental car and drag our luggage through the airport which we don't normally have to do when staying at a Disney Resort. For us, even though we really enjoyed our stay at the Dolphin, it just isn't worth the extra hassle to have to rent a car, check our own bags at the airport, not have the DDP, etc. If you don't normally use those extra 'perks' Disney provides then I think the Swan & Dolphin would be an excellent choice. IMO, Swan/Dolphin is a GREAT alternative to staying offsite, but if you're used to staying onsite at a Disney Resort it just isn't the same.

 

[DisneyCrazyX5]

DH and I just returned from a weekend at the Dolphin. The hotel is very nice, has a lot of great dining choices, very nice pool and large rooms with SUPER comfortable beds. The great thing about the hotel was that it was only a tad more expensive than a Disney Moderate but we had the great location of an Epcot Resort. Swan & Dolphin guests are entitled to Extra Magic Hours as well as Disney transportation to and from the theme parks. However, that's where the similarities end. You don't get Magical Express, Airline Check In or the option to use the DDP. Also, when we checked in we didn't receive our usual Disney schedules which details all of the theme park hours, Extra Magic Hours and other events throughout the Disney resort. I found this very frustrating because I'm accustomed to planning out my day and using those materials given at check in. I also found it MUCH more of a hassle to have to do Airline Check In at the airport. The lines were huge, we had to return a rental car and drag our luggage through the airport which we don't normally have to do when staying at a Disney Resort. For us, even though we really enjoyed our stay at the Dolphin, it just isn't worth the extra hassle to have to rent a car, check our own bags at the airport, not have the DDP, etc. If you don't normally use those extra 'perks' Disney provides then I think the Swan & Dolphin would be an excellent choice. IMO, Swan/Dolphin is a GREAT alternative to staying offsite, but if you're used to staying onsite at a Disney Resort it just isn't the same.

Thank for all the information. We love all perks of being on-site. I always say part of my MOM vacation is letting Disney take care of us. Since we have only flown once before Magic Express I would have never thought of that. I do hope it we fly we can take a town car to our hotel and get a grocery run. Can we still check our luggage at our WDW hotel if we are not on the magical express?

 

[kaligal]

Sometimes you can get a discount, sometimes you can't. Such is life.

Not that it matters much, but I really like the Dolphin. It's funky and cute. Decent room sizes and pool. I like the cafeteria-type place in the basement. I forget the name now...Picachu and peek-a-boo are all I can think of - must be close to that.

 

[mjaclyn]

Can we still check our luggage at our WDW hotel if we are not on the magical express?

If you are staying at a WDW hotel, you can still check your bags at the Airline Check In desk. This is not available at the Swan & Dolphin...