Swan and Dolphin Question

[Guapy]

Since these are not Disney Hotels, do you still feel the disney magic while you are there? I have never been to either before.

 

[glo]

this question keeps coming up from time to time. The Swan and Dolphin are owned by the Starwood Corp. They sit on Disney land, and therefore have a 99 year lease. The CM's at the S/D must take the training that the WDW staff do. The hotels do cater to the buisness population because of the convention centers, but there is plenty of themeing. The halls are painted in beach scenes. The rugs are made to look like sand and beach towels. The doors are cabanas and the light fixtures are clouds. You can see the fireworks from Epcot from amny locations on their property. You can also see Fantasmic from many rooms at the Swan. You are in the middle of the action. The Boardwalk is less than a three minute walk away. Epcot and MGM are about a 20 minute slow walk away, plus you can take the water taxi to both. To the other parks you get Disney transportation. The hotels have over 16 restaurants and lounges, two fitness centers, Disney Desks, concierge, Great food at Tubbi's which is open 24 and 7.

You can do Early entry(when available) and E-night while staying here. You can but passes in thier lobbies, and they take part in the Character Caravan. There is also package delievery to your hotel from the parks. There are better disocunts available when you compare prices, and these are 4 star hotels.

What you don't get Mickey wake up calls, Mickey shampoo and toiletries. You can not charge to your room from the parks or DD. these are just my observations.

 

[HorizonsFan]

It may not be Mickey, but when I stayed at the Swan two years ago, the wake-up call was a real person saying, "Good morning, Mr. Horizonsfan. This is your wake-up call. Would you like me to call back in 15 minutes?" Pretty nice...

 

[Blondie]

As Glo has already posted, this topic comes up from time to time...you'll get differing opinions on both "disney feel" vs. a non "disney feel."

Personally, I think it has all the personality of a "disney resort." The theming is plentiful, the CMs are all wonderful, and I think housekeeping is a notch above the disney resorts.

You couldn't ask for a better location, and some of the views are spectacular. We had a balcony room at the Dolphin where we could see Spaceship earth (Epcot ball) and the fireworks from Epcot's Illuminations every night. It doesn't get any more "disney" than that!

 

[Tluvs2talk]

We have stayed at many of the Disney Resorts and were a little hesitant to stay at the Dolphin. We were offered a special rate since we were cruising and decided to try it. We really were impressed. The pool area is HUGE!!! The room was very nice and we were in a corner room so we had 2 balconies. We paln to book with Swan or Dolphin in October.

 

[Yay2001]

Don't forget LOCATION!

The Swan/Dolphin is so close to EPCOT & MGM, our favorites.
We loved being a mere 5 minute boatride from these parks. Also -- it was such fun to stroll the Boardwalk at night -- just over a bridge and we were there.

I was very impressed with the service, too -- great housekeeping, very attentive pool staff, front desk treated us like royalty -- not just another member of the vacationing masses.

 

[Debi]

As with some previous posters, I was hesitant to stay at the S/D because they are not owned by Disney. However, during last year's DIS CON, I was hooked. The price was right, and you definately can't beat the location. It's a 10 minute walk to Epcot, 15-20 minute walk to MGM, less than 5 minute walk to the Boardwalk, etc. Plus, it is a deluxe hotel, which means that you have all the perks of a Disney resort such as the Polynesian, Grand Floridian, etc. There are only a few things that the S/D doesn't have as compared to Disney-owned hotels (see Glo's post above), but, to me, they are minor.

So, to make a long story short, no the S/D doesn't lose the Disney magic.