Swan Hotel vs. Beach Club?

[gardengirl2790]

Hello, WDW novice, and trying to decide between these two. I know that the Swan is not a Disney property, but does have most of the perks, at a much cheaper price. Can anyone give me their opinion which one to choose? The rooms at the BC are about $200 more per night than the Swan during our stay. I want to be close to Epcot and Hollywood Studios.It will just be two adults, no children, in June.

 

[hereforthechurros]

We just did a stay at Swan and location wise they’re pretty much the same. Quick walk to Boardwalk, 12 minute walk to HS, boat to Epcot or maybe a 20 minute walk. Dining at Swan is better, flat out. But if you plan to spend a lot of time at the resort, the atmosphere and pool at BC is better.

For two adults, no kids, and that much $ I would go Swan. Swan feels more adult, BC is mostly families.

 

[gardengirl2790]

Awesome, thank you so much for your input!

 

[Sweettears]

Not much Disney bubble at the Swan. However I have stayed there a few times. Like PP said, location wise they are about the same.

 

[gardengirl2790]

That’s what I figure I’m giving up is the bubble for the savings. It’s unfortunate.

 

[Carol_]

I agree. Save your $$, go to the Swan. The pool is still great, and you’re walking distance to all the rest along with Swolphin restaurants. The service is also great.
(Aside: the gym has peleton)

 

[gardengirl2790]

Thank you! I’m so glad to get your opinions. They’re all really helpful.

 

[Sweettears]

It’s still a better option if you like the price versus staying off site.

 

[hunterjumperluv]

Things to remember:
Swan i believe has a Daily resort fee, and does not have magical express.

that being said, personally I would book Swan. Just came back from there a little over a week ago. And I would book Swan over Dolphin, every time.

 

[Theta]

We are going for a short 3 night trip and had the same choice. We decided on the Beach Club because we wanted the magical express. Since it is a short trip and not having to pay uber airport roundtrip and the Swan resort fee, made the difference a little less drastic. And we love the Beach Club.

How many nights are you booking?

 

[Markal]

We have our first stay at Swan coming up in March. It will be our first non-Disney stay. My husband has a convention so that’s why we are there. Looking forward to trying it out.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

For an adults-only trip, I would save the money and book the Swan. The rooms are incredibly comfortable and the restaurants and pool area are top notch. It's just a slightly longer walk to EP, but very convenient to walk or take the boat to DHS (you are the last stop going and first stop coming back). We always go with Swan/Dolphin if there is a significant savings over the EP WDW resorts.

 

[Best Aunt]

How much do you care about amenities in the resort building itself? If not at all, Swan makes sense. If that is important to you, Beach Club has a bigger gift shop than Swan, its gift shop has more quick service food offerings than Swan I think, and it has more seating in lobby plus has the Solarium room with more seating.

If you are fine with going out to Dolphin or Boardwalk for that stuff, you won’t care.

Also make sure you run the numbers carefully, as others have said, including the resort fee and the cost of transportation. Also make sure you are including tax for all hotels you are comparing.

 

[MomOTwins]

I would go with beach club. I like the magical express, stormalong bay (lazy river), and I often do the dining plan and the swan restaurants are not included in that.

 

[cgattis]

I would go with beach club. I like the magical express, stormalong bay (lazy river), and I often do the dining plan and the swan restaurants are not included in that.

Best I remember from my one Beach Club stay the lazy river is just a short loop in the middle of the two halves of the pool. I love lazy rivers but I don’t remember it being that great. If I was planning a Star Wars centric trip with just adults (versus a full “vacation” trip), I’d pick Swan/Dolphin. Like others have said, both have cool pool areas (although honestly S/D is less crowded) and you can walk to all the same places for food. We’ve only stayed at Dolphin (3 times) not Swan but if you factor in parking and resort fees and still save a bunch of money, that answers it for me

 

[michelleiada]

Keep in mind that you will pay a daily resort fee at the Swan...can’t remember how much it is though. You can’t get Magical Express transportation to and from airport. And...you can’t do the Disney Dining Plan. If you don’t want to participate in either of these then do the Swan. We stayed at the Swan once and very much enjoyed it but then we stayed at Beach Club and fell in love!!! We now own DVC and Beach Club is one of our homes. Whichever resort you choose, the Epcot resort area is a fabulous location. You can’t go wrong either way. Good luck and enjoy!

 

[nkereina]

Agree with PPs that make sure you comparing the true prices of each resort by factoring in the daily resort fee and any transportation costs of getting to and from the airport by staying at Swan. Its also worth mentioning that Swan does not include free magic bands, no dining plan, and you're not eligible for any promotional offers like free dining. We would prefer the true Disney bubble of the Beach Club if the total cost difference were negligible. Swan/Dolphin often house convention attendees, and that's one thing we didn't care for during our stay at CSR. Just loses that vacation vibe for me, as someone who frequently travels for business myself.

 

[MomOTwins]

Agree with PPs that make sure you comparing the true prices of each resort by factoring in the daily resort fee and any transportation costs of getting to and from the airport by staying at Swan. Its also worth mentioning that Swan does not include free magic bands, no dining plan, and you're not eligible for any promotional offers like free dining. We would prefer the true Disney bubble of the Beach Club if the total cost difference were negligible. Swan/Dolphin often house convention attendees, and that's one thing we didn't care for during our stay at CSR. Just loses that vacation vibe for me, as someone who frequently travels for business myself.

I forgot about the magic bands, but that is a good point. Not only are they not free at the Swan/Dolphin, but if you buy your own you also won't be able to use them for room charging, which we found was super convenient at the Disney hotels.

 

[TiggerTrigger]

We opted for the Swan over the Disney owned resorts for our Dec 2017 trip. It was a huge savings, the location is just as good, and while it doesn't have all of the Disney touches, our standard view room had a view of HS and fireworks every night. So, it still felt like it had a lot of Disney magic. The only thing I missed was being able to use my magic band for charging and my room key. The charging was probably a good thing, because I got the Disney Visa discount wherever it was offered by not relying on my band to pay.

 

[SwanVT2]

We have stayed at Swan many times and it feesl like you are still in the disney bubble. Dolphin has an excellent quick service restaurant Picabus. Super friendly staff and lots of offerings. You can get a AAA discount there. Swan has queen beds and the grotto pool bar is top notch. Much better drinks than disney pool bars..real mint vs lots of mixes at disney pool bars. Enjoy!