Yep, that's me! I'm one of those people that really enjoys having the balcony... I sit out there in the morning with my cup of tea and book while I wait for my slowpoke DH and DD to get ready..
(until the wind and rain came out of nowhere around 7:30 
)
I personally have not stayed during that time period, but yes, the resorts are included right along with the Disney owned resorts.
Look out your window this morning and you won't miss having a balcony (at least for the next several days!). I'm on 4th floor West and my balcony is very, very wet!!
I'm on day 9 - had 8 days of gorgeous weather so I can't complain too much.
The Swan and Dolphin Food & Wine Classic was wonderful yesterday.
I am probably your neighbor we are also on the 4th floor west looking at the Swan paddle boats. We got here Thursday and unfortunately that was the only day we saw the sun and by the time the sun does return we will be leaving
Ps Singing Mom you would be proud I needed something to get rid of the chill of the rain and had a chocolate martini !!!
)
I've been planning a Disney trip for Feb 4-11, staying at the Dolphin. I had been holding off on booking a room since the post rates were $199 and I know rates dropped as low as $129 for the end of summer, so I figured a rate drop would come as we got closer to the date given our dates are during value season.
Doing my semi-regular rate check my heart fell when both the Dolphin and Swan came up as unavailable for my dates. Turns out Feb 8-9 are both sold out at the Dolphin. A Google search found several conventions going on that week at the resort.
I called Starwood customer service and had a rep who was fantastic. The bad news is this rooms are gone, though she agreed with my thinking that there is a chance of cancelations opening those date up briefly. The good news is she worked with me and got me booked for the available nights I wanted at good rates (averages out to the same $199 rate I was trying to avoid), given they are refundable rates compared to the discount non-refundable rates I usually do.
So lesson learned: value season doesn't guarantee discount because conventions like value season, too. Book early, book often
I do have a question for the Swan & Dolphin vets. Has anyone else had a similar experience, and if so were you able to secure rooms eventually? Any tricks other than religiously checking the web site for availability?
I'll be looking at alternatives, of course. With the Disney hotel discount recently announced I can get a nice room at the Wilderness Lodge for a few bucks less than what the Dolphin + airport transportation will cost me. The Starwood points still make Dolphin a better deal for me, but at least I'm not out in the cold.
My dates are fairly inflexible for this trip because it is a surprise (that's right, I can't even vent to her) anniversary trip and our anniversary is on the 8th, one of the nights sold out.
Ok Swan Fans.....we are 2.5 weeks until our Halloween Trip to Disney. After much flip-flopping we are happily staying in a 2 bedroom grand suite at the Swan. Any thoughts or suggestions on location requests? I am not sure where the suites are located or if they are scattered about.
I am starting to worry about the MNSSHP crowds. All posts seem to be talking about long long lines. We have our tickets for 10/31 as I am sure that day will sell out but a huge crowd might be a huge bummer for my kids. We will be having a lot of resort and waterpark time this trip if the weather cooperates. Oh and I may be insane but after all the ADRs and changes it works out that we have a character meal for 4 days in a row! May have to rethink that!
The resort will transfer your bags for you. I would mention it when checking in at POP and I'm sure they'll be able to direct you.
Did you try pricing it out directly with the Dolphin, on their special offers page for teachers? Looks like the teacher rate for early June is $229/night vs. the regular rate of $259. The AAA rate is slightly lower, at $220.15.
Even when rooms are blocked for a convention, there usually is some availability. When I was checking rates and availability over the past year, it would sometimes come up as 'null' or unavailable. When I'd check back later that day or later that week, it would be working fine.We just returned from an 8 day stay at Dolphin. While we were only in the lap pool (and I found it far too chilly to swim), people were bringing their kids over from Grotto and said the lap pool was a good 10-15º warmer than the Grotto. We were a group of adults and I walked through the area, but didn't even put a toe into it. June may be warmer since the weather will be warmer in the evening, but our lows were only in the low 70s.
On another note, I have been trying to book Dolphin for next year's F&W (9/28-10/6/12) and the website indicates it is sold out. I'm guessing rooms may be blocked for a convention, but do any of you with long term Dolphin experience have any thoughts? I know we booked this year's F&W stay on 10/10/10 and didn't have a problem. We even had great rates with an add-on room.
