Which hotel for this weekend?

[Haley R]

Dh and I decided we might take a quick weekend trip to the world this weekend since he has Friday off from work. We want to go Thursday-Sunday and attend the Villain DAH on Thursday and H2O Glow on Saturday. I'm not seeing a lot for hotel deals, I'm guessing because it's so last minute, but I wanted to get some input from others. We are not interested in any of the Values and would like to stay under $400/night if possible. I listed below the ones that we haven't stayed at yet. Here's what I was able to find:

Disney Website

1. Grand Floridian-$382 (garden view)
2. Wilderness Lodge-$367 (courtyard view)

Priceline

1. Cabins at Fort Wilderness-$276

Tripadvisor

1. Swan Resort-$212 (standard view)
2. Dolphin Resort-
   1. $196 (2 double beds)
   2. $216 (1 king bed)

We will be driving a car so we'll have to pay for parking fees. Which hotel would you guys pick and why?

 

[sethschroeder]

I am only saying cabins because its so different from everywhere else you likely stay on site. Personally though I would do the GF but I don't get to go that often and we have only stayed at BW.

 

[Haley R]

I am only saying cabins because its so different from everywhere else you likely stay on site. Personally though I would do the GF but I don't get to go that often and we have only stayed at BW.

Thank you! I'll take any and all suggestions. I've always wanted to stay at GF and the garden view would be nice, but it is over $100/night. I haven't had a chance to talk it over with Dh, but I'll mention your comments.

 

[Eeyore daily]

If you could afford GF or WL I'd do those. Parking would be the same at those. Not sure about the Swan/Dolphin but I personally would rather stay at Disney hotels before others.

 

[bernina]

Is money a strong factor? If so, you should add in any resort and parking fees. I know you have AP so parking at parks won’t be an issue (if you choose to do so).

Wilderness is def my vote out of all of those and it makes transportation to MK a breeze via boat (my favorite).

 

[Haley R]

Is money a strong factor? If so, you should add in any resort and parking fees. I know you have AP so parking at parks won’t be an issue (if you choose to do so).

Wilderness is def my vote out of all of those and it makes transportation to MK a breeze via boat (my favorite).

It's not a huge factor, but we'd definitely like to stay under $400/night if possible. Since we just bought our APs and have to buy things for the house it would be nice to save a little money. We've never stayed at the Swan and Dolphin so I'm not sure how different that is in terms of transportation to/from the parks. We would have Friday open to do whatever so it would be nice to either go to Epcot or HS that day or we could just have a resort day.

 

[Haley R]

If you could afford GF or WL I'd do those. Parking would be the same at those. Not sure about the Swan/Dolphin but I personally would rather stay at Disney hotels before others.

Thanks! I'm leaning towards WL a little bit now, but still undecided.

 

[bernina]

It's not a huge factor, but we'd definitely like to stay under $400/night if possible. Since we just bought our APs and have to buy things for the house it would be nice to save a little money. We've never stayed at the Swan and Dolphin so I'm not sure how different that is in terms of transportation to/from the parks. We would have Friday open to do whatever so it would be nice to either go to Epcot or HS that day or we could just have a resort day.

The best thing about having APs is the ability to snag a few FP and pop into a park for a few hours. No worrying about rushing around or fitting it all in. It definitely changed the way we vacation at Disney (in a good way). You’re free to pop into a park for a ride or show or even your favorite food.

Wilderness lodge is tranquil and just doing that boat ride from wilderness to fort wilderness to contemporary is a fun way to spend some time. The new pool is beautiful and Geyser point is a fun casual place to eat. The quick service at contemporary has way more options than wilderness but it’s just a quick boat ride away.

I can’t help on swan or dolphin but I’m sure others will chime in.

 

[Haley R]

The best thing about having APs is the ability to snag a few FP and pop into a park for a few hours. No worrying about rushing around or fitting it all in. It definitely changed the way we vacation at Disney (in a good way). You’re free to pop into a park for a ride or show or even your favorite food.

Wilderness lodge is tranquil and just doing that boat ride from wilderness to fort wilderness to contemporary is a fun way to spend some time. The new pool is beautiful and Geyser point is a fun casual place to eat. The quick service at contemporary has way more options than wilderness but it’s just a quick boat ride away.

I can’t help on swan or dolphin but I’m sure others will chime in.

Awesome thank you! You put up a pretty good argument for WL. I'm trying to get some decent FPs at HS from Friday-Sunday and nothing so far. I'll have to keep checking.

 

[shocker]

I'm guessing you'll have to add in the $30/night resort fee into the Swalphin rates you have appearing?

All of them will have the additional parking fees added later (maybe check in to the cabins, they may not have parking fees since a parking pad at each cabin is included).

Since you're driving in, no MDE is needed.

Doesn't sound like you're interested in DDP either.

You didn't mention in the OP, but Swan offers Queen beds, where Dolphin offers Double beds as you rightly state.

I love the Epcot area, but we stayed several times back to back & decided to move on as we were tiring of the same dining, view, & amenities.

But, currently, I'd give an edge to Swalphin for being able to earn Marriott loyalty points (make sure you book through a site that let's you earn your points).

 

[Haley R]

I'm guessing you'll have to add in the $30/night resort fee into the Swalphin rates you have appearing?

All of them will have the additional parking fees added later (maybe check in to the cabins, they may not have parking fees since a parking pad at each cabin is included).

Since you're driving in, no MDE is needed.

Doesn't sound like you're interested in DDP either.

You didn't mention in the OP, but Swan offers Queen beds, where Dolphin offers Double beds as you rightly state.

I love the Epcot area, but we stayed several times back to back & decided to move on as we were tiring of the same dining, view, & amenities.

But, currently, I'd give an edge to Swalphin for being able to earn Marriott loyalty points (make sure you book through a site that let's you earn your points).

Yeah I didn't add in the $30/night resort fee yet for the Swolphin rates. It looks like the Cabins do charge $19 for parking. We won't need the DDP. We normally don't get it anyway since it's just the two of us.

I love the Epcot area for restaurants, but I'm wondering if the pools at Swan/Dolphin will be too boring for Dh and I. We'd rather have something a little more fun. We aren't currently Marriott reward members, but we could join before booking.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

Yeah I didn't add in the $30/night resort fee yet for the Swolphin rates. It looks like the Cabins do charge $19 for parking. We won't need the DDP. We normally don't get it anyway since it's just the two of us.

I love the Epcot area for restaurants, but I'm wondering if the pools at Swan/Dolphin will be too boring for Dh and I. We'd rather have something a little more fun. We aren't currently Marriott reward members, but we could join before booking.

I voted for WL. Whenever we do a hard-ticket event at MK, I find it super convenient to be staying in that area. GF is great, too, but I thought I would try to save you a few hundred $$!

We love Swan/Dolphin, but that will not be convenient after DAH unless you use your $$ savings and consider taking a Minnie Van back to Swan/Dolphin after the event. If you don't mind waiting for a bus afterward, I would say go for it. We've stayed at all resorts listed (except the cabins) multiple times and you really can't go wrong with any of them. If you are planning some down time at the resort, Swan/Dolphin may be the way to go as strolling around the Boardwalk in the evenings is really fun and there are a ton of great restaurants over there. Swan/Dolphin also has a vibrant pool complex with a nice pool bar/grill.

 

[Haley R]

I voted for WL. Whenever we do a hard-ticket event at MK, I find it super convenient to be staying in that area. GF is great, too, but I thought I would try to save you a few hundred $$!

We love Swan/Dolphin, but that will not be convenient after DAH unless you use your $$ savings and consider taking a Minnie Van back to Swan/Dolphin after the event. If you don't mind waiting for a bus afterward, I would say go for it. We've stayed at all resorts listed (except the cabins) multiple times and you really can't go wrong with any of them. If you are planning some down time at the resort, Swan/Dolphin may be the way to go as strolling around the Boardwalk in the evenings is really fun and there are a ton of great restaurants over there. Swan/Dolphin also has a vibrant pool complex with a nice pool bar/grill.

Thank you for your input! I really appreciate it. When Dh gets home from work I'll mention the things you said and see what he says. I know for sure we would do DAH Thursday night, Friday would be up in the air, Saturday night would be H2O so would have time during the day, and Sunday we would leave.

We've never stayed at an MK resort so I'm leaning that direction.

 

[Haley R]

So the $307 at Wilderness Lodge is already gone, but I can get it for $316 from Disney with our AP discount. I think we're gonna wait a day just to keep watching weather, but we're leaning towards WL

 

[Haley R]

Something's telling me maybe we shouldn't go this weekend now. Wilderness Lodge is gone and there is slim pickings for resorts to choose from

ETA: I kept checking and Wilderness Lodge showed up again, but this time Courtyard view. We went ahead and booked it because I didn't want to miss out. It was quite a bit more than the previous price, but still under $400/night.

 

[Little E]

I just read that you booked, and I'm sure WL is amazing! You'll have a great time, no matter where you stay.

I just thought I would throw in a quick note about our experience at GF. DH and I did a long weekend at GF in November of 2016 without our kids. If money isn't a huge factor, and the GF is still available, I would vote for GF. The lobby alone is amazing...it smells like tiny angels dance there. We stayed in an outer building garden view, but the walk to the pool or the main building was very short. The restaurants-both QS and TS-are amazing, and the quick accessibility to MK or Epcot is hard to beat. The pool was peaceful and the CMs were very attentive at the pool bar. It was nice just to stroll the property and spend time listening to the band play in the evenings in the lobby. We loved the little extras you don't get to experience at many other WDW properties, including the turn down service at night.

Our whole experience there was dreamy, and now it's our dream to bring the kids and spend a whole week's vacation there. I guess that's the only drawback. Once you stay at GF, it's hard to go any place else!

Good luck in making your decision...wherever you'll stay, you'll be at WDW. Have a magical time!

 

[Haley R]

I just read that you booked, and I'm sure WL is amazing! You'll have a great time, no matter where you stay.

I just thought I would throw in a quick note about our experience at GF. DH and I did a long weekend at GF in November of 2016 without our kids. If money isn't a huge factor, and the GF is still available, I would vote for GF. The lobby alone is amazing...it smells like tiny angels dance there. We stayed in an outer building garden view, but the walk to the pool or the main building was very short. The restaurants-both QS and TS-are amazing, and the quick accessibility to MK or Epcot is hard to beat. The pool was peaceful and the CMs were very attentive at the pool bar. It was nice just to stroll the property and spend time listening to the band play in the evenings in the lobby. We loved the little extras you don't get to experience at many other WDW properties, including the turn down service at night.

Our whole experience there was dreamy, and now it's our dream to bring the kids and spend a whole week's vacation there. I guess that's the only drawback. Once you stay at GF, it's hard to go any place else!

Good luck in making your decision...wherever you'll stay, you'll be at WDW. Have a magical time!

Thanks for your opinion! I know we’ll get to the GF sometime. It’s kind of always been that one resort for me that feels the most Disney and I think that’s because you see it in the commercials. Our favorite resort right now is either pofq or yacht club. It’s kind of a tie. We like them both for different reasons