Which One...swan Or Dolphin???????

[ilovemytink]

Which hotel is better, Swan or Dolphin? Any opinions would be appreciated as I've never stayed at either, only driven by and seen the tops of the buildings. Thanks!!!!

 

[luvmarypoppins]

We have stayed at both the Swan and the Dolphin.
Swan - more compact, less walking back to the room after a long day in the parks
queen sized beds
First bus stop
Dolphin - Larger lobby, more kid friendly, closer restraunt choices, closer to arcade, tubbis 24 hr. food offerings, double beds, allows 5 with a rollaway or you can bring your own aerobed.

We prefer the Swan only because of the larger beds,more compactness and less walking back to the room, but mostly because its the lst bus stop. You will most likely always be sitting instead of standing on the bus. I have some mobility issues so that is important to us. Its still a long ride when you have to share the bus with all the epcot resorts.

 

[swidman]

I am trying to decide between both of these two hotels for our trip in December.

Read some not so great reviews at Tripadvisor.com about musty smells and small showers. I know they have been renovating, but are they still renovating or is it completed?

 

[ilovemytink]

Okay. Just read some reviews on tripadvisor.com and now I'm a little scared. It seems to run the gamut from really great to really crappy, which I guess now that I think about it is the way most resort reviews are. We were at POR June 9-15 and we weren't that impressed at all but some people just love it and wouldn't stay anywhere else whereas we'll probably never go back. I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I don't know about the rooms other than to say that some of the pictures I've seen have "new" rooms and "old" rooms. I can definitely say that if I were there and paid the price they charge for an "old room," I'd be extremly upset. The "new" rooms, however, look really nice. Good luck picking a hotel.

 

[debbiepump]

We like the Swan, but we are sans kids-they're grown up. If I had kids, I'd chose the Dolphin. Try and get a room with a 'deck', it's really small, but nice to have. Find out if they still charge their 'resort' fee. I'd argue with them all the time and tell them I didn't want to use their exercise room nor want their newspaper and could never get out of it. You need to consider that into the price of your room.

 

[CarolA]

I have stayed at both and at several of the Disney Deluxes. IMHO both the Swan/Dolphin meet Disney standards on room cleanliness and then EXCEED Disney on quality of the bed etc. (Plus they tend to cost less)

I perfer the Swan since having a "cafeteria" does nothing for me!

Whichever you choose have a great trip!

 

[MSC]

We have stayed at both the Swan and the Dolphin.
Swan - more compact, less walking back to the room after a long day in the parks
queen sized beds
First bus stop
Dolphin - Larger lobby, more kid friendly, closer restraunt choices, closer to arcade, tubbis 24 hr. food offerings, double beds, allows 5 with a rollaway or you can bring your own aerobed.

That's it in a nutshell. Bottom line, as other posts have suggested, but not said explicitly: If you have kids with you, Dolphin. If not, Swan.

I have stayed at both several times, and can't wait to go back in August. I've read about the mysterious "musty" smell in several threads, but have never experienced it. I think it's an urban myth!

 

[legalsea]

We stayed at the Swan in May (no children with us). We had a room with a balcony. Very nice! No problems with odors, etc. We had decided to make the Swan our hotel of choice on future Disney vacations.

 

[crushonmickey]

We stayed at the Dolphin last month in a very nice room with a King bed. I have to comment on the musty smell issue. I did notice the bed had a faint mildewy smell. My nose works much better than my husband's, and I don't think he noticed it. I don't think they dry their sheets enough. I noticed at the pool when I got towels there, they were still damp, almost wet. But they were all nicely folded and ready to go.

It seemed like there was not enough ventilation in the bathroom either. All in all, these were minor issues. It is a beautiful hotel and I would surely stay there again. And of course, besides the slight mildew smell, the bed was heavenly.

 

[MickeyNicki]

We stayed at the Swan Feb 07 and Dolphin April 07 and we prefer the Swan. It is a quieter resort (most of the conventions are held at the Dolphin).

 

[TaraPA]

Subscribing! Stayed at Swan in 2000 & going back to try Dolphin this November. Can't wait to read all the posts on here!

 

[bsbcgirl]

My family and I stayed at the Dolphin last month and I wrote a very recent review on trip advisor.com about the very musty smell in our adjoining rooms. I have never stayed at the Swan. If mustiness is not an issue for you, then the Dolphin has many plusses. I found the air conditioning system so damp, that I was worried about possible future health/ventilation issues. Bacteria thrives in a damp environment.