Jebby_ca

Sees like the resort fees have gone up to $31.50/night now... is there still a discount on the resort fee offered to SPG Plats?

gsimmons2005

Mine was 20$ last time in February as a Plat. But I had to call to remind them

For those with families, given the points are the same now for both, the Swan has queen beds versus doubles at the Dolphin. More room for those with bigger kids or used to some space.

Stayed here (swan or dolphin) 30+ times over past 15 years, so happy to offer Tips. Some are:

- Use plat breakfast at Swan, upgrades to hot menu are cheaper (by a few dollars)
- If multiple nights and not staying on business (expensed), the breakfast voucher is worth way more than the 500 point amenity
- Do go green and get lots of points
- Dolphin has more balconies, so better chance
- Avoid the dolphin pool side rooms unless you like deep bass from the pool music all day
- When super busy, walk to Swan for disney bus as it picks up there first and you have a better chance of making a bus instead of full buses passing the swan
- Actually had better upgrades at Swan. 5 times put in 3 room suite with kitchen, living room, piano. Helps when I had two rooms booked (one kind, one queen) and was not staying during busy time or during a convention. Dolphin has been twice
- Dont upgrade to the family room if you have a family - you get a king bed with an alcove which never works for adults staying up past kids bedtime.
- Call 2 weeks prior to ask for connecting rooms as asking plat concierge or putting it online never works
- Skip the car...take an uber, get to know the driver and do it offline for uber for airport trips. We get a minivan trip from airport for 50$ for all 6 of us
- Swan pool is never busy and I find it more relaxing than larger grotto pool
- Gyms at both are fine, but dolphin one is bigger with fitness rooms and more selection of weights
- They have bed rails for those with little kids prone to falling off
- With all the bends and alcoves, the walk to Epcot or Hollywood studios is shorter for the swan
- Fountain (shake place) at Dolphin is good and a cheaper alternative to Beaches at Cream at Yacht club
- Often need to call to remind them to lower resort charge for plats
- Character breakfasts at Swan on Sat/Sun - with plat breakfast voucher, its the best deal going
- Smores at beach many nights are fun with the kids
- For Swan, be careful of rooms that face interior fountains as if you are low enough people smoke down there and it flows up
- Faster room service at Swan
- Checking in early often doesnt get you far. I rarely ever get in before 2pm
- For those runners out there, most folks run the boardwalk or to Hollywood. Another option is the run on the right side of the canal to hollywood or along the outside perimeter of the hotels (4 miles) with one section running on the grass
- You get magic hours benefits
- WALK, WALK, WALK, the boat is SLOW to hollywood or epcot


All in all, we like the swan better as it is smaller, closer to breakfast and better bus access. However, it is really a toss up

musicscrip

I am a bit screwed on our upcoming stay at Dolphin because I booked it under my name (gold only) with the night and flights package for 30000pt for 5 nights. Now my husband will become Plat with Marriott soon so if it was under his name, we would get breakfast for 2 adults and 2 toddlers and hopefully room upgrade. But now it will cost me more than 60000pt to book it under his name cuz the cat changed in March.

Do you think Dolphin will honour Plat status if my husband is with me at check in and how the plat status? I feel so STUPID now...

gsimmons2005

I have had success doing that. Put both of you on the reservation and ensure he is the one checking in. Tell them he is plat and it was supposed to be under him. Worth a shot...if not ask the manager to at least get the benefits without the stays on his account.

User Name

I'll be attending a conference at the Dolphin and have a room booked directly with the hotel using a conference rate. Any ideas whether I'll get elite recognition and points? (I'm SPG Gold).

The Swan next door also has rooms available at regular rates for the same price. Wondering whether it's worth going over there instead? From looking at a map it seems the walk from one hotel to the other is minimal.

jalves

It is a very, very short walk between the two hotels. In general the Swan (Westin) is the preferred hotel.

writerguyfl

According to Bing Maps, it's about 700 feet (220 meters) from lobby to lobby.

Link to Bing Maps: https://binged.it/2HvRl71

As jalves notes, the Walt Disney World Swan is arguably nicer. It has a AAA Four-Diamond rating while the Walt Disney World Dolphin has a Three-Diamond rating.

It might be worth checking the fine print for the conference. Sometimes they require that you stay at a certain hotel in order to attend. This is done because part of the money paid via the room rate at a host hotel gets credited to the group to offset the costs for meeting rooms and anything else. If you book a public rate at a different hotel, the group gets nothing.

MrsDaly

I searched and couldn't find the answer. I will be platinum when we go in August. I was thinking about upgrading our tickets to annual passes, and wondering if we go to ticket desk at hotel if they can do that and charge them to room - effectively getting 15x back on the charge (with new changes in August for platinum)+ bonus for using my SPG or marriott card... then the AP hit doesn't seem so bad. Anyone know?
Edited:
I called and asked... can't charge back to room - credit card cash or Disney gift card. Man. That did seem too good to be true. (but you can upgrade at the desk)

Cloudship

Between the Dolphin and the Swan, which has the nicer beds? Or are they the same?

happymommy

Dolphin has choice of king or two double beds. Swan has king or two queen beds. Rollaway beds are not permitted in rooms with 2 queen beds at the Swan, but they are permitted in rooms with 2 double beds at the Dolphin. I've had a rollaway in a king room at the Dolphin (I was solo with my 2 kids when they were little, and I'd rather share a king bed than a double, and they didn't sleep well together as one was a kicker, so he did better in a rollaway alone; the "sofa sleeper" in that room couldn't open as the space didn't allow, so I had them remove it and bring in a rollaway).

I personally prefer the Swan, but have a stay booked at the Dolphin this fall since I got it on a Hotwire "hot deal' for about $100/night plus fee. I have an annual pass & want to go to the Food & Wine festival. For less than a value resort, and a better location for that, it was too good to pass up!

MrsDaly

I think the rollaway beds are permitted in the king rooms at the swan, not the rooms with 2 queens (they also say they only allow a max of 4 people in those rooms).
2. Could additional bedding be brought into the room?
Yes, we offer complimentary cribs for infants; or Rollaway beds are available for an additional fee. Please note that due to the size of those guest rooms that contain queen/queen beds, a Rollaway bed cannot be accommodated. Rollaway beds and cribs can be arranged by contacting guest relations or by completing the "Special Room Request" on-line form located under the Reservations button.

wsm007

New Hotel Confirmed for Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resort

jimrpa

I go down several times a year and sometimes stay at Swan/Dolphin. I always try to stay at Swan for the Wine and Dine Half Marathon. I agree with everything the other posters have said about the Swan. Since it's the smaller hotel, it's easier to deal with. It's a Westin, while the Dolphin is a Swan, so the room amenities are slightly nicer. The busses stop there first, which is convenient. Also, since you can walk to two of the 4 parks (Hollywood Studios and Epcot), the walk is a bit shorter from Swan. If you're not planning on spending too much time away from Disney, I strongly recommend just relying on Uber/Lyft. I did so on my last trip down and found that the cost was comparable to a rental car, and a lot less hassle. Also, they have priority drop-off and pickup areas at both Disney and Universal, so it's more convenient than parking. To be honest, you really can't go wrong with either. I will say though, that as an SPG Plat, I NEVER got a "real" upgrade at either the Swan or the Dolphin. At best, they'd grandly announce that I'd been "upgraded" to a room with a balcony, or a room with a "resort view" (which usually meant that if I craned my neck while looking out the window, I might catch a glimpse of a part of a theme park). As for these fabled multi-bedroom suites with salons and pianos? I guess I don't rate Maybe now that I'm a Lifetime Platinum Premier I'll do better

aloha12

Do they allow Plat a 4PM check-out at the Swan/Dolphin?

dshafiee

They have a charge amount guide in the room for late checkout. I was just there last week and asked for 12:30 and they agreed.

Never asked for more in the multiple times I have stsyed. PPE w/ambassador as well.