Walt Disney World Resorts: Swan & Dolphin
If you're just joining this series about resorts at Walt Disney World, welcome. So far, we've covered value resorts, moderate resorts, and Walt Disney World deluxe resorts. We have yet to cover DVC only resorts. But before we do that, we have two resorts that people often consider Walt Disney World deluxe resorts that we need to cover: The Swan and Dolphin.
Many guests consider these Walt Disney World Resorts, but they are a little different. The land they sit on is owned by Disney. But the resorts themselves are owned by the Tishman Group, and the resorts are operated by Marriott Bonvoy. Yes, these are for most purposes Marriott resorts that happen to sit on Disney land.
The Swan and Dolphin are considered Good Neighbor resorts. There are actually several good neighbor resorts, but we've chosen to write about the Swan and Dolphin because of how iconic they are, how close to the theme parks they are, and how they are often mistaken as official Disney resorts. The other good neighbor resorts, if you're interested are:
Shades of Green
B Resort and Spa Lake Buena Vista
Double Tree Suites by Hilton Orlando Disney Springs Area
Hilton Orlando Lake Buena Vista
Hilton Orlando Lake Buena Vista Palace
Signia by Hilton Bonnet Creek
Waldorf Astoria Orlando
Holiday Inn Orlando Disney Springs Area
Wyndham Garden Lake Buena Vista
Wyndham Lake Buena Vista
Four Season Resort Orlando
Good Neighbor resorts typically offer these Disney-resort-like amenities:
Early theme park entry
Evening Extra Magic Hours (if the resort is considered deluxe)
Complimentary transportation to Disney parks
Disney Guest services on site
AAA approved
Looking at the Dolphin from the boat dock
Intro to the Swan, Swan Reserve, and Dolphin Resorts
As we said, these are NOT Disney resorts. They are actually Marriott resorts. If you want to get really picky, the Dolphin is a Sheraton, and the Swan and Swan Reserve are Westin Hotels. But they sit on some of the best Disney land for resorts, in the International Gateway area between Disney Hollywood Studios and EPCOT. That makes these walkable to both EPCOT and Disney Hollywood Studios. Guests can also choose to take a boat that also serves the Boardwalk and Yacht & Beach Club resorts to EPCOT or Disney Hollywood Studios. The Magic Kingdom and Disney's Animal Kingdom are served by bus.
Unlike Disney resorts, there is a resort fee of around $40 per day last time we looked. Rates overall for these resorts run about comparably to staying at a Moderate Disney resort.
It's also important to understand that these resorts were primarily commissioned by Disney to be built because convention space was needed. Therefore, these are convention centers and offer business services. If people in suits turn you off while you're on vacation, these might not be the resorts for you. Additionally, you will not find Disney theming in the lobbies. Although there are SOME references to being in Disney World, these are not Disney hotels and are not Disney themed.
The two resorts share an esplanade so it is easy to move from one resort to the other and partake in the shared amenities. One major shared amenity is the pool area, called the "Grotto". It is a 3-acre complex with waterfalls, slides, water volleyball, hot tubs, and a kiddie pool. There is typically a DJ on hand either playing music or running activities. There are also two lap pools, one located near the Dolphin and the other near the Swan.
There is also a white sand beach, tennis courts, a basketball court, a large play area for children, and a walking/jogging path. Near the beach, guests can rent swan boats. There are also two health clubs and a spa. The health clubs, one located near the Swan and the other near the Dolphin offer massage and full body treatments for an additional fee. The spa is an Asian-style spa with 13 treatment rooms, two couples suites, steam rooms, a tea garden, and a meditation garden.
But, wait, there's more! There is also a game room, and a large mini-golf complex called Fantasia Gardens that offers two 18-hole courses at two different difficulty levels.
Unlike other Disney resorts, Camp Dolphin is a childcare location available to children ages 5-12. If you have at least a 75-minute spa appointment or a reservation to dine at a signature restaurant on property, you get two hours of admission free for your kids. Otherwise, there is a fee.
Finally, let's talk dining. You'll be spoiled for dining at this complex and since it's easy to walk from the Swan to the Dolphin, any of these dining locations could be considered to be "at your resort". None of these dining locations are Disney-operated.
Picabu - Located at the Dolphin is a cafeteria-style/ convenience store location. Similar to the quick service location you would expect at a Disney resort.
Dolphin Fountain - serves ice cream, burgers, and shakes at the Dolphin and is also quick-service.
The Cabana Bar & Beach Club - located near the pool complex and serves things like burgers and salads.
Fuel - another quick service location for coffee and snacks at the Dolphin
Splash Grill - Located near the pool on the Swan side serves ice cream, drinks, burgers, and snacks
Fresh Mediterranean Market - Serves a breakfast buffet and seasonally serves lunch at the Dolphin
Garden Grove - At the Swan serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner in a garden gazebo setting. Breakfast is a character breakfast including Chip, Dale, Goofy, and Pluto (Yes, there are character meals here)
Shula's Steakhouse - At the Dolphin, serves dinner only and requires reservations. Some guests say this is the best place to go for steak on property
Todd English's Bluezoo - A seafood restaurant open for late lunch and dinner at the Dolphin
Kimono's - At the Swan, is a sushi restaurant where you can watch your sushi being prepared. It's only open for dinner, and there is karaoke after 9 pm.
Il Mulino New York Trattoria - At the Swan, features Italian cuisine
Chill - At the Swan, is a snack cart
Java Bar - At the Swan, is your place for coffee, tea, sandwiches, salads, and baked goods
Phin's - At the Dolphin is a pub/ lounge that serves mixed drinks and small plates
Rosa Mexicano - At the Dolphin, serves breakfast, lunch and dinner including Mexican favorites
Amare - At the Swan Reserve is a table-service restaurant open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, that serves Italian and Mediterranean seafood dishes
Grounds - At the Swan Reserve, serves breakfast sandwiches, baked goods, and coffee drinks
Stir - A lounge at the Swan Reserve that serves drinks and small plates
Tangerine - A lounge at the Swan Reserve that serves drinks and small plates
There is also 24- hour room service.
In the Fall, the Swan and Dolphin host their very own Food & Wine event. If you're lucky, you might find dates that crossover with the International Food & Wine Festival at EPCOT. The Food & Wine Event at the Swan and Dolphin is a ticketed event with tickets close to $200, but the tickets include samples from all the booths. Booths are set up all along the causeway between the two main resort buildings, and overflow onto the beach. A lot of the food is representative of food you can get at the restaurants at these resorts (for example, Shula's has a booth).
The Swan at sunset (behind the Boardwalk Resort)
The Dolphin
Up until this very point, we've been treating three resorts as one because of their proximity to each other and their shared amenities, but now it's time to start describing what is unique about each.
First of all, the Dolphin is the largest of the hotels. It's unique architecture includes a peaked center and statues of fish to either side. I've often commented the fish look like carp, not dolphins, and it turns out they aren't meant to be the mammalian dolphins. They are actually mahi mahi, otherwise known as dolphinfish.
The Dolphin, once again, is technically a Sheraton hotel. It has 27 floors at its highest peak, more than 1500 rooms, more than 100 suites, and 11 dining locations throughout just this one resort. The Dolphin has the (marginally) larger rooms at 360 square feet, and rooms come in configurations of 2 double beds, 1 king bed, or 1 king bed and one sofa bed. Note that the double room is double beds, not queen as you are likely to find at most other Disney resorts. Rooms start at $273 per night at the time of this writing.
The Swan
The Swan is smaller than the Dolphin at 12 floors. It has about half the rooms and half the suites the dolphin has, and 8 restaurants and lounges. The lobby is also more intimate because of the smaller size. The architecture of this resort features a curved roof with huge swan statues at either end.
Rooms here at about 340 square feet, and feature either 2 queen beds, 1 king bed, or 1 king bed and a sofa bed. The Swan is technically a Westin resort, and the beds include the famous Westin mattresses.
The Swan Reserve
The Swan Reserve is a new addition the Swan and Dolphin hotel complex. It is located across the street from the Swan and Dolphin. It's an interesting boxy glass building that looks nothing like the other two resort buildings, but the advantage of all that glass is floor to ceiling views of Disney World. The building is 14-stories tall, and only 349 guest rooms. Rooms at the Swan Reserve are 330 square feet and either include 2 queen beds or 1 king bed and 1 sofa bed.
Our Take on the Swan and Dolphin
The Swan and Dolphin are very nice resorts, and can be good for a few reasons. One big reason is they are likely to save you money compared to the prices of a deluxe resort stay at a Disney-owned resort. Another perk is you can use your Marriott points to stay at these locations. And finally, if you're the kind of person who needs a break from the Mouse once in a while, these resorts are blessedly unthemed.
The downside is that they aren't really Disney resorts and you won't really be dealing with Disney Cast Members at them. Because they aren't Disney resorts, sometimes MyDisneyExperience has trouble recognize your resort stay (though this can be resolved), and you can't charge things inside the parks to your room as you would be able to if you were staying at a Disney resort.
Next week, we'll dive into the DVC only resorts: Saratoga Springs, Old Key West, and Riviera. Then, we'll share our final batch of cheat sheets with you all. If you like this content, don't forget to come on over to our Facebook page and Follow us so you can see when new articles are posted each week. Until next time...
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