News New Event Space and Luxury Rooms Coming to Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin by Summer 2026

[HauntedPirate]

Anyone think room prices will be discounted during construction?

 

[Chef idea Mickey`=]

Not defending the rooms at all, because they are bland but I saw some pictures of the 2 queen rooms and they do look a little better. There is more artwork and a bluish/creme carpet that runs underneath both beds, so its not as sterile as the King room pic on the main page.

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Why is the artwork on one side and not in the middle. The Giant Hilton at Disney Spring's has exactly that but in the middle within the two beds!

 

[Chef idea Mickey`=]

So cold and cheap looking...you could be in any hotel anywhere....Certainly looks neither Luxe or unique...

When I think of Luxe I think Blacks and Grey's, Violet.. nothing LuX feeling about it, looks the same other than wood implemented. I get for the floors, but why for the furniture. Home2suites has that lol.

...Things change, and I understand how it would seem dated to keep it as it was... I would have loved to have seen them not discard the pedigree of the architecture, but modernize look without losing the connection to the unique hotel it has always been...

I stayed there like five years ago and the rooms didn't feel dated. It was the hallways and the elevators. Some elevators got some change while I was there. It's the surroundings of the public places that seem needs upgrades! The interiors don't match the Grandness of the exterior outlook!

 

[Chef idea Mickey`=]

They're the newer motion detection AC units that turn off when there's no motion (including at night). You need to find a youtube video to override them.

But when you're in the bed you're not moving unless you turn, turn, turn etc so no air for you when you lay?

 

[Ayla]

But when you're in the bed you're not moving unless you turn, turn, turn etc so no air for you when you lay?

Correct. It shuts off in the middle of the night - which is why they are garbage.

 

[Fido Chuckwagon]

But when you're in the bed you're not moving unless you turn, turn, turn etc so no air for you when you lay?

You can set them to bypass mode so they don’t do this (there are YouTube videos), but yeah, it’s annoying as hell otherwise.

 

[Chef idea Mickey`=]

You can set them to bypass mode so they don’t do this (there are YouTube videos), but yeah, it’s annoying as hell otherwise.

"Great", I need a manual and tutorial to figure it out, after that I'll lose interest in sleep and it's costing me minutes that I should be asleep

 

[wdwmagic]

Swan and Dolphin Breaks Ground on Major 120,000-Square-Foot Expansion at Walt Disney World​

Swan and Dolphin Breaks Ground on Major 120,000-Square-Foot Expansion at Walt Disney World

Swan and Dolphin Breaks Ground on Major 120,000-Square-Foot Expansion at Walt Disney World

www.wdwmagic.com

 

[Brian]

Swan and Dolphin Breaks Ground on Major 120,000-Square-Foot Expansion at Walt Disney World​

Swan and Dolphin Breaks Ground on Major 120,000-Square-Foot Expansion at Walt Disney World

Swan and Dolphin Breaks Ground on Major 120,000-Square-Foot Expansion at Walt Disney World

www.wdwmagic.com

This will still somehow not be enough for Gartner.

 

[monothingie]

I'm actually kind of surprised that Disney has not leaned in more on the whole convention center gig and are seemingly ceding this to Marriott.

Boardwalk, Yacht/Beach, Grand Floridian are basically large meeting/ball rooms.
Coronado and Contemporary are much larger spaces, but each have their own set of problems.

Swalphon has got the right formula. More and larger modern facilities, hotels rooms to support the hosted conferences, and close access to two parks.

 

[Alice a]

So we do a lot of buying shows (retail) every year and, post pandemic, they are getting smaller and shorter as, reportedly, buyers preferred the online options that were offered during the pandemic.

Even shows in destination cities like New Orleans and Orlando with perks like Mardi Gras events and exclusive park access has not been the draw it was in the past.

I’m guessing this is just our industry (hardware) and not everyone’s, since clearly business is booming enough that they’re building more space?

 

[Comped]

I'm actually kind of surprised that Disney has not leaned in more on the whole convention center gig and are seemingly ceding this to Marriott.

Boardwalk, Yacht/Beach, Grand Floridian are basically large meeting/ball rooms.
Coronado and Contemporary are much larger spaces, but each have their own set of problems.

Swalphon has got the right formula. More and larger modern facilities, hotels rooms to support the hosted conferences, and close access to two parks.

Most people don't realize that places like Rosen Shingle Creek, World Center Marriott, Gaylord Palms, all have more convention and meeting space than Disney does outside of S&D. Rosen alone has half a million square feet just at Shingle Creek, not including any of his other properties around Orlando. This renovation will still not overtake that property in terms of square footage of event space, but it will firmly put Disney's largest hotel in terms of meeting space, Coronado Springs, at about half of S&D. And both of those are a fraction of the convention center, not including all the hotels attached to it which have their own meeting and event spaces.

I'm not sure if the reason why Disney hasn't put a big emphasis on their own hotel convention business is because they know they get business from mid sized clients every year and they just don't want to bother with expanding given they will never land the most lucrative contracts because they require spase or features that Disney doesn't have. I remember during my undergrad event/convention class, this was a topic of discussion for a guest speaker from Visit Orlando, who noted that unless Disney gave people a really good deal, most preferred to save money and stay off-site because the spaces were generally better and prices were lower.

 

[JoeCamel]

Most people don't realize that places like Rosen Shingle Creek, World Center Marriott, Gaylord Palms, all have more convention and meeting space than Disney does outside of S&D. Rosen alone has half a million square feet just at Shingle Creek, not including any of his other properties around Orlando. This renovation will still not overtake that property in terms of square footage of event space, but it will firmly put Disney's largest hotel in terms of meeting space, Coronado Springs, at about half of S&D. And both of those are a fraction of the convention center, not including all the hotels attached to it which have their own meeting and event spaces.

I'm not sure if the reason why Disney hasn't put a big emphasis on their own hotel convention business is because they know they get business from mid sized clients every year and they just don't want to bother with expanding given they will never land the most lucrative contracts because they require spase or features that Disney doesn't have. I remember during my undergrad event/convention class, this was a topic of discussion for a guest speaker from Visit Orlando, who noted that unless Disney gave people a really good deal, most preferred to save money and stay off-site because the spaces were generally better and prices were lower.

If a conventioneer is in the convention they are not in the parks spending so they take rooms that could be better ROI but they still want whatever revenue conventions can bring.
In other words the money is nice but not their core business.

 

[Comped]

If a conventioneer is in the convention they are not in the parks spending so they take rooms that could be better ROI but they still want whatever revenue conventions can bring.
In other words the money is nice but not their core business.

It's not their core business but they sure could make more money at it if they tried at all to expand clientele and upgrade the facilities to anything approaching the standard of their competitors even on property. There are quite a few third party hotels on property that offer convention and meeting space that exceed Disney in terms of amenities or capabilities, and that's money Disney isn't getting which they easily could...

 

[Jambo Dad]

"Great", I need a manual and tutorial to figure it out, after that I'll lose interest in sleep and it's costing me minutes that I should be asleep

More phone-based fun for the Disney traveler!

 

[JMcMahonEsq]

It's not their core business but they sure could make more money at it if they tried at all to expand clientele and upgrade the facilities to anything approaching the standard of their competitors even on property. There are quite a few third party hotels on property that offer convention and meeting space that exceed Disney in terms of amenities or capabilities, and that's money Disney isn't getting which they easily could...

What do you mean quite a few third party hotels on property? Other than swan and dolphin, what other non Disney hotels are “on property?”

 

[monorail81]

That property has parking issues with the current facilities. They need to add a parking garage to their list of things to do.

 

[monothingie]

Most people don't realize that places like Rosen Shingle Creek, World Center Marriott, Gaylord Palms, all have more convention and meeting space than Disney does outside of S&D. Rosen alone has half a million square feet just at Shingle Creek, not including any of his other properties around Orlando. This renovation will still not overtake that property in terms of square footage of event space, but it will firmly put Disney's largest hotel in terms of meeting space, Coronado Springs, at about half of S&D. And both of those are a fraction of the convention center, not including all the hotels attached to it which have their own meeting and event spaces.

I'm not sure if the reason why Disney hasn't put a big emphasis on their own hotel convention business is because they know they get business from mid sized clients every year and they just don't want to bother with expanding given they will never land the most lucrative contracts because they require spase or features that Disney doesn't have. I remember during my undergrad event/convention class, this was a topic of discussion for a guest speaker from Visit Orlando, who noted that unless Disney gave people a really good deal, most preferred to save money and stay off-site because the spaces were generally better and prices were lower.

The only thing I can think of, is that they can’t be competitive. I’ve been to several trade shows and corporate expos in central Florida and none have been on property. The main reason given is that others offer more for less and if people really want to visit Disney on their own time, then that’s why the events usually end on a Friday.

It seems Disney would rather leave the rooms for leisure guests than put them out at a wholesale rate for convention attendees. Which is why the contemporary convention center just doesn’t work.

At the same time the Coronado convention center is sucking wind because even though it has the capacity (rooms) it still isn’t competitive compared to a similarly equipped offsite venue.

 

[drkarcher22]

It would be nice if they brought back character dining to Garden Grove to go along with the expansion. It was always cheaper than the other CD restaurants and you

 

[LSLS]

What do you mean quite a few third party hotels on property? Other than swan and dolphin, what other non Disney hotels are “on property?”

I'm assuming they are including Waldorf, Wyndham Bonnet Creek, and Four Seasons, who all have meeting spaces (though I don't think any are close to Swan/Dolphin size, but I know very little about convention spaces). Also worth mentioning Coronado has a lot of convention space (though not third party).