Just Booked 2012!!!/Questions about Dolphin?

[H20Babie]

Just booked April 1-7, 2012 at the Dolphin (resort view with balcony) with my discount ... for $199 night! That's cheaper than a moderate during the exact same dates! :sohappy::sohappy:

So excited, but have some questions I'm hoping a few of you can answer :

1. Is food at the S&D more expensive than Disney's? What would you compare it to?

2. Cab or Mears back to the airport (we're being dropped off at the hotel by car but need transpo for our departure)? And how much?

3. I know there is no charging to the hotel in the parks, etc., but can packages be delivered?

4. What is included in the resort fee? I was told, but only remember the internet and two bottles of water per room per day.

Thank you!!!!

:sohappy::sohappy::sohappy:

 

[BrerPete]

Did the Swan recently but was in the Dolphin a lot (they share the area).
1. Wasn't crazy about the food. Ate a Shula's for dinner and Garden Grove and Fresh Mediterranean Market for breakfast. Wasn't really impressed with any of them. Thought steak was better at Yachtsmen and the breakfast at both places was on par with Denny's or a typical hotel buffet breakfast. I would go to the Disney run eateries.
2. They have cab service but it wasn't Mears. They put us in a car service type car to go to the GF, and I wasn't paying attention, which was like 28 dollars for what was normally a 14 dollar fare. We walked over to Boardwalk to get a cab after that. You have to call Mears yourself if you want to get picked up there.
3. They do deliver packages.
4. That's it, bring you're laptop.

It was a very nice place to stay, despite the negatives I just provided. It's in walking distance to the Boardwalk, Epcot, and DHS, plus the boat service. It's also much cheaper. Stay there but do everything else at Disney.

 

[britdaw]

How were you able to book that far in advance? When I tried to do it a while back, I was I needed to wait til, like, August. Did you book over the phone?

 

[H20Babie]

How were you able to book that far in advance? When I tried to do it a while back, I was I needed to wait til, like, August. Did you book over the phone?

I checked to see the dates first online, then called the S&D directly (not WDW CRO) to book with my teacher's rate. Got my email confirmation within minutes of hanging up!

 

[H20Babie]

Did the Swan recently but was in the Dolphin a lot (they share the area).
1. Wasn't crazy about the food. Ate a Shula's for dinner and Garden Grove and Fresh Mediterranean Market for breakfast. Wasn't really impressed with any of them. Thought steak was better at Yachtsmen and the breakfast at both places was on par with Denny's or a typical hotel buffet breakfast. I would go to the Disney run eateries.
2. They have cab service but it wasn't Mears. They put us in a car service type car to go to the GF, and I wasn't paying attention, which was like 28 dollars for what was normally a 14 dollar fare. We walked over to Boardwalk to get a cab after that. You have to call Mears yourself if you want to get picked up there.
3. They do deliver packages.
4. That's it, bring you're laptop.

It was a very nice place to stay, despite the negatives I just provided. It's in walking distance to the Boardwalk, Epcot, and DHS, plus the boat service. It's also much cheaper. Stay there but do everything else at Disney.

Thanks for the advice ... with the rate and location, I'm very happy with our choice. DS wants to eat at every country while we're there, so I guess that is now do-able :slurp:

 

[Bri1121]

We have stayed at the Dolphin a few times. We always get a good deal. We use Mears as car service from the airport and back. Think it was about $65? Not 100% sure though. I think the lady at the Dolphin who I booked through told me to use them.

We have never ate dinner there but had breakfast a few times and it was great. We also got coffee and bagels/muffins on the way out in the morning. The convenience of the boats to Epcot and HS is great. And the boardwalk has some good places to eat. Its a very nice hotel! Enjoy!!

I guess the biggest con is no magical express. But nothing like getting right off the plane into a car and directly dropped off at your hotel. No other stops!!

 

[MonoManBlue]

Where were you booking through if 199 a night is CHEAPER than a moderate?? You cannot book 2012 on Disney's website yet.... and almost all moderate rates (rack) (with a few exceptions) are cheaper than 199.

 

[OklaHoops]

Dolphin

We have stayed there several times and it is worth the price.

The restaurants are good but with the family we seemed to hang out at the Fountain and ate on the boardwalk or at the parks. Select Mears since it is a little less and they provide reliable service. The water that was supplied was always used on the way to the parks. The most important reason is the location. The EPCOT resort area is the best area for seeing all of the parks because of the locality and the variety of transportation available.:sohappy:

 

[roaddogg6420]

The price of food is close to most of the similar restaurant types around Disney. But being at the Dolphin you have all their options plus all the different options of the Boardwalk and Epcot. Take advantage of where you are staying. I know we always do when we stay at the Swan/Dolphin. I will add I really enjoy Shula’s it is the best Steak I have had at Disney and yes I have eaten at Yachtsman’s and Le Cellar. Also call Mear’s it will save you some money when you need a cab.

 

[wdwmagic]

The $12 resort fee gives you

Up to 60 minutes free local telephone calls, toll free and credit card access calls (.10 cents per minute after 60 minutes).
20 minutes of Domestic long distance per day
2 bottles of water daily
Unlimited access to the Resort’s health club facilities
In room High-Speed Internet Access

 

[nolatron]

Just booked April 1-7, 2012 at the Dolphin (resort view with balcony) with my discount ... for $199 night! That's cheaper than a moderate during the exact same dates! :sohappy::sohappy:

2011 Moderate Resort rates are $154-$209 for non-suite rooms.

 

[nolatron]

How were you able to book that far in advance? When I tried to do it a while back, I was I needed to wait til, like, August. Did you book over the phone?

If you want to book just a room, you do so directly at their website:

http://www.swandolphin.com/

The S&D are owned by the Sheraton/Starwood Hotels chain and not Disney so book rooms directly.

 

[tikiman]

We have stayed at the Swan 3 times and the Dolphin once. We will be staying again at the Swan in September. I am not a huge fan of either resort but we have Starwood points from our ownership that lets us stay there for no money out of our pockets. With that said they have a lot to offer. It is unfortunate they don’t participate in Magical Express. You can go to extra magic hours.

The food was not great so we usually walk over to the Epcot resorts or go into the park to eat. I love hanging out in pools and they do have a nice pool but it can get very crowded.

I think out of the two I prefer the Swan but then when we stayed at the Dolphin it was a mess because there was a convention going on.

I would suggest signing up with the Starwood Preferred guest cared for free. You might get an upgrade or something.

 

[awilliams4]

Just booked April 1-7, 2012 at the Dolphin (resort view with balcony) with my discount ... for $199 night! That's cheaper than a moderate during the exact same dates! :sohappy::sohappy:

So excited, but have some questions I'm hoping a few of you can answer :

1. Is food at the S&D more expensive than Disney's? What would you compare it to?

2. Cab or Mears back to the airport (we're being dropped off at the hotel by car but need transpo for our departure)? And how much?

3. I know there is no charging to the hotel in the parks, etc., but can packages be delivered?

4. What is included in the resort fee? I was told, but only remember the internet and two bottles of water per room per day.

Thank you!!!!

:sohappy::sohappy::sohappy:

Apologies if any of this is repetitive.

We have stayed at both the Dolphin or Swan on about 7 different trips. We used a Starwoods American Express Credit Card to basically get free accomodations every year for many years until we became DVC Members at BCV and BLT (and hopefully GFV (Grand Floridian Villas) too)

Our last several trips were at the Swan. They have two queen beds while the Dolphin has two full beds. The Swan is also much smaller so at the end of the day you have less walking. We stayed one time at the Dolphin and our room was on the end of a wing and wow, what a walk.

1. Counter service is about the same. The other restaurants (Shula's) can be a bit pricy. We loved the Garden Grove on non-weekends of breakfast. I like it better than the Captain Grille's & Spoodle's (Cora) breakfast. The weekends at the Garden Grove I believe are character buffets and a bit more pricey.

2. We did Mears only once back in 2001 and it was about $85 there and back from the Orlando airport. I suspect it is more like $125 or more now. I would say Mears over a cab just for convenience.

3. Yes, packages can be delivered to the resort. Dolphin or Swan.

4. Resort fee includes USA Today, two waters, Internet Service and some free local calling from the phone in the room I believe.

When I got hit for these charges, I made SURE I got my two bottles of water. We usually leave a do not disturb up even when not in the room because I don't trust many people but at the end of the day, I would call and get my two bottles of water. Especially at $10 per day.

 

[ornurse]

I think y'all will love it. We stay at the Swan as I prefer queen beds when we take our 2 little boys (as the other post said, the Dolphin has double beds.) The Swan is a Westin hotel so it's a little nicer than the Dolphin which is a Sheraton although both are run by Starwood. I found the food to be fine for b'fast. Certainly as good as any buffet on property. They also give you Starbucks coffee in your room!! If you like coffee, it's so nice to have a decent cup instead of the nasty Nescafe! Again, the main benefit is the cost and the proximity to Epcot and HS. I think you will be very happy with your choice!