Walt Disney World SWAN, DOLPHIN & SWAN RESERVE RESORTS Information & Questions

[MarBee]

Debating on whethet to stay Swan again or check out the new renovations at the Dolphin (haven’t stayed on the Dolphin side in 10+ years.) I know the main difference is the bed size, which isn’t too big a deal for me. However, I wanted to double check on some things...

1) none of the Dolphin rooms have the hand held shower head but the Swan rooms do, correct? (Makes bathing the little ones so much easier.)
2) Do both have fitness facilities to shower in after you’ve checked out? We have a late flight on check out day and want to go to the parks and use the pools that day, but shower before we go.
3) Will bell services at both hold our luggage on check out day so we can go to the parks and swim?
4) Each has a separate bus stop, correct? And Swan is the first to be picked up and dropped off?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Tess]

Debating on whethet to stay Swan again or check out the new renovations at the Dolphin (haven’t stayed on the Dolphin side in 10+ years.) I know the main difference is the bed size, which isn’t too big a deal for me. However, I wanted to double check on some things...

1) none of the Dolphin rooms have the hand held shower head but the Swan rooms do, correct? (Makes bathing the little ones so much easier.)
2) Do both have fitness facilities to shower in after you’ve checked out? We have a late flight on check out day and want to go to the parks and use the pools that day, but shower before we go.
3) Will bell services at both hold our luggage on check out day so we can go to the parks and swim?
4) Each has a separate bus stop, correct? And Swan is the first to be picked up and dropped off?

Thanks in advance!

A few answers:

1. I don't recall having a hand held shower head at the Dolphin, but then again--I wasn't really looking for one
2. The Dolphin has a lovely shower area with lockers. Store your pool supplies on check out morning and retrieve them when you are ready for your swim. The showers have wall mounted shampoos, shower gel, and I believe conditioner along with towels/wash cloths. There is also a hair dryer and outlets for other primping items.
3. Yes!
4. Yes and Yes. We have never had an issue with the bus being full when leaving first thing in the morning.

Hope that helps!

 

[wdwgirl1]

Hello Again,
Are there servers that come to the chairs by the Grotto Pool to take drink and food orders- and then deliver them back to the chair?
TIA

 

[earfulofmagic]

Hello Again,
Are there servers that come to the chairs by the Grotto Pool to take drink and food orders- and then deliver them back to the chair?
TIA

There are at the Swan's lap pool!
I haven't seen this at the Grotto pool, someone else will chime in with the answer.

 

[Tess]

Hello Again,
Are there servers that come to the chairs by the Grotto Pool to take drink and food orders- and then deliver them back to the chair?
TIA

Yes, they come from the Cabana Bar.

 

[FredtheDuck]

You can always make changes later!

Be careful with this: if you book under the old points scheme and try to change your dates, they're going to apply the new points scheme. I'm booked for November but called a couple of months back to see if we could go in October to take DD to MNSSHP and was told that because the Dolphin cat change had happened, my entire reservation would have to be rebooked under the new rules. I also asked about just moving or adding ONE day (so coming in a day earlier) and got the same answer. (I ended up grabbing another room night with points later and linking it through the concierge to the original res.)

With the small incremental cost of a seventh day on the hopper, it really was a great way to end our trip.

I've got 5 days for the price of 4 through UT. They clearly say they're 5-day on the tickets. Hoping to upgrade both to seven day when we get there! Can I do it at the hotel or do I need to do it at one of the parks?

 

[MarBee]

A few answers:

1. I don't recall having a hand held shower head at the Dolphin, but then again--I wasn't really looking for one
2. The Dolphin has a lovely shower area with lockers. Store your pool supplies on check out morning and retrieve them when you are ready for your swim. The showers have wall mounted shampoos, shower gel, and I believe conditioner along with towels/wash cloths. There is also a hair dryer and outlets for other primping items.
3. Yes!
4. Yes and Yes. We have never had an issue with the bus being full when leaving first thing in the morning.

Hope that helps!

Thank you!

Another question about the fitness/shower areas. Are there lockers available to rent in the locker room? Would love to store our change of clothes in there while swimming rather than having to go wet to bell services.

 

[Tess]

Thank you!

Another question about the fitness/shower areas. Are there lockers available to rent in the locker room? Would love to store our change of clothes in there while swimming rather than having to go wet to bell services.

They are free. All you need to do is enter your chosen code number, store and re-enter the code when you want to access the items.

 

[Dan Murphy]

Do both have fitness facilities to shower in after you’ve checked out

Both the Swan and the Dolphin have fitness centers with showers and lockers.

 

[vicb]

Hello Again,
Are there servers that come to the chairs by the Grotto Pool to take drink and food orders- and then deliver them back to the chair?
TIA

Yes, they appeared around 10:30 am. We ordered a bucket of craft beer (5 for $30) and lunch at the pool. You can use your AAA discount if you are a member.

 

[Bryan Isip]

How much is the laundry self serve at the dolphin?

 

[mrsdaly]

Be careful with this: if you book under the old points scheme and try to change your dates, they're going to apply the new points scheme. I'm booked for November but called a couple of months back to see if we could go in October to take DD to MNSSHP and was told that because the Dolphin cat change had happened, my entire reservation would have to be rebooked under the new rules. I also asked about just moving or adding ONE day (so coming in a day earlier) and got the same answer. (I ended up grabbing another room night with points later and linking it through the concierge to the original res.)



I've got 5 days for the price of 4 through UT. They clearly say they're 5-day on the tickets. Hoping to upgrade both to seven day when we get there! Can I do it at the hotel or do I need to do it at one of the parks?

You can definitely do this at the hotel (my mom did), but I would suggest waiting until after you enter the park, just to be safe and ensure that you are getting them to bridge the price from the current ticket price for 5 day ticket. The only downside to this is you don't get to get advanced FPs for those extra two days.

 

[amyy]

I have a restaurant.com $25 certificate for Garden Grove and it says minimum 2 entrees, not valid during special events. Do you think the weekday buffet would could as an entree? The regular breakfast entrees look good too. This is an old certificate that does not expire. I just checked my account for fun and found this one and one for Il Mulino. Thanks for your help!

 

[RachelTori]

I have a restaurant.com $25 certificate for Garden Grove and it says minimum 2 entrees, not valid during special events. Do you think the weekday buffet would could as an entree? The regular breakfast entrees look good too. This is an old certificate that does not expire. I just checked my account for fun and found this one and one for Il Mulino. Thanks for your help!

Interesting. I was told, by Restaurants.com, that none of the Swan/Dolphin restaurants participate in the program anymore

 

[RachelTori]

How much is the laundry self serve at the dolphin?

Last time I did laundry there (6/months ago?), it was $3.00 for the washer and $3.00 for the dryer. I don’t remember how many minutes on the dry cycle, but it was enough to dry our clothes. I bring my own detergent and Bounce sheets so I don’t remember the cost of each in their vending machine ($1 each?)

 

[amyy]

They don't sell them anymore. I purchased these in 2010. I can't remember the other 2, Shula's and Blue Zoo maybe and those ones I received a refund on when I logged in today. I was able to print Il Mulino and Garden Grove and it says no expiration so I guess I will see.

 

[RachelTori]

They don't sell them anymore. I purchased these in 2010. I can remember the other 2, Shula's and Blue Zoo maybe and those ones I received a refund on when I logged in today. I was able to print Il Mulino and Garden Grove and it says no expiration so I guess I will see.

That’s around the time I bought ours too! I got an email several months ago from restaurants.com informing me that those restaurants no longer participate in the program and explaining how I could convert my certificates to new restaurants. I had certificates for Il Mulino, Garden Grove, Kimonos, and Blue Zoo.

I hope you’re able to use your certificates.

 

[amyy]

Thanks RachelTori!! I am hoping that since it says no expiration I can use them but will definitely ask at Il Mulino. We were going to try Trattoria al Forno but decided we would switch with the certificate. We have eaten at Il Mulino before and I loved it. Thanks again

 

[striker1064]

Be careful with this: if you book under the old points scheme and try to change your dates, they're going to apply the new points scheme. I'm booked for November but called a couple of months back to see if we could go in October to take DD to MNSSHP and was told that because the Dolphin cat change had happened, my entire reservation would have to be rebooked under the new rules. I also asked about just moving or adding ONE day (so coming in a day earlier) and got the same answer. (I ended up grabbing another room night with points later and linking it through the concierge to the original res.)

Yep, just as another anecdote, we have a 7 night stay in Oct-Nov at Dolphin booked before the category change in March. I wanted to drop one night, and the rep explained there's no transferring a reservation. I would have to cancel and rebook, which would be under the new category for Dolphin. And the new 6 nights would be more points than my original 7 night reservation (and I didn't have enough points to cover the increase anyway). We will make the 7 nights work.

 

[rathead]

I would suggest you contact Dolphin now via SwanDolphin.com. Click on the “Home” tab at the top of the page. Click on “VIP Concierge Services”. Select “Room Request”. There’s a “Comments” section on the “Special Room Request” form...

I contacted the concierge via the online form 6 days ago, but have not heard anything. Would you suggest I try again, as we're staying there next week!