other resort
Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin
The short answer
Three Marriott hotels standing on Disney property between EPCOT and Hollywood Studios — the Swan, the Dolphin and the Swan Reserve. You walk to two parks, you get early entry and extended evening hours, and you can pay with Marriott points. You do not get the Disney Dining Plan or room charging, and there is a $50 nightly resort fee.
How you get to the parks
- FriendShip boatto EPCOT and Hollywood Studios
- Busto every park, from every resort
- Wheelchair or ECVhow each bus, monorail, Skyliner and boat boards
Routes as Disney publishes them, read Sep 2026.
How long it really takes to get to each park
We haven’t timed this resort yet. A door-to-gate time goes here once we have walked the route with a stopwatch at least five times — a single reading hides the variation that actually makes people miss a breakfast reservation. How we measure.
What it costs
Who it’s right for
EPCOT and Hollywood Studios-weighted trips, where walking to two parks is worth more than theming. Marriott Bonvoy members, who can earn or redeem points and use status here and nowhere else on property. Anyone travelling for work or mixing work with a trip, because these are the only real business hotels on Disney land. Adults and couples who want serious restaurants. And anyone who finds Disney resort pricing in the EPCOT area hard to justify.
Who it’s wrong for
First-time visitors who want the full Disney bubble — no themed lobby, no dining plan, no room charging, and the little details that make people say the on-property experience is different are mostly the ones missing here. Magic Kingdom-weighted trips, where transport is a third-party bus. Anyone who has already bought the Disney Dining Plan. And families counting on free arrival-day water park entry, which does not apply.
Is it worth the money?
Yes, if you understand precisely what you are and are not buying, and it is one of the better-value ways to stay in the EPCOT area.
What you get is the location — walking distance to two parks, which only the Beach Club, Yacht Club and BoardWalk otherwise offer — plus Early Theme Park Entry at all four parks and Extended Evening Theme Park Hours, which is normally reserved for Disney deluxe resorts. You also get six seriously good restaurants, Marriott status and points, and complimentary theme park parking. At $400 to $500 a night against a Beach Club room, the saving is real.
What you do not get is a list worth reading twice. No Disney Dining Plan at any of the hotels' restaurants. No resort-wide charging: neither MagicBand nor MagicMobile will charge to your room. No free water park entry on arrival day, which Disney Resorts Collection guests get. And buses to Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom are a contracted third-party service, not Disney's own, so they run to their own schedule.
Add $50 a night in resort fees before comparing anything.
Where to eat here
Every restaurant here with its own page on this site, with the typical spend a head from that page.
- Amare · Signature dining, about $47
- Bourbon Steak — A Michael Mina Restaurant · Signature dining, about $88
- Garden Grove · Table service, about $21
- Il Mulino New York Trattoria · Signature dining, about $45
- Kimonos · Table service, about $45
- Rosa Mexicano · Table service, about $31
- The Fountain · Table service, about $20
- Todd English's bluezoo · Signature dining, about $52
What the rooms are actually like
The three hotels have different rooms and the differences are small. Swan rooms are about 340 square feet, Dolphin rooms about 360, and Swan Reserve — the newest, opened 2021 — about 330, with Signature Suites at 610. All three are ordinary contemporary hotel rooms, not themed ones, which is the point for some guests and the objection for others.
Pricing works differently from every Disney resort and this matters when you compare. Marriott uses dynamic pricing and publishes no rate calendar, so there are no published seasons and no rack rate to quote. Standard rooms have been running roughly $400 to $500 a night through 2026, which is an observed band, not an official figure.
As a Marriott Bonvoy Category 6 property, award nights run about 40,000 to 60,000 points.
Add a mandatory resort fee to whatever you are quoted. The hotels' own fact sheet gives $50 a night plus tax, covering wifi, paddleboats, fitness classes and spa access; several secondary guides still print $35, so budget from the higher official figure.
Sleeps up to 4, not counting infants — the table below says which room that takes.
Which room should you request?
The best-located hotels at Walt Disney World that most people never consider. They sit on Crescent Lake in the EPCOT resort area, alongside the Beach Club, Yacht Club and BoardWalk, which means you walk to EPCOT's International Gateway and you walk to Hollywood Studios. Water taxis run to both if you would rather not.
The Dolphin is the large triangular hotel with 1,514 rooms; the Swan is smaller at 756; the Swan Reserve is a separate, quieter 349-room building across the road. All three are convention hotels and behave like it — expect lanyards in the lobby in the off-season, and expect them to be busiest when Disney's own resorts are quietest.
What are the pools like?
- Grotto Pool at the Dolphin — has a slide
- Swan lap pool — quiet pool
- Swan Reserve pool — quiet pool
What has changed recently?
The Swan Reserve opened in 2021 as the third hotel, adding 349 rooms in a quieter building across the road from the original two. The resort fee has risen; the hotels' own fact sheet now gives $50 a night plus tax, and older guides quoting $35 are out of date. Early Theme Park Entry and Extended Evening Theme Park Hours have both continued through 2026, which is the benefit package most likely to change and the one worth re-checking before you book.
Working from here
excellent
These are convention hotels, which makes them the best places on Disney property to actually work. Proper desks, business-standard wifi included in the resort fee, meeting space, a fitness centre and several lobby bars and cafés designed for people sitting with laptops — Java, Grounds, Stir and Phins among them. The Swan Reserve is the quietest of the three. If your trip is half work, this is the strongest option on property and it is not close.
Common questions
- Are the Swan and Dolphin actually Disney hotels?
- They are on Disney property but owned and operated by Marriott, not Disney. That gives you an unusual middle position: Disney benefits including Early Theme Park Entry at all four parks and Extended Evening Theme Park Hours, Disney transport and complimentary theme park parking, alongside Marriott Bonvoy points and status. It also means several Disney resort-guest features simply do not apply.
- What Disney benefits do you NOT get at the Swan and Dolphin?
- Four that matter. The Disney Dining Plan cannot be purchased and cannot be spent at any of the hotels' restaurants. There are no resort-wide charging privileges, so neither MagicBand nor MagicMobile will charge to your room. There is no complimentary arrival-day water park entry. And buses to Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom are a contracted third-party service rather than Disney's own.
- How much is the Swan and Dolphin resort fee?
- The hotels' own fact sheet gives $50 a night plus tax, covering wifi, paddleboat rental, fitness classes and Mandara Spa access. Several published guides still quote $35, which appears to be out of date — budget from the higher official figure. It is mandatory and it is on top of the room rate, so add roughly $350 to a week's stay before comparing against a Disney resort.
- Can you walk to EPCOT from the Swan and Dolphin?
- Yes, to EPCOT's International Gateway entrance in the World Showcase, and to Hollywood Studios as well. Water taxis run to both if you would rather ride. Only the Beach Club, Yacht Club, BoardWalk and the Swan and Dolphin can walk to two parks, and these are usually the cheapest of the five.
- What is the difference between the Swan, the Dolphin and the Swan Reserve?
- The Dolphin is the biggest at 1,514 rooms, around 360 square feet each, and has the grotto pool with the waterslide. The Swan is smaller at 756 rooms, about 340 square feet, and sits nearest the boat dock. The Swan Reserve opened in 2021 across the road with 349 rooms of about 330 square feet and is much the quietest, being away from the convention traffic.
What it looks like
Illustration, not a photograph of this resort — a real one is on our shot list.
Sources
- Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin — official fact sheet (room counts, restaurants, six pools and grotto slide, $50 resort fee, Early Theme Park Entry and Extended Evening Theme Park Hours, complimentary transport and theme park parking) — official source · checked
- Disney Tourist Blog — deals at the Swan & Dolphin, late 2025 and 2026 (observed cash rates, Marriott Category 6 award pricing, dynamic rather than published rates) — Melissa was there · checked
- AllEars — can you use a MagicBand at this Disney World hotel (no resort-wide charging for Swan, Dolphin or Swan Reserve guests) — reported by · checked
- Disney Food Blog — Disney Dining Plan FAQ (the plan is limited to Disney-owned and operated hotels and excludes the Swan and Dolphin) — reported by · checked
- Marriott — Walt Disney World Swan Reserve (opened 2021, room sizes) — official source · checked
- WDW Prep School — the Swan and Dolphin review — reported by · checked
- MouseSavers — 2026 Walt Disney World room rates and season dates — reported by · checked