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

[Meglen]

Fountain can take some time if it's crowded, once waited about 30 minutes for food but it was packed. Pichabu is probably the safest bet!

Yea we did Pichabu and it was super fast. I honestly dont think people know its there because its odd to get to and outta the main way. Took us to day 2 to find it hah

 

[DJFan88]

Staying at dolphin and coming in late (6ish) and want to go to parks for an hour or two tonight. Whats a good place to get food fast in Dolphin? Talking hot dogs or grilled cheese type stuff. Is the foundation quick or is there a better option?

The Boardwalk is super close too and that time of night the take out stand there should be open, hot dogs, mozzarella sticks, etc., or the pizza window

 

[rosie5189]

Anyone have any success (or failure) at the Swan with a suite upgrade using Marriott's "suite night award"?

We are staying on Bonvoy points the first week of may and have requested the upgrade using certificates but don't have any clue of whether to get our hopes up or if the process even works at S/D.

In 2018 and 2019 I had easy success both times at the regular swan - upgraded both times with my SNA to very large suites. Counter to what is here, I've seen a lot of success at the Swan Reserve lately on other forums, (we are going in May and are really hoping for an SNA upgrade with my 11 month old!). I also usually take advantage of the chat feature as it gets closer to check in. Good luck!

 

[k5xs]

In 2018 and 2019 I had easy success both times at the regular swan - upgraded both times with my SNA to very large suites. Counter to what is here, I've seen a lot of success at the Swan Reserve lately on other forums, (we are going in May and are really hoping for an SNA upgrade with my 11 month old!). I also usually take advantage of the chat feature as it gets closer to check in. Good luck!

Thanks!

Do you happen to know if Bonvoy tier is a consideration in SNA success? We’re not at the Ambassador level (or the secret one above that), so we aren’t at the top of the food chain…

 

[rosie5189]

Thanks!

Do you happen to know if Bonvoy tier is a consideration in SNA success? We’re not at the Ambassador level (or the secret one above that), so we aren’t at the top of the food chain…

I was a lowly Platinum both times (once was a Friday-Sunday trip, and the other was a Tuesday - Thursday). The Tuesday - Thursday trip they even upgraded my sister and BIL's room too (I had SNA's, but the fact that we got to use four total was great). Again, I would use the messaging app closer to the trip and just be kind at check-in. I've found that never hurts!

 

[Sandi]

What do you need to show you are staying at one of the hotels for extended hours at magic kingdom? Because I always have issues attaching my Swan or SR reservations to my MDE so I stopped trying. Can you just show your key?

I expected this to be an issue when we checked into the Swan on March 30. The team member checking me in was fantastic. I had the Swan reservation connected to my MDE app, but he asked that I open it so he could double check that everything was there. He also gave me a Swan business card that said something about Extra Magic Hours and wrote “Jones and Smith parties (4)” in a space provided. (My sister’s and my last names that, with our daughters were 4 people.) He said we shouldn’t have any trouble, but said the card would suffice if we had issues. We never did have any issues. One of us would scan our Magic band (from prior trips), tell the CM the number in our party, and we’d be admitted.

 

[farfaraway]

Anyone have any success (or failure) at the Swan with a suite upgrade using Marriott's "suite night award"?

We are staying on Bonvoy points the first week of may and have requested the upgrade using certificates but don't have any clue of whether to get our hopes up or if the process even works at S/D.

We're Bonvoy members as well. When I looked at my reservation it says you cannot use "suite night awards" at this hotel". Now, it could be because we have a longer stay than "suite awards" left on our account". I'm going to try and ask for an upgrade but not expect it. Then if we get it-what a wonderful surprise!

 

[k5xs]

We're Bonvoy members as well. When I looked at my reservation it says you cannot use "suite night awards" at this hotel". Now, it could be because we have a longer stay than "suite awards" left on our account". I'm going to try and ask for an upgrade but not expect it. Then if we get it-what a wonderful surprise!

Thanks. Yes, always best to not plan on an upgrade.

It’s curious that your reservation says you can’t use SNA. I’d be interested in seeing what you learn.

 

[rosie5189]

Thanks. Yes, always best to not plan on an upgrade.

It’s curious that your reservation says you can’t use SNA. I’d be interested in seeing what you learn.

I would guess that this is due to the days exceeding the amount of SNA's - we applied ours for our upcoming trip just fine (I will report back if they clear!!)

 

[Meglen]

man o man the prices for swan reserve in june SPIKED up to over 500$ a night. June is gonna be busy! /silently panic

 

[sophy1996]

We were denied application of SNA for a 3-night trip in early March at Reserve. DH is Titanium. I think the hotel might have been pretty full?

 

[AzzySpazbourne]

We have a late May trip planned and staying at Reserve. We've heard a lot of horror stories about not being able to book ILL$ at 7am. Any issues with that? We were not able to book 60+10 for ADRs online but had to call and they did it after researching it and saying it's a "known issue." I see that they give you a card or something to get into parks for EMH, but am concerned with not getting same chance as everyone else to book ILL$.

Thanks!

 

[Goofy4]

We have a late May trip planned and staying at Reserve. We've heard a lot of horror stories about not being able to book ILL$ at 7am. Any issues with that? We were not able to book 60+10 for ADRs online but had to call and they did it after researching it and saying it's a "known issue." I see that they give you a card or something to get into parks for EMH, but am concerned with not getting same chance as everyone else to book ILL$.

Thanks!

I am one of those horror stories. Happened at 7 AM. Told me I wasn't a resort guest, but then it worked a few minutes later. For Hollywood Studios it put a wrench in my plans. I think now that had I complained, they would have done something for me.

I've heard it happens more often on Android. I would guess that your chance of having the same issue is small (but possible) given the level of complaints I've seen. It didn't help that I wasn't feeling well and my anxiety level skyrocketed.

 

[DisneyParkLover]

Does anyone know if Garden Grove still has characters?

 

[SteveH]

@DisneyParkLover I don't believe characters have returned at this time. You can use the SDR app to text to verify though.

 

[jemjem]

We have a late May trip planned and staying at Reserve. We've heard a lot of horror stories about not being able to book ILL$ at 7am. Any issues with that? We were not able to book 60+10 for ADRs online but had to call and they did it after researching it and saying it's a "known issue." I see that they give you a card or something to get into parks for EMH, but am concerned with not getting same chance as everyone else to book ILL$.

Thanks!

We were staying at the Reserve a couple of weeks ago- no issues with booking ILLs at 7am. Got Rise etc no problem. Loved the hotel!

 

[blahblah18]

Some rookie questions!

• If I book via marriott.com, how do I link my Swan reservation to my park tickets in the WDW app? Do I use my Marriott confirmation number somehow? (I already have park tickets and reservations in my app, but haven't booked my hotel stay yet.)

• Are the morning benefits (early entry, early access to ILL$) available on your arrival day ... i.e. the morning before you check in at the hotel? Or do they only kick in once you're actually 'in' the hotel. (I do realize some people here report having problems accessing ILL$ when staying at Swan/Dolphin.)

 

[empedocles]

Some rookie questions!

• If I book via marriott.com, how do I link my Swan reservation to my park tickets in the WDW app? Do I use my Marriott confirmation number somehow? (I already have park tickets and reservations in my app, but haven't booked my hotel stay yet.)

• Are the morning benefits (early entry, early access to ILL$) available on your arrival day ... i.e. the morning before you check in at the hotel? Or do they only kick in once you're actually 'in' the hotel. (I do realize some people here report having problems accessing ILL$ when staying at Swan/Dolphin.)

1. Resort Hotel >>> Link a Reservation in MDE. Yes, you use the confirmation number. It can take a while to migrate to Disney's systems. If it errors out after trying for a few weeks, call Disney. (There's a Disney internet helpdesk # that can help with this, but I don't have it handy.)
In addition to just simply not being in Disney's system yet, one reason the link could error is the total # of guests don't match, so make sure it is the same on both Marriott & MDE

2. Not sure, but I would imagine that's all available on arrival day. It is for the Disney hotels, AFAIK.

 

[Tess]

1. Resort Hotel >>> Link a Reservation in MDE. Yes, you use the confirmation number. It can take a while to migrate to Disney's systems. If it errors out after trying for a few weeks, call Disney. (There's a Disney internet helpdesk # that can help with this, but I don't have it handy.)
In addition to just simply not being in Disney's system yet, one reason the link could error is the total # of guests don't match, so make sure it is the same on both Marriott & MDE

2. Not sure, but I would imagine that's all available on arrival day. It is for the Disney hotels, AFAIK.

As to #2, as long as your reservation is linked--you have access as if you were in a Disney hotel with regard to ILL$, G+, etc.

 

[bakerworld]

Yea we did Pichabu and it was super fast. I honestly dont think people know its there because its odd to get to and outta the main way. Took us to day 2 to find it hah

Pichabu is really fast and the food is good. We saw it on our way to the pool. What bothered us was the service charge with every purchase. We spend $50 and they add $5 service charge or buy a bottle of water they add $5 service charge. I would love to know if they stopped the service charge. The other wrinkle is the service charge is suppose to be once a day so you need to carry a receipt to prove you've already paid that days service charge - something 1) we didn't know for a few days and 2) never had the receipt to prove the charge.