DH and I have been invited to an Orlando area wedding this winter. The ceremony & festivities will be held off-site, but I would like to visit Epcot and spend some time in exploring the BW area while we are in town for the weekend. I’ve been checking out the Beach Club, but I am concerned about renovations and I’m just cost-conscious by nature. I might book a Disney resort with the new promo, but I am also considering the Swan/Dolphin as those “Heavenly Beds” do sound comfortable. Neither of us has ever stayed in the Epcot area before. So, for a couples weekend, with a visit to Epcot, dinner one night at the Cali Grill, an off-site wedding, and a possible golf excursion for DH (spa or Epcot for me), where would you recommend staying?
Check the cost of renting DVC points to stay at the Boardwalk or Beach Club. DVC points for the Boardwalk are often a good value and the location is great.
I’ve wanted to try the Swan or Dolphin for years, but every time I price things out they don’t turn out to be such a great bargain. With no Magical Express, you’re on the hook for transportation from the airport. That wouldn’t be as big a deal, since I often rent a car, were in not for the daily parking fee AND the daily resort fee. If taking those things into account, these resorts are still considerably less expensive, then they could be great choices. Just make sure you factor in all the hidden costs.
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I always find myself running the swan/dolphin numbers against the YC discounted price. I always add the daily resort fee ( last I checked I think 17-18 a night), and then the cost of transportation to/from the airport. It always seems as if when I look at it I can get YC or BW for about $25 more a night and I do that instead.
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Going to a wedding around the same time also and decided upon the Yacht Club for the vicinity to Food and Wine and also SAB which we haven’t checked out yet.
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I just have to give you mad props about your name @StrudelCutie4427 – just as long as you have “evil” in your profile (or if you don’t because you are trying to avoid all the crazy people out there, yeah, you know, that’s cool).
You might want to check and see what sort of package deals that the Swan/Dolphin has – sometimes they have golf packages, breakfast packages, or spa packages that will save you money instead of paying a la carte at another Disney hotel.
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For Disney-owned, I would go with BW; it’s close to EP and has nightlife right there. But I wouldn’t rule out the Swan/Dolphin, depending on how costs work out. It’s definately a more “adult” hotel, with excellent food options.
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Thanks @FlyerFan1973, @PrincipalTinker, @Sam2071, @mascardofamily, & @bswan26! I appreciate all your comments and advice. Ultimately, I ended up booking the BC when the winter discount opened up to the general public on 10/9. I wanted to use orbitz because budgeting is important for this trip (otherwise DH will insist on staying at the wedding hotel site, which is not that convenient to WDW). I really want to add a little Disney Magic to my Orlando weekend trip, and visit EPCOT! I just re-booked today because a better promo code from Orbitz came out for 20% off, stacked on WDW’s 30%. This made it less expensive than the Swan or Dolphin. The first reservation had a fully-refundable cancellation policy, which made this easy to do. I also booked BC because it was less than YC. I also considered BW, but I don’t like that clown at the pool - LOL.
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Awesome!!!
Sounds good, @StrudelCutie4427. Good work with the Orbitz discounts I agree with your about the scary clown. Not sure why that has to be there.