Review of Swan Reserve
There’s a new Marriott at WDW, the Swan Reserve! I was able to stay there this last month. I had a couple of free Marriott night certificates itching to get used, and when I found out my flight would be $150 cheaper if I added a night to my WDW trip, it didn’t take much (or any) persuasion to have me extend my trip by a night. So let’s talk about the Swan reserve.
Where is it?
The Swan reserve is located just behind the Swan and Dolphin resorts. It’s in the Epcot area. It was about a 10-15 minute walk to the international entrance of Epcot, and maybe 20-25 minutes to Hollywood. There is also a boat that stops in between the Swan and Dolphin that will take you to Hollywood and Epcot if you want. It is free for all Disney guests.
The Hotel
The Swan Reserve is brand new which means the interior is clean and well kept. The staff was very friendly and helpful which is also nice to see when you are spending money on a WDW trip. We had chatted with the hotel via the BonVoy app and asked about an upgrade (we are Gold Status with Marriott so nothing crazy fancy). They told us they couldn’t guarantee, but would do their best if something was available. I never expect an upgrade but thought it was worth a shot!
We were notified in the app that our room was ready, gave us the number, and a mobile key through the app. We love that you can skip the check in line and head straight to your room after a long day at the parks.
How to get free night certificates for the Swan or Dolphin hotels
Our Room
We got our upgrade! Walked into the room and saw the floor to ceiling windows overlooking Epcot and Spaceship Earth. It was Breathtaking! We had also booked a two queen standard room (it was all that was available with our free night certificate), but was given a King room. It was clean, with a great shower, a microwave, and a huge flat panel TV, a sofa and a desk.
Fireworks and Pizza
We had planned on going up to the 14th floor and relaxing at the rooftop lounge and watching the fireworks. After a long day at Hollywood, we decided to put our feet up, order flippers pizza and watch the fireworks from our room. It was awesome. If you ever have a view with a room like this, I found the soundtrack to Harmonious on YouTube and started it when the lights dimmed in Epcot and watched the whole show with the music! Not as great as actually sitting by France watching the show, but it was a great way to end the day.
Why we would recommend
The huge plus for the Swan reserve is that it counts as a Deluxe Hotel where you get some of the perks that Disney deluxe guests get (but not all). First you get early entry to all the parks each day. This includes the morning that you are checking in, and the day that you are checking out. It also lets you enjoy extended hours each Monday and Wednesday night (they rotate between Epcot and Magic Kingdom). Our extended night hours were 9-11 and ONLY deluxe resort guests can rides attractions during those hours. It’s a fantastic time to ride the attractions that typically have long wait times during peak hours.
It has a great location. Two parks are within walking distance or a short boat ride. We planned our park reservations so that we had Epcot and Hollywood on the days we stayed at the Swan Reserve.
If you can ask for a view upgrade, do it. It was amazing.
But here is why I would stay here over a different Marriott (like the JW Bonnet Creek). If you are staying at the Swan Reserve, you can make your INDIVIDUAL LIGHTENING LANE purchases at 7 am, and also your genie+ selections. This is key if you want ANY chance of getting a lightening lane for rides like Rise of the Resistance, or Flight of Passage. Guests at the Swan Reserve can make their selections at 7 am, while guests at other hotels (other than Disney owned resorts) have to wait until the park opens to make their selections. I logged on and was ready to buy ROTR exactly at 7- I was able to reserve one at 6:30 pm! And all were purchased by 7:05. Which means that if you were staying somewhere else, you would be waiting in that 150 min queue if you wanted to experience ROTR that day.
Here are the drawbacks
You can’t use your magic band and charge to your room. Since we like to use our Capital One miles to offset dining, it’s a drag that you can’t charge dining or shopping to our resort.
You can’t make dining for more that 60 days out. At a Disney owned resort, you can make all your dining reservations (for up to a 10 day stay), 60 days from your check in date. This allows you to get really hard to get restaurants at the end of your stay. If you stay at the Swan Reserve, you will need to make dining reservations each morning separately at the 60 day mark.
Transportation to other parks is harder. For instance, the bus from the Swan Reserve will drop you off at the TTC (the transportation center) instead of right in front where the Disney resorts are dropped off. You will need to either take the monorail or ferry to Magic Kingdom.
Don’t expect Disney theming. This is a Marriott, so no fun Disney touches to make you feel magical.
If you have a lot of BonVoy points or 50k free night certificates, or looking for a deluxe hotel with cash, its a fantastic Disney choice.
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