Walt Disney World Dolphin Resort reviews
1820 TripAdvisor reviews
Very responsive when it comes to a reservation problem
Teo K on Sep 23, 2023
I booked a room as it was my girlfriends 30th birthday, which I also proceeded to add a small surprise amenity to spice things up. At some point almost a week before check in, when I checked my marriott bonvoy app, it looked like my reservation was cancelled without my consent. Normally I would rebook, only to find out that the new rates were triple more than I originally booked. So I called the hotel about the situation, then they eventually fixed it. Once I have found my situation resolved. Gary called shortly after to follow up if everything is ok, and made sure that im taken care of. It has been a fantastic stay. Only issue was, I couldn't enter self park the last day, but it turns out the parking lot was full which is understandable. The responsive staff outweighted everything outside of that small imperfection. Would come here again.
Good for what it is
angelicarZ5022AN (Florida) on Sep 22, 2023
The hotel is nice and big. It was my first time staying at the Dolphin as I always stay at the Swan. I stayed 3 nights and even though it was sold out I got a room upgrade for being a Marriott Elite member which I never got all the times at the Swan. The room is small if there's more than 2 people in it. The bathroom is extremely small you can't even open the door if you are standing inside the bathroom. The body wash was empty so before the cleaning came the next morning I requested on the app to have it refilled. In the app it said my request was completed. The second night I go to shower and it's still empty. So the next morning I wrote a note to the housekeeping on the pad of paper to refill the shower gel. Seems to be the only way to get them to refill it as its happened to me at the Swan but with shampoo. The bottles in the shower are see through on the side so you would think the housekeeping would check them each time they clean a room to make sure they are filled. For the area, it is a good price compared to the other hotels. I think the resort fee is ridiculous though as I never used the amenities that are included in it. But its nice if you are just going to sleep and want to be able to walk around the boardwalk or to Epcot.
Average hotel with plenty of perks for the price
SHMH85 (Toronto, Canada) on Sep 18, 2023
Very large hotel with all amenities that a family would need. We spent the bulk of our time at the parks therefore didn’t utilize the resort to its fullest however for a dated hotel, it is kept very clean and neat. Rooms were ok with visible signs of wear and tear however were clean. Wifi worked very well most of the time (80% of the time). Pills were large and nice to relax in. Used them on our arrival day and our departure day for a couple of hours each time. We were a family of 4 (4&6 year old kids) and booked 2 adjoining rooms. Restaurants were varied however food quality at Fountain, Fuel, Trattoria New York could be improved and prices made a bit more reasonable. Very convenient location and transportation options to the parks. We walked to both Hollywood studios and Epcot. Also, I am a Bonvoy gold elite member with the hotel staff recognized and I think got me a discounted upgrade as well as the basic late checkout for one of the rooms.
Condition of Room was subpar compared to previous visits
AlabamaTraveljunkie (Tuscaloosa, Alabama) on Sep 13, 2023
As a Bonvoy member I have stayed at the WDW Swan or Dolphin more than 10 times over the years due to its close proximity to EPCOT and Hollywood Studios and their more affordable prices. We have always had satisfactory accommodations. But unfortunately our most recent visit may very well be our last. I booked an Alcove room at the Dolphin which was supposed to have a king bed. The room we were given ~15090, was a “larger” room but had an unusual floor plan. It was like they just tried to make some extra space “work” but, it didn’t quite make the mark as a proper Alcove guest room. The only bed was a queen not a king. Bummer… but we managed with the queen. The shower/tub combo had at least 20 long black hairs stuck to the shower walls. Gross but no biggie I cleaned it myself. I asked for daily room service at check in. We were given fresh towels daily and the bed appeared made with freshly laundered sheets but the last night we spent there I noticed fresh blood drops on one of the pillow cases. My husband nor I had any injuries or cuts. Seeing fresh blood on supposedly clean sheets just isn’t acceptable. I honestly think the new sheets were someone else’s dirty ones. We slept on the sofa bed that night. Grossed out by “all that” we have decided next time it will be worth it to pay more for a cleaner stay at a different Boardwalk hotel.
Very Disappointing Customer Service
Sara_A20172018 (Washington DC, District of Columbia) on Sep 12, 2023
This was my family's fifth time staying at the Dolphin. We absolutely love this hotel but this time we had a terrible experience and I'm incredibly disappointed. I booked the night using a free night award, and a few days before check-in I called to update the reservation, and was not told that the change would lead to having to pay for the room in its entirety and not use the free night award. During check in, it was explained that the free night award was being used, but upon check out, we were charged the normal room rate in its entirety. Called Marriott and the hotel directly five times and each time was given a different answer as to why we were charged the full room rate. If I had been told that I was no longer able to use the free night award, I would have made other arrangements. As of the last phone call, I was told that there was "nothing" that they could do, which was incredibly surprising and disappointing. I feel incredibly deceived and let down by this experience, especially after all the times I stayed there. If I had been told that I was no longer able to use the free night award, I would have made other arrangements. I will not ever stay here again after this experience.