Hi we just got back and spent the first half of our stay at the Renaissance Orlando Resort by SeaWorld and the second half at The Swan.
I thought the Renaissance was great. They have huge rooms that are very well kept, the staff was very nice and my 2 year old loved the fish and birds in the atrium. We had an atrium view because they were out of seaworld views. This was actually quite nice because it had a balcony. The concierge lounge is closed and they were not sure when it will reopen, but they gave us breakfast vouchers since we had booked concierge. They had turn down service everynight. Unlike a lot of places they actually did some cleaning during that time.
I had stayed at the Swan and Dolphin before and absoulutely loved it. This time I was very dissapointed. The rooms are starting to look run down and they have cut way back on amenities. They no longer have robes in the rooms, you have to request turn down service, they only have shampoo and lotion now--no conditioner or mouthwash--they close the pools at 9 PM and the grotto pool was freezing. Even with these things I wouldn't have minded except the beds were probably the worst I had ever slept on in a hotel. In the two beds in our room you could feel the springs in both and my 2 year old who weighs 24 pounds sunk way down in the middle of them. I would have switched hotels, but it is not so easy to pack up two little kids especially when you have limited time. I let them know how I felt and my impression was this was nothing they had not heard before. She told me they were planning to renovate in January. It looked like they might already be starting because the were installing carpet in some of the rooms in our hall (which actually made it difficult to get in and out of our room with the stroller). Of course outside of the rooms the hotel is beautiful and the location is wonderful. However, given the short park hours, if I had it to do over again I would have either booked offsite or a Disney moderate and saved some money.
I am sure after the renovation the Swan will be wonderful again. Also, I e-mailed Westin to let them know about their beds when I got back and they are refunding me a night's stay so they are very eager to please. If you have ressies now, you might want to check out your room before you unpack.
I thought the Renaissance was great. They have huge rooms that are very well kept, the staff was very nice and my 2 year old loved the fish and birds in the atrium. We had an atrium view because they were out of seaworld views. This was actually quite nice because it had a balcony. The concierge lounge is closed and they were not sure when it will reopen, but they gave us breakfast vouchers since we had booked concierge. They had turn down service everynight. Unlike a lot of places they actually did some cleaning during that time.
I had stayed at the Swan and Dolphin before and absoulutely loved it. This time I was very dissapointed. The rooms are starting to look run down and they have cut way back on amenities. They no longer have robes in the rooms, you have to request turn down service, they only have shampoo and lotion now--no conditioner or mouthwash--they close the pools at 9 PM and the grotto pool was freezing. Even with these things I wouldn't have minded except the beds were probably the worst I had ever slept on in a hotel. In the two beds in our room you could feel the springs in both and my 2 year old who weighs 24 pounds sunk way down in the middle of them. I would have switched hotels, but it is not so easy to pack up two little kids especially when you have limited time. I let them know how I felt and my impression was this was nothing they had not heard before. She told me they were planning to renovate in January. It looked like they might already be starting because the were installing carpet in some of the rooms in our hall (which actually made it difficult to get in and out of our room with the stroller). Of course outside of the rooms the hotel is beautiful and the location is wonderful. However, given the short park hours, if I had it to do over again I would have either booked offsite or a Disney moderate and saved some money.
I am sure after the renovation the Swan will be wonderful again. Also, I e-mailed Westin to let them know about their beds when I got back and they are refunding me a night's stay so they are very eager to please. If you have ressies now, you might want to check out your room before you unpack.
