Our Stay at Disney World’s Peak Suite
There are a lot of great hotel suites at Walt Disney World. Some of these resort rooms offer breathtaking luxury, sprawling size, brilliant design, or unbeatable views of Magic Kingdom, Epcot, or Hollywood Studios. It’s rare to find a resort room offering all of those things.
We’ve toured many suites at Walt Disney World, each of which check some of these boxes. Most notably, we shared our visit to the Yosemite Suite at Wilderness Lodge earlier this year. For me, that one is tough to top thanks to its thematic attention to detail–it remains my personal favorite. However, it’s rustic and not particularly luxurious, nor is the view that great.
At the other end of the spectrum, we’ve visited the Royal Suite at the Four Seasons Orlando, which is the pinnacle of luxury at Walt Disney World, but isn’t exactly in the heart of the action. For some, it’s an unparalleled room, but it didn’t do a ton for me personally. Suffice to say, when it comes to Walt Disney World accommodations, it’s hard to have the best of all worlds, but I think we’ve found it…
In several senses of the word, the Presidential Suite at the Dolphin Resort is Walt Disney World’s peak suite. Located on the top two floors of the tallest hotel on property, no suite has a higher view of the parks.
Additionally, the Dolphin’s Presidential Suite has a centralized location within Walt Disney World. Its placement on the far side of Crescent Lake means a bird’s eye view of both Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios, plus glimpses of other tall locations throughout Central Florida.
Then there’s the quality of the suite, which is top-tier as well. The entry foyer contains original works of art, a large widescreen flat-panel LCD television, custom furniture, and elegant furnishings. The center of the lower-level open living room is punctuated by a grand piano, which is flanked by a variety of plants and floral arrangements, sofas, and chairs.
With this, the Dolphin Presidential Suite makes a strong first impression upon entering. Seeing the piano, spacious open room, and high ceilings with diffused lighting. Of course, being atop Walt Disney World’s tallest building, the natural inclination is to breeze past all of that and immediately race to the balconies to check out the view.
And what a view it is. The Dolphin Presidential Suite has the equivalent of maybe three to four “normal” hotel room balconies, with a layout that offers views of (left to right) Disney’s Beach Club Resort, Spaceship Earth (and other front-of-park Epcot structures), World Showcase, BoardWalk Inn, Riviera Resort, the Swan, and Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
The view of Disney’s Hollywood Studios is actually better than that of Epcot, with the full length of the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror visible in the foreground. Beyond that, you can see glimpses of Grauman’s Chinese Theatre, Toy Story Land, and Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.
From this balcony, you can see pretty much everything else at Walt Disney World in this area, but those are the main resorts and parks. From other rooms in the suite, you can see as far as Cinderella Castle in the north and Gran Destino Tower at the southern end of property.
It probably won’t surprise anyone reading this that almost all of my time in the Dolphin Presidential Suite was spent out on that balcony. I was there for sunrise, sunset, fireworks, late nights, and everywhere in between.
I took my laptop, coffee, and even meals out there, wanting to savor every moment of that view. The only times I left were for brief visits to the parks.
As cool as the Presidential Suite itself is, these views are the main draw. The balcony offers the perfect vantage for the fireworks shows at EPCOT, and you can run upstairs to the windows for a view of fireworks at Magic Kingdom.
In my opinion, this is the best hotel room view in all of Walt Disney World. It’s not exactly an apples to apples comparison, but we will take this over what Disney’s Contemporary Resort offers to Atrium Club guests.
Both the Atrium Club at Disney’s Contemporary Resort and Top of the World Lounge at Bay Lake Tower offer great views of Magic Kingdom, but that’s it. Moreover, the foreground is a parking lot and bus drop-off area.
Despite the Dolphin Presidential Suite towering so high, it’s a surprisingly “clean” view. Sure, some roads are visible, but the foreground is the Crescent Lake Resort Area, which has all of its hotel buildings thoroughly designed and finished, and a network of waterways that are a delight to see.
Backstage views are surprisingly limited, and to the extent that you can see backstage at both Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios, you’re seeing finished facades. Most notably, there’s no “bad” view of Tower of Terror–the entire thing is show-ready. (The only exception to this is Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure, and it’s pretty far in the distance.)
Continuing back inside on the lower level of the Dolphin Presidential Suite, there’s an alcove with a dining or conference room table (depending upon the nature of the stay, I suppose) for eight. Adjacent to that, there’s a full kitchen with a variety of appliances–the only one of which we used was the Keurig machine.
Upstairs, the Dolphin’s Presidential Suite offers elegant bathroom and bedroom appointments in residential style decor, spread out over several bedrooms and bathrooms. These rooms offer a sophisticated color choices, contemporary amenities, and a generally refined style.
Luxury-wise, the Dolphin Presidential Suite certainly holds its own, and benefits from what would appear to be a relatively-recent redesign. It’s also a true Presidential Suite, hosting the likes of President George H.W. Bush and President Bill Clinton.
With that said, I think the finishings and attention to detail are nicer in the upper-echelon Four Seasons Orlando suites. Given that the Four Seasons is an industry-leader offering the pinnacle of opulence, this shouldn’t be a huge surprise. (It’s also priced accordingly!)
Thematically, there’s no question that the Disney-owned hotels are doing suites that are more interesting than the Dolphin Presidential Suite. This is certainly true at Wilderness Lodge and Animal Kingdom Lodge, and to varying degrees at the other resorts.
We’ve also seen the named suites at Grand Floridian and BoardWalk Inn, and those are definitely more ‘generic luxury’ in design. They’re pretty comparable to the Dolphin Presidential Suite, albeit not as grandiose.
Appearance-wise, it thus becomes a matter of personal preference. We’ve never seen a Walt Disney World suite that is as grandiose as this. Walking in to that sprawling parlor with the grand piano dead-ahead and high ceilings towering overhead offers more of a “wow moment” than any other suite we’ve seen at Walt Disney World.
Then there’s the labyrinth of hallways and rooms upstairs, which we got lost wandering more than once. (It’s probably not that big, we just are both a bit “navigationally challenged.”) The overall style is classy and interesting without being over-the-top in terms of lavishness.
Per the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resort official website, the two properties offer a combined eight Presidential Suites, with four at each resort.
All of these are at least 1,000 square feet–and that’s just for the one-story suites. No size is listed for this two-story Dolphin Presidential Suite, but it’s presumably around 2,000 square feet in size.
As for the cost, rack rates for the Dolphin Presidential Suites start at over $3,000 per night. To my knowledge, you need to call to make reservations at any of the Swan & Dolphin premium suites, but they’re available to anyone.
You can read and see more about this room on the Walt Disney World Swan & Dolphin Presidential Suites page. (Note: their photos of this redesigned room haven’t been updated yet.)
Our stay was provided courtesy of the Swan & Dolphin. We had the room so I could photograph the EPCOT’s fireworks from an elevated vantage, and assumed the room would just be a normal, high-level balcony room. Upon arrival, the front desk told us that we had the best view possible (“oh cool” we thought at that point, assuming it was hyperbole).
When we opened the front door and entered the room, our jaws about hit the floor. We figured it had to be some sort of mistake–perhaps they thought we were the founders of the world-renowned Bricker’s Famous French Fries (which I’ve never actually had, but I assume they’re fantastic given the name). Suffice to say, it was nothing short of an incredible experience during which I filled up several memory cards on my cameras.
Overall, these areas and strengths all combined make the Dolphin Presidential Suite a formidable hotel room, and given it a strong case for the ‘peak suite’ at Walt Disney World. You won’t find a better view anywhere (unless you care about Magic Kingdom and only Magic Kingdom) or a room that makes a bolder first impression. It’s a great option for hosting a business meeting, family reunion, or in our case, a couple looking to race around its maze of hallways and rooms paying homage to Kevin McAllister’s classic “Home Alone” freak-out scene.
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
Your Thoughts
What do you think of the Dolphin Presidential Suite? Thoughts on the style of the room? Do you agree or disagree with our take that this is the room with the best view in all of Walt Disney World? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
Fun story, a colleague and I actually got upgraded to this suite when we stayed there for a convention a few years ago! It was crazy! Took us 15 minutes to find the bedrooms (we got in about 2am so we just wanted sleep). Had a great time showing it off to other folks we knew at the convention – especially watching the fireworks from the balcony. It was too bad we were there for a convention though, so only had limited time to enjoy it. To this day, I still point out the balcony to anyone I go to Disney World with every time I end up in that area.
Thank you so much for showing us the suite. Do you recall the number of bedrooms and bathrooms? While this suite isn’t something I would book for a normal visit, we may be doing a blow out multi generational trip in a couple years and I’m trying to gather information on suites that will accommodate larger parties. Thank you!
Thank you all for the positive feedback!
This is something we debated posting as we weren’t sure how practical/useful it is, but I really wanted to share some photos of the view and also thought the room was one of those cool things that’s worth seeing. (Personally, I love seeing inside WDW’s suites, even if we’ll almost certainly never stay in the vast majority of them.)
As you’ve probably noticed, we’ve shifted a lot of the emphasis away from us on the blog. Obviously, there are still photos of us and it’s all our opinions. However, we do far fewer trip reports and that sort of thing.
We are both very apprehensive/uneasy about being perceived as online “influencers” (when we started doing this, that wasn’t even a thing) who simply gloat about their own experiences while providing little of practical value. That’s not what we strive for with this blog, and hopefully this post didn’t come across that way! 🙂
I love your amazing trip reports! It’s a chance to vicariously enjoy something I’ll probably never have the chance to do, especially the overseas ones (last time I was out of the country was 1984).
I thought this was a great post and actually quite useful. Thanks for sharing!
I believe your intentions on providing helpful information come across well. I think it is good to provide things like this, even if only to dram and see what’s out there. Thanks for always doing the best reporting.
Thanks for the report Tom. I have read so many amazing things on this blog that I thought I would never do (and indeed had never heard of before). But so far my wife and I have done “free” dining, stayed in a one bedroom studio at Kidani using DVC points, gone to DLP, booked flights to three Asia parks on one ticket (£625 pp) from London, and booked a Disney cruise with a “secret” mini suite room 5522, also planning to run Disney a Marathon next year. All thanks to this blog, so if hotels want to give free rooms away then it is much deserved. I won’t be staying there but I am happy that Tom and Sarah can opportunity and savour it, as they should.
I have stayed in the 2 br suites twice on the floor below where You were. Great views all around and my kids love slamming on the piano. Good deal for a free upgrade from a 150$ regular room courtesy of spg platinum and staying at swan and dolphin over 30 times. That crescent lake location can’t be beat.
Once Marriott purchased it, the hotel has gone down hill somewhat and the upgrades have dried up, Plus the points redemptions are crazy with like 300% points inflation in two years. We used to spend weeks at a time on points at either resort, and when you add in the free breakfast, it was the best deal going.
Now we are doing Disney resorts and saving my points for Hawaii which costs the same.lol
Wow! I have never seen photos of this room. Thank you for sharing!
So amazing! I think it’s well deserved too. You guys have helped me with your tips plan 2 Disney vacations with my family so far. I was born in the early 80s and our family took yearly trips to Disney. One of my favorite memories in the 90s is driving past the Swan and Dolphin. I think we might stay there our next trip. However, probably not the presidential suite… but I’m thinking a fireworks view room might be worth the extra cost. Thanks for the post!
Funny you brought up Home Alone. I was thinking of Plaza Hotel in Home Alone 2 while reading this. Hopefully you ordered some big ice cream sundae room service and watched Angels with Even Filthier Souls.
Wow, what an amazing room and experience for you both! Thank you for sharing, those views are incredible.
Tom, on most days your content reminds me that being a Disney blogger isn’t as great as most people think it is. Fighting crowds, traipsing around construction sites, dealing with sweltering heat, going over the same theme parks routes endlessly as if it’s Groundhog Day. This day however, is not one of those. This day is your reward for all of that grunt work – hopefully it energizes you and helps keep that DTB flame going.
I just wanted to say I think it’s amazing that you and Sarah have received “perks” for running this blog! You help so many people plan a better Disney vacation. Personally, this site is my Disney bible and my Disney trips have improved dramatically since finding your blog and following your advice. You absolutely deserve some bonuses for how much work you put into DTB. And I love being able to live vicariously through you while you experience these beautiful spaces!
The Swan and Dolphin are still my two favorite hotels at WDW. You can’t beat the location and the prices are usually way less than Disney-owned hotels. Plus, you get Marriott Bonvoy points and perks which is an added bonus.
Wow! #DisneyGoals
Thanks for the photos of this awesome suite!
I think you and Sarah officially have the best job in the world.
I absolutely LOVE this post. Thank you for sharing! It’s nice to see how the other side lives sometimes, but that view… that view needs to be shared.
For what it’s worth, Tom, I completely (and respectfully) disagree with the comment asking why you’d post a review of something out of reach for many of us. I loved this! Who knows what the future holds and I want to be prepared if someone asks me “if you could stay anywhere in Disney World, where would it be?” Now to be honest the answer to that is the Cinderella Castle Suite. But in case those keys aren’t available this suite could be it! I love that you guys were surprised with it and, until I get asked that magical where do you want to stay question, I’m happy to live vicariously through you
That looks soooooo cool!
Thank you for sharing!
Why would you even post a review for something that is obviously way out of reach for so many of us Disney lovers? We don’t all get the perks if being a Disney blogger.
Most of us can enjoy the good fortune of others and the insight they can share into such an experience – particularly when it is someone who doesn’t blindly follow the party line on Disney but gives their genuine (usually Country Bear heavy) opinion.
And thank god for that. Country Bear fans unite!
I disagree with this opinion. I’m constantly seeing reader comments on this site like “we had a great week at WDW in June, and we’re going back for another two weeks this November!” or “we did three weeks at the Grand Floridian in March” or “My trip to Tokyo Disneyland this year was better than my Disneyland Paris trip last Fall.” I regularly ask myself, “Who in the world has the disposable income (and TIME?!?) to live like this?” I don’t begrudge these folks a bit, but I can’t at all relate to that lifestyle. So while staying in this suite (and for that matter, having every other experience I mentioned above) is way out of my family’s reach, from my observations there are a fair share of Disney Tourist Blog readers who are comfortable enough financially that NOTHING in the Disney realm is really “out of reach.” And for those of us who are just interested in all things Disney, blog posts like this are our way to take a peek behind the curtain and experience the luxury vicariously. Wishing upon a star, as it were….
FWIW, international travel is not as far out of reach as you may imagine! I travel to Tokyo every year or so, and with the advent of AirBnB, can find a very nice place to stay for under $150 USD/night or even cheaper. Keep an eye out for good airfare deals! I don’t usually stay longer than a week because I can’t take that much time off either, but even a short trip is better than nothing! I could never afford weeks at the Grand Floridian or the Poly like some folks.. I don’t know how anyone can pay $600-$800 a night for a hotel room. But there surely are people who do it – perhaps it’s a once in a lifetime trip, or a big family get-together so costs are spread amongst multiple adults, or people save up for many years for a good splurge trip!
It is precisely because this is out of reach that I appreciate this post. How else could I get a peak inside that awesome suite?
And anyone can get the perks of being a Disney blogger … just start writing a blog. About Disney. Make it really good, get a lot of readers, then sponsors, and there you are, getting a visit to an amazing suite!
There’s always the extremely outside chance of an upgrade – we were pleasantly surprised when we stayed at Portofino at Universal, we were upgraded from a standard room to a huge hospitality suite. I also have a fair to middlin’ chance of a suite upgrade at the Swan or Dolphin due to member status in Marriott Bonvoy Rewards if I stay there. Nothing is impossible.
Exactly, it’s a chance to ooh and ahh with a bit of hopeful dreaming thrown in. I like getting to see places that I wouldn’t get to see, but knowing if I really wanted to stay here, it is in the realm of possibility. ( I could sell all my Disney purses, but then it’s not worth that! lol.) I wonder if Tom has a post of a suite at the GF? I know its not his favorite resort, but it is practically perfect to me. 😉
It’s interesting that you say the Tower of Terror is show ready from all angles. When I did Express Transportation (for the express purpose of seeing backstage areas – best $20(?) I ever spent…), I thought the back of the Tower of Terror was rather “sketched in” at the lower levels. I can imagine it looks better from a distance, though!
Some people may already know this, so I apologize if sharing redundant info, but Tower of Terrors backside is actually designed to blend in with Morroco in Epcot. https://towersecrets.com/see-the-tower-of-terror-from-inside-epcot/ so it makes sense that it’d be show ready, at least above the tree lines, from all angles.
We also got upgraded to the Presidential suite when my boys were smaller! It is truly amazing in every way. Two bedrooms, heavenly beds, lots of bathrooms, an office, amazing views, stocked little kitchen (at that time sodas/juices/snacks were complimentary). That was one of our most memorable Easter’s!
Wow, that looks incredible! I wonder how many guest that stayed there actually played the grand piano. It certainly does emphasize the space and luxury more than just about anything else in its place would.
I had the same thought. I don’t play, but having that in there makes me wish I did…you know, in case I ever have 3 grand lying around for 1 mighty expensive splurge night.