Inside Disney World's most luxurious hotel with swanky suites and water slides (2024)
Walt Disney World boasts a whole array of hotels to suit different budgets but the five-star Grand Floridian Resort & Spa is one you're going to want to add to the bucket list
Fairy Godmother, magic up the most luxurious Disney hotel you can imagine. Enter; the Grand Floridian Resort & Spa at Walt Disney World.
For three decades, this flagship resort at Walt Disney World, has been enchanting guests with its timeless grandeur. Get treated like royalty at Disney's premier Victorian-themed resort, featuring elegant rooms, fine dining, lush grounds and a prime location on the monorail line with easy access to the theme parks.
The Grand Floridian first opened its doors in 1988, ushering in a new era of rapid expansion for Disney resorts. With its distinctive white façade and red roofs, the resort pays tribute to the majestic Victorian beachside hotels of Florida's past. Over the years, this hotel has come to be known as being some of the best real estate in all of Walt Disney World.
Think light colours, high ceilings, grand staircases, chandeliers and marble and one of the most impressive lobby’s by any standard. Here you’ll even find a live pianist gently playing some Disney classics, to help further set the scene. It will really have you feeling like Cinderella at the royal ball, expecting Prince Charming to deliver your glass slipper at any moment.
As for the rooms? Expect some of the largest standard hotel rooms available at Walt Disney World. Each of these rooms sleeps up to five guests and is as modern and functional as it is pretty. Decor details include garden-inspired patterns, with faint Mary Poppins influences sprinkled throughout. Period furnishings receive modern updates like USB charging outlets cleverly concealed within antique desk lamps.
The feel is entirely grown-up, with rooms adorned in soft grey and melon tones. Spacious bathrooms contain double sinks stocked with toiletries. Some even come with their own smart speaker.So a simple ‘Hey Disney!’ and you can ask the virtual assistant questions about park hours, request fresh towels or simply play Disney Radio for a soundtrack to your morning getting ready for a day at the park.
However, one of the best perks has to be its location, just one monorail stop from the Magic Kingdom. Its central position on Seven Seas Lagoon provides a perfect perch from which to enjoy nightly fireworks over the Magic Kingdom castle. It also provides easy access to Epcot, Hollywood Studios and other attractions via Disney's comprehensive transportation system of boats, buses and the Skyline gondola.
While thoroughly immersed in Disney magic, the property also offers a tranquil escape from the parks' excitement. Guests can enjoy leisurely strolls around lushly landscaped grounds.
If all that excitement leaves you feeling peckish, then the hotel's eateries are the perfect spot for replenishing your energy - and unsurprisingly, gourmet dining is on the cards.
Whether you're craving white tablecloths or Mickey waffles, this resort has the food fantasies covered. At the main restaurant, Narcoossee's, indulge in coastal cuisine that's—chef's kis! We're talking pastas that would impress Lady and the Tramp, seafood so fresh even Ariel would approve, and steaks fit for Gaston ($35 to $59.99 per adult).
But the real pièce de résistance is Victoria & Albert's, serving up seven and ten course tasting menus with wine pairings so posh you'll feel like you've been invited to a state dinner at Cinderella's castle.
If you're looking for a good old character breakfast buffet, this takes place at 1900 Park Fare, later becoming a children’s afternoon Wonderland Tea Party with Alice, and Cinderella’s Happily Ever After Dinner in evenings.
There's also plenty of entertainment throughout the hotel. Little ones will delight in the water slide and splash pad at the Beach Pool, while adults unwind in the bubbling hot tub at the Courtyard Pool. Days can be filled with watercraft rental, fishing excursions and fireworks cruises on the lake. The resort also contains a spa, fitness center, arcade and water playground.
After 35 magnificent years, the Grand Floridian really is Disney's Crown Jewel. With exceptional dining, luxurious rooms and prime location, the resort remains the ultimate expression of magic and romance.
I stayed at Disney World's most expensive hotel that costs $900 a night. Here's what it was like and why it was worth every penny. I stayed at Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa, where rooms cost $900 a night on average.
#1 – Disney Art of Animation – Disney Value Resort Suites
At 560 square feet, the family suites at the Art of Animation are over double the side of a standard value resort room. You have the option to choose from the Lion King, Finding Nemo, or Cars-themed rooms.
Because space is finite, and because there will always be people willing to pay a premium to stay on Disney property for the proximity and the perks. Good neighbor hotels — ones not owned by Disney but that have the Disney stamp of approval — in the surrounding Anaheim resort area can be significantly less expensive.
Disney's Riviera Resort is designed to capture the magic of Europe that Walt Disney fell in love with once upon a time. Upon arrival, you'll be welcomed home by a palm tree-lined boulevard and the striking façade of this Resort hotel.
If you are looking for an immersive princess-themed room then the best option fit for royalty is the Royal Guest Rooms at Disney's Port Orleans Resort-Riverside! Several pictures of the princesses are hung in the room and the details make it fit for the princess in you!
We cannot decide what we would enjoy more: the in-suite check-in, the 24/7 butler service or its Rolls Royce fleet, each designated for respective VIPs, which, by the way, very often includes royalty!
It's no surprise that lots of celebrities would choose Grand Floridian to stay at! It's right near Magic Kingdom, is a gorgeous resort with fantastic amenities, and while it comes at a high price tag, many feel it's worth it.
Traveling to Disney World isn't cheap, so if you want to save some money, booking an All-Star resort is a good choice. And, if you need or want more space, the All-Star Music family suites are a great option. They are actually pretty darn affordable. We would definitely stay here again for the price and the space.
The number of days you're visiting the parks is independent of your Disney Resort Hotel stay meaning that you are welcome to have a five-day hotel stay but spend one day inside a park. Many guests enjoy resort activities in lieu of park time!
Some people look to book a long stay, while others may just need a “touch of magic!” The good news is that Guests can plan a very short stay if they choose! You can book a Walt Disney World Resort hotel room for just a single night.
For longer trips (e.g., seven nights), cruises are always cheaper. Cruises are also a better deal for Deluxe-style trips with larger or fancier rooms, plus activities like spa services. Here are the average prices across each trip type: What's included in a Disney Cruise?
One of these inspiring minds behind the magic is Howard Roland, a former cast member who played a major role in building the first two resort hotels at Walt Disney World: Disney's Contemporary Resort and Disney's Polynesian Village Resort.
It's no surprise that lots of celebrities would choose Grand Floridian to stay at! It's right near Magic Kingdom, is a gorgeous resort with fantastic amenities, and while it comes at a high price tag, many feel it's worth it. Not to mention the fantastic dining you've got right at your fingertips too!
Here are our top picks: Best Deluxe Disney World resorts: Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge, Disney's Contemporary Resort, Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa and Disney's Wilderness Lodge.
Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure Park, both in Anaheim, California, are the most expensive in the world, at $149 for an adult ticket. The UK's Alton Towers in Staffordshire is the world's biggest theme park, at 2,226,000 m2.
The iconic Cinderella Castle at Disney's Magic Kingdom is home to one super secretive suite: the Cinderella Castle Suite. It's the only hotel room inside the park. The exclusive digs were originally built for Walt Disney and his family, though he passed away before the park was finished.
Introduction: My name is Dan Stracke, I am a homely, gleaming, glamorous, inquisitive, homely, gorgeous, light person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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