Well, hello, Tom. Thanks for bringing your question here to planDisney.
The
Disney Resorts Collection Hotels have some of my favorite restaurants and some really great recreational activities. My top two for dining?
Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge and
Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa. There are so many dining options at each of these resorts, and they are some of the best resort-wide. On our last trip, we were lucky enough to stay at the Grand Floridian, and each restaurant we went to was a hit. So be sure to work those dining options into your rotation!
In general, complimentary
Disney transportation can help you explore the Disney hotels, but there are a few important restrictions to keep in mind. Currently, if you are trying to board one of the
buses or
boats at
Disney Springs to get to one of the resort hotels, you must be staying at that hotel or have a
dining or recreational reservation there. If you have a reservation, you can currently board up to 2 hours before it starts. It's also important to note that there have been times in the past when Disney has limited bus transportation to the resorts from their theme parks during busy times like the holidays and spring break. However, when that was happening, the same rule applied: a dining, recreation, or hotel stay reservation, and you were good to go! And another thing to note is that no matter when you visit, the buses don't run between hotels. Instead, they run from the parks to the hotels and vice versa. So, as a Disney hotel Guest, you'll usually want to use one of the theme parks as a transfer point when traveling from one hotel to another.
Speaking of Disney Springs, you're going to want to also work that into your dining plans, too. I'd especially recommend
Raglan Road Irish Pub and Restaurant. I find it gets all the attention for its delightful entertainment, but people don't talk about the food as much as they should. Now, don't get me wrong, the entertainment is definitely deserving of the praise, but that food is top-notch. My husband loves German food, so he's eaten a lot of schnitzel, and he's not exaggerating when he says that Raglan's
pork schnitzel is the best he's ever had. No joke, he daydreams about it. But everything I've ever had there has been great, and anyone I've ever taken there raves about it. So put it on your list!
Tom, happy exploring and happy dining. If you have any other questions,
I'm happy to answer them!
Try everything,
Matt