The Walt Disney World Dolphin is a resort hotel designed by architect Michael Graves

Michael Graves

Michael Graves is an American architect. Identified as one of The New York Five, Graves has become a household name with his designs for domestic products sold at Target stores in the United States....

 located between Epcot

Epcot

Epcot is a theme park in the Walt Disney World Resort, located near Orlando, Florida. The park is dedicated to the celebration of human achievement, namely international culture and technological innovation. The second park built at the resort, it opened on October 1, 1982 and was initially named...

 and Disney's Hollywood Studios

Disney's Hollywood Studios

Disney's Hollywood Studios is a theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort. Spanning 135 acres in size, its theme is show business, drawing inspiration from the heyday of Hollywood in the 1930s and 1940s...

 in the Walt Disney World Resort

Walt Disney World Resort

Walt Disney World Resort , is the world's most-visited entertaimental resort. Located in Lake Buena Vista, Florida ; approximately southwest of Orlando, Florida, United States, the resort covers an area of and includes four theme parks, two water parks, 23 on-site themed resort hotels Walt...

 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida

Lake Buena Vista, Florida

Lake Buena Vista is a city in Orange County, Florida, United States. It is mostly known for being home to the Walt Disney World Resort. It is one of two Florida municipalities controlled by The Walt Disney Company, the other being Bay Lake....

, next to Disney's BoardWalk Resort

Disney's BoardWalk Resort

Disney's BoardWalk Resort is a hotel and entertainment complex at the Walt Disney World Resort. First opened in 1996, the BoardWalk Resort lies alongside Crescent Lake and is situated between Epcot and Disney's Hollywood Studios. The resort is owned and operated by Walt Disney Parks and Resorts...

 area. It opened on June 1, 1990 and is joined to its sister hotel, the Walt Disney World Swan

Walt Disney World Swan

The Walt Disney World Swan is a resort hotel designed by architect Michael Graves located between Epcot and Disney's Hollywood Studios behind Disney's BoardWalk Resort and across from its sister resort, the Walt Disney World Dolphin...

 (also designed by Graves) by a palm-tree lined covered walkway crossing a lagoon. The Dolphin Resort is owned and operated by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide

Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide, Inc. is a hospitality ownership and management organization, headquartered in White Plains, New York. One of the world's largest hotel companies, it owns, operates, franchises and manages hotels, resorts, spas, residences, and vacation ownership properties...

 under the Sheraton Hotels brand.

The Dolphin and Swan share similar elements, but each has a distinctive appearance. The Dolphin is composed of a 257 feet (78.3 m) tall triangular tower bisecting a 12-story rectangular mass with four 9-story wings on the Swan-side of the structure. The roof of each half of the main mass is adorned with a 56 feet (17.1 m) tall Dolphin statue. On the main colored facade

Facade

A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....

 there is a turquoise

Turquoise

Turquoise is an opaque, blue-to-green mineral that is a hydrous phosphate of copper and aluminium, with the chemical formula CuAl648·4. It is rare and valuable in finer grades and has been prized as a gem and ornamental stone for thousands of years owing to its unique hue...

 banana-leaf pattern echoed by a similar wave pattern on the Swan.

The statues on top of the Dolphin hotel are not mammalian dolphins, but a stylized version of a nautical dolphin, a common symbol used on old world nautical maps. The design of the creatures is based on Triton Fountain

Triton Fountain

The Triton Fountain is a seventeenth century fountain in Rome, by the well-known Baroque sculptor Gian Lorenzo Bernini...

in Rome.

In 2008, The Walt Disney Dolphin Resort was awarded a One Palm Designation through the Florida Green Lodging Program established by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection The Florida Green Lodging Program is a voluntary state initiative that provides the lodging industry with free technical assistance, encouraging hotels and motels to adopt cost-saving “green” practices that reduce waste, conserve natural resources and improve the bottom line.

Casual dining

• Cabana Bar and Beach Club - Poolside
• The Fountain - Ice Cream Shop
• Picabu - 24-hour Modern American restaurant
• Splash Terrace - Poolside Cafe

Walt Disney World privileges

Dolphin guests have full transportation to all Walt Disney World theme parks and attractions. Length-of-stay passes are available, as is package delivery from shops across the resort. Dolphin guests can use Extra Magic Hours at certain theme parks on certain days. However, room charging (using hotel key as a credit card at Walt Disney World) is not available and hotel restaurants do not participate in any Disney dining plans or discounts. Guests staying at the Swan & Dolphin have parking, boat, and bus privileges. The Boardwalk, Hollywood Studios and Epcot are within walking distance and are also accessible by boat.

External links

• Swan & Dolphin official website
• Dolphin resort page at Sheraton website
• Dolphin Resort page at Walt Disney website