Best Disney World Hotels to Book on Points

Disney-owned resorts don't participate in any hotel loyalty programs. Think you can score a deal at pricey hotels like the Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa, Disney's Polynesian Village Resort and Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge by paying with points over cash? Even if you exchange points to book those hotels through a program like Capital One Travel, you're not getting a better when you pay with points versus cash. And when you do pay with cash, you're likely paying lots of it. Even during "value" season, you're looking at paying hundreds of dollars per night (and sometimes roughly around $1,000 per night) for Deluxe resorts.

But here's where it gets interesting: Several hotels around Disney World do accept points, and a few of them offer legitimately excellent value. The challenge is knowing which programs actually deliver on that value proposition, and which ones are just letting you burn points at a mediocre redemption rate.

After staying at most of these properties and calculating the math on points redemptions versus cash rates, here's the definitive guide to booking Disney World hotels with points — organized by loyalty program.

If you have Marriott Bonvoy points, the Walt Disney World Swan, Dolphin and Swan Reserve are your choices for staying on actual Disney property. These three hotels are all sibling properties with similar benefits and locations, and they are the only hotels on Disney World turf that participate in a hotel loyalty program.

Located on Crescent Lake between EPCOT and Hollywood Studios, these three hotels offer Disney resort perks that most non-Disney hotels don't get:

• Early Theme Park Entry: 30 minutes before opening, every day.

• Extended Evening Hours: Stay late in parks (a perk even Disney's Value/Moderate resorts don't get).

• Free theme park parking.

• Walk or boat to EPCOT and Hollywood Studios.

• Skyliner access from nearby resorts.

• 23 restaurants and lounges including celebrity chef concepts.

• Five pools including that stunning grotto with waterfalls.

Is this good value? At 80,000 points for a room that costs $260-350 cash (before the mandatory $50 resort fee and $38 parking), you're getting 0.52-0.7 cents per point. That's mediocre by Marriott standards, especially because NerdWallet values Marriott points at 0.8 cent per point.

But — and this is important — when you compare against Disney-owned Deluxe resorts charging sometimes about $1,000 per night night for a similar location, suddenly using 50,000 points feels like a steal. You're not just paying for a hotel room; you're paying for location and Disney perks.

Also, points availability can be limited during peak seasons. Disney Spring Break? Good luck finding standard award availability.

Which property to choose?

Swan or Dolphin: See our complete Swan versus Dolphin guide. Short version: Dolphin is slightly cheaper and accommodates five guests; Swan is quieter with better beds.

Swan Reserve: The newest and most upscale of the three, typically requiring slightly more points, but offering a boutique luxury experience. It's worth it if you're seeking something more refined.

If you want space, a kitchen, a laundry machine and don't mind the distance from parks, look to Reunion Resort. Reunion Resort is a sprawling vacation home community about 10-15 minutes from Disney property, and it's bookable through Marriott Bonvoy (specifically Marriott Homes & Villas) as well as other platforms.

What you get

• Full townhomes or villas with multiple bedrooms.

• Full kitchen and laundry (massive cost savings on food and clean clothes).

• Private pools at many properties.

• Three championship golf courses.

• Small water park on property.

• Resort restaurants and amenities.

The drawbacks? The biggest one is distance. You're looking at about 20 minutes to most Disney parks depending on traffic, even longer to Magic Kingdom. This is not a quick trip back for midday breaks. And sure you can book these on points, but points can be expensive.

When this makes sense

• You're traveling with a larger group where multiple hotel rooms would cost more.

• You plan to cook most meals to save money.

• You're doing Universal, SeaWorld or other Orlando attractions in addition to Disney.

• You want a resort-within-a-resort experience with golf and water park.

• You're okay with longer commutes for better accommodations.

When to skip it

• You're park commandos who want to maximize park time.

• You value midday breaks at your hotel.

• You don't cook on vacation anyway.

• You're a smaller group who'd be fine in a regular hotel room.

Hilton has three properties in the Disney Springs area:

1. Hilton Orlando Buena Vista Palace.

2. Hilton Orlando Lake Buena Vista.

3. DoubleTree Suites by Hilton Orlando.

All three share several characteristics:

• Walking distance (or reasonable walk) to Disney Springs.

• Scheduled Disney park shuttles.

• Early Theme Park Entry.

• Resort fees ($35-39/night plus tax).

• Parking fees ($35-45/night).

Key differences

As far as which one to book? They're all similar, so whichever is cheapest wins, but these factors might help you decide:

Hilton Orlando Buena Vista Palace (1,011 rooms):

• Largest of the three.

• Float Lagoon lazy river pool.

• On-property restaurants including poolside dining.

• Benihana! Yes, there's a Benihana on-site.

• Often the most expensive.

Hilton Orlando Lake Buena Vista (814 rooms):

• Mid-size option.

• Tropics Lounge & Grill restaurant.

• Often middle-priced.

DoubleTree Suites (229 suites):

• All suites (separate bedroom + living room).

• Great for families needing more space.

• It's the smallest property, and also the furthest away if you're walking to Disney Springs.

• Often the cheapest in points.

The Hilton strategy

Book whichever is most affordable in points. Seriously. They're all fine hotels with similar locations and amenities. The main decision is:

• Need extra space? DoubleTree Suites.

• Want the most dining/amenities? Buena Vista Palace.

• Want middle ground? Lake Buena Vista.

If you're trying to maximize your Hilton Honors Daily Food & Beverage Credit, the on-property restaurants matter more. Buena Vista Palace with its multiple restaurants gives you the most options to use those credits.

None of these hotels are particularly remarkable. Hilton points are also generally low-value compared to other programs, so it's typically not a good idea to transfer points from another program into Hilton. Throw in the resort and parking fees, and booking on points might not be as good of a deal as you think.

However, if you're sitting on tons of points through, say, a Hilton credit card, or you want to maximize the fifth night free benefit when you book on points, then this can make sense.

If you've never heard of Drury Hotels, buckle up. This might be the best-kept secret in Disney hotel points redemptions. It's the budget champion where your points cover breakfast and evening drinks.

The Drury Plaza Orlando opened in late 2022 and it's an Official Walt Disney World Hotel offering Early Theme Park Entry. But here's why Drury Rewards members should pay attention:

What makes Drury special

• Free hot breakfast: Scrambled eggs, sausage, fresh fruit, oatmeal, biscuits and gravy, the works. Not sad continental breakfast — actual hot food.

• 5:30 Kickback: Free evening "dinner" with hot food, salads, AND free alcoholic beverages for adults (21+).

• No resort fee: Unlike Swan/Dolphin, there's no mandatory daily resort fee.

• Free Disney shuttles: Complimentary transportation to all four Disney parks.

All of this is included whether you're paying cash or using points.

The points redemption

Drury Rewards points can be earned at 10 points per dollar spent. Drury Hotels has its own co-branded credit card, so you can rack up additional points. When you factor in the free hot breakfast (worth $20-30 per person), the evening Kickback with dinner food and drinks (worth $30-50 per person), and the lack of resort fees, you're getting $80-120 in additional value per night.

The drawbacks

• You're in Disney Springs area, not on property proper. You can walk to Disney Springs from this hotel, but bring good walking shoes and a tolerance for Florida heat.

• It's a Drury Hotel — it's nice and modern, but not luxurious.

For families on a budget who want to maximize value, Drury Rewards redemptions are borderline brilliant. You're effectively getting two meals a day plus drinks included in your points stay. That's $200-300 in food and beverage value over a 4-night stay.

If you want the best possible Disney vacation and price is no object, you're best off staying at a Disney-owned hotel. With this, you're fully immersed in the Disney magic — never needing to leave the 'Disney bubble' throughout your vacation. Even the cheapest Disney resorts are high-quality. New renovations to properties like Disney’s Coronado Springs and Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa are the pinnacle of luxury.

But if you want to book on points? You're probably not getting a deal, but it IS possible. You can use points portals like Capital One Travel to book Disney-owned resorts: With these, you're essentially converting your points to cash and paying close to Disney's rack rates.

Is it worth it? That depends entirely on your priorities:

• If Disney theming matters: Yes.

• If you value the perks and avoid fees: Yes.

• If you're pure value-hunting: Probably not — you could transfer those Capital One points to other Capital One transfer partners and get better value elsewhere.

The smarter play

Use the Capital One portal to compare Disney hotels against third-party booking sites. Sometimes you'll find:

• Authorized travel agencies like Undercover Tourist offering Disney tickets and hotel packages at better values.

• Disney's own promotions (like access to Disney Dining Plan deals) that beat points redemptions.

• Off-property hotels where your points stretch further.

The portal is useful for price comparison and flexibility, but don't assume it's automatically your best deal.

Points aren't always the answer. Sometimes paying cash — especially during Disney promotions — delivers better value than burning points at mediocre redemption rates. Run the numbers, compare your options and choose the path that maximizes your specific situation.

And whatever you do, don't transfer valuable Chase or Amex points to hotel programs just for Disney redemptions. Those points are too valuable for the middling redemption rates you'll get. Save them for business class flights or international luxury hotels where you'll actually see 2+ cents per point value.