Waldorf Astoria Orlando

Waldorf Astoria Orlando stands on a 482-acre parcel that Walt Disney World Resort borders on three sides and never owned. In 1962, two years before Disney's agents began their secret Florida acquisitions, a Taiwanese businessman bought this land through a Hong Kong company. His identity stayed a mystery until 2000. The land itself sat vacant for some forty years in the middle of the resort. The hotel opened here in 2009 and holds 502 rooms, including 171 suites.

Thirty minutes of early entry

Disney names Waldorf Astoria Orlando on its official list of hotels eligible for early theme park entry. You go in thirty minutes before official opening, every day of your stay, at whichever park you choose among Magic Kingdom Park, EPCOT, Disney's Hollywood Studios and Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park. Valid admission and hotel identification are required, and not every attraction runs during that half hour.

Extended evening hours remain reserved for guests of Disney Deluxe and Deluxe Villa Resorts, plus four addresses Disney names expressly: the Swan, the Dolphin, the Swan Reserve and Shades of Green. Waldorf Astoria does not qualify, and neither does Four Seasons Resort Orlando, which sits on Disney property itself.

A full renovation in 2023

All 502 rooms and 171 suites were redesigned by the firm Parker Torres as part of a transformation completed in December 2023. Bull & Bear was reworked in a mid-century modern spirit, Peacock Alley refreshed with Art Deco accents, and the spa gained two new rooms.

The restaurants

Bull & Bear is the serious table here, a traditional steakhouse whose centrepiece is a tomahawk chop aged thirty-two days. Peacock Alley holds the lobby for cocktails and small plates. Oscar's Brasserie serves an American brasserie breakfast. Aquamarine feeds the pool deck with coastal cooking and a children's menu. Park Avenue Cafe works as a refined counter for breakfast or a sandwich, and The Clubhouse Grille, at the golf pavilion, cooks over a smoker.

The restaurants at the neighbouring Signia by Hilton are open to you as well, which brings roughly a dozen addresses within walking distance across the two hotels.

Pools and spa

Two basins: a cabana-lined pool quiet enough for laps, and a zero-entry pool built for children. A jacuzzi completes the set. Private cabanas rent by the day, ten in the morning to six in the evening, with a refrigerator, a television, food service and loungers for six.

The lazy river, the water slide and the pools at the neighbouring Signia by Hilton are open to you, which settles the children's question on a day away from the parks.

Waldorf Astoria Spa offers massage, facials, hand and foot treatments, Himalayan salt therapies and Normatec recovery, with a full hair and beauty salon. The 2023 transformation added The Isle of Serenity Room and The Salt Solace Room. WA Kids Club takes children aged five to twelve.

The golf

Waldorf Astoria Golf Club lays out eighteen holes at par 72 by Rees Jones, opened in 2009 and restored by the same architect between 2022 and 2024. Three holes were fully redesigned, playing corridors widened and greens returned to their original dimensions. The Waldorf Astoria Golf Academy is directed by Brian Mogg. Practice range access is covered by the resort charge, and club rental becomes complimentary after two in the afternoon.

Getting to the parks

A motorcoach leaves the hotel for the four theme parks of Walt Disney World Resort and for Disney Springs, at no extra charge since the service is covered by the resort charge. It runs on regular park operating hours.

Who this hotel suits

It suits travellers who want the dining, the service and the quiet of a full luxury hotel while keeping Disney early entry, and it suits golfers. It also suits couples and business travellers who want to sleep away from the noise of the parks without moving away from them.

It suits you less if you want extended evening hours or integrated Disney transport, since neither the monorail nor the Disney Skyliner serves Bonnet Creek. A daily resort charge and valet parking are added to the room rate: ask your Voyages AquaTerra advisor to build them into the numbers, at 1-866-628-6241. Dogs are welcome, within a combined weight limit.