Four Seasons Orlando: Stellar Resort Near Disney, And A Destination In Itself

It's very much worth noting that (based on the photos) you got one of the updated rooms. They are still in process of doing this refresh and if you get an older room, they are extremely tired. I tend to agree with all of your reviews but in this case, I think you got a bit lucky (pun not intended). Having been there earlier this year and I frequently have clients there, I rank it towards the bottom of the barrel in their portfolio (not even accounting for the high rates). Their concierge team is incredible, and I enjoyed the Ravello and Capa, but that was the extent of it. If you're there for the parks, you're quite a long way from them (the fireworks views are ok, but way in the distance). The service overall is just okay, and the food outside of the two main restaurants was very mediocre. There's also a ton of construction taking place while they build the residences, though that will go away soon. While the rooms have undergone a refresh (at least most of them), the property itself felt very tired to me.

If one must be in Orlando, and wants to over-pay, sure, why not. But, yeesh, these days, no thanks, if you can avoid it. (I know, Ben, you're already in Miami, but, like, oof, central Florida, yikes.) Glad Disney went well for you and yours, regardless. Happy holidays.

The Four Seasons Sydney has 531 rooms and the Four Seasons Macao has 649 rooms, if you include the Grand Suites Tower.

@Ben How are you traveling with the two kids right now in hotels? Would be curious about room preferences, gear, etc.

We had our second recently and now have two under three. Are you doing double pack and plays? Is Miles in a bed? Do you prefer adjoining rooms vs a larger suite? Any other tricks you could share? One was easy enough to request a crib but looking at a trip to NYC and can't figure out the best way to make it happen.

I mean it’s not necessarily overpaying given its proximity to WDW. The “on-site” Disney-operated “Deluxe” hotels can easily cost as much, if not more, than the FS Orlando and the FS is far nicer in terms of quality than the Disney competition while still offering most of the same perks in terms of park access.

I'd say this review has a little bit of "kid" colored glasses on it (that is, your son had joy, so it could make a Courtyard feel special). Not that it looks bad, but at least from the photos, nothing screams Four Seasons to me. I've stayed at the Gaylord Palms and it appears to be on that level. Plus that has more on site attractions. Orlando really doesn't have any true luxury properties, but that's not the idea anyway. You're there for Disney. If this was in a major city, FS would have already abandoned it and moved to newer digs like they did in Philadelphia.

Stayed here several years ago. Loved the hotel itself, though found the shuttle times to be restrictive. We were living in Florida at the time, so drove there and used the valet parking. When they brought the car back at the end of our stay it had a flat tire, which was not the case when they took the car upon arrival (we had driven 3+ hours to get there and there weren't any issues with tire pressure on the turnpike). The hotel refused to take any accountability (cited the T&Cs for valet parking) -- had to have the car towed to the dealership and stay an additional night
(since it was a Sunday and the dealership was closed). It wasn't until we left and I corresponded with the GM that we got any kind of (far from satisfactory) resolution; the experience left me with a very negative impression of the hotel.

There are a couple of FS with way more rooms than Orlando…..

He has to give a great review if the stay was comped directly by FS to his husband ….

I totally agree with you! If u got an old room is just not worth it

As someone who has spent a LOT of time at Disney with kids over the years (and without kids), I would argue that this hotel is a waste of money for most folks. Doing Disney, especially with littles, is exhausting and proximity is key. And I don't mean proximity as in on property or near property, I mean easy access in and out of the park. This is particularly handy when you need to take a child back to the room for a nap or just to get a break from all of the stimulation. For Magic Kingdom, if you can afford it, it is ideal to pay the extra money to stay at hotels on the monorail (Contemporary, Grand Floridian or Poly) or boat (Wilderness Lodge or Cabins). They are not points/miles hotels, but this would be a great time to use "eraser" type options. For Epcot or Hollywood Studios, stay at EPCOT area Disney hotels or one of the Marriott Swolphin hotels (Swan, Dolphin, Swan Reserve). Being able to easily access these parks is really important and can totally change the level of comfort of your stay. If you are going to Animal Kingdom...well, it will be hassle wherever you stay, even AK Lodge. All this said, another good option is to rent a place off site with a kitchen and bedrooms (and there are tons of these places in the area). At some point in your parenting journey it will be worth it to have the space and privacy, and that will win out over proximity. If you need to travel on points/miles, the EPCOT area Marriotts can sometimes be had for reasonable points; there are some Hiltons in the Disney Springs area that are walkable to Disney Springs, and Hyatt Grand Cypress makes for a lovely vacation. And, of course there are tons of tourist hotels off site in the surrounding areas that are reasonably close and often offer shuttles to the park (not all of these shuttles are good or convenient, though - sometimes you're better off driving). Last bit of advice: for those who live in Florida and can go more frequently, I suggest going for shorter trips where the focus is on just one park (or maybe 2), rather than spending a week and trying to cram it all in. And, make sure to account for a need to rest at the hotel, maybe even build in a hang at the hotel pool day in your itinerary.

From my perspective, it's totally overpaying. For the cost of staying here you could stay at the Grand Floridian on the monorail and probably would save money by doing so. The Four Seasons, while technically on property, is still a hike to the parks.

chasgoose, there are ample alternatives nearby, many of which are 'fine' quality, and far more affordable, so depending on the family and the budget, I'd recommend against FS here. For instance, The Ritz-Carlton Orlando, Grande Lakes, is an easy 85K certificate redemption most of the year. Also, it depends how many nights you're looking at (weekend getaway, or a week).

I would say staying at a place like this only worth it when will exclusively stay in the resort and not actual park days. I say the same thing about the other Disney onsite premium properties such as Beach Club, Animal Lodge, etc. For park visit days, would choose some lower end place that serves the purpose

We have family in Orlando but decided to stay at the Four Seasons Orlando for two nights with our four year-old. We absolutely LOVED it. Everything you said is spot-on.

I’ve stayed at this property about a dozen times between 2018 and 2025. It is, as Ben notes, solid. The service is the best part. Yes, the majority of the rooms are not “super fresh” in terms of design, but the hotel does a good job of keeping soft furnishings clean and replaced as necessary. Carpets have been changed and colors slightly modernized. Food and Bev is top notch. Especially Capa and the views of the park during fireworks. Spa is great. So is the gym.

That said, I only went to Disney once or twice when I stayed. Usually it was for “staycations” as I was living part-time in Orlando.

When I did travel with family to Disney, we still selected the 4S. It feels like home. The couple times I stayed elsewhere (Ritz / JW Marriott) I was disappointed that I strayed from 4S.

Our kids are two years apart, and when they were approximately 3 and 1 we'd normally try to get one bedroom suites or something similar if possible, and our older son would usually sleep in a bed with one of us, and we would get a crib for our younger son. I think you could also do adjoining rooms, but like I said, we would have done one adult in the room with the crib, and the other adult with the older child.

We did occasionally put them together in the same room, but at that age they would wake each other up constantly, and it would lead to more unpleasant nights.

Having walked the property the property this past summer before dinner at Capa, I’d say maybe the renovated rooms gave you good vibes, but with the wife and I didn’t feel the FS vibe, property looks and feels old, was properly residential in the past (?). Great grounds, but I wouldn’t say immaculately kept.