This five-story Deluxe resort has clapboard facades with whitewashed-wood trim and is painted a bright blue. The Beach Club is embellished with beach scenes in foam green and white. The resort has a themed lobby, with sea-horse fixtures. The resort faces 25-acre Crescent Lake and has an elaborate swimming complex that it shares with the Yacht Club Resort.

There are 576 guest rooms at the Beach Club, and 282 studio and one- and two-bedroom villas at the Beach Club Villas, part of the Disney Vacation Club time-share program. Most of the hotel rooms are 381 square feet and have two queen-size beds, a daybed, and a desk and a chair. Like the Grand Floridian's, rooms have a lot of drawer space. Beach Club rooms are decorated in soft green and blue tones. Some rooms have balconies.

The Beach Club Villas evoke seaside Victorian cottages. Studio accommodations offer kitchenettes; one- and two-bedroom villas have full kitchens. Subject to availability, villas are open to the public as well as to Vacation Club (time-share) members. The villas share restaurants, pools, and other amenities with the Yacht & Beach Club Resorts. A small business center serves guests' work needs for both the Yacht and Beach Clubs and Beach Club Villas.

As a Disney Deluxe resort, the Beach Club provides excellent service. Within the Yacht and Beach Club are nine restaurants and lounges and are within walking distance of Epcot and the BoardWalk. Transportation to other destinations is by bus or boat. Walking time to the transportation loading areas from the most remote rooms is 7 minutes.

Although the Yacht & Beach Club Resorts are arrayed along Crescent Lake opposite the BoardWalk, a relatively small percentage of guest rooms actually overlook the lake. Many additional rooms have an oblique view of the lake but face a courtyard or garden. To complicate matters, the resorts don't differentiate between a room with a lake view and one overlooking a swimming pool, pond, or canal. All are considered water views. We receive letters each year from readers complaining that their “water view” was a distant, sidelong peek at a swimming pool. Such disappointments might explain why many readers give the resorts a mediocre C in value.

The Beach Club consists of a long main building with several wings protruding toward Crescent Lake. Looking at the resort from Crescent Lake, the Beach Club adjoins the Yacht Club on the left and spreads toward Epcot on the right. The main building and the various wings range from three to five stories. Most rooms have balconies or, on the ground floor, patios. Balconies are either big enough for a couple of chairs, or about 6 inches deep (stand at the rail or sit in a chair inside the room). Top-floor rooms often have enclosed balconies inset into the roof. Unless you'e standing, visibility is somewhat limited from these dormer balconies.

We receive a lot of mail about the Yacht & Beach Club Resorts, most of it positive. First, these remarks from an Ashburn, Virginia, family of four:

Stay at the Beach Club for a touch of elegance without the Grand Floridian prices; the pool complex; and walking to Epcot and the BoardWalk.

From a Wayland, Massachusetts, mother of two:

This was the first time we stayed at the Beach Club, and for us the amazing pool complex was worth the extra money. Several nights we climbed up to the top of the waterslide as the sun was setting, and it was an incredible sight—truly a memorable experience! A 13-year-old from Long Island, New York, had this to say: The Beach Club Resort was great because you could enjoy the pool and surroundings by day, then head off to the parks by night—in the hot summertime, this is the best itinerary!

This mom from Brownsville, Texas, however, has some issues with the Beach Club:

The room doors at the Beach Club don't fit very snugly, so any noise from the hall was practically broadcast into our room. The room was close to the elevators, so it sounded like everyone in the hotel was stampeding past our door in the morning. I like the Beach Club very much, but if we go back I'll ask for a more remote room way at the end of the hall.

From a Norman, Oklahoma, mom who visited during the summer:

Beach Club was great, but swimming facilities close at 8 p.m., leaving nothing to do in the evening if you choose not to tour a park at night. For $400+ a day, you'd think the swimming pool would be open at least until sunset!

Blog Posts About Beach Club

March 23, 2011

Would you recommend this hotel to a friend?
Hotel Definitely (+/- since 2010)
Disney's Beach Club Resort 76% (-8%)
Average for WDW hotels 74% (+3%)
Average for off-site hotels 79% (+10%)
Average for vacation homes & condos 95% (N/A)

Would you stay at this hotel again?
Hotel Definitely (+/- since 2010)
Disney's Beach Club Resort 100% + (10%)
Average for WDW hotels 90% (+1%)
Average for off-site hotels 94% (+5%)
Average for vacation homes & condos 100% (N/A)

Hotel Photos

Video

Good (and Not-So-Good) Rooms at Disney's Beach Club Resort

The Beach Club's better views are from rooms with full balconies, and from those that overlook the lake. Other good rooms include those facing woods, with Epcot in the background. The latter are the resort's quietest, most peaceful rooms, in terms of both noise and scenery.

They're also nearest to Epcot's International Gateway entrance if you're walking, but farthest from the resort's main pool area, lobby, and restaurants. Of the remaining rooms, most face courtyards, with some of these providing oblique views of the lake, and others overlooking parking lots and the resort's front entrance.

Here are our recommendations for good Beach Club rooms. All room numbers are four digits, with the first digit specifying the floor and the remaining three digits the room number.

Water-view rooms with full balconies facing the lake Odd-numbered rooms: 2641-2647, 3501-3511, 3683-3691, 3725-3795, 5607-5623, 5683-5691, 5725-5795. (The Beach Club will charge you for a water-view room if there's so much as a birdbath in sight. If you're going to pay the price, get a real water view.) Standard-view rooms with full balconies facing the woods and Epcot Even-numbered rooms 3512-3536, 4578-4598.

Strengths and Weaknesses
Strengths Weaknesses
Nautical/New England theme No transportation to Epcot main entrance except by taxi
Attractive guest rooms No convenient counter-service food
Good on-site dining Poor room-to-hall soundproofing
Kids' programs, character meals
Excellent selection of nearby off-site dining
Boat service to Disney's Hollywood Studios and Epcot
10-minute walk to rear entrance of Epcot
10-minute walk to Boardwalk
15-minute walk to Disney's Hollywood Studios
Best resort swimming complex at WDW
Health and fitness center
Convenient self-parking
View from waterside guest rooms
On-site child care

Disney's Beach Club Resort Dining

Commuting Times to the Parks
Park Commuting Time
Magic Kingdom 7 minutes
Epcot 5 minutes
Animal Kingdom 7 minutes
Disney's Hollywood Studios 4 minutes
Magic Kingdom 7 minutes
Epcot 5 minutes
Animal Kingdom 7 minutes
Disney's Hollywood Studios 4 minutes