Winter Summerland: Exploring Disney's Unique Seasonal Mini Golf Wonderland
There are certainly many miniature golf options available in the Orlando area. We’d not had a chance to visit one until a recent vacation where we had more time to spare and were able to take in more than just the Walt Disney World parks.
Finally, we were able to have a round of miniature golf at one Walt Disney’s World two miniature golf courses. Fantasia Gardens and Fairways Miniature Golf is located near the entrance of the Walt Disney World Swan Hotel at the EPCOT resort area. Here you will find 2 distinct 18 hole courses based on, you guessed it, the Disney animated film Fantasia.
It’s also possible to play a round of FootGolf at Disney Oak Trail Golf Course. Yes, that’s right FootGolf, who knew there was such a thing? We didn’t. We’ll have to put that one on a future list.
4 Things to know about Disney's Winter Summerland Miniature Golf Course
There are two courses to choose from the Summer or the Winter course
Reservations are not required but can be made by contacting up to 60 days in advance with a Disney Resort Hotel reservation
Affinity discounts are available for annual passholders and DVC members
To get to the course using Disney bus transportation you'll need to take the bus to Blizzard Beach
Disney’s Winter Summerland Mini Golf
We actually had the pleasure of playing a round of miniature golf at the Christmas themed Winter Summerland Miniature Golf course.
The Winter Summerland Miniature Golf course was conveniently located closest to our Davenport Airbnb. The course is split into a Summer Course and Winter Course respectively. We chose to play the Summer course which was filled with cute nods to Santa and his elves on a beach vacation.
Our little guy loved this course. He loves Christmas and the premise behind the course filled with surfboards, sandcastles and all things summer particularly Santa sleeping or should I say snoring in the sand was a true delight.
Disney’s Winter Summerland: Snoring Santa
The course was fun and as far as putting abilities, it was just the right challenge for our then 7 year. A few holes required a little more finesse but were all completely doable for him.
At the start of each hole you'll find rhymes placed on candy canes that give you little hints on the best way to play the hole. It's a nice touch and fun for kids to try to figure out how to use the the rhyme to sink a hole in one.
Diseny’s Winter Summerland Golf Course Candy Cane
Be sure to check out our video to see how we did on the course.
So let’s get to the details that I know you stopped by for.
How do you get to Walt Disney World’s Winter Summerland Course?
We drove to the course, but if you were staying on property and wanted to use Disney transportation, you’d take the Blizzard Beach bus to the course. According to the Disney website, If the bus is not running you could:
Take a Disney bus to the nearest hotel, Coronado Springs Resort and walk the 1/2 mile to the course
Take any bus headed to EPCOT and inform the driver that you’d like to be dropped off at the course. When you’re ready to leave, a Cast Member can help you arrange transportation
Take an Uber or Lyft to the course. The address is,1548 W Buena Vista Dr, Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830
Do you need reservations for Walt Disney World’s Miniature Golf courses?
While advanced reservations are not required as they do accept, you can contact Disney at (407) WDW-PLAY or (407) 939-7529 to make advance reservations.
How much does a round of Walt Disney World Miniature Golf cost?
No matter which course you choose to play, Fantasia Gardens and Fairway Miniature Golf or Winter Summerland, at the time of this writing, the courses are $14 per adult, $12 per Child (ages 3-9) (taxes not included).
You can in fact use your Annual Pass or DVC membership to receive a 15% discount on your admission. Be sure to ask about any other affinity groups to see if you’re eligible for a discount. You can show your receipt and get 50% off of your next round so that you can experience both sides of the course.
I would note that mini golf is not included in the standard price of your Disney park admission. However, you can choose to upgrade your admission to the Park Hopper Plus option, which does allow you to a preset number of visits to one of the water parks or what they call other Walt Disney World fun options. The fun options do include the miniature golf courses. Consult the Walt Disney World website for more details.
The other thing you should know is that when you book a Walt Disney World Resort vacation package with the Walt Disney Travel Company they do offer what they call Magical Extras. Magical Extras are discounts on dining, shopping and entertainment. One of the extras available is the ability to choose from a round of miniature golf at either course as a part of your vacation package.
What are the miniature golf course hours?
At the time of this writing both courses are open from 10:00 am to 10:00 pm daily.
Can you grab a snack at Disney's Winter Summerland mini golf course?
There is a small snack area at the beginning of the course where you can grab very basic snacks. Think chips, water and basic prepackaged goods. You're not going to be able to find a meal here, so be sure to plan to eat before or after.
Just don't come hungry.
Was Winter Summerland Miniature Golf worth it?
Without a doubt yes! Yes, Winter Summerland Golf was worth it. It was especially worth it for us because we had more time in the area than our usual one week of vacation.
Disney’s Winter Summerland: Melting Snowman
If you only have a week’s vacation and you’ve visited the parks multiple times and are looking to do something other than spend the whole day in the parks then I would suggest doing this as a break from the crowds or as a part of your rest day.
Which is better, Fantasia Gardens or Winter Summerland?
While we haven’t played at Fantasia Gardens yet, that’s coming up on our next trip so be sure to check back for that adventure. I will say that Fantasia Gardens appears to be more challenging than the Winter Summerland course. So we will have to leave the answer to the which Disney mini golf course is best to our next trip. As well as the answer to which course is better for younger kids.
Until next time, Enjoy the journey!
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