Disney World resort with the best bars (2026)

The three picks, and who each suits

Polynesian Village Resort, the outright winner

Five bars · on average $872 a night · sleeps 5

GoodFive bars and lounges, more than any other resort at Walt Disney World, including Trader Sam’s Grog Grotto, our favorite themed bar on property, and the Tambu Lounge above ‘Ohana. Two of the five are pool bars, so you’re never far from a drink.

Less goodThere’s no signature restaurant, and Trader Sam’s is small enough that you’ll often wait for a table. And it’s Deluxe pricing.

Scored category	This resort	Average of all 32
Pools	9 / 10	7.1
Splash pads and slides	10 / 10	7.6
Things to do on site	6 / 10	7.2
Suits ages 4 to 6	7 / 10	7.8
Suits ages 7 to 13	6 / 10	6.2
Suits adults	6 / 10	5.5

Who this suits best: adults who want a drink somewhere worth lingering, without leaving the resort, and families who want the pool bar within sight of the kids.

Dining on siteFive table and counter restaurants including ‘Ohana and Kona Cafe, plus five bars: Trader Sam’s Grog Grotto, the Tiki Terrace, Tambu Lounge, Oasis and the Barefoot pool bar.

What there is to do on siteScores 6 out of 10, below the average of 7.1 out of 10: the Lava Pool Party, Kukui nut lei making, the Big Kahuna Quiz, Aloha After Dark and a campfire on the beach.

Coronado Springs Resort, four bars for Moderate money

Four bars · on average $311 a night · sleeps 4

GoodFour bars and lounges at less than half the price of anywhere else on this page, including Three Bridges, out in the middle of the lake, and the Barcelona Lounge, which does coffee by day and cocktails by night. Plus four sit-down restaurants, including Toledo up on the roof.

Less goodIt’s a convention resort, so the bars can fill up with name badges on a weekday, and every park is a bus.

Scored category	This resort	Average of all 32
Pools	8 / 10	7.1
Splash pads and slides	7 / 10	7.6
Things to do on site	9 / 10	7.2
Suits ages 4 to 6	8 / 10	7.8
Suits ages 7 to 13	7 / 10	6.2
Suits adults	8 / 10	5.5

Who this suits best: adults on a Moderate budget, a gap almost nothing else on property fills.

Dining on siteFour sit-down restaurants, including Toledo, and four bars: Barcelona Lounge, Dahlia Lounge, the Laguna Bar and Siestas Cantina at the pool.

What there is to do on siteScores 9 out of 10, well above the average of 7.1 out of 10: Sangria University, Spanish mosaic art and the Colors of Coronado painting class, plus a resort scavenger hunt and a nightly campfire.

Contemporary Resort, if you want a view with it

Four bars · on average $663 a night · sleeps 5

GoodFour bars, and the one that matters is the lounge next to California Grill on the fifteenth floor, which looks straight down the monorail at Magic Kingdom and its fireworks. There are two pool bars below, and the park is a 12-minute walk.

Less goodThe pool scores 7, right on the average, and the splash pads 6, a bit below it. The building is a concrete A-frame, and you’ll either love it or really not.

Scored category	This resort	Average of all 32
Pools	7 / 10	7.1
Splash pads and slides	6 / 10	7.6
Things to do on site	7.5 / 10	7.2
Suits ages 4 to 6	7 / 10	7.8
Suits ages 7 to 13	7 / 10	6.2
Suits adults	5 / 10	5.5

Who this suits best: couples and adults who want the fireworks with a drink in hand, and a walk home afterward.

Dining on siteFive restaurants including California Grill, a signature, plus Chef Mickey’s and Steakhouse 71. Four bars: the Outer Rim, the Steakhouse 71 lounge, and the Cove and Sand bars at the pools.

What there is to do on siteScores 7.5 out of 10, above the average of 7.1 out of 10: the Magic of Mosaics class, boat rentals at the Boat Nook Marina, a silent disco, sports courts and the Electrical Water Pageant.

How the Resortings score works

We counted every bar and lounge at all 32 resorts from Disney’s own dining pages. Pool bars count, because at the pool, that’s the bar you’ll actually use. Lounges count as bars, not restaurants. We score bars separately from dining, so a pool bar can’t inflate a restaurant count, and bars are switched off by default, so they only shape your ranking if you ask them to.

Five is the most, one is the least. The Polynesian has five. Every Value resort has exactly one, and it’s the pool bar.
Pool bars are counted. Two of the Polynesian’s five are pool bars, and we think that’s the right call: with kids in the water, the pool bar is the only one you’re getting to.
Price is a poor guide. Coronado Springs has four bars at $311 a night on average, the same number as the Contemporary at more than twice that.
Off by default in the tool. Bars only change your Resortings ranking if you say they matter, because most families booking a Disney trip aren’t choosing on this.

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Where the bars are

The Polynesian leads with five. Four resorts have four: Coronado Springs at $311 a night on average, the Contemporary at $663, Bay Lake Tower at $870, and BoardWalk Inn at $713. The Grand Floridian has four as well, including the Enchanted Rose. At the bottom, every Value resort has one pool bar and nothing else, and Caribbean Beach has one. Bars mostly follow the Deluxe tier, with Coronado as the one exception.

Trader Sam’s is worth the wait. It’s small and the line outside is real, but stick with it: the room reacts when you order certain drinks, which our kids found funnier than anything in a park that day. Get there when it opens.

The Contemporary’s fifteenth floor is the one we keep going back to. You can watch the fireworks from the lounge without a park ticket, then walk home instead of waiting for a bus.

We count bars, we don’t rate them. The number comes from Disney’s own listings. Which bar is good is a matter of taste, and we’re not going to make up a score for it. When we name a favorite, that’s our opinion, and we say so.

Your family will rank these differently

Ages, budget, room size and which parks you’re doing all change the order. Resortings scores all 32 resorts against what your family actually needs, and tells you when not to spend the money.

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Common questions

Which Disney resort has the most bars?

The Polynesian Village Resort, with five bars and lounges including Trader Sam’s Grog Grotto and the Tambu Lounge. Two of the five are pool bars.

What is the best bar at Disney World?

Trader Sam’s Grog Grotto at the Polynesian, if you ask us, for the theming and the way the room reacts to certain orders. That’s our opinion, not a score.

Can you use a resort bar if you aren’t staying there?

Yes! Disney resort bars and restaurants are open to anyone, so you can hop on the monorail to the Polynesian or the Contemporary for a drink and head back to your own resort afterward.

Do the cheap Disney resorts have bars?

One each, at the pool. All five Value resorts work that way. If a real lounge matters to you, Coronado Springs, at about $311 a night on average, is the cheapest resort with four.