Ever heard of Shades of Green at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida? Or the Dragon Hill Lodge in Seoul, South Korea? Chances are, if you are military, part of a military family, or ever worked for the Department of Defense, you have. These locations are Armed Forces Recreation Centers, or AFRCs.
AFRCs are part of the military’s Morale, Welfare, and Recreation program. AFRC resort hotels are designed to provide affordable vacations to service members and their families, military retirees, and other authorized individuals. These joint service facilities owned by the Department of Defense and are operated by the Army’s Installation Management Command (IMCOM).
Rates for use of these facilities are often based on a sliding scale determined by rank. Lowest ranking service members pay lower fees, and fees increase with rank.
Note: Armed Forces Recreation Centers share the acronym AFRC with the Air Force Reserve Command. However, there is no affiliation between the two entities.
The New Sannō Hotel
This hotel is located in the prestigious Hiroo residential area of downtown Tokyo. With 149 rooms total, the hotel offers the following amenities:
- Seven types of rooms to choose from
- Japanese suite
- King suite
- Twin suite
- Family rooms
- Twin rooms
- Double rooms
- Single rooms
- Seven-minute walk to the nearest subway station, called “Hiroo” on the Hibiya Line
- Recreational facilities
- Navy Exchange
- A variety of in-house shopping
- Japanese art
- Kimonos
- Watches
- The New Sanno Pool
- Heated swimming pool
- Jacuzzi
- Children’s pool
- His and hers saunas and showers
- Fitness Center usage
- The Pack and Wrap
- Professionally prepares packages to send from the New Sanno APO
While retirees and their family members are not eligible for APO privileges, and guests are not authorized to receive letters or parcels from the New Sanno APO, there are two Japanese post offices within walking distance of the hotel.
Guests have access to numerous dining experiences, and may choose from fine dining, family dining, and room service, just to name a few options.
Reservations may only be made by eligible individuals, including:
- Active duty service members
- Retired service members
- DoD civilian employees stationed in Japan
- DoD civilian contractors on orders to Japan
- S. Embassy Tokyo personnel
- Those administratively attached to U.S. Embassy Tokyo
Reservists may only make room reservations when on active duty orders that specify travel to or by way of Japan.
The Shades of Green Resort Hotel
This 586-room resort is located in Bay Lake, Florida, on Walt Disney World property in Orlando. Set in a wooded area with waterfalls and tropical gardens, the hotel boasts the following amenities:
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- Rooms
- Most rooms have over 480 square feet of floor space
- 11 suites that accommodate up to eight people
- Fitness facilities
- Fitness center
- Two lighted tennis courts
- Two heated swimming pools
- Hot tub
- Children’s wading pool
- Rooms
- Magnolia Ballroom banquet and meeting facilities
- Can accommodate up to 350 guests
- Can be subdivided into four equal sections for smaller groups
- Several breakout rooms
- Five boardrooms
- Arcade
- Laundry facilities
The resort offers a wide range of dining options. Guests may choose between fine dining, family dining, and cafes. Also, several locations serve alcohol. A small convenience store Exchange is also located on the property for purchase of essentials such as sunglasses or postcards, and all merchandise sold within the resort is exempt from sales tax.
The resort does not have monorail service, and does not transport guests directly to the Magic Kingdom or Epcot. However, the park does provide a separate fleet of buses to transport guests to and from the Transportation and Ticket Center, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Disney Springs and Disney water parks. Also, guests who drive their own vehicles are required to pay for daily parking at Disney World’s theme parks.
Reservations may only be made by eligible individuals, including:
- Active duty service members
- Reserve
- National Guard members
- Retired service members
- Active duty
- Reserves
- National Guard with or without pay (gray area)
- Veterans with 100% disability due to military service
- Honorable discharge
- Certified by the VA
- Medal of Honor recipients
- Current and retired civilian employees of the DoD
- Current and retired civilian employees of the Coast Guard
Individuals who do not fall into one of these categories must be accompanied by an eligible sponsor in order to stay at this resort.
Shades of Green also runs two special programs: Salute To Our Veterans and the Survivor’s Family Program. The former allows all honorably-discharged veterans to vacation at the resort during January and September.
The latter allows family members who have lost a service member in the line of duty access to the resort. There are no restrictions related to cause of death, whether it was due to combat, illness, accident, or suicide.
Edelweiss Lodge and Resort
This resort is located at Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany in the Bavarian Alps near the Austrian border. The hotel features numerous amenities, including:
- 246 rooms and suites
- Conference center
- Fitness center including sauna and pool
- Daily outings for guests
- Base exchange
- Post exchange
- Commissary
- Community Bank
The lodge operates additional facilities in the surrounding area. Located near the cable car station at the foot of Hausberg Mountain, the Hausberg Sport Lodge offers ski rentals and ski instruction to guests. The Edelweiss Vacation Village and Campground, located in the western part of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, offers rustic cabins and camping grounds in the Loisach River Valley.
Three restaurants are located within the lodge, and each offer a variety of both American and German cuisine.
Only U.S. service members, DoD employees stationed in Europe, foreign service members stationed at U.S. military installations, and their family members may access the lodge and its facilities. This can include service members on temporary duty, American Red Cross personnel stationed in Germany, and guests accompanied by an authorized patron.
The Dragon Hill Lodge
This lodge is located in Seoul, South Korea, on the northern side of the Han River. With 394 guest rooms and suites, the lodge was built with money provided by soldiers rather than congressional funding. The lodge offers a wide variety of amenities, including:
- All rooms are non-smoking
- Free WIFI
- Ten-minute walk to two major subway lines
- Free access to the POiNT Health Club
- Fitness equipment
- Hot tub
- Pool
- Spas
- Dry/wet saunas
- Tours to Seoul
- Family-friendly services
- Discounts for children at select restaurants
- 2,000 square-foot playground
- Dedicated equipment for different age groups
- Shaded seating area for parents
- ½ court basketball court
- Discover Seoul
- Concierge planning services
- Tours and ticketed attractions
- The River Bend Golf Course at Camp Humphreys
- Concierge planning services
Guests have access to diverse dining experiences, and may choose from casual dining, full-service meals, and buffets that include American dishes, regional dishes, and cuisine from around the globe.
Guests park for free at the lodge.
Reservations may only be made by eligible individuals, including:
- Active duty service members and their families
- Reservists
- National Guard members
- Cadets
- Other uniformed service members
- Public Health Service
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Corps
- Retired service members and their families
- Active Duty
- Reserves
- National Guard
- With or without pay (gray area)
- Veterans with 100% disability due to military service
- Honorably discharged
- Certified by the VA
- Others separated from service and their families
- Transition Assistance Management Program
- Voluntary Separation Incentive (VSI) program
- Special Separation Benefit (SSB) program
- Former and/or surviving spouses and family members
- Unremarried surviving spouses of service members who died either on active duty or during retirement
- Unremarried former spouses who were married to service military members for at least 20 years while the service members were on active duty
- DoD support
- Service members of foreign nations and their family members
- Assigned or attached to a U.S. military unit or installation, or
- On U.S. Travel Orders
- DoD civilian contractors working in the Pacific Region outside the States under DoD orders
- Service members of foreign nations and their family members
- DoD civilians and family members
- Current civilian DoD employees
- Retired DoD employees
- Coast Guard
The resort also offers a Survivors’ Family Program to family members who have lost a service member in the line of duty. There are no restrictions related to cause of death, whether it was due to combat, illness, accident, or suicide. This program provides a 50% discount from normal room rates for additional occupants and up to three guest rooms.
The Hale Koa Hotel
Hale Koa translates from Hawaiian as “House of the Warrior.” Part of Ft. DeRussy, which has been on Oahu for more than 100 years, this resort hotel is located at Waikiki Beach on the island of Oahu. While it is owned by the DoD, the hotel receives no government funding as it is a self-sustaining business. It is surrounded by the Luau Garden and Maile Garden, and offers the following amenities:
- All rooms sleep up to four adults and have full in-room amenities
- Guest-exclusive swimming
- Beach located on widest section of Waikiki
- Maile Pool and hot tub
- Island culture artisans and crafts every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday
- Authentic hula lessons
- Artist demonstrations
- Day Spa and Hair Salon
- Massages
- Facials
- Body treatments
- Spa packages
The resort offers a wide assortment of dining options. Guests may choose between buffets, fine dining, family dining, and cafes. Also, several locations serve alcohol.
Overnight guests at the hotel pay $12 per day for parking.
Reservations may only be made by eligible individuals, including:
- Active duty service members and their families
- Includes reservists and National Guard members
- Other uniformed service members
- Commissioned Corps
- Public Health Service
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Corps
- Retired service members and their families
- Active Duty
- Reserves
- National Guard
- With or without pay (gray area)
- Veterans with 100% disability due to military service
- Honorably discharged
- Certified by the VA
- Others separated from service and their families
- Transition Assistance Management Program
- Voluntary Separation Incentive (VSI) program
- Special Separation Benefit (SSB) program
- Former and/or surviving spouses and family members
- Unremarried surviving spouses of service members who died either on active duty or during retirement
- Unremarried former spouses who were married to service military members for at least 20 years while the service members were on active duty
- DoD support
- Service members of foreign nations and their family members
- Assigned or attached to a U.S. military unit or installation, or
- On U.S. Travel Orders.
- DoD civilian contractors working in the Pacific Region outside the States under DoD orders
- Service members of foreign nations and their family members
- DoD civilians and family members
- Current civilian DoD employees
- Retired DoD employees
- Coast Guard
The resort also offers a Survivors’ Family Program to family members who have lost a service member in the line of duty. There are no restrictions related to cause of death, whether it was due to combat, illness, accident, or suicide. This program provides a 50% discount from normal room rates for additional occupants and up to three guest rooms.
