Polynesian Resort Refurbishment Details Announced

Posted on by Mathew Corn Disney Resorts

A new sense of aloha is coming! Exciting news from Disney today regarding the beloved Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort. Refurbishment is underway for the resort and Disney is giving us a little insight on what’s to come. Check out all the details below as shared by DisneyParksBlog.

Today we’re thrilled to share news of exciting changes coming to Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort. A favorite destination of guests and cast members since its opening on Oct. 1, 1971, this beloved resort hotel immerses you in an oasis straight out of the South Seas with a sense of aloha that embraces you from the moment you arrive. 

That arrival experience is about to take on a whole new look with an enhanced entryway that will debut just in time for the resort hotel’s 50th anniversary. 

One of the biggest changes will greet you right up front – a new porte cochere will showcase the iconic mid-20th century architecture the Polynesian is famous for. Our team from Walt Disney Imagineering and Walt Disney World have crafted a design inspired by colors, patterns and textures found throughout the resort.  This new entry features a high-pitched, open-truss roof covered in a thatch style. There’s also a bold façade that features pops of color complementing the Longhouses found throughout the resort. Along the Monorail station, bold new wooden screens will be covered with geometric patterns in bright, tropical colors that complete an exciting new composition that will greet you when you arrive.

Sign outside of Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort

Enhancements will also be made to the lush gardens and fountains that have welcomed guests to the resort since opening day. 

The open and airy design of the entryway will feature dramatic lighting elements, including beautiful chandeliers inspired by glass floats, fishing nets and oversized bamboo elements. The new chandeliers will match the existing grand chandelier in the resort lobby, artfully bridging interior and exterior spaces.  

While work is underway over the coming months, guests can still enjoy access to the Great Ceremonial House and its operating dining and retail outlets. 

The new arrival experience is just the beginning of what guests will discover when the resort reopens in summer 2021. All of the resort’s guest rooms are being beautifully redone too. We look forward to sharing more details about Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort as they become available.

“Moana” Themed Rooms Coming to Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort

Posted on by Mathew Corn Disney Resorts

New details have surfaced regarding the extended closure and refurbishment of Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort at Walt Disney World, including a resort-wide retheme to the popular animated film, Moana.

In a statement to the Orlando Sentinel, Disney has confirmed the changes taking place inside guest rooms, including a new color palette and more:

A Disney World spokeswoman on Monday said changes to the rooms will include a move to a Pacific Ocean-inspired color palette as well as details, patterns and textures from Disney’s “Moana,” an animated film that takes place on the Polynesian island of Motunui.

Just earlier this year, the resort’s popular ‘Ohana restaurant debuted new carpeting featuring characters from Moana alongside Polynesian-inspired design.

Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort is scheduled to remain closed through Summer 2021, with its Monorail station temporarily closing in October of this year.

For The First Time Ever, Disney Vacation Club is Opening Polynesian Bungalows, Wilderness Lodge Cabins, and Grand Villas For Tours

Posted on by Mathew Corn Disney Resorts

The world has changed quite a bit this year, and with the evolution of the theme park experience to match the needs of people, the Disney Vacation Club is completely revamping the way it does business as well.

Prior to the shutdown, DVC cast members could be found at dozens of sales kiosks in the theme parks, resorts, Disney Springs, and seemingly in the most unexpected of places at times. With their staffing reduced and occupancy in the many Disney Vacation Club resort hotels at an all-time low, DVC has found a pretty creative way to sell you on “Disney’s Best Kept Secret”.

Now, guests are welcome to come visit a DVC Open House at select resorts, allowing them unprecedented access to not models, but the actual rooms themselves at each resort. This was not often possible in the past due to high demand to stay in these lodgings.

While staying at the Boulder Ridge Villas at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge this week, we received a phone call in our hotel room that a Cascade Cabin was open for us to visit. Having always wanted to see one of these, we leapt at the opportunity. While touring the DVC hostess also informed us of opportunities to tour other 2-bedroom rooms and grand villas across all of Walt Disney World property.

If you’re staying at one of the Resorts listed below, you can stop by an Open House at your Resort from 9:00 AM to 8:00 PM, Monday to Friday—with no need to call in advance. However, if you’re not staying at one of the Resorts below, please call (407) 827-4744 to check availability and schedule your visit.

Here are the rooms available to tour (they may have more rooms available, so if there’s something in particular you want to see, just ask):

Disney’s Riviera Resort

  • 2-Bedroom Villa: Rooms 8244 and 8246

Bay Lake Tower at Disney’s Contemporary Resort

  • 2-Bedroom Villa – Lake View: Room 7405

Copper Creek Villas & Cabins at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge

  • Cabin: Room 8013

Disney’s Animal Kingdom Villas – Kidani Village

  • 3-Bedroom Grand Villa: Room 7804 (just off the Lobby)

Disney’s Beach Club Villas

  • 2-Bedroom Villa: Room 134

Disney’s BoardWalk Villas

  • 2-Bedroom Villa: Rooms 1007 and 1009 (located on Disney’s BoardWalk near Jellyrolls)

Disney’s Polynesian Villas & Bungalows

  • Bungalow: Room 7020

The Villas at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa
(Registered Guests of Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa Only)

  • 3-Bedroom Grand Villa: Room 1101
  • 2-Bedroom Villa: Room 1106

Note: Physical distancing measures will be in place at each Open House location to promote the health and well-being of our Guests and Cast Members. Each location will be limited to one family at a time.

You can read more about the offering at DiscoverDVC.com and even chant with a Vacation Club representative there. Guests who tour will also receive a free lithograph gift.

Whether you’re looking to join the Disney Vacation Club or not, this is a tremendous opportunity to see some of the most in-demand and just plain coolest hotel rooms at Walt Disney World.

New Temperature Screening Process In Place at Monorail Resorts in Walt Disney World

Posted on by Mathew Corn Disney Parks

With the reopening of the Magic Kingdom comes the inevitablity that Guests will stay at the monorail resorts and visit the park. Why else would you stay there, after all? Since the temperature check and security screening for day Guests is located at the Transportation and Ticket Center, Walt Disney World has set up similar systems at the resorts along the Monorail as well.

Signs and markers direct Guests ahead of security to the temperature screening area. Guests must have their temperature checked before proceeding to the security checkpoint.

Metal detectors and inspection tables are set up at Disney’s Contemporary Resort, along with social distancing indicators and an a-frame sign to inform Guests of standard security procedures.

Plexiglass and metal barriers are also set up along the path to the Monorail’s boarding platform.

Similar procedures are in place at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa. The sign of AdventHealth, Disney’s temperature screening provider, is much more prominently displayed here.

And also at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort, these signs and Cast Members are at the ready to guide Guests on to their relatively-safe day of magic.

Polynesian Village Resort Legend “Aunty” Kau’i Brandt Passes at 88

Posted on by Mathew Corn Disney Resorts

Kau’i Brandt, the beloved Hawaiian cultural representative and former dancer from Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort better known as “Aunty Kau’i”, has passed away.

88-year-old Anake “Aunty” Kau’I Brandt was a Disney legend at the Polynesian, entertaining guests with hula dances and hand-made leis for over 30 years. The Hawaii-native was born in 1932 and grew up during the Pearl Harbor era before being trained as one of the state’s most famous hula dancers.

After being spotted by Disney talent scouts while performing in Waikiki in the 1960s, it took three attempts to get her to consider to leave Hawaii for a prospective luau show at Disneyland. Kau’i was reticent to leave, stating “I’ve always heard once you leave Hawaii, you never go back.”

In 1971, she left for Florida to help open Disney’s Polynesian Village resort, and she became a staple of the resort ever since. Brandt helped develop and launch the popular luau shows at Disneyland and Walt Disney World and continued working full-time at the Polynesian long after leaving the stage, as a cultural representative.

For many fans of the Poly, saying hi to Aunty Kau’i was part of the essential resort experience, and for regulars, she was regarded as an old friend, and the very embodiment of the spirit of Hawaii.