Resort refurbishments, resort building, and character-inspired makeovers proceed at Walt Disney World via 2024 & 2025. This useful resource supplies data on room renovations, what to keep away from, the place to e-book, and what to anticipate when it comes to lodge work at Walt Disney World. (Up to date Could 4, 2024.)
Walt Disney World continues to undertake refurbishments as staffing shortages preclude full occupancy of the resorts. Consequently, there are a variety of smaller-scale tasks that take sure buildings or a portion of rooms out of fee as a part of more-targeted, rolling refurbishments. (The brand new Could 2024 additions to the schedule are at Port Orleans and Yacht Membership, and since this publish is in alphabetical order, they’re on the backside of the record.)
We do Walt Disney World month-to-month lodge stays, often emphasizing resorts the place there are new issues, adjustments, or ongoing building to see how that harms, improves, or in any other case impacts the visitor expertise. When you’ve but to e-book a lodge to your upcoming Walt Disney World trip and need to be notified about all the newest resort adjustments, join right here for our FREE Disney e-newsletter right here.
When reserving a Walt Disney World trip, we extremely advocate making an allowance for recently-completed and ongoing building tasks on the varied resorts, as these completely can influence the standard of your journey. Reserving a lodge with a closed pool or building noise and cranes proper exterior your window is clearly going to be a worse expertise than a resort that simply completed its large refurbishment and nonetheless has that recent feeling and ‘new lodge’ scent.
Observe that this doesn’t embrace DVC villas if they don’t influence the lodge aspect of a resort. For these tasks, see our Disney Trip Membership Resort Refurbishments & Building Timeline. That covers all the room reimaginings at Walt Disney World, Disneyland, and past that we simply introduced on the condominium affiliation assembly. These tasks additionally influence Boulder Ridge, Bay Lake Tower, and each Crescent Lake DVC resorts.
Suffice to say, a lot is occurring on the lodge entrance at Walt Disney World. Let’s check out all the present and upcoming main lodge tasks which have the potential to influence friends…
Ongoing or Upcoming Resort Refurbishments
All Star Films – Whereas the room renovations at Disney’s All-Star Films Resort (in addition to Sports activities and Music) at the moment are completed, extra updates are anticipated within the subsequent couple of years.
Wanting approach down the street to early 2025, the Fantasia Pool at Disney’s All-Star Films Resort might be closed for routine upkeep from January 2025 via April 2025. Friends might even see or hear building work throughout daytime hours. Throughout this time, lodge friends are welcome to swim within the Duck Pond Pool at Disney’s All-Star Films Resort.
Artwork of Animation, Pop Century, Caribbean Seashore & Riviera Resorts – Nothing is at present on the schedule for these resorts. That’s the excellent news. The doubtless dangerous information, relying upon the way you need to have a look at it, is that the Skyliner gondolas will in all probability shut in phases from mid-to-late January 2025.
We point out this as a result of it occurs yearly, and Walt Disney World supplied very quick discover of it in 2024 to the consternation of many followers who already had journeys booked. Possibly 2025 would be the anomaly and it received’t happen, however we’d advocate being ready for an additional two week or so closure throughout the winter offseason.
When it does occur, this routine downtime of the “Most Magical Flight on Earth” impacts all the Skyliner routes and resorts. These gondolas service two Walt Disney World theme parks (Hollywood Studios and Epcot) plus 4 resorts (Artwork of Animation & Pop Century, Caribbean Seashore, plus Riviera Resort & Caribbean Seashore once more) through 5 stations.
We strongly advocate switching resorts if you happen to’re staying at a Skyliner lodge throughout this refurbishment. As mentioned in that article (hyperlink above), the Skyliner is the promoting level of these resorts, and why they cost premium costs. We’d additionally advocate not reserving any of these resorts in mid to late January 2025, as one other Skyliner refurbishment is probably going at the moment.
Seashore Membership Resort & Villas – The delicate items refurbishment and foyer refresh of Disney’s Seashore Membership Resort and Villas is now completed. Not a lot modified–there’s new carpet within the hallways, and contained in the room the carpet has been changed by a laminate flooring.
There’s additionally new furnishings–chairs and sofa–in addition to new curtains, Donald Duck wall artwork, and different refreshed surfaces. That’s all I seen. These rooms had been bland earlier than, they usually’re nonetheless fairly bland now–however minus carpet and plus higher on-theme art work.
With that mentioned, an enormous closure is on the horizon: Stormalong Bay Pool is Closing in 2025 for Refurbishment. From January 2025 via Could 2025, Stormalong Bay and Shipwreck Pool at Disney’s Yacht and Seashore Membership Resorts might be closed for routine upkeep. Friends might even see or hear building work throughout daytime hours. Throughout this time, Friends are welcome to swim on the Tidal, Admiral and Dunes Cove leisure swimming pools.
BoardWalk Inn – This resort is present within the midst of a multi-year reimagining. No timeline has been given for when the work will finish, however our expectation is mid-2024. The room renovations at the moment are completed (see our Overview, Pictures & Movies of the New Rooms at Disney’s BoardWalk Inn) and work is going on alongside the BoardWalk itself.
Walt Disney World can also be including and altering parts of the beloved turn-of-the-century promenade and contained in the Deluxe Resort, together with a brand new foyer design, close by espresso bar, delectable eating choices, refreshed visitor rooms, and extra.
Inside Disney’s BoardWalk Inn, it’s troublesome to discern whether or not work on the foyer is completed. Carousel Espresso has opened and Belle Vue Lounge has been refreshed, with each being finished in half-measure. Plainly the identical has additionally occurred with the foyer, nevertheless it’s actually robust to inform. Little or no modified.
The largest challenge on the BoardWalk is the brand new Cake Bake Store Restaurant will change ESPN Membership, and is slated to open in Summer time 2024. (It’s already been delayed 3 times as building strikes at a glacial tempo.) This isn’t the one new “restaurant” coming to this space: pickle-stuffed corn canine (you learn that accurately) will quickly be coming to the BoardWalk courtesy of Blue Ribbon Corn Canines.
Fort Wilderness Campground – Walt Disney World is introducing New DVC Cabins Coming to Fort Wilderness Campground. The plan requires greater than 350 new cabins to exchange the present cabins on the resort, turning the resort aspect of the campground right into a Disney Trip Membership property. In so doing, a “assortment of enchancment tasks” are underway at Fort Wilderness geared toward enhancing the visitor expertise, together with proposed pool and strolling path enhancements.
Work on the Disney Trip Membership cabins has now began, and the primary section of cabins is within the means of being put in. The primary cabins will formally open on July 1, 2024. Building influence might be minimal, because the cabins are pre-fabricated off-site and put in unit-by-unit, not constructed on location. This may happen loop by loop and needs to be completed by April 2025.
To arrange for the inflow of DVC friends, Walt Disney World reimagined the eating places in Pioneer Corridor. That work is now completed, and each Crockett’s Tavern and Path’s Finish have reopened. The latter is now quick-service and a grab-and-go market as a substitute of sit-down restaurant.
Grand Floridian Resort & Spa – Disney Trip Membership overhauled the Massive Pine Key constructing of lodge rooms at Walt Disney World’s flagship resort. This constructing has since reopened and the brand new rooms have debuted–see Grand New Rooms at Walt Disney World’s Flagship Resort for a glance inside.
These reimagined rooms have since debuted on the common resort aspect of the Grand Floridian, and all the outlying buildings at the moment are completed. Crews have now moved into the principle foyer, which is being finished in phases. How lengthy it’ll take is anybody’s guess–it actually relies upon upon how concerned the challenge is. We’re guessing it’ll final for at the very least the primary half of 2024.
We’re additionally guessing that the Grand Floridian Tea Room is not going to return till after the reimagining is completed. In a logical and ultimate world, these venues could be reimagined alongside the foyer, and open in time for Spring Break 2024. At current, there’s no indication that’s the intent–no building exercise has been noticed in or round both.
Grand Floridian will obtain a considerable overhaul with “Enchanted Gardens” because the unifying visible model. The scope and scale should not but recognized, however the most probably situation is the principle foyer receiving an aesthetic and new carpet similar to the smaller outlying buildings. See our Grand Floridian Resort Reimagining Report for extra particulars.
Polynesian Village Resort – Walt Disney World is constructing a new DVC tower at Polynesian Village Resort between the present Polynesian longhouses and Marriage ceremony Pavilion, close to the Grand Floridian.
In gentle of this, Walt Disney World’s official website has this message: “As we put together for the proposed growth at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort, you will note and listen to building at sure instances of day. To reduce disruptions throughout your keep, actions that will create noise is not going to begin sooner than 9 a.m.”
When you’re staying at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort anytime in 2024, we’d advocate requesting a room that’s not within the Aotearoa, Fiji, or Tuvalu longhouses. These buildings are adjoining to the development website, and the one ones that needs to be impacted in any materials approach. The DVC tower building is seen from different places within the resort, however the influence is in any other case minor.
Really, we advocate avoiding the Polynesian utterly for the subsequent 12 months. As defined in Worst Resorts at Walt Disney World for 2024, the development influence might be ongoing and it’s doubtless that smaller tasks might be undertaken along with what’s already been introduced to organize the resort infrastructure for the tower and its added DVC friends.
Previous to this tower, work wrapped up on the Nice Ceremonial Home, porte-cochère, new monorail station, and gardens. Room refurbishments had been additionally a part of the Poly’s overhaul and people at the moment are completed. See our Overview, Pictures & Video: New Moana Rooms at Polynesian Village Resort for a tour and ideas on the adjustments from our most up-to-date lodge keep.
Port Orleans French Quarter (NEW) – From Could 2024 via November 2024, some visitor rooms at Disney’s Port Orleans Resort – French Quarter might be beneath refurbishment. Friends might even see or hear building work throughout daytime hours.
It is a last-minute addition to the schedule, which is considerably stunning. First, as a result of it’s a extremely lengthy challenge. It’s not unplanned upkeep–room refurbishments are scheduled years upfront, so why wait to inform friends till the month it begins? Second, as a result of it’s “some” visitor rooms, which means it’s in all probability the primary section of a challenge with a deliberate pause for the center of the vacation season when occupancy is excessive.
Lastly, as a result of the timing strains up for this to be a tough items refurbishment (the final delicate items refurb was in 2018). Which means a full room redesign or reimagining is probably going, which might imply characters being added to the rooms in addition to a brand new configuration (just like the ‘Underneath the Sea’ Impressed Little Mermaid Rooms at Caribbean Seashore).
It’s additionally fascinating as a result of Walt Disney World by no means completed the final delicate items refurbishment subsequent door at Port Orleans Riverside! That began in 2019, was interrupted by the COVID closure, and by no means completed. We all know this for sure as a result of we simply stayed in one of many outdated rooms at Riverside. So it’s attention-grabbing that French Quarter would begin the subsequent spherical of refurbishments earlier than Riverside completed up the final one.
Yacht Membership Resort (NEW) – From January 2025 via Could 2025, some visitor rooms at Disney’s Yacht Membership Resort might be beneath refurbishment. Friends might even see or hear building work throughout daytime hours. Most resort lodge facilities will stay accessible.
Like with French Quarter, this room refurbishment is attention-grabbing for just a few causes. First, Yacht Membership’s “new” rooms (air quotes) aren’t actually that outdated and–not like overhauls accomplished earlier than then–have held up very well. So both it’s time for an additional delicate items refurbishment or Walt Disney World is making an as-yet unannounced change. My cash is on the previous–it’s about time for a refresh.
Moreover, the identical Stormalong Bay Pool closure that’ll influence Seashore Membership will influence Yacht Membership in 2025. We’d keep away from staying at each resorts throughout that challenge except vital reductions are supplied. That’s one of many fundamental promoting factors of those accommodations, and its ‘worth’ is constructed into room charges.
Planning a Walt Disney World journey? Study accommodations on our Walt Disney World Resorts Opinions web page. For the place to eat, learn our Walt Disney World Restaurant Opinions. To save cash on tickets or decide which kind to purchase, learn our Ideas for Saving Cash on Walt Disney World Tickets publish. Our What to Pack for Disney Journeys publish takes a novel have a look at intelligent objects to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Trip Guides will assist. For complete recommendation, the most effective place to start out is our Walt Disney World Journey Planning Information for the whole lot it’s essential to know!
Your Ideas
Have any latest observations or experiences with lodge building at Walt Disney World you’d be keen to share? The place at Walt Disney World are you staying in 2024 or 2025? Any resorts you’re deliberately avoiding? Do you agree or disagree with our assessments of those resort refurbishment or reimagining tasks? Any questions we may also help you reply? Listening to your suggestions–even whenever you disagree with us–is each attention-grabbing to us and useful to different readers, so please share your ideas under within the feedback!
