From the start

In 1955 Walt Disney opened Disneyland in Anaheim, California. He built the theme park for a whole host of reasons including it becoming a way for Walt to promote his film and television projects. The park allowed his characters to “come to life” and interact with guests. But the primary reason why Disneyland came to be was Walt wanted a place that would cater to the entire family.

Before Disneyland, the kind of amusement parks that Americans – and Walt – visited were dirty environments built primarily for children. They typically included a collection of roller coasters, Ferris wheels, and merry-go-rounds. Food options were almost nonexistent. Most of the time it was just a string of hot dog vendors.

Anything that Walt did was always done on another level. Disneyland would be no exception. The park broke the mould and showed the public what a theme park could be. Not only was it clean, friendly, safe, and alcohol-free, but it also immersed guests into whatever environment that particular land was to represent.

Creating an immersive environment is exactly what films and television shows do and Walt took those lessons an applied them to Disneyland – only on a much larger scale.

This – among many other reasons – is what makes a Disney theme park so special and unique. It is why guests come back year after year.

Why themed hotels?

When the Disneyland Hotel in October 1955, it did not have any theming. In fact it was described as a “motor inn.” It should also be noted that Jack Wrather, a Texas oil millionaire turned film producer, owned the hotel and not Walt Disney. Disney did not own the hotel until 1988.

However, when Disney was building Walt Disney World they decided the first two hotels – the Polynesian Village Resort Hotel and the Contemporary Resort Hotel – would be themed.

In an article entitled “Challenges of Designing Themed Resorts,” Matthew McCoy, theme park creative and design director, wrote, “One of the most important task for most theme park operators is getting guests to stay in an on-site themed hotel at theme-park destination resorts by deepening the guests experience. The guests also like these destination resorts too because they can get to the attractions easier and sooner than most guests.”

McCoy also states that another advantage of a themed resort – for the owners – is since guests are now in their “bubble,” they tend to spend more on merchandise, food and beverage.

“From the moment guests arrive down a winding stylized landscape-lined road to a themed hotel resort they should be immersed in an experience that tries to convince them they are still in the overall theme-park storyline,” writes McCoy. “This involves great attention to detail on themed exterior architecture building design, themed brand signage package and exterior connecting thematic props designs along with special landscaping to tailored immersive storytelling interior settings from the lobby to the main restaurant to the themed rooms.  

The more exotic the theme, the better as it makes the hotel stand out from the more mundane-looking crowd. It allows operators to put a premium on the price tag to stay there so ultimately the theme casts a spell on the finances of the property and the theme park complex it sits in.”

This is what Disney does very well. Almost every one of their resorts is an experience unto itself. Although not what most guests or Disney want someone to do, but if a guest wanted to they would realistically spend a few days at certain Disney resorts and never go into a theme park.

“All themed hotels whether they are whimsical or heavily-themed, still need to function well as a hotel. Another main thing is that staff and guest services play a crucial part in guaranteeing a forever memorable guests experience,” said McCoy. “There should be a grand lobby, main dinning hall and retail stores along with other amenities as coffee & snack shops, a pool and maybe an attached interior / exterior mini-water-park.  When guests stay at the themed hotel / resort, the operational goal is making sure that ‘guest services and all employees are a part of the overall show’. This is what it is like at any Disney theme-park and their connecting themed resorts.” McCoy says that Disney has “become the ‘guiding leaders’ of the themed hotel industry.

When Disney World opened in October 1971, alongside its fairytale inspired Magic Kingdom theme-park stood two hotels which were far from standard. One sits inside a futuristic A-shaped structure with a monorail running right through it. The other is themed to a tropical tree-house with giant wooden lodges, a statue of a Tiki god as the center piece of the lobby and a big open pool beside a mock themed volcano with a water slide winding around it. Yet these themed hotels connected with Disney World in their themes. Both themes are ingrained within the park attractions and zones.”

Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort

The Polynesian Village Resort was one of two resort hotels to open in October 1971 at the Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. Although the new park was not exactly what Walt had envisioned, it none the less followed the plan he had set forth with Disneyland.

What makes the Polynesian themed resort, along with the Contemporary Resort Hotel, Magic Kingdom, and all of Walt Disney World’s future projects resonate with guests is its unique ability to completely immerse visitors in an environment where the real world ceases to exist. Regardless of what environment a guests is in, Disney Imagineers are very careful about trying not to spoil the illusion.

At the Polynesian Village Resort or as Disney fans call it – The Poly – guests are transported to the South Pacific as they enter the Great Ceremonial House. That experience extends throughout the entire resort. Covering 39 acres the Poly features white sandy beaches, Hawaiian and Polynesian music, tropical landscaping, waterfalls, and bamboo tiki torches.

For years the resort remained basically the same. Although some changes happened throughout the years, none was so dramatic as in 2015 when Disney made a number of updates to the resort including two very controversial changes: adding DVC bungalows that extended out into the Seven Seas Lagoon and the removal of the large tropical garden and waterfall in the Grand Ceremonial House.

A partial refurbishment

These two changes caused a lot of grumbling among Disney fans and those fans of the Polynesian Village Resort. Many were unhappy with the addition of the bungalows saying they would be “an eyesore” to “totally blocks the view of the Magic Kingdom.”

Disney removed the entire water feature – which took up almost all the lobby floorspace – and replaced it was a significantly smaller water feature. The new work gave the lobby an airier feeling while increasing seating. The removal of the lobby waterfall caused the biggest outcry from Disney fans and fans of the resort. On The Disney Blog, John Frost wrote, “… the whole thing feels slightly generic. The stores give some excitement around the edges, but the central part of the lobby feels very similar to every other large hotel on the planet.” Back in 2014, when the Disney Parks Blog announced the news of the remodel comments ranged from “Removing the fountain from the Poly would be like removing the Mural from the Contemporary …” to “The ‘old’ lobby instantly transported you to Polynesia. This one says ‘just another hotel lobby.’”

To pay tribute to the former waterfall and garden, Disney installed a much smaller version of the original with a tiki god standing in the middle.

 Now the resort is getting another major overhaul in time for Walt Disney World’s 50th anniversary celebration next year. After being closed for four months due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, the park slowly began its phased reopening. Disney did not initially reopen all of its resort hotels, but a few at a time based on demand. The Polynesian Village Resort was scheduled to reopen this past October, but then in August Disney announced that the resort was going under a major renovation and would not reopen until summer 2021.

The Poly gets an extensive makeover ahead of its 50th

“As we continue to reopen additional Disney Resort hotels to Guests, we are modifying the reopening date for Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort which will reopen next summer. This schedule adjustment also allows us to complete some refurbishment work at the Resort hotel, including enhancements to the Great Ceremonial House and Guest rooms. We expect work to begin in early October and look forward to sharing more about these changes in the future,” read a statement from Disney.

Shortly after Disney gave more details on the refurbishment. According to The Orlando Sentinel, Disney said in a statement, “… 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 partly on the Polynesian island of Motunui.”

Work began on the refurbishment at the end of September. The front desk was relocated temporally to the Pago Pago building and the front entrance was blocked off to all guests. The only facilities available to guests, with modified operating hours, are the Kona Cafe, Moana Mercantile, Tambu Lounge, and Pineapple Lanai. The only guests accommodations available are Disney’s Polynesian Villas & Bungalows.

On his Instagram account, Disney Imagineer, Zack Riddley said, “… we were inspired by the iconic mid-20th century architecture that the Polynesian is famous for. The colors, patterns and textures found throughout the resort are reflected in the design of the new porte cochere with a high-pitched open-truss roof covered in a thatch style and a bold façade that complements the Longhouses.”

He went on to say that the “lush gardens and fountains that have welcomed guests to the resort since opening day” will also see a refresh, as well as the Great Ceremonial House. “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.”

Disney began closing off areas at the entrance, as well as access to the monorail station, at the end of September. Construction on the monorail station began in earnest during the first week in October. Even though the artist rendering of the new monorail station showed a very different station, many Disney fans expressed their shock on social media when the crossbeams started to disappear on the outside of the Great Ceremonial House. It took most of the month to completely remove all the crossbeams.

November brought the gradual return of the crossbeams, in addition to the removal of most of the plants and trees flanking the entrance to the resort. Mike from Blogmickey.com noted, “Disney [is] in the process of … creating a new, lush arrival experience at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort [and it just might] … reclaim some parking lot space when it is finished.”

Disney reassured fans of the Polynesian Village Resort that they are “enhancing the lush gardens and fountains that have welcomed guests to the resort since opening day.” As Blogmickey.com noted, from the artist rendering it also appears that tropical landscaping might just extend beyond the entrance and into the parking lot area.

Removal of the screens, which obscure the view of the monorail station on the second floor, began in mid-November. Riddley said the new screens at the monorail station will be “bold new wooden screens covered with geometric patterns in bright, tropical colors.”

During the last week of December, Disney blog, WDWNT.com, reported that the Poly’s guests rooms were beginning to be gutted in preparation for their transformation to the “Moana” themed decor. “Room construction is focused on the Aotearoa longhouse, where you’ll see walls and scaffolding around the staircase,” stated the blog. They also stated that the guest rooms have been “completely gutted, with exposed pipes, steel framework, and concrete flooring.”

As work is progressing at a rapid pace, WDWNT also reported on a recent permit filed with the State of Florida by Disney on behalf of MLC Theming. They said the location of the work is around the pool area of the Polynesian and have speculated that the “Moana” theming may be coming to virtually every of the resort.