I bet they only convert rooms to studios, no more kitchens, like at the Poly. We always book a 1 bedroom, one reason we will probably never stay at the Poly. Our home resort is VWL, so at least I have the 11 month window when booking. Now I'm wondering if the room conversions will change my ability to book.
The move from standard cash rooms to DVC rooms within the main building will impact the performance of the WL itself dramatically. I don't have the math at my fingertips, but hopefully WDWMagic's resident CPA (that's a joke, as I have no idea his background) @ParentsOf4 can find his stats that make it clear to see how the DVC presence reduces the hotel's ability to turn a profit and force it to operate under the most modest means. The resort needs as many non DVC units as possible. And my family are DVC owners at the VWL, it was just fine as it was.
I welcome the challenge. I'll trade debits and credits with @ParentsOf4 any day.
I just hate being right so often. I know it will upset some of my biggest fans down under.
But I am a bit surprised how long the permit is for. I shudder to think how much this will change my favorite WDW resort (about 150 nights spent there). I do know the project includes whatever they decided to put out over the water (teepees, cabins, wagons, 76 Pintos etc.) and two new concierge lounges (one DVC, one hotel).
But I'd need to check the plans to see what else was being done ... oh, I know a MAJOR redo for Artist Point as well.
I'm scared to death they'll destroy this place (sorry, WDW fanbois who can't get to DLR, but adding a Trader Sam's at the Poly doesn't change the fact the resort has lost most of its character and been Walmarted!), especially since Angie and I now own DVC at the original WLV.
I recall how much I hated the idea of them adding DVC in 2000 to the WL, but they did a magnificent job of integrating it (the best of ANY resort that got a DVC addition).
Like I said, I'm just afraid.
I really hope not. Just....no. Don't do it.
you mean the overgrown and mouldering old island in the middle of the lake? to make it safe for guests again i would guess that they would have to raze the island to 10" below grade and start over... really doubtful
Yeah...never gonna happen. I can't see the company ever agreeing to use the island again due to the challenge of getting guests off the island in the case of an emergency. I'm similarly surprised that Tom Sawyer Island remains to this day (with now-off-the-table plans to build a bridge to the mainland of Frontierland).
I hope they decide against this. The bungalows over the water at the Poly was a horrible decision. It has ruined the experience for 99% of the guests, while pleasing only 1%. I used to enjoy sitting on the beach and being able to see the Contemporary, the Magic Kingdom, and Grand Floridian. Now, it's tacky bungalows. Please, Disney, do not do that to the Wilderness Lodge.
In a nutshell, converting a room to DVC provides fantastic cash flow for 1 year, and subpar cash flow for 49 years. (The typical DVC property is for 50 years.)
The initial $28K needs to be amortized over the life of the contract and added to the maintenance fees. That initial cash flow is required by statute to be set aside in reserves to fund future upkeep. This is actually very important, as the timeshare obligations mandate that guest rooms and common areas be maintained reasonably in line with the condition they were in at the time of purchase. In other words, the upfront cash influx from DVC sales actually results in a pot of money that will subsidize the repairs and maintenance of common areas that are enjoyed by both DVC and non DVC guests.In a nutshell, converting a room to DVC provides fantastic cash flow for 1 year, and subpar cash flow for 49 years. (The typical DVC property is for 50 years.)
Let's consider the Polynesian Villas & Bungalows (PVB).
Someone buying there will pay $165/point. It costs 169 points to stay there in the summer. That means someone who wants to stay at the PVB for a week every summer will hand Disney $27,885 this year!
Sounds great but ...
After their initial purchases, PVB members will pay the 2015 equivalent of $1015/week ($145/night) to stay during the summer at WDW's second-most expensive resort in rooms that normally start at over $3,800/week ($543/night) and go up from there.
Meanwhile, in 2014, Disney's net income was $7.5 billion. However, Disney repurchased $6.5 billion in its own stock and paid out another $2.0 billion in dividends.
That $27,885 sale sounds great but all of the net proceeds (and then some) are simply going to be fed into the Disney Stock Machine. That money is not going into the hotel itself.
Considering that, overwhelmingly, most Disney executive compensation is in some form of stock instrument, is it any wonder why?
What does that mean for the Polynesian?
That means that the hotel needs to remain profitable on income of $145/night, whereas before it needed to remain profitable on income of $543/night. Even assuming a lower occupancy rate when they were cash rooms, the Polynesian will end up collecting only a fraction of what it used to realize when it was a hotel-only business.
How are they going to do that?
Simple - reduce expenses.
That means cheapen hotel services for the next 49 years so that Iger & co. could collect big, fat bonuses this year.
Returning to the point of this thread, what do you think will happen at the Wilderness Lodge as a larger percentage of hotel Guests become those paying timeshare rates for the next 50 years?
