News Coronado Springs Expansion - Gran Destino Tower

lazyboy97o

Well-Known Member
Fair point, and I think it stems from the fact they went for influence instead of fully embracing Gaudi. How cool would it have been to have a Wilderness Lodge level homage? Could have been incredible instead of just interesting to those who have had the privileged of actually going to Barcelona.
It’s not just an issue of only being influenced by Guadí. Disney’s blog post this morning says it is Mexican, Spanish, American, Catalan, traditional and Modern. That’s a lot of different stuff instead of just focusing on one idea.
 

JenniferS

Time To Be Movin’ Along
Premium Member
It’s not just an issue of only being influenced by Guadí. Disney’s blog post this morning says it is Mexican, Spanish, American, Catalan, traditional and Modern. That’s a lot of different stuff instead of just focusing on one idea.
Have you been to CSR? There was already a lot of different stuff going on. Casitas, Ranchos, and Cabanas couldn’t be more different if they tried.

There’s always been an eclectic mix from the blatantly Mexican Pepper Market (less blatant now) to the almost Moroccan Rix Lounge. The tower just adds another layer.

It either works for you, or it doesn’t.
 

lazyboy97o

Well-Known Member
Have you been to CSR? There was already a lot of different stuff going on. Casitas, Ranchos, and Cabanas couldn’t be more different if they tried.

There’s always been an eclectic mix from the blatantly Mexican Pepper Market (less blatant now) to the almost Moroccan Rix Lounge. The tower just adds another layer.

It either works for you, or it doesn’t.
You’re describing different places where those different ideas can be expressed. They’re not all mashed together.
 

FigmentJedi

Well-Known Member
It’s not just an issue of only being influenced by Guadí. Disney’s blog post this morning says it is Mexican, Spanish, American, Catalan, traditional and Modern. That’s a lot of different stuff instead of just focusing on one idea.
Also homages to Destino, Salvador Dali and his brand of surrealism. And doing that in a thematically subdued hotel is the design equivalent of this.
afecfbe4f6e6af21dc64abb56b5036a95bfc3d60.png
 

CJR

Well-Known Member
I like the look inside, the lobby has a Deluxe feel to it, IMO.

Outside of the lobby, the tower itself is not my cup of tea, I'm a sucker for balconies. The older hotel rooms don't have private balconies either, but the walkway on the outside is good enough for me, I like the fresh air. Luckily, those are still available.

It's not the best job Disney could have done, specifically in regards to the exterior (looks a bit cheap to me), but the interior is very nice. Ultimately, those who stay there should sleep well, which is the point of a hotel.
 

mgf

Well-Known Member
It’s not just an issue of only being influenced by Guadí. Disney’s blog post this morning says it is Mexican, Spanish, American, Catalan, traditional and Modern. That’s a lot of different stuff instead of just focusing on one idea.

Agree. They should have just embraced Catalan architecture. It would have given them a mishmash by default.
 

Flynnwriter

Well-Known Member
This hotel and its interiors are a combination of poor design, a misinterpretation of Gaudi and Spanish design and a large dose of cost-savings. The tower itself looks like they ordered a run of the mill, prefab hotel tower from a catalogue of ugly hotels on Intetnational Dr. and then tried to bring whimsy to it with an awkward crown and lame exterior metal work that looks like a mistake. The exterior and the interiors are all over the place with materials and designs that range from sad to ugly to boring. For those of you ready to pounce when anything critical appears here about Disney, try to compare this hotel to Wilderness Lodge, Animal Kingdom Lodge, Grand Floridian... this hotel is nothing like those. And just because Disney has crafted a design story around this pedestrian hotel tower, doesn’t make it special or good. If Disney keeps erecting ordinary hotels like this, you’ll soon be unable to tell when you are on-property or off.
 

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JenniferS

Time To Be Movin’ Along
Premium Member
The current pool is a 2 min walk. It doesn't get much closer.
I agree completely, but the new tower introduces 545 new guest rooms (minus however many rooms were removed with the demo of Cabanas 9B), so there will definitely be more stress put on that Cabanas pool.

In the past, conventioneers were somewhat scattered throughout the resort, so no single pool bore the entire brunt of these convention guests.

I wouldn’t be surprised if the Casitas quiet pool doesn’t end up being even more quiet as a result, as many convention guests did stay in Preferred Casitas 1, 2, 3 due to proximity to El Centro and the convention facilities.

An extra pool is never a bad thing, but I think space was pretty tight for the tower as it was, without removing more of the Cabanas section.
 

Andrew C

You know what's funny?
try to compare this hotel to Wilderness Lodge, Animal Kingdom Lodge, Grand Floridian.

Those are strange comparisons considering this one was built for convention purposes.

To me the interior looks very pretty. Columns are cool. I like some of detail in the guestrooms and lobby. Prefer interior over exterior.

However, some say I’m a man of very little taste considering I have no architectural or design background. :hilarious:

But the eye likes what it likes. 🤷‍♂️
 

Flynnwriter

Well-Known Member
Those are strange comparisons considering this one was built for convention purposes.

To me the interior looks very pretty. Columns are cool. I like some of detail in the guestrooms and lobby. Prefer interior over exterior.

However, some say I’m a man of very little taste considering I have no architectural or design background. :hilarious:

But the eye likes what it likes. 🤷‍♂️
I appreciate your personal opinion. You like what you like. But when Disney starts erecting bland towers all over the property that look similar to hotel towers all over the Orlando area, they risk losing their unique resort identity. Also, you don’t have to understand architecture or urban design to have an opinion - but I can tell you, once a master-designed place like Disney World breaks enough of their core design esthetics, you will notice and not like what you end up with - a place that is opposite of what you fell in love with.
 

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