News Refurbishment coming soon to Disney's Polynesian Village Resort - Moana details to be included

[GimpYancIent]

Certainly some hotels use rugs or still use carpet. My preferred vacation is tropical, and many of those hotels, even at the Four Seasons and Ritz-Carlton level, have tile and no carpets. I would prefer not to have a rug. To each their own. I'm sure Disney's choice is based on cost, and I'm sure some are turned off by cold feet in the morning and a lack of perceived coziness. That's fair criticism that should be given to Disney.

Hard wood or Faux hard wood flooring would do quite nicely. Carpeting has always felt unhealthy in hotels regardless of the hotel and its rating.

 

[Touchdown]

Speaking for myself, I don't really find the Cinderella characters on the Grand Floridian bedspread any better than the Moana touches to the new Polynesian rooms. Honestly a little surprised to see such elements were incorporated in the bedspread.

I am trying not to be too puritanical on this as I have also stayed at the Sequoia Lodge at DLP which had Bambi character elements and it didn't bother me too much. I also honestly like the Three Caballeros elements that have been integrated into the new Coronado Springs rooms. For the most part, though, I would prefer that the rooms were themed in the Disney style rather than being themed to Disney.


I take this point, but I would probably twist the mid-twentieth century debates around interior design vs. decoration to describe how I think about this. Theming in a sense goes against modernist calls for sincerity in the use of materials and celebration of the form function relationship. However, I do think there is a resonance with the ideal of organic design meaning that architecture, ornament, and furnishings were all supposed to relate to one another and form a cohesive whole rather than involve the mere overlay of essentially interchangeable decoration schemes. The problem with the image of Enchanted Tales with Bell above is that this is obviously an example of decoration applied onto what is essentially an empty room designed to hold large theme park crowds, whereas true theming should make it appear as though the theme park experience is taking place in a room designed for other purposes.

Putting on my nerd glasses, ahem:

But what do you think of putting Sleeping Beauty Characters on the bedspread?

*Last time I checked Fauna, Flora and Merryweather aren’t in Cinderella.

Sorry had to do it, what either film has to do with Victorian times is beyond me. Using the Mary Poppins Penguins in the DVC era was much more appropriate, as is using Alice in Wonderland for the pool. Another appropriate Victorian IP would be Peter Pan.

 

[LittleBuford]

Sorry had to do it, what either film has to do with Victorian times is beyond me. Using the Mary Poppins Penguins in the DVC era was much more appropriate, as is using Alice in Wonderland for the pool. Another appropriate Victorian IP would be Peter Pan.

Peter Pan and Mary Poppins are Edwardian!

 

[lazyboy97o]

Putting on my nerd glasses, ahem:

But what do you think of putting Sleeping Beauty Characters on the bedspread?

*Last time I checked Fauna, Flora and Merryweather aren’t in Cinderella.

Sorry had to do it, what either film has to do with Victorian times is beyond me. Using the Mary Poppins Penguins in the DVC era was much more appropriate, as is using Alice in Wonderland for the pool. Another appropriate Victorian IP would be Peter Pan.

Queen Victoria died in 1901. Mary Poppins is set in 1910 during the Edwardian era. Peter Pan is also generally consider to be contemporary to its creation during the Edwardian Era.

 

[drnilescrane]

Certainly some hotels use rugs or still use carpet. My preferred vacation is tropical, and many of those hotels, even at the Four Seasons and Ritz-Carlton level, have tile and no carpets. I would prefer not to have a rug. To each their own. I'm sure Disney's choice is based on cost, and I'm sure some are turned off by cold feet in the morning and a lack of perceived coziness. That's fair criticism that should be given to Disney.

Right, it very much does depend on the market but I feel that Disney's product is a step below what others are offering in CFL.

Not to beat a dead horse but they are putting rugs down in the suite level rooms (new rooms at DAK Lodge pictured) so I'm 100% convinced it's a cheapness thing - they want to turn their rooms faster using less labor so have removed anything that isn't nailed down or requires maintenance.

Suites get the rugs, runners and themed throw pillows that should be standard in every room.

 

[Animaniac93-98]

Putting on my nerd glasses, ahem:

But what do you think of putting Sleeping Beauty Characters on the bedspread?

*Last time I checked Fauna, Flora and Merryweather aren’t in Cinderella.

Sorry had to do it, what either film has to do with Victorian times is beyond me. Using the Mary Poppins Penguins in the DVC era was much more appropriate, as is using Alice in Wonderland for the pool. Another appropriate Victorian IP would be Peter Pan.

Queen Victoria died in 1901. Mary Poppins is set in 1910 during the Edwardian era. Peter Pan is also generally consider to be contemporary to its creation during the Edwardian Era.

Well Victorian or Edwardian, neither of those properties really fit the setting of Grand Floridian, which is meant to reflect the peak era of rail travel for wealthy Americans and not British fantasy children's literature or plays.

The only Disney movie referenced in the hotel or DVC building that comes close to relevant is The Happiest Millionaire. A story of two real life rich families in the USA during the 1910s. Both would have stayed at a hotel like the Grand on their travels, perhaps when Mr Biddle was getting his alligators?

 

[lazyboy97o]

Well Victorian or Edwardian, neither of those properties really fit the setting of Grand Floridian, which is meant to reflect the peak era of rail travel for wealthy Americans and not British fantasy children's literature or plays.

Plus we all know the best place for Mary Poppins is Main Street, USA.

 

[Animaniac93-98]

Plus we all know the best place for Mary Poppins is Main Street, USA.

Both her and Alice were in that part of the sing-along video over 30 years ago. I guess that's where this whole idea started.

 

[LittleBuford]

Disney itself has given us little reason to be as puristic as some of the discussion here suggests we should be. The films and parks are often highly heterogeneous and syncretic in their stylistic references.

 

[UNCgolf]

Disney itself has given us little reason to be as puristic as some of the discussion here suggests we should be. The films and parks are often highly heterogeneous and syncretic in their stylistic references.

There's been a huge shift in that regard over the past 15 or so years, though, which is the issue. The company looks at things differently than they used to, and have been public about that shift in priority.

 

[lazyboy97o]

At no time did Disney ever consider having Mickey Mouse in Moana nor were viewers confused as to why he was not in the movie. Nobody even expected Mickey Mouse to show up. Nobody says the movie would be ”more Disney” if Mickey Mouse, Elsa, Iron Man and Luke Skywalker were in it.

 

[LittleBuford]

There's been a huge shift in that regard over the past 15 or so years, though, which is the issue. The company looks at things differently than they used to, and have been public about that shift in priority.

I would disagree. The architecture in Aladdin and Beauty and the Beast (to name just two examples) is decidedly hybrid, while Adventureland is all over the place thematically, unified only by the “exoticism” and “otherness” of its components. To be clear, these aren’t criticisms—such whimsical and imaginative synthesis is what makes Disney Disney, and I thoroughly enjoy the result.

I’m reminded of a thread I started a few years back about the misoriented column capitals in the rotunda of the American Adventure. Rather than accept that the Imagineers might have deliberately or mistakenly broken the rules of Classicism, several posters insisted there must be some real-life precedent to justify the capitals, as if a justification were needed to begin with. People are looking for a kind of gravity and purism that Disney’s own brand of fantasy disallows. (And it turns out the capitals were indeed misoriented by mistake.)

 

[LittleBuford]

At no time did Disney ever consider having Mickey Mouse in Moana nor were viewers confused as to why he was not in the movie. Nobody even expected Mickey Mouse to show up. Nobody says the movie would be ”more Disney” if Mickey Mouse, Elsa, Iron Man and Luke Skywalker were in it.

Who or what is this responding to?

 

[SorcererMC]

Right, it very much does depend on the market but I feel that Disney's product is a step below what others are offering in CFL.

Not to beat a dead horse but they are putting rugs down in the suite level rooms (new rooms at DAK Lodge pictured) so I'm 100% convinced it's a cheapness thing - they want to turn their rooms faster using less labor so have removed anything that isn't nailed down or requires maintenance.

Suites get the rugs, runners and themed throw pillows that should be standard in every room.

So I get that people don't care about this at all but that textile wall hanging is like woven Kuba cloth from the Shoowa tribal group in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Here's a good example of the geometric diamond design from the 19th century. I'm just saying this is probably a deliberate design choice and not a coincidence. They also make barkcloth.

 

[UNCgolf]

I would disagree. The architecture in Aladdin and Beauty and the Beast (to name just two examples) is decidedly hybrid, while Adventureland is all over the place thematically, unified only by the “exoticism” and “otherness” of its components. To be clear, these aren’t criticisms—such whimsical and imaginative synthesis is what makes Disney Disney, and I thoroughly enjoy the result.

I’m reminded of a thread I started a few years back about the misoriented column capitals in the rotunda of the American Adventure. Rather than accept that the Imagineers might have deliberately or mistakenly broken the rules of Classicism, several posters insisted there must be some real-life precedent to justify the capitals, as if a justification were needed to begin with. People are looking for a kind of gravity and purism that Disney’s own brand of fantasy disallows. (And it turns out the capitals were indeed misoriented by mistake.)

Oh, I misunderstood what you were saying. I thought you were arguing something completely different.

 

[LittleBuford]

Oh, I misunderstood what you were saying. I thought you were arguing something completely different.

Sorry for the misunderstanding! What did you think I was saying?

 

[UNCgolf]

Sorry for the misunderstanding! What did you think I was saying?

I thought you were saying that Disney never really intended for resorts like the Boardwalk Inn and Grand Floridian to be themed to any specific period and/or setting in the first place.

What you're saying is true, especially with regards to the parks themselves (I also think it's true to an extent with the Polynesian), but I think they did have specific intent for some of the resorts.

 

[Haymarket2008]

I’m not crazy about the Poly rooms, but any defense of the Riviera is.......misguided. The bones of that resort are lovely, but the “theming” is an absolute jumbled mess.

 

[LittleBuford]

I thought you were saying that Disney never really intended for resorts like the Boardwalk Inn and Grand Floridian to be themed to any specific period and/or setting in the first place.

What you're saying is true, especially with regards to the parks themselves (I also think it's true to an extent with the Polynesian), but I think they did have specific intent for some of the resorts.

Thanks for clarifying. We're on the same page!

 

[WDWTrojan]

Right, it very much does depend on the market but I feel that Disney's product is a step below what others are offering in CFL.

Not to beat a dead horse but they are putting rugs down in the suite level rooms (new rooms at DAK Lodge pictured) so I'm 100% convinced it's a cheapness thing - they want to turn their rooms faster using less labor so have removed anything that isn't nailed down or requires maintenance.

Suites get the rugs, runners and themed throw pillows that should be standard in every room.

Deluxe hotels should get deluxe finishings, both hard and soft. They seem to miss that.