Island Tower at Polynesian Villas & Bungalows

[mkatsy]

Unfortunately, there is no easy way to get any building permit information on the Tower. Disney does not apply for building permits in Orange County like everyone else. Their general construction is permitted through the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District (the old Reedy Creek). Building Permits are public record in Florida, but CFTOD does not have a searchable database *shocker*. You have to fill out a FOIA request and pay 0.15 cents a page. I tried a couple FOIA requests, but they were denied. If anyone is interested in viewing the Epic Universe permits which ARE in a searchable database, I've included an image of the website. Politics aside, permitting through this special district undeniably allows Disney to restrict access to information about their construction .... information that the public is legally entitled to.

 

[HyperspaceMountainPilot]

If the pool is getting this much attention there is going to be some interesting posts when the point chart comes out.

Ahem, ^an artist rendering of^ the pool is getting this much attention. I continue to expect the point chart to be higher than people expect (an overcorrection from CFW).

That would be my pic from late April. Zero entry on the other end but the pool is very small.

I think one thing being missed in measurements is that between what appears to be a baja ledge before the stairs (on the left) and the zero entry (on the right), a significant chunk of the pool will not actually be swimmable—it looks like it will be more for hanging out than swimming around.

 

[Salokin]

Ahem, ^an artist rendering of^ the pool is getting this much attention. I continue to expect the point chart to be higher than people expect (an overcorrection from CFW).

I think one thing being missed in measurements is that between what appears to be a baja ledge before the stairs (on the left) and the zero entry (on the right), a significant chunk of the pool will not actually be swimmable—it looks like it will be more for hanging out than swimming around.

Strange design given limited space but that may be the reasoning behind it

 

[OKW Lover]

I think one thing being missed in measurements is that between what appears to be a baja ledge before the stairs (on the left) and the zero entry (on the right), a significant chunk of the pool will not actually be swimmable—it looks like it will be more for hanging out than swimming around.

That's pretty much what happens at all the resort pools. There's seldom any serious swimming.

 

[RaymOOOnd]

I'm confused... Is this not going to be a DVC resort? How have we not heard a thing about point charts, when points-based booking will open up, etc? The DVC members get last dibs on inventory?

And after the many months of ambiguity. It doesn't feel like we've been treated as if we're worth very much to them throughout this whole process.

 

[OKW Lover]

I'm confused... Is this not going to be a DVC resort? How have we not heard a thing about point charts, when points-based booking will open up, etc? The DVC members get last dibs on inventory?

And after the many months of ambiguity. It doesn't feel like we've been treated as if we're worth very much to them throughout this whole process.

Its probably a matter of the strict FL timeshare laws that prevent them from announcing things before they actually are available.

 

[maui22]

There was an update to the multi-site POS at the same time, but I don't think they've actually published an updated version, and it's not clear what that update included.

View attachment 867980

By contrast, there was much more detail when they amended the POS and other documents to include CFW
View attachment 867981

I believe this is the BPK addition showing up under the Primary Name DVC license. Notice it was roughly 5 weeks from the time the POS was updated until the the "added weeks to VGF" and updated it's POS. Might the delay in details be a case of all the licenses/paperwork for all associations needing to be filed, reviewed, and approved? (Much like @OKW Lover has mentioned).

If someone goes through the various timeshare associations and looks at the information, you can see different dates sometimes appear for that associations additional information being updated.

 

[Sandisw]

I'm confused... Is this not going to be a DVC resort? How have we not heard a thing about point charts, when points-based booking will open up, etc? The DVC members get last dibs on inventory?

And after the many months of ambiguity. It doesn't feel like we've been treated as if we're worth very much to them throughout this whole process.

It is going to be a DVC resort, but until the units are declared into the condo assocation for sale, it is no different than a typical Disney hotel and they can rent those rooms for cash stays.

Since DVD will begin selling this, we assume, sometimes this year, they would have determined, before cash sales, how many units will be declared initiallly, and what rooms sizes those will be, and held those back from bookings.

We won't know that until they file the declaration with the county. With CFW, the units were declared end of December for a sale date of Feb 1st....points charts do not usually come out until shortly before they announce a sale date...or at the same time.

So, until they know they are ready to begin sales, we won't get any further info...my guess is that sales won't be starting until late July to early August, based on previous timelines.....but, it certainly does seem like details of this project are being slow walked to the public...

 

[Mai Ku Tiki]

Another perspective on pool sizes. Per the scale on Disney's plans, the new Tower pool measures 80' x 80' at the points marked in blue. The Lava pool measures 140' x 55' with the red arrows. The Oasis pool (not pictured) is about 110' x 55'. I'll let someone else do the math to try and calculate the volume of such irregular shapes.

View attachment 867811

Other Disney pools:

Rivera Beau Soleil: 75' x 35'
BLT Bay Cove pool 85' x 60'
GF Beach pool: 115' x 55'
WL Boulder Ridge Cove pool: 115' x 60'
Kidani Samawati Springs: 110' x 70'

 

[Mai Ku Tiki]

The 80 X 80 section noted is misleading since this won't be an 80 X 80 rectangular pool...
We'll soon know more... But for us the fewer guests who choose to book "OUR" PVB/IT, the happier we'll be.

 

[TheDailyMoo]

Ahem, ^an artist rendering of^ the pool is getting this much attention. I continue to expect the point chart to be higher than people expect (an overcorrection from CFW).

I think one thing being missed in measurements is that between what appears to be a baja ledge before the stairs (on the left) and the zero entry (on the right), a significant chunk of the pool will not actually be swimmable—it looks like it will be more for hanging out than swimming around.

Yup definitely a see and be seen type pool not much in the way of swimming. I personally love to swim a bit but it’s rare in almost any pool to find a clear enough lane. SAB I had no trouble but well…obviously lol

 

[tjkraz]

The 80 X 80 section noted is misleading since this won't be an 80 X 80 rectangular pool...We'll soon know more... But for us the fewer guests who choose to book "OUR" PVB/IT, the happier we'll be.

Almost every Disney pool is irregularly shaped. In a thread where some posters have suggested it's the size of a backyard pool, the point was to show that it's actually larger than some Disney pools and not dramatically smaller than others. I'm not interested in calculating exact volumes, nor splitting hairs over a ranking of Disney pool sizes.

 

[Mai Ku Tiki]

Almost every Disney pool is irregularly shaped. In a thread where some posters have suggested it's the size of a backyard pool, the point was to show that it's actually larger than some Disney pools and not dramatically smaller than others. I'm not interested in calculating exact volumes, nor splitting hairs over a ranking of Disney pool sizes.

View attachment 868308

No offense was intended...Just commenting as we all do. And I appreciated your info.
I didn't expect my obvious hyperbole to be taken literally ...
I'll be more careful next time..

 

[ehh]

I want to speculate on the Penthouses a bit, if I may.

What we know about them: they're a 2BR with a description that seems to emphasize the gathering spaces. The two photos shared share a standard (for 2BR) secondary bedroom and a larger living/dining area:


The (logical) place most speculation has placed these Penthouses is at the top of the center tower (highlighted in orange):

What I want to highlight about this location is that there are 2 floors of '6-bay' space, which doesn't quite fit in with the description/photos we have.

A brief explanation about 'bays':
DVC and hotel rooms can almost always be thought of as different combinations of rectangular segments with varied internal design/layout. I'm calling each of these rectangular segments a 'bay'.

How some other rooms use bays:

• Deluxe Studios use 1 bay
• Duo Studios also use 1 bay, but the bay isn't as deep
• 1 Bedrooms use 2 bays
• 2 Bedrooms use 3 bays
• Most 3 Bedroom Grand Villas use 6 bays, with some deviation

Let's use BoardWalk as an example to demonstrate this.

Deluxe Studio has one bay:


A 1 Bedroom has 2 bays:


A 2 Bedroom has 3 bays:


And a Grand Villa has 6 bays:

Of note, the gathering area is 3 bays itself (bays 3, 4, and 5).

But there has been some recent deviation! For example, Grand Flo sticks to the 6 bay concept, but the bays are a bit oversized compared to normal and they chose to create a separated den space:


And at Copper Creek they use a pretty different arrangement of roughly 7 bays, with the main bath getting an entire bay to itself!
The gathering space is still ~3 bays here though.

And at the latest Grand Villas, the ones at Disneyland Hotel, are actually 8 bays over two floors, here's the gathering space on the first floor:

Notably, the gathering space is still 3 bays.


All this to ask: how are they going to use 6 bays for the Penthouses? The images they shared shows what is very likely a 2-bay gathering space (2x the size of a normal 2BR, worthy of differentiation), as well as a standard layout secondary bedroom. In theory, that means that the Penthouses only need to be a 4-bay room.

Speculative, alternative options:

• The Penthouses are the 4-bays in the middle and bookended by Deluxe Studios.
• The Penthouses have the grandest bathrooms in all of DVC, with bathrooms taking up the end bays. And also having sliding glass doors?
• The Penthouses aren't at these 6-bay locations at the top of the center tower.
  • Alternatively, could be the 4-bay spaces that are just below but to both sides of the speculated area.
  • If this is the case, then there's two floors of 6-bay space that is unaccounted for...
• The kitchen in the Penthouse gets its own bay, leaving only 1 mystery bay.
• There's also a den area in the Penthouse, similar to the VGF GV, again leaving 1 mystery bay.
• The main bedroom gets ~2 bays in the Penthouse, again leaving 1 mystery bay.

Not all of the above fully explain the jump from 4 to 6 bays on their own, but they could combine to explain the difference, maybe? Either way, I'm pretty fascinated by these 2BR Penthouses.

 

[Cfabar1]

Any chance they could make this pool exclusive to DVC (both tower and original longhouses and bungalows)?

I don't think that is a road we really want to start going down....

 

[DVCsloth]

I agree the pool looks pretty small, but I'm mostly impressed that they were able to fit all of this into such a small space.
We usually avoid the resort pools altogether because of the crowds. We do like to spend a day at one of the water parks instead and actually one of our favorite pools is the Wilderness lodge pool early when it first opens.

 

[Sandisw]

Any chance they could make this pool exclusive to DVC (both tower and original longhouses and bungalows)?

Could they? Yes, but remember, the Lava and Oasis pool are owned by the hotel and PVB owners are simply given the right to use them.

If DVC were to say that the pool at the tower was ONLY for DVC owners using the villas, then why would the hotel want to give DVC owners the RTU their pools? And yes, the contract does say they can take it away.

My guess is that all pools are slated to be used by all guests, and the expenses for them will be shared. The two current pools will remain owned by the hotel and the tower pool will become a common element of PVB, and then the reciprocal agreement will be put in place, like it is for WL and BRV

 

[Salokin]

I want to speculate on the Penthouses a bit, if I may.

What we know about them: they're a 2BR with a description that seems to emphasize the gathering spaces. The two photos shared share a standard (for 2BR) secondary bedroom and a larger living/dining area:
View attachment 868738

The (logical) place most speculation has placed these Penthouses is at the top of the center tower (highlighted in orange):View attachment 868740

What I want to highlight about this location is that there are 2 floors of '6-bay' space, which doesn't quite fit in with the description/photos we have.

A brief explanation about 'bays':
DVC and hotel rooms can almost always be thought of as different combinations of rectangular segments with varied internal design/layout. I'm calling each of these rectangular segments a 'bay'.

How some other rooms use bays:

• Deluxe Studios use 1 bay
• Duo Studios also use 1 bay, but the bay isn't as deep
• 1 Bedrooms use 2 bays
• 2 Bedrooms use 3 bays
• Most 3 Bedroom Grand Villas use 6 bays, with some deviation

Let's use BoardWalk as an example to demonstrate this.

Deluxe Studio has one bay:
View attachment 868746

A 1 Bedroom has 2 bays:
View attachment 868747

A 2 Bedroom has 3 bays:
View attachment 868749

And a Grand Villa has 6 bays:
View attachment 868751
Of note, the gathering area is 3 bays itself (bays 3, 4, and 5).

But there has been some recent deviation! For example, Grand Flo sticks to the 6 bay concept, but the bays are a bit oversized compared to normal and they chose to create a separated den space:
View attachment 868752

And at Copper Creek they use a pretty different arrangement of roughly 7 bays, with the main bath getting an entire bay to itself!View attachment 868753
The gathering space is still ~3 bays here though.

And at the latest Grand Villas, the ones at Disneyland Hotel, are actually 8 bays over two floors, here's the gathering space on the first floor:
View attachment 868754
Notably, the gathering space is still 3 bays.


All this to ask: how are they going to use 6 bays for the Penthouses? The images they shared shows what is very likely a 2-bay gathering space (2x the size of a normal 2BR, worthy of differentiation), as well as a standard layout secondary bedroom. In theory, that means that the Penthouses only need to be a 4-bay room.

Speculative, alternative options:

• The Penthouses are the 4-bays in the middle and bookended by Deluxe Studios.
• The Penthouses have the grandest bathrooms in all of DVC, with bathrooms taking up the end bays. And also having sliding glass doors?
• The Penthouses aren't at these 6-bay locations at the top of the center tower.
  • Alternatively, could be the 4-bay spaces that are just below but to both sides of the speculated area.
  • If this is the case, then there's two floors of 6-bay space that is unaccounted for...
• The kitchen in the Penthouse gets its own bay, leaving only 1 mystery bay.
• There's also a den area in the Penthouse, similar to the VGF GV, again leaving 1 mystery bay.
• The main bedroom gets ~2 bays in the Penthouse, again leaving 1 mystery bay.

Not all of the above fully explain the jump from 4 to 6 bays on their own, but they could combine to explain the difference, maybe? Either way, I'm pretty fascinated by these 2BR Penthouses.

Love this post!

 

[Kailunkat]

I want to speculate on the Penthouses a bit, if I may.

Awesome post! I love the breakdown.
Everything you say makes a ton of sense but there is one thing that gives me pause - they are listed as only sleeping 8 people instead of 12.

 

[Tramp200]

I want to speculate on the Penthouses a bit, if I may.

What we know about them: they're a 2BR with a description that seems to emphasize the gathering spaces. The two photos shared share a standard (for 2BR) secondary bedroom and a larger living/dining area:
View attachment 868738

The (logical) place most speculation has placed these Penthouses is at the top of the center tower (highlighted in orange):View attachment 868740

What I want to highlight about this location is that there are 2 floors of '6-bay' space, which doesn't quite fit in with the description/photos we have.

A brief explanation about 'bays':
DVC and hotel rooms can almost always be thought of as different combinations of rectangular segments with varied internal design/layout. I'm calling each of these rectangular segments a 'bay'.

How some other rooms use bays:

• Deluxe Studios use 1 bay
• Duo Studios also use 1 bay, but the bay isn't as deep
• 1 Bedrooms use 2 bays
• 2 Bedrooms use 3 bays
• Most 3 Bedroom Grand Villas use 6 bays, with some deviation

Let's use BoardWalk as an example to demonstrate this.

Deluxe Studio has one bay:
View attachment 868746

A 1 Bedroom has 2 bays:
View attachment 868747

A 2 Bedroom has 3 bays:
View attachment 868749

And a Grand Villa has 6 bays:
View attachment 868751
Of note, the gathering area is 3 bays itself (bays 3, 4, and 5).

But there has been some recent deviation! For example, Grand Flo sticks to the 6 bay concept, but the bays are a bit oversized compared to normal and they chose to create a separated den space:
View attachment 868752

And at Copper Creek they use a pretty different arrangement of roughly 7 bays, with the main bath getting an entire bay to itself!View attachment 868753
The gathering space is still ~3 bays here though.

And at the latest Grand Villas, the ones at Disneyland Hotel, are actually 8 bays over two floors, here's the gathering space on the first floor:
View attachment 868754
Notably, the gathering space is still 3 bays.


All this to ask: how are they going to use 6 bays for the Penthouses? The images they shared shows what is very likely a 2-bay gathering space (2x the size of a normal 2BR, worthy of differentiation), as well as a standard layout secondary bedroom. In theory, that means that the Penthouses only need to be a 4-bay room.

Speculative, alternative options:

• The Penthouses are the 4-bays in the middle and bookended by Deluxe Studios.
• The Penthouses have the grandest bathrooms in all of DVC, with bathrooms taking up the end bays. And also having sliding glass doors?
• The Penthouses aren't at these 6-bay locations at the top of the center tower.
  • Alternatively, could be the 4-bay spaces that are just below but to both sides of the speculated area.
  • If this is the case, then there's two floors of 6-bay space that is unaccounted for...
• The kitchen in the Penthouse gets its own bay, leaving only 1 mystery bay.
• There's also a den area in the Penthouse, similar to the VGF GV, again leaving 1 mystery bay.
• The main bedroom gets ~2 bays in the Penthouse, again leaving 1 mystery bay.

Not all of the above fully explain the jump from 4 to 6 bays on their own, but they could combine to explain the difference, maybe? Either way, I'm pretty fascinated by these 2BR Penthouses.

Perhaps there’s a connecting door in the second bedroom to a studio which would allow for an optional third bedroom configuration? Thanks for your post it’s great info.