Kingdom Tower DVC at the Contemporary (Orlando Sentinel 2/26/08)

[aprince&princess]

Great news! Hmmm, where would we search for a point chart?

 

[tomandrobin]

Can't wait. I was working on my 2009 plans yesterday, so maybe there will be another option for either my October and December 2009 trips.

I call dibs on the MK view for NYE in 2009!

 

[Mickey'sApprentice]

[Quote:]
Originally Posted by CarolA
Can we start a campaign to change the name?

KINGDOM TOWER???? Are they kidding?

I live in the Bible Belt.... Trust me this brings up visions of Oral Roberts, Jerrry Falwell etc.... Personally the name alone will make me afraid to stay there. I do NOT want to tell my friends I vacation at Kingdom Tower!!!

Yes and lets not leave out the Jehovah's.....Kingdom Hall
Kerri

Will CMs be knocking on our doors and handing out marketing pamphlets at 7am to all of the guests?

 

[aprince&princess]

I call dibs on the MK view for NYE in 2009!

OK, I'm thinking that since I used my Dec 08 points for a a NYE 2008 trip at SSR I can now borrow my Dec 09 points for something during the year and just buy points to use for a 2010 trip. Solves all of my problems of running out of points!

Hopefully there are some studios. We keep saying that it would be nice to stay in a one bedroom, but then we love stretching out our points by taking a studio, if only they had a washer & dryer.

 

[White_Sox_Fan]

So do we officially change the acronym to KTCRV? Thus endeth the speculation.

I have always felt that they would jack up the points chart for this location, as well as Hawaii, instead of charging significantly more for the points. It seem like the most equitable thing to do and also properly reflects the demand for the product.

 

[n2mm]

I call dibs on the MK view for NYE in 2009!

That would be a great view. I'm not a view person and will settle for anything!! Glad I have a ton of points, at least I know now to start hoarding them for 2009.

 

[JimMIA]

I have always felt that they would jack up the points chart for this location, as well as Hawaii, instead of charging significantly more for the points. It seem like the most equitable thing to do and also properly reflects the demand for the product.

I think they'll do both. I'm looking for +/- $120 pp and higher points costs. However, I don't think they'll start selling any time soon, and I doubt if it will be open for NYE 2009.

Incidentally, I found the info on the DBPR website, but I was not able to access the info online or view point charts. I'm sure they're out there somewhere, but I'm not able to find them.

 

[spiceycat]

Can we start a campaign to change the name?

KINGDOM TOWER???? Are they kidding?

I live in the Bible Belt.... Trust me this brings up visions of Oral Roberts, Jerrry Falwell etc.... Personally the name alone will make me afraid to stay there. I do NOT want to tell my friends I vacation at Kingdom Tower!!!

hey I live in the bible belt too - I like the name

Kingdom towers - of course would like Magic kingdom Towers even better!

but Kingdom towers states that they are closest to the MK.

 

[mom2aredhead]

OK, so here's a dumb question. We were considering buying AKV. Does this announcement mean that the price per point would go up there to the same price as the new Contemporary one, or would it just cost more to have "Kingdom Tower" as your home resort?

And would they now throw all kinds of incentives at people to buy at SSR?

 

[PIERCEDRN]

I think they'll do both. I'm looking for +/- $120 pp and higher points costs. However, I don't think they'll start selling any time soon, and I doubt if it will be open for NYE 2009.

Incidentally, I found the info on the DBPR website, but I was not able to access the info online or view point charts. I'm sure they're out there somewhere, but I'm not able to find them.

I must remain slightly optimistic at the comment about the one and two bedrooms. That makes me think that the studios, if they exist will be cheaper in points than the current "premium" studios, the AKV club section. Points less than the concierge, ie. 13-23 S-Th, would be reasonable to me to stay in CRV. Then they can add a few more points for Castle view and jack it up to 20 points a night. Just gotta keep up my wishful thinking...it could happen!

Kingdom Towers...Yuck...hate the name.

 

[kritter]

My parents are in WDW right now and I called my mom to tell her about the article. She said, "We already know it is all over the TV and everyone @ the Resorts are talking about it."

 

[spiceycat]

OK, so here's a dumb question. We were considering buying AKV. Does this announcement mean that the price per point would go up there to the same price as the new Contemporary one, or would it just cost more to have "Kingdom Tower" as your home resort?

And would they now throw all kinds of incentives at people to buy at SSR?

don't worry - the article say that sales won't begin anytime soon - probably not until next year. the building won't be completely until fall of 2009.

they have kept the new resorts all selling at the same basic selling point. but sometimes the discounts have been different.

would expect ssr to sell out by then. AKV will still be selling - but that resort will appeal to different customers than KTcr. of course the way that DVC is selling it might have sold out too.

you have time - lots of time. that say most years DVC raises the prices. So don't wait too long.

 

[White_Sox_Fan]

I think they'll do both. I'm looking for +/- $120 pp and higher points costs. However, I don't think they'll start selling any time soon, and I doubt if it will be open for NYE 2009.

Incidentally, I found the info on the DBPR website, but I was not able to access the info online or view point charts. I'm sure they're out there somewhere, but I'm not able to find them.

I agree that there will be a points price hike, I don't know about $120pp though, we'll wait and see.

 

[JimMIA]

I agree that there will be a points price hike, I don't know about $120pp though, we'll wait and see.

That's just a guess, but my thinking is they can't close on any sales until the units receive a certificate of substantial completion (or some similar term). Since this is a tower, they can't very well be constructing the upper floors while guests are staying in the lower floors, so I would think they'd open it all up at once. Or at least almost at once.

My guess is that would be sometime late in 2009, or maybe even early 2010. With even normal price increases, $120 pp is not that far-fetched for a year and a half or more from now.

At any rate, at least we know.

Also, one thing that seems to be forgotten in our discussion is that the tower seems to be 100% DVC. 281 units, when you figure there is going to be a considerable amount of common space (restaurants, registration, community areas, retail, etc), is about 20 villas per floor. That doesn't leave any room for anything but DVC villas.

And finally, I'm another one who would like "Magic Kingdom Tower" a lot more than Kingdom Tower. Since the Contemporary isn't so contemporary any more, maybe they should change the name of the whole thing to Magic Kingdom Resort, or Magic Kingdom Gateway Resort.

 

[WendyinNC]

The article says:

A spokesman for the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, which awarded a time-share license to the Kingdom Tower project earlier this month, said Disney has now been cleared to start selling units at any time.

"They can begin," department spokesman Sam Farkas said.

It sounds like they can start selling now instead of waiting until its near completion.

 

[Starr W.]

The article says:

A spokesman for the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, which awarded a time-share license to the Kingdom Tower project earlier this month, said Disney has now been cleared to start selling units at any time.

"They can begin," department spokesman Sam Farkas said.

It sounds like they can start selling now instead of waiting until its near completion.

I don't think they will start until SSR is sold out.

 

[JimMIA]

The article says:

A spokesman for the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, which awarded a time-share license to the Kingdom Tower project earlier this month, said Disney has now been cleared to start selling units at any time.

"They can begin," department spokesman Sam Farkas said.

It sounds like they can start selling now instead of waiting until its near completion.

Sure, they've been approved by the state to start selling.

But would you sell something at today's prices that you couldn't close for more than a year? Would you start selling this property if you thought it would torpedo your sales at SSR and AKV?

Would you buy, if you couldn't close and begin making ressies for a year and a half? Some probably would, but I think most prospective buyers would wait until a few months before it actually opens.

I wouldn't hold my breath for sales to commence. I think it will be a while, and I'm sure Disney wishes this news hadn't been uncovered...just like they wish all the other information on this "best kept secret" hadn't been discovered.

 

[drusba]

Though the records for the agency are not on-line, the approval of the license is. The official name is actually "Kingdom Tower Resort."

 

[mom2aredhead]

they have kept the new resorts all selling at the same basic selling point. but sometimes the discounts have been different.

would expect ssr to sell out by then. AKV will still be selling - but that resort will appeal to different customers than KTcr. of course the way that DVC is selling it might have sold out too.

you have time - lots of time. that say most years DVC raises the prices. So don't wait too long.

Thanks for the info. AKL is our favorite resort, my son loves animals, and we love AK park, so we'd probably buy AKV regardless of what's happening at the Contemporary. That being said, I wouldn't be completely opposeed to buying at SSR if there was a discount/incentive and the price was right...but it would have to be a really good deal. I really don't want to wait much longer - like someone here said once before, the best time to buy was yesterday!

 

[White_Sox_Fan]

That's just a guess, but my thinking is they can't close on any sales until the units receive a certificate of substantial completion (or some similar term). Since this is a tower, they can't very well be constructing the upper floors while guests are staying in the lower floors, so I would think they'd open it all up at once. Or at least almost at once.

My guess is that would be sometime late in 2009, or maybe even early 2010. With even normal price increases, $120 pp is not that far-fetched for a year and a half or more from now.

At any rate, at least we know.

Also, one thing that seems to be forgotten in our discussion is that the tower seems to be 100% DVC. 281 units, when you figure there is going to be a considerable amount of common space (restaurants, registration, community areas, retail, etc), is about 20 villas per floor. That doesn't leave any room for anything but DVC villas.

And finally, I'm another one who would like "Magic Kingdom Tower" a lot more than Kingdom Tower. Since the Contemporary isn't so contemporary any more, maybe they should change the name of the whole thing to Magic Kingdom Resort, or Magic Kingdom Gateway Resort.

Actually they can receive a Certificate of Occupancy without a complete build-out. It happens all the time. As long as the life safety systems are in place (Sprinkler, Fire Alarm, Means of Egress, etc) throughout the building a CO can be issued. They could complete the corridors on every level while not actually complete each villa, or block out the elevator from going to floors that have not been completed.

It would be logistically impossible to complete every villa at the same time and why wait to occupy a completed villa when it may take another several months before the every villa is complete.

I agree 100% with the name. I also like your idea about rename the whole complex, like you said it's not so "contemporary" anymore. It's more Retro-contemporary. Just like the way the had to remodel Tomorrowland when it started to look more like yesterdayland.