Disney Vacation Club announces plans to transform part of Disney's Grand Floridan Resort into 200 resort studios

May 19, 2021 in "Disney's Grand Floridian Resort and Spa"

Gallery / 3 Photos
Big Pine Key - May 20 2021

Posted: Wednesday May 19, 2021 5:00pm ET by WDWMAGIC Staff

Disney Vacation Club has this afternoon announced plans to transform building 9 at Disney's Grand Floridan Resort, Big Pine Key, into 200 resort studios.

Big Pine Key - May 20 2021

Work is expected to begin in the spring of 2022 with an opening in the summer of 2022, and will join the Villas at Disney's Grand Floridan Resort as part of the Disney Vacation Club.

Big Pine Key - May 20 2021

Here is the full announcement news release.

Orlando, FL (May 19, 2021) – Today, Disney Vacation Club shared plans to reimagine one building of existing hotel rooms at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa into Disney Vacation Club Villas.

“This is great news for Disney Vacation Club and our Members,” said Terri Schultz, senior vice president, Disney Vacation Club. “It will provide us with new and diverse inventory at a resort that is cherished by our Members and their families.”

Located on the shores of Seven Seas Lagoon and on the monorail line to Magic Kingdom Park, the proposed project will transform Big Pine Key (building nine) at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa into approximately 200 Resort Studios, accommodating up to five Guests.

Featuring the Victorian elegance and charm of Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort, these new Villas will offer Members luxury accommodations and amenities, with some Villas boasting stunning views of Bay Lake and Magic Kingdom. Projected to open in summer 2022, these new Villas are an expansion of The Villas at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and will be a part of its current condominium association. Information regarding the start of sales and rental bookings will be released at a later date.

Since 2013, Members have reveled in the Victorian splendor of The Villas at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa, enjoying the comforts of home, impeccable service, amenities and fun-in-the-sun recreation available at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa. The Villas at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa currently has 100 Disney Vacation Club homes and offers a mix of accommodation styles, ranging from Deluxe Studios to three-bedroom Grand Villas.

Disney's Grand Floridan Resort overview

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Skibum1970Dec 26, 2022

Not that it comes into play but I saw a funny Allears video where Molly, Quincy, and Breedlove race from Epcot to Studios. Walking was the fastest, the boat came in second (due to all the stops), and the Skyliner was slowest by far and one reason was that line at CBR. This annoys me so much even at home. One, choose which temperature of bulb you want and be consistent. At WDW, soft/warm lighting (which is the coolest Kelvin, ironically) should be the only one utilized. Cool/daylight lighting looks either like a surgery or office space. I suppose that you could use that lighting in rides/areas that are supposed to be more sterile or something but soft/warm lighting is more pleasant. At least, to my eyes. Agree completely that this isn't a good look for a hotel that is charging $600+ per night (approaching $700 undiscounted for a standard room).

TouchdownDec 26, 2022

As long as you don’t have a line, I’ve waited 30+ min in CBR station. I’ve never missed the next train at TTC.

Chip ChippersonDec 26, 2022

That is true but to be fair, the transfer between Skyliner routes is easier than the Monorail transfer at the TTC that has you walking down a ramp so you can walk up another ramp to get to the other Monorail line. The Skyliner transfers at Caribbean Beach are all on a flat surface over a short distance, maybe 30 seconds to walk from one to the other for the average guest.

TouchdownDec 25, 2022

You need to transfer to get to DHS at Riveira if we are going to count the transfer to Epcot as not direct for GF.

CompedDec 25, 2022

Riviera is accessable to more parks via the skyliner directly, unlike GF with only the monorail direct - and to get to even Epcot you need a transfer. No question this would play into many discussions, specially for DVC members. While GF is a great resort, it's isolated to 3/4 of the resorts that aren't MK...

CastAStoneDec 25, 2022

Grand Floridian phase 2 has already opened and Riviera is outselling it pretty significantly. I know, I’m surprised too. But the numbers don’t lie.

SirwalterraleighDec 25, 2022

That was never a hard case…just don’t

SirwalterraleighDec 15, 2022

…what year is it?🤪

ToTBellHopDec 15, 2022

This building should have never been released for booking in this state. They need to protect the brand better.

JoeCamelDec 15, 2022

I hope so, between the cold LEDs and wiring it reeks of Motel 6 repairs

Disstevefan1Dec 15, 2022

This must be temporary for safety purposes.

DisoneDec 15, 2022

They might. They are aware and unsatisfied with the awful look of the stairs at big pine key. Pulling the workers now to address that would slow done the construction of the rooms rehab which is already behind. Building 6 and 7 were suppose to be down at the same time but due to potentially emergency regressed issues, it ended up that had to do them separately. This was not the plan. And it has slowed down the plan. I think you'll see them go back to the building nine stairs after all the other buildings get completed.

SpaceMountain77Dec 15, 2022

So, we were hoping that this was work in progress, but it seems to be complete. For whatever reason, the Big Pine Key stairwells will not match the recently renovated Boca Chica lodge and remaining lodges. The resort lodges will have updated wall sconces and under railing lighting. Moreover, no electrical wiring will be exposed. In contrast, Big Pine Key will reuse old lighting, which will be connected to overhead linear lighting, and wiring will be exposed. The south stairwell has the under railing lighting, but the north stairwell does not. The first photo is of the newly opened Boca Chica stairwell. The other three are of the entry, linear lighting, and wall sconce in the Big Pine Key. The last photo showcases the difference side by side. I guess it is sad that I care and the people overseeing the visual direction of the flagship resort do not.

AylaSep 26, 2022

I wonder if they removed the benches in order to move larger machinery around the resort on the pathways. Hopefully, they'll be replaced when the project is finished.