Disney’s worst kept secret will be called the Kingdom Tower
Disney’s best kept secret has also been the holder of Disney’s worst kept secret. After months of rumors and poorly guarded secrets, it seems Disney has finally let the cat out of the bag about the new Vacation Club resort at the Contemporary…well not exactly.
According to Scott Powers in this morning’s Orlando Sentinel, Disney has been cleared to sell timeshare interests in the new $110 million tower currently going up next to the Contemporary. It is set to be called the “Kingdom Tower” and construction will not be completed until the fall of 2009.
…in new filings with the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Disney formally states that the Disney Vacation Club will “add a ninth component site to be known as Kingdom Tower at Disney’s Contemporary Resort.”
Disney says in the documents that it will sell the time shares in phases, beginning with an initial 75 units. The Kingdom Tower, which will connect to the existing Contemporary via a fifth-floor pedestrian bridge, will ultimately contain 281 units, according to the filings.
The article also offers a peek into some of the specifics and details that will be part of the Kingdom Tower…
A new swimming pool, for instance, will be large enough for 180 people; go as deep as 4 feet, 11 inches; and feature two hot tubs and a 104-foot-long water slide. There will be two tennis courts, two shuffleboard courts and two boccie ball courts. A barbecue pavilion will have about 490 square feet of covered area and a pair of picnic tables.
I think we all expected this to be a big project with many amenities for those staying there. It is, after all, the first DVC resort on the monorail line and because of that it will instantly become the most popular resort among the club’s offerings. But as we also could have guessed, club members will be paying a premium as a result…
Glaser predicted that Disney will choose to market the Contemporary time shares “as more of an upscale product.” An early point-chart submitted by Disney to the state — Disney Vacation Club owners buy points from the company, which they then redeem for rooms, though they must buy through a “home resort” — shows guests will have to spend more points to rent one- and two-bedroom units at the Kingdom Tower than any of Disney’s other existing time shares.
The question is, how much more will it cost? Will the high point rate keep current DVC members from buying add-ons or discourage them from clamoring to book a vacation at the Kingdom Tower? As a member myself, the point cost is going to make a huge difference for me. The other resorts are terrific and the value of them may look even greater if this new resort runs sky high.