| When Walt Disney was dreaming up ideas for the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, FL, his idea for hotels had become part of his plan for his “experimental prototype community.” These hotels would be places of rest and relaxation for guests to visit from all over the world.
Walt Disney World was a place that had the joys of space purchased by Disney himself, in this way he would not have a repeat of Disneyland that filled up with “cheap” resorts and “trashy” restaurants all around the property. So the WED team (pre-imagineers) decided to have five hotels ready for the opening day of the Magic Kingdom in 1971. The Asian, Venetia, Persian, Contemporary, and the Polynesian Village, These resorts would reflect the architectural ideas of the World Fair.
Prior to Walt’s death, he felt that it would be in the best interest of the company to contract a firm that specialized in hotel design. Walt commented that “real architects ought to build real buildings.” So he hired the Becket Firm an architectural group who specialized in hospitality design. Their goal was to create these hotels that the company dreamed up. Marvin Davis who worked for the Disney Company served as a liaison for the resort projects, he oversaw the designs so that the Becket Firm was working with Disney in mind.
The designs that finally became part of the Walt Disney World Resort property was the Contemporary (1971) and the Polynesian Village (1971). The other three resorts that were due to be created for WDW were put on the back burner and used in the creation of World Showcase at EPCOT.
The Contemporary and Polynesian Village resorts were deemed “monorail resorts” because of their access to the Walt Disney World Monorail system. In 2004, these resorts are considered deluxe accommodations because of their closeness to the Magic Kingdom and EPCOT via the monorail. Although, these resorts were not always considered “deluxe” in price, to give you an idea of cost a 1983 Birnbaum’s Tour Guide of WDW stated that it costs $95 a night to stay at Disney’s Contemporary and $95 (garden view) to stay at the Polynesian Village. "Now in the year 2004, it costs around $239 dollars a night to stay at Disney's Contemporary and around $300 dollars a night to stay at the Polynesian, wow!! Tmes have changed.
In the next upcoming weeks, I will be launching a series of articles pertaining to the Walt Disney World Monorail Resorts; in the first few weeks we will be taking an in-depth look at Disney’s Contemporary & Polynesian Resorts. I will then move onto the “Eisner Era” to talk about Disney’s Grand Floridian followed by a closing of the series with Disney’s Wilderness Lodge & Campground. Hope you enjoy!
Disclaimer: This article would have not been possible without the help from the Disney Book: Designing Disney’s Theme Parks “The Architecture of Reassurance” Edited By: Karl Ann Marling
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