What’s GREAT & Bad About Disney’s New Hotel Tower With Stunning Views of Magic Kingdom

Disney's newest hotel tower just opened at Walt Disney World with beautiful views of Magic Kingdom. The new Island Tower at Disney's Polynesian Resort is a Disney Vacation Club 10-story hotel featuring a variety of studio and villa rooms.

The resort is situated just across Seven Seas Lagoon from Magic Kingdom and right between Disney's Grand Floridian Resort and Disney's Polynesian Resort. The hotel tower brings with it a brand new pool area that features a Moana splash pad. There's also a new resort restaurant with great fireworks views.

We had a chance to stay at the resort before it opened for guests as part of a media preview. Much of the new property I really enjoyed, but there are a couple of negative aspects that I can't quite get over.

Best Parts of Island Tower at Disney's Polynesian Resort

We have been reporting on the construction of this new Disney Vacation Club tower for multiple years, carefully watching as the property comes to life. Now, it's exciting to get a much better look at the final product.

I've broken out my favorite aspects of the Island Tower into different themes. Then we'll get into the elements of the resort that don't quite work for me.

Guests can stay at this hotel as part by booking with their own points, renting Disney Vacation Club points (click here for details), or via a travel agent as a normal hotel with cash.

Views and Location

The best part of this new tower is the location and the stunning views that come with it. The tower is located on prime real estate and the rooms are set up to have direct Magic Kingdom views. This is the key selling point for prospective Disney Vacation Club members and anyone considering staying here. The view of Magic Kingdom is way better in person than the photo above can capture.

The lagoon side of the tower has stunning expansive views across Seven Seas Lagoon towards Magic Kingdom. You can sit back and watch the world go by. Watch the monorails circling, boats crossing the lake, and people entering Magic Kingdom in the far distance. The fireworks and Electrical Water Pageant are also perfect from here. There isn't really any obstruction out towards Magic Kingdom from any floor.

The placement of the resort hotel is perfect for those who want to take in the incredible views of the Magic Kingdom and enjoy easy access to the theme park. Transportation is available via the main Polynesian Resort though you can almost equally easily walk to Disney's Grand Floridian for transportation.

What About the Rooms on the Backside of the Building?

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Half of the rooms are located on the backside of the building looking out at a golf course, the monorail, and unfortunately some county construction right now. These rooms don't have the incredible view of the lagoon. I appreciate that a Disney Imagineer knew how important the views are for the resort so they created terrace gardens on the upper floors for all hotel guests.

There are four different garden terraces (two on the back and two on the front, though they probably could have just had them on the lagoon side) each themed to different areas of Polynesia. The Wave Break terrace has the best view of the fireworks. These are perfect for fireworks viewing or just sitting here and taking in the view. They reminded me of the great private spot for hotel guests to watch World of Color at Disneyland. The audio for the fireworks is also piped in here.

Those two facing the lagoon and Magic Kingdom Park are a perfect way for those hotel guests with rooms facing the other direction to come see the fireworks. To prevent non-hotel guests from accessing these spaces, room keys are required to access the upper floors of this hotel. Only Island Tower guests will be able to access upper floors.

Comfort of the Rooms

There are multiple different room types available here. We documented each of them in our tour of the resort. You can see our photos from the Duo Studio, Deluxe Studio, One Bedroom Villa, Two Bedroom Villa, and Penthouse. Click on each of those for a dedicated room tour. Even the smallest room feels bigger than other versions of that room across DVC as it has a large balcony with room for multiple chairs.

I love the island-styling of the rooms with subtle finishes. The shapes and patterns used inside the rooms are muted but different than a chain hotel. In recent hotel renovations, Disney has leaned into creating more minimalist design that reflects a hotel style used by nationwide chains. Our worry with this trend is that the hotels will lose the “Disney” feeling that makes them special. Though these rooms are minimalist, the finishes make them feel different and special. They have a kind of tropical, earthy, feeling. I love the bright Moana artwork featured inside the Murphy beds.

The rooms play up blues and sandy tan coloring. The artwork has nods to Moana and different Polynesian themes. The room quality is on par with the new Disney Vacation Club Villas at the Disneyland Hotel which did a wonderful job with their finishes. In the one bedroom and two bedroom suites, there are also laundry machines. So nice.

Workout Facility

The workout facility is beautiful with state-of-the-art equipment and a huge space. This would be a great place to end a day at the theme parks with a light workout or stretch.

This is probably now the best gym on property at Walt Disney World. The equipment is state of the art and the space is huge. The only downside is it's very visible from a central pathway for those who prefer not to work out in a fish tank.

Interior Tower Design

The same attention to detail inside the hotel rooms stretches into all of the interior public spaces. The lobby is a perfect mix of a modern hotel and classic Polynesian artwork. The different textures evoke the ocean and beautiful beaches.

All of the different designs and patterns come together very nicely in this space.

Lobby Details

The soaring pillars in the lobby are beautiful with their rich designs. I love the bright green hanging pieces, an art installation made from preserved moss, that bring in a feeling of life alongside the blue.

There's a large carpet in the lobby made completely of recycled plastics. The carpets in the room also use plastics and almost feel like silk.

Interior modular design works very well with different shapes and patterns pulled into the look and feel of the lobby.

Lobby Artwork Design

A large mural stretches up one far wall that is inspired by the iconic Mary Blair mural inside the Contemporary Resort lobby. This corner space feels the most completely themed around the ocean. This is one of many places in the tower where Polynesian stories and Disney stories meet.

It achieves the goal of using modern design to evoke the warm feelings of Polynesia.

New Hotel Restaurant

The new hotel restaurant has a more casual menu in an incredible location. We enjoyed a meal here and had the chance to sit in one of the booths that was surrounded by a pond that looks out over Seven Seas Lagoon. This restaurant will be popular immediately because it affords you a great fireworks view at a comparably low cost to other restaurants around the lagoon. This is really a glorified pool bar based on the menu prices and offerings.

There's only one restaurant in the new hotel. It will be popular. I am curious to see how the increase in guests impacts the already very popular lobby area of Disney's Polynesian Resort. That space, the Grand Ceremonial House, felt PACKED with people waiting for dining or looking through shops when we walked through it one evening.

New Hotel Restaurant Offerings

The offerings at the new restaurant range from a hamburger to a poke bowl to fish of the day. The smash burger was great as was the unique Sweet Potato Hummus appetizer. Everything is between $22-$32 each. We'll have a full restaurant review coming soon.

The bar here will be very popular with guests coming back from the parks and those enjoying a day at the pool.

Transportation to the Theme Parks

These last two items sit at the end of my best list because they are somewhat split between good elements and bad elements about the new resort. Guests have shared access to all of the transpiration options from Disney's Polynesian Resort.

I'm a little bit worried about how the increase in guests at Disney's Polynesian could impact the already crowded transportation options to Magic Kingdom and EPCOT. The lines for the boats to Magic Kingdom were long in the afternoon when we walked over here and the monorail continues to get more crowded. Disney's Polynesian Resort already has all of their existing hotel guests and the many people who come here for some of the best restaurants on the Monorail loop.

To get to Magic Kingdom you can walk, passing Disney's Grand Floridian, or head to Disney's Polynesian to take the Monorail or boat. Based on how this shakes out with the amount of guests, it may also make sense to utilize the Grand Floridian transportation.

New Pool Design

Thankfully they did add a new pool with the addition of this hotel tower. The pool area has a main pool, hot tub, and Moana splash pad. Visually the Moana splash pad is the most exciting addition as part of the pool.

The size of the pool area is also great and will be a welcome addition for both Island Tower and Polynesian Resort guests.

New Pool Missing Element

The thing missing here for the pool carries us into the bad section of the review.  The pool doesn't carry over any of the rockwork or lush garden theming from the current Polynesian Resort pool area next door.

This feels like a bit of a thematic miss especially because so many guests will have the direct comparison. This will be improved over time as the plants grow and begin to overflow from their planters the way that they do in the main pool. The area would also have really benefited from some rockwork to match the existing pool. More on this next.

The Bad Parts About Island Tower

The key worst part about the tower stems from the best part for those staying here. It's actually a little bit difficult to square these two opposing factors that are part of the same decision.

Views of the Tower From Elsewhere

The new Island Tower dominates the skyline when looking towards the Polynesian from any direction. The light tan coloring of the building is visible from Disney's Grand Floridian, driving up, and across the Seven Seas Lagoon at the Magic Kingdom. You really don't see the building from the rest of the Polynesian Resort besides the two low buildings closest to the tower.

The building stands out next to the original Polynesian Village resort buildings next door. The tower is a basic hotel structure that you could find anywhere in Hawaii. If they were looking to be inspired by the current landscape of tropical hotels throughout Hawaii then they accomplished their goal.

I am sure that the designers were given the edict to build a ten-story hotel with stunning Magic Kingdom views. They achieved that and delivered inside, but once they realized that it wasn't going to blend in they could have gone all in on making this a new iconic hotel design.

Design of the Tower Exterior

There was an opportunity for finishes to better match the existing hotel or some way to try and make this tower feel like they even attempted to have it blend in more. They could have brought in the same siding style of the Polynesian Resort buildings or painted the thing a darker color to have it all blend in.

To anyone who says it's a huge building how do you do that, I would point to the Aulani Disney Resort in Hawaii where they very successfully brought in cultural elements, beautiful murals, and hut-type structures to mask the fact that it's a high-rise. It's large and would also be huge on the skyline here, but it would be bold and exciting rather than bland. They somewhat attempted a creative finish with murals here, but it feels muted and half-baked.

The lack of theming on the exterior stands in direct opposition to Disney's Grand Floridian and the original Polynesian on either side.

Why Disney Says They're Ok With This

When the Polynesian Resort was originally being conceptualized there were designs for a tall tower right next to the final village-style design.

A Disney Imagineer shared with me that at that the visual point of the tower was meant to be a “mountain” next to the village-style resort. Almost like the Diamond Head mountain next to Waikiki on Oahu in Hawaii. That hotel tower was never built.

Concept Artwork Earlier Designs

Now, that concept artwork hangs on the second floor of this resort almost as a way of saying “see, this is something from the original Imagineers that Walt Disney wanted.” I'm not sure that we can make that assumption since the tower wasn't built during that time and was shelved, perhaps because people had the same concerns that I shared above. Even if it was something that they wanted to do, the multi-level “mountain” concept artwork looks far more interesting and bold when compared to what they built.

The positive of all of this talk about the exterior building designs is that for those staying here, they are basically not a factor in your day. You get to be inside the building and enjoy the beautiful views, incredible interior design, and great resort amenities. My frustrations with this design are more focused on the fact that Disney would let this space, part of the Disney Monorail resorts which are a crown jewel of the entire Walt Disney Company, get impacted by an unoriginal hotel tower design.

Ground Level Finishes at the Resort

The space between the backside of the hotel and the lagoon doesn't feel very tropical and likely will get better with time. Similarly to the pool area, this will benefit from overgrown plants. It would also have really benefited from the nighttime fire tiki torches that the Polynesian Resort has in their main public space next door. They really bring a feeling of excitement as the night comes to life at that hotel. The grass is also obviously turf leading down to the path which just doesn't quite feel right.

I'll also chalk this comment up to the fact that we were still pre-opening and more planters and seating may be coming to the outdoor space.

This resort tower uses 30% less electricity than a comparable resort development and the restaurant is the first all-electric restaurant at Walt Disney World. I wonder if that led to part of the decision to not include the tiki torches and to use turf. This issue will likely be resolved with a year of Florida weather.

Final Thoughts on Resort

All this is to say that the bad parts of this resort are really an impact on guests not staying here who are seeing the hotel from a distance much more than they are on guests who are staying at the new tower.

Even as you get closer to the resort, the tower becomes far less jarring. There's nothing ugly about the design and up close, the outdoor spaces leading out to Seven Seas Lagoon are quite pleasant. The only thing missing are fire tiki torches, which could have been cut due to the sustainability goals.

These interior hotel spaces are a new favorite for me. These are amazing Disney Vacation Club rooms that will immediately chart in our ranking of the best Disney World Vacation Club resorts.

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