"Kingdom Tower" to begin selling timeshares next to Contemporary

[GrumpyFan]

Not that this is really news to any of us, but OS appears to be claiming they've discovered it.

From Orlando Sentinel.com

SENTINEL EXCLUSIVE

Walt Disney Co. to sell time shares in 15-story tower next to Contemporary Resort
High-rise will ultimately contain 281 units, but there's no rush to sell.

Jason Garcia
Sentinel Staff Writer
February 26, 2008

The Walt Disney Co. has won approval to begin selling time shares in a 15-story tower the company is erecting next to its famed Contemporary Resort, a $110 million addition that Disney has named "The Kingdom Tower."

Disney has for months refused to divulge its plans for the hard-to-miss, half-built tower that is rising just outside the gates of the Magic Kingdom -- despite rampant speculation among Disney fans that it is destined for time shares.

A spokeswoman for the company's time-share division, Disney Vacation Club, would not discuss the project in detail again Monday.

"We don't have anything to announce today," spokeswoman Diane Hancock said.
But 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.

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.

Disney appears in no rush. The company says in the documents it doesn't expect to finish the Kingdom Tower until the fall of 2009.

Analysts say the company can afford to be patient. The Kingdom Tower, they say, is likely to prove a huge seller, given that it will be the closest time shares Disney has built to the Magic Kingdom -- the busiest theme park in the world -- and the first built directly alongside Disney's monorail.
"I'd have to imagine that's going to be an extremely popular product," said Jeremy Glaser, a lodging-industry analyst with Morningstar.

Some analysts think Disney is withholding a formal Contemporary announcement because it does not want to undermine time-share sales at Disney's Animal Kingdom Villas or Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa, both of which are still selling units. The company's four other time-share resorts at Walt Disney World -- as well as one each in Vero Beach and Hilton Head, S.C. -- are sold out.

Glaser, however, said Disney's silence "could just be some trademark Disney secrecy."

Disney's filings with the state also offer more detail about the Kingdom Tower's amenities.

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.

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.

In a further step toward cementing the new tower's status as a time-share resort, Disney has created a new condominium association that would manage the resort once units are sold off to individual owners. State records show that the "Kingdom Tower at Disney's Contemporary Resort Condominium Association" was formally incorporated Jan. 9.

The Kingdom Tower continues a wave of construction for Disney's fast-growing Vacation Club. The company is in the midst of building its first time shares at Disneyland in Anaheim, Calif., and has announced plans to build an 800-room resort in Hawaii in which at least half of the units will be time shares.

Disney also recently obtained approval to rebuild its little-known Treehouse Villas, a 60-unit community in a heavily forested area of Disney World. The move has prompted speculation that those units, too, could be converted to time shares.
The widespread building boom comes even as the U.S. economy teeters on the brink of a possible recession.

But Tammie Kaufman, a professor at the University of Central Florida who teaches courses on time shares, said time shares could remain popular even during an economic slump because consumers will want to stretch their vacation money further. "People are looking for a bargain," Kaufman said.

Scott Powers of the Sentinel staff contributed to this report.

[Jenemmy]

OOOOOoooooooo time to start saving my pennies!! Can we start a discussion on how to talk a husband into this

Thanks for posting!!

[kdsjjb]

Jenemmy, talk to my wife. She has me nearly convinced.

This won't push me over though, we stayed there once but I dont really care for the Contemporary.

I think if the TreeHouse Villas open as a DVC THAT might swing me.

[diz_girl]

Although a DVC at the CR is exciting news, I'll miss the lone tower rising up along the shores of Bay Lake. The one tower made it special, and having two towers makes it less special. Having a DVC at either the Poly or the GF would be great. Another longhouse at the Poly or another building at the GF should easily blend in with the existing resort.

At least this article provided more information than what I knew already, if this is accurate. I didn't know the # of stories or units, or the fact that it will connect to the CR tower via a pedestrian bridge (hopefully covered) on the fifth floor.

If I were to buy anywhere, it probably would be at VWL, unless they do expand to the Poly or GF.

[Ian]

I'm glad we have time to plan ahead for this, because we're DEFINITELY buying!

[mjstaceyuofm]

I wonder just HOW fast it will sell out. It seems that there is a huge amount of pent-up demand for owing DVC here. Maybe the number of points you have to use here to stay for a week at a 1-BR unit will be so ridiculously high that it will scare off prospective buyers.

Something tells me... NOT!!!

[GrumpyFan]

I have to wonder if they'll build another tower on the North side. It would seem to be the next logical move. However, I wonder whether the ground will support it. The drawback to this will be the view starting to look like the shoreline at a major beach, not real attractive, IMO.

Also, does anybody know what this will bring the count up to for DVC rooms on-property?

[diz_girl]

Also, does anybody know what this will bring the count up to for DVC rooms on-property?

It brings the number of rooms up to 2800-2900 rooms. I went on both Intercot (first choice) and then WDWINFO (I Googled) if I couldn't find the information on Intercot. These are the number of units when completed. Here's what I get:

AKV - 458
BCV - 282
BWV - 517 (per Intercot) & 383 (per WDWINFO)
OKW - 709
SSR - 484
VWL - 181
Night Kingdom - 281
Total - 2912 (if use Intercot BWV#) or 2778 (if use WDWINFO BWV#)

Please correct me if I'm wrong.

[Ian]

Even though I'm looking forward to buying in, I will say that I'm disappointed at how altered the skyline is going to be by this new building.

I sincerely hope it still blends seamlessly in with the view out from Tomorrowland as that was so expertly crafted by the original Imagineers.

When you look out from Tomorrowland and just see the Contemporary sitting there, perfectly framed, you realize just how genius the designers of WDW were. I'm concerned that the new tower is going to blow that all out of the water.

[GrumpyFan]

Night Kingdom - 281

I'm familiar with the Night Kingdom "rumour", but where did this come from? Iwasn't aware of any new rooms being built for this "supposed" attraction.

[WRWDisney]

I posted some points required information over on the DVC board: here.

Personally, I always expected the Contemporary to cost more points per night (always hated when people speculated on the cost of the points; those will be the same--except in the resale market--for every DVC property; the differentiation is the points per night). I don't think the mark-up looks to out of line.

[diz_girl]

I'm familiar with the Night Kingdom "rumour", but where did this come from? Iwasn't aware of any new rooms being built for this "supposed" attraction.

Sorry, I meant Kingdom Tower. If they do have the Kingdom Tower and the rumored Night Kingdom, then there's just going to be too many kingdoms. Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, Animal Kingdom Lodge, Kingdom Tower, Night Kingdom. I'm already confused and some of this stuff doesn't even exist yet. I'm getting a headache now -time to take an Advil.

[shadowden]

I'm glad we have time to plan ahead for this, because we're DEFINITELY buying!

Us too!

[Tinkermom]

We plan to add on at the Contemporary also!

I wonder if DVC will open this up to current DVC owners first. If that happens I wonder how much inventory will be left for non-owners to purchase. We have been hoping for a long time to get a DVC property on the monorail as I am sure many of us DVC owners have. I think there will be LOTS of current DVC owners adding on at the Contemporary!

[DISNEYFIX]

Amen, betweeen 150-200pts. here.