Disney Sells Land at Disney World to Four Seasons

[lockedoutlogic]

Your apology is accepted....but not really necessary since i don't go to WDW for religious reasons but recreational ones. ( I’m actually a good old ford ranger drivin’ Southern boy who does his “churching” on Sundays with the Baptists )

By the way, I wasn't overtly trying to be creative by the way I quoted ...just trying to concisely assemble the particular lines that were a bit unseemly (IMO)….if it appeared to you that I did not capture the gist of your post and was trying to mischaracterize your position then I do humbly beg your pardon. I simply figured that given the fact that my reply followed yours so closely that a complete listing of your post would be a bit redundant. I suppose I could have (and perhaps should have) done multi-quotes and responded point per point, but that seemed to border on overkill and would have required more time than my level of disagreement with it warranted.

A mild booing was plenty. Happy trails

we're not on the same frequency.....but we're in the general bandwith

bravo! nicely played.

(it seems a nice gentleman/woman from ohio has taken me too literally )

[big blue and hairy]

One thing I'm wondering. Was there any mention of Disney de-annexing the land? If not, and it is still park of the RCDA, then Disney does retain some control over how it is used. Also, there may well be contractual restrictions on what Four Seasons can and can not do.

[ayeckley]

(it seems a nice gentleman/woman from ohio has taken me too literally )

Oh yeah? How can you possibly know that? Do you have any *proof* that I'm nice?

Sorry - the sarcasm was a little too subtle for me to pick up the first time around, but I see it now...

[EpcotChic23]

I have mixed feelings on this but the only thing I can say about it is this is... I stayed in a Four Seasons on Maui for my honeymoon and their customer service was as high as WDW is. They really know how to treat their guest like gold. So I think they will continue some aspects of a Disney Hotel. I guess if they were going to do this with any hotel chain I am very glad it was the Four Seasons.

[ibrowse17]

If Disney needs this to tap into the luxury crowd, are they saying the GF and other delux resorts are not so delux?? Does that mean they are now some sort of super moderate?? Does that mean it will bring their prices down?? Somehow, I think not

[Vito]

If Disney needs this to tap into the luxury crowd, are they saying the GF and other delux resorts are not so delux?? Does that mean they are now some sort of super moderate?? Does that mean it will bring their prices down?? Somehow, I think not

That's not really the point. For 95% (or more?) of all Disney guests, the Deluxe resorts are definitely Deluxe. No question about it. But Four Seasons will likely be in a class all its own.

Look at it this way, for most people, a Lexus, Cadillac, Lotus, etc are luxury cars. Nobody would deny that they are a luxury that most Americans can't afford. But then, in a class all their own are cars like a Ferrari Enzo, Porche Carrera GT, or a Bugatti Veyron. Those cars sell for over $500,000.

So there's luxury, and then there's extravagant luxury. While Grand Floridian is deluxe by most standards, there's always something that's more extravagant.

When you see the prices at the Four Seasons, you'll understand what I mean.

[ibrowse17]

Right... I'll just keep driving my Suburban then, thank you very much

[Vito]

Right... I'll just keep driving my Suburban then, thank you very much

Exactly

[lockedoutlogic]

If Disney needs this to tap into the luxury crowd, are they saying the GF and other delux resorts are not so delux?? Does that mean they are now some sort of super moderate?? Does that mean it will bring their prices down?? Somehow, I think not

I would say that this is the closest estimate to what a disney "deluxe" is that i have ever seen....

they really are "supermoderates".....the difference in amenities is negligible......a restaurant.....a marina with overpriced rentals....15 sf or room space.....and usually a "better" location in relation to theme parks.....maybe a 25 foot waterslide instead of an 8 foot one....two hottubs instead of one

I love the deluxes because you do get "the most" -but they are far from white glove.....they lag behind four seasons, ritz carlton, many westins, biltmore, st. regis, and a boatload of other non-chain luxury hotels (there are probably 10 hotels in florida with better service across the board...the Breakers comes immediately to mind).....

as far as the price goes....look for them to go up...not down....

by and large....they are selling a piece of sentimentality to the customer....and that comes with a healthy pricetag

The disney resorts are marketed to all those who want to - deep down -stay in "Mickey's hotel".

There are plenty who will pay more than they do now to get that. No shortage of customers.

[Ian]

I would say that this is the closest estimate to what a disney "deluxe" is that i have ever seen....

they really are "supermoderates".....the difference in amenities is negligible......a restaurant.....a marina with overpriced rentals....15 sf or room space.....and usually a "better" location in relation to theme parks.....maybe a 25 foot waterslide instead of an 8 foot one....two hottubs instead of one

Right ... this was basically my premise, too. In fact, when you get right down to it, it's kind of surprising that anyone really pays the rates for the deluxes when you compare what you get for your money to the moderates.

I mean I think the theming may be a little more elaborate (to a degree) in the deluxes and certain being on the monorail line is a bit of a perk (although not what it once was, with a significant portion of the resort not serviced by the monorail) ... but you can get a room in a moderate, almost at will, for $150 a night.

Most of the deluxes will set you back twice that much on a good day.

But, in the spirit of my absolute belief in the efficiencies of a free market, people must see some perceived benefit in them over the other Disney resorts, because the deluxes are almost always sold out.

My guess is that a large part of it is a status thing ...