Walt Disney World has revealed new details for the restaurant, Moana pool area, and fireworks viewing decks coming to the Island Tower at Disney’s Polynesian Villas & Bungalows. This shares full details, fresh concept art and our take on the upcoming addition to the Poly.
According to Walt Disney World, the new 10-story Island Tower’s architecture will pull inspiration from early concept art of the iconic property by Walt Disney Imagineering, also according to Disney. This expansion will unlock a new experience at the resort, beginning with an exquisite ceiling art installation in the tower’s lobby inspired by the South Pacific Islands and showcasing a variety of native wildlife. Each animal holds a strong connection to the islands and symbolizes values important to the people of the region.
The waterfront Island Tower will feature the charm of the South Pacific islands, thrill of exploration, and the beauty of the natural world. The Island Tower at Disney’s Polynesian Villas & Bungalows will offer a variety of guest room types that will sleep from two to nine guests, such as duo studios, spacious one and two-bedroom villas, and brand-new two-bedroom penthouse villas. The tower will also include deluxe studio rooms, adding to the deluxe studio rooms already available at the Poly Villas.
The Island Tower at Disney’s Polynesian Villas & Bungalows is projected to open on December 17, 2024, which is 5 years after Disney’s Riviera Resort opened on December 16, 2019. The new Poly tower will offer villas brimming with original artwork inspired by the Polynesian Islands, wayfinding and the natural elements: earth, water, wind and sky. Each guest room will also feature custom artwork inspired by Walt Disney Animation Studios film, “Moana.”
Other art will exist in the lobby, from sculptures crafted from recycled fishing nets to chandeliers built of living moss plants. Walt Disney Imagineering has partnered with various artists to create art influenced by the heritage of Polynesia and the spirit of conservation, along with Disney references.
Now, Walt Disney World has pulled back the curtain on resort restaurants, amenities, and other features at the Island Tower…
Get ready to indulge in the delicious flavors of Polynesia at the Wailulu Bar & Grill. “Wailulu” gets its name from the Hawaiian words “wai,” which means water, and “lulu” which means calm, which is very fitting as this unique restaurant will boast breathtaking views of the Seven Seas Lagoon.
Wailulu Bar & Grill will feature spacious indoor and outdoor seating areas and a spectacular bar space with views of Cinderella’s Castle at Magic Kingdom. This casual walk-up pool bar will feature an all-day menu for lunch and dinner that is influenced by the Polynesian Islands’ local and indigenous ingredients. Specialty coffee and on-the-go morning pastries will be available for breakfast.
The dining room will be adorned with dazzling Polynesian-inspired artwork, created exclusively for the space, including floating tropical fish sculptures crafted from recycled materials and reclaimed fishing nets. The fish will be “swimming” throughout the space, leading to a grand textile piece featured in the bar area, representing a colorful coral reef.
The center of the dining room will showcase an abstract Polynesian Stick Chart, an ancient navigation tool used to traverse the seas. A vibrant centerpiece composed of beautiful shades of blue, teal and green faux stained-glass will create an ambiance to dive in and explore the mouthwatering menu!
In other art, everyone’s favorite wayfinding princess, Moana, will be featured in a painting on display in Wailulu Bar & Grill.
Wailulu Bar & Grill looks nice! One of the biggest complaints about the lobby and other common areas of the Island Tower that have been showcased to date is that they’re too bland and beige–very one-note as contrasted with the colorful Polynesian Village Resort.
This looks like a much healthier mix of natural woods and materials, a calming earthy appearance…and colors! I love the fish above, and what appears to be a backlit stained glass panel along the wall. Between that and the open-air views of Magic Kingdom, this space looks like a winner.
The big question for me concerns capacity. Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort really, really needs more restaurants already. This delivers that, but is it sufficient for a tower of this size? Gran Destino Tower and Riviera Resort both added a lot more than this. While those aren’t exactly apples to apples comparisons, Coronado Springs is pretty close. It already had a lot of restaurants (especially for a Moderate Resort) and added several more with the tower.
This is one of my overarching concerns about the Island Tower in general. Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort is already very popular–perhaps Walt Disney World’s top “destination” resort (if not, #2 behind Grand Floridian). The infrastructure buckles when it’s busy, and the new Island Tower will exacerbate that.
So either the Poly is going on lockdown, or it’s going to have more problems during peak seasons. Honestly, I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if the Island Tower–including Wailulu Bar & Grill–is not accessible to guests who aren’t staying at the Polynesian. Obviously, there’s no stopping people from walking around outside, but I could see keycard access being required to enter the building.
The Island Tower will also include a new fitness center and pool area. Offering both aquatic fun and a relaxing escape, the new Cove Pool has a courtyard with a sandy beach area, whirlpool spa and magnificent views of Seven Seas Lagoon.
Little ones can embrace their inner wayfinder at Moana’s Voyage, a whimsical new splash area that will feature life-size sculptures of Moana and her iconic canoe from the Walt Disney Animation Studios film.
Both Disney Vacation Club members and guests staying at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort will be able to experience these new aquatic features. In addition, you can keep cool in the Lava Pool, featuring a towering volcano, waterfall and 142-foot-long waterslide, at the existing Polynesian Village Resort. Or visit the Oasis Pool—a refreshing leisure pool set in a lush garden. You can also play volleyball, take a guided fishing excursion or rent a motorboat and explore Seven Seas Lagoon.
Finally, Disney Vacation Club Members and guests staying at the Island Tower addition will enjoy exclusive access to four tropical terrace gardens.
Each terrace garden will feature vibrant artwork, lush foliage and uniquely themed seating areas. The distinctively designed hideaways will offer families a serene locale to gather and take in the views during their stay.
These oases will offer picturesque views of Disney’s Oak Trail and Magnolia Golf Courses–but more importantly, Seven Seas Lagoon, making the terrace gardens a spectacular place for viewing Magic Kingdom fireworks.
Okay, I absolutely love these garden terraces. For whatever reason, I figured these large spaces (that are plainly visible in the above concept art) would be incorporated into the Grand Villas or one of the top-tier room types. This is way better than that, and I cannot wait to head here late at night or early in the morning and enjoy a cup of coffee and watch Magic Kingdom wake up or go to sleep, as the case may be.
Unless there’s a rooftop deck, I’m guessing these terraces will be an absolute cluster for fireworks viewing, so I won’t even bother with that. Nevertheless, I’m very pleased that Walt Disney World thought ahead with more fireworks viewing areas at the Island Tower–and I hope even more have yet to be revealed.
One of the biggest existing ‘infrastructure’ problems at the Poly is fireworks viewing. It’s clear that guests at the hotel side of the Poly won’t have access to these terrace gardens–a good thing, since space will be limited–but hopefully they do have access to common areas along the waterfront (presumably, they will). If the Island Tower can be a net-addition in terms of fireworks viewing capacity, that would be absolutely huge.
Regardless of whether the Island Tower as a whole is locked down, these garden terraces definitely will be. For one thing, Walt Disney World indicates guests of the Island Tower will have “exclusive access” to them. That’s a smart move and makes these a huge guest perk of the Island Tower.
Ultimately, I’m still not a fan of the Island Tower, but the terrace gardens, Wailulu Bar & Grill, and Moana pool area aren’t part of my criticism or skepticism. I have no strong opinion on the splash pad (hence no commentary above), but really like what we’ve seen of the terrace gardens and Wailulu Bar & Grill so far.
As for the exterior and everything else, I really don’t want to beat a dead horse since I’ve already yammered on about the building’s exterior at length in the commentary to our main post about the Poly Tower…and it’s really not relevant here, anyway, since this is a post offering a first look inside. My guess is that, like Gran Destino Tower before it, most of the criticism about the Island Tower will revolve around viewing it from the outside.
Once you enter the Island Tower and can no longer see how it looks on the outside–and negatively impacts the Seven Seas Lagoon skyline–it’ll likely be a winner. At least, that’s my big hope. There’s no undoing the damage already caused by adding this tower to the monorail loop…so it at least had better be “worth it” in terms of the rooms, restaurants, and other amenities it adds. I really hope we get to a point soon where Walt Disney World additions aren’t evaluated from a “lemonade out of lemons” perspective.
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YOUR THOUGHTS
What do you think of the terrace gardens, Wailulu Bar & Grill, and Moana pool area? Have you already booked a stay at the Island Tower? Are you optimistic or pessimistic about the Island Tower being added to Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort? Do you agree or disagree with our assessment? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
