Disney’s Tree house Villas to Re-Open
On my last Walt Disney World trip I could see the Disney Tree house villas when I floated on the transportation boat from Old Key West to the Downtown Disney. It looked like a fun place to stay, but at that time it looked like it was something that was going to be lost to the Disney fans. The villas are closed since 2001 (after 09/11) and have only been used as private residences for Disney’s International and College Program Cast Members after that. Although Disney has been looking in re-opening the villas as from 2002, it could not be done without following some tight rules regarding the “Warren S. Henderson Wetlands Protection Act” legislation of 1984. The Villas are located on protected wetlands where any additional construction is prohibited.
Disney has now come up with a solution to open the villas again. Not only will there be no extra structure to be build on the grounds, the existing footprints of the villas will even be reduced from 340 square feet to 84 square feet. To do this the ground floors will be removed and the second floors will be enlarged so the villas will be able to welcome the same amount as guest as it used to be able to in the past.
And who would these guest by? With the villas officially located inside the boundaries of Saratoga Springs another Disney Vacation Club possibility location could be in the making.
Source: DVC News (Including pictures and the application request from Disney)
Disney Tree House History: Jim Hill
Picture: Walt Disney World A History in Postcards
February 13th, 2008 at 12:08 am
Is 84 feet a typo?
February 13th, 2008 at 9:44 pm
Hi John. If the rumor/news is correct the 84 square feet is the footprint (ground floor). The building on top (second floor) will be wider…
February 16th, 2008 at 8:55 pm
After years of wondering when the tree-houses would become part of the wider ‘Disney City’ again, it is good to hear that this may soon be in the offing. I’ve read other rumours that suggest that the revamped treehouse villas would be ‘green’…an interesting idea and one that has merit given the surrounding area.
Any thoughts on the possible ‘greening’?
April 23rd, 2008 at 3:47 am
My husband and I just returned from a single overnight at POFQ, and during an evening boat trip, I couldn’t help but ask the boat captain what we had just passed (they were all lit up — so much for the “green” thing!). He said that they were vacant, but were going to refurbished for guests to stay in — I would LOVE it!