Disney blogger Al Lutz has posted the latest on rumors of an expansion to Disneyland's iconic Disneyland Hotel.
The Disneyland Hotel is currently in the midst of a dramatic refurbishment which encompasses all existing guest rooms in the three current towers and most public areas of the resort. Work on two of the three towers is nearly complete with the third scheduled to go under the knife soon.
In recent years, there has been a great deal of talk of a fourth tower being added to the resort--a tower which is likely to include some number of Disney Vacation Club villas. According to MiceAge.com's Al Lutz, that fourth tower is still very much on Disney's radar:
"...plans are now being shuffled through the approval process for a fourth tower, dubbed the Tomorrowland Tower, to be built in an expansion of the Disneyland Hotel in the middle of this decade. Once the entire hotel makeover is complete and all 1,000 rooms are back on line by the summer of 2012, TDA will be watching closely through early 2013 to see how the occupancy and spending patterns pan out at this refreshed property. If the upgraded hotel can meet projections in an uncertain economy, the Tomorrowland Tower will be green lit and begin construction on what is now a surface parking lot and an unused access road behind ESPN Zone that has been blocked off since just after 9/11."
Disney's recent track record of combining hotel rooms and Disney Vacation Club villas in new construction projects suggests a strong timeshare component should this fourth tower be approved.
Disney Vacation Club's presence at Walt's original resort complex is currently limited to 50 units at the Grand Californian Hotel & Spa. DVC sold the the last of the its available points at the Grand Californian villas in late 2010.
The sales focus in Disneyland recently shifted to Aulani given Hawai'i's status as a popular vacation destination among west coasters.
Source: MiceAge.com
