Yes the Disney IS being lost...

It was a really interesting article and I certainly agree that the rooms are starting to lose it's 'Disney' feel. I will give some serious props to DisneyLand at the Grand Californian, the recent renovations are amazing and I really wish WDW would follow suit with some of the ideas incorporated there.

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This is the kind of theme that works spectacularly with the new renovations; clean, vibrant, but still in touch with Disney and it's history. It goes back to DisneyLand being just an orange grove with Chip N' Dale playing in the tree and Bambi in the sleeper bed sleeping in some rooms. Granted, this is a Deluxe resort and so we expect to be totally immersed for the price we pay but I really feel like Disney could use this sort of creativity at the moderate and value resorts. The pictures even contain easter eggs in each room to the connection of DisneyLand and how everything happened.

I guess the other question is for those who don't want to be totally drenched in Disney theme, would this work for you? If you take the time to appreciate the small details and research the various easter eggs in the pictures then it's great for us Disney veterans. But for those who simply could care less how would you feel if the new rooms carried a design like this?
Very nicely done. And love the headboards too. The whole things definitely screams "Grand Californian theme" to me, IMHO.
 
I think there is a big difference between "Mickey everywhere" and immersive theming. I do think the Disney resorts have become more generic than they have been before. If you take someone and drop them into a Disney resort without them knowing it and they wake up they should know they are in a Disney resort. I suspect that isn't the case everywhere.

I think small Disney touches (Mickey or otherwise) along with an immersive theme in the room is what is needed. For example, when I stayed in the Casitas area of Coronado I had a nice room but it could have used some more of the bright colors and weathered woods that would be a standard part of colonial Mexican decor. It doesn't have to be tacky and overdone to be a bit more immersive.
 
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I think there is a big difference between "Mickey everywhere" and immersive theming. I do think the Disney resorts have become more generic then they have been before. If you take someone and drop them into a Disney resort without them knowing it and they wake up they should know they are in a Disney resort. I suspect that isn't the case everywhere.

I think small Disney touches (Mickey or otherwise) along with an immersive theme in the room is what is needed. For example, when I stayed in the Casitas area of Coronado I had a nice room but it could have used some more of the bright colors and weathered woods that would be a standard part of colonial Mexican decor. It doesn't have to be tacky and overdone to be a bit more immersive.
'Zactly! VERY well put, @GreatLakes !!! Sometimes wish I could cram words together as gooder as other peoples! :)
 
It was a really interesting article and I certainly agree that the rooms are starting to lose it's 'Disney' feel. I will give some serious props to DisneyLand at the Grand Californian, the recent renovations are amazing and I really wish WDW would follow suit with some of the ideas incorporated there.

dgcf019238129498fi.jpg


dgcf2231242333.jpg


This is the kind of theme that works spectacularly with the new renovations; clean, vibrant, but still in touch with Disney and it's history. It goes back to DisneyLand being just an orange grove with Chip N' Dale playing in the tree and Bambi in the sleeper bed sleeping in some rooms. Granted, this is a Deluxe resort and so we expect to be totally immersed for the price we pay but I really feel like Disney could use this sort of creativity at the moderate and value resorts. The pictures even contain easter eggs in each room to the connection of DisneyLand and how everything happened.

I guess the other question is for those who don't want to be totally drenched in Disney theme, would this work for you? If you take the time to appreciate the small details and research the various easter eggs in the pictures then it's great for us Disney veterans. But for those who simply could care less how would you feel if the new rooms carried a design like this?

These pictures look nice. I like the "Disney touch". One thing I don't think I like is the no carpets. I get why they have done this but it really reminds me of hospital rooms. I haven't been in a hotel for a long time so I asked a friend who has stayed in hotels if they had been to other hotels that did not have carpet and she hadn't. Is the no carpet thing only something being done at Disney hotels?
 


These pictures look nice. I like the "Disney touch". One thing I don't think I like is the no carpets. I get why they have done this but it really reminds me of hospital rooms. I haven't been in a hotel for a long time so I asked a friend who has stayed in hotels if they had been to other hotels that did not have carpet and she hadn't. Is the no carpet thing only something being done at Disney hotels?
I know I've seen quite a few other hotels (and even apartment complexes) going to, or being built, with the "no carpeting" scenario - for the very reasons you're alluding to. Makes sense, and call me weird, but makes me feel "yucky" at past practices, all at the same time. :)
 
We will continue to stay on property but part of that “bubble” for us has always been that complete Disney immersion and THAT includes the Resort rooms themselves. The very plain, generic decor takes me out of that very bubble.

I can see how the room effects the bubble. For me, once the TV in our room is on and 'whats her name' is telling me all the great new MUST do and see things at Disney.. the room is covered... I suppose if the TV were not on and the room is generic, the bubble could loose is effect.. i do agree that its all part of the illusion/package/appeal!
 


One thing I don't think I like is the no carpets. I get why they have done this but it really reminds me of hospital rooms. I haven't been in a hotel for a long time so I asked a friend who has stayed in hotels if they had been to other hotels that did not have carpet and she hadn't.
We just spent the weekend at a new "contemporary" hotel in Maryland. It had no carpeting. Only laminate flooring throughout. I actually like it in the bathroom because there was no cold ceramic tile to deal with. I did not like it in the rest of the room. I'll take carpet over that any day.

Of course, this hotel (an AC hotel by Marriott) had a number of other "contemporary" features that we didn't care for at all. Definitely not a place we would stay at again.
 
I do think that Disney is following a much broader trend in the hotel industry with their redesigns and more generic decor. They're going with the simpler, cleaner look that most other chains are doing as well. I'm not saying that's good or bad but there have even been studies showing that people sleep better and feel more well rested if the bedding is all white and the rooms are clean and uncluttered. So I can see why Disney might be keeping the bulk of the theming outside of the actual rooms. It's a big change, but it is happening at other places too, not just at Disney World.
 
Just got to chime in on the new room designs: I don't like it at all. It's just a personal reason. I Lived in the 60's and hated the cheap, particle board type ikea furniture then, and don't like it now. I admit I like carpeting better than laminate. It's supposed to be cleaner, but, another poster reported that the laminate floors were dirty during her visit. She said her white socks were brown from walking on the dirty laminate flooring. So, I guess laminate would be better IF they were scrubbed after each reservation, but don't really believe that will happen. I hope the laminate flooring holds up better than ours did. We had it removed and replaced with carpeting which I love so much better. To each his own:)
I would like some Disney immersive decorating in each resort. Why stay at a resort that looks like any generic hotel anywhere else? We are staying at Disney, and I want to see some Disney in the rooms, too. Nothing over the top, but some nice immersion in the theme.
 
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I do think that Disney is following a much broader trend in the hotel industry with their redesigns and more generic decor. They're going with the simpler, cleaner look that most other chains are doing as well. I'm not saying that's good or bad but there have even been studies showing that people sleep better and feel more well rested if the bedding is all white and the rooms are clean and uncluttered. So I can see why Disney might be keeping the bulk of the theming outside of the actual rooms. It's a big change, but it is happening at other places too, not just at Disney World.

I agree others are doing it to - which I think makes me even more against Disney doing it because if I am paying to stay onsite I want something that "isn't just like all other hotels" I want something unique that I can't get elsewhere
 
I agree others are doing it to - which I think makes me even more against Disney doing it because if I am paying to stay onsite I want something that "isn't just like all other hotels" I want something unique that I can't get elsewhere
I certainly wasn't disagreeing. I like the little Disney touches - Mickey soap, a Mickey Mouse phone, maybe a hidden Mickey pattern in the carpet. Or just carrying the resort's theme into the guestroom. All Star Sports having a sports theme on the shower curtain or bed runner. Polynesian having pineapple carvings on the headboards. Beach Club having artwork showing an oceanside scene. That sort of thing. It can be simple and tasteful and not over the top or even overtly Disney.
 
My aesthetic is clean and simple. That said, for Thanksgiving break we stayed at AoA (Nemo suites) and it was colorful and themed throughout the resort and rooms. While it wouldn't be my first choice for daily living, nothing says "vacation from reality" than Bruce the Shark in the bathroom. So I guess I'm all for a little more whimsy in rooms (not that Disney is asking me, of course!).
 
Trying to balance themes with modern hotel styles must be difficult for Disney.
When I was last visiting in 2016 I was really worried my room would be tacky at Coronado Springs. It wasn't, it needed a lick of paint and a new bathroom but that's all.

I think Disney would lose more customers to the rooms being overly themed than too modernised and lacking in theme.

Hopefully they get the balance right but they must be playing it safe.
 
Trying to balance themes with modern hotel styles must be difficult for Disney.
When I was last visiting in 2016 I was really worried my room would be tacky at Coronado Springs. It wasn't, it needed a lick of paint and a new bathroom but that's all.

I think Disney would lose more customers to the rooms being overly themed than too modernised and lacking in theme.
I think this is really the issue Disney is facing. Times have changed and what the traveling public is looking for has changed. Clean, bright, simple, sleek, and uncluttered is the norm in hotels today. Bedspreads are all but extinct. Carpet is fading. Bathtubs are less and less common (meaning shower curtains are going away too). Gaudy, colorful, patterned bedding, and more are harder and harder to find in hotels anywhere. Simple and understated is what people look for today.

If Disney keeps doing full out decor with characters and all, they risk looking as outdated as a kitchen with linoleum flooring, olive green appliances, and Formica countertops. The challenge is to subtly carry the theme into the room while keeping it clean and simple.
 
Of course but it plays into it. Disney resorts are incredibly expensive. If I am getting the same room I am getting down the street why should I pay more?

Nothing Disney offers on-site is beneficial to me. I just use a room, and open/close the parks.

Be our guest is a restaurant you can never get into because of it’s AMAZING themeing. That’s what I don’t understand sometimes instead of building Tianas they built the slippers canteen...people want to be apart of the movies, be immersed in Disney.

The Star Wars hotel I am dieing to stay there.
 
Nothing Disney offers on-site is beneficial to me. I just use a room, and open/close the parks.

Be our guest is a restaurant you can never get into because of it’s AMAZING themeing. That’s what I don’t understand sometimes instead of building Tianas they built the slippers canteen...people want to be apart of the movies, be immersed in Disney.

The Star Wars hotel I am dieing to stay there.
Slippers Canteen is an immersion of the Jungle Cruise theme. Some people love that.

As for hotels. I prefer onsite especially for magical express. I am not old enough to rent a car so I have to use a service to get from the airport to the hotel and Magical Express is free.
 

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