Disney's Contemporary Resort refurbishment gets underway with massive scrim in the main tower

Apr 14, 2021 in "Disney's Contemporary Resort"

Contemporary Resort refurbishment - April 2021
Posted: Wednesday April 14, 2021 11:37am ET by WDWMAGIC Staff

A major refurbishment of Disney's Contemporary Resort at Walt Disney World is now underway with the installation of a massive constructions scrim in the main tower.

The constructions scrim covers the entirety of one side of the tower, from the top to bottom level.

The same can be found on the Chef Mickey's side.

Outside in the parking lot is a staging area, with trailers and material containers.


Disney expects all of the resort's amenities to remain open during the work, but room availability will obviously be limited.

No official announcement has been made about the changes to the rooms, but we expect to see a major renovation of the guest rooms, with a complete interior replacement. It is also expected that some of the rooms will take design cues from the Incredibles movie characters, in a similar way to how Moana has been introduced into Disney's Polynesian Village Resort.

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UNCgolfMar 21, 2022

I was wondering if they were trying to go for a mid-century modern feel, but if so, they didn't really succeed. They'd have been better off with a desk that looked something like this: Regardless, in the grand scheme of things, it's incredibly minor and the overhaul was still well done, especially compared to other places at WDW.

SkywiseMar 21, 2022

I'm kind of torn on the desks. I think they're going for a late 60s aesthetic where everything was curves and rounded but the new desks don't really match that retro-style so it's kind of a fail for me there. OTOH they're kinda cool looking but I think the original desk (before the retheme) would've worked just fine in the new decor. Also love "that other site that shall not be named" thought that the rounded corners were done for 'safety reasons' :facepalm:

UNCgolfMar 21, 2022

I just mean the overall shape, not the quality of the materials. I think the rounded desks look bizarre -- they should have upgraded the desks but kept the rectangular shape.

ToTBellHopMar 21, 2022

They looked awful up close. Very IKEA.

UNCgolfMar 21, 2022

In general they did a good job with the Contemporary lobby (especially compared to what they did to the rooms and what they've done to other resorts overall), but I think the rectangle desks looked a lot better than these rounded ones.

Disney4familyMar 21, 2022

The new desk design reminds me of this. And what happened to the iconic scent in the lobby??? Did the new, cheap, uncomfortable, plastic furniture on the other side of the lobby take over the scent? They really destroyed this hotel, from the operation room style, bright lights that make the main area now glow orange (from the horrible new carpet) to this. I always thought "deluxe" meant luxurious, elegant or high quality, not plastic, cheap and tacky.

castlecake2.0Mar 21, 2022

The lobby has received a few updates this week, assuming they either ran out of time or materials last year. The cheap looking vinyl-ish “hardwood” at the check in desks and Steakhouse71 entrance has been replaced with actual hardwood. The desks have also been replaced with a new more stylish looking desks with a bit more flaire to them. The other site has pics ;)

zappleOct 12, 2021

The Wave was a 1 credit. The prices are lower than I was expecting, they’re about what they were before.

JoeCamelOct 12, 2021

The menu pricing suggests it is aimed at conventioneers with an expense account. Not absurd to make HR question but at the upper end for hotel meals at a convention. Not aimed at the premium deluxe monorail resort patrons at all. DDP is 2 meals here?

TrojanUSCOct 12, 2021

Looks like a (much) nicer version of the Mousketeeria employee dining room.

NickWildeOct 12, 2021

TBH the Wave always felt like eating in someone's dank basement to me, so I think this is a bit of an improvement. Does it match up to standards for a premium restaurant? No, not really. But it's certainly an improvement over its predecessor.

Disney4familyOct 12, 2021

That's what I said when I first saw it! It looks just like a corporate cafeteria.

Disney4familyOct 12, 2021

Mark48Oct 12, 2021

I can say with certainty the Check in level and Steakhouse 71 are Home runs . Well done. But to jump the shark with the rooms.......Atrocious .