Disney's Spirit of Aloha Dinner Show will not reopen and is permanently closed according to reports

correcaminosMar 23, 2022

I admit after our last time eating there we wouldn't have gone back anyway. That was in 2015. There are other options we dind better in terms of food and entertainment. I get some loved it and respect that. Depends on how big the unit is. I’ve seen as many as 200 rooms and as few as 80 reported. I was just in Moorea last week. The ducks were there. Once we got past Fiji and Aotearoa no ducks. But I haven’t seen any ducks on the path to the old Luau as far as my brain can remember. The grounds of the last build remain the same more or less in spite of storms and such. You can do as you wish and be upset as you are, but I do think your wildlife concern is highly unfounded. We lost track of the animals we saw. My 14yo hasn't outgrown hunting for wildlife yet. But I do admit we prefer places like Polynesian to RR or BLT due to the lack of greenery in the area.

TikibirdLandMar 23, 2022

Oh yeah, I was talking #of DVC units vs hotel units. This tower should push the number in DVC's favor. Our room was near the lake, near the walkway. Maybe the ducks can't come there anymore due to the fencing. Last time we stayed there, my kids were too old to look for wildlife. But, my wife and I enjoyed the quiet stroll around the grounds. It's their property to do as they will. It's my vacation dollars to do as I like. We struck the Poly off our list.

jasminethecatMar 23, 2022

Thanks for jumping in on this, and this is what I was trying to say - that some people will appreciate this change from Spirit of Aloha to a new DVC option. It's not a purely negative thing. I get that some people will miss the dining option, that some people may have really loved the luau, but at least this is more than a simple reduction. I also get why some people hate the money driven direction disney has taken recently, especially when they make short-sighted decisions which are unsustainable. Unfortunately that conversation went off the rails yesterday, but I took my meds today so we'll see what happens.

correcaminosMar 23, 2022

To each their own for sure. I just made that walk last week after hearing about the new tower and I actually smiled knowing there will be more to Polynesian. As a long time lover I know it has always changed and always grown. It was never stagnant. Not sure I understand your comment about majority DVC. You mean number of rooms? That, I'd have to calculate, but DVC has been there at all for a while mostly because the deluxe rooms simply do not book. Let us DVC people be happy about having 1 bedrooms finally at PVB. Also the ducks have never been near Luau cove in my last dozens of walks. Only by the rooms where people are. I think they'll be fine though likely already too reliant on humans for food and interaction which tbh isn't good. I enjoy seeing them but we never interact with them. I assure you also the little anoles or lizards will be around too. People don't seem to scare them off.

TikibirdLandMar 23, 2022

Not harping on the ducks. I'm harping on D tearing at the heart of the Poly. We can't have an area that's a peaceful walk without monetization? The Monorail resorts will be majority DVC. I don't see that as a good thing. Glad you're going to enjoy it.

correcaminosMar 23, 2022

Yes. Us coming and going out of Moorea with lots of ferry horns didn’t scare them off last week. Not sure why you keep harping on the ducks. With all the music an MK and TTC noise it's not that tranquil. This building is off away from the GCH. You’ll be able to ignore it mostly if you want. I'm personally thrilled by this announcement. It should've been done in 2015.

larryzMar 23, 2022

Looks like what TWDC called this place back in the '70's is finally coming true. Everybody's getting a resort complex.

montyz81Mar 22, 2022

But yet, they are also taking away experiences that people want. Soon we will stay on property and all transportation will connect to Universal because nothing is left in the parks (Epcot, I'm looking at you). BTW, the benefits are primarily in Disney's favor, if not wholly.

jasminethecatMar 22, 2022

I already stated the benefits of having more DVC in an established monorail resort. The drawbacks to being lakeside was the location and transportation, along with not being on the monorail. Disney is trying to save $$$ and give people what they want, and that's more resorts on the monorail and skyliner. Not tucked behind a campground. Was there something written about a separate entrance ever?

jasminethecatMar 22, 2022

I am sorry because I spoke in hyperbole in the same way that I previously accused @Thelazer of in that one phrase. It made the sentence more inflammatory than it should have been, so I do apologize for that choice of phrasing. I do try to be careful in my phrasing and I should have done better. That said, do you actually see what I just did there? I read what you said, then re-read what I had written and I acknowledged a mistake you pointed out. Was I not directly acknowledging the viewpoints of @Thelazer in my earlier posts? I believe that I was, and I offered counter-arguments as well as examples backing up what I had said. Later on @Thelazer made multiple baseless assumptions based on my writing, each more incorrect than the last. I am not sure why you're not upset at that - if you read what I said and their replies, clearly they didn't even try to understand what I was saying. You did try to understand what I wrote to you, even if you're still convinced in only one possible outcome (that all ducks will leave the polynesian and the entire area will become unsightly). I am not sure why you settled on this one outcome, if your family enjoyed the rest of the polynesian resort why would you think Disney would suddenly make a new area not in keeping with the rest of the resort? There is no evidence to support any conclusion other than changes will be coming and construction will likely force ducks to at least temporarily move to another area. I invite you to consider two possibilities: If the ducks were coming into the area only because it was unsettled, then your interactions with them were upsetting to the ducks even if you enjoyed them. If the ducks were coming into the area to be around people (and possibly to eat food scraps), then they should come back after construction is complete.

montyz81Mar 22, 2022

I'm pretty sure the Lakeside resort would have its own entrance more connected to the Wilderness Lodge rather than the campsites. Also, if the last few buildings built by Disney are any indication (Riviera, The new Corranado Resort building, Dolphin Reserve), the theming will be just enough to connect it to the resort, which is to say not as much as the current Polynesian Resort is themed. 1 - More IP theming is not needed 2 - What significant drawbacks are you speaking of? 3 - I am pretty sure the folks who bought into the cabins at Fort Wilderness Lodge would disagree with the disadvantages of being on that lake. I could get my arms around them doing that. At least they aren't (sort of) devaluing a stay as much. My whole point is that just about every project that has come up in recent years feels like money grabs. This one is no different. The serenity that is the Polynesian Resort will feel as serene as standing in Time Square. They have 27k acres; why do they need to crame everything in. Build out unique and efficient transportation to connect to resorts and experience across all 27k acres and the company will still grab the money, but it will be less noticeable. And they will keep entertainment that people genuinely like, as long as they continuously improve them.

ThelazerMar 22, 2022

There you go again, you state this as if it's fact. Who says it's going to be better. I say it could be worse. More generic over priced DVC rooms to crowd out those undesirable day guests. It's your opinion that the resort is going to be made better. It may well not be.

jasminethecatMar 22, 2022

They're making the resort better for the other people who stay there and spend money, at the expense of some families who enjoyed the undisturbed natural area of a shut-down resort area. If your kid had been bit by a snake because you walked into an undisturbed area, you would have a different reaction. Any change disney could possibly make will have trade-offs. You're absolutely sure that ducks won't be able to exist in this terrible new area because of song lyrics, but in reality they might just make more natural areas for ducks or other wildlife. It certainly won't be 100% paved, the polynesian already has a parking lot where they charge each car by the day.

TikibirdLandMar 22, 2022

NONE of the stuff discussed on these boards are end of the world. I certainly hope others are on that same page. If not, they'll enlighten me. I think those that see this as a loss think it's sad. But, you are dismissing that viewpoint completely in favor of yours. Some things are more special to others. It's not wrong. Just like your opinion is not wrong either.