Everyone is chomping at the bit to know: Will the new Polynesian tower be part of the existing Polynesian Villas & Bungalows condo association, or will it have its own separate condo association? The answer remains unknown, but as we are speculating, let’s break down what the implications are for either scenario.
Resale Restrictions
One of the biggest things that the condo association will determine is the presence (or absence) of resale restrictions. If the new tower joins the existing condo association, the tower won’t have any resale restrictions. (This would be a very similar situation to the addition of the Big Pine Key building to the Villas at Disney’s Grand Floridian.) Resale contract points at the Polynesian could be used to book stays at any of the original 14 DVC resorts at the 7-month mark or after, but not at Riviera, the Villas at Disneyland Hotel, or any future DVC resorts.
If the tower has a separate condo association, then it will have resale restrictions like Riviera and the Villas at Disneyland Hotel. That would mean that any resale points for the tower could only be used for stays at the Polynesian tower.
Note that whether the tower joins the existing condo association or has a separate one, points purchased directly through Disney would be good for any DVC resort at the 7-month mark or after.
Contract Expiration Date
DVC contracts at the current Polynesian Villas & Bungalows expire in 2066. Should the tower join the same condo association, new contracts would share this same expiration date of 2066. If the tower has its own association, we can perhaps expect an expiration date of 2074 (50 years after the new tower opens, assuming it opens on schedule). This would give owners at the tower a longer time to enjoy their points.
Booking Windows
If there are two separate condo associations, owners at the original Polynesian Villas & Bungalows would still only be able to book the original Deluxe Studios and Bora Bora Bungalows at the 11-month mark. They wouldn’t be able to book any of the new villas in the tower until the 7-month mark and vice versa.
If there is just one condo association, this would give owners at the Polynesian a lot more flexibility for their points. This would be similar to how owners at Animal Kingdom Lodge can choose between villas at Jambo House or Kidani Village. Not only would there be a choice of which building owners could book, but most importantly, there would finally be One Bedroom Villas, Two Bedroom Villas, and maybe even Three Bedroom Grand Villas in the mix. DVC has yet to confirm which room types will be available at the tower but hinted that there would be additional rooms.
Bungalow Point Problem
Speaking of different room types, should the tower become part of the original Polynesian condo association, it would greatly help balance out the point distribution at the Polynesian. With only Deluxe Studios and then the very point-heavy Bora Bora Bungalows, the Polynesian Villas & Bungalows has quite the point imbalance. Most owners only book the Deluxe Studios since the Bungalows are well over 100 points per night.
Annual Dues
Last but not least, having a separate condo association would impact dues. Clearly, if the new tower becomes part of the original Polynesian condo association, the annual dues will be the same for both. However, should they be different associations, they could have different rates. While this may seem odd, this would be very similar to what we see with Boulder Ridge and Copper Creek. Both DVC resorts are part of Wilderness Lodge, but each has its own annual dues rate. In 2023, the annual dues for Boulder Ridge were $8.5110 per point whereas at Copper Creek, they were $7.9203 per point.
However this all pans out, stay tuned to DVC Fan for all the updates on the Polynesian!
Thank you. This was explained very clearly and presents much to consider for buying at the tower.
Thank you! Glad it’s helpful!
I hope they are separate.
Poly already has 1 of the largest studio rooms. Some rooms with 2 showers/tubs. Love the classic vibe.
I would hate that we current owners will now have to compete to get the original rooms and only being able to get the new poly smaller resort rooms. Also, the classic Poly pool will be crazy busy if they don’t build an amazing pool at the new poly.
My understanding also is that there will not be a new Monorail stop at the new Poly.
Correct, there will not be an additional monorail stop for the tower.
GREAT summary. Thank you! Any thoughts about the new Tower pool access? If separate association, Tower owners will likely also have access to both current pools. Volcano pool is a selling point. But Tower owners will add to the crowds there. Will PVB1 owners have access to Tower pool? Important for those considering buying or selling now.
Thank you! The only precedence for this would be BRV and CCV, which are both at WL but are separate condo associations. Guests at either resort have shared access to the pools. With the tower being so close to the original Poly, I’d like to think access would be shared, but this is just pure speculation.
The monorail is too full as it is right now, when I stay at Grand Floridian the last stop before the parks we rarely get on the first monorail it’s always too full not even standing room for us. As both a Poly and Grand Floridian owner there needs to be more monorails.
Agreed that the monorail is very full, but there are no plans to add more monorails.