Construction on Lakeshore Lodge is moving swiftly along the shores of Bay Lake, and many DVC Members are excited about the resort’s opening in 2027. With all the buzz about the newest DVC Resort, a common question that keeps popping up is: Can Lakeshore Lodge become part of the same condo association as the Cabins at Disney’s Fort Wilderness? After all, they are in very close proximity to one another.
While everything is speculation until Disney shares official details, we can still look at the info that we have from the Orange County, Florida Comptroller as well as a recent filing with the Florida Department of Business & Professional Regulation that shows that Lakeshore Lodge will have its own Use Plan.
From a Legal Perspective: A Review of The Palmetto Trust Association, Inc.
As a starting point, let’s review the foundation of The Cabins at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort. If you recall, this resort was the first to be part of the Palmetto Trust Association, Inc., which was established back in 2023. This association led to the creation of a new trust-based DVC ownership structure. Rather than DVC Members owning a piece of deeded real estate property at a specific resort, Members buy equity in the trust.
The Palmetto Trust is structured so that it can encompass one or multiple Trust Use Plans. Currently, The Cabins Resort Use Plan is the only one within the Palmetto Trust.
A filing for the Cabins from December 2023 shows that a Trust Use Plan can “govern a separate group of accommodations or a group of Component Sites within the Trust Property.” (A Component Site is defined as “all or a portion of a resort, regime, or other property which contains an accommodation or accommodations, or use rights in an accommodation or accommodations including one or more interests in an underlying Vacation Ownership Plan, that are included as part of the Trust Property or Trust Association Property, together with any related facilities and amenities.”)
Although Lakeshore Lodge could have joined the same Trust Use Plan as The Cabins, Disney filed for a separate Use Plan for Lakeshore Lodge. Based on the establishment of a separate Use Plan, it’s easy to jump to the conclusion that Lakeshore Lodge would join the Palmetto Trust without being combined with The Cabins. However, it’s not quite that conclusive.
Since a Trust Use Plan can govern more than one component site, it is still technically possible for Cabin inventory to be declared into the Lakeshore Lodge Trust Use Plan or for Lakeshore Lodge inventory to be declared into the Cabins’ Trust Use Plan. This flexibility is one big difference between the trust model and the older deeded property model.
Would Sharing a Condo Association Be Beneficial?
Beyond the technical foundation that would allow Lakeshore Lodge to join the same condo association as the Cabins at Disney’s Fort Wilderness, would this make sense? For both resorts, there would be a lot of benefits, especially for owners at the Cabins:
- More Amenities – As part of the same association, Lakeshore Lodge and the Cabins could potentially share amenities such as Lakeshore Lodge’s large pool complex, which features a lazy river.
- Additional Room Types – The Cabins only offer one room type: a cabin that sleeps up to 6 guests. If you own there, you can only book a Cabin in your home resort booking window. Should you be traveling with a smaller or larger group, there isn’t any other option. Lakeshore Lodge is expected to have a variety of rooms, including Deluxe Studios and one- and two-bedroom Lake Houses.
- Lower Annual Dues – As of 2026, the Cabins have the third highest annual dues among all the DVC Resorts. At a steep $12.28 per point, it’s just slightly lower than dues for coastal resorts like Hilton Head and Vero Beach. If a large resort such as Lakeshore Lodge were part of the same condo association, there would be more DVC Members to spread out the maintenance fees and dues.
With sales of the Cabins being somewhat slow, these added benefits of a shared condo association could be beneficial for DVC.
Is There Any Precedent for Adding to an Existing Condo Association?
Over the years, we have seen a few examples of DVC adding to existing condo associations, such as the Treehouse Villas being added to Saratoga, Big Pine Key being added to the Grand Floridian, and most recently, the Polynesian Island Tower being added to the Polynesian Villas & Bungalows. While none of these are trust properties, it wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibility to add to The Cabins at Disney’s Fort Wilderness as well. Time will tell.
Stay tuned to DVC Fan for the latest updates as we inch closer to the opening of Lakeshore Lodge!
