Disney World Makes Progress on Massive New Florida Replacement Project

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Crowds in front of Cinderella Castle

Credit: Inside the Magic

Big things are happening in Walt Disney World.

A vibrant image of the entrance to Disney's new resort features wooden architectural elements and tall stone pillars. People are seen walking and gathered around, while colorful flowers and trees surround the area. The sky is colorful with hues of orange and purple, reflecting the resort's expansion plans.
Credit: Disney

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Shovels are officially in the ground, as Disney Parks and Experiences Chairman Josh D’Amaro would say, with dirt now moving at the site of Disney World’s newest project. Disney was recently permitted to construct a new 10-story hotel on the site of its Reflections site, a resort many fans had assumed had been canceled, with work now well underway on the exciting project.

Originally announced back in 2018, Reflections—A Disney Lakeside Lodge was Disney’s answer to its abandoned water park, River Country.

River Country was the first water park to be featured at Walt Disney World, opening just a few years after Magic Kingdom in 1976. River Country eventually closed indefinitely in 2001 until Disney officially confirmed the park would not reopen in 2005.

The water park sat abandoned for over a decade, rotting and decaying just out of sight from guests visiting the Magic Kingdom or staying at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort.

Disney’s Reflections was intended to occupy the same land as River Country. In 2019, Disney demolished the remnants of the water park to make way for the new resort. Work was moving swiftly on the hotel until 2020 when the project was seemingly canceled indefinitely.

However, the Federal Aviation Administration recently granted the Walt Disney World Resort the ability to construct a new 10-story hotel at the exact location where Reflections would have been built.

disney-reflections
Credit: @bioreconstruct

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New photos from WDWNT show work has started on Disney’s new 10-story hotel project at the site of Reflections. An excavator and bulldozer can be seen moving dirt on the site, which has been fenced off for years.

Recent permit filings by Disney indicate crane work will begin this month and continue well into 2025. Disney has yet to confirm whether the new hotel will still be considered part of its Reflections project, though fans can seemingly look forward to a brand-new hotel opening in the next few years at “The Most Magical Place on Earth.”

Reflections was envisioned as an ambitious new undertaking by Disney, with the company calling it one of its “most significant expansions in the last two decades” in its original announcement. More on that below:

“This resort experience will be a celebration of Walt Disney’s lifelong love and respect for nature, with some fun and even surprising accommodation types that families will find irresistible,” said Terri Schultz, senior vice president and general manager of Disney Vacation Club. “It will give our members and guests yet another opportunity to stay in close proximity to all the newest attractions and experiences in our theme parks, and with the flexibility, value and world-class service families expect from Disney.”

Are you excited about this new hotel coming to Walt Disney World? Where’s your favorite place to stay during your Disney World vacation?

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