Source:
http://kgmb9.com/main/content/view/11600/245/
click on link to see 3 videos from event.
Groundbreaking Held for Disney Ko Olina Resort
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Mickey Mouse and the gang will be in Ko Olina today for the groundbreaking of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts first family destination resort. The 800 unit resort is scheduled to open in Hawai'i in 2011. It should create nearly one thousand jobs for Hawaii.
Located at the picturesque Ko Olina Resort & Marina on the western side of O'ahu, the resort will include hotel rooms and Disney Vacation Club timeshare villas. For more information:
www.disneyvacationclub.com
The 21-acre oceanfront property overlooks white sand beaches and crystal blue lagoons and is destined to become a perfect place for families to discover the wonders of Hawai'i. The resort has been designed to honor the local culture of the Hawaiian islands. During the past year, the Walt Disney Imagineering team has worked with local architects and cultural experts on O'ahu and throughout the state as part of the creative design process for the resort. The resulting design is a village celebrating the Hawaiian customs and traditions that lead to a life filled with joy and in harmony with the natural world.
Upon completion, the resort will include 350 hotel rooms and 480 Disney Vacation Club timeshare villas along with an 18,000- square-foot spa and an 8,000 square-foot conference center. Both on-site restaurants will feature foods unique to Hawai'i. One of the restaurants will offer views of the spectacular sunsets for which the Leeward Coast is famous. And for couples dreaming of a perfect beginning, plans call for a wedding lawn with a serene view of the Pacific's endless horizons. A signature Disney kids' club with custom-planned activities and adventures is also in development.
As part of the signature water way at the pool, family friendly tubes and body slides will weave through volcanic rockwork and engage an iconic caldera volcano, while a nearby wading pool gives parents with toddlers a welcoming alternative to the sprawling fun pool. In addition, more adventurous family members will swim with vibrant fish in a saltwater snorkel lagoon.
Disney Vacation Club Part of the Disney resort in Ko Olina will be dedicated to Disney Vacation Club, a vacation-ownership program that helps families enjoy flexibility and savings on vacations for decades to come. By purchasing a real estate interest in a Disney Vacation Club resort, families enjoy flexible vacations at Disney destinations worldwide as well as hundreds of other popular Member Getaways vacation locations around the globe.
Disney Vacation Club accommodations blend Disney's famed attention to storytelling detail with all the comforts of home. From well-appointed studios equipped with convenient kitchenettes to sprawling, multiroom villas complete with full-size kitchens, washers and dryers, luxury tubs and other homelike amenities, Disney Vacation Club Resorts create flexible options to meet the needs of thousands of families from around the world. Disney Resorts Walt Disney Parks & Resorts operates 38 resort hotels with more than 35,000 hotel rooms worldwide.
Disney Vacation Club existing properties include the following eight deluxe resorts:
; ; * Disney's Old Key West Resort
; ; * Disney's BoardWalk Villas
; ; * The Villas at Disney's Wilderness Lodge
; ; * Disney Beach Club Villas
; ; * Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa
; ; * Disney's Animal Kingdom Villas
; ; * Disney's Vero Beach Resort
; ; * Disney's Hilton Head Island Resort
Fun Facts About Disney and Hawai'i:
Disney's fascination with Hawai'i began in the company's infancy, with founder Walt Disney. From the 1937 Mickey Mouse animated short “Hawaiian Holiday” to the Hawaiian setting of Disneyland's groundbreaking Enchanted Tiki Room attraction, which debuted in 1963, to the inclusion of Disney's Polynesian Resort at Walt Disney World Resort, Walt often pulled inspiration from the islands.
Walt Disney Pictures continued the Hawaiian legacy in 2002 with the hit animated film “Lilo & Stitch.” The Walt Disney Company also does extensive film work in Hawai'i, including on-location production for the hit ABC series “Lost.” The Walt Disney Studios feature film “Pearl Harbor” also was shot on location in O'ahu. Ko Olina means "place of joy."
Quick Facts Date Announced:
October 3, 2007
Location/Geography:
Disney Resort & Spa at Ko Olina will be located on the island of O'ahu's western
side in the picturesque Ko Olina Resort & Marina.
Size:
21 acres
Planned Number of units:
350 hotel rooms
480 Two-bedroom equivalent vacation villas for Disney Vacation Club
Planned Restaurants:
One full-service restaurant and one buffet restaurant
Planned Convention Space:
8,000 Sq. Ft.
Planned Spa:
Full-service spa, 18,000 Sq. Ft.
Workforce:
Approximately 1,000 Cast Members anticipated