Walt Disney World continues building on the foyer reimagining on the Grand Floridian Resort, the focus of which shall be a brand-new birdcage bar. This shares new building pictures to indicate you what to anticipate if in case you have an upcoming lodge keep as an instance the visitor impression of the ‘enchanted backyard’ overhaul of the resort.
Again in early April, Walt Disney World introduced the development timeline and revealed the brand new Birdcage Foyer Bar Coming Quickly to the Grand Floridian Resort. With this, there have been impacts to the visitor expertise and choices on the flagship lodge, beginning in mid-April. These are presently anticipated to increase by November 2025.
Past the development partitions for the foyer reimagining and Birdcage Bar, Walt Disney World additionally introduced No Gingerbread Home at Grand Floridian for Christmas 2025. Disney normally begins constructing this life-sized edible creation in mid-October, which will certainly overlap with the overhaul–and there’s the possibility that this venture will prolong even past that. It’s additionally our suspicion that the Gingerbread Home will by no means return to the foyer. As mentioned in that publish, it’s not an enormous hit with everybody.
This venture has been a number of years within the making. It really began shortly earlier than the closure of the parks with Enchanted Rose Lounge, and would’ve continued that spring with extra restaurant reimaginings. Then with the pause of what’s now Disney Lakeshore Lodge, the corporate decided it “wanted” extra Disney Trip Membership factors to promote, resulting in the DVC overhaul of the Huge Pine Key constructing.
All the outlying buildings within the lodge have since been redone in an identical model. (See Grand New Rooms at Walt Disney World’s Flagship Resort for a glance inside.) That occurred building-by-building roughly two years in the past, and was anticipated to culminate with the principle foyer. That didn’t occur.
Quick-forward a few years, and Walt Disney World is lastly getting began. Our expectation is that the completed Grand Floridian foyer will resemble these of the outer buildings as soon as all is claimed and performed, as these are additionally the ‘enchanted backyard’ model. However it’s not possible to say, as ~2 years have handed and preferences (or inventive leads) might’ve modified.
Anyway, it had been just a few months since we final shared a building replace on the Grand Floridian, however we have been not too long ago there in late July and seen lots of adjustments which are price shortly sharing. Since we’ve already coated this venture at size within the above-referenced posts, I’m going to largely let the development pictures communicate for themselves:
As you possibly can see, about one-third of the foyer is presently walled-off for constructing of the Birdcage Bar. It’d seem slow-going, because it has taken three months to get from eradicating the aviary to making ready the inspiration for the brand new bar. At this tempo, it would appear to be there’s no manner that is constructed by November.
Nonetheless, there was lots of infrastructure work that wanted to be performed. Final time we have been on the Grand Floridian, this space was actually filth as piping was being performed and new helps put in for the inspiration of the bar. Our expectation at one level was that far much less groundwork was going to be performed, and it could be extra akin to plopping a prefab construction down. Clearly, it’s extra concerned than that.
I’d additionally add that tasks usually take longer in these early phases, then go vertical shortly. No less than, that’s a pattern we see with new attraction building, however I’d assume it’s an identical story with Birdcage Bars within the foyer of flagship resorts. Maybe it’ll be delayed, however there’s nonetheless 4 months till Thanksgiving. That’s lots of time to get this performed.
What we’re extra interested by at this level is the remainder of the foyer venture. As you possibly can see within the above pictures, building partitions (or in some circumstances, see-through scrims) have been put in all through the foyer. These are nonetheless sufficiently spaced in order that it doesn’t really feel just like the foyer is an energetic building zone outdoors the Birdcage Bar space. That portion does, particularly when wanting down from above and seeing the work.
The opposite areas the place work is being performed haven’t yielded something to talk of simply but, except for a pair areas of latest wallpaper. We might anticipate these partitions to be round for just about the size of the foyer venture, with extra partitions popping up elsewhere across the foyer for shorter durations to perform different features of the reimagining. This shall be performed in phases to attenuate the disruption, and keep away from taking an excessive amount of of the foyer out of fee.
It is sensible to time essentially the most vital work round August and September, the 2 slowest months of the 12 months at Walt Disney World. That may most likely be the height of the venture. However crews are going to have to choose up the tempo if that is going to be a serious replace to the foyer, as efforts must be made to attenuate disruptions. The opposite different is the venture pausing in November and resuming once more in January, after the high-occupancy vacation season. That’s one thing we’ve seen occur with numerous different Walt Disney World resort building tasks, together with the Grand Floridian.
If there isn’t a venture pause and resumption in Winter 2026, it’s wanting more and more seemingly that new carpet, wallpaper and furnishings would be the bulk of the venture outdoors the Birdcage Bar. Past that, the Backyard View Tea Room is behind building partitions and it seems that appreciable work is happening there. Walt Disney World beforehand indicated that will be a part of this venture, however didn’t share specifics.
In the end, we’re cautiously optimistic in regards to the finish results of this foyer reimagining. Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort is essentially the most well-rounded Seven Seas Lagoon property, with fewer drawbacks than the Polynesian or Modern and less-dated components even as we speak, pre-reimagining. As long as widespread areas and remaining eating places are modernized in a respectful model in line with the outlying buildings, the Grand Floridian will emerge from this as a greater possibility than earlier than, and a resort actually deserving of the flagship distinction. However there’s nonetheless so much to get performed if someday in November 2025 actually is the completion goal!
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YOUR THOUGHTS
Trying ahead to the Birdcage Bar? Upset in regards to the present and upcoming building impression, or the cancellation of the Gingerbread Home? Do you suppose Walt Disney World’s flagship resort wants a foyer refresh, or are you anxious it’ll lose its persona and richly-themed areas within the course of? Have you ever stayed on the Grand Floridian for the reason that new rooms debuted? Do you agree or disagree with our evaluation? Different ideas or considerations? Any questions we might help you reply? Listening to your suggestions–even if you disagree with us–is each fascinating to us and useful to different readers, so please share your ideas beneath within the feedback!
