As the large-scale guest room renovations begin on Bay Lake Tower at Disney's Contemporary Resort, it appears some incoming guests are being moved to alternate locations.
Multiple posters on the Bay Lake Tower - Disney Vacation Club Facebook group report that they were contacted by DVC representatives to arrange a move to another destination. So far, reports involve Deluxe Studio accommodations, with guests moved to the Contemporary Tower with some daily compensation for the inconvenience. It is not immediately clear how many people are being relocated or what options are offered. Earlier this year, refurbishment work at Disney's BoardWalk Villas ran behind schedule. Some guests were asked to move to Disney's Yacht Club Resort, while others were given a choice of various DVC resorts with availability on the given date.
Disney has been planning this refurbishment for more than a year now, which should have given them flexibility to block rooms from booking before the 11 month window. However the exact manner in which they plan to refurbish the entire building may have changed. Back in December 2023, a Disney executive claimed the plan was to update each of the 16 floors one-at-a-time. However, recent on-site reports suggest that the first rooms to close are those on the south side of the building, across multiple floors.
Disruptions are somewhat unavoidable during the refurbishment process. Guests have already experienced closures to some of the elevator banks, while the skybridge connecting the two buildings is also due to close periodically. A recent notice revealed plans to close the resort's pool complex from late-January to early-May 2026.
From now until September 2025, crews are completing a full refurbishment of all villa guest rooms in Bay Lake Tower. No preview images have been released, but it's expected to be an extensive renovation with changes to floor coverings, wall coverings, furniture and fixtures. Disney has not confirmed if the pull-down Murphy-style sofa beds will be installed, but they are present on most resorts renovated in the last 5 years.
