Walt Disney World has over a dozen resort refurbishments and room reimaginings that either finished this year or will conclude in early 2026. Along with this, there are several more projects underway from now through 2027. Choosing where to stay can be difficult given the sheer number of WDW hotels, but one easy rule of thumb is avoiding ongoing construction and choosing recently-renovated accommodations.
New rooms and refreshed resorts are nice, and Walt Disney World has really hit its stride in balancing modernized amenities and accommodations with themed design. Unlike a decade or so ago when fans often avoided redone rooms and resorts because they were bland and boring, the most recently-redone rooms really thread the needle on form and function.
New rooms in recent years have seen more pops of color and thematic flourishes that give them personality (while not crossing the line into garishness), which matters a lot to Walt Disney World diehards. More importantly for the casual guest, there have actually been a number of innovations in hotel room design and Disney has introduced space-saving features and other thoughtful touches that improve and elevate the guest experience. As a result, newer guest rooms often feel more luxurious, immersive, and functional than older ones.
Then there’s the obvious: newer rooms are fresher. This applies to both current design trends but also wear and tear. You will absolutely notice a difference between a room that’s ~8 years old and slated for an upcoming overhaul as opposed to one that was recently redone. The former will look and feel dated in the furnishings and fixtures, whereas the latter will feel fresh.
With all of this in mind, we’ve put together a list of resort hotels that have been recently redone or have ongoing projects that will wrap up, in full or in part, by 2026. Note that some of these refurbishments are accompanied by asterisks because they’re multi-phase, meaning construction will be ongoing in other areas (or adjacent to) the respective resorts.
When it comes to ongoing construction, it’s easy to make room requests to avoid it at all of the resorts on this list. Making a room request at the tail end of a refurbishment project is a great way to get a fresh room while not being impacted by ongoing work. Keep an eye on our 2026-2027 Walt Disney World Hotel Construction Tracker for updates, including last-minute additions to this list.
If you’re not worried about new rooms or reimagined resorts, and are simply looking for how we rank the resorts at Walt Disney World as a whole, check out our Rankings of ALL Walt Disney World Hotels from Worst to Best. Honestly, that’s a better starting place than this list as it covers a wider variety of pros & cons and is just, generally, more comprehensive…
With that said, let’s dig into this list of the top resorts at Walt Disney World for 2026…
Pop Century Resort
Pop Century has been getting a lot of love over the last year. Everything Pop Food Court opened a new coffee shop and seating area, which is quite lovely. The resort also received a lobby refresh, which is more of a mixed bag, but does feel fresh. Same goes for the pool bar and other common areas.
However, the real reason Pop Century tops this list is the year-long room refresh. Over the past year through mid-February 2026, guest rooms at Disney’s Pop Century Resort are undergoing refurbishment as part of a soft goods cycle. We were just at Pop Century last month, and the project is winding down (here’s our latest update). If you stay in early 2026, you should have zero construction impact and be guaranteed a new room.
This is “only” a soft goods project, which means updating furnishings, including but not limited to wall coverings, flooring, linens, decor, and some furniture. We’ve already seen the new rooms, and they look fantastic–a lovely little plussing! See First Look Photo Tour of New Rooms at Disney’s Pop Century Resort.
We highly recommend Pop Century, going so far as to (spoiler alert) award it the #1 slot on our aforementioned rankings of all Walt Disney World resorts. Controversial to put a Value Resort in the top slot, we know, but it costs a fraction of the price of Deluxe Resorts.
We love Pop Century thanks to its mix of bang-for-buck, food court variety, transportation, and overall atmosphere. At the Value Resort tier, it’s very strong as compared to the All Stars, and offers significantly lower prices than Art of Animation. Pop Century is also a sentimental favorite that has only gotten better thanks to its new rooms and the Skyliner.
Pop Century’s rooms were previously redone in 2017, after which the All Stars were redone starting in 2018. This is another relevant consideration if you’re debating which Value Resort to book in 2026. Pop Century will have brand-new rooms, whereas the All Stars will have rooms with 4-8 years of wear and tear. If you do opt against Pop Century for whatever reason, it’s worth noting that All Star Sports has considerably newer rooms than Music or Movies.
Polynesian’s Island Tower
Island Tower at the Polynesian Village Resort is the newest hotel expansion at Walt Disney World at one year old. It’s notable as one of only a couple entries on this list that are brand-new as opposed to newly-reimagined, and the only one completely purpose-built for its location.
While refurbishments to keep things fresh are nice, there’s also an obvious difference between a new build and a retrofit. We experienced this firsthand with recent back-to-back stays during the Halloween and Christmas seasons. For all of the complaints I have about the Island Tower’s exterior, the accommodations are unrivaled and among the absolute best at Walt Disney World.
The bad news is that work at the Polynesian isn’t finished. Through 2026, work is being done on the resort that includes the reconfiguration of the front entrance roadway and bus area as part of the re-routing and expansion of Floridian Way. Fortunately, all resort dining, pools and amenities will remain available. We’ve stayed at the Poly since this work started, and found it to be minimally impactful–and that was with a “road view” room at Island Tower. Unless something changes and the scope of work expands in a big way, we wouldn’t worry about this.
Island Tower is one of our top recommendations for where to stay at Walt Disney World in 2026. On top of being new, it’s also the easiest it’ll ever be to book because this DVC resort is still in active sales. Meaning there’s more room inventory than points at any given moment. (That’s a bit in the weeds, but it’s a good thing whether you’re a DVC member, paying out of pocket, or renting points.)
Contemporary’s Bay Lake Tower
For another alternative along the monorail loop, Bay Lake Tower just wrapped up a top-to-bottom refurbishment this fall. This project began over one year ago and the room refurbishment just finished. The results of the BLT room reimagining are marvelous. In fact, I’d argue that this is the best and biggest ‘glow-up’ for a Walt Disney World resort in a while–probably since the new rooms at Grand Floridian.
Bay Lake Tower was way overdue for a refurbishment, as the rooms had been worse for wear for almost a decade (we stayed in a room back in 2017 that was looking rough–I can’t imagine how much worse that looked ~7 years later). The rooms at Bay Lake Tower were poorly constructed in the first place and built just before the current ‘wave’ of innovative accommodations that marry space-saving styles with well-themed ones. On top of that, the studios are also small, especially when contrasted with the Polynesian.
Obviously, the room refurbishment did not “fix” the size issue, but it did mitigate it. Space-saving features were introduced like pull-down sofa beds and other clever features, opening up more floor space and increasing the amount of storage. Previously claustrophobic rooms now feel spacious by virtue of utilizing the same square footage much better. And then there’s the style, which looks fantastic, fresh, and on-theme (perfect for old school Walt Disney World fans).
Due to being the closest resort to Magic Kingdom and finally having new rooms, Bay Lake Tower is going to be highly competitive in 2026. You’ll likely have more difficulty booking BLT than the newer Island Tower. Accordingly, we’re going to give an honorable mention to the Garden Wing at Disney’s Contemporary Resort (hotel side). See Our Favorite Hotel at Walt Disney World as Parents with a Toddler for more on the selling points of the Contemporary.
There is a minor to potentially major asterisk with this recommendation, which is the Contemporary’s Mystery Construction Project Through 2027. Walt Disney World still hasn’t revealed what this allegedly-ongoing project is, but it was just extended for another year. If this is the long overdue reimagining of the Grand Canyon Concourse–where most of the hotel’s shopping and dining are located, along with the monorail station–that could be impactful. But much less so to BLT and Garden Wing guests than those in the A-frame.
Fort Wilderness Campground (Huge Asterisk)
Outside of Island Tower, the New DVC Cabins at Fort Wilderness Campground are the other newest (not reimagined) resort rooms at Walt Disney World. These 350 new cabins replaced the old cabins at the resort, turning the resort side of the campground into a Disney Vacation Club property.
These cabins are controversial among Walt Disney World fans and DVC Members, but we love them. They’re definitely circumstances-specific, which is to say that they will not be a good fit for every party. But they work really well for our young family, and enable us to share a single unit with the grandparents. That means accommodations close to the size of a 1-bedroom suite (albeit with a worse layout), but at the price of a standard room or studio (with much more space).
While the new cabins are completed, one thing to note is that a “collection of improvement projects” is underway at Fort Wilderness aimed at enhancing the guest experience, including proposed pool and walking trail upgrades. Construction is now taking place near the Meadow Swimmin’ Pool area to expand this area, which has resulted in the temporary closure of a pool, playground, and recreational facilities. This is expected to wrap up sometime in mid-2026, but the date is to be determined. None of this is really a dealbreaker, though.
What is a potential dealbreaker is the resumption of work on Disney Lakeshore Lodge (formerly Reflections), which is already vertical and 10 stories tall at its highest point! Construction is already moving inside Lakeshore Lodge, but it’s still disruptive to the Settlement area. There’s no impact from cabins or campsites, but it’s very noticeable closer to the waterfront where cranes tower over the Settlement to build a tower that will also tower over the campground.
Kidani Village at Animal Kingdom Lodge
Through May 2026, guest rooms at Kidani Village at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge are undergoing a comprehensive hard goods refurbishment. That’ll followed by a similar project at Jambo House from May 2026 through January 2027.
We covered what to expect from this construction at length in Room Reimagining at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge to 2027. What’s still unclear about this project involves the hotel side of Animal Kingdom Lodge, or just the Animal Kingdom Villas. The latter is the DVC side of the resort, and what is overdue for a refurbishment. It’s our expectation that this applies just to the villas, as the resort rooms were redone not that long ago, and shouldn’t be due for another update until 2028 or 2029.
This will be the first hard goods refurbishment since the Animal Kingdom Villas opened between 2007 and 2009. Combine that with the fairly light nature of past soft goods refreshes, and neither Kidani Village nor Jambo House have seen any major room renovations in over 15 years. Closer to 20 years by the time this project is finished. As a result, this should be a massive overhaul that breathes new life into rooms that have been showing their age for a while.
It’s also notable that Kidani Village and Jambo House are separate buildings. If you stay at Kidani Village in June 2026 or later, you’re not going to have any construction impact. You might if you wander over to nearby Jambo House, but our expectation is that project will be confined to guest rooms and won’t be noticeable from common areas.
We don’t have enough space to include all of the DVC resorts that have excellent, recently-redone rooms and also don’t want to overrepresent DVC rooms on this list, but the Copper Creek Villas, Treehouse Villas, and Old Key West are also currently in the midst of room redos–or will be in 2026. As always, you can score significant savings when renting Disney Vacation Club points. If you’re going to do DVC point rental, we highly recommend booking earlier as opposed to last-minute. You’ll save far more money that way, as confirmed reservations as usually all that’s available inside ~5 months.
Port Orleans Riverside
Walt Disney World is in the home stretch of room reimaginings at Port Orleans Riverside, the first phase of which last until late February 2026. This impacts the Magnolia Bend rooms, which are mostly the Royal Rooms. Most of these are being converted to regular rooms, whereas others will be refreshed Royal Rooms.
The Royal Rooms were long overdue for a refurbishment (one was supposed to happen in Spring 2020 but got cancelled due to COVID), although we fear the replacements won’t be as thematically ambitious. Nevertheless, the modernization should be very welcome–and French Quarter (see below) offers a preview of how the new rooms could be laid out.
Once Magnolia Bend is done in Winter 2026, it’ll be time for Alligator Bayou to receive its next round of room redos through 2027. If the normal project cadence is followed, the normal rooms in Alligator Bayou will also receive a hard goods refurbishment.
There’s no need to avoid Port Orleans Riverside during this time. We would not hesitate to stay here while Alligator Bayou is being redone. Just be sure to request a room in Magnolia Bend!
Port Orleans French Quarter
Port Orleans French Quarter wrapped up a room refurbishment this year, shortly before the ongoing project at Riverside started. We stayed in the new rooms at Port Orleans French Quarter last Christmas and loved the results.
In fact, it wasn’t just the new rooms. We were pleasantly surprised by the improved dining scene, transportation, and pool area. And POFQ always scores points for its compact layout. We have a newfound appreciation for this now that we’re parents, but it’s something French Quarter fans have praised for years. The smaller footprint and single bus stop makes POFQ significantly more walkable and approachable than its sister hotel, Port Orleans Riverside…or any Moderate Resort, for that matter.
If you want the Moderate Resort that gets the most positive reader reviews, Port Orleans French Quarter is it. Honestly, we probably don’t talk about French Quarter enough on DTB, but it’s a fan-favorite for very good reason!
Grand Floridian
Walt Disney World’s flagship resort has debuted new rooms over the course of the last couple of years as part of a multi-phased resort reimagining–see Grand New Rooms at Walt Disney World’s Flagship Resort for a look inside. These reimagined rooms are a night and day improvement over their predecessors, and make the Grand Floridian feel luxurious as opposed to a mid-tier Marriott.
That isn’t new-news, though. The reason Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa makes this list is because it just wrapped up its main building and lobby reimagining! The main fruit of this project is the new “Birdcage Bar,” but there are a number of ways the Grand Floridian looks and feels fresh, and is once again worthy of its distinction. See our Review: Walt Disney World’s Flagship Hotel Finally Fits Its Status & Sky-High Prices.
The Grand Floridian Tea Room will reopen in Spring 2026 after the reimagining is finished. Moreover, we expect the Grand Floridian Cafe to receive a reimagining at some point in the first half of 2026, but that has yet to be announced.
Yacht Club
Disney’s Yacht Club Resort overhauled its guest rooms earlier this year, which is our main basis for recommending it in 2026. This was “only” a soft goods refurbishment, but it took the sophisticated style of the Yacht Club rooms (which were great to begin with!) and refreshed the furniture, fixtures, and furnishings while also adding carpet and pops of color. The end result is really nice–see for yourself in our Review: Refined Redone Rooms at Walt Disney World’s Most Sophisticated Resort
In addition to that, Yacht and Beach Club have been receiving phased refurbishments to the resort complex as a whole over the last few years. Most notably, Stormalong Bay received a major, multi-month refresh and is now looking great. The port cochere also was redone, and the resort is undergoing routine exterior maintenance through late 2026.
This last point is definitely worth considering before booking Yacht Club in 2026. As discussed at length in Yacht & Beach Club Refurbishments Extended to 2027, it’s easy enough to request a room away from the construction, as it’s occurring in very isolated areas. Although only about ~10% of the resort will be impacted at any given moment, we’d still strongly recommend making a room request.
On our most recent stay at Yacht Club, we never even noticed any construction. Now multiple fire alarms going off in the middle of the night…that is a different story entirely.
BoardWalk Inn
Speaking of Crescent Lake, the multi-year reimagining project at BoardWalk has refreshed the beloved turn-of-the-century promenade and interior, added new dining options, refreshed guest rooms, and more. This project is seemingly over, with The Cake Bake Shop and Blue Ribbon Corn Dogs now open.
The restaurant roster at the BoardWalk still leaves something to be desired, especially with three vacancies on the other side of the promenade. If you plan on dining at your resort, that alone might be reason to avoid staying at BoardWalk. There’s not a strong counter service option, and one half of the promenade being closed does give off dead mall vibes.
We’re hoping this will be addressed soon, as Disney’s BoardWalk Inn is another resort with a mystery project in 2026. Don’t worry too much about the guest impact of construction. Be more concerned about the guest impact of insufficient restaurant options.
As far as rooms go in the Crescent Lake Resort Area, the new rooms at Disney’s BoardWalk Inn are mostly well done. They aren’t perfect, as they prioritize a chic style over charm and whimsy, but they’re still very good.
Ultimately, there are a lot of great accommodations options for 2026 Walt Disney World vacations. Many room refurbishment and reimagining projects wrapped up this year, and more will conclude at some point in the next year or so.
The good news is that after years of half-hearted and bland designs that supposedly “modernized” (but really just genericized) Walt Disney World resorts, Imagineering has had hit-after-hit on the room redesign and reimagining front. Even more good news is that, despite price increases, the effective costs of most resorts and travel dates are down year-over-year due to significantly increased discounts!
As always, we’d recommend requesting a FREE no obligation quote from Be Our Guest Vacations, an Authorized Disney Vacation Planner and having them book for you. They can offer you personalized recommendations based on your priorities and circumstances, as well as assistance with the planning process, and monitoring reservations to retroactively apply new discounts if a deal is released to save you more money.
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
Your Thoughts
Which hotels are your top picks for 2026 at Walt Disney World? Any resorts on our list that you would or would not recommend? Any other resorts we snubbed? Do you agree or disagree with our choices? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
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