There’s a lot of construction happening at Walt Disney World right now as three of the resort’s four theme parks are in line for big changes. The most exciting of these is is also the most controversial. Namely the transformation of Magic Kingdom that is currently taking a piece of Frontierland to turn it into a Cars-themed area and, eventually, a brand new land dedicated to Disney Villains.
Recent reports claim that the Villains' Land has undergone at least one major redesign, as new Disney CEO Josh D’Amaro wants the land to be something that pushes the limits of Walt Disney Imagineering, but a new report claims there was even more considered for the Magic Kingdom expansion. It seems as many as two hotels could have been part of it as well.
Disney World Considered Hotels Inside Magic Kingdom
The new details come courtesy of the Florida Politics blog. Back in early 2024, when Disney World and the state of Florida were busy suing each other over the Reedy Creek Improvement District that oversaw Disney World, a Walt Disney Imagineering executive named Todd Rimer was deposed. During the deposition, Rimer revealed that “one or two hotel locations” were being considered “within the same area” as the planned Magic Kingdom expansion, which is to say, Villains Land.
This would indicate that not only were new hotels being considered, but that one or both of them could have actually been attached to the theme park, giving guests at that hotel a dedicated entrance, similar to the way the Helios Grand at Epic Universe or the Grand Californian Hotel & Spa at Disney California Adventure works.
In a statement to the outlet, Disney Experiences confirmed that no hotels are currently planned, indicating whatever was being considered is seemingly off the table. Considering this was all before the Villains Land concept was publicly announced, it's possible the hotel in question wasn't even villain-themed. This might have been so early in the process that Imagineering hadn't settled on plans for the expansion yet. Still, the idea of a villain-themed hotel sounds incredible, and now I want to stay there.
There’s Nothing (Necessarily) Preventing Hotels In A Villains Land Expansion
While there’s a lot we still don’t know about Magic Kingdom’s Villains Land expansion, Disney has never confirmed anything beyond the fact that the land is happening. There’s no reason to assume that a Villains Land hotel is entirely off the table unless something was discovered in the design phase that makes it literally impossible to construct. I fully expect that if there were considerations to open such a hotel, Villains Land will be constructed in such a way that a hotel can be done later.
Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge was clearly designed with the Star Wars Galactic Starcruiser in mind, even though the location wasn’t announced alongside the new land. Had the Starcruiser never happened, nobody would have been the wiser. Leaving the door open costs nothing.
There’s a lot to be said for hotels that are directly attached to theme parks. Being able to look out your window or sit on a balcony and see the park is something guests would absolutely pay for. If this hotel did happen, it would likely be the most expensive hotel at Disney World, and considering that the Animal Kingdom Lodge exists, that’s saying something.
With D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event happening in August, it’s a safe bet we’ll get some new information about Villains Land at the Disney Experiences panel. I’m not saying a new Disney World hotel will be announced as part of that, but it certainly wouldn’t shock me if it happened.
