Secrets and History of the Monorail Resorts

Added: 2026-05-05

[00:00:00]Now, I don't happen to brag a lot on this channel, everybody, but I'm going to do it today. I'm going to make a brief exception. You happen to be looking at the proud owner of a Montreal Coral trading card. That's right.

[00:00:12]Montreal Coral has its own trading card, and I am the proud owner of it. On the back, there's some some trivia. Uh, the Montreal travels on a 26-in wide concrete beamway suspended by tapered concrete columns.

[00:00:26]Learn something new every day. There's also a princess section right here. This one is Snow White. Question. What are the names of Snow White's seven friends?

[00:00:34]Okay. Uh, seven friends, I'm assuming. I mean, the dwarfs. I mean, I don't know if the prince counts as a friend or like a a very close acquaintance. You got Happy, Sleepy, Dopey, Doc, Grumpy, Sneezy, and the other one. Oh, I'm not a real Disney fan. A >> Bashful. I don't It's hard to remember Bashful cuz his name is different from everyone else. What am I trying to get at here? The Montreals are the lifeblood of the Walt Disney World Resort. It's how you get to the Magic Kingdom. It's how most people get to the Magic Kingdom. Whether you're arriving in a car, a rental car, or a bus, sometimes not a bus, actually, the buses drop you off right out front. You enter the TTC, you get on the Montreal, and you go through the Contemporary into the Magic Kingdom. However, if you're staying at one of the resort hotels along the Montreal line, you may familiarize yourself with those resort hotels. The Grand Fian, the Polynesian, and the Contemporary. And today, in order to earn this card, I have it. Have I truly earned it, though? I'm going to discuss the three hotels along the Montreal line for the Magic Kingdom, not Fort Wilderness or Wilderness Lodge. Those aren't technically on the Montreal line.

[00:01:41]They are Magic Kingdom resorts, but they don't count for this video. I'm going to earn this card. The first stop on our Montreal tour of the Magic Kingdom Resort area takes us to Disney's Contemporary Resort, where a vision of the future awaits you. And I hesitate when I say a vision of the future because it's not exactly a peak into the real future of our world. It's more so a peak into the contemporary world of 1971. peer over the railing of the 14th floor as you ride the elevator all the way up to the very top and be immediately met by a sense of vertigo because the the platforms the rooms move inward as you move upward giving the resort hotel its iconic A-frame shape.

[00:02:27]When Walt Disney World first opened in 1971, the Contemporary was one of only two resort hotels on Walt Disney World property. The other one we'll talk about in just a moment. The main building was designed by architect Welton Beckett, who also designed the Ford Pavilion at the 1964 New York World's Fair, housing Ford's Magic Skyway. So, he did work with Disney in the past. The main atrium of the Contemporary is called the Grand Canyon Concourse. And not just because standing in it makes you feel like you're standing in the midst of a huge canyon, but also because of the mural that adorns one of the central pillars, the Grand Canyon mural, famously done by Mary Blair, featuring the five-legged goat, a goat that has five legs. The Contemporary is unique because it is still to this day the only Walt Disney World or Disneyland or just any Disney resort for that matter where the Montreal runs straight through the lobby. There is a Montreal stop in the actual lobby if you board from the correct station at the Magic Kingdom or any of the other resort hotels. You stop in the lobby. However, if you board the express Montreal, however, if you're riding the express Montreal directly from the TTC to the Magic Kingdom, you will glide through the Grand Canyon concourse at about 15 m hour. It feels a lot faster than it is, but it is not exactly as fast as you'd be going, say, in a car. However, don't worry, okay?

[00:03:50]The Montreal will begin to speed up once you leave the Grand Canyon concourse and you begin to travel past Bay Lake Tower at Disney's Contemporary Resort. Now, Bay Lake Tower is interesting. Now, you see, Bay Lake Tower is interesting in that it isn't quite as interesting as the original contemporary building that was there from 1971. Bay Lake opened in 2009. So, in the long term, in the long run of Walt Disney World, it hasn't been there for quite as long as the other resorts along the Montreal line have been. And of course, the Montreal does not run through Bay Lake Tower, just past it. Although, if you do find yourself in need for some 1971 nostalgia, there is a walkway between the two resorts. Now, you know how the current Contemporary has the Garden Wing, those smaller rooms located off to the side, the southern side of the Contemporary Resort, not in the Big Grand Canyon concourse, and not part of Bay Lake Tower. Well, there also used to be a north wing to the Contemporary as well, that had many similar buildings.

[00:04:49]These were all demolished in order to make way for Bay Lake Tower. Not a lot was spared during the demolition of the north wing aside from a little bit of the parking lot. So, don't go looking for remnants of the north wing of Disney's Contemporary Resort because there's, like I said, not much there, if anything. Just little sections of parking lot and curb, maybe. Even then, this is a DVC property we're talking about. Okay. It has to be nice and pristine all the time. So, the curb and the parking lot have probably been resurfaced and refaced many different times. At the top of Bay Lake Tower, you have the top of the world lounge. In my opinion, a lounge that's harder to get into than even the California Grill at the top of the original Contemporary Building. I've only been up there twice.

[00:05:32]Okay, I've been to the California Grill like zero times, but you can just get a reservation and go to the California Grill. You have to be a DVC member and I believe also potentially staying at the Bay Lake Tower in order to get up there.

[00:05:45]Maybe just DVC member though. I think it is just you have to be a DVC member. but it's a great place to watch the fireworks and they have a Montreal martini that's delicious. It's also one of the Montreal resorts that I have checked off my list. I have stayed at the Bay Lake Tower, not in the Grand Canyon Concourse Building, not at the Contemporary Prepper proper, but I have stayed here. It is a beautiful building.

[00:06:05]I just I wish I stayed in the in the main contemporary. Speaking of the Contemporary Proper, let's head back over there because there is a lot of history here. The infamous Richard Nixon I am not a crook speech was given at Disney's Contemporary Resort.

[00:06:21]I have never profited never profited from public service. I've earned every cent. And in all of my years of public life, I have never obstructed justice.

[00:06:33]And I think too that I can say that in my years of public life that I welcome this kind of examination because people have got to know whether or not their president is a crook. Well, I'm not a crook.

[00:06:45]>> Remember when presidents actively tried to deny being crooks instead of just saying, "What are you going to do about it?" Good times. The speech was given in the Ballroom of the Americas in the year 1973. It's sort of a a pilgrimage site for all of us Disney adults with weird obscure Disney history knowledge. We'll come back to that when we get to the Polynesian. But I did visit this room on the 50th anniversary of Walt Disney World on the day of uh October 1st, 1971. Except it was October 1st, 2021.

[00:07:13]50 years to the day the Contemporary opened, not to the day the speech was given, but it was really funny to just go back there and take a look. Now, the Top of the World lounge at the Bay Lake Tower is actually a reference to the original restaurant name at the top of the original contemporary building where the California Grill sits today called the Top of the World and would host various Broadway style performances throughout the night. Something that has sadly gone by the wayside with the California Grill. The restaurant and venue would close in 1993 to make way for what is there today. Of course, I I've been talking a lot about it in this video. It's the main premier dining location at the Contemporary, the California Grill, named after the state of California, of course. Now, this is by no means an exhaustive list of every change that happened throughout the Contemporary, throughout the course of its operation. However, Passport to Dreams on Blogspot does have a comprehensive history of everything that changed in the Contemporary over the course of its operation. And that's where I got this wonderful handydandy map of the Grand Canyon Concourse as it appeared in 1971. So, I will link this blog article down in the description below. Please be sure to go and give it a visit if you want to learn more about the Contemporary. However, this map really does help us out. It's mostly lounges and shopping. Okay, spoiler alert. Number one on the list is the Montreal Club Car Lounge. Now, I couldn't find a photo of this lounge.

[00:08:34]However, it was quote a long thin enclosed bar facing Bay Lake. It's a cozy, companionable sort of place for serious drinking. Okay. Serious drinking at the Contemporary. All right. Okay.

[00:08:47]Number two, right below it was Kingdom Jewelers, a very small, very small jewelry store that you can see here.

[00:08:55]Numbers three and four were the Contemporary Man and the Contemporary Woman, which offered clothes, obviously, clothes for men and clothes for women.

[00:09:04]Mid-priced casual wear, nothing fancy.

[00:09:06]Talk about bathing suits. And they did however do tuxedo rentals for men. So I mean if you wanted to get fancy at the Contemporary, the Contemporary Man was your place. I realize I should probably explain this map really quick. This is north. This is south. So when you're riding the Montreal through the Contemporary, it goes this way. Just to make things a little bit more readable here, which means that the south side of the Grand Canyon concourse here is now almost entirely devoted solely to Chef Mickey's. And I mean, I can't really blame them. It's one of the most popular dining locations in any Disney park anywhere in the world, but it takes up most of the entire south wing, except for number nine, the Grand Canyon Terrace being used mostly nowadays for the Contempo Cafe. However, I do think it's interesting that throughout the 50 years that Walt Disney World has been open and operating, the Contemporary has been split into two distinct portions in the Grand Canyon Concourse at least, dining and shopping, and those have remained largely the same ever since. in the same area, I should say. I love the Contemporary. I think it is peak Walt Disney World more so maybe even than the Polynesian. The Polynesian might be peak Disney, but the Contemporary really just screams 1971 Walt Disney World to me. And that's why it will always be one of my favorite resorts on the Montreal Loop. Next up, we visit Disney's Grand Fian Resort and Spa. By the way, they got a spa there.

[00:10:31]Ah, yes. The Grand Fidian, the absolute height of luxury at Walt Disney World, based on Victorian beach towns and beach resorts where you can enjoy a drink on the banks of the Seven Seas Lagoon. You can't actually go into the Seven Seas Lagoon. Do Can you believe people actually used to swim in the lagoon? I mean, I believe that they used to, but I just I I don't trust that water. It's very green.

[00:10:55]Probably some amiebas in there.

[00:10:59]Probably eat your brain. Yes, it has a spa. Yes, there's a Montreal stop. Yes, there's a Michelin star restaurant there. But I want to know more about the Grand Fian. And I want to know its secrets, its details, its hidden little nooks and crannies where you don't usually look that hold something sometimes a little bit more than fancy, sometimes something decadent. It's a way bigger word than fancy. Now, for some, it might be easy to assume that the Grand Fian opened in 1971 alongside the other two Montreal resorts, the Polynesian and the Contemporary.

[00:11:28]However, this is not true. Now, you would be forgiven in thinking that it opened in '71 alongside the other two because it is, after all, on the Montreal loop. But no, it actually opened in 1988. That's one year before Disney's Hollywood Studios opened under Michael Eisner. It just feels like it's been there forever. At least for me, it's it's been there, you know, 11 years before I was even alive. And I think this works in the resort's favor. It feels like it's been there from day one.

[00:11:57]The Grand Fian is without a doubt the fanciest resort on Walt Disney World property. It's where all the rich celebrities stay. It's where all the heads of state will stay if they go to Walt Disney World. It's very prim. It's very proper. It's very fancy. I've stayed there twice in my life and I'm very glad that I did because it's awesome. Now, the architecture of the Grand Fian itself was directly inspired by the Hotel Del Coronado in California, not the Coronado Springs Hotel in Orlando. Two different hotels. The resort was designed by the architecture firm Wimberly Allison Tong and Goo. I really want to meet Goo. And occupies the land of what would have been an Asian themed resort in the original Grandmaster plan for the Disney World project. Not Walt Disney World, just Disney World. They changed that after Walt died. It seems they ended up keeping the color scheme. Let's just slide this bad boy out of storage.

[00:12:47]Goodness, look at that. Okay. Of course, we have the the Contemporary right here.

[00:12:51]I do believe that ended up moving down to where this Venetian resort is located currently. Get the camera right.

[00:12:56]Contemporary Venetian. And then down here we have the Pali that more or less stayed in the same location. Then over here where the Grand Flow would sort of be in this area, you have the Asian resort. And then of course you have the Magic Kingdom here with of course the most important attraction of them all, Haunted Mansion. Now, as we move inside the resort, the restaurants that were there on opening day include 1900 Park Fair, which may sound familiar because it's still there, and it's still called the same thing. In 2026, it's been there for the entire length of the resort's operation. The centerpiece of the restaurant is a very interesting historical artifact. A 19th century carousel organ built in France with 369 pipes, a bass drum, a snare drum, two bells, a tony, castinets, a triangle, a symbol, and another set of 18 bells called Big Bertha. Now, Big Bertha has her own very complicated, very storied history of traveling the world before ending up with the Walt Disney Company in Walt Disney World Resort in the 70s used to promote places like Epcot.

[00:14:00]Believe it or not, I think I want to save that for its own video because it's very, very interesting the story of this organ. But yeah, it's an authentic 18th century organ. Very cool. Flaglers, which is a wonderful name, opened alongside the resort in 88 and has since turned into Citricose. Next to Citricose, you can find Victoria and Albert's Restaurant, which has been open and operating since the resort has, and in 1988. I've been there. It was very, very good. It was a lot of food. Even though these portions look really small, trust me, you will be full by like the third or fourth course. And then they just keep feeding you. Okay, it is crazy. It was a great time. It It was a wonderful time. Very fancy bathrooms.

[00:14:39]Check out the bathrooms if you ever go.

[00:14:41]It just now occurred to me that I filmed vertically like an idiot. Very cool.

[00:14:45]Michelin Star, very fancy, very expensive. Not for everybody. Definitely a one and done for me. Maybe a two and done. I'd like to go back. Narus and the Grand Fian Cafe were also present on opening day. Not a ton has changed at the Grand Flidian. Although the lobby has recently undergone a massive transformation, including the lounge that's upstairs, not recently, but it was changed in about 2020 to the enchanted rose lounge. And we have the new bird cage lounge. Bird cage uh bar.

[00:15:14]What's it called? Hold on. Oh, okay. I was way off. It's called the perch. And it is in, as I was sort of mentioning before, a little bit of a bird cage style motif that replaced the previous bird cage that was there just for aesthetic purposes. Here's something that was added after opening day, though. The Disney wedding pavilion at the Grand Fian opened in 1995. So, a little bit after the opening of the rest of the resort, where you can have your very own fairy tale wedding at the Grand Californian, I mean, Floridaian. This is Florida. I mean, if you wanted to, you could have your wedding at the Grand California, and they do weddings there, too. But not there's no pavilion there.

[00:15:52]Okay, this is the wedding pavilion. They don't got that over in Anaheim. And very quickly, before we talk about the third and final resort on the Montreal loop of the Magic Kingdom, I want to talk about Cooko because the Beach Boys did in fact record the music video for Cooko at the Grand Fian Resort after it had recently opened. They did. They're not in Cooko.

[00:16:13]They're not in Bermuda or the Bahamas.

[00:16:17]They're actually just a quick Montreal ride away from one of the best attractions at Walt Disney World, the Haunted Mansion. I'm I'm sorry I had to mention the Haunted Mansion before we moved on to my personal favorite resort on the Montreal Loop, Disney's Polynesian Village Resort. This This is a big one. Now, based on my shirt and what I'm doing currently, I don't know how I can make my devotion to the Polynesian any more clear than it already is. The Polynesian is, in my opinion, the best resort hotel. And uh I'm going to die on that hill. I I love the vibes. I love the food and the drinks. I love the music. I love the ambiance. I love the the the plants.

[00:16:56]Everything about the Polynesian is wonderful. And I'm going to tell you why later on in the video. But looking at the time down below, you can tell that half of this video is dedicated solely to the Polynesian because there's just so much to talk about. There's so much to explore. There's so much history there because it opened in 1971. And of course, there's so many cast members with so many amazing stories. So, grab yourself a piranha or or a zombie head or a hippopotami and let's uh let's travel to the seven seas together.

[00:17:24]For me, the undisputed king of the Montreal resorts, the Disney's Polynesian Village Resort. That's its full name, by the way. That's why I was calling it that. Some people just call it the Polynesian. Some people just call it the Poly. I can call it all three.

[00:17:37]opened in 1971 along with the rest of Walt Disney World and alongside the contemporary. The Polynesian in 1971 and even sort of still to this day isn't really a accurate portrayal of Polynesian culture. It's more so a portrayal of the hugely popular tiki culture from the 1950s,60s and '7s. Now, to be clear, there are exceptions to this rule. Disney really did have some interesting displays of Polynesian culture throughout the years, which we'll talk about in a moment. But for the most part, it was more like an Adventureland resort or an enchanted tiki room resort than it was an accurate representation of what it would be like to travel to these places, these islands in the Pacific. But that didn't make it any less fun because the Polynesian is very, very fun. Interestingly, during the construction of the Polynesian, the steel structure of the great big ceremonial houses that housed the rooms were erected on site and the prefabricated resort rooms, either with the beds and the chairs and the desks, had the rest of the building construction go up around it, sort of modular style, similar to how it was done across the Seven Seas Lagoon at the Contemporary, although just a bit different. The Contemporary rooms were slid into place. Unfortunately, this left open spaces in between each of the rooms that would eventually grow to become moldy because the Polynesian was built in central Florida alongside the banks of the Seven Seas Lagoon. So, these spaces were filled in and when they added more rooms later on, they were just constructed the this traditional way. They just built the rooms into the building as opposed to constructing the building around the rooms. In 71, it opened with eight long houses. Balihai, Bora Bora, Fiji, Hawaii, Maui, Samoa, Tahiti, and Tonga.

[00:19:18]And then they added Moria, and Pago Pago later in 1985. And as you may have noticed if you've stayed at the Polynesian recently, these are not the names of the long houses today. 10 of the 11 existing long houses were renamed. Balihai became Tonga. Bora Bora became Niway. Hawaii became Samoa. Maui became Rarotonga. Maria became Tahiti.

[00:19:39]Aahu became Tokalao. Pagu Pagu became Rapanui. Samoa became Tuvalu and Tahiti became Artooa and Tonga lastly became Hawaii. Fiji though stayed the same.

[00:19:51]Fiji is just Fiji. Always has been, always will be. Oh, and the little guy on the signs and the statue in the lobby, that's Maui. I, in my opinion, my humble opinion, the superior version of Maui. I'm sorry, Dwayne, but this guy's just he's just very cute. He's sort of the unofficial mascot or the official mascot. Screw it. He's the official mascot of Disney's Polynesian Village Resort. Again, full legal name there.

[00:20:11]Now, back to obscure pieces of history for the resorts. In 1974, 3 years after the Polynesian opened, popular musician and bug John Lennon happened to book a room at the hotel. And at the time, I suppose you could call him a former bug because four years previously in 1970, the Beatles had all sort of gone their separate ways, but they still existed as a band legally. But it was in 1974 in room601 in what is today the Samoa building.

[00:20:40]what used to be back then the Hawaii building where John Lennon officially signed the document that legally ended the band the Beatles. So if you ever want to tell your friends that the Beatles broke up at the Polynesian or a Disney World or at a Disney park, you technically can. I guess Polynesian is not a park. You can tell them that the Beatles broke up legally at Walt Disney World. This is actually one of the more well-known fun facts about the resort. A lesserk known fun fact is that one of the original tiki gods found outside of Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room when it opened at Disneyland in Anaheim in 1973 named Udi, who used to tower above Adventureland alongside the Barker Bird, eventually was removed. She's no longer there today, but she does exist at the Polynesian in Orlando, sitting in the front of the resort, welcoming guests into the great ceremonial house. The sculpture done, by the way, by Rolley Crump. This is probably not the original from Disneyland. In fact, it's most likely not. But it is the exact same sculpt that Raleigh did for the 1963 version of the Tiki Room, which is really cool. A little piece of Disneyland history at Disney World. The restaurant that now houses Ohana, one of the most popular dining locations aside from maybe Chef Mickey's in any of the resorts at Walt Disney World, used to be the Papiti Bay Veranda that housed the Kawaii Pono Polynesian Review, a nightly show that was developed by a cast member, a woman nicknamed Auntie Kawi.

[00:22:01]And she's probably one of the coolest people I've ever talked about on this channel. Now, I'm going to allow her to introduce herself here in a second. She did sadly pass away in 2020, but she was at the Polynesian Resort also from day one from 1971 and she was part of the opening day team. I'll post the full video in the comments down below. It's by the Orlando Sentinel. But without any further ado, everybody, auntie Kawi.

[00:22:25]>> But my name is Aneki Kawi. Anki is Hawaiian for auntie and in Kawi. Uh Kawi Helani means thundering voice of heaven.

[00:22:35]And when I was born at home in Pearl City in 1932, that's a long time ago, um there was lightning and thunder. And so my grandmother gave me this name, Kawi Halani. It means thundering voice of heaven cuz I was screaming so loud. My brother and I were up on the roof about 7:30 eating mangoes cuz the mango tree was right there hanging down everything.

[00:22:57]And then we saw these planes coming over, these white planes, airplanes with this little round sun on it. And we looked at it and we thought, "Oh, that's cool." Then it looked like they were doing dog fighting and they were burning and stuff. I go, "That looks like real fire. How do they do that?" Then my mom told me, "It's war. Get off the roof."

[00:23:17]And I said, "What's war?" We didn't know what war was, but we learned go to war.

[00:23:22]It was a It was a tough time at that time. We had curfew. We had um we they took away all my Japanese friends that lived in Pearl City where I lived and they put them in concentration camps and they had nothing to do with the with the war itself. But it it was it was sad time. I make flower lays for the guests and for honeymooners, anniversary couples, and for special events. My boss, it was Tavana. He's a very well-known entertainer, Tahesian.

[00:23:53]Um he still lives in Tahiti. Uh he had a show uh at the Queen Surf in Wiki and then he had a show at the Alam Moana Center at the hotel and I was part of that show. I was the MC and then dancer and and so Disney apparently had gone over to see him for like three years in a row asking him to take a show over to Disneyland and he said, "Oh, come back next year." They did and come back next year three times. So then they said, "We'll go find somebody else." He said, "Oh, never mind. You go." He just points, "You go." Just like that. He's Tahesian, you know, and I'm kind of spooky, but um I said, "I don't want to go." He said, "Why?" I said, "Because I've always heard once you leave Hawaii, you never go back." And I guess it's true, cuz we left Hawaii for the summer of 1971.

[00:24:45]came up here to Florida only to help them open up the uh Polynesian resort and here I am.

[00:24:55]We're going through a renaissance right now in Hawaii and um since we're so far away from Hawaii, it's very important for us here to keep up our culture in Hawaii. Um, I started teaching in 71 the hoola to the little kids here and mo basically to my my grandkids cuz I wanted no my children and then their their children because I wanted them to learn um what I learned and then try to pass it on. It's very important that we do that.

[00:25:31]Okay, that was a long segment, but is she not like the coolest person you've ever seen? Now, as I mentioned, Auntie Cowi sadly did pass away in January of 2020. And I'm hoping that there's some cast members at the Polynesian keeping her vision, keeping her spirit alive there because the hotel, I say the hotel, the resort is so special and it's so unique when it comes to Disney and even just resort hotels in general. It's a destination in of itself. And I think part of that is because of the people who work there and the culture that it represents. Segueing from that, next door to the Polynesian, there used to be the Spirit of Aloha dinner show. And this is actually where I got married at Disney World. Not in the wedding pavilion, but at the Polynesian, which is maybe another reason why I love the hotel so much back when Luau Point was open. This really cool old like intertwined tree used to be there. I believe they relocated it. I have to look up where they moved it. Okay, so it's just right across from the splash pad, the Moana splash pad they built for the island tower. That tree is still there, which I'm so happy they kept it.

[00:26:32]It's a beautiful tree. Now, the dinner show featured different dancers and different dances from all over the Pacific Islands. And it is one of the extinct experiences at Walt Disney World that I am very sad to say I never got to see. I explored Lua Point day in day out. Whenever I was at Disney World or at the Magic Kingdom, I would love to go just walk the grounds as long as I wasn't passing any chains or going in any cast member areas. I would just walk around Luau Point. But I never got to see the show. And that makes me sad because it closed officially, I should say, in 2022. It had closed alongside the rest of the parks and the resorts for CO, but never reopened. And it was announced that the new island Tower for DVC guests would open, and it did in December of 2024. Now, this is a bit more authentically Polynesian than the main building. Like, for example, in the one-bedroom suite, you can find a carving of a manta ray that was actually designed by Polynesian tattoo artist Joshua Elsis, who has an Instagram page.

[00:27:31]I will also tag him below, Island Tat, if you want to go check out some of his work. Really impressive stuff. So, a lot of the wood carvings, including like the columns in the lobby, all of it is very overtly Polynesian rather than tiki, if if that makes sense. And you know, I'm going to give my opinion here. It's time for Don's opinion on things, my favorite segment of the show. A lot of people were upset when they announced they were removing Spirit of Aloha and building the DVC Tower, especially when they released the concept art for it. And I got to say, I think the outside needs some work. I think the outside of the island tower doesn't match up with the rest of the hotels on the Seven Seas Lagoon, and it certainly doesn't match up with the rest of the Polynesian. I think they need to change the paint tones a little bit to match the main buildings and maybe change up the roof to add the the sort of spires that are on the main long houses at the Polynesian. I think they could fix it if they wanted to. I think it's a huge shame we lost the spirit of Aloha. I think that was a really cool showcase of Polynesian culture that's now gone and replaced by more hotel space. All of that being said, I do like the island tower. Okay, minus the outside, I think it's great. I think Wulu is wonderful.

[00:28:40]if you've ever eaten there. The lobby is beautiful, the rooms are great. I just wish they do something with the outside and I wish somehow they could bring back Spirit of Aloha. I'm actually lucky enough I get to stay there in about a month. So, I will let you all know what I think after staying there for a couple of nights. But, I'm going to end this video on my favorite part of Disney's Polynesian Village Resort, full legal name. And that is downstairs right next to Captain Cook's Trader Sam's Grog Grotto. I love Trader Sam's. I don't know if I can emphasize that enough. And the inside is really, really fun. It's loud. It's exciting. It's fun. There's effects going on. It's colorful. It's vibrant. It's kinetic. It's great. But I'm going to be crazy here. And I'm going to say the patio for Trader Sam's is one of the best experiences you could have at Walt Disney World, especially if it's at night in the summertime or the, you know, the springtime where it's not too hot outside, but you're still nice, warm, toasty, and they have the ukulele player out there and the waterfalls going. Sometimes you'll catch the fireworks from the patio. There is no better spot to enjoy the fireworks than the patio of Trader Sam's. Better than Main Street USA. Better than the hub.

[00:29:46]It's the best spot. And you can grab a food. You can grab a drink. Did I say a food? You can grab a food. You can grab some drink and enjoy the show. And even if the fireworks aren't going, usually they have the ukulele player out there.

[00:29:57]It's just it's a wonderful vibe. It's so relaxing. It's so chill. It's perfect.

[00:30:03]And that is the main reason why I love the Polynesian so much. The hill, oh my goodness, the hill overlooking the Bora Bora bungalows and overlooking the Magic Kingdom. If you catch it at the right time, there's no one up there and you just listen to the loop playing in the background and enjoy the view over the Seven Seas Lagoon into the Magic Kingdom. It's the reason I want the people mover to return to Disneyland. I want to relax, okay? I want to enjoy the parks passively and experience Disney World at peace. And that's what that hill gives. That's what the Trader Sam's patio gives. That's what the people mover, the railroad gives. That's why I love the Polynesian so much.

[00:30:54]>> It's unlike anything else in the world.

[00:30:56]I love it so much. And there you have it. There it is. We officially covered all three of the Montreal resorts in this video. I hope you learned something along the way. I certainly did. I learned so much. And hopefully I earned this Montreal coral trading card. Maybe I did, maybe I didn't. I'll leave that up to you. And it's I'm I'm realizing just now that there are probably cards for each of the Montreal colors. So, I have some things I need to do next time I'm at Walt Disney World. I want that Montreal gold card. Gold Montreal is like it's like the VIP. It's like the Uber black. It's like the limousine of the Montreal world. That's next on my list. So, let me know down in the comments below what your favorite color of Montreal is and what your favorite resort on the Montreal Loop is. I did a poll over on twitter.com, the everything app. And you can see here that uh I'm not alone in my love for the Polynesian.

[00:31:48]Rightfully so, that place is the best.

[00:31:50]We're going to go to the end card now.

[00:31:51]It's this way.

[00:31:55]Got to put this card back. Hello there everybody. Thank you all so much for watching this video on secrets, details, and history of the Montreal resorts at Walt Disney World at the the Magic Kingdom Resort area. If you enjoyed this video, please be sure to hit the like button. And if you're new around here and you want more videos similar to this one, just talking about fun little details, some secrets, and of course the backstories, uh, hit the subscribe button. A very special thank you as always to all of my supporters over at patreon.com/offandes.

[00:32:23]They are the ones who help make all of this possible. Me making these videos, me collecting the footage, me doing the research, all of that is thanks to them.

[00:32:31]If you want to join their ranks, you can for even just $1 a month. The the tiers go up from there, but you get early access to episodes. If that sounds interesting to you, head down to the description below. However, if you'd rather follow me for free, you can absolutely do that. I am offhand Disney on Twitter, Instagram, Tik Tok, and Blue Sky. You can find me on those websites.

[00:32:51]But everybody, that is it for this week's video. I really do hope you all appreciated it. I hope you watched it. I hope you enjoyed it. I mean, if you're watching this, that means you watched it. So, if you're watching this, thank you. And uh we'll have a code word.

[00:33:03]Remember when we used to do the code words at the end of the video? That was fun. Let's do uh let's talk. Let's dolehip. All right.

[00:33:10]Dohwhip is going to be the secret code to let me know that you got to the end of the video. I know some people will say, "Oh, the Polynesian is the best cuz you can get a dull whip there." But me and you will know. All right. me and you will know if you actually got to the end of the video by commenting anything containing the word dull or the word whip in the comments below. All right, thank you again everybody. I'll see you next week. Goodbye.