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The grand, turn-of-the-century summer homes of Martha's Vineyard
and Nantucket are recalled in Disney's Yacht Club Resort and Disney's
Beach Club Resort, two deluxe-category hotels at Walt Disney World
Resort.
Guests can walk or go by tram from the resorts to Epcot, or travel
by water taxi to Disney's Hollywood Studios. Convenient bus service transports
guests throughout Walt Disney World Resort.
The luxury club hotels on the shores of 25-acre Crescent Lake are
designed by noted architect Robert A.M. Stern, best known for his
East Coast seaside homes. The resorts take guests back to the 1890s
with fancy-cut shingles, French doors and other post-modern embellishments
that are the trademark of Stern's work.
The imagery follows through in Stormalong Bay, a 2 1/2-acre water
recreation area reminiscent of a Nantucket beach with a life-size
shipwreck with water slides, snorkeling in a sandy lagoon and a
meandering swimming area that seemingly flows into the surrounding
lake.
There is also a 73,000-square-foot convention center adjacent to
the resorts that includes a 36,000-square-foot ballroom capable
of seating up to 2,800 for dinner.
Complementing each other, the three-, four- and five-story club
hotels nonetheless have distinctive architectural styles. Each hotel
has its own entrance motif, main lobby, restaurants and retail shops.
New England Echoes in Disney's Yacht Club Resort
Oak floors, antique chandeliers and rich millwork and brass evoke
memories of New England summer days in Disney's Yacht Club Resort.
Cast members in navy blue blazers greet guests as they check into
the silvery-gray clapboard hotel.
The nautical theme carries through in the hotel's restaurants.
With porthole windows and a picturesque wall of moving sailboats,
Yacht Club Galley features regional New England foods like chowder,
fresh fish and home-baked breads along with sandwiches, steaks and
chicken specialties.
Yachtsman's Steakhouse is inspired by Northeastern eateries with
a glassed beef-aging room, open-air kitchen and hardwood-fired grills
for meats and vegetables. The dining area features a spacious rotunda
room as well as a private room with seating for 12.
For hors d'oeuvres and drinks, rustic Crew's Cup Lounge offers
beers from around the world in frosted mugs. The room is designed
in reclaimed Southern pine with copper accents, and the walls are
lined with art and memorabilia of Ivy League rowing teams.
The 630-room hotel offers luxurious suites, including presidential
and vice-presidential suites. Spacious rooms decorated in blues
and whites carry through the nautical theme. All have French doors
that open onto porches or balconies.
An expansive croquet lawn at Disney's Yacht Club Resort goes with
the relaxed, leisure spirit of the 1870s, and the resort's marina
lighthouse welcomes guests home after a day in the Walt Disney World
theme parks.
Disney's Beach Club Resort More Whimsical
The pale-blue-and-white "stick-style" Beach Club is "a little bit
of this, a little bit of that," said Stern with a smile. Stick style,
he explained, was the prevalent architecture for seaside wooden
cottages in the 1860s and 1870s, "like grandmother's fabulous beach
house -- ceiling fans, chintz, gingham."
The crisp colors open up the hotel's lobby with white wicker furniture,
24-foot-high ceilings, natural French limestone floors and a seashell
motif. Cast members are dressed in more casual pastel knickers or
dresses.
Restaurants range from an authentic clambake with a rockweed steamer
in the 218-seat Cape May Cafe to Martha's Vineyard, a cozy 59-seat
lounge featuring a wide variety of wines.
All of the 583 rooms continue the "summer cottage" ambiance with
cool colors, a scattering of seashells and French doors to outdoor
porches and a white-sand beach.
Both hotels offer child-care facilities and are accessible to handicapped
guests.
Stormalong Bay
Guests can splash through three lagoon areas -- including one specifically
designed for younger water-lovers, with a depth of 2 to 3 feet.
A spiral stair on board the life-sized shipwreck ascends to a 150-foot
mast, broken and askew to serve as a flume plummeting toward a rocky
outcropping where another 150 feet of spins complete a fast-moving
thrill slide.
Each hotel also features a "quiet pool" in alcoves far removed
from Stormalong Bay. There also are motorized watercraft at the
resort marina.
A tile-lined, 12-person Jacuzzi, reminiscent of the famous old
health spas, is the centerpiece of the 4,750-square-foot Ship Shape
Health Club. A steam bath, sauna and massage rooms also are included.
A weight room and aerobics room both have staff trained to assist
guests.
The centrally located Beaches & Cream old-fashioned ice cream parlour
is the place to head after a swim or workout, where guests can order
burgers and decadent desserts like banana splits, frozen hot cocoa,
floats, shakes and malts.
Meeting Space Themed to Disney's Yacht Club Resort
A 73,000-square-foot convention center carries through the oyster-gray
color and architecture of Disney's Yacht Club Resort, with elegant,
"patriotic" red, white and blue interiors. Largest space is the
36,000-square-foot Grand Harbor Ballroom. The remaining space may
be divided into more than a dozen meeting rooms.
The convention center is joined to Disney's Yacht Club Resort by
a covered walkway.
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