Interesting Facts about Old Key West
Thirty years ago, Disney Vacation Club made a change. Loyal fans still know the deal, though. The name may not be the same, but Disney’s Old Key West Resort remains the Disney Vacation Club Resort in our heart of hearts. Here are a few interesting facts about Old Key West.
It Came from the 80s
In January 1990, then-CEO Michael Eisner happily declared the 1990s as the Disney Decade. His plans for this era had started two years before then, though. Eisner wanted to supercharge the entire company with his new ideas and vision for the future.
As part of his ambitions, Eisner hoped to stave off a growing threat. The timeshare industry had grown into a $400 million industry during the 1980s. By this point, Orlando, Florida, had already become one of the tourist destinations in the south. So, Disney was losing hotel revenue to timeshares in the greater Orlando area.
Eisner’s plan centered on kickstarting a Disney-fied version of timeshares, the idea that evolved into the Disney Vacation Club. He and his team agonized over the perfect location for the first luxury resort. Eventually, they settled on a 150-acre plot of land near the popular Lake Buena Vista Golf Course, which had opened in 1972.
The placement shouldn’t be lost on you. Disney fully intended to use the lure of a golf course to entice older tourists to try the new lifestyle. Hopefully, they’d invest a few thousand dollars to become among the first Disney lifestyle enthusiasts.
To emphasize the point, Disney designed unique buildings whose rooms had windows on three sides. The idea was to display this new classic Key West resort as a slice of paradise. And it worked! DVC quickly accrued $50 million in revenue in year one. Disney had immediately caught lightning in a bottle with its idea.
Did You Ride the Yellow Bus?
Have you ever taken a ride on the stylish yellow Old Key West bus? You’re dating yourself if you answered yes to this one, as it’s before my time, and I’m a child of the 1980s.
If you’re familiar with your Old Key West history, you may have heard of the antique yellow bus. I can only describe this vehicle as a stretch limo in the style of a Rolls-Royce. Also, it was more yellow than your favorite Simpsons character.
Eisner wanted to generate attention for his new revenue-making program. As a showman by nature, Eisner loved the idea of taking guests to a DVC presentation via memorable transportation. The antique yellow bus would pick up guests at the resort and take them to the sales pitch. Then, it would return them to Old Key West.
Anyone who ever rode this vehicle has never forgotten it. The whole thing seems like a fever dream with the benefit of hindsight. Disney has generally been above such shenanigans, but Eisner loves his Commodore House bus.
Alas, by the late 1990s, Disney officials had realized the bus wasn’t working as intended. Disney tore down the Commodore House, aka the sales pitch office, which is now home to building 62 at Old Key West. Once that happened, management retired the antique yellow bus. You’ll still find fond reminiscences on social media from fans of this stylish vehicle, though.
There’s a Reason Why You Feel Right at Home
Have you ever stopped to think about the appearance of Old Key West’s buildings? There’s a reason why the words “Welcome Home!” resonate at this resort. They ring true.
When Disney plotted this hotel, it designed buildings in the style of southern residences. That’s why they’re two stories tall! You’ll feel the same way here as you would wandering through any neighborhood in the area. The look and style mirror standard communities, albeit with throwback touches to a lost era of Key West, Florida.
So, the home cooking is real throughout the resort. Disney even leaned into the premise with Olivia’s Café, which serves actual home cooking! Okay, that’s not technically true, as chefs prepare everything on-site. However, the backstory at Olivia’s is that the namesake chef invited guests into her home. That’s how pervasive the idea of “southern comfort” is at this resort.
Disney’s Old Key West Resort: Olivia’s Cafe
The Rooms Are Glorious Relics
When Eisner plotted the DVC program, timeshares were on his mind. They were already a $400 million industry before Disney ever got involved. Eisner viewed timeshares as the inspiration and the competition.
Those 1980s-era Florida timeshares generally followed the same formula. They hosted one- and two-bedroom villas large enough to feel like vacation homes. Disney mimicked that premise for Old Key West.
Not coincidentally, the Villas here are larger than most of the others in the DVC program. An Old Key West Studio is spacious enough at 390 square feet. That size puts it on the larger end of the DVC Studio spectrum. Where you’ll really notice a difference is with the Villas, though.
A One-Bedroom Villa at Old Key West covers 942 square feet! Yes, it’s well over double the size of a Studio. Your first apartment may not have been as large as the Villas at this resort. In fact, the Two-Bedroom Villa is even more cavernous at 1,395 square feet.
The scale of these Villas fits with the premise of combating timeshares. Even better, they also mesh perfectly with the “home away from home” design of Old Key West. Thematically, everything fits like a glove. And you benefit mightily because you get to book rooms of this size. Disney quickly realized it had overcompensated here and dialed down the space in future DVC residences. That reality makes Old Key West one of one in the program.
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