What Is a DVC Playground, and How Are They Different?

Even during Disney vacations, children grow bored. Thankfully, Disney resorts have planned for this eventuality. At many DVC properties, you’ll discover an entertainment option that will have your child laughing for hours. 

What is a DVC playground, and how are they different? The special ingredient is Disney magic. Let’s talk about why parents will love these particular playgrounds. 

A Playground Started It All 

Walt Disney loved to take his daughters to the park and watch them bounce around the playground. During one of these family activities at Griffith Park, Uncle Walt developed the kernel of the idea for Disneyland. 

So, playgrounds represent the underlying reason why DVC exists. Not coincidentally, Disney’s management team takes the concept seriously, populating many resorts with playgrounds. 

You’ll find the best of them at DVC properties, Disney’s most luxurious hotels. These resorts typically own and operate meticulously themed playgrounds. We’re talking about the typical playgrounds you’d recognize from childhood, but they’re so much better since they’re Disney.

However, DVC resorts also host water play areas, and they’re often even more remarkable feats of Imagineering. Thanks to the DVC program, families have their choice of both. 

What Makes DVC Playgrounds So Good? 

I wrote this piece last year about the best DVC playgrounds. Today, let’s explore the two types of playgrounds and why you’ll enjoy each kind.

You’ll find the more conventional playground offerings at DVC properties like Disney’s Animal Kingdom Villas. At Jambo House, the Hakuna Matata Playground features slides, climbing structures, and places where kids can happily sneak under/over to hide from their parents and one another. 

Because Walt Disney cared so much about play areas for kids, Disney continues to prioritize these family-friendly playgrounds. You’ll know you’re near one due to the squeals of delight you’ll hear from children. 

For example, at Disney’s BoardWalk Villas, you’ll find the Luna Park Crazy Play Area. This location is more modest than other DVC playgrounds, but it exemplifies the Disney difference. I say this because parents need a few elements at a playground.

In a perfect world, you’d have comfortable walking ground rather than unforgiving, possibly cracked pavement. The soft rubber flooring here guarantees your child’s safety. Meanwhile, you’ll have enough shade so you’ll be comfortable while your kids put in the work.

Then, you want the playground to provide enough activities to entertain your child. At Luna Park, you’ll find long slides and several interactive play elements. Kids can play chimes, spin a wheel, stare in a mirror, and more. They’ll burn all their extra energy while you catch your breath and reflexively say, “That’s great, honey!”

I should note that many of these play areas have suggested age requirements. For instance, at Animal Kingdom, the signs warn that Hakuna Matata Playground is best for children ages two to five.

What Are Water Play Areas?

Here’s another aspect of the DVC difference. Some of its “playgrounds” are actually interactive water play areas. While everyone has a personal preference, I’m a bigger fan of the splash areas. 

At Disney’s Riviera Resort, you’ll find the S’il Vous Play area right beside the main playground, which was the case with the Luna Park Crazy Play Area as well. Designers position the playgrounds with the best logistics in mind. That’s ideal since the last thing parents want is to crisscross the resort while searching for the playground.

Courtesy of Disney Tourist Blog

At S’il Vous Play, kids can fire a cannon at one another in a safe, fun way. It’s a water cannon that sprays water ten feet in the air. You won’t find that at your local pool.

Impressively, that’s just one small part of the interactive activities available at S’il Vous Play. Disney has themed this entire water playground to characters from Fantasia. 

You’ll discover several recognizable images from the film. Now, they’re spouting water, some of which kids can weaponize against each other. Parents with more than one child can stick them here and allow them to entertain themselves for a while. 

You can sip an adult beverage, sunbathe, and check your phone. Meanwhile, your kids will forget you exist because they’ll be so locked in on their surroundings. That level of immersion exemplifies Disney’s excellence with playground design.

Still, I’d like to mention one more example. At The Villas at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa, you’ll find the Alice in Wonderland Aquatic Play Area. 

The signature feature at this playground is the Mad Hatter’s giant hat. Throughout the day, this hat fills with water. Eventually, the hat tips over, dumping a flood of water on the kids standing beneath it. Again, you will hear their laughter across the resort. 

Disney creates playgrounds at DVC resorts that are more than just slides and tubes. They’re extensions of the Disney brand, engrossing children into a world where their imaginations can run wild.