Mixed feelings I guess..,
My wife and I absolutely love Walt Disney World in Florida! We usually spend a week or more in the "Disney Magic" each year, occasionally staying at the Disney All-Stars Resort but usually at our studio timeshare in Orange Lake. We buy the passes, get up early each day, close the parks down each night, we even include the optional water parks, Downtown Disney Quest, resort dining - you get the picture...
So what does this have to do with Oahu you ask? More than you would think!
The Walt Disney Company announced this month that it plans to turn 21 acres of oceanfront property on our Hawaiian island of Oahu into its first mixed-use luxury family resort outside its theme parks. The Disney Blog even speculates that there could be a "water park and possibly some other sort of 'attraction' beyond just the Disney brand." The resort is scheduled to open in 2011 with more than 800 units, including hotel rooms and villas for Disney's timeshare business, Disney Vacation Club. Groundbreaking is expected in the second half of 2008.
Our conflict is simple. Our island in the Pacific is ho' omalie (quiet) and Disney is kulikuli (loud). Oahu, Hawaii is akahai (gentle) and Disney World is wikiwiki (fast paced). Although the development on the island's western side in the Ko Olina Resort & Marina is expected to create 1,000 jobs, our fear is yet another shock to our culture.
The folks over at aloha-hawaii.com think Oahu is prime real estate for the Disney invasion. "When you think about it, it's the perfect family destination; no gambling or the reputation for crazyness, and no hedonism. Just good clean fun! There are so many multi-generational things to do here making it a prime location for the Disney Corporation."
Time will tell...
Aloha ~
