D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event just wrapped up, and if you spent the weekend following along, you already know it was a LOT.

The “Horizons: A Carousel of Progress” showcase on August 15th delivered a genuinely massive haul of park news — Tropical Americas, Monstropolis, Villains Land, a reimagined Journey Into Imagination, an expanded Avengers Campus, and international updates from Tokyo to Paris. But if you were hoping for Disney hotel news? You were left hanging.

Despite the flood of ride and land reveals, Disney didn’t share a single new update about its hotels during the showcase. And that’s left us with a running list of hotel questions we’re still waiting on answers to. Here’s what we’re still watching for.

Still No Official Opening Date for Lakeshore Lodge

Disney’s Lakeshore Lodge — the nature-themed DVC resort rising on the former site of River Country near Fort Wilderness — has been one of the most-watched construction projects at Walt Disney World. We got a real update back in early August, when Disney confirmed the resort is targeting a summer 2027 opening and shared new concept art and another round of details, including a first look at the lobby and dining spaces.

Here’s the catch: “summer 2027” is a season, not a date. With sales for DVC resorts typically opening well before a hotel welcomes its first guests, fans are hoping for an actual date sooner rather than later. D23 would have been a natural moment for that news, and it didn’t happen.

Will Disney World Ever Get a New Value or Moderate Resort?

This is the question that never seems to go away. Disney hasn’t opened a true new value resort at Walt Disney World in more than 14 years with Art of Animation opening in 2012. Moderate resorts haven’t fared much better; Coronado Springs and Port Orleans remain the newest properties in that tier, and both have been around for a very long time.

With Disney leaning hard into deluxe and DVC development lately with Lakeshore Lodge and the Island Tower at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort, a new budget-friendly hotel wasn’t on anyone’s real bingo card for D23. But it remains one of the biggest gaps in Disney’s hotel lineup, and fans hoping for a more affordable new build will have to keep waiting.

Shanghai Disney’s Enchanted Star Hotel Still Doesn’t Have an Exact Date

Shanghai Disney Resort turned 10 in June, and the celebration came with a big reveal: the official name for the resort’s third hotel, the Disney Enchanted Star Hotel. The Art Nouveau-inspired, 400-room deluxe property sits on Wishing Star Lake with views of the Enchanted Storybook Castle, and construction has actually been underway since 2023.

Disney gave us a season back in June — winter 2027 — but that’s as specific as it’s gotten so far. Given that D23 spent plenty of time on Shanghai’s upcoming Spider-Man land, it’s a little surprising the Enchanted Star Hotel didn’t get a firmer timeline alongside it.

The Contemporary Resort’s Construction Saga Isn’t Over Yet

If you feel like Disney’s Contemporary Resort has been under construction forever, you’re not wrong. The refurbishment project — covering the atrium, Bay Lake Tower, and the Main Tower’s exterior — launched all the way back in September 2024 with an original target of summer 2025. That deadline slipped to July 2026, and then slipped again: the current timeline now stretches through late 2027.

That’s a three-year project for a resort that’s one of Walt Disney World’s most recognizable, monorail-through-the-building icon or not. With no update on the Contemporary at D23, guests booking a stay anytime soon should still expect to see construction walls and hear daytime work during their trip.

Boardwalk Updates

Over the past few years, it can feel like the Boardwalk is looking bare at Disney World, with multiple restaurants and shops closing their doors. That was until we finally got word what is happening. Disney announced a new dining and entertainment venue called Hurly-Burly will be opening at the BoardWalk in late 2026.

Disney hasn’t revealed much information about Hurly-Burly so far. They’ve shared one piece of concept art when the dining spot was announced. In the afternoons, the space will have fun activities for the whole family, like host-led trivia and games. In the evenings, it will be exclusively open for the 21+ crowd as it turns into a live music venue and lounge. We’re looking forward to hearing more updates soon.

Disney has plenty of hotel news left to share, but it just didn’t happen at D23. We’ll be watching for updates and will let you know when Disney says more. Stay tuned to DisneyFoodBlog.

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