Cranes Arrive at Reflections Lakeside Lodge Construction Site in Walt Disney World

Shannen Ace

Construction site with three large cranes against a cloudy sky, cars parked in the foreground, and buildings in the background.

Cranes Arrive at Reflections Lakeside Lodge Construction Site in Walt Disney World

Construction recently resumed at the site of Reflections – A Disney Lakeside Lodge at Walt Disney World Resort. Cranes have now arrived on site and concrete columns have gone up.

Reflections Construction

Two cranes at a construction site near a body of water with trees and a cloudy sky in the background.

During our Monday boat ride past the construction site, we spotted several cranes. Construction picked up last month after the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) gave Disney permission for a crane to construct a 10-story hotel. The permit allows for crane work through August 14, 2025.

Construction site with cranes and equipment near a body of water, surrounded by trees under a cloudy sky.

On the ground around these cranes, we saw several concrete walls and wooden forms of future walls. Safety fencing is along the edge of the construction site. Yellow barriers in the water prevent debris from drifting away.

A construction crane and concrete pillars beside a river, with trees and clouds in the background.

A little further down, we saw about a dozen concrete pillars. Each has rebar sticking out of them, indicating they will get taller.

Construction site with large crane near a body of water under a cloudy sky. A single bird is swimming on the water's surface.

The pillars are in three rows with piles of dirt around them. More concrete walls and frameworks are visible further in the distance.

A construction site with cranes is visible across a body of water, bordered by trees. Cloudy sky above, with a wooden dock in the foreground.

The yellow barriers in the water end next to the beach at Fort Wilderness.

A construction site with cranes, a fenced area, and several parked vehicles under a cloudy sky. Buildings are visible in the background.

From a bus leaving the resort, we got a look at the back of the construction site. Here we spotted a yellow wall over the green scrim.

Disney announced Reflections – A Disney Lakeside Lodge in 2018 for the land that was once River Country, near Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground. The abandoned water park was demolished in 2019. Construction had barely begun on Reflections when the COVID-19 pandemic shut down work. Within a couple of years, the resort was thought to be canceled. However, multiple filings for construction permit extensions over the past year, and then the FAA permit, indicate Reflections is resurrected.

We don’t yet know if the new hotel will still be named Reflections – A Disney Lakeside Lodge or if it will even feature the same theming. Check out the original concept art of Reflection’s public spaces and guest rooms inspired by “Bambi,” “Brother Bear,” “Fox and the Hound,” and “Pocahontas.”

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