Disney takes a look at building Hawaii spot

Disney representatives have told the Star-Bulletin that Hawaii is on the list of places the company's Parks and Resorts unit is scouting for potential new hotels.

"We've got nothing to announce today, but clearly Hawaii as well as other geographies are attractive markets for us as we look for ways to grow our business," said Disney spokeswoman Lisa Haines.

A local broker who asked not to be identified said the 52-year-old theme park and resort operator is close to signing a deal with the Ko Olina Resort & Marina. Ko Olina developer Jeff Stone could not be reached for comment yesterday.

Disney has previously said that it would not be building another theme park in any of the domestic states. However, the company is looking at a number of different areas worldwide to build new stand-alone hotels.

Domestically, the company owns and operates Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, Calif., and Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Fla., which have their own on-site hotels.

The company has historically built and operated its domestic operations, while it has partnered to develop the Hong Kong Disneyland and Disneyland Resort Paris. Tokyo Disneyland is owned and operated separately under license.
Source: wdwinfo