Court of Flags Resort

The Court of Flags Resort in its heyday

The Court of Flags Resort was a resort located in Orlando, Florida, USA.

History

It was built by US Steel in 1972 and opened in 1974. It was a popular upscale resort when it opened, and later in its life it become more of a budget resort. In 2006, it was demolished to make room for the new Citymark of Orlando; this never materialized. It was located near International Drive, on Major Boulevard just across the street from Universal Orlando Resort, and just across the street from the now defunct Mystery Fun House.

Name changes

The resort changed names a few times during its life:

The Court of Flags – 1974 to the late 1970s–early 1980s
Ramada Court of Flags – Late 1970s–early 1980s to 1995
Delta Orlando Resort – 1995 to 1999 (closing)
In 2001, the hotel was to be remodeled into a Doubletree resort. After tourism declined following the September 11 attacks, the plans never materialized.

Construction

The Court of Flags Resort is noted for its unique construction type. The rooms were slid into bays built into the frame of the resort building. They used the same system the Contemporary Resort and Polynesian Resort used at Walt Disney World.

U.S. Steel movie clip showing process of how the rooms were installed

US Steel thought this new system of building would catch on and revolutionize construction. When rooms needed to be upgraded they could be removed and a new one added. However, this and the Contemporary Resort both were prototypes of this type construction. The system had flaws that were not known until later. The buildings shifted and settled. The rooms could never be removed again. The air space between the rooms kept too much moisture and let mildew grow.

The resort consisted of four separate guest room buildings. It housed a total of 800 rooms with 16 suites. It also had three pools and three restaurants.

References

Hampton, Jim (14 December 2001). "Delta: Down time is right time for $38M redesign: Hotel will get new hotel affiliation, name change as part of overhaul.(Delta Court of Flags Hotel)". Orlando Business Journal via AccessMyLibrary.com. Retrieved 2008-07-09. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
Mervine, Bob (August 19, 2005). "Delta resort near Universal scheduled for demolition. Aging hotel to make way for construction of residential community with retail component". Orlando Business Journal. Retrieved 2008-07-09. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
Hampton, Jim (December 14, 2001). "Delta: Down time is right time for $38M redesign. Hotel will get new hotel affiliation, name change as part of overhaul". Orlando Business Journal. Retrieved 2008-07-09. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)

External links