The *NEW* Polynesian Resort FAQ thread - *2008*

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It should be cheaper to do two rooms vs a Suite, depending on the views. Two rooms have the added benefit of two bathrooms, whereas a suite may only have one.

Poly rooms sleep 5, with two queen beds and a daybed, so it's not necessary to do either, unless sharing beds is not an option.
 
:cool1: Just got an email from Tracy my TA at DU....she just got off the phone with Poly people and my rooms have been assigned! :thumbsup2 Connecting with a balcony!:cool1:

She didn't say what Longhouse....I didn't make any request and it doesn't really matter...they all have +/- IMHO. I wanted to leave SOMETHING to chance and give the pixie dust a chance to work. :goodvibes

So I know it will be a garden view, 2nd or 3rd floor, with connecting rooms.

Do all the building have connecting rooms? For some reason I am feeling Fiji....no real reason just a feeling. Rapa Nui would be my last pick...but really don't care....I'll let you know when I get back if I am psychic or just psychotic. :rotfl2:

Sorry I'm a little giddy right now.:laughing:
Packing is driveing me crazier.
 
Club Level guests at the Polynesian get the same valet parking that a guest staying in a regular Magic Kingdom view, Lagoon view or Garden view get.

I must be really dense or something.:drive: If you are a guest (at any level) at the Polynesian and you arrive by car do you have a choice between valet and self parking? Is there an additional charge for valet parking? Can you just pull into the lot and park, grab your bags and walk up? At any hotel I've stayed at that has valet parking (this is always in a city) you have to pay $15 to $25 each day for valet parking. Does anyone understand what I'm talking about?:confused3 I don't want to have an additional charge of like $75 on my bill because I pulled up out front and let someone park my car and take my bags out of the trunk. :scared1:
 
I must be really dense or something.:drive: If you are a guest (at any level) at the Polynesian and you arrive by car do you have a choice between valet and self parking? Is there an additional charge for valet parking? Can you just pull into the lot and park, grab your bags and walk up?

Yes, you do have a choice. :thumbsup2

After you go check in at the guard shack, the CM will give you directions to the self-parking lot. You can park there, get your bags and walk right from the parking lot, across the two lanes for Poly traffic, right into the GCH. The parking lot is really close to the Poly (unlike at the GF where the self-park lot is all the way out in B.F.E somewhere). Even better, you can drive up to the GCH, get all your bags out and have another family member park the car in the self-park lot.

Because of how close it is, I wouldn't bother with valet parking. Valet is $11/day I believe. This doesn't include your discretionary tip.
 


Getting ready to book Poly for a few days in August, going to probably need 2 rooms (4 adults & 1 child) any ideas what would be the most cost effective way to go (2 BR suite or 2 rooms?)

Two rooms at the Poly are always cheaper than a 2 BR suite. I'd go that route. My sister recently looked at the price for a 2 BR suite and went :scared1: at the cost. We're doing two lagoon view rooms instead.

Also - question- Are all of Poly's rooms 1st or 2nd level? I don't recall them having an towers, buildings all seem low. Also since I am trying to keep the cost down I am going to request the "garden view" rooms, if I also request to be close to a pool is there any chance I might get some kind of view too? Any room suggestions on what I should request to do the best?

There are three (3) levels for each longhouse at the Poly--with the exception of Nuie (I may be wrong on Nuie). Our room in the Samoa building was right across from the volcano pool and I wasn't able to see anything else besides the pool. Folks who have stayed close to the pool in Tokelau may be able to tell you otherwise.

Never stayed in Poly, have stayed in GF, but want to go somewhere dif. this time. Do they have any special activities that a 2 1/2 year old could do?

Plenty! :thumbsup2 This is why my family stays here. The Keki Corner in the Grand Ceremonial House has arts and crafts for the kids. You can get a schedule of activities when you check in. There is a big LG flatscreen tv there that runs vintage Disney cartoons. Also, a mousekeeper usually is there making towel critters that the kids love to take with them (yes, it is okay that you do this). The Neverland Club has activities for the children of Polynesian guests from 1 - 4pm. You have to accompany your child during these activities. And they're free of charge. :thumbsup2
 
everylastbreath, as MsStinkerBelle said - it is definitely cheaper to do two rooms especially if you are going to do gv. I compared the suite to a concierge room and 2 rooms in concierge came out cheaper. I also agree with the activities at the Poly. I have three children and all of them like the Poly the best. They have more fun at the hotel than they do the parks. We only live 3 hours away so we go a lot. There are some trips that they don't want to go to the parks at all. We just go for the hotel. We never get bored at the Poly.
 
I also agree with the activities at the Poly. I have three children and all of them like the Poly the best. They have more fun at the hotel than they do the parks. We only live 3 hours away so we go a lot. There are some trips that they don't want to go to the parks at all. We just go for the hotel. We never get bored at the Poly.


Really? Even as young as a 2 1/2 year old? I know they have a pool, do they have a playground (Hopefully in the SHADE!, don't understand why they put them in direct sun) what other types of activities do they have for kids? Since you have obviously been there quite a bit, let me ask you- Have you ever gone to Mickey BBQ @ Campground? didn't really get great reviews. I might cancel ADR for it. Also is there any specific building I should request?
 


I'll be staying at the Poly with my DD in January-- she'll be 3 by then... and it did seem to me that for that age the Poly was a good fit-- I'll be anxious to hear what everyone else says!!
 
You're behind a car w/ the license plate "luv kona" and the first thing that pops into your head is Kona Cafe :rotfl:
 
Yes, you do have a choice. :thumbsup2

After you go check in at the guard shack, the CM will give you directions to the self-parking lot. You can park there, get your bags and walk right from the parking lot, across the two lanes for Poly traffic, right into the GCH. The parking lot is really close to the Poly (unlike at the GF where the self-park lot is all the way out in B.F.E somewhere). Even better, you can drive up to the GCH, get all your bags out and have another family member park the car in the self-park lot.

Because of how close it is, I wouldn't bother with valet parking. Valet is $11/day I believe. This doesn't include your discretionary tip.
Thank you MsStinkerBelle! You answered my question perfectly. :flower3:
 
Really? Even as young as a 2 1/2 year old? I know they have a pool, do they have a playground (Hopefully in the SHADE!, don't understand why they put them in direct sun) what other types of activities do they have for kids? Since you have obviously been there quite a bit, let me ask you- Have you ever gone to Mickey BBQ @ Campground? didn't really get great reviews. I might cancel ADR for it. Also is there any specific building I should request?

Yeah, I know it sounds crazy to some people but we have been to Disney so much now that we don't have to do parks all the time. We have a few things that we like in each park and other than that spend our time at the hotel. I have a little boy that just turned 3 and a 1 1/2 year old. They both love it just as much as my 7 year old. There is not a playground. That would be nice though. They have a wonderful zero depth entry pool. I am able to let them play in the shallow water while I sit right by them in the water. That is wonderful. They are in the water without me having to hold them the whole time. They love it and I don't get tired. We all are relaxing. Off to the side of the pool there is an alcove that has squirting water out of the ground that the children also love to play in. They have childrens activities in the lobby a lot that are all free. You can just walk up and learn how to hula. The younger children are so cute doing this. They also make leighs and let the children help out. My little boy just turned 3 and he loves to do this. I'm sure that would depend on each child's coordination and attention span. The beach is wonderful too. We don't get to close to the water but there is plenty of sand to play on. They dig and build sand castle's while I either help out or lay in one of the hammocks next to them. The tiki torch lighting ceremony each night is fun to watch too. We also love to watch Wishes from the beach and the electric water pagent each night. I don't remember if you said which room category you booked or not. If you booked a theme park view you would have a good view of both from your room. We always stay concierge so I haven't tried out any buildings except for Hawaii. I'm sorry I don't have any good suggestions on buildings to request.

We have not done the Mickey bbq but we have gone to the campground for the campfire and movie. They have campfires and roast marshmellows with Chip and Dale before showing a movie on an outdoor screan. I haven't done that a couple of years so I am not positive they still do it but I haven't heard otherwise. That is pretty easy to get to from the Polynesian.
 
Thanks Minnie, sounds great- haven't booked yet, Thinking of Club, but really trying to keep costs down and don't know if we will really be taking advantage of it enough to make it worth while. Thinking of Garden view - hope I don't get a view of parking lot, although it really doesn't make much of a diff. since we are really rarely in the room. Activities sound great, I would love to see my GS HULA! That would be a video event. Also booked the Character BF at Ohana's, do they also do a dinner? I can't wait to see the water parade, we have seen it from the GF (when we stayed there), GS will also get a charge out of that. Maybe we'll see you there! Thanks for the info. Anything else (hints, tips, etc) you want to share is appreciated. Thanks!
 
booked the Character BF at Ohana's, do they also do a dinner?

There aren't any characters at dinner at 'Ohana, but there is entertainment; either a woman or man plays the ukelele and joins the children to come up for coconut races and hula lessons. She/He also sings Happy Anniversay and Happy Birthday to those guests who are there celebrating. They also sing Hawaiian type songs in between the kid events. Even though our children are older now we still enjoy dinner at 'Ohana and seeing other people's children participate in the activities, and hearing the live Hawaiian music (a singer and a ukelele) they play. :)

I have a few pictures from the character breakfast at 'Ohana, I'll try and get them on a page here in the thread some time this weekend :)

Like others have already said, Lilo and Stitch are there, but also the main cheese himself, Mickey Mouse :sunny:
 
I've stayed in the Hawaii longhouse on 4 different trips, with my 5th stay coming up in May! :sunny:

I love the location of the Hawaii longhouse. It's located right along the beach of the Seven Seas Lagoon, and just a few steps from the volcano pool and children's water play area.

The north side of the building faces the lagoon and from my own perceptions, I would think that almost every single room on that side of the building would have a great view of the Magic Kingdom (unless there were some bushes partially blocking the view from the ground floor rooms). The rooms on this side of the building are called Lagoon View Club Level rooms, and it's a specific booking category.

The south side of the building faces the "quiet pool" and trees/grassy areas. Those are the Garden View Club Level rooms. These also are a specific booking category.

On BOTH sides of the Hawaii building the first floors all have patios, the second floors have only a wooden railing when you open the sliding glass doors, so you do get a full view, but there's no area to step out on to, and the third floor rooms all have balconies.

I have some health issues which effect my walking and stamina so the Hawaii building is the best choice for me because as already mentioned it's very close to the pool, and just a few more steps past the pool is the marina and boat dock that takes you directly to the Magic Kingdom. We don't even bother going to the Great Ceremonial House to catch the monorail to the MK because the boat is so close to our longhouse. If we're having a meal inside the GCH, then we do take the monorail, since we're already right there.

The walk to the TTC is a little longer from here than some of the other longhouses that are located at that end of the resort, but since my DH smokes, we always stop over at the smoking area at Tangaroa Terrace so he can have a quick cigarette before we continue on to the TTC and the Epcot Monorail. Having said that, I still don't think it's a very long walk at all. My estimate would be about 5-7 minutes at a normal pace. And the bonus is that you get to see more of the beautiful, lush grounds of the resort; there are so many tropical plants, flowering shrubs, and Hawaiian/tiki sculptures that it's really a treat to check it all out as you walk along. :)

We've always stayed on the Lagoon View side of the building, and it never fails to take my breath away the first time we enter our room and walk out on the balcony! On our next trip our DAunt will be with us and she'll be in a Garden View Club Level room so I'll be able to take some pictures of the view she'll have.

In the meantime, here are a couple of pictures of the views we've had in our Lagoon View rooms:

ROOM #3517(We were in this exact room on 2 of our trips)
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Using the zoom on our camera:
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Looking to your right is the Contemporary Resort:
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Looking to your left is the Grand Floridian:
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ROOM #3503 views
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ROOM #3502 views
Taken from inside our room
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Since most of my pictures of the insides of the rooms are already posted in this thread I won't bother to post them again. All of the rooms basically look the same on the inside, although the art hanging on the wall will vary.
 
Thank you so much for those lovely photos. I'm looking forward to checking into the poly for the first time next week :goodvibes

Dawn
 
Thanks for showing those pics Seaspray. You definitely have me in the mood for our club level July trip that we just booked.:thumbsup2

One of those views looks exactly as we had last year when staying for T---fest. Cant wait to have that view again!
 
Hi,
We arrive on 3/2 for a week's stay. It's a surprise for our daughter who will be turning 5 on the 3rd. Does anyone know if I contact the front desk if they can have balloons sent to the room on the 3rd for her birthday? We've done Disney a lot but never for a special occassion so I'm unsure of what is available.
Thanks!
 
December 2007 Polynesian review.

Longhouse we stayed in: Hawaii.

This was my families very 1st stay at the Polynesian and the reason why we stayed there is because when our reservations were made the Atrium Club Level at the Contemporary was sold out, so we thought it would be a good time to try something new and even though the Atrium Club became available later on we kept our Polynesian reservation.

Anyway a few days before we were to leave we got an e-mail from Disney Destinations. I thought it was them sending us another confirmation for our Garden View Club Level room, when it was a new confirmation for a Lagoon View Club Level room. When we checked in on December 15, 2007 it was confirmed that the upgrade did happen and we ended up in room 3510 and had a clear view of the Magic Kingdom. Later that night when we returned from Downtown Disney there was a box of Chocolate with the Polynesian design and a card with our name on there, saying thank you for staying with us. So that was a nice surprise.

The Cast Members working in the Hawaii Longhouse were amazing and very nice, the lounge looked great and it was fun having all those drinks in the fridge the whole time we were there. The foods they offered everyday tasted great, however the only thing I did not like was the Sticky Wings. Personally I thought they tasted a bit raw. However one of them did something very nice for me. I asked them if there was any Nestle Quick Chocolate Milk in mini bottles because that was something they offered in the Atrium Club lounge. I was told no it was not. The next day when we came back and checked our mini fridge, there were 12 bottles of it and we got a message on our room phone saying they were happy to do that for me.

The walkway to the GCH was very easy, so it's good how they have the Hawaii Longhouse kind of in the central part of the grounds. Besides that the walk over to the TTC was very easy to follow and it's great staying that close to the Volcano pool.

The only negative thing we experienced although it was nothing major, it took a maintenance Cast Member 3 days to fix a light in our bathroom which was not working from the day we arrived. After telling this again and again to the Cast Members in the Hawaii Longhouse someone finally came to fix it, even though it should have been done right away.
 
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