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

[mikkiwikki]

I know I promised a report of our stay, but it has literally been one thing after the other around here. . .I finally feel better, but I had wisdom teeth out last week and have been recovering from that ordeal. Yuck!

Anyway, here's a link to my 2008 Disney photos on Photobucket. There's some views of Polynesian in there too. I sure didn't take many photos this year primarily because I was too sick most of the time to pull the camera from the bag--yeah, that vacation could have been better, but there's always next time!

http://s229.photobucket.com/albums/ee225/Tess1009/Disney%202008/

Ok what date did you take the picture of the volcanoe pool - its PACKED!!

I hope its not that packed when we go.

 

[huntconn]

Ok what date did you take the picture of the volcanoe pool - its PACKED!!

I hope its not that packed when we go.

The volcano pool this time of year is pretty crowded between 1pm-ish and 4pm-ish. It's never seemed TOO crowded to me but everyone is different. You can always go to the quiet pool which is almost never crowded. Think about it...the Volcano pool is arguably the best themed pool on property (with the best view). Makes sense every kid at the Poly is going to want to swim there. I suggested going to the quiet pool to my kids the other day and they just looked at me like I had just sprung 6 new heads!
Chef Mickeys was really fun last night. Great character interaction. Nice food variety and good quality. This is not fine dining but it's a good value for all of the great character interaction. I tried my first mojito last night. YUK! I told my wife it tasted like the "mint flavored mouth piece" I had while playing football in high school. NASTY!

 

[johnsonet]

Thanks for the nice words. I really appreciate that. I wasn't sure if I might be going overboard with these updates. Glad you guys like them. As for the "wonderful attitude" , I've just never been one of those people who let (what I consider) the little things ruin by overall experience. Yes, the shower heads are too low at the poly, there are no balconies on the 2nd floor, the hallways are a little dark...WAAAAAAAH! No resort is perfect, no cast member is perfect. But this is the closest I've found!

No way could you go overboard with live reports

I know! What is with the shower heads?!

Yes, the Polynesian is "perfectly" wonderful For those who don't "get it", that's their loss

Enjoy your vacation

 

[polineedyan]

If youre ever at the upstairs bar in GCH, try the Champagne Mojito. Its pricey, but its actually, VERY GOOD.

 

[johnsonet]

If youre ever at the upstairs bar in GCH, try the Champagne Mojito. Its pricey, but its actually, VERY GOOD.

Yum! I've got to try that! A champagne cocktail is one of my faves - mojito twist sounds interesting

 

[SeaSpray]

huntconn:

I just added links to all of your LIVE posts, on Post 1! The name of the section is "Follow DISer "huntconn" as he posts LIVE from the Polynesian! July 2008"

I hope this is OK with you! I'm so glad that you and your family are having a wonderful time!!

 

[BCV23]

Yes, the Polynesian is "perfectly" wonderful For those who don't "get it", that's their loss

Exactly!

Thanks for more updates, huntconn. Really appreciate you taking one for the team by doing the tropical drink research. I love the mai tais at the Polynesian. Having at least one per trip is a tradition for me.

What a great idea, SeaSpray.

 

[SeaSpray]

Exactly!

Thanks for more updates, huntconn. Really appreciate you taking one for the team by doing the tropical drink research. I love the mai tais at the Polynesian. Having at least one per trip is a tradition for me.

What a great idea, SeaSpray.

Yes, thank you huntconn for your time and effort in doing the tropical drink research for the rest of us!!

 

[EnchantedPiglet]

I am so close to crying.
I miss the Poly so much.

 

[BCV23]

I am so close to crying.
I miss the Poly so much.

 

[cyndisun]

Wow! I'll just say again how great this thread is. I checked out another resort thread (won't say which one) and it couldn't touch this one. Not only has SeaSpray done such a fabulous job setting it up, the folks posting here are wonderful and helpful. On the other thread it said, "I'd like to keep the chit chat to a minimum". Sheesh. Well, different strokes...

Here's my question:

We will be at the Poly for the first time in 40 days! We have an ADR for our arrival night at Ohana's. It will be me, DH and DS11. Can anyone tell me more in depth about the "entertainment" at the restaurant? I've heard about the coconut races (I'm not expecting formal entertainment, but it seemed from other folks that lots of things are going on). I'm wondering how DS will like it. He is in that tweener stage where he can't act too impressed by anything. I'm sure those who have or have had tweeners know what I mean.

DS will eat the food at Ohana's, I'm not worried about that. As long as no one tells him he can order from a kids menu he'll be adventurous and probably like the selections.

So...any entertainment feedback out there?

Thanks!

 

[BCV23]

Welcome to a friendly thread, cyndisun! SeaSpray does a great job, doesn't she? And I love the 'Ohana spirit here.

We've only had dinner at 'Ohana once but where we were seated, we didn't even see or hear any entertainment during our dinner. From pictures that I've seen posted it looks like mostly small children involved in the coconut races, etc. so I think your tween should be fine. He can enjoy his status of being too old to participate (unless he wants to do so) while watching the little ones have fun.

Happy planning!

 

[EnchantedPiglet]

= ) I really really like to look at the pictures people take of the Poly but it's so sad!!!

 

[SeaSpray]

Wow! I'll just say again how great this thread is. I checked out another resort thread (won't say which one) and it couldn't touch this one. Not only has SeaSpray done such a fabulous job setting it up, the folks posting here are wonderful and helpful. On the other thread it said, "I'd like to keep the chit chat to a minimum". Sheesh. Well, different strokes...

Here's my question:

We will be at the Poly for the first time in 40 days! We have an ADR for our arrival night at Ohana's. It will be me, DH and DS11. Can anyone tell me more in depth about the "entertainment" at the restaurant? I've heard about the coconut races (I'm not expecting formal entertainment, but it seemed from other folks that lots of things are going on). I'm wondering how DS will like it. He is in that tweener stage where he can't act too impressed by anything. I'm sure those who have or have had tweeners know what I mean.

DS will eat the food at Ohana's, I'm not worried about that. As long as no one tells him he can order from a kids menu he'll be adventurous and probably like the selections.

So...any entertainment feedback out there?

Thanks!

Welcome to the Polynesian FAQ! I may have started this thread, but it's people like BCV23 and others, who do such an excellent job in providing continuous, updated information, photos, and experiences!

Welcome to a friendly thread, cyndisun! SeaSpray does a great job, doesn't she? And I love the 'Ohana spirit here.

We've only had dinner at 'Ohana once but where we were seated, we didn't even see or hear any entertainment during our dinner. From pictures that I've seen posted it looks like mostly small children involved in the coconut races, etc. so I think your tween should be fine. He can enjoy his status of being too old to participate (unless he wants to do so) while watching the little ones have fun.

Happy planning!

I've had dinner (and breakfast once!) at 'Ohana many times, and it's one of my DH's favorite places to dine. Our DSs were older the first time we dined there as a family, so they were only observers of the activities, as we were. It didn't bother them that the kids were doing these activities, but if they were younger, they still probably would not have participated because they were on the shy side. Your DS is at an age where some kids his age would participate, and some would not. I'd leave it entirely up to him As for the kid's menu, sometimes the CM who seats you, or your server, will mention that there are other alternate items for kids; some servers don't mention this, and if your child did want something different to eat, they wait for you inquire about it. I know what you mean about preferring your child to not rely on kid's food; my own DSs used to be non-adventurous when it came to dining, but after our second Disney cruise when they both ordered their meals ONLY from the adult menu, I was happy, and they learned that they could enjoy food that was neither fried or had melted cheese on top. LOL

The "entertainment" consists of one of a few CMs who play the ukulele and sing Hawaiian-style songs, while walking around the center of the restaurant, mostly in the area in front of the fire pit where they grill the meats. The CM is wearing a mic, so you can hear them no matter where they are, and no matter where your table is. The CM also organizes the kids (any and all who wish to participate) in coconut races (each child is given a broom and a coconut, and the kids race/sweep their coconuts along the floor around the restaurant), and hula lessons. This CM will also ask who is celebrating a birthday or anniversary, and then he usually sings to that table.

Personally, I love just sitting back at 'Ohana and enjoying the food, music, and atmosphere, even though we don't have young children participating in the activities.

 

[BCV23]

Thanks for the kind words, SeaSpray.

So should I have been able to hear the music? Is it played all night? We probably dined around 6pm and were seated near the kitchen door.

I completely agree about letting kids just eat from the regular menu. Love the "neither fried nor cheese on top."

 

[huntconn]

Ok, time for another Poly update!
Lots of people swimming in the Lagoon. At any given time in the afternoon there are upwards of 15 people (both kids and adults) swimming and or playing in the lagoon. Strange that Disney posts "no swimming" here but do not seem to do anything about it when folks do. Makes me wonder how great the danger really is but I'm still not risking it!
Walking through Tahiti from the TTC the past several days, I really noticed how much wider the hallways are in the newer bulidings. It makes hallways much brighter than the older buildings. The lighting seems the same.
Yes, we did receive our Poly chocolate bar upon arrival. The chocolate bar seems to have a newer, brighter graphic on it. We also received leis and sand buckets for the kids upon check in.
Both of my DS's (6 and 7) finally braved SpM this time. I'm so proud of them! They can now do every ride in the MK. Now we have to work on ToT and RnR Coaster! Not this year though.
LOTS of Brazilian tour group in the park. Almost all of them have been very well behaved. They seem to be made up of about 80% girls. These groups can be very large.
Went to the HDDR the other night. Too much FUN! My kids laughed almost the entire time. Great, corny fun. Food was good too. I'll check in later!

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

Ok, time for another Poly update!
Lots of people swimming in the Lagoon. At any given time in the afternoon there are upwards of 15 people (both kids and adults) swimming and or playing in the lagoon. Strange that Disney posts "no swimming" here but do not seem to do anything about it when folks do. Makes me wonder how great the danger really is but I'm still not risking it!
Walking through Tahiti from the TTC the past several days, I really noticed how much wider the hallways are in the newer bulidings. It makes hallways much brighter than the older buildings. The lighting seems the same.
Yes, we did receive our Poly chocolate bar upon arrival. The chocolate bar seems to have a newer, brighter graphic on it. We also received leis and sand buckets for the kids upon check in.
Both of my DS's (6 and 7) finally braved SpM this time. I'm so proud of them! They can now do every ride in the MK. Now we have to work on ToT and RnR Coaster! Not this year though.
LOTS of Brazilian tour group in the park. Almost all of them have been very well behaved. They seem to be made up of about 80% girls. These groups can be very large.
Went to the HDDR the other night. Too much FUN! My kids laughed almost the entire time. Great, corny fun. Food was good too. I'll check in later!

Last December when my family and I stayed there I saw some little kids going in the lagoon despite the signs posted right by them saying not to go in and with their parents standing right there, so who knows what was going threw their minds?

Anyway it's great to read that everything is going very well and that your having a great time.

 

[SeaSpray]

Thanks for the kind words, SeaSpray.

So should I have been able to hear the music? Is it played all night? We probably dined around 6pm and were seated near the kitchen door.

I completely agree about letting kids just eat from the regular menu. Love the "neither fried nor cheese on top."

Aww, I wonder if the CM/ukulele player/singer was not yet performing for the evening? That's a shame because it does add a nice backdrop of Hawaiian feel, to the restaurant. Give it another try next time, maybe a little later in the evening?

 

[EnchantedPiglet]

Ok, time for another Poly update!
Lots of people swimming in the Lagoon. At any given time in the afternoon there are upwards of 15 people (both kids and adults) swimming and or playing in the lagoon. Strange that Disney posts "no swimming" here but do not seem to do anything about it when folks do. Makes me wonder how great the danger really is but I'm still not risking it!
Walking through Tahiti from the TTC the past several days, I really noticed how much wider the hallways are in the newer bulidings. It makes hallways much brighter than the older buildings. The lighting seems the same.
Yes, we did receive our Poly chocolate bar upon arrival. The chocolate bar seems to have a newer, brighter graphic on it. We also received leis and sand buckets for the kids upon check in.
Both of my DS's (6 and 7) finally braved SpM this time. I'm so proud of them! They can now do every ride in the MK. Now we have to work on ToT and RnR Coaster! Not this year though.
LOTS of Brazilian tour group in the park. Almost all of them have been very well behaved. They seem to be made up of about 80% girls. These groups can be very large.
Went to the HDDR the other night. Too much FUN! My kids laughed almost the entire time. Great, corny fun. Food was good too. I'll check in later!

The halls in the Tahiti longhouse are huge compared to the other longhouses.

 

[SeaSpray]

Ok, time for another Poly update!
Lots of people swimming in the Lagoon. At any given time in the afternoon there are upwards of 15 people (both kids and adults) swimming and or playing in the lagoon. Strange that Disney posts "no swimming" here but do not seem to do anything about it when folks do. Makes me wonder how great the danger really is but I'm still not risking it!
Walking through Tahiti from the TTC the past several days, I really noticed how much wider the hallways are in the newer bulidings. It makes hallways much brighter than the older buildings. The lighting seems the same.
Yes, we did receive our Poly chocolate bar upon arrival. The chocolate bar seems to have a newer, brighter graphic on it. We also received leis and sand buckets for the kids upon check in.
Both of my DS's (6 and 7) finally braved SpM this time. I'm so proud of them! They can now do every ride in the MK. Now we have to work on ToT and RnR Coaster! Not this year though.
LOTS of Brazilian tour group in the park. Almost all of them have been very well behaved. They seem to be made up of about 80% girls. These groups can be very large.
Went to the HDDR the other night. Too much FUN! My kids laughed almost the entire time. Great, corny fun. Food was good too. I'll check in later!

Thanks for the latest update! I've added the link to it, to Post 1.

We saw a lot of people swimming in the lagoon when we were there in May.

Last December when my family and I stayed there I saw some little kids going in the lagoon despite the signs posted right by them saying not to go in and with their parents standing right there, so who knows what was going threw their minds?

Anyway it's great to read that everything is going very well and that your having a great time.

CR Fan: That's what got me too; they were standing and playing right by the posted sign! Adults AND kids! I can't believe that adults would allow their small children to play in water that was not deemed as swim-quality.