Hi, this is my first time posting but I've been following this thread for a few weeks. I am planning a trip with my DH and 4-year-old DD in January 2013 and have decided on the Poly, thanks to the great reviews I've read here. I've been to WDW several times (I was there this week) but never stayed at the Poly. We stayed at the Contemporary in 1975 and I still remember taking the monorail over to the Poly to shop and eat and thinking how relaxing it was there.
I can't wait for our trip next year.
As I said, I was at WDW earlier this week for a conference. We stayed at the Yacht Club and while that hotel was very nice, it was just too big for my liking. The walk back to our rooms at the end of a long day was tiring and not as pleasant as I imagine the Poly walk would be. Also, I would not recommend staying at a conference hotel if I were going with my family. We crowded the lobby at times
and there were many of us (not me!) who came back to the hotel well after midnight with a little too much to drink.
We went to AK on Monday and decided to take a quick visit to MK. We took the bus to the TTC with plans to take the monorail. As noted here, the monorail was down for service so we took the ferry. I loved the ferry, especially because it was the perfect way for me to get some photos of the Poly and examine it from afar. We didn't get the chance to walk around the Poly but seeing it from the water and realizing how close it is to everything solidified my choice to stay there next time. Also, even though it was a warm day there was not a single person on the beach by Tahiti and the Volcano pool and main beach looked quiet too. It looked so peaceful and relaxing - very different from the Yacht Club.