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

[MsStinkerBelle]

Originally Posted by Minsc

I know that the TTC is within walking distance, but does anyone know if there is a car rental lot there? If not, what is the easiest way to get a rental car at the Poly for a couple of days should we choose not to acquire a rental for the entire trip?

Hiya!

There isn't a car rental lot at the TTC. I know there is an Alamo rental car counter on WDW property which is located at the Car Care center which is near the TTC. Alamo/National does provide shuttle service from some WDW hotels. I don't use Alamo but I do use Avis which is located at the Hilton in Downtown Disney. Hope this helps!

Originally Posted by Minsc

Thanks for all of the wonderful information in this thread. It's partly your fault we are staying at the Poly this year for the first time (and my wife thanks you).

Our 'obession' is truly infectuous. LOL!

[Minsc]

Thank you, MsStinkerBelle, for the great information.

Did you rent a car on your last trip? If so, how do you go about it? We need one for just two days, and I'd rather not play bus tag to get from the Poly to somewhere that rents a car if it can be avoided, so the idea of the shuttle to Alamo/National sounds appealing.

[MsStinkerBelle]

Originally Posted by Minsc

Thank you, MsStinkerBelle, for the great information.

Did you rent a car on your last trip? If so, how do you go about it? We need one for just two days, and I'd rather not play bus tag to get from the Poly to somewhere that rents a car if it can be avoided, so the idea of the shuttle to Alamo/National sounds appealing.

You're welcome!

On my last trip I didn't rent a car. The one before that I did. Since I'm an Avis Preferred customer I rented mine from the Avis desk at the DTD Hilton. I took the bus to DTD (we had to shop there anyway), then just walked across the street to the Hilton to rent the car. When it was time to drop it off I dropped it back off at the Hilton, walked back to DTD and took the bus back to the Poly. It was pretty easy as we planned our Downtown Disney days around rental car pick up/drop off.

Plus I've found Avis' prices to be better than Alamo but that's probabaly because I get a corporate discount.

Hope that helps!

[MsStinkerBelle]

Samoa longhouse review (room 1609)

From 8/22 - 8/29/07 I stayed in the Samoa longhouse with four (4) kids. I requested a room with a view of the Nanea Volcano pool and got it! We were assigned room 1609 and our view looked like this:


View from Samoa (1609)

Being this close was invaluable as the kids could just go through the sliding door out to the pool. I could also watch them in the pool from the room. From what the CM told me at check-in, there are only about 9 rooms classifed with this view and only 3 patio level rooms. It is one of the most requested garden views so between the supply and demand it's pretty tough to get. We were happy to get that bit of 'pixie dust' on check-in.

In addition to being close to the pool, the children's water play area and the main beach, we were also close to the GCH. It took about 30 seconds to get to the GCH. We could enter at the back (the entrance next to Captain Cook's, go right upstairs to get to the monorail platform. Where we were located in the longhouse it would take the same amount of time to walk to the marina for the MK boat launch as it would to the GCH for the monorail. It was about a 5 minute walk to the TTC.

My only disappointment with this longhouse is that there is only one sink. It isn't much of an issue if you have two, maybe three people in the room but with four kids (2 tweens and 2 teens), having double sinks really would have helped us get ready faster!

[minnie my my]

Originally Posted by HerdOHuds

MsStinkerbelle and Minnie My My,
Thanks for the info! That really helps. I am torn between going to the Contemporary for a meal or doing Ohana. Maybe both? I am wondering which has better food!?

I have always thought that they were both very good. It would be more convenient to do Ohana but it is not hard to get to the Contemporary at all. Plus it would give you a chance to check out another hotel. I have heard some recent reports that weren't so good about Chef Mickey's but I haven't tried it in a couple of years so I can not say from personal experience if it is not as good as it used to be. Try asking on the restaurant forum and I bet you will find someone that has tried it lately.

[minnie my my]

Originally Posted by MsStinkerBelle

My DD and I stayed in the Tuvalu longhouse (room 1405) before our DCL cruise. We had a lagoon view room on the bottom floor--the last room on the left in the longhouse. This afforded us a wonderful patio that seemed more like our own private garden on the 'water' instead of simply a patio. Since there isn't a beach, the Tulvau longhouse looks like it's sitting on the water and makes the entire room seem like it's floating. We had a view of the castle--the bottom third blocked by beachcomber island but we could still hear the stage shows and parades. The Electrical Water Parade came by nightly and it was great that my DD could enjoy it from the room.

Some guidebooks say the 'noise' from the nightly luau can be bothersome. I didn't find this to be the case at all. The music from the luau just added to the atmosphere and it was very soft--almost as if it were piped in. We attended the Luau and it was a very short walk to Luau cove (less than a minute).

Tuvalu is situated next to the Fiji longhouse and it's about a 30 second walk to the GCH. When you walk in you're right next to the arcade and Captain Cooks'. The walk would be shorter if not for that 'pesky' marina you have to walk around. The boat launch to the MK is right at the marina but because of how the Tuvalu longhouse is situated it's about the same distance to the boat launch as it is to the monorail platform.

Another nice thing about Tuvalu is that there is a smaller beach right next to it that most folks don't know about. There are hammocks for relaxing and/or watching the fireworks. We could walk out of our room, out of the longhouse and the beach was right there.

Here are a few photos from our room:

DD on our patio:


Zoomed-in shot of the castle from our patio:


Zoomed-in view of the Contemporary from our patio:

Yes, that Christmas tree is outside...

Tuvalu is a wonderful longhouse and I'd highly recommend it!

The pictures of your patio look wonderful. We have never stayed in that building but I will remember it if we ever don't do concierge. It seems like a great location. I would love that feeling of privacy.

[CinderellyCinderelly]

Any pictures of the quiet pool?

[MsStinkerBelle]

Originally Posted by HerdOHuds

MsStinkerbelle and Minnie My My,
Thanks for the info! That really helps. I am torn between going to the Contemporary for a meal or doing Ohana. Maybe both? I am wondering which has better food!?

I'd say try both! We love 'Ohana but we also loved eating at Chef Mickey's. 'Ohana has a very nice set menu that they bring to your table while Chef Mickey has lots of tasty buffet options.

[lustergirl]

I have a quick question. I am going to reserve a magic kingdom view and would like to know what longhouses these are in?

[WickedWench]

Hawaii (Concierge), Aotearoa, Tuvalu and Tahiti have Magic Kingdom view rooms.

[KMLOVESWDW]

Fiji longhouse 3rd floor facing Luau Cove.
Loved our room location. Close to marina, pool, GCH & very quiet. Couldn't have asked for a better location. Had been put in Tahiti when we first checked in & although it was close to the TTC, I felt like we were left out of things somehow! I just thought Fiji was perfect & hope to stay in that area again in May. I think this was room #3307.

[SeaSpray]

I'm LOVING all of the longhouse reviews!!!!!! I'm getting to see different parts of the resort that I haven't seen before, such as the Luau Cove side of the resort. I'm going to have make a point to check that area out, it looks beautiful, and I can see the path over to the Wedding Pavilion and the Grand Floridian in one of the pictures!

[TaraZ]

These pics are great! I put in a request for Tahiti for our stay... but it seems like I'll love wherever we end up!

Seaspray-- quick question-- do you find the concierge cost is "worth" it based on the services, food, etc? We are trying to decide whether concierge might be a good call for us-- since DD will only be 3 for our trip, and currently is a particular (sounds so much better than picky!) eater, the fruits, veggies, snacks might make sense we *think*...

[dwcrosby1]

Thanks for the info Tam1067 . Thanks also to Aliceacc (My PM would not post.. I tried multiple times).

Originally Posted by Tam1067

AAA reservations are not put in any single building. I've booked the Poly 3 times with AAA, and you can request any building (or not) just like anyone else. Only some longhouses have MK views, but they're not restricted by AAA bookings.

[SeaSpray]

Originally Posted by TaraZ

These pics are great! I put in a request for Tahiti for our stay... but it seems like I'll love wherever we end up!

Seaspray-- quick question-- do you find the concierge cost is "worth" it based on the services, food, etc? We are trying to decide whether concierge might be a good call for us-- since DD will only be 3 for our trip, and currently is a particular (sounds so much better than picky!) eater, the fruits, veggies, snacks might make sense we *think*...

I think this is the Million Dollar Question. It's kind of difficult to answer, because the term "worth it" can have many meanings, depending on who's opinion is it. And what's worth it to one person, may not be worth it, to the next.

But I'll tell you why we choose to stay concierge, and maybe that'll help.

Accessability of the lounge: I like the fact that from the moment you arrive at the resort, even if it's in the morning, you have someplace to go to, if your room isn't ready yet. Same thing at the end of the trip; no matter what time your flight is that day, once you vacate your room, you still have access to the lounge until midnight that night. This includes having access to breakfast, snacks and drinks all day, and the hot & cold food offerings that evening, plus cordials and desserts that evening. Also, the lounge itself is a wonderful place to relax on your first and/or last day. There are tables and comfortable, cushioned chairs, couches, games and game tables on the third floor (top floor of the lounge), and a very large bathroom where you can change into and out of bathing suits on the first/last day of your trip. We ALWAYS end our WDW trips by relaxing in the lounge at the Polynesian, taking our last peeks out across Seven Seas Lagoon, taking in the entire expanse of the view, from the Grand Floridian to your left, to the Contemporary Resort, to your right. The lounge offers an excellent view of the entire Lagoon.

Location of the building: I like the fact that I KNOW which building I'll be in, and even what kind of view I'll have, when I book concierge. I have a couple of different health problems which cause me to be unable to walk long distances, so the great location of the Hawaii building is worth it to us, as is the overall excellent location of the resort itself.

Breakfast: We love the convenience of having to walk only a few feet for coffee and a bite of food, first thing in the morning. The funny thing is, DH LOVES the Kona Cafe for breakfast, and even though we stay concierge and there are a lot of nice breakfast offerings there, we usually have breakfast at the Kona Cafe almost every morning of our trip. We treat the food offerings in the lounge as a sort of "quick wake-up", we'll have coffee, maybe a bite of the pineapple bread, maybe share a banana, then we head off to the parks OR the Kona Cafe. LOL You can definitely make a full breakfast out of the lounge offerings though.

View: We always book a lagoon view, and while this is 100% PURE LUXURY, we feel the extra charge over the cost of a garden view concierge room, is worth it. We love to sit outside first thing in the morning and just take in the view; you can see and hear the entire Seven Seas Lagoon wake up and come to life. The TTC ferries start to run, you can see the monorail coming and going to the Magic Kingdom, you see the boat launch right there at the Polynesian marina, you see the castle, etc... And at night, you see all of that, all lit up (which is beautiful!!), PLUS you get to watch Wishes from your own room if you want, and you can see the castle change color all night long. Ok, I think I've just sold MYSELF on this.


I don't know if any of this helped you or not, but I just wanted to share why we choose concierge. I think that your DD would probably enjoy the food offerings in the lounge, as would you and your DH. We use the evening food offerings as an appetizer, then go out to dinner, but I can see where those with small appetites could make a meal out of what's there. The only time of day where you couldn't make a meal would be lunch because at the most, there are cookies, gummy sharks, and sometimes chips & salsa, and cheese popcorn (Like Smartfood popcorn). They make a great midday snack though

The concierge staff: I almost forgot to mention the wonderful concierge team. The pre-trip planning is invaluable to me, since I leave for work at 7:30am each morning and just don't have the time to call WDW and book all of our ADRs and tours. It's simple for me to sit at my desk at a convenient time and email off my list of ADR requests, as well as any other requests I might have. A CM named Allison has been helping me on this trip (she also helped me on the last trip), and she is absolutely wonderful. Also, once we're on site, the concierge staff AT the Polynesian are very helpful! They've been extremely helpful to us on many occassions where we had to make a last-minute change in ADRs, and they were able to call and make the changes for us. When it rains, they have a certain number of umbrellas that they lend out to concierge guests for the duration of the trip.


As one last comment, I want to add that you do NOT have to stay concierge in order to enjoy all that the Polynesian has to offer; I mean, ANY guest can sit on the white sand beach at night and enjoy the fireworks; swim in the volcano pool, and an early morning walk along the beach will offer you the same great scenes that I described above.