A help me decide...Polynesian vs Contemporary Garden Wing?

[my523]

Contemporary Garden Wing or Polynesian studio...but for $3,000 more? Is the Poly really worth it and are the Garden Wing rooms that bad?

I know that's a ton of money, and maybe even seems obvious, but I'm reading such mixed reviews on the Garden Wing rooms. And the Poly sounds magical. I just can't decide and need help! I almost feel like are the Garden Wing rooms really even worth that much, anyway? Is it true the Garden Wing are being refurbished?

ETA: This is our first visit for our family (any maybe only one for many years).

 

[lowlight]

If you have kids and it’s a one and done, and you can afford it, Poly. It’s one of my favorite places, not only in Disney but anywhere I’ve ever stayed. Poly has been refurbed and it’s wonderful. Not as convenient to MK as CR, but pretty good.

 

[Marthasor]

I prefer the garden wing at CR. That being said, I don't think I would even pick CR for a one-and-done trip. As an overall resort, I just think it's lacking. $3,000 is a lot of money, though. Have you considered WL?

 

[ChanaC]

How much time are you planning on spending at the hotel vs at the parks? If you are planning on spending a lot of time at the resort going to the pool and relaxing I think I would choose Poly. It has a great pool and atmosphere, and in my opinion better restaurants. Contemporary's pool is probably the least exciting of all the deluxe resorts. Also, the Garden Wing buildings kind of look like buildings in a research park built in the 70s. Both have a sandy beach area, but at the Poly you get a view of the castle and thus the fireworks. The beach and pool area of the Contemporary overlook Bay Lake, and while you don't see the castle it's really nice and quiet back there, and a little more naturey. Also, parts of the Garden Wings feel a little more secluded. You can sit on your balcony and not really see anyone except a passing ferry. And speaking of ferries, I heard a lot of people staying at Poly and facing the lagoon are disappointed because they hear the MK ferry horns starting early in the morning and going late into the night. The ferries passing the Garden Wing are going between MK and the Wilderness Lodge and Ft. Wilderness, and I don't think they sound their horns as they pass unless they need to get around or notify another boat they are passing.

Also, are you planning on spending a lot of time at Epcot? While both hotel's monorails connect to the TTC, some of the Poly buildings are basically next door to it so you can just get on the Epcot monorail without transferring. But at the Contemporary you can walk to MK so really there are pros and cons to both options. And speaking of walking, I think you can go from the outer wings buildings to the main building all under a cover, which is great if it rains. Some of the Poly buildings don't have coverings between them, so you may get caught in the rain going from your room to get breakfast or whatever you need.

 

[Katie1174]

Poly for sure. We have stayed either at GF or Poly for the last 10 years at least once a year and last trip we decided to try the Contemporary to be different. We wanted the Tower but since they were changing the rooms over, it was unavailable for our dates. So we booked the garden wing for 8 nights. Big mistake! First off they told us we were getting the specific room number i requested (it wasnt ready yet)and then gave it to someone else after we went into the parks, then when we got back several hours after check in time, they told us our room wasn't even ready so that was miserable and finally got a room we weren't happy with, and they were booked up so couldn't change. 1st night ok but sliding glass door was broken and wouldnt open, so no fresh air for us. The 2nd night was miserable with a huge gaggle of about 20 unsupervised young girls running up and down the hallways yelling and screaming for hours. My hubby and myself among others on the same hallway stuck our heads out the door and politely told them that people were sleeping and please go about quietly but with little effect. Someone called security and they came but they scattered back to their rooms when they heard someone coming and came back out after security left. The adults finally came back to the room around 1am! and then it quieted down, We went down to the front desk the next morning and told them about it they immediately transferred us to the Grand Floridian to make amends. I will say the front desk manager was extremely good about giving us back our magic and we are grateful for that. I offered to pay for the difference between CR and GF but they said it was on them and paid for our taxi over to GF where our room was ready((this was only 30 minutes after leaving the front desk. When we set foot in the GF my hubby said, for the furst time on this vacation i feel relaxed, happy and at home. And he said he will never ever stay garden wing again. He said he would try the tower but he's done with garden wing.
So to wind up my long story, i would definitely do Poly, which is a lovely resort and to us worth the extra money if you can afford it. I am sure many many people have great stays at the CR-garden wing but we did not.
plus we love the boats that go back and forth, love that we can easily walk from Poly to GF and on to Mk if we want.

 

[ninafeliz]

I love the Poly and find the Contemporary best for views- and you lose that in the GW. The poly’s pools are much better and the resort feel is more my style so much better IMO. However, $3000 is a lot of money, and you are still at a deluxe resort on the monorail with a walking path to the MK. Why are those your only choices? How does a tower CR room price compare, or a regular room standard view Poly room? Or WL? Or YC/BC/BW unless you are planning a very MK centric trip?

 

[my523]

I love the Poly and find the Contemporary best for views- and you lose that in the GW. The poly’s pools are much better and the resort feel is more my style so much better IMO. However, $3000 is a lot of money, and you are still at a deluxe resort on the monorail with a walking path to the MK. Why are those your only choices? How does a tower CR room price compare, or a regular room standard view Poly room? Or WL? Or YC/BC/BW unless you are planning a very MK centric trip?

At this point, those are the only choices due to the transportation. One in our party will only be able to travel monorail or bus (no skyliner or boat), which is why YC/BC/BW seemed less of an option. Disney says bus still run every 15 minutes from those resorts, but I don't have enough Disney knowledge to know how accurate that is. I do know we can walk to Epcot and HS. How long is that walk to HS? Someone would have to be pushing a wheelchair.
I also love the room layout of the Poly with the murphy queen bed and 2 bathrooms. We will need a room that sleeps 5 adults for our part of the traveling party. Do the Epcot area resorts have rooms like these?
The other resorts with a bus only just aren't as convenient, it seems. We will for sure do 2 days at MK, and at least one at all other parks...just don't know which other one will be a 2 day park.
WL has no availability at all for any of the dates we are looking at.

 

[my523]

I prefer the garden wing at CR. That being said, I don't think I would even pick CR for a one-and-done trip. As an overall resort, I just think it's lacking. $3,000 is a lot of money, though. Have you considered WL?

There is no availability for the dates and room we would need.

 

[Dug720]

One in our party will only be able to travel monorail or bus (no skyliner or boat), which is why YC/BC/BW seemed less of an option.

Is that due to fear? Because the Skyliner is accessible and they have accessible boats.

 

[Nabas]

At this point, those are the only choices due to the transportation. One in our party will only be able to travel monorail or bus (no skyliner or boat), which is why YC/BC/BW seemed less of an option. Disney says bus still run every 15 minutes from those resorts, but I don't have enough Disney knowledge to know how accurate that is. I do know we can walk to Epcot and HS. How long is that walk to HS? Someone would have to be pushing a wheelchair.
I also love the room layout of the Poly with the murphy queen bed and 2 bathrooms. We will need a room that sleeps 5 adults for our part of the traveling party. Do the Epcot area resorts have rooms like these?
The other resorts with a bus only just aren't as convenient, it seems. We will for sure do 2 days at MK, and at least one at all other parks...just don't know which other one will be a 2 day park.
WL has no availability at all for any of the dates we are looking at.

5 adults?

You are really going to want a second bathroom. Go with the Poly.

 

[my523]

Is that due to fear? Because the Skyliner is accessible and they have accessible boats.

Yup.

5 adults?

You are really going to want a second bathroom. Go with the Poly.

5 adults per Disney room descriptions. 2 adults, 3 kids, plus an almost-3 year old (can either share a bed or will have crib in extra bathroom).

 

[maxiesmom]

Out of the 2 you list first, Contemporary. You are within walking distance of the Magic Kingdom.

If they Boardwalk area is what really appeals, look at the Swan and Dolphin. Much much cheaper than the Disney resorts, and you can walk to both Epcot and the Disney Studios. I was on an ECV last trip, and due to a bit of a back up my brother in law rode it to the Studios while the rest of us took the boat. He actually beat us to the park. So it is not that long of a walk.

 

[FSU Girl]

Out of your two choices I’d go with Poly. I love the contemporary, but only if I stay in the main building. I felt like the garden wing was really detached and a far walk to get to everything. Also with the amount of people in one room you’ll be happy to have the two bathrooms Poly provides. Their pools are better themed and you’ll have a nice view of fireworks from the beach

 

[Nabas]

5 adults per Disney room descriptions. 2 adults, 3 kids, plus an almost-3 year old (can either share a bed or will have crib in extra bathroom).

Disney's definition of an adult for dining is ridiculous but for hotel rooms it's still 18+.

With 5 (really 6) in a room, having 2 bathrooms is important for getting up and going in the morning. When we did this with our 4, we sometimes had the kids take showers the night before but when we had 2 bathrooms, this was less urgent.

No matter what the age, 6 in a room is a very tight fit. I typically could tolerate this for a couple of nights before regretting cramming in. And this was just treating the room as a place to shower and sleep.

We've been to WDW over a hundred times, trying all sorts of different onsite and offsite arrangements over the years. (We also have stayed at every WDW hotel more than once, sometimes doing split stays so we can experience multiple hotels on one trip.) We also have experience with a family of your size. (4 children.)

Based on your statement, "This is our first visit for our family (any maybe only one for many years)", I have a few suggestions.

If you really want to stay onsite and location is critical, then one idea is to rent DVC points for a one-bedroom at Bay Lake Tower. This gives you 2 physical rooms, 2 bathrooms, and 3 sleeping surfaces.

I realize that you are concerned about "choices due to the transportation" and I am no fan of Disney busses, but you can make Disney busses work. No matter where you stay, you are going to have to take a bus to get to at least some theme parks. Staying at a Monorail Resort only reduces the number of bus trips; it does not eliminate them. As an alternative, you could consider connecting rooms at a Value or Moderate Resort. Based on our experience, younger children enjoy (for example) All Star Music or Coronado Springs just as much as the Polynesian. As your children have never gone, they will be super excited about staying anywhere.

We've made connecting rooms at Port Orleans Riverside work. The pool, food court, and theming are as good as any Deluxe Resort.

 

[Meglen]

A regular room at either of these hotels would not "fit" your family comfortably. For this amount of money I agree with the poster above to rent dvc.

 

[my523]

Disney's definition of an adult for dining is ridiculous but for hotel rooms it's still 18+.

With 5 (really 6) in a room, having 2 bathrooms is important for getting up and going in the morning. When we did this with our 4, we sometimes had the kids take showers the night before but when we had 2 bathrooms, this was less urgent.

No matter what the age, 6 in a room is a very tight fit. I typically could tolerate this for a couple of nights before regretting cramming in. And this was just treating the room as a place to shower and sleep.

We've been to WDW over a hundred times, trying all sorts of different onsite and offsite arrangements over the years. (We also have stayed at every WDW hotel more than once, sometimes doing split stays so we can experience multiple hotels on one trip.) We also have experience with a family of your size. (4 children.)

Based on your statement, "This is our first visit for our family (any maybe only one for many years)", I have a few suggestions.

If you really want to stay onsite and location is critical, then one idea is to rent DVC points for a one-bedroom at Bay Lake Tower. This gives you 2 physical rooms, 2 bathrooms, and 3 sleeping surfaces.

I realize that you are concerned about "choices due to the transportation" and I am no fan of Disney busses, but you can make Disney busses work. No matter where you stay, you are going to have to take a bus to get to at least some theme parks. Staying at a Monorail Resort only reduces the number of bus trips; it does not eliminate them. As an alternative, you could consider connecting rooms at a Value or Moderate Resort. Based on our experience, younger children enjoy (for example) All Star Music or Coronado Springs just as much as the Polynesian. As your children have never gone, they will be super excited about staying anywhere.

We've made connecting rooms at Port Orleans Riverside work. The pool, food court, and theming are as good as any Deluxe Resort.

Thanks so much for that information and your suggestions!

I hesitate to rent points just because of cancellation policies. One of the 2 adults in our traveling party is not in the best health and I worry something could cause us to cancel their reservation. The flexibility of booking a Disney package seems a lot easier. Our "party" is the 6 I've mentioned plus 2 grandparents. And they really want to be close - the whole reason they are coming is to be with us. They won't enjoy much on their own. So, two separate rooms is really best-case scenario. And I'm not sure if we can do two connecting PLUS their room. I also don't want to depend on their "space" since minds keep getting changed. Hope that all makes sense. I may take a look at cost and compare that.

I will have to look at POR, again. When I've checked, there wasn't availability for our dates.

Totally get what you are saying about busses. I do get that they will have to take busses at some point. The idea is to eliminate them as much as possible due to the one adult that will have some difficulties on this trip. And we know we will do MK 2 days for sure.

There is just SO much to think about! I know it sounds like I'm rebutting everything...sorry if it comes off as rude. Really do appreciate ideas, which is why I am posting!

 

[Nabas]

Thanks so much for that information and your suggestions!

I hesitate to rent points just because of cancellation policies. One of the 2 adults in our traveling party is not in the best health and I worry something could cause us to cancel their reservation. The flexibility of booking a Disney package seems a lot easier. Our "party" is the 6 I've mentioned plus 2 grandparents. And they really want to be close - the whole reason they are coming is to be with us. They won't enjoy much on their own. So, two separate rooms is really best-case scenario. And I'm not sure if we can do two connecting PLUS their room. I also don't want to depend on their "space" since minds keep getting changed. Hope that all makes sense. I may take a look at cost and compare that.

I will have to look at POR, again. When I've checked, there wasn't availability for our dates.

Totally get what you are saying about busses. I do get that they will have to take busses at some point. The idea is to eliminate them as much as possible due to the one adult that will have some difficulties on this trip. And we know we will do MK 2 days for sure.

There is just SO much to think about! I know it sounds like I'm rebutting everything...sorry if it comes off as rude. Really do appreciate ideas, which is why I am posting!

Some DVC rental stores offer trip insurance.

You could consider renting enough points for a 2 bedroom villa. A 2-bedroom at Bay Lake Tower is expensive, and a 2-bedroom at the Grand Floridian is really expensive, but the required points per night is a lot less at Old Key West.

A standard view 2-bedroom at Animal Kingdom Villas - Kidani Village also is a possibility. Like Bay Lake Tower, this also has an extra bathroom (3 total) and an extra sleeping surface.

The idea being, with a 2-bedroom, the grandparents can be there with you and the grandchildren all day and night, you’ll have enough space for 8, and if the grandparents cannot go, a 2-bedroom is not wasted space for 6.

In summary, some options are:

• Connecting rooms at an All Star (cheapest),
• Connecting rooms at a Moderate (a bit more but better theming),
• One bedroom at Kidani Village or Bay Lake Tower (depending on how important location is for you),
• 2 bedroom at Old Key West (least expensive 2 bedroom option),
• 2 bedroom at a Kidani (3rd bathroom)
• 2 bedroom at Bay Lake Tower (most expensive, 3rd bathroom, next to Magic Kingdom.

Over the years, we have tried all of these. Which one works best for you depends on what is most important to you.

 

[jimmymc]

What else is available for those dates?

To answer your question, I don't think Poly is worth $3000 more and I also don't like the Garden Wing rooms. Renting a 2 bedroom DVC villa is going to be the best value and best room you'll get for a group of 7 or 8 at a deluxe resort. Grandparents can have the king bed room, and your group shares the 2 queen room and sleeper sofa. Bay Lake Tower has very nice 2 bedrooms and is the closest resort to Magic Kingdom.

You're always able to modify the names and number of people on a reservation. If the one person with health issues cancels, would everyone else still go?

 

[my523]

What else is available for those dates?

You're always able to modify the names and number of people on a reservation. If the one person with health issues cancels, would everyone else still go?

For cash bookings, I've put in some different dates and there is availability for 2BR at CCV at BLT, but for significantly more (like, another $3000-5000). And it comes and goes by the minute.

Only my family of 6 would go. If that one person cannot go for any reason, both grandparents would be out. If it's that serious of a reason, none of us would go.

Can I cancel a DVC reservation for "change of mind" even with trip insurance. I've read about some trip insurances only cover health situation with specific physician notes, etc.

 

[jimmymc]

For cash bookings, I've put in some different dates and there is availability for 2BR at CCV at BLT, but for significantly more (like, another $3000-5000). And it comes and goes by the minute.

Only my family of 6 would go. If that one person cannot go for any reason, both grandparents would be out. If it's that serious of a reason, none of us would go.

Can I cancel a DVC reservation for "change of mind" even with trip insurance. I've read about some trip insurances only cover health situation with specific physician notes, etc.

I believe DVC cash bookings with Disney have the same cancellation policy as normal rooms.

Renting points through a private company means you would most likely lose a big chunk of money if you had to cancel last minute.

One other suggestion, many people will dismiss Animal Kingdom Lodge due to the distance to the parks, but when I was there the busses were always on time and you never share with other resorts. No worrying about the Skyliner or boats. I believe the Kidani Village 2 bedroom villas also have 3 bathrooms, which a lot of people enjoy.