AKL or Poly? Kids & travel time

[1st time mouser]

I am going to WDW for first time and want to decide between those 2 locations. Have 2 grade school kids, K and grade 3.

Am worried that AKL is too far away to take a break mid day and go back to resort if we need to, but that we could do at Poly.

For when I am going, Poly is more $, but I am trying to justify the extra cost in my head for more convenience and easier access.

Any comments & thoughts from those w WDW experience are welcome.

Thanks!

1st time mouser

 

[rookie2]

Welcome to the dis. Our family was first timers last Jan. We stayed at the Poly. It was absolutely perfect! The convenience of the monorail was irreplaceable. We stayed in the Tokelau building; it was close to the TTC and bus stops. Last year was suppose to be our once in a lifetime trip after that wonderful vacation we are going back this Jan. We decided to stay at the YC only because of its proximity to Epcot & MGM. We would definitely stay at the Poly again.

 

[rcraw45425]

Poly for the convenience. We also take mid day breaks and the isolation of the AKL has kept us from trying that resort. We love to be able to walk into a park in the evening without knowing we have a long bus ride ahead of us to return "home" at night too!

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

If you want the convenience with the Monorail, the easy walk to the TTC when going to Epcot and don't mind spending the extra money, then go with the Polynesian.

 

[MsStinkerBelle]

Hiya!

With one child in Kindergarten I would definintely go with the Poly! The monorail convenience is well worth the price. You can hop the monorail to the MK from the Great Ceremonial House or take a walk to the Ticket and Transportation center (TTC) to go to Epcot. Also there are lots of character meals at restaurants at the Grand Floridian and Contemporary--also on the monorail line.

Plus, after a loonnnggggg day in the parks and you're leaving at closing time, there's nothing quite like the relatively 'short' Resort Monorail line or the boat launch to the MK resorts in contrast to the loonnngggg line for the TTC.

I have a child in 2nd grade and we're only doing the AKL this month for the first time because she's older (and she picked it). If she were in Kindergarten or younger I would have stayed at the Poly.

 

[jewelmicky]

I too have a Kindergartener and a 3rd grader....We are going for winter break. I picked the Poly for the Monorail and MK view...Also Lilo and Stitch/Hawaii Theme is my favorite.

 

[Gillian]

Our son liked AKL better. The busses are pretty fast. They don't make any other stops.

When are you going? Depending on the park hours you may find you have lots and lots of time for a break, or that it's hard to get one no matter where you stay.

 

[1st time mouser]

Thanks for the feedback. Sounds like you can't go wrong w Poly. I am looking at CHristmas season, and am worried that it may take 45 - 60 minute ride to get back to AKL from Magic Kingdom, Epcot or MGM.

Whta is typical AKL bus time when parks are pretty crowded?

 

[Kae]

We just stay at AKL in May with a DD-K & DS-3rd & loved it as the other poster said they do not share buses, the longest wait we had was AK to AKL go figure. If you think that MK is going to be your main park then I would go with poly. As far as breaks DD did ok with out them but we are not Commando type tourers so we did not get up to early in the mornings that helped. And there is so much for the kids to do at AKL. So please don't count AKL out because of location.

Kae

 

[1st time mouser]

Again, thanks for the feedback to a newbie.

Since we've never been, are looking at doing 1 park each day, with a final day of letting kids decide which place or whether to hang out at the resort, etc. Looking at a 5 day stay.

 

[TJA]

This one is tough for me because I have younger kids, so for my situation we'd go with Poly in a heartbeat. We stayed at AKL when our twins were 7 months old and did NOT enjoy the bus part of things because of the baby supplies, babies, and double stroller. However, we loved the resort itself, so we have always said we'd go back to AKL someday when our kids are older and don't need the afternoon breaks and stroller. I do not know what age that will be. If you think your kids (or you adults!) will want an afternoon break, then I would recommend Poly, especially if your main park is going to be MK. You can monorail over to MK in the morning, monorail back to Poly in the afternoon, then just monorail back to MK at night! It's easy and relaxing. And if you are bringing a stroller from home and it's late at night and your child(ren) did not rest during the day, they may fall asleep in the stroller and you can just roll the stroller right on the monorail and let your child(ren) sleep. If you stayed at AKL in that case, you would have to wake up your child before getting on the bus, unload the stroller and fold it up. A lot of people don't mind that, but personally we'd rather take the monorail or boat back to our resort.

 

[npmommie]

We just came back from the Poly and the monorail access and boat launch is priceless to us. we came back for breaks and went back to mk easily. the boat is quick also.
we stayed in tokelau which was centrally located. easily walked to the ttc for the monorail to epcot.
the bus to mgm was quick and only took about 15 minutes to get there, the bus to AK not so quick but it did make a stop first at a water park, the mgm went straight with no stops.
we would stay at poly again no question.
i have heard wonderful things about the akl as well, and it is somewhere we may check out in the future.

 

[lc1965]

I just returned from WDW & I stayed at BOTH AKL & Poly & wouldn't stay at either resort again because they're BOTH so inconvenient.

Of the 2, Poly was LESS inconvenient, but you have no choice but to take the monorail if you want to go to EPCOT. That was annoying for us when the monorail broke down & we had no options for getting around. Also, my mom doesn't walk well & she had to trudge up & down that ramp repeatedly, which was awful for her.

We HATED AKL for a number of reasons, but I found the 1 busstop too far away from our savannahview room - it was quite literally almost a mile walk.

I am going back to Riverside or FQ & not bothering to experiment anymore! lol. It's just not worth the aggravation.

 

[ducklite]

Some of the responses on this thread are laughable. From the furthest room at the AKL to the bus stop is 1200 feet or less. That's not even a quarter mile.

OP, the Polynesian and AKL both have advantages and disadvantages. Both are on the far end of the property--just different far ends. If you want to take a break and are at the AK, then getting back to the AKL will be fastest. From the MK the Polynesian *might* be faster, but then again it might not. It can take up to 20 minutes to get from the MK to the Polynesian by monorail, and it's 14 minutes from the MK to AKL by bus! IMHO the monorail is not nearly as efficient of a way to get around as people think it is.

Also keep in mind that other than Epcot and the MK, you still need to take buses if you are staying at the PR.

Here are some things to consider about the two resorts--I've stayed at both multiple times. They are both large and somewhat spread out. The furthest room in each resort from the transportation is about the same. The Polynesian is actually a little more spread out--yes folks, it might not seem taht way, but the PR has a larger architectural footprint than the AKL! One advantage to the AKL is that all the rooms are under one roof. So if the weather is bad you don't need to go outside to get to food, the gift shop, the lobby, transportation, etc.

The rooms at the PR are considerably larger. But not all of the bathrooms have the split plan. Some have the sinks inside the bathroom, which many families don't like. The rooms at the PR also don't all have balconies. None of the second floor and only some of the third floor rooms have them. At the AKL, ALL rooms have balconies with a couple of chairs and a small table.

While the PR has a large arcade and the Neverland Club, the AKL has a wealth of activities for all age groups, most of which are free. In the evening at the PR, there's really not much to do. At the AKL there's story telling, infra-red animal viewing, and at any time of the day you can explore the hotel which has the largest collection of African art outside of Africa. It's also got an amazing gift shop.

One disadvantage to the AKL is that it is somewhat isolated. There are three places to get food, Mara which is counter service, Boma which is a moderate buffet, and Jiko, which is Signature dining at it's finest. At the Polynesian you can always walk over to the GF and that opens up a lot of dining options. There is no Signature dining at the PR.

I love both resorts, but in all honesty the PR is basically a Hilton dressed up as a Hawaiian themed resort. The AKL is like NOTHING else I've ever stayed in. There is NO other resort of hotel in North America where you can wake up and look out the window at exotic animals, or go to sleep with the peaceful, low braying of the Ankole cattle. I think that the AKL also has FAR superior children's activities.

I hope this helps. Like I said, I've stayed at both multiple times and am quite familiar with them. I get the impression taht many posters on this thread ahve stayed at one or the other--or neither!--so really don't have a good comparision. If you ahve any other questions, please feel free to ask.

BTW--if you mean this Christmas season, you might not have a choice--I understand that many of the resorts are all booked up.

 

[TJA]

Again, thanks for the feedback to a newbie.

Since we've never been, are looking at doing 1 park each day, with a final day of letting kids decide which place or whether to hang out at the resort, etc. Looking at a 5 day stay.

Let me comment further based on this post. Equal time at all 4 parks plus one final day at either the resort or fav park makes the decision a bit harder. I initially said Poly above, but I was thinking it was a longer trip and MK would be your main park. For example, when we stay at a monorail resort, we tend to go to MK almost every day because it's so easy to get there and back. But as this is your first trip and you'll want to see all 4 parks equally, then I'm not convinced that a monorail resort would be your best bet afterall. If your main dilemma is the bus time, then I wouldn't discount AKL based on that. AKL does not share buses with other resorts, so it's a direct ride there and back. Poly does share buses, so it may actually end up being quicker on an AKL bus.

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

I love both resorts, but in all honesty the PR is basically a Hilton dressed up as a Hawaiian themed resort.

While that maybe you're opinion which you are entitled to, I have to disagree. The Polynesian is one of the best themed WDW Resorts and expect for actually going to Hawaii, where else could you a Resort theme like that? So to call it a Hilton dressed up as a Hawaiian themed Resort is a bit of a stretch.

 

[ducklite]

While that maybe you're opinion which you are entitled to, I have to disagree. The Polynesian is one of the best themed WDW Resorts and expect for actually going to Hawaii, where else could you a Resort theme like that? So to call it a Hilton dressed up as a Hawaiian themed Resort is a bit of a stretch.

And you've stayed there how many times to have first hand knowledge of this?

Not a stretch at all. You want another Hawaiian themed resort--hop on over to Daytona Beach--and to make it more authentic, it's right on the ocean!

 

[MUFFYCAT]

I am going to WDW for first time and want to decide between those 2 locations. Have 2 grade school kids, K and grade 3.

Am worried that AKL is too far away to take a break mid day and go back to resort if we need to, but that we could do at Poly.

For when I am going, Poly is more $, but I am trying to justify the extra cost in my head for more convenience and easier access.

Any comments & thoughts from those w WDW experience are welcome.

Thanks!

1st time mouser

My kids were the same age as yours for our first trip 7 years ago.
We picked the Polynesian for the convenience and the theming.
My kids loved it so much we stayed there every time for our next 7 trips.

I have to admit it's my favorite too.

They can watch the Electric light parade and the MK fireworks from the pool.

 

[Nancyg56]

We have stayed at both resorts and my favorite is AKL. My DGD loved watching the animals from the balcony and she loved the zero entry pool as well. I never found the bus service inconvenient. The rest of my family preferred the Poly. For convenience to the MK and EPCOT, it cannot be beat. The grounds are lovely, and that is something missing from AKL. The resort is not really so rambling. more self contained, sort of. I liked the Poly, but would not mind not staying there again.

My DD and DSIL would tell you that with the kids the Poly is the best bet but if you ask my 6 YO DGD today she will tell you she likes POFQ. The dragon slide was the kicker for her.

My opinion is that only you can decide which resort is preferable and that really depends on how you feel about more than the buses. You will need them at both resorts depending on the park you choose to visit. If you are spending the bulk of your time at the MK or EPCOT and transportation convenience is important then I would go with the POLY. If you want to save a little money and please the dragon lover in your family I'd take POFQ.

 

[1313WEBFOOTWALK]

Thanks so much for your comments. I know I didnt post the thread but we are planning a stay at AKV in Oct and I really am glad to hear all the good stuff about it.