ALOHA! The Poly FAQ: Fall 2010 Edition

[wdwobsessed]

Taking my niece for her bday and though she mentioned GF (my boys were not a fan of that idea) when I suggested the Poly and told her about the Volcano pool she changed her mind and agreed ... so we all settled on Poly and I am getting really excited!

I dug through my old mail and found the 40% off code e-mail and called and was able to book GV with it.

They also had TPV CL but it was almost DOUBLE the cost and I could not justify it.

I am an AP holder so I am hoping I can switch to GV CL when AP rates come out. We got upgraded to CL at the BC last month and now we are spoiled.

Really looking foward to it. I stayed at the Poly back in 1987 and then again for a few nights in 2002 ....

A

 

[tinkerLA]

that sounds fun cant wait till my trip.

 

[MNT568]

does anyone know if the Poly has DVD players in the rooms?

 

[Clare Voince]

does anyone know if the Poly has DVD players in the rooms?

No, they don't.

 

[logpey]

does anyone know if the Poly has DVD players in the rooms?

The concierge rooms do have a dvd player

 

[Tess]

No, they don't.

CL has DVD players. . .but the rest of the resort does not. Sorry logpey--missed your earlier post. . .

 

[dizneechic]

Arrival will be midweek or towards end of school vacation week into the following week probably Tuesday or Weds.
We were there this past Feb, arrived Weds before Presidents week (*school vacation*) and left Friday of vacation week. The crowds were lovely until the Friday before Presidents Day (so our 1st Wed/Thu) and started to mellow out by Thu of Presidents week. The Fri-Wed were VERY crowded, were talking lines for key attractions went from 30-45 mins to well over 2 hours (Dinosaur at AK was 270 mins!!). So I know you didn't ask for recommendations of timing, however I just wanted to offer my .02 and suggest arriving as late as you can Presidents week and if you can stay longer into the week after when the crowds are thinner.

Can you help?
Do I make our room ressies now?
You can make ressies now but you will be paying rack rate at the highest value of this years rates. Package rates and seasonal rates will be coming out possibly end of Aug/Sept and then they will adjust your balance due based on if you received any seasonal discounts (although mid Feb may be a peak season). Further discounts, package savings and resident rates may also come out down the line, and you can always adjust your reservation IF they have rooms available at the package rate. Sometimes they will not include certain resorts, room categories, or may only have a few rooms available with the discounts so you will need to watch and call as soon as you see something (or just check all the time like I do )

Am I too late because of school vacations?
Nope, you still have plenty of time.

Will I be able to get better rates later?
Quite possibly, see notes above. You can always adjust if needed.

We are Florida residents but I don't know if Feb is a time they give resident discounts. My husband is also retired military.

I dont think I want 1st floor... probably would want 3rd... do you have to walk up or are there elevators?
There are elevators in each building. One thing to consider is with the 8 y/o you may enjoy the patio space to let him have an area outside of the room to sit and play. I have a 7 & 8 y/o and I know they feel confined in a hotel room, so really need that balcony or patio to give them some extra space.

Something else I noticed was you have 6 people you will be traveling with. The Poly can hold a max of 5 per room, so just a heads up you will probably need 2 rooms (unless you do a suite $$$ ), you may want to keep that in mind in planning. Also dining reservations are now made 180 days out which for Feb is in September (we just booked our Jan ADRs). If you have a reservation @ a Disney resort you will be able to book on your 180th day out for up to 10 days of your stay. If you do not have your Disney resort reservation yet you'll need to call each 180th day out to make your ADRs. With 6 if you want a sit down meal you will need to have those ADR's made, the sooner the better - especially for vacation week! Since your staying at the Poly you'll certainly want to book Ohana at least once.

 

[evilqueenmindy]

We are planning a family trip to Disney for Feb 2011. DH and I are the grandparents, daughter and 8 yr old grandson, son and daughter in law. Arrival will be midweek or towards end of school vacation week into the following week probably Tuesday or Weds.
We were planning on staying offsite at a condo as we have before.... then a health scare made me realize that life is too short,,,and I want to stay at the Polynesian!!
So, I am about to embark on our journey to plan this trip.
Can you help?
Do I make our room ressies now? Am I too late because of school vacations?
Will I be able to get better rates later?
We are Florida residents but I don't know if Feb is a time they give resident discounts. My husband is also retired military.

I would like room suggestions also. I think we'd prefer quiet and central. I dont want to be a LONG walk from the monorail. I think we'd just go to the beach to watch the fireworks vs watching from the room even if we could.
I dont think I want 1st floor... probably would want 3rd... do you have to walk up or are there elevators?

I have read through all these pages, now have to go read all the links! Thanks to all who are sharing. Amazing how exciting a picture is!

I cannot tell you how excited this makes me to think about planning this at long last. Hopefully the health things works out ok and we just have an amazing time.

Any advice- ALL advice, greatly appreciated.

I've never seen a time of year when FL resident rates have not been available, the only thing is that they don't release the special rates/codes until about 4-5 months beforehand. (I believe if you book a room and then a better rate becomes available you can call and change it however)

 

[logpey]

Counter!

 

[iloveeeyore]

Counter!

eh-hem! Mine's BETTER than yours!!!

Guess we'll see eachother at the pool in...less than a week!!!


Thanks for the new thread, guitarob. You are doing a great job.

Don't know if I'll be posting back here before I leave (tons to get done, and still working the next few nights), but y'all watch for my live report, OK?

ALOHA!

 

[bellarella]

Great new thread!!!

For those of you who have switched your reservations around, can you advise me?

I got a code awhile ago for 40% off and made res. for the last week in October -- we ended up with a TPV room. I'm now thinking I'd rather be in a regular GV CL room if possible. Do you know if there are any codes out there that might allow me to make the switch? Also, how would I go about doing it?

Thanks!

 

[mdrob214]

Great new thread!!!

For those of you who have switched your reservations around, can you advise me?

I got a code awhile ago for 40% off and made res. for the last week in October -- we ended up with a TPV room. I'm now thinking I'd rather be in a regular GV CL room if possible. Do you know if there are any codes out there that might allow me to make the switch? Also, how would I go about doing it?

Thanks!

Have you already tried calling to see if your 40% off might transfer to a GV CL? I'd start there and see if there's availability.

 

[Mrs. Charming]

Great new thread!!!

For those of you who have switched your reservations around, can you advise me?

I got a code awhile ago for 40% off and made res. for the last week in October -- we ended up with a TPV room. I'm now thinking I'd rather be in a regular GV CL room if possible. Do you know if there are any codes out there that might allow me to make the switch? Also, how would I go about doing it?

Thanks!

Just call. We had our original ressie with a PIN and we did the ol switcheroo a few times, and now we're back where we started. Oh and if you get a less-than-helpful CM, thank them and call back. It's amazing how things differ from CM to CM.

 

[MCDomzal]

Are you packing yet??

My DD just started running a 102 fever today. Oh man!!! I figure she'll probably be better by the weekend, but now I have to worry about the rest of us catching it.....

Broken toe, sick kid, I'm starting to think this trip wasn't meant to be...

 

[FanO'TheMouse]

Thanks for the new thread!! The photos are beautiful! We are so excited because it is less than a month til we head to AKL then onto the Poly!

 

[Thominator'sMom]

The new thread is great guitarob! It's definitely helping me pass the time until our trip in October.

I don't have any new photos to post but here is one from our last trip in 2007. As you can see DS had no trouble adjusting to the Poly way.

 

[Missoutandabout]

Love, love, love the pics. Excitement growing. Still so far to go. Might before September rolls around.

Poly Addicts ... I mean Poly Pros, I have a question for you:

The in-room coffee maker, does it come with to-go cups or just standard ceramic mugs? I'm thinking of taking some of that new Starbucks VIA instant coffee in case we don't find the Kona coffee as strong as we like. By "strong", I mean able to stick a spoon up in it.

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

Love, love, love the pics. Excitement growing. Still so far to go. Might before September rolls around.

Poly Addicts ... I mean Poly Pros, I have a question for you:

The in-room coffee maker, does it come with to-go cups or just standard ceramic mugs? I'm thinking of taking some of that new Starbucks VIA instant coffee in case we don't find the Kona coffee as strong as we like. By "strong", I mean able to stick a spoon up in it.

I remember seeing the ceramic mugs.

 

[Missoutandabout]

I remember seeing the ceramic mugs.

Thanks for the quick reply! Ah, poo... think we'll bring it anyway. Need my fix however I can get it.

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

Thanks for the quick reply! Ah, poo... think we'll bring it anyway. Need my fix however I can get it.

You're welcome.