ALOHA! The Polynesian Resort Information Thread: June 2013

[bluejasmine]

That is a hard decision b/c I love the marina but how near would it be to be able to sit on your patio/balcony & see monorail glide by???

 

[karriealex]

Welcome to the Poly Thread! I can totally relate to your needs as my youngest DD is in the autism spectrum and has a mild muscular myopathy that, in the past, meant she would tire out easily. We used a stroller for her our first 2-3 trips for both sensory reasons as well as for tired muscles.

We have stayed in both Tokelau and Aotearoa. We liked them both for different reasons. Tokelau was VERY quiet(TTC side) and had a larger room. Aotearoa had a great view(we could see the castle thru a wispy tree for GV price!) and we loved being near the luau and hearing the soft music in the evening while on the balcony. It really added to the Polynesian feel and it was quiet when we closed the sliding door so no worries there.

Either side of the resort will give you longhouses with elevators. The only building with no elevator is Nuie and it is only 2 floors. It has access to an elevator thru a little bridgelike walkway with Roratonga.

If your family will be coming back to the room midday for a nap/sensory break, being in Tokelau will have more "risk" of construction noise than closer to the luau. It also sounds like a large portion of the beach on that side of the resort will be closed off. I would probably recommend requesting Fiji or Aotearoa. You will be next to a very quiet beach with no construction--lol--and a quick walk to the GCH for food and monorail. A little farther from the bus stop and the TTC but since you will have a stroller that is not as big of a deal. You would also be closer to the GF walkway. GF has some great restaurants that we like to visit. We take the monorail there and usually walk the beautiful pathway back to the Poly.

Good luck with your decision. I am sure you will have a wonderful vacation

Also if the walk to the TTC seems too long for you or there is an issue with the construction, you can also jump on the monorail to get to it.

 

[karriealex]

That is a hard decision b/c I love the marina but how near would it be to be able to sit on your patio/balcony & see monorail glide by???

I know, hard decision. I did just ask dh and he really seems to want to go with Fiji. It will be interesting to be on the other side of the resort this time. We have always stayed in Hawaii on the right side of the resort. From reading what is being said about Fiji I have to say it sounds wonderful. No crowds watching Wishes and the water parade, close to the GCH, the sound of the luau music. I think this is where we will request.

 

[leannak]

I want to cry!!!!

My mother and father in law got the poly letter about the construction. We asked disney to send all mailings to our address!!! This was supposed to be a surprise for grandma and grandpa. The letter mentions views of the magic kingdom, etc. it ruined our whole surprise. And now MIL and FIL say they don't think they're going to go!!!!!!I think they looked up pricing and are worried about how much everything is going to cost (we're covering most of their trip).

I am so, so sad.

MIL showed me the mail she received. In addition to the poly construction letter she also received a whole custom book that features our whole vacation - with pictures of the poly and information about the restaurants... It has maps of all the parks. I didn't get this book! (What the heck, Disney?!? You said you would send all their paperwork to me!!). So much for our surprise. I was so excited to bring them because they know NOTHING about Disney. Now they're all upset about the beach being closed at our resort etc. And they think we're going to be able to see the castle from our rooms (we're not - we are garden view). We are also only staying at the poly for 3 nights of our trip. I don't even know what to tell them now. What is this booklet?!?? Is it the "Mickey mail" I hear people talking about?? It didn't have their tickets.

 

[peoplemover]

Got our letter yesterday...they re going bulk rate.

What does "going bulk rate" mean?

 

[sjs314]

What does "going bulk rate" mean?

Cheapest method to ship a large volume of mail via US Postal Service, it is slow as it is not given priority like 1st class mail

 

[peoplemover]

What are you likely to see when looking through your sliding glass door in the cheapest standard view room at the Polynesian? Has anyone stayed in one & do you have photos you can share of your view?

 

[Wanna be Ariel]

Anyone there now or going in a couple day??? I need some pictures to get me through the next 19 days til I am there. The last couple of pages was a lot of talk about what will be, could be. I want what is NOW So bring on some pictures and tell me all the good and magical things that are going on right now!

 

[jeremynelson13]

Anyone there now or going in a couple day??? I need some pictures to get me through the next 19 days til I am there. The last couple of pages was a lot of talk about what will be, could be. I want what is NOW So bring on some pictures and tell me all the good and magical things that are going on right now!

I second that. Magic of the moment sounds great.

 

[Pirate Mickey Mom]

My husband surprised me last weekend with a 7 night stay at the Poly in January 2014. This is our second stay at the Poly and our first time staying CL. We have two kids who LOVE the volcano pool. We were sad to learn that it may be closed in January for resurfacing. Is this a tentative date or plan?

 

[karriealex]

What are you likely to see when looking through your sliding glass door in the cheapest standard view room at the Polynesian? Has anyone stayed in one & do you have photos you can share of your view?

You can see anything from parking lot, though from what I have heard it's not that easy to see, to foliage and garden, to the monorail, the quiet pool, the main pool, or the marina. It really depends of what longhouse you are in. You can request a longhouse when you do online check in. While it is not guaranteed you have a better chance of getting the view you want. We are requesting Fiji for our December trip. One side looks over the marina and the other over grass and foliage (garden view aka standard view). Samoa looks over the main pool on one side and the quiet pool on the other. Tokelau you are taking a gamble on as one side looks over the quiet pool but the other may face the construction. Areotoa (sp) and Raratonga look over the garden on one side but the other side faces the parking lot and Monorail. Not sure if Rapa Nui is involved in the construction as it is supposed to go DVC. I can't find my map right now but I believe Nui has garden views on both sides. Someone please correct me if I am wrong. Tuvalu is garden on one side and lagoon and theme park I believe on the other. Tonga is CL only as is Hawaii. Tahiti is involved in the construction. I do have pictures of the pools which do show a couple of the longhouses in the background which I can post if you want me to.

 

[karriealex]

My husband surprised me last weekend with a 7 night stay at the Poly in January 2014. This is our second stay at the Poly and our first time staying CL. We have two kids who LOVE the volcano pool. We were sad to learn that it may be closed in January for resurfacing. Is this a tentative date or plan?

Right now we are hearing conflicting reports. Tikiman says he was told yes Jan but I was told no put off indefinitely. I guess we will have to keep calling to see what the status is as it gets closer. The quiet pool is very nice although it does not have slides.

 

[MelissaTnNc]

We are doing a split stay with four nights at the Poly. Are there any longhouses that have not been refurbished? I was under the impression they had all been rehabbed, but I think I read on here they had not. We are going the first week in December and would not want to stay in a room that was not rehabbed.

 

[Missus Toad]

Right now we are hearing conflicting reports. Tikiman says he was told yes Jan but I was told no put off indefinitely. I guess we will have to keep calling to see what the status is as it gets closer. The quiet pool is very nice although it does not have slides.

Have to say that if they are going to keep the volcano pool in the new phases of the resort, it does need some work. The bottom of the pool is really stained near the filters.

 

[karriealex]

We are doing a split stay with four nights at the Poly. Are there any longhouses that have not been refurbished? I was under the impression they had all been rehabbed, but I think I read on here they had not. We are going the first week in December and would not want to stay in a room that was not rehabbed.

I am not sure Rapi Nui has been rehabbed but it is supposed to go DVC. Tahiti also has not been rehabbed but it is involved in the construction. All other longhouses are finished. The new rooms are BEAUTIFUL!

 

[karriealex]

Have to say that if they are going to keep the volcano pool in the new phases of the resort, it does need some work. The bottom of the pool is really stained near the filters.

I believe Tikiman said what they are doing is a resurface so it may include the bottom of the pool.

 

[White Rose]

Cheapest method to ship a large volume of mail via US Postal Service, it is slow as it is not given priority like 1st class mail

Exactly...so it could take 3 days or 3 weeks for you to get the mail. I was surprised we got it directly and it did not go to our TA.

I asked my hubby (he seems to know everything...) and he said it might have been a liability issue - they have to make a reasonable effort to reach out to everyone staying at their resort to let them know about the upcoming construction.

 

[MelissaTnNc]

I am not sure Rapi Nui has been rehabbed but it is supposed to go DVC. Tahiti also has not been rehabbed but it is involved in the construction. All other longhouses are finished. The new rooms are BEAUTIFUL!

Awesome! Thank you!

 

[karriealex]

Awesome! Thank you!

I have pictures of the rooms if you would like me to post them.

 

[karriealex]

Just called to make reservations for October at Pop Century and found out something relating to the Poly. Originally I was told that once a resort started testing the magic bands that they kept the magic bands. I found out this is not true. We thought that we would be getting the magic bands for our December Poly trip since they are testing them now but we wont because the test ends Oct 31st at the Poly. We are getting the magic bands for Pop Century since they will be in testing during our trip but poor dh doesn't get one because he wont be on that trip. I asked if she knew when they would be going totally live with this and she said even they are getting mixed information and teasers right now and no set live date yet.