ALOHA! The Polynesian Resort Information Thread: October 2013

[samacita]

First stay at Poly coming up in just a few days!!!

Can you experienced Poly people help me on timing for our AK day? We have a breakfast ADR at Tusker House at 8:05am. What time would you suggest leaving Poly? Do we need to arrive 20-30 min early for the ADR? How do we catch the bus - do we have to go from TTC? Or does an AK bus leave from Poly itself? Sorry that I have so many questions!!

 

[dansdad]

We have a breakfast ADR at Tusker House at 8:05am. What time would you suggest leaving Poly?

I would be at the bus stop before 7AM to be safe.

Do we need to arrive 20-30 min early for the ADR?

They prefer that you are there 15 minutes before, but it's fine if you're there at your scheduled time.

How do we catch the bus - do we have to go from TTC? Or does an AK bus leave from Poly itself? Sorry that I have so many questions!!

The bus to AK will come right to the Poly and pick you up.

 

[VP037388]

We have stayed at the Poly many times, love it, and always stayed on property. This next trip, we will be off property (long story, short trip, good price). Our last day we have breakfast ADR at Ohana (8AM). We plan to go to the MK after breakfast and have to leave to the airport by 1PM. Would it be a problem to leave the rental car at the Poly while we are at the park? I'm not trying to get away with something here, it's all about the time. We are short on it that day and the car will be full of our luggage. Since we are parking to eat there anyway, is there anything wrong with this? We have never driven/had a car before so I just don't know what to think or expect. What would Mickey do?

 

[dansdad]

We have stayed at the Poly many times, love it, and always stayed on property. This next trip, we will be off property (long story, short trip, good price). Our last day we have breakfast ADR at Ohana (8AM). We plan to go to the MK after breakfast and have to leave to the airport by 1PM. Would it be a problem to leave the rental car at the Poly while we are at the park? I'm not trying to get away with something here, it's all about the time. We are short on it that day and the car will be full of our luggage. Since we are parking to eat there anyway, is there anything wrong with this? We have never driven/had a car before so I just don't know what to think or expect. What would Mickey do?

You could pay for valet and leave your car there all day.

 

[karriealex]

Feeling sad. Due to financial reasons we had to change our reservations in December from the Poly to AoA. I am going to miss my beloved Poly. We have dinner reservations for Ohana and Kona but now my kids and dh are asking to change that too. <sigh>

 

[samacita]

I would be at the bus stop before 7AM to be safe. They prefer that you are there 15 minutes before, but it's fine if you're there at your scheduled time. The bus to AK will come right to the Poly and pick you up.

Thanks so much!! Very helpful!

 

[Brer Brett]

Trying to keep my wits about me here

As of this morning we were booked for POFQ for Feb. 21-Mar. 1. My wife and our three little peeps (5,3,and 1).

Mid day nap, pool time is how we do the Dis with our kids. So, when I found out FQ pool was closed today for the time we will be there, I splurged and decided to fulfill a dream to do the Poly. So I made the switch tonight and the CM was so helpful. Was and still am I think so excited about Poly.

Then I hop on here and all I'm seeing is construction talk and potential pool closure??? Talk about a Dis roller coaster.

I guess I'm most concerned about the volcano pool. Any insight on potential closure based on our dates?

Also, any general recommendation on longhouse location with 3 young ones in tow? I'm thinking as close to monorail as possible for their short legs but will that put us close to construction noise?

Thanks for any thoughts (and perhaps reassurances).

 

[karriealex]

Trying to keep my wits about me here

As of this morning we were booked for POFQ for Feb. 21-Mar. 1. My wife and our three little peeps (5,3,and 1).

Mid day nap, pool time is how we do the Dis with our kids. So, when I found out FQ pool was closed today for the time we will be there, I splurged and decided to fulfill a dream to do the Poly. So I made the switch tonight and the CM was so helpful. Was and still am I think so excited about Poly.

Then I hop on here and all I'm seeing is construction talk and potential pool closure??? Talk about a Dis roller coaster.

I guess I'm most concerned about the volcano pool. Any insight on potential closure based on our dates?

Also, any general recommendation on longhouse location with 3 young ones in tow? I'm thinking as close to monorail as possible for their short legs but will that put us close to construction noise?

Thanks for any thoughts (and perhaps reassurances).

You should be okay with the volcano pool for your dates. It is not supposed to go down for refurbishment until March. The best longhouse for what you are looking for would probably be Areotoa. It is close to the GCH and Capt. Cooks and close to the monorail. You might even get a monorail view. It is also on the other side of the resort from the current construction. Only construction you might have to deal with would be if they begin the work on the GCH. That said it is being reported that they will be doing that in sections so the whole thing will not be closed down. We don't yet know when that construction will begin.

 

[Brer Brett]

Thanks Karriealex! That makes me feel better. Can't wait to stay there and see what the buzz is all about in person. We'll likely be in MK the majority of time with our three little ones, so I think the Poly location will be perfect.

 

[karriealex]

Thanks Karriealex! That makes me feel better. Can't wait to stay there and see what the buzz is all about in person. We'll likely be in MK the majority of time with our three little ones, so I think the Poly location will be perfect.

You will fall in love with it. Even with the construction it is a beautiful resort. It will be back to it's complete beauty once the construction is finished. Yes it will be different with the bungalows but nothing can take away the natural beauty of this resort.

 

[maiapapaya]

Feeling sad. Due to financial reasons we had to change our reservations in December from the Poly to AoA. I am going to miss my beloved Poly. We have dinner reservations for Ohana and Kona but now my kids and dh are asking to change that too. <sigh>

Sorry about your change of plans Maybe your family could compromise and keep one of your dinner ressies, just so you can get a bit of a Poly fix.

 

[karriealex]

Sorry about your change of plans Maybe your family could compromise and keep one of your dinner ressies, just so you can get a bit of a Poly fix.

We have done Ohana many times. I am hoping to keep the Kona reservation. Dh is all about being spontaneous this time and doesn't want to be tied down to having to be at a certain place at a certain time. I am hoping I can convince him to keep this one or at least try and stop there for lunch when you are less likely to need an ADR.

 

[JoAnna525]

I am a life-long Poly fan, having stayed there twice in the '80s as a teen, and then revisited it just a couple of weeks ago. It is everything I remembered growing up, and because my son is so young (not quite 2), the location was absolute perfection for us, allowing us to come and go between the resort, MK and Epcot as needed. We had the most marvelous time.

My little guy is now a HUGE Mickey and Disney fan, and we're planning a return trip at the beginning of December 2014. I would love to go back to Poly . . . but now I'm hearing of the pool closure, which may extend into our trip dates. The volcano pool was a huge part of our time at Poly, as it gave my son a great way to decompress and DH and I a relaxing time. Now, the weather, I realize, is hit or miss at the beginning of December, so we may not even use the pool, in which case, Poly would still be a great resort for us (location location location!), but should I plan on looking at a different resort to have the pool option? I'm thinking the next best option for us would be CR/BLT because of the proximity to TTC. Any thoughts?

 

[minniebeth]

Feeling sad. Due to financial reasons we had to change our reservations in December from the Poly to AoA. I am going to miss my beloved Poly. We have dinner reservations for Ohana and Kona but now my kids and dh are asking to change that too. <sigh>

I'm so sorry, I'm sure you are disappointed! Your love for the Polynesian is obvious with so many of your helpful posts
We consider the Polynesian our "home" resort~ it's ultimately our favorite, and we always love going back there, but we do like to try other resorts. My loyalty will always be with the Polynesian, but we have really grown to love different resorts for different reasons!
We love AoA! For the price, whether in a standard room, or suite, we just think it's so much fun! I love the different themes, and since it is newer, it feels upgraded from the other values. Transporation is pretty good (better than moderates imo) and the food court is pretty good. I feel it was better when it first opened, but still is good.
I hope you have a great experience with it!

I hope you can keep your Kona reservation, no matter what trip we do, or where we stay, we always go back to the Poly for some type of meal. Even if it's Captain Cooks.

 

[VP037388]

Thanks Dansdad! I didn't even consider valet since we aren't staying there. I will check into it.

 

[Elinor Dashwood]

What the what? There seem to be so many changes going on at the Poly! We're planning to go the end of January but I'm seeing that the volcano pool will be closed?? Is that correct and for how long? If they close it, can we use the GF one instead?

Also the construction doesn't look THAT obtrusive, does it? This is our favorite resort, of all time. We want to stay here no matter what.

 

[DznyCrzy11]

We have stayed at the Poly many times, love it, and always stayed on property. This next trip, we will be off property (long story, short trip, good price). Our last day we have breakfast ADR at Ohana (8AM). We plan to go to the MK after breakfast and have to leave to the airport by 1PM. Would it be a problem to leave the rental car at the Poly while we are at the park? I'm not trying to get away with something here, it's all about the time. We are short on it that day and the car will be full of our luggage. Since we are parking to eat there anyway, is there anything wrong with this? We have never driven/had a car before so I just don't know what to think or expect. What would Mickey do?

Have you thought about visiting DTD after breakfast? Ohana at 8 am and then leaving for the airport at 1 pm only gives you 3 hrs max at MK.

You could pay for valet and leave your car there all day.

That option might even be the same cost as parking at TTC and it would be more convenient since you are eating at Poly.

Feeling sad. Due to financial reasons we had to change our reservations in December from the Poly to AoA. I am going to miss my beloved Poly. We have dinner reservations for Ohana and Kona but now my kids and dh are asking to change that too. <sigh>

I'm sorry to hear that. I know how disappointing that can be. The Poly is an expensive resort though. I've been tossing around the idea of a few days at WDW before our cruise next year but Poly is out of the question due to cost, actually the few days may also be out of the question, lol. My DH keeps saying "wait until we pay the cruise off", he's so annoyed by me, LOL. Anyways, I kind of agree with your dh and sons. If we do go back for a few days next year, I don't want to visit the Poly because then I'm going to wish we stayed there. If you think you can visit without being sad that you are staying there then you could stop by for lunch at Kona like you mentioned earlier.

I am a life-long Poly fan, having stayed there twice in the '80s as a teen, and then revisited it just a couple of weeks ago. It is everything I remembered growing up, and because my son is so young (not quite 2), the location was absolute perfection for us, allowing us to come and go between the resort, MK and Epcot as needed. We had the most marvelous time.

My little guy is now a HUGE Mickey and Disney fan, and we're planning a return trip at the beginning of December 2014. I would love to go back to Poly . . . but now I'm hearing of the pool closure, which may extend into our trip dates. The volcano pool was a huge part of our time at Poly, as it gave my son a great way to decompress and DH and I a relaxing time. Now, the weather, I realize, is hit or miss at the beginning of December, so we may not even use the pool, in which case, Poly would still be a great resort for us (location location location!), but should I plan on looking at a different resort to have the pool option? I'm thinking the next best option for us would be CR/BLT because of the proximity to TTC. Any thoughts?

Hhhmmm, that's a difficult decision. No one knows exactly when construction will be finished on the pool. If it were me and I really wanted to stay at the Poly, I would go ahead and book it and keep up with the pool closure updates.

Sent from my Galaxy SII

 

[karriealex]

I'm so sorry, I'm sure you are disappointed! Your love for the Polynesian is obvious with so many of your helpful posts
We consider the Polynesian our "home" resort~ it's ultimately our favorite, and we always love going back there, but we do like to try other resorts. My loyalty will always be with the Polynesian, but we have really grown to love different resorts for different reasons!
We love AoA! For the price, whether in a standard room, or suite, we just think it's so much fun! I love the different themes, and since it is newer, it feels upgraded from the other values. Transporation is pretty good (better than moderates imo) and the food court is pretty good. I feel it was better when it first opened, but still is good.
I hope you have a great experience with it!

I hope you can keep your Kona reservation, no matter what trip we do, or where we stay, we always go back to the Poly for some type of meal. Even if it's Captain Cooks.

Thank you. I do love the Poly and I try to help wherever I can. I also consider the Poly my home resort. Always has been and always will be my favorite. I have been reading up on AoA and it does sound pretty neat. I am glad to hear about your experience with it. It will be nice to have our own room and two bathrooms. I watched a video where Pete and his team talked about AoA and they really loved it. Also being that we will be in a suite it won't seem so much like a value resort to us. I have decided I am going to go into it with an open mind.

Yea! Dh just said yes to keeping Kona. Thankfully neither of us is the ultimate decision maker for the family and we are able to talk about our wants and needs and come to a decision together. He saw how important it was to me to go to Kona and said if that is what you want go for it. Now I just have to decide dinner or lunch. The lunch menu does appeal to me a little more. And of course I will have to stop at Capt. Cooks for a Dole Whip. That is a must!

I will also walk around the resort and get construction pictures and a feel for the noise level and report back to you all. I am also hoping to get a look at one of the accessible rooms and get some info on those. I have a really bad back and the way things are going I may soon need one and info on them is almost non existent.

 

[karriealex]

What the what? There seem to be so many changes going on at the Poly! We're planning to go the end of January but I'm seeing that the volcano pool will be closed?? Is that correct and for how long? If they close it, can we use the GF one instead?

Also the construction doesn't look THAT obtrusive, does it? This is our favorite resort, of all time. We want to stay here no matter what.

January is just resurfacing so it shouldn't be too long. Yes they have a launch to the Grand Floridian to use their pool should the one at the Poly be closed when you are there. The obtrusiveness of the construction is kinda in the eye of the beholder. What bothers one wont bother another. Right now it is only on one side of the resort and in the back of the resort. They will however be working on the GCH in the near future which will effect all guests in one way or another. They are expected to do it in stages so the whole thing wont be down.

 

[Elinor Dashwood]

January is just resurfacing so it shouldn't be too long. Yes they have a launch to the Grand Floridian to use their pool should the one at the Poly be closed when you are there. The obtrusiveness of the construction is kinda in the eye of the beholder. What bothers one wont bother another. Right now it is only on one side of the resort and in the back of the resort. They will however be working on the GCH in the near future which will effect all guests in one way or another. They are expected to do it in stages so the whole thing wont be down.

Thanks!!!

I agree, honestly the construction doesn't really bug me much at all. How long does it take to resurface a pool I wonder? Are there specific dates for it's refurb yet?