ALOHA! The Polynesian Resort Information Thread: October 2013

[dansdad]

At poly. Just typed a long post on my phone and the app froze and lost the post. Maybe I'll try again on my laptop.

The post is here.

 

[kgoodb00]

I now have the opportunity to upgrade to the Poly on our next trip in October. I am aware that the pool will be closed which will not be a problem. It will be a standard view. I am unsure if it would be worth it. It is a dream of mine to stay at the Poly and it would be great to hear everyone's advice and suggestions!! TIA!

 

[maiapapaya]

I now have the opportunity to upgrade to the Poly on our next trip in October. I am aware that the pool will be closed which will not be a problem. It will be a standard view. I am unsure if it would be worth it. It is a dream of mine to stay at the Poly and it would be great to hear everyone's advice and suggestions!! TIA!

IMO if it has always been your dream to stay at the Poly now is not the time to do it. You would be selling your dream short. It's not just the pool being closed, but construction walls around it for a major reworking, DVC villa construction on the beach, major work in the GCH, renovations of three longhouses for DVC and construction walls and blocked walkways all around the resort. You will not be getting the real Poly experience.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wo-8JwcOzLY

This video will give you an idea ... the maze of yellow walls in the lobby are blocking what used to be the central water feature, now being removed; the mass of plants by the stairway are blocking the back doors to the GCH (normally you would walk through to the main pool and several longhouses through them); the arcade and normal location of Captain Cook's, the counter service restaurant are walled off, with CC's operating in a temporary location (may be reopened by October); the construction walls upstairs are also blocking off the water feature removal work; one of the shops upstairs is closed off; and then the fences around the grounds for a variety of outdoor projects.

We love the Poly, have stayed there five years in a row, but this fall we are staying at the GF. The volume of work all at once, in our opinion, is too much for the money you are paying. A friend of mine was even told by a customer service CM that she thought the resort should have just been closed down since they are doing so much work.

 

[mystery222184]

Just getting back to the Poly from MK now. Mostly the same story as far as construction. The volcano pool still looks the same, filled with water- but is completely blocked off. I heard some construction noise for the first time around 8:30am and if I wasn't awake that would annoy me. Other than that though, we haven't really been interrupted by the constriction from Hawaii. We also finally have a route down (going through 2 of the long houses) to get to and from the GCH quicker. Other than that another nice day in Disney with HS up tomorrow morning for some Frozen activities and Starring Rolls

 

[weesignlanguage]

Mystery- Have you used the quiet pool yet?? Any opinions on it?? I have heard it is really warm water. Hoping it's not to terribly hot! We will be there Friday!! Enjoying your trip reports!

 

[mystery222184]

Mystery- Have you used the quiet pool yet?? Any opinions on it?? I have heard it is really warm water. Hoping it's not to terribly hot! We will be there Friday!! Enjoying your trip reports!

Thanks! Not quite yet but if we go in tmrw I'll report back. It hasn't been very crowded which is a plus!

 

[weesignlanguage]

Oh please do!! I would love to hear all about the pool! I know it's not gonna compare to the Volcano pool but I just hope it will help us beat the eat and have a nice atmosphere. I wish they would let us use the GF pool. I just don't want to take the time out of our park visits to do Blizzard Beach. Oh well! Lol!

 

[wendow]

We will be at the Poly in Dec. I appreciate everyone posting reports of how things are. I know a lot of changes are still on the way. Thank you all for making the effort to keep others informed

 

[disneyAndi14]

Great report, so helpful to us heading down to the construction zone. What area to you experienced poly travelers is the best to stay in. We have a garden view room in November. I am learning so much on this site. We are experienced disney travelers DD and I, however we have never stayed at the poly. Thanks

 

[ratlenhum]

We have a TPV booked at the end of August. I requested Tuvalu. Hubby will be using a ECV. Are the paths so bad that he will have trouble getting around? He really wants to see the EWP and Wishes from our balcony.

 

[monorailsilver]

Mystery- Have you used the quiet pool yet?? Any opinions on it?? I have heard it is really warm water. Hoping it's not to terribly hot! We will be there Friday!! Enjoying your trip reports!

We swam in the quiet pool last August and boy was it a bath. It was not refreshing.

Growing up I loved that pool but since it's not deep anymore it just isn't the same. We loved jumping off in the deep end during our early teens. Then when we wanted to go down the slide we'd schlep over to the old main pool.

But yes it was not refreshing in the hot August sun. I hope they add cold water or just blocks of ice to keep the summer guests refreshed. I mean the main pool is warm but that quiet pool is not refreshing.

 

[mickeynut1]

Here at the Poly too. We checked in Monday evening about 7pm. We didn't get our luggage from ME until about 10pm We're in Fiji looking onto the marina. Last night I don't remember hearing construction, but tonight at 9pm, I'm still hearing saws. There's also some really big, bright lights at Nanea. I guess for construction. The tree in front if our balcony is mostly blocking them. I bet the GF side is quieter. Get a Lapu Lapu or a Backscratcher; that will help to drown out the noise.

We went to Epcot this morning for RD during EMH. We went to the Poly bus stop before 7am, and buses for all of the parks came by. So, they seem to be coming a little more than an hour before opening, even for morning EMH. Epcot RD seemed to have less people than I remember.

An MK bus driver asked us where we were going, and we said Epcot. He said there was no bus from Poly to Epcot. That you had to take the monorail. We told him it wasn't running until 9am, and a bus ran before 9. He insisted on calling in and verifying. We were right, of course. Disney needs to educate their employees.

The lobby is really blocked off. We haven't tried the quiet pool but were told at Checkin, without asking, about Blizzard Beach. They gave us a pamphlet. No mention of using other pools.

Capt Cooks is beneath the stairs near Boutiki. It hasn't been as busy as I remember it. The whole resort seems to have fewer people. Boutiki and Samoa Snacks are in their regular spots, as well as the other restaurants and the carts with souvenirs by the Kona bar.

I can't think of anything else right now. I'll try to check back to this thread tomorrow, if anyone has any questions.

We did Epcot this morning and AK after lunch. Doing HS tomorrow morning and Epcot again tomorrow afternoon. No problems so far with our MB or FP+.

Thanks for the live report. I hope you are having a good time, even with the resort being so torn up. Glad to hear you aren't having any problems with your MBs or FP+ .

Just getting back to the Poly from MK now. Mostly the same story as far as construction. The volcano pool still looks the same, filled with water- but is completely blocked off. I heard some construction noise for the first time around 8:30am and if I wasn't awake that would annoy me. Other than that though, we haven't really been interrupted by the constriction from Hawaii. We also finally have a route down (going through 2 of the long houses) to get to and from the GCH quicker. Other than that another nice day in Disney with HS up tomorrow morning for some Frozen activities and Starring Rolls

Thanks for checking in again with an update. Hope you have a nice day at DHS .

 

[RedSox68]

Are any of the restaurants affected by the construction?

 

[mystery222184]

Are any of the restaurants affected by the construction?

Besides Captain Cook's being in the temp location until sometime in August, the other restaurants are fine. I suppose the view from Kona isn't the same since the walls are up but the food isn't affected. We are at Ohana last night and loved it. THe service was great and the pork was cooked much better than previous trips which made us forget about the chicken.

 

[disny_luvr]

Besides Captain Cook's being in the temp location until sometime in August, the other restaurants are fine. I suppose the view from Kona isn't the same since the walls are up but the food isn't affected. We are at Ohana last night and loved it. THe service was great and the pork was cooked much better than previous trips which made us forget about the chicken.

Where is Captain Cook's temporarily located? Is there seating there? I'm glad to hear that you had a good meal at Ohana last night. I was contemplating changing our ADR there after reading some bad reviews; we eat there on Friday night. Thanks for updating us, again!

 

[mystery222184]

Where is Captain Cook's temporarily located? Is there seating there? I'm glad to hear that you had a good meal at Ohana last night. I was contemplating changing our ADR there after reading some bad reviews; we eat there on Friday night. Thanks for updating us, again!

Sure thing. It's in the GCH close to where the art gallery used to be. I believe the space used to be for employees. Yes there is plenty of seating as I haven't seen it more than half filled so far. I believe the only item missing is the Dole Whip machine (I know that's an important one

 

[BlueSkies]

Hi mystery...Meant to pop in and send you good wishes for your trip...

I see that you arrived safe and sound and that you and your family are having a great vacation! So happy to hear that things at the Poly are not as awful as some have described... As I have said when we were there checking things out in June I didnt think that the walls.. or the general refurbishment...including the relocation of CC were bad either... But I do understand that everyone has a different way of looking at things...

I would like to know about the walking paths for getting around the resort now with the pool closed...this is some what of a concern to me...Would appreciate any info that you have about that..We are staying in Hawaii too...and from what I can tell there really is only one direct path from there to the GCH...

Thanks for taking the time to pop in and let all us inquiring minds know what the resort is like right now...

Hope you all keep on having a magical vacation!

 

[soniam]

Plenty of seating at Capt Cooks. Seems more than usual indoors, but seems like less people too. No Dole whip Drinks at Tambu Lounge are still good though Haven't tried any pools. Probably won't, since we will leave for a DCL cruise on Saturday. I don't hear any construction tonight, but we got back later from the Sparkling Dessert Party at Epcot. Not bad IMHO. MK fireworks from the second story of the Great House were awesome.

Anyone who has not been here before and this is their dream, go to a different hotel or wait. Poly has always been mythical to me. I visited as a kid, when the birds still flew around the waterfall. We were only day guests and could only afford to stay off-site. I have dreamed of staying here since I was young. A few years ago, we took my first trip as a mother/adult. I told DH that it was Poly or no go. It was magical. It still makes me tear a little, and I don't even cry at funerals. However, the current state isn't what I remember from being a kid or even a few years ago. Oh wait, now I hear the saws Come back when it's done and magical again. I truly and dearly hope to come back at that time too. It's not terrible now, but it's definitely not magical.

 

[mystery222184]

Hi mystery...Meant to pop in and send you good wishes for your trip... I see that you arrived safe and sound and that you and your family are having a great vacation! So happy to hear that things at the Poly are not as awful as some have described... As I have said when we were there checking things out in June I didnt think that the walls.. or the general refurbishment...including the relocation of CC were bad either... But I do understand that everyone has a different way of looking at things... I would like to know about the walking paths for getting around the resort now with the pool closed...this is some what of a concern to me...Would appreciate any info that you have about that..We are staying in Hawaii too...and from what I can tell there really is only one direct path from there to the GCH... Thanks for taking the time to pop in and let all us inquiring minds know what the resort is like right now... Hope you all keep on having a magical vacation!

Thanks BlueSkies! You're definitely right in regards to what is important to some people may not be for others. While we aren't too upset about the walls being up, I understand others having issues with the premium cost to stay here. Nonetheless, Hawaii is as we remember with the great staff and relaxing lounge The construction has affected the walking paths. We figured out the best way (and the one CM's seem to be telling guests now) to get from Hawaii to the GCH is to go through Samoa and Niue. This cuts down the walk to little more than normal. Of course, if you stay at the parks late you may have to walk around the East pool as we haven't been able to get into Samoa after hours. The TTC also takes longer as you have to avoid the construction area so we have generally just taken the 2nd monorail when coming back from Epcot. Hope that helps!

Quick update tonight...For any Frozen fans I'm sure you will all love HS. The parade is a nice addition, especially having Anna & Elsa sing on stage. As you can imagine, they draw a big crowd. We didn't look at the ice skating but Oaken's Trading Post store has tons of Frozen merchandise and snacks --including cookie samples Also - we didn't hear any construction from Hawaii today

 

[weesignlanguage]

Mystery- did you get to dip in the East pool yet?? We will be leaving for Poly tomorrow. Spend the first night (late arrival around 11pm) at AOA then check in at the Poly Friday morning! Can't wait!! Also, any idea how early busses and boat shuttle are running? We have a ressie for 8:20am one morning at MK for bfast and I had heard the bus would run at 8 (b/c park opens at 9) but others said the busses will run earlier than just 1 hour before park open. Any insight??