ALOHA! The Polynesian Resort Information Thread: Summer 2011 Edition!

[raider97]

Christmas in the Tropics (at the Poly). What could be better?

We are 8 days out as well! We will be celebrating our 12th anniversary.

Hope to see you there.

Stephanie

 

[waltfan42]

Did you guys see the bedbug thread??? I feel so badly for that family. We are going next week and I am totally freaked out. I guess it's a good reminder to be extra cautious as it can happen anywhere. Just really wish it wasn't the Poly.

 

[hthrbells]

Did you guys see the bedbug thread??? I feel so badly for that family. We are going next week and I am totally freaked out. I guess it's a good reminder to be extra cautious as it can happen anywhere. Just really wish it wasn't the Poly.

I just saw it and now I am flipped!! How do you find them? I guess I will be searching this instead of playing on DIS Ugh Bead Bugs freak me out!!!!

 

[disadventurer]

Did anyone mention the building that had bedbugs?

 

[briandunne]

No mention of the building involved, but one poster provided a link [I'm a noob and cannot post it] that provided a lot of useful info.

You need to conduct an inspection of your room upon arrival BEFORE bringing your bags in or at least before unpacking. The comments on the video's webpage had a useful link as well.

 

[Scarlett81]

Ah I am losing my mind trying to decide on whether or not to stay with poly or switch to BWI. Obviously i'm in the poly thread...so I know what you'll say

THing is we mama's really want a balcony. Realistically...what are the chances of us getting one if we request it? thoughts?

I can't tell you the mixed responses I'm getting. Some say better balcony chances at BWI-more balcony rooms. Some say no way, Poly has better chances.

 

[TigrLvsPooh]

Hello Poly peeps! I have been MIA for about a month, what's new at our favorite resort??? I can't wait to be back in 3 shorts weeks. When we checked out 10/31 I never dreamed we'd be headed back this soon. I can almost TASTE the dole whip now.

 

[Jungle Cruiser]

We will be checking into the Polynesian in 19 days! So excited, we are GF lovers but decided to change things up a bit. We haven't stayed at the Polynesian in years. I read all about the bed bugs and was kind of freaked out for about 5 minutes but calmed down. Honestly, they can show up anywhere. People bring them in from other destinations, it has nothing to do with the hotel. I think the encouraging thing is how quickly the Polynesian dealt with it. I love they have a bedbug sniffing dog! Before anyone thinks about switching, it can happen anywhere, and because they were found at the Polynesian I would think that hotel is going to be checked from top to bottom and is more likely to be bedbug free.

 

[Scarlett81]

We will be checking into the Polynesian in 19 days! So excited, we are GF lovers but decided to change things up a bit. We haven't stayed at the Polynesian in years. I read all about the bed bugs and was kind of freaked out for about 5 minutes but calmed down. Honestly, they can show up anywhere. People bring them in from other destinations, it has nothing to do with the hotel. I think the encouraging thing is how quickly the Polynesian dealt with it. I love they have a bedbug sniffing dog! Before anyone thinks about switching, it can happen anywhere, and because they were found at the Polynesian I would think that hotel is going to be checked from top to bottom and is more likely to be bedbug free.

Agree 100%. We're in the NYC area, which has been bedbug capital of the US for a few years now. They have nothing to do with cleanliness-they have been at the most posh luxe nyc hotels, to seedy super 8's. People were actually picking them up at our local movie theater. So really, who knows?
Having had experiences with bedbugs, I am SO impressed by how the Poly handled this, from taking their things to get cleaned, to the sniffing dog on staff,...they did everything the right way.

A simple test is to swipe the back of your headboard in any hotel room-if it comes back with a dark reddish/brown streaky residue, its probably bedbugs. So switch to anther room. Just bc one room has them does NOT mean another would.

 

[swwake]

Hello Poly peeps! I have been MIA for about a month, what's new at our favorite resort??? I can't wait to be back in 3 shorts weeks. When we checked out 10/31 I never dreamed we'd be headed back this soon. I can almost TASTE the dole whip now.

Loved your memories video in your signature!

 

[jandkmom]

We will be checking into the Polynesian in 19 days! So excited, we are GF lovers but decided to change things up a bit. We haven't stayed at the Polynesian in years. I read all about the bed bugs and was kind of freaked out for about 5 minutes but calmed down. Honestly, they can show up anywhere. People bring them in from other destinations, it has nothing to do with the hotel. I think the encouraging thing is how quickly the Polynesian dealt with it. I love they have a bedbug sniffing dog! Before anyone thinks about switching, it can happen anywhere, and because they were found at the Polynesian I would think that hotel is going to be checked from top to bottom and is more likely to be bedbug free.

I was really impressed with how they handled it too. And the fact that we've only heard about this one incident makes me think that it was isolated and Poly took care of it. My DH was joking that since it was in the Hawaii building CL, it was Justin Beiber that brought the bedbugs (since he was rumored to stay at the Poly during the Xmas special).

 

[TigrLvsPooh]

Loved your memories video in your signature!

Thanks!!!
That video makes me smile and cry at the same time.

 

[goofybabe]

27 days!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[204charity]

I was really impressed with how they handled it too. And the fact that we've only heard about this one incident makes me think that it was isolated and Poly took care of it. My DH was joking that since it was in the Hawaii building CL, it was Justin Beiber that brought the bedbugs (since he was rumored to stay at the Poly during the Xmas special).

That's funny, but I it was NOT the Hawaii CL building - it was the Tahiti Building, and that's NOT CL. Here is a copy of what was said -

We were in the Tahiti longhouse, on the second floor, in what I thought was the perfect Magic Kingdom view room until I realized that the room came with uninvited guests.

 

[Kona65]

Did anyone mention the building that had bedbugs?

Bedbugs were found in the Tahiti longhouse. We arrive next week, and I am iching all over. My thought is that the Poly is on the lookout for the little buggers, and I don't think we will find any unwanted guest on this trip.

 

[jandkmom]

That's funny, but I it was NOT the Hawaii CL building - it was the Tahiti Building, and that's NOT CL. Here is a copy of what was said -

We were in the Tahiti longhouse, on the second floor, in what I thought was the perfect Magic Kingdom view room until I realized that the room came with uninvited guests.

Sorry I read that wrong. Long weekend with a sick family...

 

[204charity]

Sorry I read that wrong. Long weekend with a sick family...

No worries! I just thought I'd let you know so you weren't thinking it was CL.

I am interested to know if they have been found recently at any of the other resorts. I know it's just one of those things, you can get them anywhere at anytime, but hearing they are there right in the Poly makes me nervous too. I would just HATE to bring them home with us. That would make me very upset. Our poor DD had headlice last year (we still don't know for sure where she caught it) and her anxiety was so bad, she picked at her scalp excessively for months until she ended up in hospital with a scalp infection! It was absolutely terrible and I would just CRY for her if she had to go through something like that on holiday.

 

[vanillarum]

Hey gang. We just returned Sat from a week at the Poly. We had a great week. Crowds were less that we usually experience in August, so that was great. We attended the MVMCP on Wed the 7th, and although a cold front had set in, we had a great time. And the crowd was not bad at all. The weather was in the high 70s to low (and mid) 80s every day except Wed night and Thursday, where the temps were in the 50s.
The Osbourne lights are absolutely magnificent ! You have to see them to really appreciate them. The week we were there was also pop warner AND cheerleader week, and we only saw them occasionally in the parks. We did see a Brazilian tour group or 2, but we usually just went the other way.
We were on the modified dining plan (our DS is an intern, so we couldn't turn down the deal !), and tried a bunch of new places that we had not previously visited. We had ADRs for all our ressies, and waits were never more than 10 minutes or so. We started at the Wave on Sat eve. There were quite a few tables open, and the service was VERY SLOW. This is a somewhat "gourmet" restaurant, and the servings were very small. My 15 yo DD left hungry, and she usually eats like a bird. The food was average, at best. Both of us that ordered the steak and had to send it back as it was undercooked. The restaurant did not make a good enough first impression for us to want to return.
Sunday night we ate at the Coral Reef, and enjoyed it as always. Food was well prepared and the service (DJ was our server) was top notch. Still is 1 of our favorite places to eat. We had lunch at the LTT, and as usual, this, too was very good. Good food, good service, and a staple for us. Our first trip to the Yak and Yeti was great. Excellent food, plenty of it, and great service. We will return here. La Hacienda was also a first for us, and we all enjoyed it except for my 15 yo DD, who has very pedestrian tastes. The menu was a little limited, but service was excellent. Via Napoli was recommended to us by our son, the intern, and was good. Very busy place, very loud, but great pizza ! Our waiter, Luigi, was super, and helped us out with our questions and selections. A return must for us.
We did O'Hanas for breakfast, as we needed a fix of "Stitch juice". We had a great time, and it is your typical family style restaurant (as far as food is concerned). Our kids are a little old to appreciate the character meals as they once did, but we had a fine time, Rose and Crowne for supper was great. It was so nice we sat outside, as most diners did. Service was super (Haley was our waitress), and we all enjoyed our meals. No one had room for desert !
The fireworks were, as usual, awesome ! We thought they were best seen from the beach at the Poly. It let you see the entire sky. We were right next to the castle the night we were at MVMCP, and we still thought you could see more from the beach. We swam every day but 1, and I never had to break out my long pants the entire trip. Weather was great, crowds were very manageable, and the Poly was, well, the Poly. We had requested Tokelau, 3rd floor, and were in room 3944, facing the quiet poolOur favorite place. Mousekeeping was good. Only towel animals were there when we checked in, and the 1 or 2 requests we had were taken care of immediately.
OK, that 's enough for now. Still working on pics (got over 300 to sort thru). Sorry about the format. I tried to make paragraphs, but could not get the post to comply (of course, I am relatively computer illiterate !) Feel free to ask any questions you may have. Thanx.

 

[shocky5]

Hey gang. We just returned Sat from a week at the Poly. We had a great week. Crowds were less that we usually experience in August, so that was great. We attended the MVMCP on Wed the 7th, and although a cold front had set in, we had a great time. And the crowd was not bad at all. The weather was in the high 70s to low (and mid) 80s every day except Wed night and Thursday, where the temps were in the 50s.
The Osbourne lights are absolutely magnificent ! You have to see them to really appreciate them. The week we were there was also pop warner AND cheerleader week, and we only saw them occasionally in the parks. We did see a Brazilian tour group or 2, but we usually just went the other way.
We were on the modified dining plan (our DS is an intern, so we couldn't turn down the deal !), and tried a bunch of new places that we had not previously visited. We had ADRs for all our ressies, and waits were never more than 10 minutes or so. We started at the Wave on Sat eve. There were quite a few tables open, and the service was VERY SLOW. This is a somewhat "gourmet" restaurant, and the servings were very small. My 15 yo DD left hungry, and she usually eats like a bird. The food was average, at best. Both of us that ordered the steak and had to send it back as it was undercooked. The restaurant did not make a good enough first impression for us to want to return.
Sunday night we ate at the Coral Reef, and enjoyed it as always. Food was well prepared and the service (DJ was our server) was top notch. Still is 1 of our favorite places to eat. We had lunch at the LTT, and as usual, this, too was very good. Good food, good service, and a staple for us. Our first trip to the Yak and Yeti was great. Excellent food, plenty of it, and great service. We will return here. La Hacienda was also a first for us, and we all enjoyed it except for my 15 yo DD, who has very pedestrian tastes. The menu was a little limited, but service was excellent. Via Napoli was recommended to us by our son, the intern, and was good. Very busy place, very loud, but great pizza ! Our waiter, Luigi, was super, and helped us out with our questions and selections. A return must for us.
We did O'Hanas for breakfast, as we needed a fix of "Stitch juice". We had a great time, and it is your typical family style restaurant (as far as food is concerned). Our kids are a little old to appreciate the character meals as they once did, but we had a fine time, Rose and Crowne for supper was great. It was so nice we sat outside, as most diners did. Service was super (Haley was our waitress), and we all enjoyed our meals. No one had room for desert !
The fireworks were, as usual, awesome ! We thought they were best seen from the beach at the Poly. It let you see the entire sky. We were right next to the castle the night we were at MVMCP, and we still thought you could see more from the beach. We swam every day but 1, and I never had to break out my long pants the entire trip. Weather was great, crowds were very manageable, and the Poly was, well, the Poly. We had requested Tokelau, 3rd floor, and were in room 3944, facing the quiet poolOur favorite place. Mousekeeping was good. Only towel animals were there when we checked in, and the 1 or 2 requests we had were taken care of immediately.
OK, that 's enough for now. Still working on pics (got over 300 to sort thru). Sorry about the format. I tried to make paragraphs, but could not get the post to comply (of course, I am relatively computer illiterate !) Feel free to ask any questions you may have. Thanx.

How was the swimming - just cold when you got out of the water or not at all? We go on Friday and my kids will definitely want to swim!!

Thank you for your post! Just makes me that much more excited to get there!!!

 

[vanillarum]

We swam all but 2 days - one day was in the 50s, the other we had no time. If there was a breeze, it was a little cool, but most of the time, it was perfect. Have a great trip !!