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

[Divaofdisney]

Does anyone know when this announcment will be taking place?? We are booked next June for the Poly and soooo looking forward to it. Please let us know>>>>

 

[heycher]

Does anyone know when this announcment will be taking place?? We are booked next June for the Poly and soooo looking forward to it. Please let us know>>>>

My guess is the announcement will come sometime today. Today is *the* day of the 40th anniversary of the Poly, so I could see them making an official announcement as part of the celebration.

Just a guess....

 

[FosterA]

Well hello everybody
sorry to jump in here right in the middle of a discussion about a big announcement coming soon but I've got a question.....
We are super newbies heading to the Poly for the first time this November. I may order some stuff from Garden Grocer soon but not really sure how all that works. My main question is, are you able to order wine or beer? Also....I've seen that alot of people order bagels and breakfast stuff but I didn't think the regular Poly rooms had microwaves? Do you have to rent the microwaves? Is there an actual place to fit the microwave or do you have to take up table space or what? (of course maybe people are eating bagels and poptarts cold but I'd love to warm up my bagels)

Thanks in advance You guys are great!
p.s. I'm bursting at the seams with excitement now that I know our trip is only 6 weeks away!!!

 

[mickeynut1]

The rooms at the Grand were VERY small. I'd say almost, if not exactly, as small as WL.

I also really enjoy the resort feel of the Poly. The Grand just didn't thrill us.

The rooms at the GF felt smaller to me, too. I think all the monorail resort rooms are comparable in size, but the Poly rooms seem more spacious than at the GF . I agree about the Poly "feel".....it doesn't get any better than that . The tropical atmosphere is so relaxing and the grounds are just beautiful. When we stayed at the Grand in December my DH and DSs weren't thrilled with it.....they asked to go back to the Poly for our next trip. They had a nice time and thought the resort was nice, but their favorite is the Poly and they would choose that over the Grand any day .

When I first heard the rumour about a possible closure (not from Tikiman, but months ago on the DIS) some posters were saying that Disney was waiting for the new Arts of Animation suites/resort to open and then guests would be shifted there. I'm sorry, but if I was booked at Poly and I got sent to a value I'd be majorly ticked, infact I would probably cancel. Not to disparage a value, but if someone has booked the Poly it is because they want the amenities of a deluxe, the monorail & the proximity to the MK. I don't think AoA would cut it. I think ppl would rather go to the GF, CR or WL, or an Epcot resort. As I said this was all an old rumour/discussion on the DIS and hopefully has nothing to do with what Tikiman is talking about.

I totally agree!!!!! I would not go for that move either if I booked the Poly (or any deluxe), and got shifted to a value. Nothing against the values.....we've never stayed at one so I can't comment on them......but that is not a comparable move. I would probably cancel as well or go offsite if my only choice was a value.

I know this is all pure speculation but **IF** the Poly were closed during a scheduled stay, then Disney should offer those guests a comparable resort. I would miss the Poly but I would be happy to try the CR or GF. I've been looking for an excuse to get DH to try the BC forever. If another deluxe wasn't an option then I would either postpone my trip or stay off site at the Waldorf. Of course, this is all hypothetical right? They would never do such a thing, right???

I hope Tikiman gives us an update soon

Me too . I'm in the beginning stages of planning our trip for June or July 2012 and it would be nice to hear any announcements now so I could decide where to book should the Poly be closed.

 

[mickeynut1]

Well hello everybody
sorry to jump in here right in the middle of a discussion about a big announcement coming soon but I've got a question.....
We are super newbies heading to the Poly for the first time this November. I may order some stuff from Garden Grocer soon but not really sure how all that works. My main question is, are you able to order wine or beer? Also....I've seen that alot of people order bagels and breakfast stuff but I didn't think the regular Poly rooms had microwaves? Do you have to rent the microwaves? Is there an actual place to fit the microwave or do you have to take up table space or what? (of course maybe people are eating bagels and poptarts cold but I'd love to warm up my bagels)

Thanks in advance You guys are great!
p.s. I'm bursting at the seams with excitement now that I know our trip is only 6 weeks away!!!

I can't help with the Garden Grocer question as we've never ordered for delivery before, but I just wanted to say how exciting for your trip being just 6 weeks away . We love the Poly and I'm sure you will too......it's a fabulous resort with beautiful grounds and a great pool.....enjoy .

 

[wendyt_ca]

OK kids hold onto your hats!!! Over on FB Tikiman is dropping massive hints about a BIG Poly announcement coming. He said it is "the biggest news in Poly history" and that our days "enjoying the Poly as it is are numbered!"
hmmmmm
I will keep you posted if he spills.
I wonder if it's DVC or the old rumour that they are going to shut the resort down to flatten & rebuild the GCH?!

There has been rumors of them removing Poly to build The Grand Californian Hotel in Disney(I assume thats the GCH)?

 

[traylorc]

There has been rumors of them removing Poly to build The Grand Californian Hotel in Disney(I assume thats the GCH)?

I assumed GCH stood for Grand Ceremonial House.

IMHO I don't think a "Grand Californian" is needed at WDW, they basically have that covered with the Wilderness Lodge. I know the Californian is suppose to be more upscale, but when we stayed there last year I remember thinking this place reminds me of the Wilderness Lodge.

 

[ddluvsdisney]

GCH is Great Ceremonial House lol

 

[Tinkerbellie16]

So I've never gone to tikiman's fb page so I just did. It's not much of anything - "Big news about the future of the Polynesian!! Not sure if i can tell. Might have to keep it a secret."

It's really just so vague. I sincerely do not think they would get rid of the Poly at all - it is one of the most popular resorts. I do think they might expand or add DVC or something like that. That would be cool!

 

[wendyt_ca]

GCH is Great Ceremonial House lol

Lol Oops. I had thought of that but it said flatten the entire resort so I assumed that would mean an entirely new resort. My bad lol

 

[goofybabe]

I' m feeling a little paranoid over Steve's predictions about the Polynesian ,I really hope whatever it is doesn't interfere with our upcoming vacation in January.I really have no desire to stay anywhere but there. I've been planning this for awhile now but I feel spooked! But I really can't imagine that travel agents would still book you if they knew about a big overhaul ,anyways I hope we all find out what the big secret is soon .:

 

[1971DBday]

Well hello everybody
sorry to jump in here right in the middle of a discussion about a big announcement coming soon but I've got a question.....
We are super newbies heading to the Poly for the first time this November. I may order some stuff from Garden Grocer soon but not really sure how all that works. My main question is, are you able to order wine or beer? Also....I've seen that alot of people order bagels and breakfast stuff but I didn't think the regular Poly rooms had microwaves? Do you have to rent the microwaves? Is there an actual place to fit the microwave or do you have to take up table space or what? (of course maybe people are eating bagels and poptarts cold but I'd love to warm up my bagels)

Thanks in advance You guys are great!
p.s. I'm bursting at the seams with excitement now that I know our trip is only 6 weeks away!!!

Can't help either on the microwave issue. We have never ordered from Garden Grocer...well because we are on vacation. I bring a few snack items from home, but otherwise we enjoy the cocktails at the Poly (WOW!!) and Tonga Toast for breakfast....don't miss out on these things!

 

[sargenca]

When we were there last September we got a microwave. We just requested one when we checked in and it was delivered right away. There was no fee. It sat on the area above the fridge cabinet where the coffee maker and ice bucket sits. We just sat that stuff on top of the MW.

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x310/decapua94/100_2258.jpg


Not sure about beer and wine from Garden Grocer. Check for availability and the prices online, because you can get beer and wine in the resort gift shops (do a search to see if anyone has posted the gift shop prices). Probably will not be cheaper at the resort, but just another option.

 

[maiapapaya]

Tikiman also says "the resort is fine" so I would take that to mean that it is nothing too drastic, like levelling anything. Sounds like those with future reservations can rest easy.

 

[Divaofdisney]

Well I certainly hope that they let the secret out of the bag soon. I have always wanted to stay at the Poly with my family and now that we will be I am so excited. The kids are going to so love it there. The beauty of the resort is one of the reasons why we love it so much. I hope that whatever the announcement is does not involve any major construction.

 

[mom2randj]

We leave for our first trip in 3 weeks from today!!

Sorry if it's been asked before but do we need to bring beah towels for the pool? We will be flying in and I don't want to pack some if it isn't necessary.

 

[Pookasaurus]

^^^ They always had plenty of towels at the pool so no, you don't need to bring any They weren't big soft beach towels, but they worked fine and it was nice not to have to worry about wet towels!


We returned a week ago from our first trip at the Poly (15-23) and it was amazing! I hope the big announcement isn't any tear downs or such, we loved everything just as it was. We were contemplating a Contemporary stay for our next trip in a few years but I don't think we could stay anywhere but the Poly when on the monorail anymore! We didn't put in any long house requests and ended up in Fiji facing the Marina, 1st floor and it was perfect - relaxing, close to the pool and GCH, we'd love to stay in Fiji again!

We really had an amazing trip and can't wait to go back We met so many nice people (guests!) and had a blast at the parks and MNSSHP on the 20th.

 

[MamaToDavis]

^^^ They always had plenty of towels at the pool so no, you don't need to bring any They weren't big soft beach towels, but they worked fine and it was nice not to have to worry about wet towels!


We returned a week ago from our first trip at the Poly (15-23) and it was amazing! I hope the big announcement isn't any tear downs or such, we loved everything just as it was. We were contemplating a Contemporary stay for our next trip in a few years but I don't think we could stay anywhere but the Poly when on the monorail anymore! We didn't put in any long house requests and ended up in Fiji facing the Marina, 1st floor and it was perfect - relaxing, close to the pool and GCH, we'd love to stay in Fiji again!

We really had an amazing trip and can't wait to go back We met so many nice people (guests!) and had a blast at the parks and MNSSHP on the 20th.

Sounds like a great trip! I have a question about Fiji...did you find a lot of foot traffic going by your patio? Was there a lot of noise from the luau? I am really thinking about requesting this longhouse but worried about those two issues. Thanks so much!!

 

[Pookasaurus]

We loved Fiji and if we were to request a long house on a future trip, DH said he'd want to request that one. We were on the very end of the building by Tuvalu (i believe) and did not notice an obscene amt of traffic. The carts and such all went by on the other end, along with any traffic from the Luau. We did have people walk by, but it was never a bother or annoying nor did it feel like we had any less privacy. The only people that would really be walking along that path would be people heading to and from their room which you're going to get in any longhouse - The "path" that runs between Fiji and the Marina doesn't really seem to go anywhere though not sure about the other side in relation to the Luau Cove.

You could hear the drums from the Luau but it wasn't loud and it wasn't all night long - you'd hear them on and off but you had to pay attention to really notice it. The noise from the Volcano pool (music, parties, etc) was more a bother when we laid down to nap (we have a toddler) than the noise from the Luau and there are longhouses closer to the pool than Fiji. And even though you could hear the pool music it still wasn't much of an issue - baby still napped fine

We loved our location - we were a quick walk to everything we needed and the walk to the TTC wasn't bad, either. When going to epcot we found it easier to just walk to the TTC. DH was able to run to Capt. Cooks in the mornings, grab coffee, and be back in the room in under 5 minutes!

This was our view:

 

[maiapapaya]

The latest from Tikiman ... he says that there was some major plans that got changed after an evaluation of the resort, and that the plans have turned into something big enough that CM's have been told they will have to relocate for a long period of time (he doesn't know when this will occur). He says that he reported a while ago that the GCH needs major work, but that this is bigger than that and that there have been surveyors at the resort. Sounds like possible DVC coming to me ...