I keep going back and forth between CBR and the Poly. We have only ever stayed value and decided never again. DH hates buses and really wants to stay on the monorail. I love the Poly, it's my dream resort - and... we have a 40% off pin code. That said, it's still about $1000 more for the week than CBR.
Please tell me why the Poly is worth it, in your opinion. Or, if you think we'd like CBR just as well, please tell me why.
If it helps, we have two kids - 4 and 7. We'll be staying for a week with the dining plan in June. Right now I'm weighing CBR with Plus Dining vs. Poly with QSDP and a few OOP ADRs.
If we stay at CBR, we'll definitely rent a car!
First, I would like to say that we have no kids. I would also like to tell you that we have stayed at all levels of Disney resorts and have indeed stayed at CBR and the Poly in the past. My partner and I both like to keep as much money in our pockets as possible, but quite honestly, the older we get (36 and 42 currently) the more important it is becoming for us to spoil ourselves and really enjoy a relaxing vacatation at least once a year.
Ok, CBR, let me start by saying that the theme of this resort never appealed to me before I booked it and it didn't change when we stayed there. Their CS food court was ok, it had some nice choices, but their TS restaurant is a joke. It's set up with faux walls inside the seating area of the CS restaurant inside of Old Port Royale. It's totally tacky. The rooms were ok, but quite honestly, we stayed there for our anniversary and the room we got was as far away from the bus stop as possible and as far away from the pool as possible. I don't think that we could have been given a worse location. We were not close to The Custom House or Old Port Royale. Basically, we got the worst possible location with a king bed.

Oh, and the cool pool was down for rehab, so no hot tub for us. We left that weekend getaway with one firm rule. We will never stay at CBR again!
The Poly, ah, let me say that those two words, the Poly, they almost always make me sigh with fond memories of the best relaxed vacation experience at WDW ever. I admit that being upgraded to GV CL was pretty sweet too.

We loved the easy access to the monorail. We loved the fact that there was excellent coffee right there. We loved the dining options. Of all of the deluxe resorts, this is the only resort that we would actually dine at all of their restaurants with no hesitation. My partner is a picky eater and has food allergies, but they always do a great job in offering up tasty food that won't kill her.

Honestly, even when you have to walk from the TTC to the Hawaii building it's not that bad, because the environment is so incredibly peaceful. The pools were great. We had a great time at the Luau. The fireworks at MK were nice to enjoy from inside the CL lounge and from the beach. Overall, this was just the best vacation experience ever.
Now, let me just say that out of all of the Moderates that we have stayed at POR wins my vote for favorite, much for the same reasons that I love the Poly, it's peaceful, it's beautiful, and it's comfortable. I love POR. Also, I have to give props to the YC. We stayed there in December and it was an excellent experience. We loved it. Epcot was an easy walk or boat ride away. DHS was a boat ride or an 20 minute walk away. We had great bus service to AK, MK, and DTD. The level of service we experienced was outstanding. The pools were nice and the hot tub was perfect. The food was great at the Captain's Grill. It's my #2 resort of choice and if it had a monorail, I would be really torn between the YC and the Poly as to which was #1.
I hope something in what I just wrote helps you.
