Anyone sad about the Polynesian Changes?

[PolynesianAlex]

Hey everyone, Haven't been to Disney in a little over 3 years and I'm just hearing about the renovation. Its really sad to see how much they are changing it. Removing waterfall and that SMELL, captain cooks, arcade. Had a lot of great memories from 2007-2011. Going to the arcade late night after the parks and making dole whip floats at captain cooks was the best. I hate so say this but DVC is really ruining the magic kingdom resorts. Even the view of the grand floridan from the beach isn't the same with the huge new building. Sorry for this pointless post but Its just sad to see my favorite place growing up completely change

 

[johnsonet]

It is sad, I agree. But things evolve and you just have to go with it.
I'm sad about the new rooms at GF Totally different look and to me they do not seem like "my" GF at all Oh well...

Have faith - I'm sure the new resort will be gorgeous and special. Oh, and maybe you will find a new favorite

 

[kiki02]

Hey everyone, Haven't been to Disney in a little over 3 years and I'm just hearing about the renovation. Its really sad to see how much they are changing it. Removing waterfall and that SMELL, captain cooks, arcade. Had a lot of great memories from 2007-2011. Going to the arcade late night after the parks and making dole whip floats at captain cooks was the best. I hate so say this but DVC is really ruining the magic kingdom resorts. Even the view of the grand floridan from the beach isn't the same with the huge new building. Sorry for this pointless post but Its just sad to see my favorite place growing up completely change

Very very sad. Change is not always for the better.

 

[kmb584]

Incredibly so. We've stayed at the Poly only a handful of times (prefer AKL, WL, or GF) but visited the resort at least 2-3 times per trip because of the ambiance. The lobby brought back so many memories from childhood.

 

[mevelandry]

I did notice the new building around GF but I wouldn't say it spoils the view.

I think I might miss the waterfalls but who knows what they'll put instead... Maybe I will like it more.

I already love the new buildings they're adding "over the water".

I've never been a fan of the volcano pool ... I think I might enjoy it more once redone.

But it is a lot of change at the same time.

And they will probably raise the price again once it's done which makes it harder to imagine that I'll stay there again (unless I get big raise)

 

[Summertinkerbell]

I'm not a big one for change. Sometimes it is necessary, but I do know that my DD was devastated when she found out they removed the waterfall. The thing we love about the Polynesian is it's striking beauty and how tastefully the Polynesian theme is expressed throughout the resort. I hope, when all is said and done, "progress" doesn't take away it's charm.

 

[king kamehameha]

It seems the people that have been going toy he Poly for a long time are affected the most. I personally loved it the way it was. It was sooooo relaxing. I also don't mind change, but in this case Disney has ruined a beloved resort all for DVC. They didn't add to the resort as they have done with others, but instead they are cutting the resort almost in half and in the process they have taken away one of the main reasons people went there...the view! Now all you see is bungalows that most people will never be able to afford. In addition to that, they will be catering to DVC members over "regular" guests by having the "regular" people walk around the DVC portion of the resort to get to the TTC. I AM NOT BASHING DVC MEMBERS but I don't want any part of it. We travel all over, not just to Disney, and when we do go to Disney we find deals that even our friends with DVC are envious of. To get back on topic...yes we are saddened by what has happened to the resort and maybe someday we will return, but there are other things keeping us away as well. Fastpass+ is the biggest failure in decades and the prices they charge ( for what you get in return ) are outrageous. To sum up, we have been HUGE Disney fans for decades but now the magic that made Disney special ( at least fo us ) is gone. The whole landscape has changed and the new Disney has nothing to offer us. Oh we'll. sorry for the long rant but it feels good to get it out. Also, this is just one posters opinion and I know others may vary. To those of you that still enjoy what Disney has to offer....I'm glad it still magical for you!

 

[Judyfun]

This is the resort that my children grew up in, starting in the late 1970's. Like everyone else, so many great memories. I always knew that we were on vacation the second we walked into the Great Ceremonial Hall and saw all the lush plants and water (plus the birds).

I am staying there this October with my DD and we are going to try and not compare to the resort of our youth, but work on creating new memories for the future.

Judy

 

[Summertinkerbell]

Our last trip was this week exactly 3 years ago, so I have a lot to catch up on.

Could you explain to me how Fast Pass+ is a failure? Do we have to pay for it or something? I know that if you want anything special at Universal Studios, you have to pay a premium for it. I hope Disney hasn't gone to the dark side with Universal.

I was under the impression that Fast Pass+ was free and would help me organize my trip even better than before. I like to plan way ahead, and months before we leave, I have all our restaurant and special event reservations booked. The idea of not having to race to the Fast Pass Queue seconds after the parks open pleases me. I thought it would be cool to have our Fast Passes ahead of time so that we could leisurely enter the parks and not have to rush so much.

I know there have been a lot of major changes since our last trip in August 2011, but I didn't realize that Fast Pass+ would be a bad thing.

 

[king kamehameha]

Our last trip was this week exactly 3 years ago, so I have a lot to catch up on.

Could you explain to me how Fast Pass+ is a failure? Do we have to pay for it or something? I know that if you want anything special at Universal Studios, you have to pay a premium for it. I hope Disney hasn't gone to the dark side with Universal.

I was under the impression that Fast Pass+ was free and would help me organize my trip even better than before. I like to plan way ahead, and months before we leave, I have all our restaurant and special event reservations booked. The idea of not having to race to the Fast Pass Queue seconds after the parks open pleases me. I thought it would be cool to have our Fast Passes ahead of time so that we could leisurely enter the parks and not have to rush so much.

I know there have been a lot of major changes since our last trip in August 2011, but I didn't realize that Fast Pass+ would be a bad thing.

You may be questioning my post. I was referencing the costs of admission, food, hotel, etc.. Sorry for the confusion.

 

[Jonell]

I too am sad especially about the changes being made to the GCH. It was a mess there then we visited in June/July. I am a DVC member and with the price per point and point cost per night I doubt i'll ever get to stay there especially in the bungalows. I also hate that they will be taking away our pool hopping privilages. It was a first day tradition of ours to go to MK and then take the monorail to the Poly poolside for Mai Tai's.

 

[Summertinkerbell]

You may be questioning my post. I was referencing the costs of admission, food, hotel, etc.. Sorry for the confusion.

Yes I was. Okay, so I assume Fast Pass+ is free. Please tell me what you don't like about it. I don't want to be surprised (in a bad way) when we use it. I would appreciate any information you have.

Thanks!

 

[Sue M]

I am sad about some of the changes. I realize they had to do something about the lobby because of structural issues, leaky roof, etc. But I'm sure new lobby will be nice, a more open concept.
But hate what they've done with DVC. So intrusive on orig resort. All other DVC were built beside resorts leaving the resort alone. When I first heard about Poly DVC I had hoped it would be built off to the side by Spirit of Aloha. Never did I thing it would be smack in the middle of Poly .

And why wouldn't they build a DVC pool for GFV? We will be at GF in 2 weeks and I think pools will be much more crowded now. When we stayed last Aug GFV hadn't opened. We were supposed to be at Poly this Aug, but with construction then pool closure we moved.

My thoughts on FP+ ugh. I've used it several times now. While it does have some good points, I still prefer the old way, or the first release of FP + before they introduced the tiers which no one likes. ESP the Epcot tiers where you can only get a FP for TT or Sorin. All the rest if the FP on second tier are useless, you don't need FPs for them anyway.
Plus it's difficult to coordinate with others in your group if some are staying off site. Never was a problem before. Now it is.


And Universal has great perks for on site guests, with their Front of The Line pass!

 

[Summertinkerbell]

I am sad about some of the changes. I realize they had to do something about the lobby because of structural issues, leaky roof, etc. But I'm sure new lobby will be nice, a more open concept.
But hate what they've done with DVC. So intrusive on orig resort. All other DVC were built beside resorts leaving the resort alone. When I first heard about Poly DVC I had hoped it would be built off to the side by Spirit of Aloha. Never did I thing it would be smack in the middle of Poly .

And why wouldn't they build a DVC pool for GFV? We will be at GF in 2 weeks and I think pools will be much more crowded now. When we stayed last Aug GFV hadn't opened. We were supposed to be at Poly this Aug, but with construction then pool closure we moved.

My thoughts on FP+ ugh. I've used it several times now. While it does have some good points, I still prefer the old way, or the first release of FP + before they introduced the tiers which no one likes. ESP the Epcot tiers where you can only get a FP for TT or Sorin. All the rest if the FP on second tier are useless, you don't need FPs for them anyway.
Plus it's difficult to coordinate with others in your group if some are staying off site. Never was a problem before. Now it is.


And Universal has great perks for on site guests, with their Front of The Line pass!

Good Lord Louise...Do I dare ask what "tiers" are? I can see that I have a lot to learn. It is as if I had never been to WDW before. I'm really lost in the sauce.

 

[vinotinto]

We stayed at the Poly in 2010 and I was completely underwhelmed with the rooms, the Great House, the look and feel of the lobby, the restaurants ('Ohana, Kona, and Captain Cook), the shop, and the lounge. It felt a little bit like being in an airline terminal. The pool was so small.

We have not returned, not even to have a meal there, and we have been back to Disney many times (with the DxDP), so that just tells you what we thought of it. There was nothing that said "deluxe" to me.

So, I am looking forward to the renovations. I hope they make it fabulous. The theme and the location has so much potential. I just hope that what they are planning is not a refresh, but a major overhaul. I hope they change the great house and the restaurants completely. I hope they expand the pool area quite a bit (it was small before the DVC, imagine with the additional rooms).

My concern is that they are investing a lot in the Poly DVC, but I don't know if they will be completely re-doing the other rooms.

 

[mickeynut1]

I'm very sad that the water fall has been taken out of the GCH. Awhile back I saw an artist's rendering of the new lobby and sadly, I don't like it . We love the Poly and are planning on staying there next summer, but I think they are making too drastic of changes. Everything seems to be going in a generic direction, especially in all of the deluxe resort rooms. The Poly rooms look ok (much better than the GF and BWI rooms, IMO), but I think they took away too many Disney touches as well as the "Polynesian" feel by getting rid of the dark colors/tones. I also don't like the bathrooms as they look like something that belongs in a CR room, too modern, IMO. We will continue to visit and stay at the Poly, but it won't be the same .

 

[tsme]

I'm sad about all the changes at the Poly & do not like how they're adding the DVCs. Poly use to be our favorite place to stay, our home away from home. Not anymore, we'll be staying at another deluxe, though I doubt Disney cares.

 

[mevelandry]

I too am sad especially about the changes being made to the GCH. It was a mess there then we visited in June/July. I am a DVC member and with the price per point and point cost per night I doubt i'll ever get to stay there especially in the bungalows. I also hate that they will be taking away our pool hopping privilages. It was a first day tradition of ours to go to MK and then take the monorail to the Poly poolside for Mai Tai's.

DVC are/were allowed to pool hop?

 

[mevelandry]

Yes I was. Okay, so I assume Fast Pass+ is free. Please tell me what you don't like about it. I don't want to be surprised (in a bad way) when we use it. I would appreciate any information you have.

Thanks!

I'm actually surprised that somebody hates it. We've tried it during our last WDW trip in October and we loved it. It was so convenient!

 

[mevelandry]

I'm very sad that the water fall has been taken out of the GCH. Awhile back I saw an artist's rendering of the new lobby and sadly, I don't like it

O.k. So I'll totally lose the "Wow" effect I used to get every time I went there.