Booked at the Poly now having second thoughts ( long post)...

[npall]

Hi! We are booked for 3 days at the Polynesian the end of Aug. (29-Sept 1st.)We live in Orlando but wanted to stay on site for the first time ever, since we have a 2 year old a monorail resort was a must but after reading this board so much and just coming back from a day trip I am wavering whether we made the right decision. Here are my reasons and welcome any and all advice anyone can give me!

1. We have done 3 day trips (open- 8pm) with my son and he has done WONDERFUL. He doesn't want to leave. He is happy just being there going on the different rides and seeing the shows. We spend most of our time at MK and some at Epcot. He takes a hour in half nap in his stroller and is ready for more. ( MY thought now being maybe needing easy access to the hotel won't be that big of a deal.)

2. Since we have spent so much time at MK & Epcot by Aug. we will probably spend alot more time at MGM and AK. Which defeats the whole monorail purpose.

3. We live 30 minutes from Disney and I feel so crazy spending $697.00 for 3 nights so close to home. ( Like my husband says we can be home in less time it takes to catch the ferry back to TTC)

4. We are spending another $2200 for DCL 4 day cruise the day we checkout.

5. We passed the Polynesian on our way to Epcot on the monorail and it just looked so dark and the buildings looked so much older compared to the GF.

So here they are! Should I cancel my reservations and maybe go with something like AKL ? Should we stay on-site at all ?

Thanks for listening!

Naomi

 

[Lesley]

The Poly is my favorite WDW hotel......its just got this perfect laid back charm to it. And when they light the tiki torches in the evening the place is heaven. The new pool is awesome looking.

AKL is great too...but its sort of out there and takes a bit of time to get anywhere but AK from there.

It's nice after a long day to be able to get the monorail back to your hotel. Much nicer than the busses.

But really you have to make the choice that you're comfortable with... with living that close you want to stay somewhere that's worth it...the Poly is worth it!

 

[Laura]

Hello... I've stayed at the Polynesian and it really isn't dark. The buildings' exteriors are (they're supposed to resemble actual Polynesian structures), and that's about it. There are flowers everywhere on the grounds and the rooms are very pretty. I've also heard that the new pool is great. I've seen some pictures; it looks like fun. So I don't think you need to worry that the Polynesian isn't a nice resort. I can't think of anyone who hasn't liked it.

Your point about going to AK and MGM more this trip is a good reason for switching resorts, though, as is your comment on paying so much for a room when you live so close by. You might consider one of the moderate resorts; Coronado Springs is close to both MGM and AK, for example. I've stayed there too and the transportation to and from those parks was pretty fast as the parks are so close by. The longest ride was to MK.

I can guarantee you that staying on-site is much different. I happen to prefer it. It's sort of an all-encompassing Disney experience. When you cross the boundaries of WDW and enter the "real" world to go to your house to sleep instead of staying inside the World, I'm sure you feel that the fun has ended and you go home to dirty dishes (or whatever!) and telephone messages and bills in the mail and so forth. So I recommend staying on-site. The choice of the resort is certainly up to you. But for a short trip like 3 days, I would recommend staying near the parks you'll visit more.

 

[CaliforniaDreaming]

The Polynesian opened in 1971, and the Grand Floridian opened in 1988. The Poly is 17 years older than the GF. The Poly has gone through renovations, I think they ended in 1997 (? - Tikiman?). The Grand Floridian also went through renovations, ending on December 23, 2000. The Polynesian is just like the South Seas, and the Grand Floridian is a turn-of-the-century victorian seaside hotel. They are such different themes, which is why the GF is so must brighter than the Poly. The GF's rooms are bright and airy, while some would say the Poly's rooms are dark (well, they are earth colors, afterall).

The AKL is also a "dark resort". It is filled with many dark woods (in and out of the rooms). The location isn't great at all, but it does make you feel like "I'm not in Orlando anymore".

You didn't list this option, but have you considered a Tower Room at the Contemporary?

 

[cindyfan]

We are planning part of our June trip at the Poly also, so I will throw in my 2 cents.....
Since you do live so close I think you might want some thing that really is worth it like Lesley said. And with your son not wanting to leave MK....you can just say that the hotel is another part of it. You can see the castle, fireworks, etc. from the rooms/ or beach!!!! It would make it easier to get him to really take a nap or rest during the day!!
And if he likes it that much...is he really going to be happy spending more time at MGM and AK?? You may find yourself back at MK.
But AKL is great and if you do plan on AK and MGM more then AKL would work great too.

You dont' just need a hotel....you live too close for that. You want a true Disney experience....
So I would go with a deluxe for sure....either Poly or AKL.
You can't lose with either!
Have fun.

 

[melbatoast]

You haven't mentioned the best resort - The Yacht&Beach Club! If you think you will spend time at MGM it is a nice boat ride from the resort (or a 20 minute walk) and a 5 minute walk to Epcot. We just got back from 3 nights at BC and 3 nights at GF and for as much as I was dying to stay at GF, we all agreed we liked the BC better! The kids (4,5,6) absolultely loved the pool, with the sand at the bottom, and the big sand/pool area was a blast for little kids! I know the summer rates for BC were like $189 or something - I definately think you should check it out! It is like a vacation within a vacation!

 

[gepetto]

As much as I love Polynesian, getting to AK and MGM isn't all that convenient from there. You share busses with WL and GF. I guess I'd go with Yacht/Beach Club too.

 

[Tikiman]

Actually sharing the buses with the GF and WL is not bad. You only have one stop coming and going. The YC busses were horrible. There were way too many stops both ways and one night we waited forever at DTD for a YC bus. We saw 5 Polynesian buses before we saw a YC bus. I would not stay at the YC without a car.

As for the age of the Polynesian, 2 of the longhouses (Tahiti and Rapa Nui are only 3 years older than the GF and the pool area is almost a year old. The last big rehab (completely gutting the rooms) was done to all the longhouses from 1996-1998 and even as soon as last summer all the rooms were cleaned up and repainted along with what ever repairs needed to be done.

With the TTC and the monorail at the Polynesian I never found anything hard to get to.

If you want to see more just go to here:

http://tikiman2001.homestead.com/index.html


Steve

 

[npall]

we haven't decided yet what we are going to do but you guys convinced me of one thing! To stay at a DELUXE!
Cindyfan you are right, we don't need just a hotel. I think if we went for a moderate, I would really feel like we should've saved the money and stayed at home. You're also right about my son, what if he decides "yeah great animals mom but let's go see the rail (monorail) and fafle (castle!)" and we end up spending most of our time at MK.

Thanks for the suggestions of YC but we are doing a 4 day beach vacation in July in St. Pete so I think that will take care of the beach thing for us....

Cal: I thought about the Contemporary but it doersn't look very themed am I wrong ? Because like Cindyfan said we don't need just another hotel.

We will have our own car since we are driving to the port on Sunday. So even if we stay at Poly we would drive to AK & MGM and vice versa.

So I am still wavering between AKL & Polynesian. Dreams is holding a ressie for AKL Savannah view until 4/26 so I have to decide before then. AKL was $70 cheaper but to me that isn't a big enough difference to make my decision.

Thanks everyone!
Naomi

 

[Swan]

I would stay at the Poly. I like the white sands and looking at the lagoon. If the water parade is going on I enjoy it even more. I love walking back from the TIC at night with the torches lit. The lush green plants everywhere makes me feel like I am in paradise. In fact when I am there I am in paradise. The concierge is wonderful the staff talked with me about the high return rate and how it was neat to watch kids grow up and return with their own families. The place is beautiful. I first saw the Poly on our honeymoon and fell in love with it. It took me 11 years to get to stay there, and I was not disappointed. I forgot to mention the monorail and boats are a nice form of transportation. It is nice to have option on how you want to get somewhere.

 

[susy]

Naomi,
What a tough decision! That's the downside of living so close! We are 3-4 hrs away, so it just barely justifies staying over!


I would choose AKL! Here's why-

1. You want to do AK and MGM. I think it will be more relaxing to be more "away" from everything and you want to be relaxed before your cruise.

2. It's cheaper. Okay, it's not that much cheaper, but $70 goes a long way in terms of "meals". Is it $70 a night? There's your dinner every night!

3. If you don't say anything to your son and just go to AKL and to AK, he may not even say anything about the castle, etc.

I would do the Poly, if you plan to spend time at MK and Epcot (hence, the purpose of the monorail) and you really enjoy their restaurants, etc.

 

[Tikiman]

Naomi,

IF you decision is between the Polynesian and the AKL then you have to go with the Polynesian. I love the AKL infact we are staying there in July but when you are at the Polynesian the GF, Contemporary and even the WL are part of your stay also. They are so close that eating or just visiting them is so easy. We have breakfast at the Contemporary and then Dinner at the GF or sometimes just pop into the MK for food and a ride or two. It is that easy. The ALK is great but is close to nothing except the AK park. I don't usually try to tell some one they have to stay at the Polynesian but everything you want is there. I don't think you will be sorry.

Steve

 

[npall]

I have been trying to make this decision for us (me,dh,ds) and my dh said it was up to me, either way he was fine. Plus he said I was the one doing all the research. I printed out this thread for him and had him read them and he said that Steve was right with his last post!

Everyone made wonderful points. I love Steve's suggestion of having breakfast at one resort and dinner at another or just stopping in for a ride or two. This isn't possible staying at AKL. We would have to drive if we wanted to get to anywhere outside of AK where at the Poly we would drive only to get to AK.

I guess my hesitation was if we didn't spend time at MK it wasn't worth it, but I realize now (thanks to everyone) that since we do have AP's we can spend more time enjoying the resort knowing that we can come back to the parks anytime.

Eventually we will try all resorts but for now we are staying with our first instinct and staying at the POLY!

I don't know what I would do without these boards, you guys are so wonderful and so helpful! Thank you so much

Naomi

 

[BibbidiBobbidiBOO]

We have stayed at Deluxes and Moderates and the Mods ARE heavily themed. They are more than a hotel ! We could spend all day at PO-Riverside and not get bored. Fishing, boat ride, surrey rentals, boat to DD, and the pools and food court. So much to walk around and see. I do think you can have a great time there. We also enjoy WL and it is worth it to stay there and enjoy what it offers. We do like the balcony at the deluxes, the EWP and all the wildlife you can see there. The geyser is prety cool too! We are only a 4 hour drive away, so we tend to go too often and DO have to stay a couple of nights! We tend to drive to AK from the resorts and it is never a problem. Good luck and have fun deciding !

 

[Tikiman]

Naomi,

Not that I need to push you any more but I spend most of my time at Epcot and I find the ride from the TTC very easy, fast. It took us longer to walk from the YC to get to test track than it took us to go from our room at the Polynesian to get to Test Track. I am not saying the YC is not a great location (our second favorite) but if staying at the Polynesian you will find that Epcot is easy to get to. We made lunch reservations at Mexico as we were walking our of our room and they were for 15 minutes from the time we were at the Polynesian and we made it with out running.

Have a great time and make sure you still visit the AKL for dinner and check out the animals. They feed them around 6:00 PM.

Steve

 

[cruisnfamily]

but...I thought I would add my 2 cents. If you are going on a cruise, you can book the Swan/Dolphin for $149 per night for up to 14 days prior to and following the Disney Cruise. Just a thought!

 

[Lesley]

One more note (to make you feel even better aboout choosing the Poly!) the decorating inside the rooms at the Poly is done mainly in light earth tones with some bright colors here and there. AKL's room decor is lots of very dark wood...deep beige walls...I kept looking for more lights! As much as I loved staying there (and its definitely something to try someday...I do recommend it) the Poly is just awesome.

 

[npall]

That's a great deal! I am going to visit all the resorts in that area one by one...

Steve- Where did you go for lunch in Mexico ? Was it any good? I love Mexican food but was afraid to try anything there thinking it would be too fast foodish..(plus I am Spanish so I am a little more picky.)

Everyone I have talked to about what I am doing (friends & family) think I am CRAZY for spending this kind of money at Disney, they look at me like I have 2 heads. But you know what ? I don't care, so what I have lived here all my life, I can still be Disney crazy. I guess we local Orlando people take for granted how much money people out of state spend to come to WDW.

Thanks again to everyone for all their help...
BTW- I wasn't Disney crazy until my son went for the first time..he brought out the magic for me...

Naomi